Mutually Beneficial Ch. xxi
First - Previous - Next - Chapter list
Recommended listening: The Beatles - Sexy Sadie
Tw: are there any warnings? there are no warnings, except everybody’s really tired
-
In all honesty, Thomas wasn't feeling that great. The day prior, he hadn't even been able to get out of bed. He hadn't cared when Joan had called and asked why he wasn't at the office. He hadn't cared when he realized he hadn't showered. He just . . . didn't care. About anything.
Initially, he blamed Virgil for his apathy. Maybe the Side had been sick—Virgil had seemed to be under the weather lately. That couldn't be right, though. He certainly felt anxious, but not for any particular reason.
Then, out of nowhere tonight, he started sobbing. Something strange was going on inside his head, and he needed to know what. He hadn't felt incredibly creative these past few days—or, weeks?—, so maybe something was up with Roman.
Thomas dried his tears and stood in the middle of the living room. He didn't often summon the Sides—normally they popped up on their own or summoned each other. He knew how to do it, though. He gestured in the direction of Roman's corner and mimed yanking him up. Nothing happened.
Roman felt the pull, but wouldn't answer it. No one could force Creativity out of the Imagination. He . . . he wasn't presentable, anyhow. Thomas couldn't see him like . . . like this.
“Roman?” Thomas tried. “Princey?” Nothing.
It wasn't the first time, he realized. Roman had failed to appear when his dignity was injured. He shrugged, then recalled how apathetic he'd been feeling, then his sudden burst of emotion. Perhaps something was wrong with Patton.
Thomas mimicked the summoning action in the direction of the blinds.
Patton was curled up in bed with a cup of hot chocolate. Logan sat on the chair beside his bed, talking about theories and occasionally running breathing exercises with him. It was . . . nice. Comforting. Comforting enough that he forgot to rise up when he felt the pull.
Nothing. No Roman, and now no Patton. Thomas was beginning to feel anxious about this—perhaps Virgil could be summoned.
Deceit was tending his garden in the Imagination, attempting to calm himself enough to get back to sleep. He felt the pull behind his navel and briefly wondered why Thomas would be summoning him. Then he remembered that he had redirected all of Virgil's summons to himself, as he was currently playing the part of Virgil. He didn't feel like being him right now. Thomas would be fine.
That couldn't be right. Thomas tried again; nothing. His last hope was someone who he hoped could explain this.
Logan cut off in the middle of a word as he felt the summons. Patton gave him a curious look, to which he tiredly rubbed his eyes and said, “Excuse me, Patton. I'll return as soon as I can.”
Logan rose up, a cup of tea cradled in his hands. “Salutations, Thomas. How may I assist?”
“Logan what the heck is going on?!”
“I'm afraid I need you to be a bit more specific than that.”
Unbelievable. How could he not know? Thomas pointed wordlessly at the spots where his Sides normally stood.
Logan shifted uncomfortably. “Ah. I suppose you've attempted to summon the other Sides.”
“Where are they?! I've been feeling awful for weeks! Yesterday I couldn't even make myself get out of bed!”
“Thomas—”
“No!” He was not going to be placated! “Why haven't I been able to create? Why couldn't I get out of bed yesterday? Why did I start sobbing out of nowhere tonight? Why are you so calm?!”
“Thomas. Listen.”
Thomas stopped ranting, still heated. He let himself listen to Logan, who looked unimaginably tired. Logan took a long sip of his tea, then vanished the drink with a wave of his hand.
“The other Sides are currently unwell. Recall the video we created on negative thinking?”
Thomas nodded.
Logan continued wearily. “Roman and Patton were not capable of making an appearance, due to Roman being, er, out of sorts and Patton caring for him. This is a similar situation.”
Thomas furrowed his brow. His anger had disappeared as quickly as it had come. “I didn't do anything that hurt them, did I?”
“Oh no, this is in no way your fault,” Logan was quick to reassure. “They are simply out of commission for the time being.”
“Oh.” That made sense, Thomas supposed. He remembered his uncaring attitude that had finally broken tonight. It might have been Patton ill with a fever, now recovering.
“Do you need me for any further issues?”
“I don't think so.” It was probably for the best. Logan looked like he was about to collapse. As he sank out, he spoke.
“Please go to bed as soon as possible. We all need to sleep.”
-
TAGLIST (feel free to ask if you want to be added/removed!): @i-can-get-extra-with-my-ships @emo-adjacent @kai-the-person @stop-it-anxiety @shitpost-sides @bl00scl00s @charakitcat @ainsleyf @sandersstuffsblog @ginnyfox617 @enragedbees @minty4green @eggy-boyo @escalatingtoofast @hayden-going-insane @piixelations @supersoftsupersleep @crowsmadreadful @hpdmmdundtl @imnotjustanxiety @thenewlarislynn @mooniecoockie @eden607 @sanderssidesweirdo @cali-the-dreamer @thedukeofdeodorant-main @hankaa-aaaa
