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Grian’s world turned on its axis on a random Tuesday. However, he would not realize the actual enormity of this change until a week or so after, while talking to Gem at (allegedly) her bridge.
“Grian, you cannot squat at my bridge” she said, frustrated, as if he were being unreasonable despite his argument making perfect sense. “It’s still my bridge! I use it a lot every day! I’m literally in the middle of building the Nether Hub over there!”
“Well, I don’t see you sleeping at the bed here so. I think it’s my bridge now.” Grian casually shrugged, unbothered and stubborn to a fault.
Gem was no less stubborn than him though. “Scar doesn’t sleep at Rusty’s either and I don’t see you claiming his base!”
“That’s because he sleeps at-”
As if he’d heard his name being mentioned, Scar’s unmistakable yell interrupted them from somewhere underneath: “G!”
Grian turned around at the call, leaning over the bridge’s railing. Scar was on the river below, rowing on a small pink boat.
“G!” he called out again with a grin, glad to have been heard, if only just barely. His voice was muffled by the sound of the water, and really, the only reason Grian picked it up was because he was that used to looking out for Scar. “I like you!”
“5 out of 10!” Grian yelled back. “I could barely hear you!”
Scar pouted and muttered something Grian couldn't make out, then turned to row towards the shore, presumably to get off the boat and back on his elytra. Grian wondered where had he started rowing from. Did he check at Grian's base first? That would have been a way better location for the confession. He should have saved this boat idea for when Grian was at home.
“… What was that?” Gem stared at him like she had seen a ghost. Her jaw might as well have been touching the cobblestone and her eyes looked about to bulge out of her skull. She had turned about 5 shades whiter.
“Oh, it's Scar’s newest bit,” Grian answered casually. It was definitely nothing that warranted that sort of reaction, didn't even make top 5 of craziest things Scar had done. Maybe not even top 10. He flattened the shopping district overnight just a few weeks ago.
“His newest bit…” Gem shook her head, recomposing herself. “Can you please explain what exactly is the bit?” Before Grian could reply, she added: “From the very beginning, with as many details as possible. What is wrong with you two?”
Grian didn't see what was so surprising about it.
It had happened on that aforementioned Tuesday. Scar had been working on the shopping district roads, moving the pebbles so that they were on the perfect spots, or something equally specific that only a few select people would notice. That short list included Etho, though, so Grian understood the effort. He’d been lounging on the branches of the gorgeous pink trees Scar had built, talking at him about nothing for hours as he procrastinated on his own builds. This was a common arrangement between them, either like this or with their roles reversed. But dusk was nearing, so Grian was thinking of going to bed soon.
“I think I'm going to head off, Scar,” he said, stretching his arms and sitting properly to take off.
“Wait, Grian!” Scar cleared his throat. “You might have forgotten, but I had actually called you here for a reason.”
Grian raised an eyebrow. There it was. That particular lilt in his voice that Scar put on when he had planned something, when he had some sort of ulterior motive. But he hadn't gotten around to building his bath salt shop yet, so it couldn't be a sale… Maybe he wanted help with building the shopping district, but Gem had already stolen most of Grian's materials for her Nether hub. He didn't have much to offer.
“This might be a bit sudden,” Scar said, meeting his eyes. The golden sunrays softened his edges and, for a brief moment, Grian wondered if he’d ever seen someone so beautiful, “but I have always liked you.”
That, Grian did not expect.
A beat passed, in complete silence.
Then, the breeze rustled the cherry tree beside them, and the spell broke. The petals slowly started falling and Scar laughed. If Grian hadn’t been so startled by the confession, he would have noticed the slight tinge of nervousness that laughter hid.
“Got you! Juuuuuust kidding! Did that make your heart race?” Scar winked, making finger guns at him.
Grian huffed. It would be pointless to try and deny the blush that covered his cheeks, but he hoped the sunset would offer him the same kindness he offered Scar and conceal it a bit.
“It was a confession rehearsal!” Scar continued. “You know, so I don't get nervous for the real thing.” He twiddled with his hat’s cables, twisting them in his hand.
