Chapter Text
Sunlight filters through the curtains, shining against Simon’s eyelids as he slowly emerges into consciousness. He’s warm, comfortable, and remembers that he’s at home- he can call it home now, Johnny is here with him- in his own bed with his partner in his arms. Johnny is still asleep, head laying on his chest and mouth open just slightly. He sees the pastel blue of the shirt he’d given him last night, with cute clouds and stars on it, and the memory of Johnny’s reaction made his heart swell. He’d been so happy to get the shirt, had traced the clouds and stars for a bit. The shirt was big and loose, just like he preferred, with the added bonus of being so incredibly soft. Simon was so glad he’d bought it when he saw it in passing.
He let Johnny sleep for a little longer, content to just lay there with his boy in his arms, safe and comfortable. His mohawk was flat where he’d been laying on Simon’s chest for hours. The domesticity of the moment, the gentleness and quiet of the morning, threatened to flush heat behind his eyes. He wanted so badly to have this all the time, to keep Johnny happy, but they couldn’t leave the 141, and he didn’t think either of them wanted to. They always made the most of their leave together, and he knew for a fact Price was glad the brass wasn’t pestering him anymore about the fact that his soldiers never took leave.
After about fifteen minutes of admiring, Simon decided it was time to wake Johnny up. They had some shopping that needed to get done if they wanted to eat something other than take out today, and Simon also wanted to run and get supplies for things they could do at home. He ruffled Johnny’s hair, running his other hand along his back.
“Good morning, sleepy boy, it’s time to get up.” Johnny stirred and bleary, blue eyes blinked up at him. It took a moment for Johnny to realize where he was, but when he did, he smiled softly. His favorite place to wake up, in Simon’s arms. He was warm, covered in the soft blankets Simon had pulled from his closet yesterday. One of his hands immediately held onto the hem of Simon’s shorts, the other running fingers over the fluffy fabric on top of them. He mumbled out his response, nuzzling against Simon as he stretched his limbs out. His thoughts felt far away and the words he did have were floating around his head like little flecks of dust. He felt Simon unhook his hand off his shorts band, moving to sit the both of them up. Johnny groaned in response but opened his eyes, shuffling around so he could sit on Simon’s lap. He rested against his chest, waiting for a direction. Simon noted the way Johnny sat in his lap, hands clenching around the blanket or running his fingers through the fluff like he was petting it. He was quite intent on his task, sitting and waiting patiently. It seemed, to Simon, that Johnny was regressed a little younger than he normally was. That wasn’t a problem, per se, but Johnny was usually still able to use his words or know to sign if he couldn’t. So far Johnny had mumbled something incoherently at Simon and was being oddly patient. He placed a hand on Johnny’s cheeks, slow so he didn’t startle his boy, and turned his face so he could meet his gaze. Those perfect baby blues looked up at him with so much love and admiration.
“Hi, baby boy. We’re going to get up and get ready to go shopping ok?” Johnny squinted at him, trying to process, before nodding agreement. “Very good, let’s get ready.”
As he spoke he signed what he was saying, trying to see if Johnny would sign as well. Johnny hadn’t ever really regressed too young before, and Simon knew he didn’t like to be babied. The softest treatment was reserved for panic attacks or times of big sadness, when Johnny appreciated the gentleness most. Johnny didn’t fully sign along with him, but he did tug at his own shirt like he was going to try and take it off and then signed the word ‘snack.’ Simon helps Johnny stand up and leads him to the bathroom, barely resisting the urge to pick his boy up and bring him back to bed to cuddle because the way he toddled behind him, latched onto his hand, was so cute it was making him almost angry. Soft, shuffling footsteps followed him and stopped when he stopped in front of the mirror. Johnny looked up at him, waiting for his Simon to tell him what to do next.
“Remember our routine?” Simon asks, signing ‘routine’ while he speaks. “Bathroom, wash hands, brush teeth, wash face, do your hair.”
To reiterate, he signs a series of words. Bathroom, hands, teeth, face, hair. Johnny always had an order he preferred doing everything in so Simon always made sure they could follow that order. Simon hesitated when Johnny didn’t move, just looked up at him with trust and love in his eyes. With slow movements, being sure to speak what he was going to do, he helped Johnny out of his shirt and walked him to the toilet. The routine seemed to click, then, in Johnny’s mind, but he didn’t want to let go of Simon’s hand. Despite Johnny’s best puppy dog eyes, which Simon almost gave in to, the reassurance that in less than ten minutes they could hold hands again was enough to kick start his momentum. A little encouragement was needed to get through the process, and a lot of help with tasks that required his hands, but eventually they made it.
Johnny was sitting on the edge of the bed swinging his legs and watching as Simon searched around for clothes for the day. He pulled out a matching set of sweatpants, all black with bands around the ankle like Johnny liked, and a black hoodie for himself and a black band tee for Johnny, the logo bright and colorful. Johnny clapped softly when he saw the shirt, trying his best to put it on. When he got a bit too frustrated, frowning at the shirt, Simon took it from his hands.
