Archive of Our Own

“I need your help,” Corpse said when Sykkuno picked up the phone.

It was three o'clock in the morning. The hour between what normal people considered 'really late' and 'really early.' The windows of all the other houses in the quiet suburb were dark but Corpse was wide awake. And from the little green dot next to Sykkuno's profile on Discord, he knew Sykkuno was awake too.

It was an unspoken tradition for Corpse to call Sykkuno if they were both awake between two and three AM. Of course he could always send a text or a DM, and they talked a lot that way throughout the day, but a real phone call was different. Corpse barely talked to anyone on an actual phone. He was quicker with a keyboard than his speech. But sharing memes and messages didn't have the same gravitas. And he would never get over how Sykkuno's voice sounded when it was just the two of them – softer and deeper than the way he spoke on stream, his cadence more relaxed.

And best of all, no matter how worn out he was, Sykkuno always seemed genuinely excited to hear Corpse's voice, too.

“Hi, Corpse,” Sykkuno answered, in that soft sunny tone that Corpse loved so much. “What do you need my help with? You need a kidney or something?”

“Why, would you actually give me a kidney?”

“Why not? I only need one, right?”

“We'd have matching scars.”

“Hmm, you're right. That would be kinda cool, wouldn't it?”

“You're a little freak,” Corpse said. Affectionately, of course. “I'd be honored to take your kidney.”

“I don't think there's anything special about it.”

“But it'd be your kidney. Like having a little bit of you next to me all the time.”

“Next to you? I think it'd be inside you.”

“Yeah, but that sounded weird when I said it in my head.”

“Wha – Corpse?” Sykkuno giggled. The sound instantly lifted Corpse's spirits. “You're whacko. Absolutely deranged.”

“You're the one trying to give me your kidney,” Corpse pointed out.

“It's a good kidney. Never had a stone in it. At least I don't think so.”

“You'd probably know if you did.”

“I used to have a dream,” Sykkuno murmured with a familiar inflection. He was terrible with impersonations but Corpse could always tell when he was doing Spongebob.

“Yeah, well, I used to have a kidney stone,” Corpse said, monotone, the very opposite of Mr. Krabs, “but everything passes eventually.”

“You still remember watching that episode with me?” Sykkuno sounded pleased. “That was so long ago. Back when we first met in person. You really remember that far back, Corpse?”

Corpse did. That day stood out in sharp relief against the absolute fucking whirlwind that was the year he blew up on YouTube. Until that day, Corpse had always felt a sickening suspicion that everything was too good to be real. He might wake up one day and it would turn out to have all been a dream after all. It wasn't the fame, and it wasn't the money. It was discovering a group of people that not only seemed to like him, but accepted him as he was and sought out his company.

And foremost among those people was Sykkuno – indescribable, ineffable, ethereal Sykkuno, all enchanting shyness and charm. Every time Corpse talked to him he discovered a new layer of his fascinating personality. Sykkuno never bored him.

“Of course I remember,” Corpse said out loud. “We ordered food and ate it with our hands like fucking animals because they forgot to give us chopsticks and I didn't have any clean forks.”

“And we shared one single bottle of soju. With two straws. Because I'm a lightweight and you weren't supposed to be drinking at all.”

“But you got tipsy anyway,” Corpse said, “and when we watched Spongebob you laughed so hard that you almost poked yourself in the eye with your straw.”

“Uh huh, that was embarrassing. You would have had to let me borrow your eye patch.”

They both laughed – Corpse loudly, Sykkuno quietly. He sounded like he was lying down, Corpse thought. Alone in his room, keeping quiet to not disturb his housemates. Corpse pictured him all snuggled up beneath the covers, hair fluffed out and his eyes soft and sleepy. It made for a good mental image. Corpse thought about it longer than he should have. A familiar feeling was stirring somewhere in his chest. Like he was filled with butterflies.

Thinking about Sykkuno in any capacity usually had that effect on him. Corpse was well practiced at ignoring it.

“So,” Sykkuno said after a beat, “what do you actually need my help with anyway?”

“Huh? Oh, right.” Back to the matter at hand. “I wanted to ask you, what would you name a cat?”

“Chungus,” Sykkuno said, deadpan. “Bungus. Fungus.”

“Why the fuck does it have to rhyme with chungus?”

“Why shouldn't it?” Sykkuno clearly thought that the whole thing was a joke. “But maybe you're right. Actually, you know what would be fun? Corpse Junior. Or Corpse Kitten. You know – like how you call yourself Corpse Cat in games.”

“You'd name your cat after me?” That was kind of adorable.

“I just said I'd give you my kidney. Of course I'd name a cat after you.”

“I'm flattered. But I guess I should have asked the question the other way around. What would you name a cat, if you were me?”

“Oh, I guess that changes things. Naming a cat after yourself would be weird. What about Gary?”

“Like Gary the snail?”

“Right, exactly!”

“That's pretty good,” Corpse allowed. “I dunno if it suits him, though.”

Sykkuno paused. “Wait, wait. Corpse...”

Corpse started to grin. “Yeah?”

“Are you telling me there's an actual cat?” Sykkuno gasped in his startled-old-man voice.

“Uh huh. A kitten, actually.”

“You're adopting another kitten?!”

“No, I'm having a biological one.”

“Oh, um, I knew you liked cat girls, Corpse, but that's going a little far.”

Corpse giggled in a way that would have been embarrassing if he was on stream. “Shut up, you little freak.”

“You started it. So are you for real? Or are you gonna tease everyone and make it into a big conspiracy like you did with Cinnamon?”

“Both.”

That got him another laugh. Corpse was absurdly proud. There really was nothing better than Sykkuno's laugh. Not the chuckle he might give on stream – that was calculated and careful. Sykkuno's real laugh bubbled out of him so suddenly that he always looked a little bit shocked when it happened.

