Title: Carry (2022 rewritten)
Verse: ROTTMNT
Summary: A visit to a local convention goes wrong when Donnie gets overstimulated. Now it’s up to Leo to get to him and get him home
For: Helle.Horse who helped me proofread all these!
Characters: Leonardo, Donatello, Raphael, Michelangelo, Splinter
Pairings: LESS THEN NONE
Warnings: Overstimulation, Meltdown
Leo is undeterred when he turns from the novelty drink booth and sees the snack court filled with cosplayers, hipsters, and exhausted parents. He’s been going to conventions since before he could blink, so Leo quickly finds a path between the giant catbus, the five stormtroopers, and twelve vloggers talking into their phones. He weaves his way through the crowd until he catches sight of Raph’s waving hand at a corner table. “Nice spot, hermanos! Upwind of the nerds and the least amount of stains,” Leo exclaims before dumping the hotdogs, nachos, sandwiches, food, and drinks all over the table. He snatches up the large novelty cup that looks like an upside-down Jupiter Jim helmet before Donnie can take it, “Nope, sorry, Don-Tron. I called dibs.”
“Fine, whatever, I hope it was expensive.”
“Oh it was! Thanks for treating me by the way!” Leo tosses Don’s wallet back to them. They juggle it between his hands before glowering at Leo as he takes his place by Donnie. “Did you get your autograph from the Rupert Swaggert Celebrity Impersonator of the Rupert Swaggert Celebrity Impersonator,” Leo asks Mikey.
“Yeah! Just before he got into a fight with the original Rupert Swaggert Celebrity Impersonator! It was awesome!’ Mikey hugs his new autographed (slightly torn) photo to his chest before he takes out his autograph binder and places it in its new slot. While not part of the official circuit, New York Not Comic Yes Con was a pop-up convention they had heard about a few years ago. With no warning or flyers to announce it.
The con would randomly appear in back-alley hotels and convention centers and draw in nerds like moths to a flame. How they managed to have any vendors at all with such short notice (Donnie's convention algorithm gave them five hours notice at best) was beyond him, but it was full of reclusive celebrities and rare items that made Leo drool in his sleep. Finally, Raph stops chugging his walking taco and, after choking a moment, gasps for air. “Alright, men, we’ve hit the Sci-Fi Alley, the Fantasy Alley, and the Sci Fi Fantasy Alley. What’s next on our list Dee?”
Donnie, who had been counting through his wallet and shooting glares at Leo, pulls up his tech gauntlet, “Well, there’s always the Fantasy Sci-Fi Alley. And the Science Fantasy Fictional Alley. There are a few celebrities I signed up for ahead of time, you’re welcome, but there’s also Artist alley, and the Hot Gazpacho and Cold Soup live show cook-off in three hours.”
“They’re doing that again,” Leo asks. “Last time they let those two in the same convention, they-”
Before he could finish, Mikey put a hand over Leo’s mouth, “We don’t speak of it.”
“ANY WAY, it's a full schedule. We have time for a quick bite, but we gotta get back to the floor again. So, men, consume!”
With the ferocity of middle-aged coyotes attacking a pre-black Friday sale, the brothers dived back into their food. It was only after Leo tore into his fifth Korean hotdog that he noticed a distinct lack of movement from Donatello. Instead, his brother had pulled off his headphones, twisting the ear clasp and making minor adjustments. ‘You ok, Dee,” Leo asked, “Are your headphones on the fritz?”
“Yeah, they’ve been acting up ever since Yokai Mart,” Donnie looks them over, “I've fixed them in every way possible, but they keep malfunctioning at the worst time.”
Leo sits up more, looking back to the convention and its sea of noise and overstimulation, “Um, do we need to head home or..?”
“Don't you dare. New York Not Comic Yes Con only pops up once a year, and I’ll be Splinter's hairy elbow if I miss it.” Donnie gives the headphones one more twist and puts them back on. He must have noticed the concerned look on Leo’s face since he rolled his eyes, “If you’re really concerned, you can rub my shoulders. I got shoulder-checked by a Boba Fett cosplayer an hour ago, and I’ve lost feeling in my neck since then.”
