Six a.m. Who the the fuck gets up at six a.m.? In the morning? Before the sun has even made the attempt to rise? Crazy people. Crazy people do that.
And also Terry. But just this once. And it's for a reason, dammit!
Still, it leaves him far from lucid as he stumbles from his bedroom to the kitchen. Before anything else, he sets up his coffee maker. Best to have that going while he's in the shower for added insurance to wake his ass up. It's a feat in and of itself, however. His eyes feel like they're fuckin' glued shut and trying to open them results in a bit of a burning sensation, making the process of finding and pushing the little buttons a lot more difficult than it should be. All he wants to do is sleep for a few more hours. Fuck…maybe after he's on the road, he can pull over somewhere and sleep for a few more hours. It's not like those fuckers are expecting him this early. He just needs to get away from the park hella early. With that set, he returns to his bedroom. He hates to do it, but he has no choice. After retrieving the handcuffs and his keys, he makes his way to the bathroom, grabbing a towel as well.
When he walks in, he finds Edd curled up near the tub, using the towels as a pillow to rest his head upon. The robe covers him completely and seems to be keeping him nice and warm. His breathing is labored some and his mouth is hanging open; clearly a sign that the congestion is preventing him from breathing through his nose. He stirs a bit as Terry closes and locks the door behind him and cringes as the lights are switched on. With a whine that quickly shifts into a groan, he brings his hands up to pitifully rub his eyes. He sniffles painfully, whimpering as he tries to blink his eyes open. Setting the towel on the ledge of the tub with his keys and the cuffs atop it, Terry kneels down over him.
"Mornin' Sleepin' Beauty," he breathes, leaning down to kiss his temple.
Edd responds with a disgusted whine, covering his face with the sleeve of the robe.
"What time is it…?" he grumbles, his voice hoarse and probably sore as fuck.
"Dunno…" Terry shrugs back, "After six?"
Peeking out past the cloth of the robe, Edd gives him as suspicious a look as he can manage as he fights against the bright lights.
"Why on earth would you be awake this early?"
Terry shoots him a smarmy grin; "Just thought I'd come give you your Christmas present a lil early."
With a grimace, Edd covers his face again; "Ugh…no thank you."
"Aww, s'matter, Princess?" Terry coos, "Don'tcha want Santa to stuff yer stocking?"
Edd cringes again, but this time he refuses to look up; "Please go away. I want to sleep."
Chuckling, Terry rises to his feet. As tired as he feels, he'll never be too sleepy to tease his little Princess like that.
"Sorry, sweetheart," he retorts softly, "But I gotta get a shower."
"I thought you said it was six in the morning?"
"I did. And it is. And I need to get a shower."
"Can't it wait?" Edd whines through a yawn.
"No. I got a long day ahead of me and that starts with a fuckin' shower." He leans over a bit. "You wanna join me?"
"Absolutely not."
"Fine."
Grabbing the cuffs, Terry grabs Edd's wrist, startling him from his attempts to go back to sleep.
"H-Hey!" he gasps, as he's yanked to sit upright, "I said no!"
Choosing to ignore that, Terry grabs Edd's other wrist and pulls them both behind the boy's back, locking them in place with the cuffs. After, he carefully maneuvers Edd over to the wall near the toilet. Edd struggles against his bindings, glaring up at the man.
"Why did—"
"I don't care how sleepy you are, Princess," Terry interjects, "I ain't takin' no more chances with you. You know the drill; once I'm through with my shower, I'll let you out of the cuffs."
Edd huffs, but doesn't seem to have the energy to fight him — probably too sleepy or exhausted by his cold. Either way, he backs down, leaning against the wall dejectedly. With a sigh, Terry pats the boy's head of messy, matted hair, making a mental note to comb it out before he leaves.
He's quick enough in the shower. Why the fuck should he waste time with that? The water's cold as fuck just to wake himself up and he has no interest in putting up with that for too long. Just enough to freshen up and give a nice jolt to his senses. Turning off the water, he reaches out to grab his towel. The keys fall with a soft 'thud' to the floor, but he pays it no mind. Even if Edd could reach them, he can't very well use them at the moment.
