Chapter Text
Gentle rays of sunlight made their way through the thin curtains, making Ted's eyes open. Squinting, he sleepily looked at the ceiling. The morning silence seemed to lull him, everything felt so easy. For a second, anxiety took hold of him; he had forgotten that he wasn't sleeping in the bed alone, but remembering that he was the one who had let him in, he let out a relieved breath. Although Ted was still bothered by the strange position of his guest's arms, or rather, they were under his shirt. But it wasn't anything bad, people often moved in their sleep, or subconsciously looked for warmth. Ted carefully removed the hands from his waist.
Even if it was an accident, which he was sure it was, it still made him uncomfortable.
Ted lifted his head from the pillow and forced himself to lower his legs onto the cold floor. He was even a little jealous of the person lying on his bed. It wasn't fair. Ted knew it was stupid to be jealous of a sleeping person; he could go back to sleep too, but his sense of obligation to take care of his guest told him otherwise.
A thick, hearty smell of protein fried in butter drifted in from the kitchen. Ted hated cooking for himself, so he often just bought ready-made food, but it was early morning now, and the stores were closed. Even if they were open, Ted was too lazy to drag himself there. And he definitely wasn't going to leave Rick alone. He didn't trust him that much.
"What does that smell like? Are you cooking?"
Rick, sitting upright, swung his legs and looked at Ted with an innocent expression.
Ted flinched slightly; he was sure that he was still asleep. He hadn't taken his eyes off him! How had Rick woken up and sat down so quietly?
"I... I'm making fried eggs. Want some? I'm definitely not a cook, but I know how to make fried eggs."
"I'd eat you right now, of course I'll have some."
"Then I saved my life."
The two figures sat down at the small table and began to eat. There was a rather awkward silence. Ted looked slightly nervous. He tried to avoid the gaze of the man sitting across from him, while the latter stared intently at him. And he wasn't just looking, it was as if he were analyzing every movement Ted made, every drop of sweat rolling down his forehead. He was tired of it. It frightened him.
"Stop looking at me like that." Ted almost whispered the phrase, as if he didn't want it to be heard.
"I'm sorry, your eyes are so hypnotizing. Are you afraid of eye contact?" His lips curled into a smug smile. "Honestly, I didn't expect that from YOU."
Ted's ego was hurt by those words. This man was simply horrible. How could he behave like that while being a guest in the home of the person who had allowed him to spend the night?
"I-I'm not afraid! And why are you smiling like that, you son of a bitch! Maybe it's time for you to leave? To your friend. He's probably waiting for you. And you've already pissed me off so much, seriously pissed me off!"
"Easy, easy! Why did you blow up like that? Did it hurt your feelings that much? I'm sorry your ego is so fragile, Ted. Maybe I should hug you and pat you on the head?" Rick looked satisfied and relaxed, which annoyed Ted even more.
"Maybe you're the one who needs to be patted on the head? And apparently, you're the one who doesn't get enough hugs. Let me guess, you have stuffed animals in your bed to hug at night?" Ted stared tensely at Rick, expecting him to start arguing or something like that, because that would mean he had won the argument.
"And why not? I'm open, Ted!" Rick spread his arms to the sides, inviting him to hug him. Ted definitely hadn't expected that, so he couldn't say anything, which Rick enjoyed.
"I-I, uh... N-no?.. I'll pass, I think..." Ted barely managed to say the words, still stunned.
Before Ted could get another word out, thin but strong arms wrapped around his body and pulled him close. Rick gently hugged the stunned Ted, who couldn't even lift an arm.
Rick's body was one of the warmest things Prime had felt. Prime's head rested on Ted's shoulder, so he couldn't notice his sly and blissful smile. If Prime wasn't mistaken, and he never was, then Ted would remember all these memories when he became Rick again. That was exactly why Prime had been doing so many reckless, dangerous, and downright insane things to Ted. Although this couldn't really be called "insane", if you looked at it from the perspective that the person he was hugging hated him for most of his life and was obsessed with finding and killing him, then it was quite the insanity! Prime had been bored in recent days. He thought that he only needed himself, but he also needed entertainment, something like this. At least, it really was very fun, even though there was no cruelty, blood, or anything like that here. He was amused by Ted's behavior. More precisely, Rick's. TED'S behavior. Because it amused him how clumsy and stupid he was, it was completely unlike Rick.