“No problem!” Leo stuffs the last of his food in his mouth and scoots closer, his fingers already set to work on rubbing Don's neck. Despite Don’s nonchalant attitude, the soft shell visibly sighs and relaxes more, which is enough to let Leo know he’s doing a good job, and he focuses on that for a few minutes.
Until Mikey suddenly spits out his milkshake and points back into the convention, “THE DIRECTOR OF JUPITER JIM SAILS THE SEVEN GALAXIES IS HERE!!!”
“WHAT NO WAY!” Leo turns to see a Convention helper putting up a new sandwich board. He immediately jumps up, picks up the signal (despite the worker shouting after him), and runs back to the table to read it better. “Steven Stephen Steinburg is doing autographs in five minutes?! He never shows up to conventions! Last I heard, he was sky diving into volcanos to do research for his next film!”
“I heard he was going undercover as an undertaker for his next big movie, Undercover Undertaker!” Mikey reaches over and yanks the sign for him to show Raph, “We’re going, right? We have to! No one has seen him in public in twelve years! Not since he got into that fish slapping fight with Marcus Moncreif!”
As Raph goes to answer, there's a loud and distinct “A-HEM” that comes from the other side of the table back to Donnie. Who reaches up and waves off Leo’s message, “In case you forgot what I told you exactly twelve minutes ago, we have a packed schedule. That is when the line to the Jupiter Jim screenings opens up. They're supposed to be showing the entire Jupiter Jim prequel movie with two minutes of never before seen footage that will forever explain the toe sock debacle. And I warned you before we got here that every time you break the itinerary, I get to pick the next movie we watch, and so far, I get to pick three,” Donnie says with a smirk so villainous Draxum would be proud.
The three looked at each other in a mild panic, knowing Donnie had just bought the “science of socks, a twenty-part series” he was dying to watch. But, as usual, in a true crisis just like this, Raph and Mikey look to Leo desperately for a solution. Leo, always having a plan, gives them a grin and a wink, “How about this, Don, two of us wait in line for the screening, and the other two go meet the director?”
Donnie gave him a hard look. Despite his grin, Leo felt bad for breaking the schedule so often. Conventions were not always the most manageable landscape for Donnie to traverse. Especially one that gave them no real time to prepare for, and breaking the schedule only added to that stress. Finally, Donnie lets out an overly dramatic sigh, “Ok, fine. I know this is important to all of you, and whoever stays with me with will complain, looking at you Leo, so how about I’ll hold our spot and you three can go-”
Raph hops to his feet, “THANKSDEEYOU’RETHEBEST!! Mikey! Periscope mode to find us the most direct route to Steven Stephen Steinburgh!” Mikey scrambles up Raph’s shell and holds his hands to his eyes as binoculars.
Leo looked at his brother, “Remember Dee, if you need us, text us. Ok? Let us know if something goes wrong with your headphones.”
Donnie rolls his eyes and brings up his tech gauntlet, “Puhlease, even fritzing, my headphones are at 76% performance capacity. But if you don’t bring me back a cool gift I’m picking out the next eight movies-”
“Thanks hermano,” Leo yells as he stuffs his souvenir cup back into his backpack and runs after his brothers, barely managing to wave back at Don before he hurries not to lose track of the others.
~~~
One thing to be said about conventions was that no matter what was going on, there was going to be a long ass line. But, thanks to Mikey’s expert periscoping, they could find the fastest route through the convention and see the new ‘Stephen Steven Steinbugh’ sign just as it’s set up, putting them only twenty places in line behind the front.
But Leo quickly sidesteps to keep another stormtrooper from stepping on his foot, ‘OW! Hey Mikey, you think you can share the perch or-” But Mikey had already given him a devilish grin and laid across Raphs shoulders like an evil cat, ‘Ok, you brat.” Leo says with no venom but smacks at Mikey’s foot.
