Work Text:
*007n7 might be going crazy.*
It's been a handful of days, 7n7 can't tell. He avoids shedletsky during rounds and knows the latter is doing the same, a thin veil of awkwardness separates them. He doesn't know what to do, when he thinks back on that day his face flushes bright red and his hands grow clammy.
In the safety of his room, he groans into his hands. His mind still racing and processing that day.
***FLASHBACK!!***
**007n7 curses the second his mind catches up to being awake. An insistent pain making itself presently known on his lower back, a warmth presses itself beside him though. Rising and lowering with each breath that hits his nape, shedletsky having fallen asleep with his arm under his head while jamming his face directly into 7n7’s neck and the other arm curled around the burger man's hip.**
**His face immediately bursting into fiery flesh was the first instinct his body had when reacting to the information that shedletsky—THE shedletsky was cuddling him like a touch starved, lovesick puppy. ~~Some part of him was very satisfied with this info, a pleased feeling thrums in his body for a moment.~~**
**His next instinct, is to then try and wiggle out of the hold the chicken man trapped him in. Shimmying the hand gripping his hip, with absolutely no results. The man apparently had an iron grip even in his sleep. He tried other… means, some… unconventional but nothing worked much to his chagrin. Eventually, the stinging pain in his back which grew the more movements he tried to do won and he had given up, succumbing to the tiredness and shutting his eyes.**
**~~Golden eyes peered at him as he fell back into the comfortable void of sleep. Breathing his scent in like the alluring smell of tobacco for smokers. He covers the father in his golden wings, curling over the two of them in the way a bird would cover its mate for warmth in the coldness of winter wind.~~**
**~~When 7n7 woke up, his bed only had him on it and an empty void in his gut. A single golden colored feather tucked beneath a pillow.~~**
***
*Shedletsky is going crazy.*
He feels warm. Too warm. He wishes to stop being this much of a coward and to just man up, take 7n7 out on a date or something on those lines. And he's currently debating on it while staring holes into the object of his affections, strategically following the man from a decent distance. (Read: stalking)
His infatuation with the man reached breaking levels that night, the memory flashing in his face of the man's messily strewn locks underneath him; extensively fluffy hair that was just URGING. him to bury his hands in them to see if they are as soft as they look. His teary void black eyes, glistening with surfacing tears and shining like a freshly polished surface that were clouded with arousal ~~and love. But he didn't know that, dear readers <3~~ His reddened cheeks, and his sweet, sweet trembling lips. Raw and imperfect, yet he still wanted to kiss the man half to death either way.
He can feel his hidden wings puff up, a tremor of pleasure racing up his spine. A golden glint slipping from his eyes before he regained proper control. But as darkness clouds his vision, he's gonna have to plan this better later. Smirking in the middle of transportation, he thinks ‘Time for sword practice.’
***
‘Brandon works.’ 7n7 notes, peeking from a corner at the tall castle; seeing the crouched figure of taph setting his tripwires and can make out the faint, pulsing glow of a subspace tripmine. His gui beeps as his fingers fly over the keyboard with an input, seeing a tripwire snap with the rising spikes of a John doe, specifically its oceanic alter; Galsharpoon. Leaving just in the view of shedletsky lunging at the killer with his linked sword.
In the spot he'd glitched into, he heard the rumbling of an unfinished generator, probably noob or chance who got his 3 stacks. He quickly got to work having the interface lighting up showing the unconnected wires that needed guiding, with a few swipes of his finger the grid completed and presented another. He sighed.
***
Shedletsky gives a pained yelp, one of harpoons slashes unluckily cutting deep into his stomach. Searing pain jolts through his body, when he glanced down he sees a concerningly fast flow of blood rushing out of the open wound and even sees the red-tainted fat in the gash. ‘Holy #### it went DEEP.’ He feels his stomach roll at the sight but quickly refocused onto the figure of harpoon who’d gotten stunned by guest who came at perfect timing with his charge.
