Butterfly, butterfly, where you gonna go tonight? Wish I was just like you, maybe then you'll take me high Away from it all again Away from my troubles and my sins Away from the fears inside Away from the tears I try to hide away
. ⋅ ˚̣- : ✧ As uncomfortable as it was, Su's exhaustion overrode it all as they slept on until the first rays of morning. The teen's face scrunched a bit as a few hints of sunlight filtered into the doorway but that was their only movement. At least until their name was called out startling them awake. Looking up and seeing Lewis standing their and not someone else (which in hindsight, what random stranger would know their name?) calmed the teen a bit as they slowly began to wake during the brunt of their friend's questioning. The only thing that registered was the invitation to come in for tea which shouldn't have surprised them. Tea seemed to be a language fondly spoken in the Abrams household from what they'd seen. "Thanks, I think I'd like that."
Su grimaced getting up from the ground as their body made audible protests from sleeping on the hard ground. Curly hair fell out of a hasty bun causing them to sputter a bit before grabbing both bags from the entry way and following the other teen. In previous summers whenever there was time, Su would escape come by the art studio with the knowledge that Lewis was probably there or at the very least, they'd be allowed to roam about until he was so the familiarity of the space was calming. "Sorry about showing up all like um, this. I uh, I didn't want to show up at your house or anything since it was so late-or so early I guess? Right, I just, I just didn't know where else to really go." Su's voice trailed off as they attempted to look everywhere but at their friend.
'Cause I just want to make you smile, but I know that'll take a while 'cause I'm I'm tryin' to find myself I just want to make you proud, but I think that I'm runnin' out of time To figure it out
Upon finding his friend asleep on the entryway of the shop, Lewis knew something must be wrong. After all, why wouldn't they have simply come by the house? Su'd been to the Abrams house before, so it wasn't like it'd be strange. Lewis was at least a bit more relaxed when Su agreed to come inside for some tea. Thank goodness Papa Milo always kept their little tea cubby stocked. Brown eyes definitely noticed Su wincing as they stood up. Apparently even teens weren't built to sleep on concrete. "Jeez, you look rough, Su. Were you out here all night?"
Lewis grabbed the handle of Su's trunk, leading it and Su into the office. He was certain his dad wouldn't be angry about a late start, given the situation. He kicked on the kettle, grabbing out his slightly paint-stained mug and one that had rainbow constellations and set them both on dad's desk. He looked through the cabinet, wondering which tea to grab. Oooh, a citrus blend sounded nice for the summer! When his friend started to explain, Lewis turned to focus attention on them. They hadn't wanted to come to the house due to the hour, apparently.
"Well, first, you can show up literally any time. At all. Ever. If something bad happens, you're always welcome at our house." He knew for certain that both his parents would agree. After all, the whole family held similar values on friendship. When the kettle whistled, Lewis set the tea to steep. Now it was time to ask some more questions, and he had no idea at all how it would go. "So... um... What happened? There had to be a reason to hang on the stoop at who-knows-when-o'clock."
He handed over the starry mug and leaned against the desk as he sipped his own tea. "I'm not gonna judge you, but if you don't wanna go into details, I'm not gonna push you. When Dad gets in here in a couple hours, you and me can go get breakfast or something." When in doubt, food made everything better.... at least according to the Abrams family.... or... according to Papa Milo, anyway.
Butterfly, butterfly, where you gonna go tonight? Wish I was just like you, maybe then you'll take me high Away from it all again Away from my troubles and my sins Away from the fears inside Away from the tears I try to hide away
. ⋅ ˚̣- : ✧ Su shot Lewis a bemused look of "really?" when he asked if they were out on the stoop all night. Ok so, maybe from his perspective that would seem a logical conclusion but c'mon, he didn't need to add the rough comment! "Not all night; probably closer to very very early this morning. Like two or three am?" When they saw the other teen grab the trunk they nearly protested before another twinge of pain ran down their side. Just this once then. They took the only available seat at the desk and bemusedly watched as Lewis bustled around for the tea and felt bad that they were obviously taking time out of a would be productive day. Was this always going to be their fate? A bother and burden onto others?
