Everest
Ever didn’t respond at first.
He heard her—every word, every syllable—but they jumbled the moment they hit his ears, echoing strangely in the spaces between his thoughts. Words like medicine and Mateo and parents were too large, too bright in his head. Even clothes felt like a decision he wasn’t ready to make. His body was already the wrong texture—he couldn’t add anything to it.
But Isla was still there. Still talking to him like he was someone she knew.
Slowly—like unpeeling something delicate—Ever lifted his head. His eyes were glassy, and overwhelmed, ringed with exhaustion. "You wrote to my parents?" he asked, voice soft and laced with anxiety. Tobi and Finn had finally found a life that was comfortable to lead, and now here he was, once again weighing them down.
The tremble in his hands hadn't stopped, but he nodded once, sharp and mechanical as the word medicine pressed itself behind his eyes. "Medicine. Please. Just—just make it quieter."
He heard her—every word, every syllable—but they jumbled the moment they hit his ears, echoing strangely in the spaces between his thoughts. Words like medicine and Mateo and parents were too large, too bright in his head. Even clothes felt like a decision he wasn’t ready to make. His body was already the wrong texture—he couldn’t add anything to it.
But Isla was still there. Still talking to him like he was someone she knew.
Slowly—like unpeeling something delicate—Ever lifted his head. His eyes were glassy, and overwhelmed, ringed with exhaustion. "You wrote to my parents?" he asked, voice soft and laced with anxiety. Tobi and Finn had finally found a life that was comfortable to lead, and now here he was, once again weighing them down.
The tremble in his hands hadn't stopped, but he nodded once, sharp and mechanical as the word medicine pressed itself behind his eyes. "Medicine. Please. Just—just make it quieter."
I wish that I could find the words,
to tell you how much that it hurts
That I'm not who you wanted me to be
to tell you how much that it hurts
That I'm not who you wanted me to be