“Let me help, pup.” Johnny huffed out a sigh but leaned forward, holding his hands out so Simon could slip the shirt on him. It was good to see Johnny processing a little faster, understanding the words without too much thought. He’d care for his boy either way, of course, but he liked knowing Johnny could speak up for himself in whatever way he could. With the shirt on, Johnny stood up at Simon’s signal, lifting one foot up and then the other to get the sweats on. He was sat back down so Simon could change, content to just sit for a moment. He had pulled one of the blankets onto his lap and was running his fingers through it, one of his favorite things to do. When Johnny regressed he became an intense sensory seeker, always needing to touch or chew on something to be content.
Simon watched as Johnny pet the blanket, his boy thoroughly distracted by the soft texture. He’d wanted to go grocery shopping today but with Johnny as deep in his regression as he was, he was a bit nervous. He didn’t want to overwhelm Johnny, didn’t want to put him through too many firsts at once when in such a vulnerable headspace. They’d had an extensive talk about this beforehand. Johnny had given him the explicit ok to take him out to town while he was regressed, more than happy to trust Simon with whatever they were doing. They hadn’t planned on Johnny being so little, and that left Simon feeling like he was in limbo. On one hand, he knew Johnny hated being babied and Simon could fully understand that. On the other, Johnny was so little this morning that he needed guidance on every step of the way. (Not that Simon was complaining, he loved being useful to Johnny and being able to care for him in such a complete way). They’d been keeping Johnny’s regression a secret from everyone but the 141 to avoid any odd comments or concerns, but Simon couldn’t protect him from every stranger they saw on the street 0r in the stores.
A soft babbling pulled Simon from his anxious thoughts and he saw that Johnny was holding his hands out to Simon, signing ‘snack’ and ‘cuddle.’ Simon walked over and pulled Johnny into his arms, pressing a kiss to his forehead. He might be in charge of making the plans for their leave, but that didn’t mean Johnny didn’t have a say in anything.
“Johnny, my love, I’d like for us to go the grocery store this morning. Is that okay with you?” Simon watched as Johnny blinked up at him, and if he wasn’t so in tune with Johnny and his facial expressions, he would’ve thought nothing was happening in that smart brain of his. He was, though, and he saw the way Johnny’s eyes searched around, looking at something that wasn’t there for anyone but himself. A couple moments later Johnny nodded, tapping Simon’s arm to get his attention on his hands.
Shopping okay, want to be with Simon. Simon smiles at this and presses another kiss to Johnny’s head, feeling a little dumb that he hadn’t even thought to ask Johnny if it was ok to go ahead with the days plans. Even if Johnny was deeply regressed, he was still able to communicate with Simon, he just had to know what way to approach the communication.
“Okay then, pup. My plan for this morning is for us to go get something at a café, then go to the grocery store, ok?” Johnny nodded, standing and holding onto Simon’s hand tightly. He shuffled behind Simon as they got prepared to leave the apartment, making their way down to the car. Simon got Johnny buckled in and watched as he signed ‘breakfast, breakfast, breakfast’ over and over again. He had chosen the café they were going to specifically, remembering the time he’d been sitting in the café and was struck by the thought that he wanted to spend his time in the café with Johnny, to sit with him and drink coffee and tea and read, all with Johnny at his side.
The drive to the café wasn’t long, only about ten minutes. It sat at the edge of downtown, a cozy little nook in a row of small shops and apartments. Simon helped Johnny out of the car and into the café, holding his hand. The barista at the register saw him and waved, excited to see him.
“Simon! It’s good to see you again.” Simon waved back, walking up to greet her.
“Ava, nice to see you as well. How’s school coming along? I’m surprised to see you still working here.” The lady grinned and clapped her hands together.
“I graduated! I’m officially a microbiologist. I just couldn’t bear leaving the café, I’d miss it too much.” Simon had known Ava for years, she’d started working at the café to help pay for school and now she was graduated, and apparently employed. He had wanted to ask her about what she was doing for work but she beat him to conversation.
“Is this your sweetheart?” Simon could feel his face flush, wishing he had decided to wear a facemask. He’d been guilted into spilling some details about his love life when Ava had spotted him smiling at his phone day, bringing him free treats and tea and sitting down, pestering him until he broke. He could have gotten up and walked away, sure, but it was nice to have someone so invested in his love life besides himself.
“Yeah, wanna introduce yourself Johnny?” At the mention of his name, Johnny perked up, pulled from his distraction of messing with the tag on his shirt.
“My name’s John, nice to meet you!” Simon could tell Johnny was having a hard time with words, but he had tried his best and that was all Simon could ask for. Ava hadn’t seemed to notice the choppy cadence of his words, though, just shifted back to her register to take their orders.
“Nice to meetcha John, what can I get started for you lads?” Johnny looked up at the menu, eyes flitting between the words before turning to Simon with a pleading look in his eyes. There were too many options for him to pick from and he wanted Simon to choose. Simon always knew what kinds of flavors he liked, be it more flavor or a lack of.
“I’d like a breakfast tea and a cherry pastry, and Johnny would like an apple pastry and… dear god there’s so many options… could he get a decaf blended caramel coffee? Whipped cream and whatever fancy matching toppings you have, please.” Ava nodded dutifully and tapped their order into the register. Simon tapped his card on the designated spot and thanked Ava, walking over to his usual table with Johnny right behind him. When he looked to Johnny he couldn’t help but laugh at the confused and flustered look on his face. Johnny almost always drank his coffee black, for the purpose of energy only, but he’d admitted to Simon on one singular occasion that he enjoyed the sweet drinks, with lots of cream and flavors and toppings or additions. He didn’t get them often, usually just as a treat when he went for leave, but he loved them. Caramel was his favorite, so that was the one Simon had ordered.
