I was given a list of prompts with the challenge to write 100 drabbles, each no more than 600 words long. I chose to do things a little differently: instead of one pairing, I'm writing for four of my favorite ones, and attempting to make all the drabbles interconnected and chronological. I'm also picking them at random - shuffled up all the prompt words in a box to make sure. (This is why each chapter has a random number in parentheses as well.)
The summary/title may change as the fic evolves, depending on where the prompts guide me. I have a general idea but can't get too specific for obvious reasons. Also, updates will probably be slow, as I'm cycling my drabbles through each pairing as well as not doing this every day. I'm posting each as a separate story for ease of reading, but they're all in a series if you feel inclined to check the others.
Miles was only ever sent to the principal's office once – in third grade. All the way down the hallway to the office, his breath grew louder in his ears, the walls stretched further and further away. He felt infinitesimal, a puny bug about to be crushed, and he didn't even care if that was dramatic of him. Larry sauntered ahead, actually whistling – but Miles hadn't been through this countless times before, and despite all of the logical reasoning and even proof to the contrary, he simply couldn't stop thinking I'm gonna be expelled I'm never going to college everyone is going to think I'm a criminal forever I'll never be a lawyer nowon a sickening, ever-worsening loop –
"Hey." He half-turned to see Phoenix looking at him with obvious concern. His eyes widened at whatever he saw on his face. "Whoa, uh, are you okay?"
Miles bit his lip. If they kicked him out of school for being pulled into Larry's dumb prank Phoenix would probably stop being his friend and they'd never see each other ever again.
"No," he whispered.
"I-It's not gonna be that bad," Phoenix tried to reassure him. "Probably just detention. You've never done anything before, it's not like they're going to put this on your permanent record."
Miles nodded. Pictured a newspaper headline: Juvenile delinquent assaults math teacher; never recovers.
"…I'm not helping at all, am I?" Phoenix asked.
Miles shook his head.
"Sorry," his best friend said. "I'm not good at making people feel better. I don't – honestly, I'm a little scared too. Mom's gonna kill me."
Miles wanted to smile at that, or at least to tell Phoenix that he was good at making people feel better, he made Miles feel better every single day. It was just this one moment that he was panicking beyond all hope of assistance, and it wasn't Phoenix's fault at all –
But up ahead, Larry had reached the office door and yanked it open. He yelled for them to catch up, and both boys still in the hallway flinched. Phoenix grabbed Miles' wrist and pulled him into a jog, turning into the office just in time to hear the secretary sigh fondly.
"That makes three times this month, Mr. Butz."
"I missed you!" Larry grinned cheekily.
She laughed; jabbed her pen at the small couch by the door. "Sit down, you charmer."
Miles sank into the couch as if it were an electric chair. He'd seen people waiting on this couch before. It was The Couch, it made everything real, because if they were waiting here that meant Principal Sterne was inside her office calling their parents. He felt numb. Was he crying? He wanted to cry.
Phoenix sat down close to him, hips and shoulders touching. Staring into his lap, Miles saw it happen: a familiar hand, reaching over to cover where his own gripped his leg.
Phoenix's fingers squirmed beneath his, tugging on his right hand, pulling until it rested between them, on both their thighs, and suddenly Phoenix's hand was tightly holding his. When Miles jerked his head up, wide-eyed, Phoenix smiled.
He smiled, and squeezed Miles' hand.
It's okay, the gesture said, simply. We're in this together.
Stunned, awed somehow, face really warm somehow and heart a little mushy, eyes still kind of wet and heart still beating too fast and panic still jittering through his skin, but also something he couldn't verbalize at all, couldn't put words to past you're the best friend ever and those weren't even enough – Miles smiled shakily back.
They held hands all the way through the meeting.
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