After toweling off a bit, he opens the curtain to step out of the tub. From the looks of it, Edd's either asleep or on the brink of it. Wrapping the towel around his waist, he retrieves his keys and approaches the boy. Kneeling down beside him, Terry unlocks the cuffs, releasing Edd's arms again. It's enough to bring him from his slumber, but he's fading fast. Terry cups his cheek, stroking the plush flesh with his thumb.
"Hungry?" he asks, "Want me to make you some soup?"
Shaking his head, Edd answers with a soft moan. Just wants to get back to sleep? Okay. Placing a quick peck to his cheek, Terry rises to his feet and makes his way back over to the door, cuffs and keys in hand. Out of the corner of his eye, he notices Edd feebly try to rub his face with the sleeve of the robe, but give up quickly, instead choosing to drag his barely responsive body back over to his little nest, left mostly untouched on the floor. He nuzzles his cheek against the coarse terrycloth of his makeshift pillow. He really is fuckin' adorable when he's sleepy as fuck…But he could be cozier. As Terry walks out of the bathroom, locking up behind him, he decides he'll need to bring him something else to keep warm — make sure he's extra comfortable.
He dries off and dresses in his bedroom before heading to the kitchen to load up Edd's meals into one of the grocery bags. Along with the purchases he made yesterday, he also throws in the jars of peanut butter and jelly and the bag of bread so that Edd can make himself some sandwiches if he wants. Hmm…and something to spread it with? He searches his drawers until he finds a couple packages of plastic forks and knives from some take out place. Perfect. He adds the plastic knives to the package as well. Before taking it in to Edd, he goes to retrieve a blanket, pillow, and hair comb.
Back in the bathroom, Edd's out again, his breathing sounding a bit better. Blanket first, he drapes it over the small body, earning a content little grin as Edd quickly soaks in the warmth. But he doesn't wake up. Not until Terry tries to remove his towel pillow, that is. He blinks open his eyes to glare questioningly up at him.
"Figured this," Terry explains, holding up the actual pillow, "might be more comfortable."
Sitting up a bit, Edd notices the blanket and hunches his shoulders. Furrowing his brow, he glances up at Terry again.
"Since when do you care about my comfort…?"
Terry chuckles. It's cute; seeing Edd act like this. Of course, if Edd weren't sick and he didn't have to fuckin' be somewhere, he'd be more inclined to punish such behavior, but he kind've likes seeing Edd show some spunk.
"I've always cared about your comfort," Terry retorts, "You've just been actin' out, so I've had to punish you."
That certainly doesn't assuage Edd, who glares up at him in disgust. Rather than reply, he shrugs the blanket off and pulls his legs to his chest, scooting away a bit. Terry grimaces, realizing that trying to do something as tedious as combing Edd's hair is probably out of the question. Instead, he grabs Edd's wrist and places the comb in his hand.
"I'll be right back," he grumbles, "In the meantime, you look like you could use that."
Without another word, and ignoring the offended look he receives, he leaves the bathroom to head back to the kitchen to grab the food. It's almost seven. He's gotta get outta here. For the final time that morning, he enters the bathroom, setting the bag of food down by the door. Edd's startled by the sight of it, brought from absentmindedly picking the comb through his hair. Looks like the lights and Terry's constant ins and outs of the bathroom woke him up a bit more. As Terry crosses the room to the toilet, Edd speaks up.
"Why are…ugh…" he grimaces and turns away as Terry unzips his pants to relieve himself, "Why have you brought that bag in here? It's highly unsanitary to keep food in the lavatory."
"I told you," Terry answers tersely, "I got a long day ahead of me and it involves me bein' out for several hours."
"You're leaving?!" Edd guffaws, "F-For how long?!"
"Don't get any bright ideas, Princess," Terry scoffs back as he gives his cock a couple of subtle shakes before zipping himself up again, "There's no way you can get outta this room while I'm gone."
After flushing the toilet, he takes a moment to wash his hands — just so he can possibly get one last bit of contact with Edd before he leaves — before turning back to the boy.