“Hey!” Raph gives him a light elbow jab, “He got there first. So suck it up like a big turtle.”
“Yeah, yeah, fine.” Leo tilts around to peer at the time, then back to the line, “Do you think we’ll make it back to the movie in time? It wouldn’t be fair to Donnie to hold our spot the entire time.”
“Yeah, if he gets inside before we get back, he should see it without us. But we have an hour, so it should be ok?” Raph glances at him with an expression Leo recognizes a mile away, “I mean, I know he’s capable, but-”
“As long as he has those headphones, he’ll be ok.” Conventions had always been a big source of family fun in their family because they didn’t need disguises. Splinter had taken them to conventions ever since they were little, but because of the noise level, Don hadn’t always gone with them. During those times, Leo would stay home with him and have their own fun (or Leo would bug him so much that Donnie would beat him up with a pillow). But Don’s noise-canceling headphones allowed him to enjoy the conventions to the fullest without being stimulated or overwhelmed.
As the line shifts forward, Leo feels his phone vibrate in his fanny pack, but it’s already stopped by the time Leo pulls it out. Flashing the screen to see three missed calls from Donnie and frowns, “Hey guys, check your phones real fast and tell me if you have a missed call from Dee.”
The two of them look at him, confused, before they do as they are told, ”Yeah, from a minute ago,” Mikey says, holding it out for Leo to see. Raph has the same thing. But, of course, it wasn’t exactly a secret that conventions didn’t have the best cell service, and it could have easily been a buttdial.
But….
Without hesitation, Leo steps out of line, “Guys, I’m going to go wait with Donnie and check on him. If you can, get Stephen Steven to sign my Jupiter Jim Gym Towel,” and he starts at a quick pace. Ducking and dancing around cosplayers, his phone vibrates again, but before he can answer it, the call drops again, and he doubles his speed. He recounts the path back to the screening section and picks out the long line. Usually, it wouldn’t take too long to pick out a giant, green, soft-shell turtle, but come on. They were at a sci-fi convention. They had seen twelve turtle cosplays on the way to get pretzels. Thankfully, Leo saw his brother near the front of the line, before a teenager with gauges that would make the turtle tank tires jealous, and behind Eda, the Owl Lady cosplayer. His brother was jabbing furiously at his gauntlet, his headphones hanging off his forearm. His eyes were drawn in a panic that would have sent Leo spiraling if he hadn’t taken a deep breath and taken Donnie by the shoulders, catching his attention, ”Don, what's going on? What’s wrong?”
“Hey,” the guy behind him snaps, “No cutting!” But Leo ignores him, and thankfully Don does too. His brother’s gaze was a mile away, wrapped in stress lines, and at first, Leo was not sure if Donnie even noticed him when he went back to jabbing at his gauntlet.
But he started stuttering a response, “S-something went wrong. I-I tried adjusting the-the volume, t-trying to fix them, but-then they started letting out this loud noise and I-I couldn't take it. N-now there’s nothing but noise and-and-and-and-,” Donnie desperately tries to blink away his now rapidly filling tears, “I can't breathe-”
Leo opens his mouth to say something, anything of comfort that he knew would be hollow against Donnie’s now overstimulated mind, when the guy's voice speaks again, “Hey spaz, if you’re going to cry, get out of line.”
The red slider pivots hard, his fist twisting the teen’s shirt up tightly and yanking him close so that the now terrified teen could only see into his eyes. “If I ever see or hear you talking about my brother with anything lacking the same dignity you would give someone without a disability, I will send you so far into the earth, not even the Devil will be able to find you.” Leo released the teen. In his panic, the guys already white complexion fades to ghost-like. Once Leo drops his front, the guy takes several steps back out of line before turning and taking off like he expected Leo to chase him down.