Grian hummed, amused. So that was it? This was the new great idea. After so many weeks of Scar being pranked non-stop, he guessed it was about time that he’d get to pull a bit of a prank as well. “I see, I see. And who do you plan on confessing to?” he asked with a smirk.
“That's a secret!” Scar put his hands on hips with a pout of feigned offense. He totally hadn’t thought that far ahead. “But how was it?” he insisted. He seemed genuinely curious.
And Grian had some opinions, alright.
“Well, you did horribly!” he jumped down, gliding to Scar’s side. “You need to plan this stuff, or I’ll leave you a scathing review on Hermit Advisor.” Grian mentally made a note of that. Someone should actually make some sort of hermit activities review site. In good fun, of course. Maybe he’d have to come up with a more abstract rating system. Joe might have some ideas on that.
“What do you mean?” Scar asked, eyes wide and expectant.
“You want them to be impressed, right? It has to be a grand gesture!” Grian lectured. “You need to plan the location and what you’re going to say ahead of time, no improvising.” Then, as an afterthought, he added: “I guess you really do need this rehearsal after all.”
“Wow, Grian, I didn’t take you to be such a romantic!” Scar grinned.
Grian personally considered himself more of an event planner, but he guessed there was a bit of that as well. He was dedicated to giving people the best experiences he could offer, and making sure everyone had a good time. This was not too different from that, even if Grian didn’t exactly have tons of experience on declarations of love. He was not the most open guy when it came to things like that, but he had a feeling he had at least a bit more experience than Scar.
“So, you’ll help me then?” Scar asked. His smile still looked damningly handsome in the sunset, in this landscape he’d constructed with his own hands down to the smallest piece of grass.
Grian couldn’t possibly say no.
“Yeah, yeah, sure. I’ll cheer you on.”
“Yay!” Scar threw his arms around Grian, and then they both got dinner together at Grian’s base. He wanted to brag about his cool bedroom some more.
As he finished retelling his story, Gem stared at him aghast, her condition not much better than when Scar came by.
“Gem,” Grian frowned, seeing her astonished expression. “It's nowhere near the weirdest things Scar has done.”
At that, Gem snorted. Then, it developed into a giggle and soon she was doubling over laughing, holding her stomach with tears in her eyes. Which was still too dramatic of a reaction, in Grian's opinion.
“Oh my god. There is no way that actually happened,” she wheezed between cackles. “How long has he been doing this for?”
“A week or so. He has not improved much so far though.” There was a notable scaffolding and concrete powder attempt that Grian smiled unconsciously upon remembering. Scar must’ve gotten the idea from Joel, but the resulting concrete drawing had ended up quite formless. He should try it again, it wasn’t a terrible format.
“You've been rating him,” Gem repeated in complete disbelief, even though she had literally just seen it happen.
“How is he supposed to improve otherwise? I guess the boat just now gets points for flair but I couldn't even hear him.” Grian shook his head. He wasn’t too disappointed nor surprised about the fumble, though. It would have been way weirder if Scar had mastered it this quickly.
Gem massaged her temple, still smiling from the earlier laughter.
“What am I gonna do with you two…” she murmured fondly. “But Grian,” she said, meeting his eyes. “Aren't you curious about whom he intends to confess to?”
That simple question knocked the air out of Grian's lungs. He had asked before, as a joke, because he didn’t take the situation seriously at all. But Scar was working really hard. He brought that genuine earnestness of his to everything he did, and this was no exception. It couldn’t truly be all for nothing, just a pastime with no real conclusion. At some point, the rehearsing would be done, and Scar would confess his love to someone else.
But whom?
It was a bit self-centered on Grian’s part, he was now realizing, but he had always assumed that Scar liked him. He hung onto Grian’s every word. He was always around him, like an orbit he couldn’t shake away from. His excuses to cling were getting old, but Grian couldn’t deny he enjoyed the attention. Whenever Scar looked at him, with wide eyes so full of adoration like Grian was capable of anything, Grian almost believed it too.
Scar was a bit like that with everyone, sure, but Grian really thought… A knot formed in his throat and his clothes started to feel uncomfortable.
