Work Text:
One
“Noodle, what did I just tell you?”
“Stay in bed,” the little girl responds, looking at the floor. Her voice is nasally and rough. Her eyes droop and her whole face looks swollen.
“So what are you doing in here?”
“Hungry,” she shrugs. She coughs and her whole body shudders. She looks so weak, standing in front of Russell with a blanket wrapped around her. She woke up that morning with a cold, and Russell’s made it his duty to help her feel better.
“Sweetheart,” Russell says, getting up off the couch to scoop Noodle up in his arms effortlessly. “I’m making you soup, see?” He takes her into the kitchen to show her the chicken soup boiling on the stove. “Soup.”
“Soup?” Noodle asks. She’s just begun learning English, having only lived in the UK for a few months.
“Yeah, it’ll make you feel better,” Russell nods, giving Noodle a pat on her head. She closes her eyes, head falling gently on Russell’s shoulder. He sighs, and walks her up a few flights of stairs to her bedroom, placing her softly back onto her bed.
“Soup,” Noodle says quietly, her voice hoarse. Russell nods, chuckling a bit.
“Soup is coming. It needs to be hot,” he says, trying to simplify the terms so she can understand. She seems to get it, because she nods her head sleepily and closes her eyes again.
Russell sits on her bed next to her, gently rubbing her back. His hand is about as big as her head, and she lets out a long sigh, relaxing into his soft touch.
~~.~~
Two
“Wot’s this?” 2D asks, head cocked to the side as Russell holds out a necklace to him. It’s a simple black cord with a blue rubber lego brick charm hanging off it.
“It’s, uh, it’s called Chewelry? It’s like, for chewing on.” He’d imagine this going a lot smoother. “I noticed you bite your nails when you’re stressed, I thought if you had something else to bite it’d help.”
Russell wanted to give it to him in a way that showed he cared about 2D without making it seem like 2D was ‘abnormal’ or needed help in any way. He just wanted to give 2D a way to calm his nerves without ruining his nails and his teeth, he supposes.
Russell waits nervously as 2D silently takes it from Russell’s hand, surveying it. Finally, he smiles widely and looks up at Russell.
“Aw, Russ! ‘As so sweet!” He grins, and Russell’s tension melts away. He chuckles, his mouth quirking up at the corners. “Thanks for thinkin’ bout me, man! You’re the best bandmate a guy could ask for.” Russell smiles fully at that. He doesn’t smile like that very often, so when he does it just makes 2D smile even wider.
2D holds out his hand for a fist bump, and Russell bumps it with his own. 2D puts the necklace on and walks down the hallway, whistling a happy tune.
~~.~~
Three
“Russell, can I talk to you?” Noodle stands on the roof of the house on 212 Wobble Street. Russell, who’s been getting a bit smaller every day, is still too big to be inside the house. He sits criss-cross, taking up a good half of the roof.
Noodle’s figure is illuminated by the moonlight, and her face looks small and pale. She looks down at the tiles, fiddling with her fingers.
“Of course, kiddo. What’s goin’ on?” He tries to speak quietly, but his large figure makes it a bit difficult.
Noodle sits on her knees in front of Russell, looking up at him. “I wanted to let you know, that…” she trails off nervously. He senses her anxiety, and reaches out his hand. She puts her hand on his pointer finger. Her hand takes up his finger pad, and it’s an inefficient way of holding hands but it works for them.
“Russ, I’m a lesbian,” Noodle says finally. “It’s okay if you don’t like that but I wanted to tell you because I dunno what’s gonna happen from here. We get ourselves into deep shit all the time and if we’re ever separated again there’s no knowing-”
“Noodle,” Russell interrupts her nervous rambling. She looks up at him, wide-eyed. “Of course I’m okay with that.” Noodle exhales, her eyes tearing up. “Nothing’s gonna change how I feel about you, kiddo. You’re the coolest teen I know. And as for the future, that doesn’t matter cause we’re always gonna be Gorillaz, alright?”
“Alright,” Noodle says, nodding. Tears fall down her cheeks, and Russell wishes he could give her hand a squeeze without crushing it. “I’m prolly gonna tell Mudz and 2D. ‘Jus wanted to tell you first. Test the waters, y’know?”
“Yeah, I gotchu,” he nods. “They’ll be good with you too. And if they aren’t, I’ll make ‘em,” Russell half-jokes. Noodle wipes the tears off her cheeks with a smile.
