What's up, folks!
Sorry for the wait, this chapter is actually longer than the other ones and it required more revision. Hope y'all having the best of times waiting for this update! ;)
Quick reminder: In bold, it's Venom talking. In Italics, it's Wade's boxes.
Now, about the boxes, for those who might not know... The boxes are basically Wade's voices in his mind (named Yellow and White). They're called "boxes" because in the original comics, they weren't normal dialogues (since they're only in Wade's mind) so they were in boxes. Anyway, so Wade has two voices in his head, Yellow and White, and when one of them talks, it's in italics. If you're ever confused, comment or send me a PM! ;)
Have a great week, guys and special thanks to The Alien of Pluto for always leaving a comment, it's always a soft feeling of validation! Thanks, my Canadian compatriot!
Next chapter: A trip at the zoo; more about friendship; the club expands(?); more happy stuff...
Chapter Four
Eddie woke up in the coldest bath he ever took, feeling pain emanate from every inch of his body. He quickly, out of reflex even, wanted to get out, his lips already shaking just like his whole body. However, the fact that he was still wearing his clothes, which were now completely wet, and his still very weak condition made it so that he wasn't even able to get up out of the water.
"Need any help?" Asked Spider-Man, sitting on the closed toilet seat, checking something on his phone.
"No, I'm good, I've got all the help I need… Venom? Could you, like, help?" Asked Eddie, ashamed he even had to ask.
But then, he only faced silence. He knew Venom was there but it was like the symbiote refused to talk. Which was a first!
"When was the last time you ate?" Asked Spider-Man, now dedicating his full energy to him, placing his elbows on his knees after placing his phone in a secret pocket in his suit.
"I don't know… I ate breakfast… today or, wait, shit, it was yesterday," said Eddie, still trying to reach Venom.
"Last time you slept?" Spidey continued, looking him in the eyes, while Ed was barely aware that they were having a conversation in his barely conscious state.
"Well, yesterday."
"How many hours?"
"Like six, jesus, is this an interrogation?"
"This is what I call an intervention and yes, please answer all my questions, it's important," Said Spiderman, completely serious. "Last time you showered?"
"I'm cold," let out Eddie.
"And I think I know why. Now... last time you showered?" He said, more grave and impatiently.
"Like, five days ago. This is what you want to hear? This is what you want? For me to tell you how gross I am and how I'm not taking care of myself? Why do you care? I don't even know you! I can do what I want!"
Spidey finally got up on his feet, feeling a bit satisfied but not showing it.
"You can. But they can't. That thing that lives with you. If I was them, I wouldn't want that for my host : hunger, fatigue, stress, grossness. Wade keeps telling me about you and about that thing. Seems like you're in a habit of falling unconscious or not even having enough strength to get out of a simple bath. You're relying on them. Soon enough, they're gonna realize it's too much."
"Well if he was so helpful he'd get me out-"
"Just stop whining, Eddie. I've known you for five minutes and yet I think I get it. You're barely alive and you feel okay with that, but someday, Venom - that was their or his name, wasn't it? - won't allow it. Like now, I'm guessing."
And Peter continued to lecture him for quite a bit before telling him exactly how they were gonna spend the rest of the evening, making it clear that Eddie didn't have much choice in the matter,
"Take a shower first. Then get in the clean pyjamas right there. I'll wash your old clothes. We'll eat a nice hot soup and you'll go to sleep at like 8pm like a little kid. Tomorrow, we'll talk, all the four of us, and we'll come up with a plan. Because you can't go back to your apartment, they'll be waiting for you there."
"Where am I gonna sleep?" Asked Eddie, his voice suddenly sounding much, much smaller.
"The couch can be changed for a bed, it'll be ready by 8. Now, get out of this bath and clean yourself," finally said Spidey, sounding more nurturing than before, but quickly returned to his stoic tone. "This has been an intervention on basic self-care."
And he then left the bathroom, closing the door behind him.
I'm still not speaking to you but I just wanted to say that I, for one, love him and will protect him with my life. He's definitely a keeper.
"Maybe, but he's with the talkative one, the one you don't like," snapped Eddie, sounding frustrated.
Well, at least they're both on my side. You just need to realize that we're all on yours.
"Then help me get out of this fucking bath!" Said Eddie a bit louder than planned.
Nothing from Venom.
Eddie kept shivering and his teeth kept clicking together.
"Fuck you!" Exclaimed Eddie, holding the bath tub's sides, trying to roll on it and fall on the floor. Even that he couldn't manage. He felt like breaking into strangled sobs, but his anger was too big so he quietly cried while closing his jaw and pushing as hard as he could.
It took him 15 minutes before he thought of taking off the drain's plug. No more water in the bath, he finally saw how pale his skin was and how his hoodie was now sticking to his skin, how bony he was... he who used to go to the gym everyday. Finally, without the weight of the water, he succeeded in getting out, even if he hurt himself by falling on the floor. He even felt a tiny bit of pride in doing so.