“You're serious,” Sykkuno said, with slow delight. “You're really getting another kitten.”

“Actually...” Corpse looked down at his lap, which was currently being occupied by a tiny, jet-black kitten with big ears and a stubby tail. He had a funny smattering of white-tipped hairs on his chest and back, and all his paws were black except for one pink toe. His fat little belly was shaved from where he'd been neutered. Corpse was already in love. “He's already here.”

“What?!”

“He's sleeping on me right now,” Corpse gloated.

Sykkuno was silent for a moment. Then, “Send me a picture. Right now.”

“Bossy.” Corpse flicked the speaker button and took the phone away from his ear to select a bunch of pictures. He'd had the kitten for exactly seven hours and already had over two hundred photos.

“Oh jesus,” Sykkuno said, tinny on speaker. “Oh jesus, Corpse, he's so cute. Look at his ears, he's like a little bat.”

“Isn't he the best thing you've ever seen?” Corpse asked proudly.

“One of them, for sure. Why didn't you tell me you were getting a kitten?”

“I wasn't planning on it.” Corpse stroked the warm little body and felt it start to rumble happily. “I was buying stuff for Cinnamon, and the pet store sometimes has kittens from a rescue. This little guy was the last of a big litter they had, and the only black one. I guess people don't want black cats for some reason. He was just so small, and all alone...and they had adoption forms at the register...”

“And you couldn't help yourself,” Sykkuno finished. “Uh huh, that would be pretty tough to resist. I've always kinda liked black cats myself. What does Cinnamon think?”

“She's okay. A little bit nervous at first, but he's a chill guy and didn't try to mess with her, so she came out to sniff him. Now they're friends. I just gotta find a name for him.”

“Umbreon?” Sykkuno offered.

“I like the Pokemon idea. That's too on the nose, though.”

“Gengar? Zubat? Or...what's that one we both like...Zangoose! That would be a cool cat name.”

“Zangoose,” Corpse repeated. “I dunno. It is good, but he doesn't feel like a Zangoose.”

“Oh.” Sykkuno sounded crestfallen. “Darn, I thought that was a good one. Maybe I'm just too tired to think right. I had a long stream today.”

He did sound tired. He'd streamed for nine hours. Corpse knew that because he'd been watching here and there, with the stream on for pleasant background noise. Corpse knew he should probably let the poor man get some sleep. But he didn't want the conversation to end. It had been a while since he'd talked to Sykkuno – or anyone, really, since Corpse was still in his recluse stage and had been in a bit of a funk. He'd forgotten just how good it felt to reach out and have real human connection beyond a screen.

An idea came to him. Maybe, just maybe, it didn't have to end.

Corpse looked down at the kitten in his lap. Sykkuno loved cats, despite his allergies.

“You know...” Corpse started slowly. “Maybe, it would help if...you met him in person.”

“You mean you want me to come over to your place?” Sykkuno asked, startled.

Corpse's courage failed him. “It was just an idea,” he said hastily. “You don't have to. It's a long drive, I know, and you're always busy, and...”

“No, no, I didn't mean to sound like I didn't want to,” Sykkuno said just as quickly. “Definitely didn't mean to make it sound that way. I just, ah – it's been a long time. I wasn't expecting it.”

“So do you...would you...uh...” Huh, that was weird. Corpse felt tongue-tied. And warm. Why was it suddenly so warm? His face was flushed.

“Yeah, I can come over. When were you thinking? Tomorrow?”

“Whenever you want. I'm not going anywhere.”

“Yeah? Well, that's good, because maybe...I, um, I'm not doing anything this weekend, actually.”

“Uh huh?”

“I could maybe even, um...well, like you said, the drive is kinda long, and maybe...”

It seemed to take Sykkuno a couple of seconds to formulate the rest of his sentence. Corpse, clueless, had no idea where he was going with that. He waited, his chest tight, his hand sweaty.

“Maybe I could stay the night,” Sykkuno finally blurted.

A thrum of something – excitement, anxiety, butterflies, Corpse didn't know – jolted in his stomach. Sykkuno had never slept over at his place before. Actually, nobody had slept over at his apartment. It felt too much like an intrusion of his personal space. But – this wasn't just anyone. This was Sykkuno.

“You...you could do that, yeah. That would be...I'd like that.” His tongue felt too big for his mouth.

“Me too,” Sykkuno said, and Corpse could hear that he was smiling. The butterflies were back with a vengeance and Corpse's head was spinning pleasantly.

“Hey, Corpse?”

“Yeah?”

“If I'm gonna have a long drive tomorrow, I should get some sleep now.”

“Sleep? Huh. Right, um. That's a good idea.” Wow. Was that the best he could do? Why was he suddenly such a mess? “Call me when you wake up?”

“Sure. Say goodnight to the cats for me, will you?”

“I will,” Corpse promised.

“And you'll try to sleep soon too, right?”

“No promises, but I'll try.”

“Good. Night, Corpse. I'll see you tomorrow.”

“Night,” Corpse echoed.

When the other end of the line went silent, Corpse slowly put the phone down from his ear.
Tomorrow. That was so soon. It was almost three thirty now and Corpse felt as wired as if he'd just slammed a whole pot of coffee. All he could think of was laughing almond-shaped eyes and a half-shy, half-wicked smile, the kind that he covered up on stream but never for Corpse.

The butterflies came back again, stronger than ever. Corpse stirred restlessly.

Just excited, that's all he was. Excited to have one of his best friends over.

What else would it be?

**

“Whoever made these fuckin' cat food containers can go to hell,” Corpse told the cats as he struggled with the thick foil peel tops.

Cinnamon squinted her eyes at him and waited patiently. The kitten was whining and rubbing at his legs.

“I know,” Corpse said. “You're a hungry little bastard, aren't you?” He spooned the gross brown mush into their saucers, added a dash of water, and mashed it with the tines of a fork. Cinnamon refused to touch pate unless it was the right consistency and the kitten seemed to have picked up her habit.