“I love you, Russ.”
Russel smiles, patting Noodle as gently as possible on her head with his thumb. She giggles. “Love you too, kid. Now get to sleep, it’s late.”
~~.~~
Four
Murdoc wakes up to an intense pounding in his head. The memories from last night are blurry and dark, and he can’t piece together a timeline. He went out alone, he drank, he drank some more…
“Fuck,” he groans, rubbing his eyes. He turns over to face the front of his Winnebago, when he notices something on the counter.
It’s a water bottle, a protein bar, a few pills and a note.
Curiously, he reaches out and pulls the note from under the bottle to reveal neat but bold handwriting that reads:
Mudz,
We have an interview in three hours. Please get over your hangover so you don’t embarrass us more than usual.
Russ
P.S. You were crying a lot last night. If you need to talk to someone I’m really bored like all the time.
Murdoc chuckles, smiling, before popping the painkillers in his mouth and downing the water.
~~.~~
Five
“Dents! What happened to you?”
“Oh, nuffink,” 2D brushes Russel off. The singer’s covered in bruises and scrapes from head to toe.
“Oh, c’mon, Dee,” Russel furrows his brow, getting up to make his way over to the singer.
“Well, I got inna car wreck,” 2D admits. “Jus’ a small one though! I’m alright!”
“You certainly aren’t,” Russel glares at him. “C’mon, we’re getting you cleaned up.”
Russel leads 2D to the bathroom and sits him down on the counter. He rummages through the cabinets for bandages.
“How’d you get into a wreck, Dee? You don’t even have a license.”
“I took Murdoc’s car,” 2D admits. “I was just’ tryna go out an’ get some groceries.”
“How wrecked is his car?” Russel asks nervously. 2D winces.
“Wrecked.”
“Shit. Why’d you go out and drive anyway, if you don’t got a license?”
“I s’pose I wanted to prove to myself I could do sumfink, y’know? Sumfink right, for the band. For myself.”
“Dee, your vision is shit. You’re legally blind. You don’t have a license for a reason,” Russel scolds, dabbing alcohol on a cut on 2D’s forehead.
“I know, I know. I jus’ felt sorta… useless, I guess.”
“Dee, you aren’t useless,” Russel says firmly, looking 2D in his empty black eyes, staring back into Russel’s bright white ones.
“Sometimes it feels that way,” 2D shrugs.
“Hey. You aren’t useless. You’re funny and cool and a great singer. We wouldn’t be Gorillaz without you.”
2D blushes. “Aw, Russ! Tha’s ‘bout the sweetest thing anyone’s ever said to me!”
“Yeah, well don’t get used to it. I hate getting sappy.”
“Aww, ‘as okay. ‘As all I needed to hear, anyways. Thanks Russ.”
“Sure, Dee.”
~~.~~
Plus One
“Is he asleep?” Noodle whispers. Murdoc chuckles.
“Looks like it!” he grins.
“Aw, he looks so cute,” 2D laughs.
Russel lays sprawled on the couch, snoring softly. The living room is dimly lit, the only light coming through the TV as the credits for the movie they’d just finished roll.
Noodle pokes Russel’s cheek, and he snorts, shifting before settling back. His bandmates laugh.
“C’mon, it’s late, we should follow Russ’s lead and get some sleep,” Noodle says. Murdoc and 2D nod, but before they leave the living room, Russel groans in his sleep.
“Is he okay?” Noodle whispers. Before anyone can respond, Russel groans again, his voice filled with fear. He mumbles something that sounds like ‘no’.
“I fink he’s ‘aving a nightmare,” 2D whispers back.
“Aw, Russ,” Noodle frowns. She grabs a blanket off the floor and drapes it over Russel. She sits down on the couch next to him and wraps her arms around his large figure.
2D steps forward to the couch to join them, sitting on the opposite side of Russel and putting his arm over his shoulder.
“You lot look so cheesy,” Murdoc laughs at them, sitting next to 2D and taking out his cellphone to snap a picture of the band. Noodle and 2D giggle. Russel’s nightmare seems to end, and he settles back into his soft snoring.
Noodle closes her eyes and rests her head on Russel’s shoulder, and 2D follows suit. Soon, all four of them are passed out on top of each other on the couch.