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Z was taught at a very young age that his wings were wrong.
They were something he should’ve never had.
They were a mistake.
For some odd reason that Z still doesn’t know, his dad hated his wings, and the man did not try to hide that fact.
Sure, it was confusing to him at first, his child brain couldn’t understand why he should’ve hated something that was apart of him, why he should suppress his avian side down.
But he eventually learned over time.
Not like he had much of a choice-
Over the years of growing up, his father made sure to push any of those avian characteristics or instincts far away from Z.
Oh, feathers managed to grow onto some places on his face? Plucked.
Z’s flight feathers came in? Cut.
Those pathetic chirps that managed to slip out from his throat occasionally? ..a harder thing to get rid of, but of course, Z’s father managed. A surgery was scheduled. One that was done to cut that muscle in his throat that produced any of those bird like sounds.
Sure, the sounds weren’t fully gone. But they were quieter now… less audible. And that was enough for his father.
All the changes had confused Z when he was smaller.. he didn’t know why he had to change, why he was different in the first place!
Hell, his two sisters, Ana and Phoebe, were completely normal!! Why wasn’t Z??
The answer was his mom. She was an avian, he knew that by the pictures hung up on the wall, she looked happy in them, feathers healthy unlike Z’s matted and ruffled ones, but he barely ever saw her in person. She was distant, that gleam she had in those photos was completely dried out. Unhappy.
But enough about his past.
Z had a better life now. A new life.
One with friends!! Or well… as close as an annoying ass entity and a clown could get to being friends.
And sure, has Z been keeping his wings a secret for the past year or so he’s known them? ..Maybe, but he doesn’t want to lose them, okay?!
Even if Regect is a dick 90% of the time..
His wings have done nothing but cause him problems, when he was younger and didn’t think to hide them, kids would always tug on or yank against his feathers, pet him without asking, treated him like he was an animal in a petting zoo.
And he really didn’t want to turn his one and only safe space into that kind of environment.
It took some time… a long time, for the avian man to learn how to suppress his instincts, to ignore those constant squawks that tell him to do whatever bird shit his brain was craving, but he’s practically mastered pushing them down now.
Did he have some slip ups occasionally? Yeah, but they rarely came! And when they did, he just pushed them off as whoever saw’s imagination.
It usually worked.
…….
The slip ups were starting to become more persistent after the hole though.
So persistent that Regect and Moe were starting to notice..
“Are you sure you’re good man?? This is like.. the 100th time you’ve coughed this morning,“ god, why were his chirps trying to be so vocal today?! “I swear if you get me sick I’ll-“
“GOD!! I already told you I was fine Regect! I just..” another chitter tries to escape before getting covered by a fake cough, “I.. ugh, I just need some water or something.”
The entity didn’t have that usual taunting tone in his voice or that playful gleam that always seemed to glow in that one visible eye, instead he seemed …worried? But that couldn’t be right. Because the two hate each other! Why would he be.. “You sure?? Because you’ve been acting weird all week now!!”
“I’m fine dude!!” Z only shouts louder as he glares towards the entity, his wings were aching really bad too today, which only makes his mood and patience worse with Regect …maybe he should’ve loosened the tight binds that press them against his back this morning, but it’s not like he could do much about them now, “How much times do I have to tell you?! It’s just a cough!!”
“Oh, I’m so sorry that I’m worried about you!!” Like usual, Regect shouts back, voice loud and raspy just like how it always is whenever he and Z fight ..so why does it make the man freeze up? Sure, it’s only for a second, but he could tell that Regect saw. That voice immediately softening, “Look Ze.. We’re worried about you! Moe’s worried… I’m worried. Please.. just- you know you can talk to us, right?”
“Talk to you about what?? Being sick? There’s not much to talk about there.” He tries to joke, but the look Regect gives him is enough to shut him up.
“Ze… I know you’ll never admit it, but I know you’re not doing okay right now.” Z was about to open his mouth again to protest against that stupid thought, but before he could Regect continued, “And don’t give me any more of that ‘I’m fine’ bullshit!! I can see it in your face, your body language, your… your everything!!”