So maybe his cats were a bit spoiled. Corpse didn't care. He loved his cats with all his heart. For so many years he'd wanted a pet but had been too scared to commit himself to taking care of another living thing when he could barely seem to care for himself.

Sykkuno had been the one to finally convince him that he could do it. Sykkuno had been the one to ask Corpse to babysit Bimbus and Nabi – had chosen him over the dozens of other people that had volunteered. Corpse didn't take Sykkuno's trust lightly. He knew what it meant. Sykkuno was smart. If he thought Corpse was good enough for Bimbus, that was a vote of confidence that overrode Corpse's tendency of self-doubt.

And while he liked animals in general, there was really only once choice Corpse would consider. Birds were cool but fragile – small animals had such short lives. Snakes and reptiles intrigued him, but they weren't really the kind of pet that would give or receive affection. And dogs – well, there were some pretty great dogs, like Bimbus or Nabi. But in general Corpse found them too predictable. Dogs were up front with their personalities. Cats were more intriguing. People called them mysterious, even cold, but they really weren't. They were just more reserved at first. Getting a reaction from a dog was easy, but with cats it was an accomplishment. They had deep personalities that slowly rose to the surface once you earned their trust.

Cinnamon had already had her name when Corpse got her and he'd procrastinated for too long in changing it. And after a while, it grew on him anyway. It was kind of hilariously mundane. Everyone who knew him would expect him to have a pet with a weird-ass anime-inspired name, or something purposely ridiculous like – well, like Bingus or Chungus. But instead, he had Cinnamon.

It suited her. She wasn't really the colour of cinnamon, Sykkuno pointed out, and the two of them made up a middle name for her one night so she was Cinnamon Sugar. This narrowly beat Karl's suggestion of Cinnamon Dolce Latte and Loey's idea of Cinnamon Bun. They were all pretty good, but Corpse went with Sykkuno's choice.

Not that he was playing favorites somehow. Of course not.

“There.” Corpse scraped out the last bits from the container, wrinkling his nose at the gelatinous pieces that plopped onto the saucers. For some reason, these were the cats' favorite bits. Cinnamon sniffed and began to eat daintily. The kitten planted two paws directly in the saucer and stuck his face into the mush.

“You're a little freak,” Corpse told him. “You're gonna stink like tuna when Sykkuno gets here.”

Saying his name out loud got Corpse's heart beating fast again. He turned to look at his kitchen appraisingly. It wasn't tidy. Neither was the rest of the house. He should clean up before he had company. There was cat hair everywhere. Sykkuno was mildly allergic to cats. Fuck, why hadn't he considered that? He'd have to vacuum. And do laundry. And shower, and shave, and think about food, and –

Calm down, Corpse told himself firmly. It's not a big deal. It's just a friend staying the night. Sykkuno doesn't care what your house looks like. You don't need to impress him.

“I'll just vacuum a bit,” Corpse said out loud. “And wash the sheets. Sykkuno can sleep in my bed and I'll take the couch. It'll be fine. I'm just nervous because I haven't left the house in too fuckin' long.”

Cinnamon looked up from her food at the sound of his voice, but nothing short of physical intervention could tear the kitten away from his. Cinnamon's amber eyes seemed laughing and accusatory.

“That's all it is,” Corpse said firmly. “What are you looking at?”

Cinnamon licked her paw primly and went back to her tuna pate.

**

Corpse lost track of time, as he was wont to do. He spent the morning and early afternoon in a manic cleaning spree, trying to make his apartment presentable and as cat-hair-free as possible. This done, Corpse threw the wet sheets in the dryer and hopped in the shower. The heat sank into his muscles, helping him relax. He did his best to lose himself in the white noise of the water.

It worked. Maybe a little too well. As he was toweling off, his phone rang.

Oh fuck.

Someone had pressed the call button from the front keypad.

And Corpse sure as fuck wasn't expecting any Amazon deliveries.

He hit the green button that would let Sykkuno in and nearly killed himself tripping over Cinnamon as he ran into his bedroom to throw fresh clothes on. He'd just finished pulling on a shirt when he heard the knock at his front door.

He opened it to find Sykkuno there, standing with his arms pressed to his sides like a penguin, looking both slightly awkward and effortlessly cool.

“Sykkuno,” Corpse said, only slightly out of breath. “I, uh – it's good to – um – you wanna come in? I mean – hi.”

Sykkuno took in the sight of Corpse, disheveled, wet-haired, and – he only just realized – wearing a shirt that was both inside-out and backward. Before he had time to feel embarrassed, Sykkuno broke out into a grin.

“Hi, Corpse,” he said in his soft musical voice. “Wow, I didn't think you could be any more awkward than the first time I was here.”

Corpse giggled. “Shut up,” he said affectionately. “I – I'm just excited to see you, okay?”

“Yeah?” Sykkuno's eyes crinkled up at the corners. “You just saw me yesterday on stream, didn't you? I saw your alt account in the chat.”

“You know about my alt account?” Oh god.

“Uh huh, of course. I can always tell when it's you.”

Corpse decided to be embarrassed about his fangirling in the chat at a later date. “Well – it's different when you're here in person. I've – I've missed you.”

Sykkuno's smile widened. “I've missed you too.”

Corpse laughed again like an idiot. He couldn't help but feel giddy. He took a half step forward, a little shy as always, and Sykkuno came to meet him in a hug. A jolt of something sent Corpse's heart up into his throat at the feeling of Sykkuno in his arms, all sun-warm and soft. The scent of him – the faint personal scent that everyone had – reminded Corpse of the sharp salt breeze off the ocean.

“So, uh, is that all you brought?” Corpse gestured at the bag on the ground. “Can I help you unpack or anything?”

