Tommy is... still alive. They have a class on Shakespeare together, and they have Intro to Lab together, and they have Geometry together, so Toby will notice if he disappears. It's a comfort.
(Tommy has always been skinny but he looks emaciated. He hasn't been sleeping well; he's got dark bags under his eyes, and sometimes he starts nodding off in class before startling awake. He stopped checking for mals before sitting down sometime in January, or maybe February, long enough that it's become part of Toby's routine to get to class early and make sure Tommy's seat is safe.
Somehow, the scariest part is that he's quiet. He talks slowly, at a normal volume, every once in a while--in group projects he lets other people talk instead--and Toby wants to ask what did Clay do to you but he can't, not if he doesn't want things to get worse.)
Tommy's still alive, and Clay graduates in three months. He's survived four months already. It's--well, it's not looking great. But there's a chance. Maybe. (Probably not.)