A sound tries to make its way out of his throat, but Z doesn’t let it, pushing it down into whatever abyss it belongs in ..he could feel his feathers puff up against their bindings and his jacket in protest.
“I know you’ve already told me and Moe about what happened in the hole… but we’re still here if you need to talk about it. About anything. We’re your friends dude, we’re not going to leave you in the dark.”
……
He doesn’t think he’s ever heard Regect be this sincere with him before.. it makes something in his chest flutter, cheeks heating up slightly, but he quickly pushes those feelings away, because that’s the only thing he how to do when something foreign appears.
“Yeah.. uh, thanks- I um.. I know you guys are here for me and stuff, I just…” he eventually starts to mumble out, fingers fidgeting with the cloth over the table, it was a thin fabric, easily torn.. he hopes that Wakafante won’t notice the holes he’s leaving against them-
Regect listens patiently, that cat like tail swaying slowly against the chairs legs as one of those claws tap lightly against the table. It’s peaceful.
Almost too peaceful.
Too quiet.
The worst possible moment for one of those annoying chirps to try and escape from his throat.
It’s louder this time too. Because of course it is!! Still muffled and choked down thanks to whatever procedure was done to him when he was younger, but the sound is still audible.
Ze just prays that the mixture of his forced out cough and the way he chugs his water is enough to hide the sound.
God why was he so vocal today?! They’ve never been this bad..
“Okay!! Well um.. since you’re so worried about getting sick, I’m just gonna go to my room for a bit!” The words rush out from his mouth as he pushes away from the table, ignoring the way that the entity perked up at the sound of the muffled chirp, because he didn’t hear it… he couldn’t have heard it- “Maybe I’ll uh take a nap or something? That makes people.. not sick, right?”
He doesn’t wait for a answer before rushing upstairs to the makeshift room Wakafante had made him for their stay at the old man’s house, he really didn’t have to go out of his way to let the three of them stay with him.. especially didn’t have to give them all their own rooms! But Z wasn’t complaining, if anything he was glad for the privacy.
It helped him hide his …assets better.
Slamming the door shut from behind him, Z immediately yanks off his jacket and the binds holding his wings down, the relief it gives them only lasts for a moment before the constant ache he’s grown used to over the years immediately rushes back into them.
He glares at them as whatever his body was doing was their problem.
“Ugh! I hate you!! You know that?!” He hisses out, grabbing onto one of the wings with a rough yank ..which definitely doesn’t help the pain that’s already soaked into their joints, but he doesn’t care, “Why did.. why did I have to be born with you?! I could’ve been normal.. could’ve lived a normal life, but no!! I had to have you and the stupid bird brain you came with!!”
The wings, of course, don’t respond to his frustrated words, not that Z expected them to, but despite it all he still lets out an angry and distressed huff.
He gives it another second before he loosens his grip, fingers softening to trail through the feathers that layer over the wings, they’re dirty. Really dirty. They look like absolute shit.
Once colored a cloudy white with black lining the end of each feather now a disgusting grayish brown, those fluffy feathers now ruffled and out of place.
He knows he should be taking better care of them. He knows. But it’s so hard.. he hates them. He hates looking at them, hates feeling them, hates touching them.
God why couldn’t the doctors just cut his wings away too?! I mean.. they removed the small ones that rested on his head, so what’s the difference with the ones on his back?!
……
He glares at the wings for another minute or so before he eventually lets out another huff, letting them droop down onto the floor, he’ll clean them later.
…Maybe.
Right now, that nap that he mentioned to Regect does sound really good… even if it is probably late into the morning now.
His gaze drifts down towards his jacket, wondering for a moment if he should put it back on, but a voice in his head immediately protests against the thought, and he’s already exhausted enough to fight against it, so he just.. moves to his bed and flops against the mattress.
Sleep had always been a difficult thing for Z through out his life, nothing he sleeps on ever feels soft or comfortable enough for him no matter what it is.