“There's not too much to unpack. Just a change of clothes and my toothbrush and – oh!” Sykkuno brightened. “I finally brought back the shirt you left at my place.”

“I left a shirt at your place?” Corpse tried to rack his useless brain for when this had happened and came up empty. “Which one?”

Sykkuno unzipped his bag to show the haphazardly-folded hoodie atop everything else.

“My Gengar hoodie!” Corpse reached out for it. “Oh fuck, I haven't seen this in eons.”

“Good as new,” Sykkuno said, shaking it out to show him. “You probably want to throw it in the laundry. I might have worn it myself a couple times.”

An image played out in Corpse's head – Sykkuno, shivering a little in the sub-zero AC, maybe tucked up on the couch with his limbs all folded in like Cinnamon liked to do. Seeing Corpse's discarded hoodie and putting it on, thinking rightly that Corpse wouldn't mind. Sykkuno all swallowed up in the bulky fabric, his little face peeking out.

“You don't mind, right?” Sykkuno looked up at him.

“No, of course not. I was just trying to remember the last time I washed it before I left it with you. I hope it didn't stink.”

“Oh, it smelled really good, actually. I mean, um – ” Sykkuno went pink. “It wasn't dirty or anything, I don't think.”

“Good. That's good. I, um...” Corpse was a bit lost. His brain was going haywire. All he could think about was Sykkuno in his hoodie. What would a normal person say when someone came over? “Hey, um, do you want something to drink?”

“Maybe coffee, in a bit? Where's the kitten?”

“Oh, right.” That was why Sykkuno came over. “He's in my room. I'll introduce you.”

Sykkuno followed at Corpse's heels as he led the way to his bedroom. When Corpse opened the door, the kitten was curled up in the tiniest round ball in the center of his messily-made bed.

“Oh,” Sykkuno said, his eyes lighting up. “Oh jesus Corpse, he's so small. Should I wake him up...?”

“He sleeps like twenty hours a day. I don't think he'll mind.”

Sykkuno crossed the room with small shuffling steps. The kitten didn't move. Only when Sykkuno knelt on the bed did he finally unfurl, stretching out his tiny limbs and sticking them straight out in the air as he stretched.

“Oh, look at the little claws,” Sykkuno breathed, entranced.

Corpse wasn't looking at the kitten's little claws, as cute as they were. He was too busy looking at Sykkuno's expression of pure delight. He found himself thinking suddenly that a third cat wouldn't be such a stretch if it meant he could elicit that look from Sykkuno more often.

“Mew,” said the kitten, looking at Sykkuno quizzically. Then, apparently having decided that Sykkuno was a friend, he stood up and trotted excitedly over to headbutt Sykkuno's outstretched hand.

Sykkuno made the cutest sound Corpse had ever heard in his life in response.

“What's funny?” Sykkuno glanced over when he heard Corpse laugh.

“You just squeaked like an anime character,” Corpse declared.

“I couldn't help it. Just look at him, Corpse. Can you hear him purring? Why are you all the way over there?”

“Good question.” Corpse clambered onto the foot of the bed and flopped onto one side, propped up on an elbow. The kitten immediately ran over to rub against his face, purring like a jet engine.

Sykkuno giggled. “I think he likes your beard, Corpse,” he said as the kitten shoved its forehead into Corpse's stubbled chin.

“Oh shit. I forgot to shave.”

Sykkuno wriggled closer to be able to reach over and keep petting the kitten. Under this double assault of love, the kitten promptly flopped onto its side happily. “I thought you were just trying out a cool new look.”

“What, it looks cool?”

“Uh huh. I kinda like it.”

Corpse raised one eyebrow at him. Sykkuno met his gaze and quickly ducked his head to let his bangs fall over his eyes.

“I mean, it's like a built in cat scratcher, right? I bet the kitten feels like its being groomed by its mother. You know how cat tongues are sandpapery?”

“You're saying my face feels like a cat's tongue?”

“I'm just guessing. I've never touched your face.”

Corpse said something stupid then, because of course he did. “You can if you want to.”

Before he had time to absorb what the fuck he'd just said, Sykkuno's hand moved from the kitten's back to lightly cup Corpse's jaw. The sudden touch was startling. Corpse was frozen in place. It suddenly occurred to him that their position was incredibly intimate.

“Huh,” Sykkuno murmured, his lips barely moving. His thumb stroked Corpse's chin. Something electric zinged down Corpse's spine. “It's softer than I thought.”

“I...” Corpse's tongue was tied in a knot. Sykkuno lifted his head, looking up from beneath his wild hair. Their eyes met and Corpse's breath stuck in his chest. He had to say something before – before what, he didn't know. He couldn't think. With a wild effort he forced out something that thankfully resembled a normal sentence. “You didn't know what a beard felt like?”

“What, like I could grow my own? The best I can do is – what do they call it – peach fuzz.”

“Peach fuzz sounds nicer than cat tongue.”

“You think so? I'm not as soft as a peach, I don't think.”

Corpse felt the sudden insane urge to reach over and find out just how soft Sykkuno's smooth skin was. And on the heels of that thought came an even wilder one – that Sykkuno was inviting him to do just that, in his own subtle way. His thumb lingered by Corpse's mouth. The air in the room suddenly tightened.

Corpse opened his mouth to speak, but then –

“Meeeew,” complained the kitten, having realized that nobody was petting it anymore. It stood up and looked at them rebukingly. “Mew?”

Sykkuno and Corpse both laughed, and whatever energy had been building in the room was gone.

“I love his eyes,” Sykkuno declared. “They're so expressive.”

Corpse's face was cold where Sykkuno's hand had been, and when he sat up it felt a bit like waking up from a dream. He shook himself. “I'm glad you like him. You got any more name ideas?”

“Hotdog,” Sykkuno offered. “Stirfry. Cheeseburger.”

“Are you trying to find a food name to match Cinnamon or are you just hungry?”

