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“Uh, Gamzee, what are you doing?”
Gamzee peered down from the top of the strange structure Equius had built him. The structure stood nearly as high as the ceiling and at the top, there was what looked to be a platform. Gamzee had vaulted up there a few hours ago, carrying lights and blankets and pillows and other fluffy things – including a few horns for good measure. Tavros couldn’t figure out what the clown was doing up there. He waited below, staring up. Gamzee dropped from the platform and landed in front of Tavros.
“I’m just all up and making something motherfucking amazing for my Tavbro.” Gamzee pressed his lips to Tavros’ forehead and smiled as he ran to grab something else. When he returned, he carried a fiduspawn plush that Tavros had left at his block some time ago. Tavros just left it there because he came to Gamzee’s hive so often that it was nice to not have to bring it with him every time he came by. Gamzee liked the plush because it smelled like Tavros and it was nice to cuddle with when the brown blood couldn’t stop by.
Tavros lifted an eyebrow as he watched Gamzee vault into the… whatever that was and then Gamzee was gone from his sight again. Tavros sighed, resting his elbow on his four-wheeled device and rested his cheek in his hand. Gamzee had called him over and he had obliged, but… The brown blood sighed again, the line of his lips drooping into a frown. He wanted to be with Gamzee, not watch him jump around and in and out of some tall structure. He wanted to cuddle with the lanky highblood. He…
Tavros bit his lip nervously. He began noticing all these little things about Gamzee that made him… Well, it made him feel weird. Kind of hot, actually, especially in the face. Gamzee had always been very open with his emotions and he would often kiss the brown blood, though never near the mouth. Gamzee would kiss almost anywhere on his face, but he always avoided his mouth. Tavros guessed he was glad that the clown never tried anything like that – they were just friends, right?
Recently, he wasn’t so sure.
The last time he had been over at Gamzee’s hive, he and Tavros ended up cuddling like they always did, but something felt different. It felt warmer, in a way. Safer. Redder.
Tavros blinked at that thought, surprised. Was… was he getting red feelings for his bro? Was he… was he flushed for Gamzee? His face was definitely flushing brown now, thinking about it. That might explain the weird feelings. But… if he was flushed, did Gamzee feel the same? Tavros couldn’t tell. Gamzee loved a lot of things; that was clear. Tavros was pretty sure that Gamzee was pale for Karkat, but it was hard to tell sometimes. If Tavros confessed and Gamzee didn’t feel the same, the brown blood was sure he would die from embarrassment. He was not confident enough to believe that he could ever think of confessing to Gamzee. He would rather jump off that cliff again and see if he could break more than his legs.
Speaking of jumping, Gamzee landed once more in front of Tavros and tugged on his arm excitedly. Tavros glanced at the clown and his gaze followed the other’s finger up to the structure. The brown blood’s mouth dropped open in amazement. The platform was covered on all sides by a dark blanket and he could just barely see colorful lights peeking out from within the ‘walls’.
“What do you think, Tavbro?”
“Wow, Gamz, it’s, uh, really cool.”
“It’s our own little motherfucking cuddle fort! You know, because you were all up and saying that the last time you were here, the pile we were on wasn’t motherfucking bitchtits. So I all up and made us a new pile. Do you want to all up and try it out?”
He made it for him? For them? He spent hours working on this fort just for them to cuddle in? Pity spiked through Tavros and he was honestly taken aback. He couldn’t believe that this clown had worked hard on something as simple as a cuddling pile. Gamzee wrung his hands, nervous and fidgety.
“Uh, Gamzee. I would, uh, love to, but, uh…” Tavros gestured to the four-wheeled device. “I kinda can’t, uh, climb.” Gamzee stared at him blankly for a moment and Tavros waited for the information to process.
“Oh… shit.”
“Yeah.”
“Shit.”
“Yeah.” A sigh. “Thanks, though. I like the, uh, thought of it. It does look really nice and, uh, I’m sure that it—Gamzee, what the—?” As he spoke, Gamzee snapped his fingers as he suddenly got an idea and he grabbed Tavros and slung him over one shoulder. “Gamzee, what are you doing?”
“Taking a brother up to a cuddle fort to try it out.”