“It’s ok, love, a treat here and there won’t be bad. I wouldn’t have ordered it for you if I thought it was bad.” Johnny seemed to relent at this, finally sitting down next to Simon on the bench seat and scooting as close as possible. He tapped the table and signed ‘phone’. Simon got Johnny’s phone from his pocket and handed it over, watching as he opened a drawing app. They had a rule that phones were not allowed during meals, but when they were waiting for their food or drinks it was ok to draw or read. Johnny had a hard time resisting the games he played, always so intense with whatever task was at hand. Moments later Johnny held out the phone and smiled, a small little sketch of him and Johnny at the table.
“I love it, can you save it and send it to me?” Johnny nodded happily, knowing exactly where the drawing was going. Simon had a folder on his phone for files of all the drawings Johnny did on his phone. Johnny had joked that it was like a parent putting their kid’s drawing on their fridge. Simon hadn’t outright denied it, but promptly switched the subject.
The file arrived to his phone just as Ava brought out their drinks, with two extra pastries that Simon hadn’t ordered. ‘For later.’ Ava had insisted, winking as she walked back to the counter. Simon got their places set up and watched as Johnny immediately took a sip of his drink, happily chewing at the straw. It had whipped cream, caramel drizzle, and some chocolate chips and what looked like sea salt sprinkled on top. Johnny was thrilled, tapping happily at the table. He took a couple more sips before taking off the lid and mixing the whipped cream and drizzle into the drink. There were a couple near misses for the drink, so Simon held the cup while Johnny went to town stirring it all together. Once satisfied with- whatever it was Johnny was trying to accomplish- he popped the lid back on and took a sip. He nodded, content with his mixing, and held it out for Simon to try. Although he wasn’t generally a fan of the very sugary drinks, he did have to admit that it was quite tasty. This one tasted both like coffee and caramel, which he could see the appeal of.
The two pastries they got were quick to be devoured, both of them rather hungry. Johnny was picking up each little flake of pastry crust while Simon sipped at his tea and watched the other patrons. A tap to his hand got his attention, turning to Johnny. He was pointing at Simon’s plate, empty of its pastry now, and grabbed it, stacking it on his. After a quick glance around the room, Johnny pointed to where it looked like the dirty dishes went in the seating area.
“Go ahead, love.” Johnny was very careful as he carried the plates over and put them down, returning to Simon when he was done. “Ready for a trip to the supermarket?”
Johnny nodded, signing the word ‘snack’ again. Simon had a couple ideas of good snacks Johnny might like, but he’d have to wait until they got to the store to see what they had. The supermarket wasn’t more than fifteen minutes away from them, so the drive was nice and easy. On the way, though, Simon spotted a couple retail clothing stores. They were more so aimed towards teenagers and young adults, but they had sizes that fit even Simon.
“Would you like to make a stop to look for clothes, pup? These stores here have things that are similar to what you saved on your pinterest board.” Johnny had showed him the pinterest board the day after he’d asked about regressing on leave. It was full of primary colors or black and white, lots of soft things, cute art, and clothes. Johnny signed ‘yes’ with enthusiasm, rocking a bit when Simon took the early turn to get to the shops.
The first shop they went into appeared to be a thrift store of some kind, lots of donated clothes and toys. Johnny flicked through every single shirt on the rack, finding a couple band shirts he liked, as well as a pair of loose primary blue sweatpants. Simon had a hard time imagining Johnny in such a bright blue, but when he laid them out with a yellow shirt he’d found Simon could picture it. The clothes went well together, and Simon even let Johnny peruse the toys. Nothing caught his eye, though.
The next store was a big brand store, more mainstream but their selection of clothes and accessories was good. Johnny kept turning to Simon and asking if it was ok if he bought the clothes he had found, an array of shirts, shorts, and tank tops as well as a couple of pairs of pants and a few sweatshirts. He found a fun pair of shoes he couldn’t resist and eventually made his way over to the accessories.
Simon himself couldn’t be bothered to care about what anyone thought of him, but the moment someone looked Johnny’s way – even if they really did just look and move on- it made him bristle. He tried to hide it from Johnny, since he knew he was just being protective of his boy. Johnny was happy as a clam, babbling away as he touched the accessories and assessed their feel and colors, thoroughly vetting each one. Every time he found one he really liked and wanted, he’d wobble over to Simon, put the item in the trolley, and shake his hands like he was shaking away water. Simon personally found it endearing, but he knew what the general public tended to think of people openly stimming. Right as Johnny placed a small set of pastel colored clips in the trolley, something set Simon on edge. It felt like someone was watching him, but worse, watching Johnny. Simon kept his eyes on his boy as he flapped happily and looked up at him, seeking approval for his choice. Simon smiled warmly and urged him to continue his searching. When he was distracted again, Simon turned around. Sure enough, two grown men were blatantly staring at them, talking to one another. Now that Simon knew they were there he could hear what they were saying.