Su was startled when a mug of citrusy smelling tea was suddenly thrust within eyesight and gave Lewis a small thank you before taking a sip. Of course he had every reason to be curious but him not pushing was very relieving and they were about to say as much until he mentioned his father. Specifically waiting for him so that all three could go and get breakfast. For some reason, just that small tidbit was enough for the floodgates that had been previously held back come rushing out like the tea from the now dropped mug. "He hates me! He actually really hates me! Like I thought-I thought that that maybe, maybe one day it'd be different? Like that, that he'd see me and and not whatever her problems are but-but-! But no! He-them. Both of them! They ha-hate me!" Su warbled in between watery sobs.
'Cause I just want to make you smile, but I know that'll take a while 'cause I'm I'm tryin' to find myself I just want to make you proud, but I think that I'm runnin' out of time To figure it out
Okay, so Su's look didn't bode well, but if there was any skill possessed by every Abrams man, it was putting one's foot in their own mouth. And of course, Lewis was no exception. "Right, but it's nearly 8am now. Like... that's five-ish hours. That's still a long time." It was certainly something he hadn't been expecting, finding one of his best friends asleep outside his dad's shop. Who could expect that? Usually when he worked shifts it was super boring! But now... all this?! He sighed softly, wondering if it might be wise to call an adult about this. He figured he'd just shelter them inside for now, then figure it out when Dad was back from the dentist.
After offering a mug of tea, Lewis started asking questions. Apparently, one of them had been too effective, since the mug was dropped and Su had started crying. Oh no. They were saying that 'he' (their dad, he assumed?) hated them, that they'd been hoping one day things would be different. But now everything was worse. "Hey, oh..." He set down his own mug and hurried to the other side of the desk. With a sigh, Lewis pulled his friend into a hug. "I'm sure they don't hate you, Su. I don't think anyone could! B-but if you need somewhere to be, you can just stay with us, 'kay? I won't let you feel hated ever again." He gave a tight squeeze, one hand rubbing over Su's upper back. Lewis didn't really know much about family strife, but he knew his friend was hurting... and he knew he'd do dang near anything to make them never hurt that way again.
Butterfly, butterfly, where you gonna go tonight? Wish I was just like you, maybe then you'll take me high Away from it all again Away from my troubles and my sins Away from the fears inside Away from the tears I try to hide away
. ⋅ ˚̣- : ✧ Su felt bad for breaking the mug and spilling the tea that Lewis had graciously made and said so in between sobs. When he said that he was sure their parents didn't hate them, the young teen furiously shook their head. "They do! And it's just-! It's stupid! If-if they had these feelings about me, then they should've just given me away instead all of this-this-this bullshit!" the teen spat out. And they fully meant it! Sure they would've never known their brilliant sisters or their loving grandparents (though now they wondered just how much the older wizards knew about it all and if there weren't dusty skeletons hanging in their own closets) but gods. No impending lectures and diatribes. The missing feeling of intense pressure with every step into another room. Never again having to feel guilty for just existing.
It took Su a slow realization that Lewis was in fact hugging them and saying very sweet and considerate things (very on brand for the tall teen) about staying and never feeling hated again. Which of course was the exact best and worse thing for their frayed emotions so what does one do? Why cry more of course! To their credit, at least it wasn't the horrible sobs from earlier. "M'sorry for all this cr-crying. It's been a very long..." life "night. Morning? Idunno." Su sniffled a bit, using their sleeve not hugging Lewis to wipe at their face.
'Cause I just want to make you smile, but I know that'll take a while 'cause I'm I'm tryin' to find myself I just want to make you proud, but I think that I'm runnin' out of time To figure it out
Alright, so saying their family didn't hate them was the wrong thing to say. Okay, noted. Su was crying really hard, which made all sorts of painful feelings bubble up in Lewis' chest. Their normally sunset-y orange color had changed from soft waves into clunky steps, the sobs sending bricks of color into his vision. "Oh, Su. They don't deserve you. What... what terrible people would ever feel that way about their kid. They sound like.... like assholes!" It wasn't often that Lewis cursed, but man, those feelings were just anger!