“Shed! Get ‘yerself over ‘ere!” Builderman yells from beside his turret, quickly waving his hand and beckoning the man over while guest and gar have their brawling session. The deep laceration proved difficult in his movement, every panting breath agitating the wound further, making Builderman grimace at the near lethal cut. “Can't believe I'm sayin this but #### this is bad. Elliots on cool down so you'll need ‘ta find someone with a medkit. Shoo, put pressure on the wound and go far, far from ‘ere.”
Shedletsky groaned but nodded, limping away with a visibly blood trail; his hand being coated in the leaking sticky substance, desperately trying to not let any more out because he's pretty sure he’ll fold like his laundry with one more hit. Shakily inhaling and exhaling, he hears the *Ding!* of a just completed generator and makes his way towards it.
He rounds the corner, meeting eye to eye with..
***
“Shedletsky?” The burger man, incredulously blurts out. His thought process having come to an end with the presence of shedletsky there.
They both stare at each other for a solid minute. “…007n7” shedletsky blinks like he didn't realize he'd said that out loud. Then it's his turn to blink, stammering and stumbling over his words. “Ah— do you need— you okay?” Was apparently a good choice of words that his brain had come up with. It sends shedletsky into a chuckling mess that's cut short by a pained hiss. Only when 7n7 looks down he realizes *‘*Oh. *Oh.’*
The amount of blood spewing out of the wound is near ridiculous, and shedletsky just avoids his concerned stare; instead gritting his teeth and spitting out “Do you— kh! Have a medkit by any chance?” Though it came out pretty harsh, he knew that the man didn't mean it and was immensely struggling with the pain of his wound.
7n7 made a disappointed as his pockets were empty, but he could recall two time picking one up so he shakes his head. “I don't, but i'm pretty sure two time had one. I'll teleport us there,” He extends his hand. “If you may?” Shedletsky takes his hand almost a bit too fast. Giving him a glowing grin “Thanks.” 007n7’s face takes on a slightly red tint when he nods a tad aggressively and taps on one of the premade icons moving on the map of which was a small spawn point icon and they wait for the gui to load. ~~Both ignoring that comfortable warmth-coldness they got clasping their hands together.~~
Teleporting…
.
.
“Two time!” The retired hacker called out. “Ah, 007n7? What brings you to me?” He shivered being under that dead-ish gaze, but gestured beside him. “Do you have a medkit? Shedletsky needs to be patched up.” Two time inspected their interlocked hands and their smile grew wider with an incomprehensible emotion. “I do, you have a keen eye. Here, patch up your partner and I shall pray to the spawn for your safe healings. “ they chuckled when they tossed the medkit into 7n7’s arms. An almost livelier, knowing look replaced their default expression. Two time nodded back at them before continuing on his earlier path.
007n7 chokes on his half-assed thanks when it entered his brain that they called them partners. Apparently so did shedletsky but he just had a sheepish smile strained on his face, 007n7 decides to ignore further actions and focuses on healing the poor lad up. It's almost on autopilot when he coaxes him to sit and lean against the wall while he retrieved the antiseptic fluid alongside a few rolls of bandages.
Though this is more difficult because of the injuries placement, he props up shedletsky’s arm over his shoulder and tries not to think of the man's impressive musculature underneath his fooling exterior when he lifted up the deities shirt to reveal the extensive fleshy cut. The survivalists stomach rolls in disgust and horrification due to the bumps underneath the flesh. ‘####ing hell.’ His voice chirps in his mind, looking incredulously at the man; if the killer had swung just an inch deeper, his guts would have painted the ground in the same color as his son.
007n7’s breath is shaky when it leaves his throat but he urged himself to focus. He had poured the liquid during his mental gymnastics, methodically sewing it shut with the sterilized needle and now just needed to wrap it up, ignoring the blood seeping into the side of his pants where he laid beside the other; his hands quickly got to work with looping it around his abdomen until it ran out and then fetching another to secure it just in case. Above him, shedletsky laid on the arm propped up on 7n7’s shoulder. His jaw clenching with the throbbing pain slowly but surely subsiding.