But lately, sleep has gotten much harder to achieve, his brain screaming at him that something was watching. Something was close. Something was going to drag him right back into that hole he just escaped from.
Luckily for him right now though, or maybe unluckily? Those paranoid thoughts seem to have completely vanished, overshadowed by that uncomfortable fog that coats over his brain.. he’s felt this feeling before, it comes occasionally, he’s assuming it’s from not letting his body do any of the bird shit it craves …but it’s never felt this strong before.
He wants to ignore it like usual. He wants to just close his eyes and let himself pass out, but of course, his body doesn’t listen.
Before he knew what he was doing, he starts to shift against the sheets on his bed, at first he thought he was just trying to get comfortable, but then his hands started to reach towards the pillows and blankets that were littered over his mattress.
He doesn’t stop himself before he instinctively starts to sort the fabrics together in some strange circular shape, too exhausted to fight against the thoughts that plague his mind, it’s not like he’s hurting anyone either, right? He’s just.. making his bed more comfortable…. Yeah.
The thought of someone walking in on him crosses his mind, but he quickly pushes it away, usually at this time of the day Moe and Regect are brainstorming what stupid adventures they wanted to go on, plus, Z always locks his door whenever he enters his room, so even if someone wanted to bother him he’d be fine!
His feathers immediately puff up with pride when he finishes arranging his blankets and pillows into their makeshift shape.
A nest, his brain supplies, and normally Z would feel at least an ounce of dread at that, but he can’t bring himself to, it does actually look a little comfortable… even with how bad it looks-
“ZE OH MY GOD, ZE!!” A sudden shout is quick to break the silence, because of course it does, “I know you said you were napping or whatever but you’re not going to believe.. OH MY GOD?!“ Z was about to shout at the entity to fuck off, to let himself fall against the sorted blankets and pass out, but when he turns a panicked squawk immediately leaves his throat.
Because instead of seeing the closed door he thought he locked.. it’s wide open.
Regect standing in that opened space.
Staring at him.
No.
Staring at his wings.
……..
“…Ze?” The entity’s voice sounds out again, but quieter this time, more cautious, “How did.. holy shit.. are those wings?!”
The wings in question only seem to droop, trying to make themselves smaller as if that’ll get rid of the fact that Regect’s already seen them.
“Get.. get out-“ god why does his voice sound so small?! He’s never sounded so weak before..
Regect doesn’t listen, because of course he doesn’t!! When does he ever listen?!
“Holy shit…” it just breathes out again, steps getting closer and closer towards Z’s bed, and he already knows it’s over for him. Regect saw them. He saw his wings. He’s expecting to feel the familiar sensation of them getting yanked at when Regect’s claws approach, but instead he feels them getting stroked..? What. “Ze.. When did… when did you get wings?? Did.. is this what the hole did to you??!”
“What..?” The question slips out as he stares dumbly at the entity, his wide eyes watching, waiting for those hands to become painful, but they remain soft.. it causes a weird fuzzy feeling to cloud over his already fogged up brain, “No.. no?? I’ve- I’ve always had these…”
“What?! Dude!! No the fuck you haven’t!! Otherwise me and Moe..” Regect starts to trail off, brow furrowing as he starts putting two and two together, Z has always been distant.. always wearing that same jacket, which is now discarded on the floor, “We.. we would know! Unless… you’ve been hiding these from us?! What the hell dude??!”
Z doesn’t respond, just continuing to stare at the entity either those wide eyes, heart racing 100 miles an hour ..he can’t move, can’t hide his stupid wings, can’t get Regect to stop touching them-
Then it steps closer.
And that’s enough for Z to snap out of his weird trance.
Regect has already seen his wings.. if the entity sees his shitty looking nest he knows he won’t hear the end of it, so he immediately darts to destroy it, ignoring the distressed chitters his throat lets out in response.
“Hey?? Dude! Ze!! What the hell are you doing??” The words come out louder than the entity expected, though instead of having any sort of frustration or anger, it’s just confusion.. concern.