It takes Leo a moment to come back, and he takes a single deep breath. He turns his attention back to his trembling brother, who now has his hands clasped on the sides of his head. It's then Leo notices that the headphones hanging around his neck are faded. After a moment, Leo realizes they’re giving off a high-pitched noise that immediately makes him wince and hover his hands by his head. Before Leo can try and discern what's wrong with them, they give off a flicker and an audible electric spark. Leo quickly reaches forward and takes them off Don’s neck, not that Don notices. The blue brother is unsure how to turn them off and stop the noise, so he wraps them up in one of his convention t-shirts. Leo quickly puts them in his bag before they can hurt anyone. “Dee come on, let's go,” he says as he raises his hand, but Donnie shakes his head furiously.
“NO. I said I’ll wait, and I’ll wait-”
“You matter more than a stupid screening, Don.” Leo tries to recount himself and forces himself to take another breath before stepping back to Donnie. He gently puts his hands on Don's shoulders to ensure he has his attention, but not necessarily his eye contact (which he knows can be difficult for Don in situations like this). Unfortunately, Leo is more than painfully aware that Donnie is shaking so hard he could pass out. “Dee, I won't make you go. I won't take that autonomy away from you. But if you want to go, it's ok.”
He doesn’t rush Donnie for an answer. Instead, Leo forces himself to have patience through willpower alone. He had made the mistake of taking the decision away from Don regarding his mental health and meltdowns and promised not to do it again. Even if it hurt to see him struggle. Thankfully no one behind them in line is complaining or trying to move around them. Whether out of respect for the situation or fear, Leo was going to threaten them, too; he didn’t know. But Don finally looks up to him again and gives a small, barely noticeable nod.
Leo tries not to look too relieved. “Ok, bud, let's get you some air,” he says, wrapping his arm around Don's shoulders, who in turn leans heavily against him. It was far quicker to get out of the convention than it had been to get to Don in the first place, despite the fact they were not going against the tide of conventiongoers. But when they finally reach the cold New York night air, Leo first moves Donnie off to the side and out of the way of people entering the convention. As soon as they're out of the way, Donnie drops so fast Leo’s afraid he’s actually passed out. But instead, Donnie is now in a crouched position with his hands rubbing at his face. Leo quickly squats next to him, “Don, hands, hands. Remember what Dad said. Do something with your hands.'' Leo puts his hands out instinctively but stops himself from restraining Don’s hand. Thankfully Donnie starts fluttering his hands instead. When Leo’s phone starts ringing, Leo moves to kneel in front of his brother. If only to shield him from the scrutiny of people passing. He presses the back of Donnie’s head, so his face is safe in the crook of Leo’s neck as his free hand pulls his phone out and answers, “Raph?”
“Hey, what happened? Is Dee ok?”
“Don’s headphones are malfunctioning and he’s having a meltdown.” Leo gives Don a small, supportive half-hug.
“Should we come to you? We can meet you.”
Leo goes to answer but feels Donnie shake his head. Question answered. Leo starts rubbing Don’s shell, “No, Donnie wants you guys to stay and have fun. I’ll take care of him.”
There's a pause on the other side. Leo can only imagine Raph’s crestfallen face looking at Mikey's. He knew how much Raph struggled to let someone else take care of his brothers, and he knew there was a good chance Raph would ignore him. But after he sighs, Raph says, “Ok. Keep me up to date, and just look out for him. Ok?”
Leo allows himself a smile for the first time since Donnie’s failed phone call. “Of course,” he says before hanging up.
“Why?”
The voice is so alien and unlike Don that, at first, Leo is sure it’s someone else watching. But the voice came again, “I-I was so careful. I checked th-three times. B-But it still failed.” Don’s body tenses, his shoulders trembling like weakened floodgates before a hurricane of emotion, “I was careful,” his voice cracks as he hides his face again. Seeing his usually boisterous, loud brother so small was painful. Leo takes a few minutes to simply hold him and comfort him before he tips Donnie’s head down to rest his forehead on Leo’s shoulder and speaks quietly, “Dee, is it ok if we go home? We don’t have to if you don’t want to. I'll do whatever you want.”
