Chapter Text
It had been a couple weeks since the meeting and Tubbo was working non-stop.
It was more than concerning the way the teen glued himself to his laptop. The only times he wasn’t attached to a device was when he ate and even then there was always some kind of report near him.
After the announcement of Tubbos new position he seemed happier than ever, taking on the new role with efficiency it seemed like a perfect fit for the boy. He was good at helping his coworkers and they were more happy to receive it.
The days passed quickly though and as they did he seemed to increasingly worry.
Tommy noticed the way he would work late into the night leaning over piles of papers until he would have to drag tubbo into bed or just let the teen stay up and write.
Saying he was concerned would be an understatement and he could tell the others were too. Even Purpled who was back to working in quickmatch and Eryn who had started working with his dad in life line could see the destructive pattern Tubbo was turning to.
“Tubbo dude have you been getting enough sleep because you kind of look like shit”
Eryn stated bluntly after looking the teen up and down one morning.
It had been a while since the five of them were able to sit down together for a meal. Talking rapidly about what they’ve been up to the past days.
Tubbo would usually be the first to participate in these conversations jumping in with his own thrilling stories of what was happening within sharp seers, but today he just sat, lost in thought.
Needless to say his silence at the table started to unnerve the others.
“Yeah- and while I would've put it a bit differently”
Fundy spoke lightly while giving the older a pointed look
“you haven’t been looking the best recently”
he added in looking concerned for his friend.
Tubbo just sighed, rolling his eyes stating simply that they were worrying too much and overthinking his lack of enthusiasm.
“I’m just adjusting to the new workload It’ll smooth over soon enough”
The other teens were skeptical but decided to drop the topic.
Continuing on with breakfast they were almost done when a sharp ring sounded from Tubbo’s com startling the five as Tubbo fought to take the device out of his pocket and answer the call. Tommy, who was sitting closest to him, heard Dream’s voice coming from the other end and instantly cringed, he had interacted with the guy maybe three times and did not like him at all.
The first time they met was when Tommy was touring the containment sections of the lab. Making his way to sharp cutters he was surprised by the amount of creatures they studied and as a bonus one of the workers even gave him a copy of an entity research book when Tubbo introduced the two. He was really enjoying just looking around the place until, of course, Dream had to walk in. Tommy could just tell that the man was going to be stuck up in some way shape or form and boy was he right, the guy constantly held an air to him that screamed ‘Im better than everyone else in this room’.
Worst part was when he began lecturing Tubbo about the dangers of bringing ‘outsiders’ into the lab, which was dumb because they weren’t even in the area that held the dangerous entities! It’s like he wanted to cause problems just for fun, what an asshole.
The call didn't last long, only a few seconds actually as Tubbo was unable to input anything before the com disconnected and he was left speechless.
“Tubbo what happened is everything alright”
Tommy had to ask, his friend's expression already looked pained and something was telling him it wasn’t only because of who it was on the other end.
Tubbo’s face switched quickly like he was contemplating something, his shoulders were still uptight and uncomfortable, looking like he’d rather be doing anything else in that moment then be stuck sitting there with the rest of their group.
The moment (luckily) didn’t last long as his shoulders dropped, sighing again as he got up abruptly telling them to follow.
The teens stumbled to catch up, for the duration of their walk Tubbo seemed nervous, checking their surroundings like someone was going to pop out and get them in trouble. He only relaxed when they got back to the teen’s shared room, closing the door, telling them to take a seat down.
“Ok so I just got a call from Dream telling me that I need to go to level 8 as head of sharp seers because they need my… opinion.”
Tubbo said quickly, pacing the length of the room.
“Why do they need your opinion”
Purpled questioned, suspicion evident in his voice.
Tubbo didn’t respond for a second looking past the four teens' hesitance and concern sat heavily on his face.
“Well I guess it’s about time I tell you guys what's going on- I would pray that I don’t get in trouble for it but at this point I don't particularly care anymore”
Whatever is weighing him down must be bad. Even before his promotion, Tubbo took his work very seriously, especially when he was given confidential research.
He went on to explain what happened during the emergency meeting three weeks ago, and how the new entity(s?) was killing travelers at an alarming rate even with the warnings the council sent out.
Popping up in levels other than just 9 and 8 it’s become a huge threat to M.E.G and even now they still don’t have an exact description of what the creature(s) look like. Tubbo even pulled up the video already having a download of the footage on his computer to show them just how serious it was.
“They finally cleared out a path to where everything went down, and want me to check it out”
Tubbo finished as he closed his computer
“but I have no idea what to expect since Dream didn't give any information about what they want me to do when I get there”
There was a tense silence that enveloped the group, the four processing the contents of the video and what Tubbo had just told them.
“Let us go with you then”
Fundy asked worriedly
Tubbo just stared at him glancing over the group again before shrugging
“Eh Sure why not”
“Wait really?”
Eryn asked skeptical of the sudden acceptance in Tubbo’s voice.
“Yeah, are you sure about this Tubbo? Isn’t there a chance you get in serious trouble for bringing us out with you?”
Purpled finally spoke up for the first time since entering the room, a serious look on his face.
Tubbo only grinned in response, his face brightening as he remembered something.