He then took his clothes off which was also a harder task than planned, but succeeded on his own. He slowly got on his feet, holding on to the counter, and then made his way, very slowly, to the shower. He washed himself and felt a new sense of calm energy go through him. He then, as commanded, put the new clothes - a simple man's pajama pants with a Hello Kitty t-shirt. All which weirdly fitted him perfectly and he assumed they were Wade's since Spider-Man seemed a bit too small for that and also the t-shirt was a given.
Finally, after almost an hour, he made his way to the kitchen where a strong spicy aroma hit his nose.
The smell, the small music playing, and even the fading sunlight made Eddie feel a bit more relaxed, but, as soon as he saw Spider-Man (or at least he guessed it was since the young man didn't have any type of costume on him, just cozy pajamas, but as he was about the same height and weight, he assumed he was) and Wade, he kinda felt misplaced in this small apartment.
The couple was facing the stove and, side by side, Spider-Man had his head on Wade's shoulder and an arm around his hips. Wade seemed to be whispering some things to him, but Eddie couldn't quite understand what.
He felt a sinking feeling in the pit of his stomach. A sudden vision of himself, just over two years ago, being in the same kind of relationship. He seemed to have forgotten that. With the Venom thing and the new online series… how could he possibly forget Anne?
You said she wouldn't want you… with me.
"I never said that," exclaimed Eddie, completely taken aback.
Wade and Spider-Man looked his way, both smiling but in a different way, one with a kind sense of nourishment, and the other with a humorous understanding of his position.
No but you thought about it…
And he suddenly felt Venom retreat back into himself, isolating himself once again.
"Hey, so you made it," exclaimed Peter gently. "I'm happy you did. Are you hungry? The soup is ready in about five minutes."
Eddie nodded and sat at the chair which the young man pointed to.
"I don't mean to… I know it's private but just so we're clear, you're-"
"I'm Spider-Man," finished Peter. "And until Wade drops my real name by accident, I'd like you to address me as such. As you said, it's private."
"Heeeeeey, I barely do that!" Exclaimed Wade, still calmer than usual, a grin still on his face.
Spider-Man looked at him with an expression that made it quite easy to see that Wade was lying.
"Yeah, no, no problem, man, I get it." Eddie said. "And, um, thank you, I guess for letting me stay the night. Really appreciate it."
Spider-Man simply nodded while Wade, in an apron with a picture of Carrie Fisher in a trashcan on it, started filling the bowls and saying,
"Well, what kind of fr- what kind of vigilante would I be, ugh?"
"I thought you were like on the bad side or something," said Eddie, confused but not being offensive in the least.
"Weeeeeellllllll…" said Wade for at least two legit minutes before stopping as if the subject was closed.
They then all sat at the table and started eating the soup with a glass of water and a good piece of bread.
The scene, once again, felt very weird to Eddie. Maybe it was the fact that he barely knew the other two men or the fact that Venom seemed to have left him alone, or maybe the fact that he was enjoying himself. It suddenly felt very familiar and normal. Like before.
"You're okay, Eddie? You're… smiling weird." Said Spider-Man, genuinely concerned.
"Yeah, I'm…" He started to say before changing his mind. "This soup is awfully good, I gotta say…"
To which Wade smiled, proud.
Quickly after that quiet supper, they cleared the table so that Eddie could go to sleep. Peter was washing the dishes so Wade finally took his chance to talk to Eddie who seemed to be in a surprisingly good mood.
"Hey," simply said Wade, not knowing how to bring up the subject.
Eddie was getting his stuff ready (notably a burrowed phone charger and the pillow and sheets Peter already put together on the couch).
"Hey," Eddie answered back.
"So, I got told by Spidey that you got an intervention… how did it go?"
You're boring him. Stop that.
Oh my god, could you stop being mean, White? This IS why we need that intervention next week!
"It was… something. I don't think I-" started Eddie before being stopped by White.
Me? I'm the problem? You're just going soft on Wade coz you pity him! He looks like a fried frog, damn it! Show him some respect and tell him the truth.
Wade is an awesome guy… sometimes… and why would you-
"Which is weird right? Because they never-" Eddie continued.
You're just a coward, Yellow, pull your socks up and own it!
Now don't you start with me, you piss-
"But I think I'll be better tomorrow. It should… all settle down, I guess." Finished Eddie.
And Wade felt conflicted. Peter always allowed him to simply say, "Sorry, I couldn't hear you over the noise", which meant that the boxes were talking, but now… with Eddie…
He guessed it would be a relatable moment.
"You know when Venom talks at the same time as someone else and you just can't understand a single word from anyone because you're just trying to listen to both but you can't?" Said Wade, quite bluntly.
Eddie let out a small laugh, while nodding multiple times.
"Yeah! It happens all the time. Not now, he's not… talking right now." He said.
"Well," replied Wade "It just happened to me, so if you could, maybe… say that again?"
Coz it was so fun the first time around!