Prime slightly slipped his hand under the clothing to place a bug. He knew there was no point in doing this, because even if Ted became Rick again, he would be able to figure it out almost instantly and run away, but he was very interested in what Ted did and where he went. And also what he talked about. It wasn't something necessary, but Prime still felt that he had to do it. And it would help determine more quickly when his memories would return, if, for example, Prime wasn't near him.
Finally, Prime felt someone else's hand on his back. Even through the clothes, he could feel how Ted's fingers were trembling beneath him. Prime liked all this uncertainty in Ted's words, his stupidity and weaknesses. It made him much weaker than Prime, which fed his self-loving ego.
Ted moved a little farther back so that he could see the other person.
"Oh, um, that was unexpected... Well, I don't mind, of course, but don't do that again. It's weird, dude." Ted looked a little surprised, but more relaxed and at ease. Prime definitely didn't know why the hug had affected him like that. In any case, he didn't care.
"And don't put your hands under my clothes. That's even weirder and more awkward." Oops, Prime hadn't expected him to notice. He needed to be more careful. The main thing was that he didn't notice the device on his lower back. But it was too small and, besides, invisible. But considering that he was in RICK'S body, perhaps he could somehow find it. Still, that was very unlikely.
"Oh, sorry, sorry, my hands just go there on their own..." everything was becoming more awkward. "I mean, accidentally! Out of habit and all that... Well, what I mean is..."
Ted interrupted him, not wanting to listen to increasingly stupid excuses.
"Oh, I understand. Don't worry. I'm sure it was ABSOLUTELY accidental. It's all right."
Prime was annoyed that he had dared to interrupt him, but at the same time he was glad he didn't have to come up with idiotic excuses. No matter how smart he was, he had never been in a situation like this before, so getting out of it was going very badly, which only increased Prime's irritation. He decided to suppress those feelings.
"Okay, how about fishing? I usually go fishing with my friends, but I think they won't mind if I spend this time with you." Ted looked at Rick with slight hope, waiting for him to agree.
"Oh... I think that's a good idea. I haven't gone fishing in a very long time, so I wouldn't mind a couple of free lessons." Prime had only done this during his life on Earth, and more precisely, more than 60 years ago. He wasn't interested in such "human" activities and considered them boring and strange. But in order to maintain his role as a "good friend", he had to make compromises.
The sun shone into their eyes, forcing them to squint. Sometimes everyone wonders why the sun is so bright in winter, yet so cold. And so irritating.
Two men sat on fishing chairs among the endless ice. The fishing line tightened like a string, and the rod in Ted's hands suddenly bent into an arc. There was a loud splash, and the tail of a large fish appeared above the water. Ted perked up and, with a happy expression, put his catch into a plastic bucket.
"See? It's not that difficult. And the main thing here isn't catching fish, but enjoying it. You can buy fish at the store, Rick. Relax!"
"But I think your bait isn't a worm, but some kind of tasty fish food. Why do they swim toward you and not me? Are you trying to humiliate me?" Rick was slightly irritated. Apparently, it was very important to him to be the best at something. Ted could have helped him, but whenever he offered any help, the other man started arguing that he didn't need it, and because of that, he became even angrier. Ted, to put it mildly, didn't like Rick's behavior, but he could understand him. He also liked being the best at everything, and if he was being honest, he was glad to be better than Rick at something. But still, he wasn't so self-obsessed that he would leave this man to suffer.
"Rick, you don't have to b-be better at everything! Fishing is an activity to relax, not to figure out who's better at catching fish. If you don't want to, we don't have to catch them at all."
"Look who's talking, Rick! L-look at yourself. A-and I-I agree to stop doing this. This is boring anyway and—"
"What did you call me?"
"A-and unbearable! Let's go to your h-house-machine or whatever they called it."
"Ah, a-alright, alright! F-fine! Then let's go. W-well, maybe we can at least just lie down on the ice? I-it's very atmospheric and calming. And you should calm down."
"I don't need to calm down. I'm not some emotional old man, unlike some people. But I'll still agree. But not because I need to calm down."
"God, I was just joking. You're impossible to talk to."
Rick and Ted lay down on the ice. Both of them lay in relaxed positions and looked at the sky. Ted closed his eyes.