"Anyway," he continues, "I'll probably be home late, so I wanted to make sure you have plenty of food, water, and that you'd be warm enough."
"Where are you going that's so important?" Edd nearly growls.
Eh, no harm in telling him that much…
"Just gotta head home for a few hours."
Edd scoffs; "I pity whatever poor souls are unfortunate enough to be related to you by blood."
Heh…if you only knew…
"Why keep me here if you're just going to leave me alone like this?" Edd asks, "After your little 'assessment' of the way Mother and Father treated me and your baseless claims to be better than them, I'm surprised you would do the same thing."
"Yeah, well…" Terry pauses, unable to think of a proper argument for that.
He's not wrong. Fuck if he doesn't want to stay home with Edd and actually spend Christmas Day with him, but…
"What's the point?" he snarls, "All you're doin' is fightin' me. So I'm givin' us both a break. You can be alone for a while and I can take care of a few annoyances back home."
"Why don't you just let me go home?"
"Why would I do that?" Terry leans over Edd with a smug grin, "You're right where you belong. You just need to accept it."
And that's about all that needs to be said. Edd crosses his arms, glaring hatefully up at the man as Terry approaches him. Placing his hand on Edd's head to hold him still, he leans down to kiss his forehead.
"I might have something for you when I come home," he purrs, standing straight again, "So be a good boy and you'll get a treat."
Again, no response as Edd jerks away from him. Turning away, Terry walks out of the bathroom, locking the door and padlock one last time.
Gathering up the essentials for his trip — a thermos he fills with the freshly brewed coffee, another pillow (cuz a nap on the side of the road really does sound good), Eddy's magazines and jawbreaker — he bundles himself up and finally exits his trailer sometime after seven.
It's dark as fuck as he walks out into the freezing morning. A quick look around rewards him with dark windows and motionless surroundings. Not a single soul is awake save for himself and Edd. Good. He practically holds his breath as he carefully follows in his footsteps from last night, matching them close enough that even if Mike gets out today, he shouldn't notice. He has to brace himself as he starts up the van. Like most noises in the wee hours of the morning, it sounds infinitely louder than it probably is. Gritting his teeth and looking around, he pulls away from the park and drives off, back to the scene of the crime.
It's about an hour into his trip before he feels comfortable enough pulling over. There's not much traffic this morning, but it's enough to slow him down just a bit. Oh well. The less time he has to spend with his family, the better. When he's safely off the road and parked, he slinks to the back of the van. As he stretches out on the mattress, his foot nudges the messenger bag against the door. Oh shit…that's still in here? Eh. It'll be easy enough to hide when he gets back to the cul-de-sac. Hell, he can stuff it in the pillowcase or somethin'. For now…
Dragging the bag over, he brings the canvas material to his nose, breathing in deep. He hisses a curse, however, and shoves it away again. It doesn't smell like him anymore…Granted, why the hell would it? It's been months. But aint that what Christmas miracles were for and all that shit? Ugh…Before lying down, he decides to shove the bag under the passenger seat, effectively concealing it from view of anyone who may peek in through the windows.
Settling in, he lays his head down on the pillow and closes his eyes. Feels damn good to do that. So good, in fact, that he momentarily forgets the entire reason why he opened them at all this morning. But maybe that's just his brain…shutting down…to…sleep…
…
Terry?
His face feels hot as he begins to blink his eyes open, only to shut them again as he's nearly blinded by the sun. When did that happen? With a yawn, he struggles to sit up, rubbing his eyes.
"How long was I out…?"
Opening his eyes again, he's startled to see his ideal Edd beside him. Again with this…?
"What now?" he grumbles, pulling himself back into the driver's seat.
Why are you out here?
"You know why," Terry snarls back as he revs the engine.
The clock reads 11:20. Shit, he slept longer than he expected. Taking a moment to rub his face and eyes, and take a swig from his bitter coffee, he begins driving again.
But why are you out here…without me?
"You fucking know why," Terry repeats, glaring at him out of the corner of his eyes.
The little phantasm has decided to sit beside him in the passenger's seat.