The kitten knew the word hungry. It perked up hopefully.

“I think, maybe, I'm a bit hungry,” Sykkuno admitted with a little grin. “And I think your cat is too. Do you wanna have dinner with me?”

“He's always hungry. Let me get the cats something and then I'll order food for us.”

“Sounds good to me.”

**

The rest of the day went by without Corpse making an idiot out of himself, which was always an accomplishment. Sykkuno was so normal that Corpse figured he must have been imagining the moment in his bedroom earlier. They talked about everything and nothing as usual – streaming, music, games and anime, the old standbys. Corpse normally worried about being a boring host, but luckily he had two cats now to provide endless entertainment. After dinner Sykkuno cuddled on the couch with both of them as Corpse went to make coffee and browse his laptop for something for them to watch together. He debated on a couple horror movies but decided against it. As cute as Sykkuno was when he was scared, he was cuter still when he was laughing.

Corpse paused for a moment in the doorway with their mugs in hand just to look at the sight before him. Sykkuno was holding the kitten in the crook of his arm like a baby, smiling as he stroked its plump little belly. The kitten was gazing up at him like he was the only thing in the universe.

Something in the very back of Corpse's mind thought I'd feel the same way if Sykkuno was looking down at me like that.

Corpse cleared his throat and walked into the room to place the mugs on coasters.

“Oh, thanks, Corpse.” Sykkuno leaned forward very carefully to not jostle the kitten and took a sip.

“No problem.” Corpse put the laptop on the table between them. “I found something for us to watch, if you want?”

“Is it a movie?”

“Better.”

“Oh. It's not...you know...that stuff you sent me that one time...?”

Corpse choked on a wheeze. “It's not fucking hentai, you little freak. And that was an accident.”

“Right, of course it was an accident. So what is it?”

“You'll like it. It's called Unlikely Animal Friends.”

“That sounds fun. What kinda animals are there?”

“The first one is a chicken and a two-legged Chihuahua.”

“Oh jesus. Which two legs does it have? Front or back?”

“I don't remember. I think the back ones.”

“Oh,” Sykkuno said. “Does it walk upright it’s people?”

Corpse wheezed so hard that he couldn't get his breath for a full minute. Sykkuno looked pleased at his reaction. “Did you just reference The Simpsons, you fuckin' boomer?”

“Maybe,” Sykkuno said comfortably. “Were you even alive when that episode came out?”

“I have no fuckin' idea.”

They both laughed until the episode started playing. As expected, Sykkuno was immediately hooked. They sat side-by-side but angled towards each other to better see the laptop screen, and Corpse was able to watch Sykkuno's reactions in his peripheral vision without staring. The first shot of the armless Chihuahua sleeping with the golden-yellow ball of baby chicken produced a soft smile. Corpse's heart thrummed in his chest.

“Wait,” Sykkuno said as the timeline skipped ahead to show the chicken full grown. “That thing just evolved like a Pokemon!”

Corpse nearly sprayed coffee out of his nose. “What?” he wheezed.

“Look at that thing! I thought it was a normal chicken. It looked normal as a baby. Are there different breeds of chicken? What kind is that?”

“I dunno,” Corpse said. “A hairy one?”

“Hairy?” Sykkuno spluttered. “Chickens don't have hair, Corpse.”

“That one looks like it has fuckin' extensions.”

“I guess it does. It looks fluffy. I want to pet it.”

“Oh?” Corpse said, starting to grin.

Sykkuno intercepted his look. “Corpse, if you make that into a dirty joke – ”

“What do you mean?” Corpse tried to look innocent.

“Well, you know what they call chickens...male chickens...”

“No, I don't know. Why don't you tell me what they're called?”

Sykkuno giggled. “No, no, you say it.”

“Rooster?”

“Come on, Corpse.”

“What? That's what they call a male chicken. Rooster.”

“Right,” Sykkuno shot him a sidelong look. “What's so funny about stroking a rooster, then?”

“Stroking? When did we get to stroking?”

“Ah...petting, I mean. Same thing.” Sykkuno smirked. Corpse kind of loved it when Sykkuno looked devious. “Oh no, look. We missed the ending.”

“I can rewind if you want to look at the cock again.”

Sykkuno broke completely and doubled over, wheezing. “Corpse, oh god.”

“What? It's a male chicken. That's what you call them.”

“You're so deranged.”

“You started it. You wanted me to say it.”

“I did not,” Sykkuno said primly, sipping his own coffee. “I have no idea what you're talking about.”

But there was a twinkle in his eye when he said it.

“There's a cat one up next,” Corpse said. “A cat and a crow.”

“That sounds – ” Sykkuno suddenly cut himself off with three sneezes in a row.

You're so cute when you sneeze, Corpse almost said...but that was fucking weird, wasn't it? Instead he said, “Gesundheit.”

“Thanks. I think...” Sykkuno sneezed again. “Ah, oh no. I think my allergy pill is wearing off.”

“Oh shit.” Corpse looked at his couch. “And this fucking thing is covered in cat hair. I can clean it – I have one of those pet hair gloves somewhere.”

“No, it's okay. I - ahCHOO!” Sykkuno sneezed so hard that Cinnamon fled and the kitten's tail poofed up in alarm. “I can take another pill. And maybe, ah, we can just sit somewhere else for now until it kicks in.”

“There's nowhere else to sit.”

“Can't we sit on your bed? I know the cats have been on it but there's probably less hair on it than the couch.”

“My bed?” Corpse echoed. The side of his face tingled where Sykkuno's hand had been, hours ago now. “Y-yeah, sure.”

“Maybe I should put on different clothes, too. The cats have been all over me.” Sykkuno stood up and stretched. Corpse watched him slip into the bathroom with his backpack. The cats followed and waited at the door, tails twitching.