7n7 checks the timer on his gui. 2 minutes 32 seconds. He releases a breath he doesn't even realize he was holding, his tense shoulders relaxing and his head droops forward with the last of the bandages being clipped; the both of them now pressed there with a light tension.
***
‘*This is a perfect situation for that. I think.*’
“Hey.. 7n7? Can i— uh, ask you something?” His dry throat giving his words a rough edge. Raising to meet the man eye to eye. Brows furrowed. “I— yea, sure?” the burgerman nodded. He smirked.
“I really like you and it's getting to concerning levels so are you maybe interested in a date? Give a man a chance, ey?” Shedletsky chuckled at 007n7’s surprised expression “A-ah?” 7n7’s eyes rapidly blinked in the span of a minute while his face grew hotter and hotter, feeling closer to melting every passing moment. He backs away with his hands covering his flushed face. “…yes.” he whispered. “What?” Shedletsky’s head tilts.
“Yes. I'll go on a date with you.” He repeats with a steadier tone. The bird man stilled for a moment, then put on the most genuinely happy and bright smile that almost had 7n7 shielding his eyes from the wholesome onslaught. His wide starry eyes, his smile that looked like it'd split his face in two, and the feathers that popped on the sides of his head puffing up. It made his heart coo in adoration.
“Give me after tomorrow’s round.” His hands brought up 7n7’s encompassed in his own, pure unfiltered joy filling up his entire being and he just can't seem to knock that smile off his face probably making him look goofy. He gave him a smile just as pure.
***
‘####’ was a mantra that kept repeating in his head and in time with his ragged breaths, running in a random direction with 1x1x1x1 hot on his tail on his tail. His heart is racing in his chest, threatening to explode like one of taph’s tripmines.
He tries to slip through a tight corner (key word: tries) but fails as his legs lock up, stamina run completely dry and he's left limping for his life with an injured arm. When he looks back at the menacing figure of 1x creeping up to him like a predator to prey. His brain then blurts out *“Ohmygodpleasedontkillmeihaveadatewithshedletsky.”* Both freeze.
They stare. 7n7 blinks. 1x1x1x1 blinks. And scowls. “**Tch! 4s 1f th4t f0o1 w0uld 34t n0th1ng 6ut h1s ‘pr3sc10us fr13d ch1ck3n!’”** he mockingly snarks at the poor burger man, raising his daemonshanks to swipe at the man when he suddenly says “well, he's eating me so—” and the manifestations mind blanks.
Meanwhile, 7n7 is internally freaking out because ‘*WHYDIDISAYTHATSOCONFIDENTLYWHATTHE####”* He's screaming bloody murder in his mind, absolutely BOOKING IT. away from the frozen killer. Near minutes later, he hears a deafening screech come from the spot he had ran away from.
Hehe.
***
Shedletsky yawns, body feeling rejuvinated from his sleep. He walks into the main cabin feeling on top of the world. Chance is the first to spot him. “Well well well! Isn't it the man of the hou-” his words trail off when he realizes the state the man is in, while also getting the attention of the other survivors. “…shedletsky..?” Elliot murmurs, his jaw hanging open at the shirtless man.
“Oh! Sup guys!” He waved at them all from the entrance, lazily strolling his way to the fridge inside the cabin, presenting his back that was littered in scratches and hand-shaped bruises. He just continues to dig through the fridge for his bucket, smugly basking in the choked gasps and burning stared directed towards his cat-attacked looking back.
Then, another figure makes his appearance at the entrance. “Mmmh.. Sheds? What got you up so ear— ly…” 7n7 cuts himself off, realizing just the scene the other survivors are now exposed to. His disheveled hair, the shirt that is obviously almost thrice as bigger than what should be his size, the bites and hickeys making his neck look like a crime scene, his shaky legs and the way he's supporting himself. Builderman passes out. So does Elliot.
Shedletsky is cackling with his bucket in one hand, 7n7 is frozen still with a very heated face, and utter chaos commences. The chicken man then decides his way of escaping is to wave them goodbye like they aren't screaming at him, saunter over to 007n7 and pick up up by the thighs with his free hand to then slip away to his cabin.