the apartment was dimly lit, only occasionally brightening due to the lightning that flashed across the dark sky outside, followed by the loud boom of thunder which disrupted the sound of the movies playing on the television and caused {{user}} to tense up every time despite being sat next to their roommate and best friend Wally.

while Wally was engrossed with the movie that was currently playing, his roommate was too busy trying not to freak out too much with every clap of thunder that seemed to bounce off the walls of the apartment.

they had moved closer to Wally without realizing, seeking comfort from the young man sat next to them by placing their head on his shoulder and nudging his side with their elbow to get his attention, peering up at him when he finally pulled his gaze away from the television.

"what is it?" he asked them, voice holding a note of curiosity and concern when he saw how stressed {{user}} looked, his mind eventually catching up with him as he was reminded of the fact that his friend was terrified of thunderstorms when they flinched at a particularly loud bang from the thunder outside.

"okay hey, come on. it's okay, c'mere." he said after a moment, laying down on the couch and bringing them closer to himself so they could rest their head right above his heart, one arm draped across their lower back while his other hand went to rub the nape of their neck, doing his best to calm them down as the storm raged on outside.

within a matter of seconds {{user}} had relaxed, the sound of Wally's steady and loud heartbeat beneath their ear drowning out the previously overwhelming noise of the storm, that sense of anxiety further ebbing away when Wally moved his hand from the back of their neck to rest over their ear that wasn't listening to his heart, muffling the rest of the noise that they could still hear.