To distract himself from the sudden intrusive thought of Sykkuno being ten feet away and nearly naked, Corpse grabbed his laptop and brought it into his room. Maybe I should change, too, he thought, noticing that his own pants had a substantial amount of hair on them. He quickly stripped down to his boxers and rifled through his closet for a clean shirt. For all his earlier cleaning, he'd forgotten to run a load of normal laundry. The only top he could find was an old sleeveless thing that he used to wear back in his parkour days. Back then it had been baggy, but Corpse had put on some muscle since then and now it was fairly tight.

Oh well. At least it was clean. And he managed to put it on the right way around this time.

“Sorry I took so long,” Sykkuno announced as he came back from the bathroom dressed much the same, only in a green shirt instead of the blue one. Corpse suspected he still bought his t-shirts in packs from Walmart. “I figured, since it's late, I should wash my face and brush my teeth. I'm not tired yet, but – ”

And suddenly he stopped mid-sentence.

“What?” Corpse felt a wave of self-consciousness. He looked down at himself quickly. The shirt was on the right way, but – oh. He hadn't put on any pants over his boxers.

“I...uh...”

“Um,” Sykkuno echoed. He was staring.

“I just have to find clean pants,” Corpse said hastily. “I didn't want to get cat hair in the bed.”

Sykkuno seemed to snap back to himself. “Oh, um, you don't have to. It's your house. You probably want to be comfortable, right? Not that I'm saying pants aren't comfortable. Mine are, at least.”

Interesting. Sykkuno seemed like he was rambling. He did that sometimes when he was embarrassed. Why would he be...

“You're fine if I just wear this?” Corpse asked. He lifted a hand to his hair and ruffled up the back, a nervous tic he'd mostly gotten over.

Sykkuno's eyes followed the motion of his arm and stuck there for a moment. “Yeah, of course.”

Corpse threw the duvet aside and climbed onto one side of the bed. He propped himself semi-upright against the pillows. Sykkuno followed suit and helped Corpse tug the duvet back up to their waists.

The kitten bounced up out of nowhere and landed directly in Sykkuno's lap. “Mew?”

“So much for not getting cat hair in the bed,” Corpse said dryly. “You want me to lock them out?”

Sykkuno shot him a scandalized look. “Lock them out? They live here!”

“You're allergic.”

“Mildly.”

“Mew,” agreed the kitten, settling itself down happily.

“Just look at him, Corpse,” Sykkuno coaxed. “We can't kick him out of the bed. He's just a little baby. He can go wherever he wants to.” He scratched the kitten's neck. It leaned into Sykkuno's hand so hard that it overbalanced and fell over.

“I think he likes you better than me,” Corpse joked. “I think I know how Miyoung feels now about you stealing Lil Cat.”

“Me, stealing Lil Cat? Couldn't happen. She was mine already.” Sykkuno snuggled the kitten closer to his chest. Corpse wished he could take a picture of that moment and hold it to his heart forever.

“Hey,” Sykkuno piped up. “Speaking of - what about Lil Cat's original name? Sirius?”

“No Harry Potter names,” Corpse said firmly. “I know that's not where it comes from, but that's what everyone will think.”

“Right, right. Maybe you need a name that goes with Cinnamon, like you said earlier,” Sykkuno mused. “Like have a theme going, you know? What goes with Cinnamon? Coffee? Pumpkin? Pumpkin Spice?”

“If he was a ginger cat, that would work.”

“True. He doesn't exactly look like a pumpkin.” Sykkuno pet the kitten's glossy black fur. “Wait. Wait, Corpse, I've got it. How did I not think of it? He's black, and if Cinnamon is a brown spice, then a matching spice would be...”

“Pepper,” Corpse finished, a smile growing on his lips.

“Pepper!” Sykkuno agreed.

The kitten lifted its head and mewed. Corpse absolutely melted at the sound, and from the noise Sykkuno made he could tell it had the same effect on him.

“He likes it,” Sykkuno declared. “I think it suits him.”

“It's perfect,” Corpse agreed. He gave Sykkuno a warm smile and reached out to pet the fuzzy little head just as Sykkuno did the same thing. Their hands knocked together lightly. Sykkuno paused, then brushed his thumb over Corpse's knuckle with a warm smile of his own.

“I'm really glad you came over today,” Corpse murmured.

Sykkuno stilled, his hand still lightly touching Corpse's. “Oh?”

“Yeah. I mean, I knew you'd come up with the perfect name.”

“Oh, right.” Something flickered in Sykkuno's eyes. Corpse only caught it for a second. It was gone as soon as it came, before Corpse could fully register it as disappointment. “Glad I could help.”

His tone sounded a little flat. Corpse picked up on it, but didn't clue in. Probably he was just tired.

“You should start the show again,” Sykkuno said. “I wanna see more animals.”

“Huh? Oh, right.” Corpse had almost forgotten they'd come in here to finish watching the show. He hit the spacebar to resume the video.

On screen, a baby goat hopped around with a puppy, but Corpse found himself unable to focus on it. Pepper was walking back and forth down Sykkuno's body, kneading Sykkuno's chest with his tiny black feet. Eventually he plopped down across his lap with an audible thud. The smile on Sykkuno's face was impossibly contagious. When the episode was over Corpse closed the laptop and put it on the side table next to the bed, and Sykkuno didn't even seem to notice. He was still smiling, but now his eyes were closed.

Corpse stared longer than he should have.

“Tired?” he ventured, before he did something stupid like tell Sykkuno how beautiful he looked in his sleep.

“Mmm?” Sykkuno opened his eyes blearily.

“You're falling asleep. I should probably let you go to bed, huh?”

“Oh...yeah. I guess...yeah, it's late. But, ah...”

Sykkuno looked down. Corpse followed his gaze. The little black kitten was still draped over his lap, his legs stretched outward and his tiny paws touching Corpse's thigh.

“I don't want to wake him up,” Sykkuno said.

“Pepper can stay here,” Corpse assured him.