“Nothing!! Just get the hell out!!!”
“Fuck no!! You can’t just kick me out! We’ve gotta talk about… wait- is that supposed to be a nest..?” Z wants to bury himself deep into the ground when that question reaches his ears, face flushing with embarrassment. He wants to push the entity away, to punch him …hell, maybe he’ll just kill the fucker! “Dude stop!! What are you doing?!”
Before Z knows it, two surprisingly fluffy arms wrap around his waist and pull him away from his blankets, “Destroying it- obviously, now let me go you dick!!” He only huffs out as he tries to squirm against Regect’s strong grip, wings flaring out in attempt to slap at it, which doesn’t help the soreness that lingers in them.
Regect doesn’t free him, because why would he?? The entity is a dick, and Z wants to murder him, “Look.. I get that it looks terrible.. like really really really bad…” A impatient and slightly offended huff leaves Z’s mouth, “But!! It’s still your nest, I’m not gonna.. like make fun of it or something-“ he says as if he didn’t already insult said nest.
Still, the words confuse Z …because this was wrong wasn’t it? He’s not a bird. He’s a man. He shouldn’t be making ‘nests’ in the first place!!
…….
At both Z’s silence and the way he stops clawing at his blankets, the entity finally releases him, but the man knows he’s far from free. Especially with how Regect moves to sit next to him on the bed.
“I just… I don’t- why?” Regect sputters out after another beat, that eye scrunching up in a way that shows the entity’s confusion, “Why didn’t you tell us? I mean.. sure, they look awful right now- like absolute shit.. but-“
“Regect.”
The entity lets out a huff of its own now before those claws find their way back onto Z’s wings, trailing lightly over the damaged feathers ..the touch is soft, gentle, still Z can’t stop himself from flinching in response, “You know me and Moe wouldn’t judge you for this.. right?”
“You’re quite literally judging them right now!!” His feathers puff up as to enthuse his point.
“Ze!! I’m being serious!”
“Yeah? well it doesn’t exactly feel like you are!”
“Well am I wrong?! The state of your wings are bad man.. really bad! What did you even do to get them to look like this?! It looks like you haven’t cleaned or preened them in years!!”
Z just looks away at that ..because Regect isn’t exactly wrong- not that he’ll ever admit that, not verbally at least.
Normally at the man’s stubborn silence Regect would’ve gloated about ’winning the argument’ or punch at Z, but instead of doing any of that, Z could feel how he shifted behind him, those hands on his wings now moving with more purpose.
“Hey.. HEY?? WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU DOING?!” He immediately starts to shout when he feels those fingers start to tug at his loose feathers.. surprisingly it didn’t hurt though.. the feathers coming out easily without any protest, it actually felt kinda relaxing…
“What does it look like?? I’m preening your wings, dumbass.” Those fingers continue, even after Z tries to pull away ..eventually though, he gives up, wings drooping into the entity’s grip as it moves to sit behind him, Z’s not looking towards Regect, but he could feel that concerned gaze burning against the back of his head, ”Seriously though.. when was the last time you cleaned these?”
“I mean.. I took a shower yesterday.” His voice is weak. Choked out as he lowers his gaze, as if that’ll stop the entity from looking at him. It doesn’t work. If anything, it makes him stare harder.
“Well.. yeah?? I would’ve hoped you showered! You reek!” Damn.. the fucker couldn’t ever go into a conversation without one jab, could he? “But I meant like.. properly man- when was the last time you did that?”
..….
Z’s silence is telling, and the heat of that stare is hot enough to burn the man. Those claws tightening for a singular moment before quickly releasing all together, Z has to force down the distressed chip that tries to escape him at the loss.
“Okay… ok! That’s um.. that’s fine! We'll just- I’ll just clean them then!!” The entity declares, words stumbling over themselves. Z wants to yell at it. He wants to tell it to fuck off. That he could clean them just fine on his own.
The only problem?
He doesn’t know.. his father never taught him. No one taught him. They were always hidden anyway when the dirt and grime started to become more noticeable anyway, so he didn’t see a point in learning! Water and soap was enough..