“What do you bet he got stuck babysitting the retard, huh?” Immediately Simon knew Johnny had heard, the sound of movement behind him ceasing. They’d obviously said that louder so he and Johnny could hear now that they knew they’d been spotted. He had no interest in causing a scene, he knew Johnny wouldn’t appreciate that regardless of if he was upset, but he refused to break eye contact with the men. As their dialogue tapered off, realizing Simon was just standing there staring, they started to get antsy but hadn’t walked away yet. Simon took a couple steps towards them, watched them flinch.
“You can make whatever judgement you want based on a couple minutes of biased, ableist observation, but I pity the fact that you can’t experience the same joy and wonder he can. I’m lucky to be able to experience the world by his side and catch just a glimpse of what he sees.” Simon took another couple steps forward, being mindful not to get too far from Johnny. “Besides, as a special forces operator, sniper, and demolitions expert, I imagine he’s significantly fucking smarter and stronger than the both of you combined.”
With the last bit whispered quiet enough that Johnny wouldn’t hear, the two men turned tail and quite literally ran away. Simon promptly turned around and returned to Johnny’s side, pulling him into his arms for a tight hug. After a couple moments he stepped away, keeping his hands on Johnny’s arms to maintain the contact that he knew comforted him.
“Are you ok?” Johnny nodded, but his eyes were rimmed red and tears had slipped down his cheeks. His hands were clenched in Simon’s shirt as he tried to gather himself together. To Johnny’s credit, he was taking good, measured deep breaths. Had this happened two or three years ago, Johnny would have completely shut down by now, but he’d made so much progress and Simon was so proud. Johnny had spent his entire life hiding his stims, pushing them down until he could sit still and be quiet despite how horrible it was for his mental health. After some therapy and a little bit of confidence boosting, Johnny had begun to let his stims out when he could, shaking his hands out or echoing noises and phrases. Simon adored his stims.
“’M ok.” He mumbled, leaning his head against Simon’s chest. Simon could tell he’d been pulled from his headspace a bit but he didn’t seem to be too upset. His grip on Simon’s shirt tightened, shoulders tense as he tried to fight the tears. Simon knew he wasn’t lying when he said he was ok, but something was definitely bothering him. He carded a hand through Johnny’s hair, gently guiding his head up so Johnny would look at him.
“I trust you. Something is bothering you, though, can you tell me what it is?” Johnny nodded again, not able to maintain eye contact but not dropping his head. He took a couple deep breaths before he let go of Simon’s shirt.
I don’t want people thinking bad of you just for being around me. Simon huffed out a sigh, pulling Johnny closer for a moment before letting him go.
“I don’t care what people think of me. Their opinions don’t matter to me, you do. If you’re happy and okay then that’s all I need.” Johnny smiled, a little wobbly but definitely there. “Now, show me what you were looking at, I think I’m sensing a theme here.”
Johnny smiled wider at that, holding Simon’s hand as he walked back to the display. He was definitely holding back his more obvious stims now, but Simon could feel him rhythmically squeezing his hand. There was a little section of space themed jewelry and hair clips and charms that they’d stopped in front of, the one Johnny had been incredibly invested in just minutes before. Simon glanced at the items in their trolley and very suddenly realized there was in fact a theme, or rather two themes. One was pastel colors and shapes. There were several little charms of geometric pastel shapes with open space that had been filled with some kind of liquid and glitter, as well as some cute little heart and star hair clips. Simon even noticed some jewelry, maybe a necklace or some bracelets, sitting in the back of the trolley tucked into the clothes he’d picked out. It was soft pink and green with little frog charms on it.
The second theme was space which was much more plentiful. There were charms and bracelets and clips and necklaces and even some rings all set in a neat little pile at the front of their trolley. In addition to that, Simon noticed a couple plain bracelet and necklace chains. He had a fairly decent idea what those were for, but he’d ask Johnny about it later. For now, he was much more interested in what Johnny was showing him. The display they were in front of was a space themed one and Simon could quickly spot the items that Johnny had already picked out.
“I gotta say, for a chain retail store they did a pretty good job with making some cool stuff.” Johnny hummed his agreement, tugging Simon’s hand to show him a keychain. It was another one of the liquid filled ones, but this one was much fancier. It was in the shape of a spaceship with three separate compartments. The bottom was shaped like a flame with metallic orangey red liquid in it. The middle was the body of the spaceship, filled with black, white, and holographic glitter that floated around slowly, and the top of the spaceship had black metallic liquid in it.
“Wan’ that one, Si.” Simon was surprised to hear Johnny’s voice so soon after what had happened. He grabbed the keychain off the display and shook it around a couple times, watching the way the liquid swirled around and the glitter shimmed in the light. There were a couple more of the keychains on the display so he grabbed another one and put both of them in the trolley.
“One for you, one for me, yeah?” Johnny beamed up at him, smile near blinding with the amount of happiness he had. Sometimes Simon was surprised that it didn’t literally overflow from his body, or radiate off of his skin like a glow from the sun. He could feel it, though, in the way Johnny would step closer to him or the way his hand would find his own. He could feel it in the excited way Johnny would start to ramble a bit, tripping over his own words in his eagerness to share whatever information was floating around that smart brain of his.