Sykkuno thought about that for a minute. “Oh,” he said finally. “You were going to let me sleep here?”

“Sure. You're a guest.”

“And you...?”

“I'll take the couch.”

A beat of silence.

“Oh,” Sykkuno said quietly. “Or, you know...you could...”

And then he didn't finish the sentence. He just let it hang there, unfinished. Corpse looked at him, trying to discern his expression in the soft light, but Sykkuno's face was as inscrutable as ever.

He didn't mean...he couldn't mean....

Corpse swallowed once. Twice. He started, “Maybe...”

And couldn't finish, just like Sykkuno. His heart was thumping hard in his chest, loud enough that he worried Sykkuno could hear it.

And then Cinnamon hopped up, purring. She walked onto Corpse's chest and began to knead him like a loaf of bread.

Sykkuno said, “I don't think you're going anywhere, Corpse. You're trapped with me.”

“I guess there's worse places to be trapped than in bed with you.”

Oh god, oh fuck. He really just said that.

But Sykkuno didn't seem to notice anything amiss with what Corpse had said. “It's pretty comfy here,” he said agreeably. “I like your bed. It's a lot nicer than mine. And it smells good.”

“I washed the sheets today since you were coming over.”

“Oh, so you planned on having me in your bed?”

Corpse's heart practically stopped. That teasing lilt in Sykkuno's voice...it almost sounded...maybe a little bit...flirtatious?

“A-ah, I...” Corpse stammered. “I...just meant...I thought, since you're a guest, I'd offer you the bed anyway...I was planning to sleep on the couch when I asked you over.”

“Oh, of course.” Sykkuno's hair obscured most of his face, but Corpse could see his rosy-pink lips curved into a mischievous smile. Corpse could only wonder what was going through his mind.

For the next few minutes, both men were silent. The only sound in the room was Pepper's contented purr. Corpse tried to close his eyes, but for some reason he couldn't even think about sleep. And for some reason he knew it wasn't his usual insomnia. Corpse felt restless...and sort of like he was missing something that was staring him right in the face.

“This is nice,” Sykkuno murmured into the silence.

“Having a kitten in your lap raises your serotonin, doesn't it?”

“Mmm,” Sykkuno sighed. “You said the same thing about my voice once.”

“I remember. Back when I was streaming.” Things had been so different back then. Corpse hadn't yet met Sykkuno in person and had no idea how deep their friendship would go. He'd been able say things that would make him blush and stammer now.

It still does, he wanted to say. I could listen to you for hours.

But saying those words out loud, with Sykkuno in his bed next to him, in the soft darkness...it was worlds away from saying them to a cute little green blob on a computer screen. It would be too real. He wouldn't be able to pass it off as being playful.

Sykkuno suddenly shifted restlessly and opened his eyes. “Hmm,” he said. “I think there's a lump in your mattress or something.”

“I think it's just the sheets creasing under you. Fuckin' princess and the pea over here.”

“That's a really weird fairy tale, isn't it?” Sykkuno reflected. “I mean, surely there was a better way to figure out whether or not she was a princess.”

“Right,” Corpse said. “Just fuckin' Google her or something.”

“Well, someone must have been able to tell without putting a pea in her bed.” Sykkuno shifted again. He reached behind himself...and something squeaked.

“That wasn't me, I swear.” Sykkuno pulled out the thing that he'd been sleeping on. Corpse immediately recognized it as Pepper's squeaking mouse toy.

“Oops,” Corpse said. “I guess I missed that when I was making the bed.”

“Half the time I don't even make my bed, so I can't judge.” Sykkuno shook the mouse by its tail. Pepper suddenly woke up, eyes huge, and flung himself at it. This made Sykkuno laugh. “Kill it, Pepper, it's alive!”

Pepper needed no prompting. Corpse watched as he tore into it with all the fury of a full grown tiger, kicking with his back legs as he chewed its embroidered face.

“I love it when they do that.” Sykkuno brushed his hair out of his eyes with one hand. Pepper, wild-eyed and playful now, spotted the movement and pounced again, this time with his claws extended.

“Ow!” Sykkuno winced as one claw got him high up on the cheek.

“Oh fuck.” Corpse felt a guilty stab in his gut like he was the one responsible. He sat up. Cinnamon, offended, stalked off to the foot of the bed instead where she wouldn't be so rudely awakened. Corpse leaned over and picked up the kitten with one hand, redirecting him back to the toy. “Fuck. Did he get you? I'm so sorry. He's normally not like that.”

“I'm fine. He didn't mean to.” Sykkuno touched his cheek. “I'm not bleeding, am I?”

“I don't think so. Let me see?”

Corpse wasn't thinking as he reached for Sykkuno's face. He meant to tilt him toward the light, just so that he could see where the kitten's claw had stuck him...but then his body betrayed him, and he found himself curling his hand softly around Sykkuno's chin and jaw.

He wasn't prepared for just how soft Sykkuno's face was, or the way it felt when Sykkuno let him turn his face to the side, or the way the buzzing in his stomach rose up and made him dizzy. The memory of Sykkuno doing the same thing to him swirled around and around in his head.

Corpse's whole body flushed warm, blooming from the spot where Sykkuno's fingers had caressed and expanding outward like a dropped glass of wine in carpet.

And he couldn't bring himself to pull away.

“Corpse?” Sykkuno's lips formed around the word, but it came out as quiet as a sigh.

“Sykkuno,” Corpse breathed back. He couldn't seem to move or break his gaze away. “I...”

He had one last chance to back out – one chance to turn this into a joke. Corpse thought wildly of saying something about beards versus peach fuzz, something that would relate this to their earlier joking around.

But Sykkuno was looking at him, eyes unreadable, pink lips parted slightly, and all of Corpse's words dried up in his mouth.

