Chapter Text
It started, as most things do that involve these two particular states, with an argument.
“Hey, could I borrow your charger?” Oklahoma leaned over the back of the couch and poked Texas, just to be extra annoying. Laughing when asking someone for a favor was in bad taste, but he couldn’t help the snicker that he let out when the other grumbled and almost dropped his screwdriver.
“Why?” Texas refused to look up from his task as he focused on making sure the screw didn’t come loose again from this toy (a wooden horse with wheels that Tennessee was weirdly attached to and had bribed Texas into fixing, as it was apparently his job to fix things now around this damn house). He wasn’t all that focused on it, granted, it was mostly to avoid giving Oklahoma the satisfaction of getting his attention immediately, the jerk.
“I need a charger? What other reason would I need, if I had my own I wouldn’t be bothering with asking you but everyone else in this godforsaken house doesn’t “do apple products” and I need a mac charger for my laptop. You’re the only one who has one. Which is weird, given your whole…. less than stellar tech skills.” Maybe insulting Texas wasn’t the right way to get him to lend him something, but it went against Okla’s very nature. Besides, he wasn’t inclined to be nice to get a favor, it wouldn’t work, it would’ve made the other man even more suspicious.
It was kind of worth it to see the frustration on the Texan’s face when that was the answer. Okla didn’t even lean back when the other glared at him. “That ain’t how you get me to lend you somethin’, jerk.”
“Bitch-“ Too many Supernatural reruns, oops. “Sorry, sorry,” not, “Continue.”
Yeah, that didn’t help make Texas less unhappy. “Still not how you earn a favor, ya weasel. I’ll get it in a minute.” He then turned his attention back to the toy, fiddling with it further to make sure he’d done everything to fix it well.
Okla did not take being ignored so quickly well and huffed. “Well, where is it?”
“In my room, where else? An’ you ain’t goin’ in there to get it, I don’t want you touchin’ my shit.” Normally the bible thumper didn’t curse, but there was something about the younger state that made him throw that rule out.
“Wh- I don’t wanna touch your shit, I’m just askin, asshole. If it’s gonna take you forever to get I wanna be prepared for it to be somewhere like your truck or the fuckin- moon or some shit, if you can’t even put a toy down to help me out quicker.” Okla stood up from his lean and shoved his hands in his pockets with a frown (it bordered on a scowl but he wasn’t gonna let himself get that riled up yet over this).
“I said I’d get it for ya didn’t I!?” Texas leaned back and scowled around at Okla. “Screw off, I’ll get it when I’m done with this and havin’ you around is gonna make me break this and then Ten’ll cry and I’ll never hear the end of it and then Ken will murder me. Go away.”
“Fuckin- fine! Just don’t take 3 hours. I need to finish this work before Gov bans me from the kitchen again.” Even though that was more of a punishment for the rest of the house as Okla’s avoidance baking and cooking kept them fed during crunch time. (Fuck elections and the aftermath of them.)
“I won’t! But I ain’t gonna rush for your ass, you ain’t worth Ten cryin’ over an old toy.” Texas huffed and went back to work.
Oak huffed right back and stalked off to find something to do in the meantime. His computer was legitimately about to die and he couldn’t risk losing any of his work so… a break is what he’d ended up getting out of this. Not really worth it, since he had the focus to be productive for a change. Maybe he could start his laundry? Yeah. Yeah, that’d work. And if he happened to bitch about ‘stupid Texas and being slow and not wanting to share’, well, then that was between him and God.
And whoever walked past the laundry room.
Little did he know Gov had actually ventured out of his office for a change(read: got bullied into going to eat by CDC) and heard his muttered tirade against God, Texas, and whoever decided paperwork was necessary. Mostly Texas. Let it not be said Okla couldn’t stay on topic.
Gov frowned. Well, if it would help Oklahoma actually get his work done for a change, then he could talk Texas into lending him what he needed. So he went to find the conservative state to maybe convince him into a short truce with Oklahoma. (Little did the government know he’d start something worse than a mostly innocent rivalry)
Texas smiled the smile of the self-satisfied as he handed the toy horse to Tennessee. “Done. It looks a’ight to you?” He hadn’t expected much more than a thank you but was surprised with a quick hug along with the thanks before Ten ran off to put the keepsake away in a safer place than it had been before.
“Thanks, Texas! I’ll pay you back fa this.” With that (frankly, terrifying, because it was a toy, he didn’t owe Texas anything) acknowledgement, Tennessee ran off to do as thought.
