- chapter 4 -

Fae watched Phil walk off and stood, brushing off the back of her shorts. She tugged on her socks and turned to the front door, walking over. She slowly opened it, stepping outside and shutting it behind her. "Fuck off, Phil," Tommy muttered from one of the steps, his arms around his knees. He rested his chin on his knees as Fae sat down beside Tommy, watching him for a moment and bending her legs to her chest.

"It's me, not Phil," she said with a small smile and Tommy glanced over, exhaling. "You okay?"

"Yeah, I'm- I'm fine," Tommy replied with a short nod, a sour expression on his face.

"You sure? I mean, Phil said that the whole thing was pretty sensitive and- I don't know..." Fae sighed, running a hand through her hair. She watched the blonde male for a moment, resting her chin on her hands. "I- I guess I just wanted to make sure you're okay."

Tommy looked over and locked eyes with Fae, an unreadable expression on his face. They stared at each other for a while, a bit too long, before Tommy smiled softly, looking away. "I'm okay, I promise."

Fae exhaled and nodded, watching Tommy for a short moment before looking away. "I- I think I'm gonna go back inside," she said, lifting her head and standing up.

Tommy nodded, watching Fae for a moment. "Don't worry, I'll come in in a second," he replied, letting go of his legs and stretching them. Fae nodded and turned, walking over to the door. She opened the door and walked back inside, shutting it quietly behind her. Phil sat back by the fireplace with a book in hand, reading in silence. She watched him for a moment before walking over to the other door, exiting the cabin once more.

Fae walked over to the other door and into the other cabin, looking around. She spotted a ladder and climbed up it, seeing a large bed covered with blankets and pillows. She slid her boots off and took Tommy's trench coat off, sitting down on the bed. She tugged a blanket over her, curling up under the covers and soon falling asleep, not even noticing when Tommy came upstairs and laid down beside her.

Fae finds herself awake, looking over at Tommy. They found themselves pulling off the covers and climbing out of bed, standing up now. They walked over to the trapdoor and climbed down the ladder, making their way to the door and going outside. The word 'Dream' escape their lips as they stood out in the snow covered ground, her socks almost instantly getting soaked. The cool breeze whipped against their face as they stood, looking around. A figure suddenly appeared in front of them, the person pulling off a mask. "I'm so sorry, I- I did 't think Nick would do something like that-"

"It's- It's fine," they said, shrugging. "You'd think he'd stop being mad at us for this, and yet his jealousy gets the best of him."

"Tell me about it, starling," the figure said, lifting his hand and touching their cheek, a small chuckle escaping their lips.They exhaled and touched the man's hand, smiling. "He just doesn't understand us, y'know?"

"Mhm," they said, giggling. Their smile faded shortly, anxiety creeping onto their face. "But, if he doesn't like us working together, won't the others be the same way?"

"No, of course not," he said with a warm smile, leaning close and pressing his forehead against theirs. "They wouldn't dare to say things like him." He exhaled, moving his hand down and taking theirs into his own. "And if they do, they're going to have to go through me."

They looked up at the figure to meet his eyes, but all that was there was static blurriness. They stumbled backwards, their breaths quickening. The figure stepped forward, an axe appearing in his hand. "Just let me in, Fae. I don't want to hurt you~" The axe was swung at them and they fell backwards.

Fae woke up in a cold sweat, lying on the ground in the snow, just outside of the fence perimeter. She opened her eyes, Tommy hovering over them. "Oh my fuck- Thank God you're okay," Tommy said anxiously, a sigh of relief escaping his mouth.

"Wh- Where am I-"

"You're outside, I- I have no idea why, but you're- you're okay," Tommy said, crouching to the ground. "PHIL! She's out here!! Are you okay? Do- God, do you know how you ended up out here??"

Fae groaned quietly as she sat up, shivering from the cold. "I- I don't really know," she mumbled, brushing snow off her arms and the back of her head. "But- I-"

She looked over when she heard crunching footsteps, seeing Philza walk over to her. "Hey, are you alright?"

"Ye- Yeah, I'm- I'm okay," Fae replied with a short nod, watching Phil for a moment. She shivered for a second, hugging her dampened sweater closer around her.

"C'mon, let's get you back inside," Phil said, helping Fae stand. Tommy stood up with her, staying by her side but keeping his hands at his sides. They walked back into the hut and Phil walked in with Fae, seating her in a chair in front of the fireplace. He walked over, starting a fire up. Fae pulled off her damp sweater, shifting herself a bit closer to the fire as she warmed up. Tommy watched her for a moment before looking away, leaning against the front door. "So, you don't know how you got outside?" Phil asked, resting a hand on the back of the chair Fae sat in.

Fae shook her head, hugging her legs to her chest. "No, I- All I remember is going to sleep in bed, so I- I have no idea how I ended up outside."

Phil nodded, walking over to a chest. He turned and walked back over to Fae, holding a mug of cocoa. "Here, drink this," he said with a warm smile, handing her the cup. "This should warm you up."

"Wha- Where's my cocoa?!" Tommy exclaimed, throwing his hands up.

"No, Tommy. If you want a cocoa, make it yourself," Phil spoke, rolling his eyes. "Little shit," he muttered under his breath.

"Aw, c'mon! Why can't you just make me one-"

"I'll make you a cocoa when I find you passed out on the ground in the snow," Phil remarked, chuckling sarcastically.

Tommy rolled his eyes, flipping off the older male. "Fuck you," he muttered before crossing his arms.

"Say that to my face, Tom. Say it. To. My. Face." Phil turned his head swiftly towards the blonde, glaring at him.

Tommy tensed up, freezing under Phil's stare. "Sorry," Tommy muttered, running a hand through his blonde curls.

"Damn right you are," Phil said with a straight face before a chuckle escaped his lips, smiling. Tommy rolled his eyes and chuckled, standing up straight. Fae giggled as she watched Tommy walk over, sitting down by the fire beside her on the floor.

Fae paused for a moment, lost in her thoughts. "Y'know, now that- now that I think about it, I- I think I might remember something about- about my past."

"Really?" Phil and Tommy spoke in unison. "What was it?" Phil asked, looking over at Fae.

"I- I think it was like, some sort of dream? I'm not sure, but it- it was like I was actually experiencing it, though," Fae said, staring into the fire. "I- I said the word 'Dream' and then some- some guy appeared in front of me, and we were talking about- about something, I don't remember, but then- but then a different guy appeared; though he- he was kind of similar to the first guy. And then he slashed me with an axe, and then- and then I woke up outside."

"Okay, what- what did the two guys look like?" Phil asked again, crouching down beside Fae.

"Uhm, the- the first guy, he had this almost shoulder length blonde hair and these bright emerald green eyes- and he had a tattoo of a smiley face on- on his neck, and the other one- he had short, dirty blonde hair and he wore a green hoodie and black pants. He also- he also had a large mask with a smiley face on it."

Phil and Tommy both looked at each other, exchanging a glance Fae could not read. "Could it be-" Tommy said quietly, exhaling shakily.

"Maybe," Phil muttered, crossing his arms.

"What?" Fae asked, looking between the two. "What is it?"

"Nothing," Phil said, resting a hand on Fae's shoulder. He looked over at the clock that hung over the fireplace, cursing quietly. "Shit, I've got to go. You two- you can stay as long as you need, just don't wreck the place," Phil said, grabbing things from a chest and stuffing the items into his inventory. He headed towards the door, opening it and letting in a cold blast of air. "Don't do anything I wouldn't do," he added, smirking at Tommy, who tuned bright red with embarrassment. The door slid shut and the room warmed up once more, the two teens staring awkwardly at the fire in silence.