“Yeah.” Johnny bumped his head to Simon’s shoulder, resting there for a moment, before returning to their search for cute things. As they went through the displays, Johnny found some more geometric things in black and white which he also added to his collection, though mid search of a row his stomach grumbled quite loudly. Simon laughed, poking Johnny’s side.
“Are you hungry, my love?” He teased, Johnny’s face flushing a light pink. “We’ll have plenty of time to search other stores during the break, what do you say we pause here and go to the supermarket?”
“Snack?” Johnny asked, patting his tummy as he did so. (Once again Simon is struck by that aggressive need to pick Johnny up and squeeze him and never let go.) He shuffled alongside Simon as they made their way to the check out, discussing the best options for a snack. Simon had been rather surprised to find that little Johnn’s favorite snacks were fruit considering he had quite a sweet tooth, even worse than Simon’s. As it came to their turn to check out, Simon was grateful the worker didn’t even bat an eye at the contents of their trolley. They probably saw all kinds of weird shit on a daily basis, and he was just glad they could make it out of the store without any other confrontations or rude stares.
The moment they were out the door with their bags, Johnny now back to happily babbling about the things he got and how he wants to display them, Simon relaxed. The fresh, cool air and sound of birds and cars helped the world feel bigger than just within the walls of the store. Even Johnny seemed to relax more, his shoulders loose and he was looking around now, rather than focused on either the ground or Simon. He was talking about making something to display each collection on, or maybe to display them by accessory category?
“I like your idea about displaying them by theme, we could make our own little displays and paint them to match?” Simon suggested, watching Johnny’s eyes light up. He definitely liked that idea, immediately launching into an idea for how to set it up. It seemed like a really cool idea as Simon pictured what he was talking about. It would be a short but longer set up, the base, back and sides made of plywood with three different sections on the front for displaying different things and hooks on the back for holding keychains or charms. The sides would be tiered, with the bottom being the furthest out and the top being closest to the supporting back piece of plywood. The sides wouldn’t go all the way up the back of the display, so there’d be plenty of space for the keychains and charms to be visibly displayed.
“That’s a really good idea, we’ll have to go find materials for that soon.” Johnny puffed out his chest, very proud of himself and the praise. Simon smiled, helping him into the car after everything had been tucked into the back seat of the car. They’d need a lot of space for the amount of food they’d be getting to sustain themselves for three weeks. The trip to the supermarket was short, thankfully, and Johnny was eager to go inside. It was never a good idea to shop when hungry but it would likely serve them well.
The store wasn’t too crowded, people dotting the aisles here and there and a couple in the produce section. They decided to start in the produce section, which was right next to the deli and meat areas. Johnny wanted to get every fruit he saw, which Simon was happy about, but they could only eat so much fruit in the span of three weeks. Simon decided to make a little game of it, something he knew Johnny liked and might have him slip further into his headspace in a pleasant way.
“Here’s the deal, pup. Every three things you tell me the color and name of you can pick one fruit out.” Johnny perked up at the challenge, eager to earn praise from his partner. Johnny almost never answered the questions wrong unless he genuinely didn’t know what something was. He just liked being able to answer questions, and Simon liked the way Johnny lit up at the praise he gave when he answered correctly. It also helped in situations like this when Johnny was having a hard time making decisions. Sometimes having the knowledge his options were limited helped him make choices, and if he was still having a hard time Simon would give him a choice between a couple specific options to lessen the stakes.
It worked like a charm, thankfully. They ended up with extras of apples, grapes, cherries, raspberries, and strawberries as treats in addition to what Simon picked out. When Johnny wasn’t looking, Simon snuck a couple interesting looking apples that were labeled as pear-apples. They were large, rather round for an apple, and had rough skin like a pear. With their fresh produce picked out they moved on to the meat counter. Johnny was inspecting the steak case, eyeing a couple filets, and it was then that Simon was struck by the thought that this might be the single most expensive shopping run he has ever done. Not that he couldn’t afford it, dead people generally couldn’t spend money anyways so he had plenty saved away.
The butcher behind the counter started to eye Johnny a little strangely, though Simon couldn’t blame the man this time because Johnny had his face practically shoved up against the glass like a toddler (Simon laughed at that comment in his head). He stepped over to his boy and a soft tap on his shoulder got his attention, and Johnny was pointing at the cuts he wanted. Simon requested the ones that Johnny had picked, and for as delicious as they looked, it didn’t end up as expensive as Simon thought it would have been. There were two different pairs of cuts that Johnny had picked out.
“Alright little chef, I guess we’re going to be eating well this week, huh?” Johnny flushed under the teasing words, though he knew Simon meant no harm. He loved cooking with Simon, being able to give his input on good combinations of spices or foods or combine their ingredients. Simon usually did the bigger tasks like cutting or using the stove, but he always made sure to give Johnny plenty of tasks to do. Cooking together had become a relaxing activity for the two of them.
The next stop was the bakery for just enough bread to keep them going for the week until their plans slowed down and they had time to bake their own. Simon skipped over the sweets knowing full well they’d get something if they went out. They both had a pretty wicked sweet tooth, but thankfully it struck very rarely and didn’t often indulge. As they passed through the bakery in search of their bread, Simon gave suggestions for other meals they could make. He offered a couple ideas for soups and pastas since they didn’t often get the chance to eat them, what with the protein packed meals the mess usually had. Johnny agreed happily, just excited to cook with Simon.