Don nods quickly, which is more relief than Leo wants to admit. He takes Donnie gently by the shoulders and guides him back to his feet. Don’s movement is so slow, but Leo doesn’t have the heart to rush him. “Do you want to ride on my shell,” he asks. When Leo gets another nod, the blue turtle turns, crouches down, and waits for Don to climb up with his forearms wrapped around Leo’s collarbone. Had Don been more aware of what was happening, he would have beaten the back of Leo’s skull for robbing him of his dignity. But when Leo stands back up, he feels Donnie curl up with his face hidden by the back of Leo’s neck as a small sob escapes him.
Leo tilts his head back to touch Don’s for a moment before he sets off.
~~~
The walk home doesn’t take nearly as long as Leo expects, but it is still too long for his liking. The sooner he got Donnie home to a more familiar space, the better. Through creative thinking, Leo can slide down the ladder by placing a foot on either side of the ladder and using one hand to hold one of the sides and go down. (Actually, he would have been more impressed if he hadn’t been so intent on getting Donnie home.) Halfway home, Leo feels Don squirming and takes it as a hint to set his brother back on his feet carefully. He waits to see what Donnie will do, but when nothing happens, he reaches around and wraps one arm around the purple turtle’s shoulders, his other hand holding Don’s, and Leo guides him along.
When they reach the lair, they see Splinter at the entrance with one of Donnie’s hoodies and a worried look on his face (Raph must have called him ahead of time). When they’re in eyesight, Splinter hurries forward and takes Donnie’s free hand, “Purple, are you alright?”
Donnie looks at their father, and his eyes swell with tears again. He falls on his knees and presses his face into Splinter's robes, weeping long held-back pain. Splinter looks at Leo and hands him the hoodie. In turn, Leo kneels to wrap it around Don’s shoulders. Despite his desire to be more active, Leo steps aside and heads to the kitchen to ensure he’s not an audience member of Don’s low point.
He starts setting up tea, and as he waits for the water to heat up, he sits at the kitchen table. He pulls out his souvenir cup and looks over Don’s headphones. He didn’t have the trained eye that Donnie did with electronics, but he was good at picking out details. Before he could discern anything, the headphones spark, and a jolt shoots up Leo’s fingers forcing him to drop them in shock (pun intended). “Hey,” Leo snaps, looking at the headphones as though the turtle expected them to retaliate again. ”That's NOT what you’re designed to do,” he snarls. Leo picks up the novelty cup and washes it out just as the kettle starts whistling. He mixes some tea, and it's not until he pours the water into the cup that Leo notices his own trembling hands. The turtle flexes his fingers and lets out a small sigh before heading back towards Don’s room, where he had seen Splinter guiding him. He steps to enter when he hears, “Dad, I said I didn't want to.”
“I know Donnie, but I thought after tonight you might reconsider.”
Leo blinks. He knew better than to eavesdrop, but unfortunately, it was in his nature to snoop. So, he leans closer to the doorway and listens, “I thought you said you wanted to give me a choice in the matter,” Donnie questions with a bit more hint of his sass, but not enough to cover the pain in his voice.
“It is still your choice. I will never force you to do something you’re not comfortable with or ready for,” Splinter pauses, “Leonardo, stop being the busybody and get in here.” Oops. Too tired (and too ‘Leo’) to feel shame, Leo steps in with his tea. Donnie was sitting on his bed, wrapped in a weighted blanket, wearing his hoodie as Splinter sat by his side, holding his hand. Splinter looks to the cup and turns back to Donnie, guiding his face to look at him, “Please rest. If you need me, let me know. I love you,” and he gives him the smallest of pecks between Donnie’s eyes before standing up, “I’ll let Red and Orange know you two made it home ok.” Double oops. Yeah, Leo had forgotten to do that. Now that his adrenaline was fading, his sense of humor was coming back in full swing. As Splinter passes him, he pats Leo on the forearm, “You did good, my son. Thank you.”