“Oh, Grian…” Gem placed a comforting hand on his shoulder. “You should talk it out with him.”
Grian was absolutely not going to do that. He vaguely dismissed her and went right back into his cave to sulk in peace. He wasn't sure why this was affecting him so much. He didn't really like Scar in that way, probably. The weight in his chest wasn’t quite jealousy, he was familiar enough with it to tell. This felt closer to longing. Like Scar was drifting away from him, to somewhere Grian wouldn’t be allowed in as easily. Somehow, he already missed him and that doubled his frustration. Overthinking was always nicer in his arms.
Against his better judgment, he shot him a text through their communicator.
You whisper to Goodtimewithscar: scar
You whisper to Goodtimewithscar: do you want to come over
Goodtimewithscar whispered to you: yES
Soon enough, he heard the warning noise of firework rockets going off in the distance, and then Scar crash landed on the bed, sending the pillows flying and a few feathers too. Grian nearly bounced off the mattress from the impact. He was glad he’d built a king-sized one precisely for moments like these.
“Hello there!” Scar exclaimed cheerfully, making himself at home like nothing had happened.
“Do you always have to do that?” Grian couldn't even pretend to be mad. He was grinning from ear to ear.
“This bed is just so conveniently placed, Grian!” Scar said with a smile, not sorry in the slightest. “I can fly in from the cave straight into your room without having to touch the ground! No doors or anything! Really comes in handy when I'm working on the shopping district.” He took off his helmet and left it on the bedside table, then shook his head like a dog drying off water. You’d think he owned the place, really, with the ease with which he moved around.
“Don't you have a bed there?” Grian said, as if he hadn't been the one to call him over. He urged Scar to lie beside him with impatient gestures.
“Yes, but there's monsters nearby!” was all Scar managed to say before Grian tugged him down, making him yelp.
Grian snorted, and buried his face in Scar's chest, pressing against him. He made himself comfortable, snuggling up to him, and Scar circled him in his arms in a warm embrace.
Would Grian still get to do this if Scar was dating someone else? Probably not. He tried to push the thought away.
“Goodnight, Scar,” he whispered, quietly, like a secret.
“Sweet dreams, G.” Scar lightly kissed his hair. “I love you.”
Grian smiled. “8/10” he mumbled, and he felt more than heard Scar’s chuckle, a pleasant rumble reverberating through his chest.
The next morning, the space beside him was empty.
Right. Scar was a busy bee. When he got in the zone, it was hard to break him out of it. Grian was lucky that Scar had so easily agreed to meet up with him the night before.
And that was, in a way, that odd favoritism again. Scar wouldn’t stop working for anybody, and yet there was someone else. Grian tossed around in bed, annoyed. He didn't even like flannel blankets that much, he'd only gotten them because Scar liked them. He rolled around and then promptly rolled off the bed onto the floor, landing with a loud thud. Great. This day was starting wonderfully.
From this angle in which he was viewing his room now, though, he noticed a new addition. There was a piece of paper stuck to Keralis’ face on Grian’s enormous painting. Grian sluggishly got up to read it. The note was written in Scar’s unmistakable chicken scratch.
Good morning, Grain! If your reading this Iam at the shoppign disstrict. Are you free for dinner tonight? Its for a confession
Grian massaged his temples. He was free, of course. His other option was working on his trading hall, and not even in this situation would he actually prefer that. …There were not many things he preferred over being wined and dined, to be fair. And Scar was a great cook. Maybe Grian would just make the most out of this arrangement while it lasted.
Grian went to pocket the note but, unsurprisingly, his inventory was full to the brim with junk, so he just threw it on the floor somewhere. Did he have any food at hand? His back still ached from the fall earlier, so hopefully a golden carrot could fix that.
As he unsuccessfully attempted to sort his items, another visitor waltzed in.
“Griaaaan?” Gem called out from up the stairs. “Are you awake yet? It’s midday, sleepyhead!”
Grian cringed. Midday already? No wonder Scar had left. “Yes, wait a second!” he yelled back, uselessly, because Gem walked down regardless.
