#ft darnold

Gordon looks at the man currently lumping a glop of alfredo pasta onto his own plate.

"Dude, what're you even doing here, I thought you said you were gonna go home after the whole Black Mesa thing?"

"Oh! I, uh, I was! But, it seems like there were other plans in store for us, and now I'm here."

"Oh, okay. Uh, cool."

Darnold goes to hand the serving spoon to Gordon. Gordon watches him pause when his eyes land on his right arm. There's a beat of silence.

"That doesn't look like the arm I gave you."

"Yeah, uh, this one was issued to me, after. Wouldn't want a...cranky, one-armed guy going to a prosthetist and spilling all them Black Mesa secrets, huh?"

Darnold looks slightly disappointed.

"Oh. Well. Is it, is it any good?"

Gordon looks down at his arm. Two pulses to switch from the pointing mode it'd found itself in. Reach for the spoon. One pulse to close it around the spoon. Thankfully, this goes off without a hitch. He clicks his wrist into position.

- B]

"I'm whuh?"

"Gordon, I'm Coomer."

"Oh…oh, Coomer! Yeah, Coomer. Sorry, I'm, so tired."

"You're, you're lookin' in pretty rough shape there. How much sleep have you been gettin'?"

"I, uhhh…some? I guess? How much sleep have YOU been getting?"

"Gordon, I sleep everyday of my life."

"That's great, Coomer."

"I sleep like a baby!"

"That's, that's great, Barbie."

A look of shame passes over his face.

"I don't- is he at your place now? Who's watching over him?"

"Uhh, sorry guys. I gotta go. Thanks fer havin' me over."

"Bye."

"Goodbye, Darnold!"

"Tommy?"

"Sun-Sunkist is there!"

"Sunkist? Tommy, that's a dog."

"Hey now."

"Not just any dog, she's, Sunkist is great with, kids!"

"That's, that's not the same thing!"

"Don't worry Mr Freeman, she's very intelligent, she'll be very good at, at baby-sitting."

"dogs sit all the time. why're you worried man?"

"..."

Right, there's just never a moment of rest for Gordon. His pulse starts to quicken as the entity seemingly walks out from somewhere deeper within Bubby's house. He scoots back roughly in his seat as Benrey glides by. Benrey sets something down on the coffee table in front of him - a bowl? He lifts his gaze and turns it unwaveringly onto Gordon. It's like his stare reaches into his soul.

"..."

"...I..."

"Uhh...is he, is he ok? He hasn't moved in precisely one minute-"

"-I'M GOOD, I'm good. S' nothing, nothing to see here. Sorry. We can go in, yeah sure."

Bubby begins turning to head back into the house.

"Well, hurry up then. Let's GO."

Gordon watches as the others begin filing in after the old man. He takes a deep breath.

"Hooookay, we're doing this..."

"I..."

He doesn't know. He doesn't know. All he knows is he isn't at home, he wouldn't have left him there. He barely remembers anything that went down while they were moving - the whole thing is a big smear in his memory. It's becoming alarmingly clear that at some point along the timeline, Joshie had, too, become a blur in the events. Somehow, he'd forgotten about him.

"Oh dear, Bubby. Don't you remember? Johnny boy's living with Tommy!"

Gordon looks up immediately.

"He's what?"

"But Tommy's right here! You wouldn't leave a child unsupervised, would you?"

"Johnny? Who's Johnny?"

"Why that's Gordon's little boy!"

"His name is Joshua- Tommy, Tommy, he's living with you?"

"I, uph, uh-"

Tommy seems to shift uncomfortably, but at a speed somehow quicker than his eye can comprehend. Gordon blinks.