Leo, who typically survives on validation alone, can only manage a weak smile as he pats his father’s hand in return before Splinter disappears towards the kitchen. The two were now alone.
Donnie quickly scrubs his eyes on his sleeve, but Leo does not indicate that he saw the movement as he sits on the edge of Donnie’s bed. “Made you some tea, bud,” he hands the cup to his brother, to which Donnie gives him a puzzled look, “I cleaned it out, and I owed you a souvenir, right?”
Donnie looks at it again. “I mean, I did pay for it,” he says before sipping from it, “Thanks.”
“No problem. Is there anything else you need? I can leave if you want,” Leo offers, though he’s hoping Donnie will tolerate his presence a moment longer. Donnie sips from his new souvenir cup, thinking, “Um, actually, the weighted blanket isn’t helping, can you..” he lets it drift off.
With a smile, Leo squirms around until he’s sitting behind Donnie. “Tell me if I squeeze too tight,” he says as he hugs Donnie tightly from behind. Though Donnie was the most touch-intolerant brother, it was discovered early on that pressure was one of the main things to help him lose stress. It worked the same way a massage worked for Leo, or a warm blanket worked for Mikey. And even now, Leo feels Donnie lean back against him, and some of the tension leaves his body. “How are you feeling,” Leo asks.
“Tired. Drained. Embarrassed. The usual.” Donnie sips from his tea, giving his new Jupiter Jim Novelty Cup a slight smile that Leo pretends not to notice. “Sorry, you had to leave the convention because of me.”
“Eh, don’t worry about it,” Leo says, tucking his chin over Don’s scalp to further his role as a pressurized armchair, “There were way too many Bakugo cosplayers this year anyway.” He pauses for a few seconds, waiting to see if his weak joke had any effect, but Donnie just sips from his cup, and Leo decides it's time to ask, “What were you and Dad talking about?”
“He,” Don pauses, “He wants me to go to therapy.”
“I…” Leo pauses as well, “oh.”
“He thinks I’ve been having a harder time lately and that talking to someone who isn’t as close to our situation might help. He was going to ask Hueso if he knew any Yokai therapists I could talk to, but….” If Donnie is trying to hide the resentment in his voice, he’s not trying very hard, “What no one seems to get is that it’s been a rough couple of months. And I’m not ready to lay on a couch and pay someone to tell me I have superiority issues or drug me up.” Finally, Donnie twists to meet Leo’s eyes, “You think I should go,” he says in a tone that dares Leonardo to agree.
“I didn't do anything! I’m just trying to be a living weighted blanket!”
“You didn’t have to.”
“I’m not-” Leo takes a deep breath. Then, to buy time, he squeezes Donnie tighter and rests his chin on Don's shoulder, “At least he’s giving us a choice.”
Donnie blinks back at him in surprise, “Us?”
“Yeah, Dad's been trying to talk all of us about going to some sort of counseling of some sort. He thinks it has something to do with, you know, the never ending insomnia. And the anxiety might have something to do with it, but I don't know. He might be reading too much into this. He only raised us and sees things about us no one else sees.”
For a moment, the two sit in silence. Leo hugs Donnie an inch tighter and rests his head against Donnie’s, who does the same. “Dee,” Leo starts, “I’ll make a deal with you. A twin pact. I’ll think about going to therapy if you think about going to therapy. Is that fair to you?” Leo’s not sure what to expect as an answer, but Donnie nods the best he can with his head leaning against Leo’s.
“Yeah fine, we’ll get a professional to tell us which one of us is more screwed up.”
Despite himself, Leo smiles, hugging Donnie as tight as he can, saying, “Deal, but it's definitely Mikey.”
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St.Patrick's day at Willy's Wonderland.
(Willy, Gus, and Knighty are heading to the city for a fun day when a black cat crosses their path, Gus got out of the way before it happens.)
Gus: Don't let the black cat cross your path, it's bad luck!
Knighty: What?
Willy: Oh come on, don't tell me you believe that.
