The mention of a star providing all the light around them is enough to stoke the embers of his joy once more. A star did this? They always looked so distant whenever he saw them, he didn't think any glow they provided could reach somewhere, feel so tangible - it makes even the sunlight feel magical, in a way. He wonders where light comes from back home - was that a star, too? They didn't talk about any of them for.. obvious reasons, and the light and dark were more so treated as simple facts rather than something to discover the source of. At least, he's fairly certain. He spent a lot of time staring up rather then properly paying attention to that sort of stuff, but they could eat it now that he knew he was onto something there! The stars were permanent no matter the time for him however, seeing as the were always just.. up there, but maybe things worked similarly anyways! Maybe when he got home he'd have to see. Even if he doubts he'd get to follow up on it much, all things considered.
The next statement.. doesn't exactly alleviate his doubts. Or worries. It helps, having fellow weirdos and family around to support you. He wonders what that must be like. To actively embrace that feeling rather then spend every living moment trying to conceal it, or being told to conceal it. It reflects in his eye, scrunching and staring into nothing, deeply pondering that reality. He already does that a lot, though - he snaps himself out of it readily enough. What's new to think about is everyone else being like him, or everyone else being strange in different ways that it doesn't really matter anymore. That everyone was strange, and therefore made it normal. He can't even imagine how much they'd up his dosage if he came home and started putting that thought out there.
Although with what the other says next gives.. a lot more to think about, too. Maybe a more worrying thing to think about. What did he mean, choices? Choices that hurt his family..? He looks confused, but in a sort of.. timid, almost scared way. He doesn't know what that means - why would he hurt his family? Why did he sound so.. sad.. about it..? He knows how people sound when they're trying to avoid something painful, his ma does it all the time and he isn't stupid. But why? What did he mean had to be stopped? How did he stop him that gave him a crack splitting his entire being apart?
Meanwhile, perhaps as a reflection of his younger selves sudden unease, Bill could practically feel his grip on Sixer slipping away. He knows him too well, but the careful look in his eyes to the curt response that he's thinking about things too hard. He loves it when Sixer thinks, the sight of his neurons firing off like supernovas one of his favorite things to witness, but right now.. he'd rather turn down the dial on that before he got too smart. And - wow, he just had to bring up Hawkins of all people, didn't he - until his brain fired off like an explosion, remembering the portal. The portal. The portal. Bill manages to stop the way his eye instinctively wishes to scrunch in displeasure at the question. How does he go about this without blowing the lid off the whole thing...
"RIGHT! THE PORTAL. REALLY KID, IT'S BEEN FOREVER, DO YOU REALLY THINK YOU'D START DRAGGING YOUR FEET THAT CLOSE TO THE FINISH LINE? THE PORTAL WENT JUST AS SMOOTHLY AS I TOLD YOU IT WOULD! I MEAN, C'MON, HOW ELSE WOULD I BE HERE IN THE FLESH? I'D NEVER HAVE A DEAL WITH YOU FALL THROUGH. YOU'VE GOT EVERYONE IN YOUR CORNER JUST LIKE YOU WANTED, I'VE GOT THE PHYSICAL FORM, AND BEST OF ALL, WE'RE LIKE, BEST FRIENDS. YOU DON'T EVEN HAVE TO PASS OUT TO HANG OUT ANYMORE. ASIDE FROM THE BRIEF BUMP IN THE ROAD NOW, THINGS ARE GREAT."
Something deep in his guts twists as he says the words, although he does his best to shut it out, just like he always does when he thinks about what could have been. Sixer'll disappear after this, he knows that. But part of him briefly gets carried away with the reality he's crafted up, a wistful tone entering his voice the longer he'd went. If things just went his way, Sixer at his side, liberated from all those dolts who just dragged him down, free to reach his truest potential.... if only he could burn away any trace of betrayal.
But just like all things, it must come to an end. He can't dwell on the idea too long, given he's picked back up on the other conversation at play.
While he catches on, the smaller triangle still perched takes the.. phone, the other called it? Weird, but whatever - in his hand. It takes a moment to figured out the mechanics, but after that hurdle, he gets to writing the quick brown fox - before he's interrupted.
Apparently, Bills finally gotten tired of playing nice. He is not letting Sixer find out about why it's illegal - he's been trying to be delicate about the situation, but he's not willing to walk on eggshells and let him figure that out due to his own sentimentality desire to further mess with Sixer's head. No - it's been nice, pretending like old times, but if he's gotta set the trap they've stepped into here off, he'll do it gladly. His eye shifts to himself, briefly flickering back to Sixer, as if considering something... before his resolve hardens, and it's almost like he was never there to begin with. He steps away and closer to the truth at hand.
"I'D THINK TWICE BEFORE GOING THAT FAR, KID - THE REASON HE WAS SO QUICK TO SKIP OVER THE SPECIFICS OF THOSE CHOICES AND HOW HE STOPPED US IS BECAUSE HE KILLED US. SHOT US INTO A MILLION ATOMS! LUCKY FOR US I HAD A BACKUP PLAN STORED AWAY, BUT HE DIDN'T KNOW THAT - IN FACT, THAT'S WHY HE'S SO MAD AT US. HE WISHES WE STAYED DEAD. SO THERE! YOU CAN KEEP ANSWERING YOUR MURDERS QUESTIONS IF YOU WANT, BUT I WOULDN'T. WHY ELSE DO YOU THINK I TRIED TO STOP YOU?"
He deliberately avoids the younger Sixer's gaze as he reveals this. He doesn't want to see the flurry of emotions thats most certainly playing out on his face right now. Instead, he stayed focused on him. His younger self, and the look of pure terror that courses through his system at these words. Killed him? He was killed? By him? He’d just told him everything, showed him all this and - oh stars, he can tell by the expression change there’s something there. It made sense, it made sense, that's what he meant by he had to be stopped he killed him he killed him he killed him so badly it left his entire shape fractured even afterwards. He scrambles away from the other, falling from his shoulder and onto the grass. He doesn’t stop there, continuing to move a few steps back. His look is frightfully analyzing, clearly rethinking everything about the conversation they'd just had now. More so than he already had been, a panic kicking in alongside it.
"YOU DIDN'T - RIGHT? YOU - WHY WOULD YOU LET ME SAY ALL THAT IF YOU WERE JUST GOING TO KILL ME? IS THAT WHY YOU DIDN'T TELL ME ANYTHING ABOUT YOU? YOUR NAME, OR - OR ANYTHING ELSE!? BECAUSE YOU WISH I WAS DEAD? I TRUSTED YOU!"