Johnny shuffled along beside Simon as they went aisle by aisle, picking out little snacks and drinks (Johnny did convince Simon to get him some apple juice, though, with a grand display of his best puppy dog eyes. Simon had grumbled, as if there could ever be a chance he would say no to those wide baby blues.) along with the foods and ingredients they would need for meals. They’d have to go shopping again for more fresh produce, of course, but by the time they ended up in the freezer section the trolley was full.
The check out line went by quickly, though their large purchase certainly held up the line a bit. The cashier was nice as he scanned the items, making light conversation. Johnny was starting to get antsy, reorganizing all the items on the belt as they shifted inch by inch to the cashier. Simon pulled a fidget from his pocket for him to mess with so nothing got accidentally opened, and thankfully they were done just a couple minutes later. Johnny helped get everything into the car and Simon buckled him in before returning the trolley to where it belonged.
“Ready for lunch, pup?” Johnny clapped a couple times, signing ‘hungry!’ in response. Simon chuckled and started off back home. They’d need to put away the groceries before they could eat but he could tell Johnny was already planning out what he wanted, and Simon was fairly certain he knew what it was.
He was right, of course. As much as Johnny usually liked to cook meals, the one thing Simon had learned is that Johnny would lose it over shaped food. It was a trick he used when Johnny had a hard time eating, regressed or not. Dinosaur nuggets were his favorite because who didn’t like dinosaur nuggets? By the time the oven was properly heated up the rest of the groceries were put away and their lunch was set out to be prepared. The dino nuggets were popped into the oven along with a tray of mac n cheese, and Simon poured them both cups of juice. Price had teased him once for eating the dino nuggets too, but he couldn’t be bothered to give in, not when Johnny had been beaming up at him like the brightest star in the universe. He’d grown to appreciate the chicken nugget and mac n cheese meals greatly.
“Dinos?” Johnny hummed, shuffling up to Simon’s side as they waited for the oven to beep. He’d been trying to sneak sips of his juice but a warning that one cup was all he got for the day was convincing enough to save it for the meal. He’d given up on the juice then and had been wandering around looking at the groceries they’d gotten until he got bored.
“Very soon.” Simon replied. “It’ll be done in just a minute, can you get us spoons and set the table? When you’re done I want you to sit at your spot and wait for me.”
Johnny happily did as he was told, making sure to get the right sized spoons (He liked the smaller spoon while Simon used the regular spoon) and set the table. He placed a napkin at each spot before sitting down at his. Simon came over moments later with their plates set, a healthy serving of both chicken nuggets and mac n cheese for the both of them. Johnny was rocking back and forth gently in his seat, waiting patiently for Simon to sit down before he started eating. Once Simon was sat down next to him and starting to eat, Johnny finally got to take a sip of his apple juice. It was so sweet and tasty, and he hummed as he savored each little sip. The mac n cheese was gone first, Johnny practically inhaling it in just a couple of bites. The dino nuggets were next, though Johnny was slower with these when Simon gave him a glare, not needing to verbally warn him to chew his food.
When they were done eating, Johnny helped dry off the dishes and put them away while Simon cleaned them. When they were done, they both flopped down onto the couch and cuddled up together. It was barely the afternoon and Simon knew there wasn’t much to do in his apartment that would keep Johnny successfully occupied. He didn’t like just putting on a show and calling it a day, though they did have times where what Johnny needed most was time to decompress and relax. They had some good coloring books and puzzles for Johnny back on base but he wanted to do something new.
“What do you say we go to the craft store? Get us some things to do while we’re here.” Johnny immediately shot up at the suggestion, eyes wide and bright. Johnny adored crafts, not the little kids ones but things like complex origami or putting together miniature scenes or Legos. They had Gaz to thank for the Legos, and Laswell had gifted Johnny a kit for a miniature nook that he could put on his bookshelf. That one had kept Johnny focused for hours and Simon had to physically pick him up to get him to go eat dinner. The resounding answer to the question was obviously yes because Johnny was already getting his shoes on.
“Alright, alright, we’re going.” Simon chuckles as he gets up, finding Johnny’s eager pacing very endearing. As soon as Simon’s shoes are on Johnny is out the door and dashing to the car. The moment Johnny leaves Simon’s sight, Simon can hear his feet stumble to a stop. They don’t have many rules, but one of them is that Johnny is to stay in Simon’s line of sight. Johnny can be however far away from him, but Simon must be able to see him. There are no more footsteps as Simon rounds the corner and Johnny is stood still, eyes down to the ground. Simon can see the panic in his posture and he quickly pulls Johnny close to him.
“Thank you for stopping, Johnny. I’m glad you recognized you broke the rule.” Johnny whined, winding his arms around Simon’s middle. He rarely ever broke the rules, and never on purpose. Simon also never gave out punishments for breaking the rules because of this, though they did have reinforcement planned for if Johnny did. The rules were for Johnny’s physical and mental health and safety, and nothing they had set out had been made without both their input and Johnny’s wholehearted ok.