(The three continue walking, when a car drives through a puddle and splashes Willy with muddy water.)
Willy: Well Knighty, I guess Gus was right and know we're both gonna have bad lu-
(Willy turns around to see that Knighty was completely dry.)
Willy: How are you not wet, you were standing right next to me!?
Knighty: It's because I was given some good luck today.
(The three go to a diner for lunch, a frog seated them at a table. When Willy sat in his chair, there was gum stuck to his leg.)
Willy: Oh come on!
(A poodle waitress comes to take their order.)
Midge: Hello, my name is Midge, may I take your orders?
Gus: I would like a cheese burger with pickles, with a side onion rings and some chocolate milk please.
Midge: Alright, a cheese burger with pickles, with a side onion rings and some chocolate milk, what would you like to order sir? (Talking to Knighty.)
Knighty: I would like a raspberry iced tea for my drink and for my meal I think I'll treat myself to a fish fry please.
Midge: Alright, a fish fry and a raspberry iced tea, and how about you sir? (Talking to Willy.)
Willy: I would like some fried chicken and a an orange soda please.
Midge: I'm sorry sir, but we're currently out of chicken and our soda fountain is currently being repaired at the shop.
Willy: Alright, then how about a hot dog with ketchup and mustard with a side of tater tots and some orange juice please?
Midge: Sure thing sir, we'll get your orders soon.
(Three and a half hours go by and Knighty and Gus have finished their meals while Willy didn't even get his water yet.)
Willy: This sucks, it's been three and a half hours and they haven't even brought my water yet!
(A moth waitress arrives with a mug of coffee.)
Moth waitress: Here's your coffee sir.
(She trips and spills the coffee on Willy's lap.)
Willy: Oh come on, I didn't even order coffee!
Moth waitress: Oh, I'm so sorry, did you order a hot dog with ketchup and mustard and a side of tater tots?
Willy: I did, thank you mam.
(Willy thought that his luck was turning around but when he bit into the hotdog it was cold and the tater tots were super soggy. When the three were given the check the moth waitress told Knighty that his meal was free because he was their one millionth customer.)
Knighty: Man, talk about lucky.
Willy: And talk about unlucky!
(The three leave the restaurant after pay for their meals, Knighty looks down a sees a hundred dollar bill on the sidewalk while Willy steps on a stray lego.)
Willy: Aaaaggghhh!!!
Knighty: Wow, I found a hundred dollar bill!
Willy: Good for you...
(They go to the mall and the Barnes&Noble in the mall was having a half off sale to celebrate the five year anniversary of being in business.)
Knighty: Oh yes, I'm gonna score a lot of high fantasy books.
(Willy looks around and sees that the Hot Topic at the mall went out of business.)
Willy: No, not the Hot Topic!
(The three get some some frozen yogurt at the Froyo Fortress in the food court.)
Puffin lady: Welcome to Froyo Fortress, it's Froyo Friday were we pick a random flavor and make it free, today our free flavor is espresso.
Knighty: Well espresso just so happens to be my favorite flavor.
(The three walk through the flavors and Willy sees that the birthday cake froyo dispenser is out of order.)
Willy: Oh, give me a break!
(Willy settles for rockey road froyo and Gus gets cotton candy froyo. They pay for their froyo and when Willy sits down, his froyo had already melted.)
Willy: I wanna go home!
(Willy, Knighty, and Gus walk home and on the way there Willy gets stung by a bee and Knighty finds his lost pocket watch on a bench at the park they were walking through.)
Knighty: My pocket watch, I must've left it on this bench the last time we were here, this is turning out to be the best day of my life!
Willy: Well this is turning out to be the worst day of my life!
(They get back home and Tito is there to greet them at the door.)
Tito: Hola amigos, how was your day in the city?
Willy: My day was terrible, I had nothing but bad things happen to me!
Knighty: I on the other hand had the best day of my life and I owe it to that black cat.
Willy: What are you talking about, black cats are bad luck!