“Oh that’s right! I almost forgot to mention, with my new position it means that I’m going to be called on field a lot more often as you can see but it also means something else..”
The teens leaned in expectedly wondering what their previously stressed friend had to say
“I get to have an on sight team! And you guys fit the requirements perfectly”
he paused face falling a bit
“That’s if you guys want to be on my team of course, it could comes with risks and it's completely optional”
he tacked on a bit sheepishly as the group glanced at each other
“hell fucking yeah!”
Eryn was the first one to break the silence he was practically shaking in excitement over the offer.
”sometimes I wonder how halo is your father with how much you curse-“
fundy snorted rolling his eyes
“but of course Tubbo I think I speak for all of us when I say It’d be great if we could join you”
Purpled and Tommy grinned nodding in agreement
“Great! and as a bonus its bound to piss off dream”
He said mood lifting as he laughed with his friends.
Soon after the discussion ended Eryn, Purpled and Fundy rushed out of the room eager to get into better suited outfits for their adventure, seeing as they couldn’t travel to such a dangerous level in just any day clothing.
They agreed to meet at the front desk in ten minutes along with the few others who were called out as well to the scene to investigate. This left Tubbo and Tommy alone in their shared room to pack and change.
Tommy despite his earlier eagerness had his doubts, as he changed he couldn’t help but think about his newly found friends and how talented the group was within their fields even with their younger age.
Purpled, the oldest of the group was also promoted within quick match after being re-appointed now working closely with its head quackity. Eryn, who grew up with his dad, already had every piece of field medical advice he could need memorized by heart. Lastly Fundy, their youngest, within safe circuit his almost inhumanly quick problem solving skills allowed him to help advance the technology of the backrooms especially in the coding used to assist in the exploration and remapping of both new and old levels.
To say he felt out of his league would be an understatement, and it didn't help that even now Tubbo was the one carrying his weight, packing for the both of them as he had the experience of knowing what they would need (which came naturally with the experience of being in the backrooms for the past four years).
“Tommy, I can feel you worrying from over here, what's wrong?”
Curse Tubbo and his frighteningly amazing insight.
“It's nothing, it's just- are you sure you want me to come?”
He ducked his head down Clementine deciding it was the perfect moment to scamper out of the bathroom now that the guests were gone, knocking into his legs, her coarse fur slightly scratching his skin,her wings fluttering gently on her back. He couldn’t help but crack a smile at the action as he continued his speech.
“I mean It’s barley my third week here, I don't have a proper job yet and it’s not even confirmed whether or not I’ll get to work at the lab with you-“
His nervous rambling was cut off as Tubbo grabbed his hand interlacing their fingers with an easy smile.
“calm down boss man, of course I want you there with me but you’re also right in a way”
he released his grip instead sitting down on their bed, his tone becoming serious.
“The past few weeks have been so hectic and while my work is important you matter more, I should’ve focused on helping you settle in besides one measly tour”
The teen spoke sincerely, regret apparent in his voice.
“Its ok tubs, you’ve already done so much for me I can't even imagine what would’ve happened to me if you weren’t here”
It wasn’t often Tommy allowed himself to be soft spoken, usually hiding his feelings under layers of boisterous emotions and loud words but Tubbo always managed to break down that shell with his sincerity.
Even after four years apart their bond remained strong, perhaps it was even reinforced by the unexpected reunion; both boys already accepting that they would never see their other half again up to that point, causing the sudden change to only bring them closer.
“Say then boss man, do you want to work in the labs?”
he leaned back head hitting the mattress as he pulled his knees up
“It’s always up to you even if you don't want to, you can still room with me. I have more juris- jurisdiction? Yeah I have more of that now so they can’t kick you out, not if I have anything to say about it”
it warmed Tommy knowing his friend would go through such lengths to keep him around but it also allowed him to voice the question he’d had for the past week.
He remained quiet for a second before speaking up.
“I do want to work here…”
“That's great, did you have a position in mind?”
He did, ever since they had visited the containment section of the lab he’d been fascinated with the entities that resided there, endlessly scouring over the book of information that was gifted to him during his tour.
He'd taken the almost three weeks he had mostly to himself to do his own research; he even got to go back to containment with the help of Fundy.
He wanted to work with sharp cutters
“I'm not sure yet”
That’s not true
he looked forward away from his friend afraid that Tubbo would see through his lie from just a quick glance at his face. He wasn’t cut out to work in such a dangerous field, when he’d asked about the job he was told that the group worked closely with wild warriors often going head first into dangerous levels often leading to many high risk situations and Tommy was not confident enough in his abilities to do something like that just yet. Worst part was that he was no scientist like Tubbo so just joining sharp seers wouldn’t do anything but slow their research down.
“That’s ok boss man we’ll figure out something for you soon”
Tubbo sat up hoping off the bed and picking the now fully packed satchel, throwing it into Tommy’s lap.
“In the meantime you can stop your moping there’s plenty of excuses we could use to get Dream off our backs if he does decide to run his mouth, trust!”
His energy was easily raised with Tubbo’s reassurance nudging Clem away from his legs as he stood with a grin.
“Now let's go, the others are already waiting for us!”
And then they were off.
This would be a perfect first outing with some semblance of a job.
Right