“This place is a mess, Grian!” she exclaimed. “Weren’t you super proud of your bedroom? You need to clean up!”
“I am trying to clean up, Gem!” he whined. “It’s the inventory that’s the problem!” His carrots had to be somewhere, but not a single one of his shulker boxes was labeled, and he had neglected updating the mods that would’ve made looking through them easier.
“I think at this point it’s a you problem, Grian",” Gem snickered, reveling on his suffering. “You didn’t even make your bed.” To prove her point, she picked up a birch sapling and a half-full bundle Grian had thrown there earlier.
“I did wake up like half an hour ago, to be fair.” Not his fault he always slept more soundly when Scar was there. “And also I just left that there right now! I’m not a monster, we didn’t sleep on a pile of garbage!”
Gem narrowed her eyes. “We?” she repeated.
Whoops. Grian slipped up.
“Yeah, Scar and I slept together earlier.” Grian admitted, not meeting her eyes.
Gem froze, immediately dropping everything she was holding. Something sounded like it broke on impact. Grian was well on his way to cause her a heart attack at this rate.
“You WHAT,” she squeaked out.
“Slept- I mean literally, okay?” Grian screeched, matching her panic. He felt his face start to burn. “He doesn’t have a bed in the shopping district!” A half-truth that was met with a pillow to the face.
“God, I actually hate you two. There is a bed by the Nether portal! Unless you guys blew it up, of course.” That was a very real possibility. “And here I was thinking you might still be upset from yesterday,” she groaned.
Grian was, admittedly, a bit upset. “I’ve decided to make the most out of the situation.” Another half-truth. He did intend to, but it was not the admission Gem had maybe been looking for.
“Oh, Grian…” Gem, of course, had noticed how his mood faltered regardless. “You just slept with him and you’re still worrying.”
“Don’t say it like that!” Grian’s voice raised an octave and he covered his face with his hands.
“You said it first!” She had that smug smirk plastered on her face that meant she was not going to let Grian live that down ever. “Am I gonna have to give Scar a talk?”
She was playful about it, but Grian had a feeling she had already given him one. Scar probably needed a pep talk of his own and Gem wasn’t someone who would pick sides. Somehow, that reassured Grian a bit. For all of her snarkiness, Grian knew he could always rely on her.
“No, but maybe I could use one.” Grian looked around in search for the note from earlier, but it was nowhere to be seen, already lost to the mess. “Scar invited me out to dinner tonight.”
Gem gasped, visibly excited. “As a date?”
“A rehearsal date,” Grian corrected, but that didn’t deter Gem at all.
“Whatever you say!” She bounced on her feet and clapped happily. “I’ll be back in a while to help you get ready! Just let me collect a few things first.” She stepped closer to Grian and examined him for a good few seconds. Right before he started to sweat under her strict gaze, she declared: “Go wash your hair in the meantime. And use conditioner.”
“… I don’t have any,” he admitted, embarrassed about something he had never even considered.
She sighed. “Just borrow some from my bridge.” Grian was going to use that against her later for sure. “Scar has like, a 14-step haircare routine, you know.”
“Not this season for sure. His shower and toilet are inside his bedroom now.” Grian grimaced. Who in their right mind puts those at the feet of their bed?
“You know, I can understand why you’re the one hosting then,” Gem laughed at him. It was her turn to receive a pillow to the face.
“Stop that!”
A few hours later, Grian was fully showered and smelling slightly like peach, sitting on his bed as Gem carefully blow-dried his hair. Every now and then she would switch between dryer attachments and Grian couldn’t even begin to guess what each of them did.
“You know, Grian, I think if you grew out your hair it might be a bit curly,” she commented. “You should try my hair products more often, they might help bring out your curls and give your hair more volume.”
“Gem, I will be honest with you, I have no idea what a conditioner does.” The response may have sounded a bit dismissive, but Grian was happy to humor her and she knew that.
He was so relaxed he could fall asleep, but right as his consciousness began to drift away, Gem turned off the hair dryer.
“Perfect!” Proud of her creation, she placed a mirror in front of Grian. “Look at you!”