Before he could tell the entity to stop though, he was already gone. A trace of black darting through his door and then in an instant, Regect was back with a small bucket of water, a rag, and soap ..exactly what Z’s already used on his wings.
He’s starting to think the entity just wants an excuse to touch his wings.
At least this time he shuts the door behind him… he really doesn’t want to explain his wings to the others in the house right now.
Z’s body instinctively shivers when the wet rag hits against his feathers, but it instinctively relaxes as soon as those claws find their way bank onto his wings ..which he hates.
……
“Why are you doing this?” He eventually asks after a long beat.
Surprisingly, for once.. the silence isn’t filled with an awkwardness or any type of tension like how it usually is for the man and entity, instead it’s calm. Peaceful..
“What?”
“Are you deaf?!” He snaps out, turning to glare towards Regect, but his eyes soften slightly when he spots a more whitish color starting to show in his wings that have been dirty for way too long, “Why?? Why are you helping me?? Shouldn’t you like.. make fun of me or something, get angry? I mean- ..this isn’t normal, at least I don’t think it is.”
Regect stares at him. Stares for a long ass time, a whole wave of different emotions flooding into that eyes gaze, concern, confusion, pity.. but instead of deciding which one to choose, a hand just comes up to slap Z against the head.
“OW- what the hell man?!”
“GOD!! What have I told you about your sentimental bullshit Ze?? I already told you that I wasn’t going to judge you!! So just.. shut up!” Z can’t do anything but blink at that, and Regect takes that as a sign to continue his cleaning process, “Look.. I’m gonna be honest with you, I’m not happy that you hid this from me and Moe. This is a huge part of you.. and it definitely explains some things- but that doesn’t mean I’m just going to let you waste away in your room and ‘sleep it off’ you need help.”
“Psshh I’m not some charity case! I was gonna clean them later..”
“Were you?”
……
“Yeah. I thought so.” The entity huffs out before once again, the silence takes over, the rag Regect chose wasn’t one of the scratchy overused ones Wakafante left out ..it actually felt really soft, almost new? It feels ….nice. As much as Z hates to admit it ..he should feel the complete opposite of calm right now, right??
Regect found the one thing he wasn’t supposed to show anyone! His flaws. His imperfections. Everything’s going to be different now..
So why the hell does it feel so good?!
“You’re um..” he mutters out through a cough, or more so a soft sound he tried to cover up, looking over his shoulder to watch those hands work against his wings, the ugly brown slowly shifting back into white, those claws are gentle.. He’s not used to it.. especially not from Regect, his body ready to flinch away at any moments notice, “You’re surprisingly good at this…”
The touch pauses for a moment.. long enough for his brain to scream at the entity, but when he glances up to glare towards it, he’s only met with a smug look, “Thanks, I uh… I’ve had some practice.”
“Practice? Don’t tell me Moe secretly has wings too-“
That look falters for a moment before Regect’s gaze trails back down towards his wings, “Nah, no. Moe isn’t stupid enough to keep secrets that big from us,”
“Dude I-!”
“But no, it was actually… um, it was actually an old friend of mine, he was an avian too, let me preen his wings and stuff.”
Z just blinks at that, because Regect hasn’t ever mentioned having any friends other than him and Moe, and he definitely didn’t mention having another protagonist before Z.. maybe it was some type of entity? …Can entities even be labeled as avians? “Oh, that’s… that’s nice I guess? As long as you know what you’re doing..”
Has he ever felt this relaxed before? ..definitely not with his wings being out- but maybe it was just because of that fuzzy feeling that seems to be glued onto his brain ..because this is weird. He shouldn’t be enjoying this. He should be pulling away, trying to hide his wings away.
“It is a little odd though..” that voice continues, a hum slips from Z’s lips, permission for it to continue, “I mean, I haven’t seen many avians.. but, you don’t… you’re different.”
“What?”
