Chapter Text
Fundy didn't consider himself a jealous person. Sure, he sometimes jumped to conclusions when maybe he shouldn't, but who didn't do that on occasion? And he always made sure he knew what was going on before accusing anyone of anything, particularly when it came to the people he cared about, like his fiancé. He had known from the second he first met Dream that he cared deeply about his friends and wasn't afraid to show it. That was, in Fundy's opinion, extraordinarily sweet and very endearing, and he did not want to stop Dream from being who he was and hanging out with his friends. Absolutely not, under no circumstances, no matter who those friends were.
But. You know. Coming home after a long day to see his fiancé sitting on the couch and smiling fondly at a ring that he'd never seen before rubbed Fundy the wrong way.
"Hey, babe," Fundy greeted him, and he only felt a little bad about searching for traces of guilt on Dream's face.
Dream looked up at him and beamed, his eyes lighting up like they always did when Fundy came home. "Fundy!"
No sign that he was upset or guilty. That was promising, but Fundy wanted to be sure. He was also tired and wanted attention from his fiancé, so he flopped down onto the couch and put his head in Dream's lap. "What did you do today?"
"I went mining for a bit," Dream told him, running a hand through Fundy's hair. "Talked to Eret about logistics for the Dream SMP lands, talked to Techno, talked to George and Sapnap about the next challenge we want to do. You'll like what we came up with, I think."
Fundy frowned. "What do you mean?"
"Do you remember when you made those impossible world settings?"
"Yeah..." Fundy said slowly, hopefully, realizing with mounting glee that his fiancé just might try something he'd made just because he'd been the one to make it. "You're not gonna -"
Dream nodded, grinning. "The hardest one, too."
"You are an idiot and I love you. Record it."
"Love you too," Dream chuckled, giving him a kiss on the forehead. The ring, hanging from a chain around Dream's neck, tapped against Fundy's cheek.
That reminded him.
"What's this?" Fundy asked mock-casually, gently tapping the ring and watching it swing back and forth on its chain.
Dream's eyes lit up in excitement. "Techno gave it to me! He made it, look, isn't it great?"
The ring was, in fact, really well made. And Dream wasn't trying to hide it or downplay it, which meant it was probably okay, but it still made Fundy's tail twitch and left a weird, unsettled feeling in his stomach. "Yeah, it's pretty cool."
The smile faltered on Dream's face. "... Sweetberry, are you okay? Is something wrong?"
"... Why'd Techno give you a ring?"
Something Fundy had learned about Dream over the time they'd known each other: his face was incredibly expressive. They both theorized that this was because he'd always worn the mask, and therefore never had to hide his expressions. Regardless of the reason, though, it meant Fundy was able to watch as Dream went though approximately fifteen different emotions in the span of a few seconds as he realized what Fundy was implying.
"Fundy - No, it's - No, hang on," Dream stammered, his face alternately going pale and bright red. "It's not anything like you're thinking, I promise, I -"
Fundy sat up, turning to sit sideways so he could look Dream in the eyes. "Dream, if you say it's not how it seems, I believe you. But I'd like a coherent explanation, please."
"Yeah, absolutely, of course, just um. Just give me a second." He laughed, a soft, flustered, nervous sound. "Sorry. I... I did not think about how this would look, I'm sorry."
Fundy gently took his hand. There was no doubt in his mind at all that Dream was telling the truth. "Take as much time as you need."
After a moment, Dream took a deep, steadying breath. "Okay. So I don't know how much Techno would be okay with me telling you, which I know sounds really bad!" he said hastily. "But it's not because I want to hide things from you, it's just... kind of personal for him. I don't know how much of it he wants to be public knowledge. It's, um. A hybrid thing."
Fundy nodded. If there was one thing he understood, it was awkward conversations with friends about weird hybrid things. "I can respect that. You don't have to tell me details."
"Basically, the ring is just because rings are easy for him to make. It could have been anything." Dream started fiddling with said ring, that fond smile starting to creep back onto his face. "It's... kind of like an official sign that he cares about me, I think. He makes them for his family, too, if that makes you feel better."
"So it's a friendship bracelet."
That startled a laugh out of Dream. "What?"
"A friendship bracelet," Fundy repeated, grinning. "Techno gave you what is essentially a friendship bracelet."
Dream doubled over, wheezing like his lungs were about to give out. "Oh my God he did -"
They both laughed for a moment, but then Fundy got serious again.
"Dream," he said (and Dream knew that tone of voice so he immediately turned to look at him), "I'm glad you and Technoblade are getting along so well. Really I am. It's just..."
"Just what?"
Fundy shrugged helplessly. "You two spend so much time together off by yourselves. And that's fine! You're allowed to do whatever you want with your friends, I don't want to try and control how you hang out with people. It just... doesn't always feel great. You know?"
"Fundy." Dream's voice was gentle. "Are you worried there's something going on with me and Techno?"
"... Sometimes. And I don't want to be." That was the worst part of it. He knew it was stupid, he knew nothing was happening, but there was still that tiny little voice in the back of his mind hissing what if what if what if -
"Hey." Gentle fingers ran down the length of Fundy's ears, and they automatically started lifting from where they'd flattened against Fundy's head. Dream smiled, and there was so much love in that smile that for a second Fundy could hardly breathe. "There we go, no more sad ears. It's okay to worry sometimes, that doesn't make you a bad person. I should have noticed it was making you uncomfortable. I'm sorry."
Fundy shook his head. "No, don't apologize. It's stupid, I know, I shouldn't worry."
"Is it making you upset?" Dream asked, still carefully stroking Fundy's ears.
"... A little."
"Then it isn't stupid." He said it the way he'd say netherite is better than iron, like an immutably true fact. "Is there something I can do to make it better? Like... I don't know, messaging you more often?"
Fundy paused, considering. He really didn't hear from Dream all that much throughout the day; usually, they waited to talk until the evening, when they could see each other in person. And on the occasions when Dream disappeared all day, leaving only vague theories about where he went, Fundy would start worrying. Just a little. "... Yeah, actually. That would be nice."
"Consider it done."
"Yeah?" It was that easy?
Dream smiled again. "Yeah. You're my favorite person, after all, it's not like I'm gonna say no to talking to you more often. I miss you when we don't talk for a while."
Fundy considered that for a moment. Then he basically tackled Dream with a hug, knocking them both back against the armrest of the couch.
Dream laughed, hugging him back. "Okay, I guess that means you miss me too."
"Mm-hmm."
"... Are you planning on moving anytime soon?"
"Mm-mm. Tired."
"Fair enough," Dream chuckled, starting to run a hand through Fundy's hair again. "You nap, and when you wake up we can have dinner. I cooked."
He had the best fiancé. "G'night, love you."
"Love you too, Sweetberry."