You should be home with me…
"Why bother?" Terry grips the steering wheel more tightly, "Nothing I've done works. He doesn't respond to fuckin' anything I do."
Why not just be nice to me? It's Christmas, after all. You should give me a thoughtful gift, don't you think?
"Obviously I do if you're suggesting it, but bein' nice ain't got me nothin' but a stab in the fuckin' back."
So you're just going to leave me there alone? Like Mother and Father always did?
Terry doesn't answer right away, glaring at the road ahead of him. Dammit. That's not what he wants at fucking all. There's nothing he wants more than to crawl into bed beside his Princess and hold him. Make him feel warm and loved. But after that night…
"I just need to clear my head," he replies coldly, indicating a clear end to the 'conversation'.
The rest of the trip is had in silence. He turns on the radio for a hot second, but there's fuckin' nothing good playing this morning. Sometime after noon, he pulls into the cul-de-sac. Thank god his folk's place is third from the end of the street. The little urchins are running around the middle of the fuckin' road, having some bullshit snowball fight.
Gritting his teeth, he lays down on the horn, startling all of them. A few of the little brats scurry away. One of the taller boys runs off, screaming his head off about chickens or something. Fuckin' weirdo…A redhead in a baseball cap follows after him on a bicycle, but is far less vocal about it. The kids that remain look more curious than anything as he pulls into his parent's driveway.
"Bro!"
And here we go…Rolling his eyes, he cuts the engine and steps out of the van, only to be barreled into by the little Pipsqueak himself. Not enough to knock him off his feet, of course, but enough to make him stop in his tracks.
"You really made it!" Eddy nearly sobs into his stomach, nuzzling him like a fuckin' cat.
"Yeah yeah," Terry grumbles, nudging him away, "Outta the way, Pipsqueak. I been on the road all morning."
"Oh…y-yeah! Of course," Eddy laughs that off as Terry walks past him, towards the house.
Naturally, Eddy follows like an eager puppy. The other Ed tags along too, giggling excitedly.
"So, how was the drive, Bro?" Eddy asks nearly hopping along as Terry opens the front door.
"Long."
"Can I getcha anything, Bro?" Eddy clasps his hands together, eager to please, "Somethin' to drink? Ya hungry?"
Before Terry can answer, he hears his mother from the kitchen.
"Terry?" she calls, "Is that you, sweetheart?"
Rolling his eyes, Terry ignores the little anklebiter scuttling around him as he enters the kitchen. She's standing at the stove, cooking something that smells damn good right about now. There are also sandwiches being prepared along the counter, so the delicious smell is probably coming from something in the oven. Knowing his mother, it's probably a Christmas ham. A rarity, for sure — she only cooks this much around Thanksgiving and Christmas and it's always amazing. If there's one thing he knew about his mother, it's that she's a damn fine homemaker and could cook the shit out of a ham and turkey. Shit could knock you out with its flavors alone. I'll have to bring home plenty of leftovers…She's got a surprised smile on her round face as he approaches her and her hands are cupping her full cheeks.
"Hey, mom," he grumbles, trying to sound more enthusiastic than he really is.
"You're really here!" she gasps, throwing her arms around him and squeezing tight.
Ugh, well, it's kind've nice, I guess…Though he couldn't stand to even hear his father's voice, it was hard to hate his loving mother. Even after everything that's happened, she's still willing to give him the benefit of the doubt and welcome him home the same as she would any family. That deserves some gratitude, at least. After returning the hug, he pulls away to glance at the sandwiches.
"Any chance I could snag one of those?" he asks, brow cocked, "I'm fuckin' starving."
"Language," she tuts back lyrically, "And yes, you can have one as soon as I've finished making lunch for all of us. Until then, why don't you go say hi to your father?"
"I'll pass," Terry scoffs back, retrieving his cigarettes, "I need a smoke."
"Not in here," his mother dictates, "You can take that outside."
Terry rolls his eyes at that; "Whatever…I'll go to the backyard."
"Oh! You can go through my room, Bro!" Eddy suggests excitedly, grabbing Terry's wrist.