Shut up!
Eddie sized him up for some time before saying,
"You really have voices?"
Wade simply nodded.
"Since when?" Eddie asked.
Wade let out a big breath, trying to think about how to tell someone how a random writer decided to add boxes to his character while never explaining why and leaving that task to someone else as if suddenly adding sadistic and mean voices to Deadpool's mind could go unnoticed, but that was brutally stopped by Peter saying to the both of them:
"Well, I'm off. Don't stay up too late or I'll know." He said, walking to the only bedroom.
See? Discipline! Order! That's why we love and NEED Peter!
Oh, Yellow, I don't think we love him for the same reasons…
"For too long. For very very too long," Wade answered with a big smile, trying to hide the fact that he really wanted to scream or hit himself on the head.
Eddie seemed to get it.
"Well, sometimes they act up, but that always passes. Even they have breaks. Thank god!"
But then his whole face turned white with surprise before a laugh escaped from his mouth.
"Or maybe not. He just said that he 'heard that'!" Said Eddie, sitting on the couch.
Wade simply nodded and smiled at the anecdote.
"We'll talk more about it tomorrow, I guess," said Eddie. "Oh and could you do me a favor?"
"Sure. Anything for a member of the Sad Boyz Club!" Said Wade, excited to be of service.
"I don't know how to turn the lights off here. I've never been to this apartment so I don't know which switch to-"
"I got you, no worries, Eddie-o."
They looked at each other, thankful in a similar way to have each other.
"Thanks and, well, good night." Said Eddie.
"Sweet dreams to you and Black Jell-O." Responded Wade, slowly closing the lights one by one.
Eddie gave a small laugh.
"Venom says good night."
Wade nodded and went to his room. Peter was in bed, reading a science-y book.
He almost jumped onto the mattress on Peter's side. He couldn't help but grin. His page finished, the younger man closed his book.
As he saw Wade's grin, he couldn't help but grin too.
"Something you want to share?" He asked Wade who was jittering in weird excitement.
"I have a boyfriend and a best friend living under my roof, I have-" but he slowly faded out, his eyes being filled with tears. He quickly wiped his face and went to the bathroom door (the second door of the said bathroom which was accessible via the bedroom).
"I'll go take a shower, I think," Wade said, changing the subject, putting distance between him and Peter.
"Wait, Wade."
But he didn't stop and locked the door behind him, locking Peter outside. Peter knocked multiple times, using a calm voice.
"Wade don't do this, don't isolate yourself. Please. We'll just talk. It's going to be fine and if it's not, we can stop."
He waited a very long time, but finally, Wade opened the door slightly before going back in the empty tub.
"Thank you," murmured Peter, surprised that Wade would open it so fast. Normally it would have taken multiple hours. Once, it took three days.
"Can I come in?" He asked again, but this time, pointing towards the bathtub where Wade was sitting in. The other nodded and Peter placed himself on the other end, looking Wade right in his reddened eyes. He slowly took the other's hand and started massaging it. At this time, it was the only thing he could do to help Wade. He didn't know what to say.
"White doesn't believe I should… have you. Both of you. Neither of you." Started Wade, looking at their hands.
"And what is Yellow thinking?" Asked Peter, very calmly.
"He's… He's saying I'm bad for you guys -yeah I know what you said, I'm just summarizing, it's-" he suddenly stopped, rushing his unoccupied hand towards his mouth in a violent move.
Leaning on himself even more, the normally quite tall man only made himself look smaller. Peter usually didn't notice the "sick" aspect of his boyfriend's condition, but now, it was all he could see and he couldn't suppress a sense of déjà vu that washed over him when a few hours earlier, he saw another ill man in the very same bathtub.
"You can talk to them in front of me." He said, trying to appease the other man.
Wade shook his head, tears pouring from his eyes.
"When you're ready." Peter added.
But Peter was already trying to stop his own tears. Seeing Wade like this broke his heart and he now was thinking that maybe he had been too rough on Eddie. Maybe he should've been more compassionate like he was right now.
"So tonight is bad. That happens. They might have the upper hand right now but it'll fade. Wade. Wade? It'll fade. It's gonna be okay." He said, holding the other man's face with his hands. "And you know what? Tomorrow, we'll go to the zoo and we'll eat at a restaurant and we'll then go see if there isn't any fairs going on somewhere. Tonight is bad. Tomorrow will be better."
Wade shook his head again.
"You have work tomorrow." He said, his voice still shaking.
"C'mon, you know I wouldn't miss the zoo for any job!"
"And Peter... with two hot messes… with animal designed hats… that wouldn't be something to miss."
Peter smiled.
"We'll get the hats for everyone," promised Peter.
"Oh! And I'll get that disposable camera they sell at the convenience store! And we'll get snacks there too!" Suddenly said Wade, forgetting for a second about his current state of mind.
"Wade. We both have phones with cameras and I already own, like, three cameras."
"But it'll be special!"
So how could he refuse?