Although he didn’t have any sort of eye for the fine details of hairstyle changes, Grian was able to tell the difference. His hair looked bouncier and much fuller in ways he couldn’t have anticipated. He had guessed the treatment might make it seem shinier or softer, but not quite this level of improvement.
“Oh, wow, you’re actually a pro at this.” He was genuinely impressed. “I’m fully in your hands, then.”
“That’s what I like to hear!” She grinned and gave him a thumbs up. “Now, do you own any clothes that aren’t red jumpers?”
Quite a tricky question.
“… I own a variety of different types of red jumpers,” was his very convincing answer.
A quick glance at Grian’s closet confirmed it: entirely red, with a few drawers for his jeans and underwear.
“You’re really not making this easy for me,” Gem sighed as she started going through them.
In Grian’s defense, they were varied. He even had some v-necks in there. Nevermind all the oddly cut sweaters for Grian’s most cursed skins, or even the penguin costume.
Gem giggled, a mischievous and evil sound that meant she had uncovered some truly notable stuff. “You should wear this one,” she announced, pulling out a tiny pink dress with a white feather boa.
“Scar cannot afford Ariana’s appearance rate,” Grian said flatly.
Gem chuckled before setting it aside. “I’ll make a note of that!” She went back to digging, but then added: “Instead of sitting there all pretty, you should come look for your tightest pair of jeans. I’ll make this work somehow.” She stopped for a moment to consider something. “Do you think my clothes could fit you? We are about the same height.”
“What do you have in mind?”
After some more struggling and a quick look at Gem’s wardrobe, they finally settled on an outfit. He wore a black sheer shirt of Gem’s with a sleeveless burgundy top underneath, tucked into a pair of dark jeans.
“Look at you!” Gem cooed. “Now let me do your make up and you’ll be ready to go! Where are you guys eating?”
Grian had absolutely no clue. “Eh, he’ll be on the locator bar, surely.”
Gem raised an eyebrow, so Grian decided to shoot him a quick text just in case.
You whisper to Goodtimewithscar: are we still on for tonight?
He didn’t get to check for the answer though, as Gem immediately went to assault him with the eyeliner.
“You’re enjoying this way too much,” he whined.
“Well, I don’t get to have a dress-up doll every day, Grian!” She smiled without a care in the world.
“It’s not even that important,” he complained. “It’s just a rehearsal.”
Gem hummed, amused. “But don’t you want to win his heart?”
Grian considered her words for a second until she started giggling again. “Your face is turning red,” she teased him. Grian opened his mouth, but before he could protest, Gem interrupted him: “And don’t try to blame the makeup because I haven’t gotten to the blush yet!”
Grian closed his mouth again. “Has Scar replied to my text yet?”
That attempt at changing of topic was slightly unsuccessful, because Grian couldn’t quite look at his communicator while Gem did his makeup. It didn’t take her too long to finish at least, with a final dash of lip gloss.
“Just in case,” was her reasoning as she applied it.
“Your hopes are too high,” Grian muttered.
Soon enough, Gem waved him goodbye, though not without asking him to do this again someday. Grian set off to the coordinates he had received from Scar at last, which led to some place up north, in between Etho and Bdubs’ areas.
He was able to find Scar rather easily by a lake shore. He was fiddling with the positioning of some lights, and stuck out like a penguin in a desert in the middle of the otherwise dark area. He had built a small platform with a couple of slab-chairs and a table, lit with carefully placed floating candles. Grian also noticed some brighter spots in the general vicinity that had to be moss carpet-covered torches. It wasn’t completely mob-proof, most likely, but it should be mob-resistant enough that they wouldn’t have too many uninvited guests interrupting them. Grian was impressed. Scar lighting up his builds properly was a rare sight, so this was a high-level of care and dedication that didn’t happen very often.
Grian landed quietly near the water. It was an extremely unprecedented situation for him too: he had arrived early for once in his life. It seemed like Scar hadn’t heard him approach, engrossed in his task as he was, so Grian thought it’d be fun to make him jump a bit.
“Hello there,” he greeted loudly, and Scar actually screeched, dropping all of his candles and throwing his hands up in the air in that silly pose he always did. It reminded Grian of a red panda.