"Y-Yes!" For the first time since he arrives, he sees his mother hesitating a little, "Go with your brother! He's been looking forward to this ever since we got your call."
Dammit…He groans a bit, but allows himself to be ushered past the kitchen and through Eddy's grossly lavish bedroom. It's messier than before and has a sleeping bag on the floor. That other kid must've slept over last night? That's weird. Maybe he's staying tonight instead? Eh, who cares? Before he can analyze it much further, he's led through the sliding door and back out into the cold. Goddammit. The very notion that he would have to interact with his old man is already fraying at his nerves. So much so that he can't even go five minutes without a quick smoke.
This is gonna be a helluva long day.
And the little brat is still hanging around him.
"So, Bro!" Eddy begins, "I didn't get to introduce you, yet." He pulls the other kid, still beaming like an idiot, over. "This is Ed!"
"Yeah, no shit," Terry retorts, taking a long drag from his cigarette, "I gathered as much from all those stupid pictures."
"Oh…y-yeah…" Eddy laughs anxiously, "I just…Wanted to make sure you knew that…that this one's Ed. And…and the other's…uh…" He glances at Ed, who doesn't seem to be listening to the conversation as he stares back at Terry in a mix of joy and enthusiasm. "Anyway, I just didn't get to introduce you for real, so…yeah…"
Terry hums in response, glaring out past the gate of the backyard in disinterest. Out of the corner of his eye, he sees Eddy fidgeting uncomfortably.
"So, uh…" he mumbles a bit, "How've you been? We missed you at Thanksgiving."
"I was busy."
It looks like Ed wants to say something too, but after looking to Eddy, who gives him a stern look, he remains silent.
"Uh…How long are you stayin'?" Eddy asks, "D'ya think you could stay the night?"
"We can stay up until dawn and watch monster movies!" Ed adds excitedly, "Like 'Night of the Living Dolls!'
"No such luck, Pipsqueak," Terry answers, exhaling a puff of smoke through his nostrils, "I'm heading out later tonight."
"Aww, seriously?!" Eddy pouts, "Why can't you stay?"
"Cuz I ain't dealin' with your old man longer than I fuckin' have to."
He notices Eddy's shoulders slumping in disappointment.
"Well…did you…get me anything at least?"
"Yeah yeah, later," Terry grumbles back, rubbing his temple.
"What about me Eddy's brother?!" Ed gasps.
"No."
Now it's Ed's turn to pout, but that doesn't last before he starts smiling stupidly again as Eddy's attention is drawn past the house, towards their neighbor to his left. There's some voices echoing out within the rest of the cul-de-sac that puts an irritable look on his face. Finally, he looks back up at Terry with a wicked grin.
"Hey, Bro…uh, you got any advice on how to win in a snowball fight?"
Hmm…Maybe that'll get rid of him for a while?
"Sure I do," Terry answers, perching the cigarette delicately between his lips and teeth.
Reaching up towards the rain gutter, he breaks off a piece of one of the larger icicles hanging from it. He crushes it into slightly smaller pieces before leaning down towards a big patch of snow to pack it tightly into a ball.
"Here ya go, runt," he states, handing Eddy the ice-ball, "That'll end the game real quick."
"Super sweet!" Eddy cries excitedly as he inspects the ball, "Thanks, Bro!" He turns to Ed. "Alright, Burrhead. We got a game plan! Let's go make as much of these as we can!"
Ed giggles excitedly as they then run off. He just barely catches Eddy suggesting something about Ed's backyard and a pond there, but there's about as much as he can gather before they're out of earshot. Alone again. 'Bout damn time…With one last puff and a long sigh, Terry flicks the cigarette butt away and retreats into the house.
The visit from then on is thoroughly uneventful. About half an hour after showing Eddy how to make the ice-ball, he came back in with a black eye and a big grin. His mother fussed, raging about him getting into another fight, but it never wiped the smile off his face. When her temper had cooled enough for Eddy to get in a quick word with Terry, he explained that his trick worked like a charm and that Kevin's gonna be nursing a mean-looking cut on his forehead as penance for his latest scathing comment. Sounds like this little fucker had it coming? Eh, what does he care, though? It got Eddy off his back for a short time. Granted, now the brat's been forbidden from going outside again, so he's stuck dealing with him for the rest of the visit, but he was half expecting that much anyway.