While in their little hug, Su seemed to calm a bit... before crying once again. At least these tears weren't blocking out his vision... Not that he'd ever tell Su their cries had done so. After all, it wasn't their fault his brain was wired weird. As if they could read his thoughts, Su apologized for crying, saying that it'd been a long night. "Hey, hey. Don't worry about crying. Papa Milo says 'shoulders are the best place to cry'." He paused a moment, then chuckled nervously. "Well, technically he said 'shoulders make the best tissues', but that sounds super gross... so I modified it." Hopefully a bit of light teasing of his Papa would help break some of the tension. He scooted over and handed over a box of tissues after watching them wipe their eyes on their sleeve.
"But don't worry. You can stay at my place. I promise my parents won't be upset. My little brother's gonna be a grumpy mess today, but otherwise everything'll be golden. You don't have to see those monsters again."
Butterfly, butterfly, where you gonna go tonight? Wish I was just like you, maybe then you'll take me high Away from it all again Away from my troubles and my sins Away from the fears inside Away from the tears I try to hide away
. ⋅ ˚̣- : ✧ Su sniffled a bit but was finally able to stop crying and started the process of cleaning their face as Lewis vehemently stated that Wekesa and Chikere were awful. Assholes apparently to their amusement. "Ooo, I'm telling Sierra you're cursing now." the teen teased with a watery grin. There was a side joke they had with the journalist that she was so sure of Lewis innocence that he'd sooner dump his paints in a toilet than curse. Su, having been around the Abrams a for longer intervals than her, disagreed and a joking bet was made. The grin turned into a full laugh as Lewis then-in true Lewis fashion-began to take everything in stride and mention that shoulders were made for crying according to his grandpa. Or at least, that's what they both took away from it. "Yeah, I like yours a bit better." they joked before grabbing some tissue to continue cleaning. It was while doing this that the other teen began saying that they could stay with the family, emphasizing that their parents wouldn't be upset while at the same time warning them that their brother might be a tad grumpy that day. Honestly same.
"Thanks again for the offer but I um, I think I'd feel better asking your parents just in case. I don't want to, yknow, wear out my welcome." Su lightly shrugged. It wasn't that they thought the Abrams would decline her asylum, if anything the parents would more than likely insist on it. But it was one thing to stay a few nights or a week or so and an entirely other thing to be there for weeks or months and they'd hate to be the cause of any strife because of it. After tossing the last used tissue and ensuring their face was in fact dry, Su lightly prodded at their face and made another slow realization. "Could you help me look for my glasses? I sorta left in a hurry and I'm not sure which bag I might've thrown them in." they asked sheepishly. Well now it made sense how blurry the bus ride had been.
'Cause I just want to make you smile, but I know that'll take a while 'cause I'm I'm tryin' to find myself I just want to make you proud, but I think that I'm runnin' out of time To figure it out
Despite his anger toward Su's parents, the Hufflepuff knew just what to say to break the frustration. Apparently they were going to tell Sierra about his cursing. "Noooo, you can't! I can't lose my reputation, Su!" He laughed, hoping that it meant that Su was feeling less.... crummy. Of course, he had a feeling that was not the case, but maybe if he kept doing silly nonsense it'd make them happier overall. Plus, he didn't mind being considered foolish if it meant his friends could get a laugh. After comparing the statements from Papa Milo, Su agreed that Lewis' version was better. "Yea, Papa Milo's got some... weird sayings. But at least he means well." Lewis shrugged, wondering how his parents... and uncles... aunts.... Grandpa Wyatt.... would feel about that.
Following his offer to have Su stay over for the summer, apparently they wanted to check with the Abrams parents first. "Alright, fair enough. Dad should be in anytime, he had to take Wen to the dentist. He is going to regret it a thousand percent. Wen's loud and absolutely terrified of dentists. Normally Mom takes him, 'cause of Dad's synesthesia, but I think Dad owed Mom a favor." It was probably true. Abrams men always seemed to have a knack for putting their feet in their mouths. It certainly hadn't skipped any generations that Lewis knew of.
At the next question, Lewis laughed. "I was wondering if perhaps you just got contacts or what. But yes, I'd be glad to help you find your glasses." He lifted the smaller bag and set it on the desk, carefully rooting through for a bit before handing over a glasses case. "Here you are. You'll probably be able to see a lot better with those on." Lewis offered a small smile, then glanced back at the little tea station. "Did you want more tea? We've got like a thousand boxes, thanks to Papa. Also that Dad refuses to drink hot tea. He only likes sweet iced tea, just like Grandpa Wyatt."