“Oh my gosh, Grian! You gave me quite the fright!” Scar exhaled deeply, and Grian snickered.
“What’s this we have here?” Grian asked, taking a glance around them.
“Oh, just a little something I threw together!” Scar lied. It was plain to see that a lot of work went into the build.
The place reminded Grian of a gazebo, though it didn’t have a ceiling. Instead, a collection of candles swirled upwards in a subtle gradient from white to purple to black, accompanied by a few glass panes and end-rods. Combined with some firefly bushes, they created a lovely natural-looking chandelier that gave the area a wonderfully magic ambiance. He couldn’t help but wonder if Scar had maybe borrowed some inspiration from Grian’s own magic-themed base. He felt at home. The thought of it made him a bit giddy. Had Scar put that much thought into this?
He didn’t exactly do it for Grian though. He couldn’t get too ahead of himself.
“Do you like it?” Scar turned to meet his eyes, nervously waiting for Grian’s approval.
“It’s beautiful, Scar.” Grian couldn’t even pretend to be harsh. Though he did have one question. “Is it mob proof?”
“It’s mob-resistant"!” Scar replied quickly, hoping Grian wouldn’t notice the difference. As if he didn’t know Scar’s every trick already.
“That’s what I thought,” Grian snorted.
Scar cleared his throat and pulled back one of the chairs. “Would you like to take a seat?”
Grian smiled, happy to be pampered. “Of course. I expect great from you, you know” he said in a teasing tone as he sat down. Scar blushed, and Grian counted it as a win. “So, what do we have for dinner?”
“Oh, right!” Scar exclaimed, as if he’d forgotten the whole point of this.
He pulled out an acacia button out of his pocket, placed it on the table and pushed it. Their table vanished, pulled downwards with a piston sound, then Grian heard a dropper going off and the table reappeared, now with a full steamy meal on top. Grian gasped.
“Scar, that was amazing!”
“It’s all for the sake of love!” Scar said with a smug grin, proud of having impressed Grian. “Many hours were spent in the nerd cave in order to achieve this.”
Grian chuckled. For the sake of love, huh.
The food was delicious, and Grian could talk to Scar for hours and hours non-stop before getting tired, and he could almost forget why he was here in the first place. Almost, because then dessert was delivered and Scar’s expression turned serious. He reached out across the table to place his hand atop Grian’s, and a jolt surged through his spine. He willed himself not to tremble.
“There is something I wanted to tell you.” Scar leaned forward. A faint blush covered his cheeks, and Grian was sure he looked no better. Maybe even worse. “Are you ready?” His voice faded a bit, the question quiet and sincere.
Scar was ever so thoughtful. Grian exhaled. “Go ahead, cowboy.”
Scar nodded. His eyes locked onto Grian’s, and he felt like a magnet being pulled towards him, Scar an inevitable force of the universe.
“Do you remember the day we met?” Scar started, and Grian could tell by his tone that he had practiced this on his own too. “It might not have meant much to you in the moment, but I… I wasn't able to get you out of my head. With every chance encounter, I found myself wanting to know more and more about you. It felt like you were on a league of your own, always smiling, always up to something. I wanted to get closer to you, be part of that world of yours!”
Grian suppressed a chuckle. A Disney reference, of course. Scar was still Scar. Grian made a conscious effort to not get lost in his honeyed words. They were not directed at him and he should not forget that. But it was so easy. It would be so easy to lean forward and take what wasn’t his.
“And then every day we spent together was so much fun! You always have great ideas and I-” Scar brushed Grian’s cheek with his thumb, and Grian felt his heart leap out of his chest. Its beating was so quick in his eardrums that he feared they might shatter.
He could feel Scar’s warm breath on his cheeks.
“The truth is, I have always liked you.”
Grian couldn’t keep going. He broke eye contact and pulled away shakily. Scar should not be doing this with him.
“That was a 10 out of 10,” he announced with a wobbly smile, getting up. “You’ve really outdone yourself, Scar. This was a perfect grand gesture! You did a candlelit dinner and everything. Was the boat yesterday a distraction? You got me there.” He felt his eyes start watering and he tried to blink the tears away. He needed to get out of there.