For most of the time, the family all sits down to watch lame Christmas specials on television while mom takes over the kitchen. Terry has hardly glanced at his father, let alone spoken much of a word to him past a spiteful, grumbling 'hello'. During the movies, Eddy talks his ear off about school and how much of an asshat this Kevin kid has been and 'do you have any scam ideas, Bro?' or a whispered 'where'd you stash your report card-changin' kit?' It grates on his every last nerve, but at least he's not talking about Edd. At least he's not complaining about missing him like he did over the phone. There's that Christmas miracle I was lookin' for…
Around the three hour mark and about half a pack of cigarettes later, he tries to excuse himself to hide out in his old bedroom, but is reminded rather coldly that that might be out of the question.
"Room's boarded up," Tony boasts his arms crossed over his barrel chest, "And I ain't plasterin' up the walls again just so you can hole up in there instead of spendin' time with yer family."
That's right, when he'd come home back in September, his bedroom door had been covered by the wallpaper. But it didn't look like anyone had tried to get in any time recently? Maybe Eddy's broken into his room since then? He glares back at his dad as he returns to his seat on the couch. Motherfucker…
It's frustrating, to be sure; to have them be so damn insistent on him visiting, but making sure the entire time that he knows he's not welcome…His eyes shift to the clock above the tv. He's still got roughly five to six hours left. At least some of that will be spent on dinner. Maybe he can leave after that?
When his mother calls them all in to the kitchen around six, he feels a small weight being lifted. Sure, the dinner itself is going to be obnoxious as all hell, but it also means he's closer to getting out of here and getting home to bury his frustrations in his little darling. As his mother sets the table, he takes a seat near the window and Ed and Eddy follow suit, sitting on either side of him. He furrows his brow as he glances at Ed before turning to Eddy with a suspicious look.
"Why the fuck's he still here?" he asks, brow cocked.
He hears his dad clear his throat indignantly, but pays him no mind. Eddy scoffs.
"Ed's parents are just as bad as…" he pouts, his eyes flickering over to Ed before he shrugs, drumming his fingers on the tabletop, "They don't care if he comes home or not."
Eh, whatever…He returns his attention to the table, only to give his mother a strange look as well as she sets a couple plates too many across from him.
"You expectin' company?" he guesses with a grimace.
"We're 'expectin' a couple of assholes," Eddy interjects.
"Language!" Tony roars, slamming his hand down on the table.
Crossing his arms over his chest, Eddy shrinks in on himself a little, but doesn't stop seething. Janine sighs adjusting the tableware just a bit.
"Yes, we are expecting a couple more guests," she explains calmly and with a somber expression, "They've had a very horrible few months and I think we owe it to them to give them a nice, warm meal and good company. To take their minds off of their grief."
"Grief…?" Terry echoes, a pit forming in his stomach as a connection slowly clicks into place.
Before anything more can be said, the doorbell rings.
"I'll get it!" Janine announces excitedly as she scurries from the kitchen.
Terry feels a lump forming in his throat. Fuck fuck fuck! He wasn't anticipating this. The door opens. A woman enters first, followed by her husband. That's them…he knows it. Dressed properly as he would've expected of them. Dark hair combed perfectly. As he sees their expressions, the anxiety that was seeping into him shifts to rage in the span of a second. He wants to let it show and for a moment, his fingers clench into a shaking fist around the fork beside his plate. He wants to yell. To go right up and scream at them and beat their stupid fucking faces in. Gritting his teeth, he forces his fingers to unfurl and schools his gaze. No. Goddammit. No! Gotta stay calm. Gotta keep his cool. But as they walk further into the house, he feels his blood continue to boil. His mother takes their coats and hangs them in the closet by the door before guiding them to the kitchen.
"My oldest will also be joining us," Janine explains to the two newcomers before gesturing to said son, "Terry, honey, come meet the Vincents."