Frustration was the main feeling rushing around is his head as Connor staggered along the corridor away from the others. The strange unnatural lighting of the ARC seemed so different from the last time he was here. In his memories, these lights were full of wonder and astounding possibilities, yet now they were a harsh reminder of all the things that could go wrong within this job. Taking a few more steps he heard the others calling his name, the tone of their voices lifting his twisted stomach slightly, and he knew he was foolish for not turning to them for help, instead of running away again.
He stopped as Abby reached him, and the look on her face was all he needed to calm him down. The desperate wanting, and needing, to return home throughout this year had finally been granted, yet everything had changed. Again, he was a fool for thinking that they would just return to their old lives, unchanged, but he wasn't prepared for such a drastic upheaval of their old lives. But, seeing that Abby was looking even a fraction as upset as he was made him realise that he wasn't alone, and that they were both experiencing this. As her arms tenderly wrapped around him, he let out a loud sob, and grasped her with his long arms, holding her as close to him as he could. His face fell down onto her shoulder, and he buried his eyes into her for a few moments, letting his tears escape his body, feeling her body tremble with the emotions also.
He took a deep breath as he pulled away from her, leaving his arms gently around her shoulders. Her face was strong, but not like it normally was. Her eyes were dim, the only slight inkling that she wasn't fine, and Connor was probably the only person who would notice it. He forced a slight smile as she spoke, feeling a bit like he used when he was a child and his mum would hug him and tell him everything would be alright after he fell off his bike, or some similar accident.
"I think I've stained your top," he nodded at her shoulder, though the year's worth of dirt on it did well to hide the tears. "Yeah, we're alright now. Just think, we get to sleep in a real bed tonight."
He tried to hold the smile, but realised his arms were still around Abby, and he retrieved them sheepishly, fumbling his fingers together awkwardly. He glanced around them quickly, the staff members seemed to have all disappeared to their jobs, no one was standing gawping like Connor expected them to be. Maybe it had been so long that everyone had forgotten about them. He looked back to Abby, brow slightly furrowed.