“Wait, Grian!” Scar tried to grab his wrist, but Grian shook it off.
“It’s getting late, I should go.” Grian walked away, engaging his elytra. “See you around! And good luck with your confession!”
“Grian, I-!”
Grian took off, as fast as he could. And, distraught as he was, his vision blurry with tears, he ran straight into a tree, experienced kinetic energy, and died.
Great. Just what he needed to end this tortuous day on a high note.
He respawned right on his bed. Maybe if he inhaled deeply, he’d still catch a whiff of Scar’s scent on it. Laying there, on top on those stupid flannel blankets, the situation became impossible to deny any longer. He was in love with Scar, far more deeply than he could withstand.
And Scar did not like him back.
Grian had definitely earned himself at least a week of self-isolation and moping.
He got up, grabbed some obsidian from his chests and blocked off the entrance of his so-convenient bedroom. Good luck breaking through that.
He slipped back into bed and fell into a restless sleep.
His communicator dinged with one last text.
<Goodtimewithscar> Grian I have your stuff in a chest
He woke up the next morning feeling awful. Quite the difference from last week. He felt like he hadn’t slept a wink, somehow even more tired than before. His eyelids were heavy and he had a faint headache, but he couldn’t manage to fall back asleep. At least respawning meant his makeup disappeared, because otherwise the situation would be even worse.
He checked his communicator and saw the last text. That was actually a relief. If Grian had to go and grind again to get his tools back it would be an even worse torture than what he was currently experiencing.
He had made a slight miscalculation when closing off his room though. In that fit of… something of his, he’d neglected to consider that his food was upstairs, and his inventory was completely empty. And, for some reason, his bedroom did not have an ender chest. And his stomach was grumbling. Why must he always put himself in these situations.
He was not about to spend five minutes breaking obsidian though —oh, he didn’t even have a pick! He’d have to do it by hand! Why didn’t he think this through a bit more. At least his room did have another exit of sorts. Right beside Trash’s small stable, on the ceiling, there were some trapdoors that opened directly under the pool of water at the end of the cake hole. He might have to replace the water later and do a bit of clean up downstairs, but that was way less trouble than mining obsidian with his bare hands.
When he swam upwards, the first thing he noticed was that his base smelled like waffles. Way more than usual. This could not be a good sign, but he was hungry and a simple guy so he ended up following the scent against his better judgment.
And, of course, standing in the middle of his base, in front of a furnace, was Scar.
“What are you doing here?” Grian asked flatly and Scar jumped.
“Grian! You scared me!” He smiled sheepishly and pointed to the furnace. “I made you breakfast! I also left your things over there.” He pointed to red shulker box a few blocks away.
Void. Scar really knew the way to his heart. Grian approached him slowly, like a skittish cat. For all Grian knew about Scar’s quirks and oddities, Scar knew Grian just as deeply. Grian sat on the crafting table beside the furnace, and Scar handed him a plate with a warm waffle. It was cat-shaped.
“You know, about last night…” Scar started, and Grian tensed. He kept his gaze fixed on the waffle, not meeting Scar’s eyes, but clearly listening. “There’s something I’ve lied about.”
That gave Grian some pause. What?
“There’s no one else I want to confess to.” Grian’s head snapped to look at Scar, eyes wide. “I’m sorry! I got scared and chickened out. The truth is, I really like you, Grian, and I always have.”
If Grian hadn’t been sitting, he would have surely fallen. He lunged forward to put his arms around Scar’s neck, burying his face in his shoulder. Scar instinctively embraced him, but he was a bit hesitant.
“Oh, Scar!” He weakly punched his chest. “I hate you. You made me really worried about this.”
Scar chuckled nervously. Grian drew back to meet his eyes, cupping Scar’s cheek with his hand. Scar leaned into his touch.
“I like you too.”
Scar smiled. The most beautiful, crooked and bright smile Grian had ever seen.
“Really?”
Grian laughed.
“Really.”
Grian's heart thundered in his chest. He wished Scar could hear it too.