“I mean-“ the hand not rubbing the rag over his feathers moves to gesture at the entirety of Z… which the man does not appreciate, “You uh.. you look more…. Human I guess??”
“Well.. yeah? That was kinda the point dumbass.” It’s not like his jacket would solve everything.
“No! Ze!! Avians are supposed to.. well have more bird like features…. Right??”
Z just stares at him blankly, “I dunno, why are you asking me?!”
“BECAUSE YOURE THE AVIAN HERE??” Regect eventually shouts, frustrated. Z can’t stop his body before it flinches back, the entity’s hand doesn’t free him enough to get too far though, “Aren't you like.. supposed to have those weird head wing things?”
“Oh yeah, they were removed when I was younger though.”
………….
At Regect’s sudden silence Z glances back towards the entity, but instead of finding any annoyance or frustration in that gaze, he sees… distraught??
“What?”
“WHAT?!”
“What???”
“They.. someone took your wings?! How- why would-“
“No ..well, I mean I guess? I still have the ones on my back ….obviously,” Z scoffs out before turning away again, said wings shifting to press themselves more into Regect’s touch, as if they know they’re the subject of the conversation, “Kinda wish they took those ones too though-“
“…..”
“Seriously man, what’s your de-“
“What else did they take from you.” It’s not a question, but a demand, the touch washing his wings now completely gone now with how close Regect suddenly got. He’s practically on top of Z now, that one visible eye wide open as a mess of emotion flood into its gaze, the weight is too heavy for the man to push away, Z can’t move. Doesn’t want to move.
His face feels hot again..
“What.. Regect, what the hell??”
“What else?!” The words sound more desperate this time and Z’s eyes instinctively dart away ..feeling guilty, because why is Regect getting so worked up about this?? It’s just a pair of stupid wings he didn’t need, and yeah.. a few other stuff, but it was nothing important! Z turned out fine!!
……
Finally after realizing how close the two actually were together, Regect finally backs off, slowly.. but still away.
The two remain silent for the remainder of the time of Regect washing his wings off, neither even daring to take a breath.
Until..
“Hmgh— fuck!” A choked sound escapes Z’s throat when the rag is suddenly pulled away and is quickly replaced with a touch around the base of his wings, feathers instinctively puffing up and face getting impossibly hotter.
What the hell.
…..
What the actual hell?!
Sure.. Z knew that his wings were fragile, sensitive in some areas …but how was he supposed to know he had that kind of stimulant in them?!
“Oh shit- sorry dude, did I scratch you?” Regect, the absolute dumbass he is. Z wants to murder him.
……
“Yeah. Yeah.. you scratched me asshole.” Z eventually manages to grumble out, his voice sounding more strained than he would’ve liked, but Regect doesn’t comment on it.
“Sorry sorry.. I’ll try to be more careful, trust.”
……….
Regect was not in fact being more careful.
If anything, Z was trying to think the entity was doing it on purpose now!
Each little touch felt electrifying- too good.. too gentle…
Even if those claws moves away from the feathers at the base, every touch made him feel like his brain was melting.
He’s never.. felt this relaxed before- it’s strange, because what was even making it relaxing in the first place?? His body was practically in panic mode when Regect first walked in …what changed?
“You still with me dude?” His fogged up mind barely processed those chuckled out words as he feels himself shifted against Regect’s chest, when did he get so close?? “You’re like.. wow… you’re practically melting against me right now, careful Ze.. I might start thinking you like me or something~”
Z just lets out a hum of acknowledgment, though it quickly turns into a choked out thrill and he doesn’t have the energy to try to stop it this time.
Similar to how he did in the morning when one of the bird like sounds managed to escape Z, Regect perks up, trying to figure out where the noise came from.
“Dude.. why are your uh… chirps? Chitters..? So quiet?? I thought they were supposed to be louder..”
“Why’s it matter..? Don’t be a dick about it.” a grumble pushes its way through the content sounds that continue to escape.
“I’m not being a dick!! I actually think they’re cute! Oh.. uh shit- I mean… good blackmail… yeah. I’m black mailing your ass after this.”