He couldn't shake the feeling that Rick was strange. As if something inside him was telling him that he needed to run as fast as he could. It wasn't that it bothered him too much, but these thoughts hadn't left him since they met. Rick frightened Ted and attracted him at the same time, so Ted was stuck somewhere between "run" and "stay". For now, he was more inclined toward "stay".
And Ted recognized himself in him to a frightening degree. Even without mentioning their appearance, he was frightened by how synchronized their preferences, habits, character, and other things were. Even the stuttering. But Rick stuttered less, which made Ted a little jealous.
Ted slightly turned his head toward Rick and shuddered in horror when he saw that the other man was staring intently at him, lying on his side and looking directly into Ted's eyes.
"Why were you looking at me? You're supposed to look at the sky and enjoy it."
"That's boring. I'd rather look at you than at a one-colored sky."
"W-well, think about something?? L-listen, you can't look at a person like that, i-it's very strange. Do you even have any u-understanding of what you're supposed to do and what you're not?"
"I don't know."
"...Okay, you know what, we'll just go to my place and that's it. We've already been here for quite a while, and the sun is starting to set. Just... just don't do that. You look like a psychopath who wants to kill my entire family."
"O-oh, really? You think so?"
"Yes! Exactly." Ted stood up, brushing himself off. He held out his hand toward Rick, waiting for him to finally get his ass up.
"Well, sorry, I'll try not to look like that." Rick touched Ted's hand and paused for a second, after which he almost immediately squeezed his hand and stood up.
"Finally, this will be over," Rick muttered, looking into nowhere.
"Yeah, I can see how much you enjoyed yourself."
The tea slightly burned his throat, leaving a faint warmth behind. His hands wrapped around the metal mug, warmed by the boiling water. Ted and Rick sat at the table drinking tea. Ted was lost in his thoughts and wasn't paying attention to Rick, even though the latter was looking at him again; he had gotten used to it.
—
Prime sat on the chair, leaning slightly forward. His relaxed gaze was fixed on Rick's face. His right arm was bent at the elbow, his elbow resting against the surface of the table, while his palm supported his cheek. Prime stared intently at him. He wondered why Rick hadn't taken care of the possibility that unexpected guests might come to him, such as Rick Prime, for example. Was he really that self-confident? C-137 had always known everything in advance. More precisely, he had, before Morty appeared in his life. The thought that Rick had become less attentive than before brought a slight smile to Prime's face.
Ted looked at him questioningly, waiting for an answer.
"Oh, I just remembered something, nothing important."
"Will you tell me? I don't really care, you don't have to say anything."
"I'm not going to tell you."
"Why? What, you jerk off to old men?"
"Unfortunately not, Ted. Definitely not to you, don't get your hopes up."
Both of them burst into laughter. They laughed for quite a long time before finally calming down.
"You know, I think we should have a drink. I have a lot of stuff in the secret cabinet."
"O-oh, I don't really drink. I don't like getting drunk."
Ted looked at Rick in surprise. He took back what he had said about them being alike. Ted became a little sad and stopped.
"Not even a little? In honor of... in honor of me?…Y-You? Us!"
"Well... I think we can have one time. But not too much." Prime didn't like drinking, and often didn't understand why all the Ricks in the Citadel and even the Ricks who hadn't discovered portal guns yet loved drinking so much. But... one time was okay. Nothing would happen.
All the objects that were barely visible merged into one solid color and blurred into different patterns. It was about three in the morning, if not later. Prime didn't think about it. After a fun evening of drinking, both men could no longer stay on their feet, but Prime forced himself to keep his eyes open, unlike his "friend".
Prime hadn't drunk as much as Ted, so he could still think somewhat clearly. He wanted to lie down in a comfortable position, but the body on top of him didn't allow that to happen, so he tried to remove him from himself as carefully as possible.
Prime tried to lift himself into a sitting position, but the heavy arms didn't allow him to even sit up. There was no point in trying.
He lay down again. No matter how much he denied it, it seemed... pleasant? He decided not to think about it. He stopped thinking altogether.
In the morning, Ted woke up with a huge headache, trapped in the embrace of two unfamiliar arms. And on top of that, Ted himself was lying directly on Rick. Not that Rick was surprised, but he had expected to wake up somewhere on the floor.