Sykkuno was the first one to move. He rolled slightly onto his side, facing Corpse, bringing the two of them closer together. Beneath the covers, their legs touched – Sykkuno's thin pajama pants against Corpse's bare thigh – and the contact felt electric. Corpse gasped, and something in Sykkuno's eyes blazed brighter.

“Do you...” Sykkuno started, sounding nearly as dazed as Corpse.

Corpse inhaled shakily. He stared into Sykkuno's eyes, then down at his mouth.

And Sykkuno shocked him to the core by putting his own hand on Corpse's face, just like he'd done earlier, except his touch wasn't playful – if it had ever been. His thumb stroked Corpse's stubble, then slid beneath his chin to draw him closer until their noses brushed together.

“Corpse, can I...?”

There was only one thing he could be asking for. Was this real? Was Corpse dreaming? If he could move, he'd pinch himself.

But even if it was a dream, there was only one answer Corpse could give.

“Yeah,” Corpse breathed.

Sykkuno moved the last inch needed to bring their mouths together.

Time came to a stop. Corpse was frozen in place. Sykkuno's lips were warm and soft against his own, his hand shaky on Corpse's jaw. With a rush like a dam breaking, Corpse remembered every time he'd dreamed of this before and pushed it away when he woke up – he remembered every time Sykkuno made his heart race, every time the butterflies danced in his stomach when he smiled.

Corpse had no idea how much time had passed before he found himself staring into Sykkuno's shocked, dazed face. He made several embarrassing attempts at speech before a sentence finally got out.

“Huh...wha...Sykkuno...did we really just...?”

“Uh huh,” Sykkuno answered. His eyes searched Corpse's face. “Was...was that okay?”

“Yes. God, yes.”

“Maybe...could we can do it again?”

This time it was Corpse that took action. He surged forward, capturing Sykkuno's mouth again with years of built up tension and passion behind it. Sykkuno's lips parted in a gasp and Corpse let his tongue touch his bottom lip. Sykkuno responded by tilting his head and letting his own tongue lightly meet Corpse's.

Jesus fucking Christ. Corpse could hardly breathe. He didn't care. Somehow he found himself rolling over, half on top of Sykkuno, feeling his warm lithe body beneath his own. And Sykkuno was just as eager. He slid one hand into Corpse's hair and the other around Corpse's waist, as if trying to draw him even closer. His movements were slow, but not hesitant, like he was focused on committing every moment to memory. Corpse matched his pace. He felt like he was floating. God, this felt so good. It felt so right.

By the time they parted, they were both flushed and panting, staring at each other with wide dumbfounded eyes.

Sykkuno found his voice first. “Wow,” he murmured. “That was even better than I thought it would be.”

“You've thought about kissing me?” That blew Corpse's mind all over again. “As in – just tonight, or...before that?”

Sykkuno's pretty lips curved up into the sly smile Corpse liked so much. “Both, I suppose. What about you?”

Corpse opened his mouth and the truth just sort of fell out.

“Sykkuno, I've wanted to kiss you since the day we met.”

“You mean when we met in person?”

“Before that. From the first time I heard your voice.” Corpse huffed out a laugh. “God, I thought I was making a fool out of myself when I talked to you. I thought everyone could tell.”

“I mean...you did say some pretty, um, flirty stuff. I liked that. But sometimes you did it to other people too, so I just thought you were joking. Well, not joking, but...you know, just doing it for fun.”

“I was just trying not to make it obvious that I was falling in love with you.”

The words came out before Corpse could think. And now he couldn't take them back. He held his breath and looked at Sykkuno mutely, wondering if he'd gone too far too fast.

But Sykkuno didn't seem put off in the least. He held Corpse's gaze, quirked one eyebrow, and said, “And here I've been trying to make it obvious to see what you would do.”

“Huh?” Corpse spluttered a bit. “You've been trying...”

“I mean, I know I'm not good at this stuff, but come on, Corpse. Literally everyone could see it.”

Poor Corpse remembered all the sidelong looks and not-so-subtle hints from his friends, the pointed comments, the way Rae looked exasperated whenever she caught them schmoozing in a corner during a game or in person.

“You could have said something!” he told Sykkuno, softening his accusatory tone by kissing that tempting, smirking mouth.

“I know,” Sykkuno said against his mouth. “I told you, I'm not good at this stuff.”

“Neither am I, I guess.”

“Maybe that means we're perfect for each other.”

“Yeah?” Corpse grinned down at him, maybe a little crazy from the whirlwind of emotions running through him. “Well, fuck. I guess we have a lot of catching up to do.”

“Right now?”

“Hmm, well, I wouldn't say no...” Corpse brushed a kiss against Sykkuno's jaw. “But, if you're tired, I don't want to keep you up.”

Sykkuno's chest hitched. “I, ah...it's kinda hard to be tired when you're on top of me, to be honest.”

“Yeah?” Corpse gave in to a long-held desire to find out what Sykkuno's soft pale neck tasted like. Sykkuno gasped out his name, and that sounded so damn good that Corpse had to do it again. Sykkuno's hand slipped up the back of his shirt, and then –

“Ah!” Corpse yelped as Pepper jumped on his back, chasing the moving lump of Sykkuno's hand.

“Mrrrrr,” went Pepper. “Mrrr?” He crept up to Corpse's shoulder and settled there, looking between them as if wanting to know what they were up to.

Sykkuno and Corpse burst into giggles.

“Well, fuck,” Corpse managed once he could speak. “That ruined the mood, didn't it?”

“A little,” Sykkuno allowed. “We can't be too mad at him, though. I mean, he did sorta bring us together.”

“That's true.” Corpse rolled to the side and Pepper snuggled up between them. “Besides, we have plenty of time to catch up tomorrow.”

Sykkuno linked their hands together. “You know, I could probably be persuaded to stay another night...”

“Oh? How could I possibly persuade you?”

“Hmm...I'm sure you'll find a way.”