Knighty: Maybe to you Americans, but for a Scotsman like myself, black cats are actually good luck.
Gus: You know, that actually explains why you've been so lucky today.
Willy: You could've told me earlier!
Knighty: I didn't think it was important.
(Willy goes to his room in defeat and goes on his phone but the internet was being very slow for him.)
(Happy St.Patrick's day.)
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Finally, Doug called everyone towards the banquet table for lunch to be served. Stede had dropped off an opened bottle for Ed without another word, but didn’t miss the amused expression on Ed’s face as he did so. When the literal dinner bell rang (Mary and her trinkets), Stede was caught staring.
He should have looked away.
In retrospect, he should have done a lot of things.
Twinkling up the side of Ed’s hip, just barely above the band of his shorts, Stede saw it. Three stars were all that was visible; three different reasons for Stede to stare, three ways for Stede to be beckoned closer, three separate fantasies that popped into Stede’s head.
Only he would know what lay beneath the wet, clinging fabric of Ed’s swimsuit. If this was the top, then what continued underneath the clothing was salacious; intentionally placed art for eyes to linger. A long trunk that swirled its branches outward; ink covered in water droplets as Ed emerged from the pool.
The former pro-athlete (the one that still had a hint of abs and muscled skin) stretched his arms above his head and Stede saw a taste more: from the three stars it turned to five as the elastic band sank. Mouth watering, pulse racing, Stede watched the way Ed’s lithe body moved. A cherry-patterned towel ruffled through that mane of wet hair, falling dormant around his shoulders as Stede met his eye.
Ed winked.
Shattering, the glass of wine in Stede’s hand hit the pavement beneath him. He leapt away quickly, and luckily didn’t notice any immediate damage done to anyone standing nearby. Doug was at his side with a dustpan in the blink of an eye, but—
Stede snapped out of it with a blush on his cheeks. They shuffled into a single-file line for plating shortly after the cleanup.
“Are you alright?” Lucius asked over Stede’s shoulder, “You seemed, I dunno,” a pause to sip from his seltzer for dramatic effect, “distracted?”
“I think I have a hunch,” Doug joked in front of them, “but I don’t know, Lu, anything could have caused such a thing.”
“Both of you shut up.” Stede hissed, grabbing a paper plate, “I will throw both of you in the pool if you don’t shut up.”
“Don’t want that,” Lucius said with a sassy murmur, and he rounded the other side of the table to grab a hotdog, “you might drop another glass if we come out dripping wet like a Bond Girl.”
Doug barked a laugh, “We’re not Stede’s type, unfortunately.”
Altogether, Stede had to simply take what was dished out. He brought this on himself, in a way. A deep sigh, a roll of his eyes; Stede knew it was all in good fun. There was nothing subtle about why he dropped his glass, anyways.
He didn’t dare look at Ed, though.
“Douglas, don’t be so hard on yourself,” Stede patted his shoulder pitifully, “I’d take you any day.”
Doug placed a gentle hand on top of Stede with a goofy smile, “Thanks, buddy.”
It was like he appeared out of thin air; Stede would have jumped out of his skin if he wasn’t so stupidly hyper-aware of Ed’s presence.
“You okay?” He asked, reaching across the table to grab the potato salad scoop, “Might have gotten yourself pretty scratched up there.”
“I’m fine.” Stede said flatly, not looking at the other.
“What happened?” His tone was innocent, but when Stede finally met his gaze, his eyes were anything but.
Stede flicked his eyes down to Ed’s hip — the band was up over the stars, with only the first star visible from where it was adjusted. Stede had a curious tilt to his head as he inspected it, the bathing suit covering most of the tattoo, then. When his eyes snapped back up to Ed, the other was grinning.
Tease.
“A distraction.” He grumbled.
“Oh?” Ed met Stede at the end of the table, both their plates stacked with food. He reached a hand out to squeeze Stede’s arm, “Be careful, okay? Don’t want you getting hurt.”
Stede stood alone by the grill as Ed sauntered away.
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