……..
Maybe if Z wasn’t so relaxed right now, he would’ve punched the entity.
The thought is still tempting…
“It was another surgery, was meant to get rid of ‘em” he eventually mutters out when the silence stretches out for too long again, trying to sound casual, nonchalant as he closes his eyes ..trying to ignore the burning gaze that falls back onto him, “Didn’t work perfectly.. obviously, but uhh, it was enough for my dad I guess.”
“Your dad?”
Shit.
“So he’s the reason..”
……
“I’m going to kill-“
“Can you just go back to what you were doing??!” Z snaps, cutting Regect off before the entity could go on with his rant, wings shifting against that grip, “What’s done is done, there’s no changing anything now.” Not that he would, “I’m done talking about this shit. So either continue with preening my wings or whatever… or get the fuck out!”
……
He really hopes he doesn’t pick the second option.
He didn’t know hands could be this gentle.
That touch could be so relaxing…
Please don’t leave-
As if hearing the thoughts rushing in Z’s brain, that soothing touch slowly starts up again.
More quiet this time, but Z welcomes the silence, basking in the wave of relaxation that crashes over him.
…………..
“Your wings are actually kinda cool looking.. y’know?” a mutter, voice quiet ..hesitant, Z almost missed it, “It’s a shame you hid these for so long.”
Z let’s put a small mixed sound of content and acknowledge, eyes closed, and body practically draped over the entity’s form ..hesitant surprisingly fluffy- did Regect have fur?? Why didn’t he realize before..
“Even with some of the feathers being plucked out.” Z stills at that, but before he could come up with a deliberate excuse, Regect continues, “they’re soft, pretty..”
With a huff, Z turns around in the entity’s grip so now that they’re facing each other, sitting up and giving Regect a half hearted glare, “Now I’m starting to think you might like me.”
Regect frowns, “Dude! You stole that word by word from me!!” Z just laughs, and in protest those claws trail back up to the base of his wings again, giving them a soft squeeze.
The touch makes him realize how close they are to each other now..
His face, once again, grows hotter..
But it seems that he’s not the only one, because a yellowish hue starts to glow underneath Regect’s eye..
……
Z stares at him.
Stares at him for a long time.
Stares until he can’t hold himself back any longer, and crashes his face against the entity’s.
“OW?! DUDE WHAT THE HELL??”
“I.. uh-“ his words stumble over each other, body moving to scramble away from the body, but Regect’s grip only tightens on his wings, “Shit.. sorry I uh.. I definitely read the room wrong-“
…..
“The room felt like you needed to head butt me?!”
“What?! No!! I was trying to kiss you! God! You’re an idiot!”
“Dude…” and fuckk it’s over. Z knows it. He should’ve stayed quiet.. should’ve just stayed still- but now he ran his mouth and Regect surely hates- “That was my eye.”
“What.”
“You tried kissing my eye dude!!” A laugh ..okay so maybe Regect isn’t mad, “GOD YOUR AIM IS SHIT!”
“Oh fuck you! You try kissing something when it doesn’t have a face!!”
A gleam of amusement shines brightly in that gaze, before it quickly shifts into something more smug..
And before he’s able to question the look, he feels himself get pulled closer, something soft pressing against his lips.
Regect’s lips.
He’s only able to register that fact when he feels its tongue start to find entry into his mouth. He allows it, and it quickly turns into a battle of dominance.
Who can hold on tighter?
Who can explore more?
Who needs to breathe first?
……
Z loses the last one. Pushing away from the entity as he gasps for air, though his body can’t help but shake with excitement.
“We’re going to have a talk about this. You know that right?”
“Wha.. about the kiss? I mean.. I wasn’t that bad-“
“NO DUMBASS! YOUR WINGS!!”
“Oh… right- right.”
….
“Can we just… have five more minutes? We can get Moe after or something..”
“God I hate you.” Regect huffs out, but he can’t say no to an offer like that. They’ve known Z for how long now without knowing Z had wings? …a few more minutes added to that couldn’t hurt.