“’M sorry, Si.” Johnny dared to peek up at Simon, eyes wet with tears. Simon brushed them away and kissed his forehead.
“Thank you, love. Can you tell me what rule you broke?” Johnny nodded, leaning his head back against Simon’s chest.
“Wen’ where you couldn’ see me.” Simon hummed his confirmation.
“That’s right, I’m glad you can recognize that, and I appreciate that you apologized for breaking the rule. You’re not in trouble, I just want to make sure you know what happened.” Johnny nodded again and took a deep breath, stepping away and holding Simon’s hand. He squeezed gently and Simon responded in kind, feeling some of the tension bleed from Johnny’s posture.
Satisfied that Johnny wasn’t stuck in his head, but understood what had happened, Simon led them to the car. He pressed another kiss to Johnny’s forehead before helping him buckle up, laughing as Johnny pulled him back in and held him tightly. Johnny nuzzled his head against Simon’s, no doubt ruffling both their hair. It was a habit Johnny had picked up a couple years back, when he struggled to find the right words, he’d press his forehead to Simon’s. If he was happy, Johnny usually ended up rubbing his face against Simon’s, and if he was sad or tired he’d just rest there, close to his partner.
When Johnny was comfortable and ready to go, he released Simon from his grip. He walked around the car and got into the driver’s seat, buckling himself in and driving off toward the craft store. They talked about crafts they might want to do but decided to wait to see what the store had to make their final decision. Johnny was fairly stuck on paper crafting, though, so they’d definitely be checking to see if they had origami paper or something similar. The store was only a couple streets away from the apartment complex so they arrived in no time, Johnny excitedly shifting in his seat as Simon got out to unbuckle him. Johnny made a point to hold Simon’s hand, waiting for him to take the lead. They walked into the store hand in hand and Johnny was immediately overwhelmed by the amount of stuff the store had. Simon squeezed his hand in reassurance.
“We’ll go aisle by aisle again like we did this morning, and we already have some ideas for what we want to do.” Johnny relaxed a little, glad Simon had a plan. There were definitely some projects he had in mind but having so many things around him would just cause his mind to wander away from what he wanted. Simon got a trolley and led them towards the first aisle, filled with lots of beads and jewelry supplies. They were very tiny so Simon knew it wouldn’t be a great craft for them to take up, especially considering the fact that Johnny had regressions in his fine motor skills. That didn’t stop either of them from looking at the tiny, pretty beads. There were a lot of tubes of plain colors, but some had fun combinations of colors. It took a while for them to move from there, passing by a couple aisles of supplies for equipment they didn’t have and wouldn’t be buying.
The next aisle was paper crafting supplies and Johnny immediately pulled Simon into the aisle. There were ink pads and stamps and embossing supplies galore, more supplies than Johnny had even thought would be there and most of it he couldn’t name. He began searching for the paper, which Simon pointed out was actually along the side wall of the store. The wall stretched over a good six or seven aisles. Simon gave Johnny’s hand a little tug to get him to pause, already able to tell he was going to start overthinking.
“What kind of paper crafts do you want to do, love? We like origami so if they have paper for that we’ll get it.” Johnny calms once he’s got some direction, thoughts more organized. He pulls out his phone and opens pinterest, showing Simon a board of all kinds of paper crafts. A lot of it is essentially origami, just with different paper. There’s also some card making videos in there, which wasn’t all that surprising.
“Alright, why don’t we take a look at their card and paper craft supplies and then see what paper we want to get.” Johnny nods, following Simon’s lead now. With the excitement of their day, he had a feeling it’d be an early bedtime day, especially with what he had planned for tomorrow. They started at the section of tools. There were different kinds of scissors and craft knives, a whole lot of paper punches and the bottom of the shelf had a bunch of different supply kits. Some were for embossing, others were for die cutting. Johnny was inspecting the scissors and knives, of course, while Simon took a closer look at the kits. He pulled up a browser on his phone to see which brands were the best.
“Love, take a look at this.” Johnny shuffled over to him and leaned over to see the phone. He looked through the list, comparing each one to the kits on the shelf. It takes a bit, but Johnny finds one he likes and picks it up, handing it to Simon to approve. It’s got a small press machine that works for both embossing and die cutting, as well as a small assortment of folders and dies for said activities.
“Good choice. Should we look at the other dies and folders they have?” He guides Johnny over to the next section. A pattern was developing, he noted, as he watched Johnny search through the options. He picks a spot to start at, thoroughly investigating the item before making a decision and moving on to the next one, through one row then moving up or down to the end of the column depending on where he started.
They end up with a lot of stamps and different color ink pads, a couple different die sets and embossing sets, as well as some embossing powder that Johnny wanted to try. Johnny had wanted to get some fancy scissors but decided against it because he realized he could probably use either the embossing folders or dies to make nice edges with patterns. The amount of paper they got was, in Simon’s opinion, unbelievable. There were a couple stacks of open stock paper that Johnny had liked, and Simon himself had picked up a bunch of large pads of patterned paper. A look into the last aisle revealed some tools like bonefolders and ink brushes so they picked up some of those as well.