Guess it was time to find that charger for Oklahoma, that bastard. Texas turned and left the living room, making it as far as Arkansas’s room before he ran into Gov, who was giving him those eyes like he was about to ask Texas for the biggest favor ever. “Whatever it is, mah answer is no, Gov. I got things to do today.”
“W—I am not going to ask, but the ‘whatever it is’ is not that bad, I promise. Oklahoma seems to need something from you, could you help him, I do want him to get his work done before the end of the week.”
Oh that rat bastard, he knew Texas didn’t like to involve others, especially Gov of all people, in their arguments. It made the wins cheaper.
“…whatever.” It wouldn’t be worth it to say he was already on his way to do that, Gov wouldn’t believe him anyway. Besides, he had a state to beat the hell out of.
“What the hell, Oklahoma! You brought GOV into this? I SAID I was gonna get you the stupid charger!” Texas grabbed the collar of Okla’s shirt and started dragging him along the hallway, location pending as he was too angry to think about where he was going.
“What the fuck are you talking about, I didn’t bring anyone into this, what the hell kinda—” Oklahoma’s fight or flight landed solidly on fight and he was halfway toward grabbing Tex’s wrist to shove him off when he was cut off.
“Just because YOU can’t remember someone asking you to do something does not mean that I have the same problem!” Texas slammed his door open and dragged Oklahoma inside, ignoring the muffled groans from other rooms as their housemates realized they were in for a shouting match.
Oklahoma’s eyes narrowed and- oh, there was that delightful scowling expression that only Texas could cause. (He didn’t like to think about that fact too deeply, it was definitely all rivalry.)
They’d ended up in Texas’s room, where the owner of the (neat, clean, a stark contrast to Okla’s own room) stupid space had decided to unload his grievances on the completely INNOCENT Oklahoma. “Fuck you, Texas, I didn’t tell him shit about this, I was bitching while doing laundry and he probably heard me, I didn’t ask him to do anything!”
He grabbed Texas’s shirt as well and dragged him closer. “Don’t bring the memory issues into this when it’s your OWN FAULT for being a slow ass!”
“I SAID I would lend you the stupid thing, I was fixing shit for someone! You are not the only person in the world, you stupid piece of shit!”
There was a dramatic gasp from the room next to Texas’s and Nevada was already kicking the two out of the group chat so he could spill what just happened to the rest of the states.
Oklahoma threw the first punch. It was not his usual half assed fighting, he put all of his weight into it and landed a solid hit on Texas’s stupid jaw. He had not considered that he was still being grabbed, so when Texas went down so did Oklahoma. And neither of them had been ready for *that*. Sprawled out on the Texan was not how Oklahoma wanted this night to end. He glared down at the other. “You sure seem to think it does, jackass.”
Texas hadn’t expected the punch, though he really should have, considering he’d been trying to insult Oklahoma as badly as he’d been insulted by Gov telling him to help his rival. The rival with pretty eyes- Wait- Nope, nope that’s not where his mind was meant to go, he was supposed to insult the bastard. “Get off me.” His voice was low, pissed (he hoped that’s how he sounded), and he shoved Oklahoma.
“Oh! I’m SORRY, did you get hurt?” Oklahoma was all sarcasm and he sat up, not moving from Texas’s stomach. (Abs were something he could feel, oh Christ.) “You’re an asshole, why should I get up? Too weak to push me off? Too much of a coward to fight me despite the fighting words tonight? All I wanted was to get my work done, not insulted by a bitch.”
That got a response. That got him shoved and Texas pinned him down. “Take that back, you bastard.” He wasn’t yelling anymore and that made Oklahoma take a moment. Texas was angry. His eyes (brown, usually warm) were hard, meaner than Oak’d ever seen. It was kind of Hot- Wait.
What.
Oklahoma shoved Texas off and sat up, eyes wide at the thought that’d crossed his mind. “Sorry. Just. Charger. Please.” His voice was high pitched, embarrassed. He shook his head at himself and stood up.
Texas frowned and followed suit, getting up, looming a little over Oak with narrowed eyes. “Just like that?” Then he thought about what had just happened. Did he really want to invite this to go on longer?
No, no he did not. He grabbed his charger and shoved it into Oak’s hands. “Get out.”
He did not need to deal with confusion with the source in the room.
Oak took it and left. He very nearly ran.