“What a—THE FUCK!” Gamzee jumped onto the fort’s base structure, balancing Tavros on his shoulder while he climbed. Tavros squeaked and whimpered when Gamzee’s grip slipped once. Shit shit shit, this was not OKAY! Tavros shrieked when Gamzee swung him upwards and he flung his arms open, catching the edge of the platform. He attempted to pull himself up when he finally got a view of the inside.
The platform was completely covered in blankets and pillows and plushies and it was soft and warm and so colorful and Tavros felt his arms go weak with pity. Thankfully, Gamzee had catapulted into the fort and grabbed him before he fell.
“Whoa! A brother’s got to all up and be careful. Don’t want you to fall. I’d feel terrible if a brother got hurt while in my hive. Come on up here. Yeah, there you go. So what do you think of it now? Motherfucking bitchtits, right?”
“Yeah, bitchtits, Gamz.” Tavros nodded, still awed. Gamzee honked and wrapped his lanky arms around the other, burying his face in his neck. Tavros ran his fingers through Gamzee’s hair. Gamzee pulled him down into and cuddle. Tavros always loved cuddling with Gamzee. The highblood’s body was so much longer than he was and Gamzee wrapped around him all nice and soft. Tavros yawned, smiling into Gamzee’s chest. Even from here, Tavros could feel Gamzee’s bloodpusher pumping. Tavros closed his eyes and began to fall asleep to the sound of it beating.
When Gamzee’s arms tightened around him, he opened his eyes and tried to peer at the indigo from the position he was in. Gamzee rested his head on Tavros’, right in between his horns, so all Tavros could see was the other’s neck.
“Tav?” Gamzee’s arms tightened again and Tavros heard his bloodpusher start beating faster. The brown blood made a noise to let him know he was listening.
“I…” Gamzee paused, trying to form his words. Tavros shifted, trying to look at Gamzee’s face. It seemed like the other wasn’t going to let him. “A brother’s not all good with this kind of feelings and such, and it feels weird talking like this to someone who ain’t my pale bro. But Karbro said it would be good to talk, said that it’d be downright beautiful to… uhm…”
“Gamzee?”
Gamzee pressed his face into Tavros’ hair, muffling his words, but Tavros was just able to catch most of it.
I think I’m red for you.
“Red…?” Tavros stuttered out and Gamzee nodded, squeezing tighter. He was trembling, Tavros noticed. Was he afraid? Afraid of what?
The answer hit him like a ton of hive stones. Hadn’t he been thinking the same earlier? Hadn’t he been wondering if he was red for Gamzee and hadn’t he been terrified of confessing for fear of being shot down? And that was exactly what Gamzee had done. He had taken the risk and confessed his suspicions.
And pity swelled in Tavros’ chest.
“Gamz? Hey, uh, Gamzee, can you, uh, let go of me a bit?” The indigo tightened his grip before reluctantly releasing him. Gamzee knelt and turned his head away.
“I’ll take you back down and we can do something else if you’re all up and… feeling weird. Or I can… see ya to the door, if…” Tavros blinked. What was he—oh. Oh. Oh no no no no…
“No! No, I mean, uh, ugh. Gamzee, hey. Gamzee, please look at me.” The expression on the indigo’s face broke everything inside him to pieces as a giant wave of pity rushed through him in a sudden burst of heat. “I… uh…” Tavros didn’t know what to say. Nothing came to his mind and as he thought, he focused on Gamzee’s mouth. Out of all the times the clown kissed him, he always avoided the mouth. Tavros wanted to change that.
In a sudden and unexpected burst of confidence, Tavros pressed his lips against the indigo’s mouth. He pressed his hands against the back of Gamzee’s head, pulling him closer and deepening the kiss. Gamzee was startled, to say the least. He froze at the kiss, his mind blanking on every thought he tried to form. Tavros pulled away slightly to catch his breath. He laughed softly and Gamzee gazed at him with still terrified, but pityingly hopeful eyes.
“I think I’m, uh, red for you too.” Gamzee’s face lit up brighter than the colorful lights that filled their fort and jumped into Tavros’ arms, kissing the brown blood with tears pouring happily down his face. When they settled down to cuddle again, Tavros listened to Gamzee’s bloodpusher beating calmly and smiled.