The next aisles were stickers and journaling supplies, which Johnny was all over. He got a lot of little tapes and stickers, showing them excitedly to Simon. It was nice to see him back to being excited and bubbly. After the stickers and journaling supplies were kid’s crafts, which they skimmed through, but nothing stuck out to Johnny or Simon. Johnny did stop to touch just about anything with texture, though, and jangled around the bead necklaces on a shelf for a solid three minutes before Simon had to urge him forward.
When they reached the yarn supplies, Simon could tell Johnny was feeling conflicted. He had always expressed interest in crocheting or knitting, but his fine motor skills when regressed weren’t the best, which they both knew would make it a little harder to learn. Johnny seemed a little sad when he walked away from the crochet hooks, so when he wasn’t looking, Simon grabbed a couple basic hooks for him and hid them in their trolley. He’d get some yarn and bring it to base so Johnny could learn in his free time.
They bypassed the sewing… well, sewing everything, because they most certainly did not have time to pick that hobby up. Johnny spotted some metallic scissors, though, so they did end up getting a pair of white sparkly scissors. Finally, much to Johnny’s sheer joy, they came to the art supplies. Paints and markers and pencils and notebooks and sketchbooks and canvases; Johnny was in absolute heaven.
“Pick out what you need, love, I’d like to keep our place stocked with what you need so you don’t have to transport any of your stuff back and forth from base.” Johnny looked like he was about to cry, which panicked Simon for a moment, but he relaxed when Johnny launched at him and hugged him tight. He wasn’t used to being so explicitly spoiled and it felt so good. He felt loved and cared for, he felt special. They had already talked about getting some crafting supplies for the apartment so Johnny would have something to do in case he got bored or antsy, but he hadn’t been prepared for Simon to put anything he looked at in their trolley. He felt a little embarrassed, hiding his face in Simon’s chest. A gentle hand ran through his hair, accompanied by a small kiss to the crown of his head.
“Doin’ ok?” Simon asked, knowing Johnny wasn’t upset but still not quite sure where he was at. Johnny pulled away and nodded, smiling as he got up on his tip toes to kiss Simon’s cheek. He rubbed his cheek against Simon’s, happy and content.
“Happy.” He confirmed, not letting go of Simon’s hand as he started to walk through the supplies again. “Safe.”
Simon felt his chest tighten at the word safe. For all that they’d been through, things they would go through, it meant the world to Simon that he made Johnny feel safe. He couldn’t ask for anything more than that. He trailed behind Johnny, giving his opinion on paint pens or canvases, helping him choose a couple notebooks and sketchbooks. By the time they make it to the front of the store again, where the holiday decorations and similar resided, their trolley was full. There thankfully wasn’t much of a line, and not many people in the store to begin with, so their long check out didn’t hold anyone up.
Loading the supplies into the car turned into a game. They had so many oddly shaped boxes and half full bags, plus some precious cargo like paper that needed to be precariously balanced or tucked away into a safer spot. So much time had passed while they were in the store that the sun was almost down. Simon could tell that Johnny was getting tired, worn out from all the adventuring of the day. He was getting quiet again, sitting still in his seat as he tried to fight off the sleepy.
“Why don’t we have an early dinner when we get home? We can get all comfortable in bed and read, after.” Johnny hummed a soft response, the idea of warm food and cuddling a relief after the long day they’d had. Unloading the supplies into the apartment only took one trip, Johnny carrying all the boxes up after insisting he could do it. They made it into the apartment and settled all their new things in a neat little pile in the living room, planning to sort it out at a later date. Johnny settled on the couch after Simon urged him to rest, watching how his eyes were glossy and his movements slow. Bedtime would, thankfully, go easily tonight.
Simon decided on soup for dinner, a simple chicken noodle soup with lots of vegetables and plenty of extra egg noodles. It was the meal they had cooked together when Johnny first regressed, so it was always a comfort for them to have. Johnny watched with sleepy eyes from the couch as Simon worked. He followed his partner’s movements, the ease with which he navigated the kitchen and cooking like it was just another mission. It wasn’t a mission, though, so Johnny got to admire the relaxed look that settled on Simon’s face. He felt a bit guilty for not helping, but the way his tiredness slowed his movements made it obvious he would have run the risk of getting hurt. The smell of warm soup filled the apartment and finally it was time to eat. There was toast and crackers on the table already when Simon led Johnny to his spot. Standing helped clear some of the sleepy from his mind, more awake now. Simon turned on the TV for background noise and then sat down across from Johnny.
The soup was delicious, as always, and filled Johnny with a bone deep warmth. He helped clean up the dishes, drying them off and putting them away when Simon had finished cleaning them off. During dinner, Simon had alluded to plans for the next day, and Johnny was eager to get the cleaning done so they could spend some time relaxing together before falling asleep. Simon took Johnny’s hand and walked them to the bedroom, helping him get dressed in his pajama shirt, then brush his teeth. There was a cursory wipe off of the face but Johnny didn’t have the energy to fully wash his face off. He collapsed into the bed once Simon had told him to go lay down, promptly curling up under the blankets as he waited for his partner to return. When Simon crawled in next to him with one of their favorite space books, Johnny shuffled a bit and rested his head on Simon’s chest, able to hear his heartbeat and see the book at the same time. Johnny drifted off to sleep with facts about space drifting into his mind in Simon’s deep, familiar voice, and he couldn’t wait to see what the next day held.