Work Text:
Sunny and Aubrey had been together for a month and they hadn’t ever hugged.
They both didn’t want to rush things – with everything after the revelation at the hospital being a learning process for everyone, they knew better than to force things through. After that fateful day, they had to take some time to sort things out and work through their emotions; Sunny confessing his feelings for Aubrey in the middle of things was just another wave in the aftershock of that expulsion. At first, she was caught off-guard by his feelings, just as she was by the truth of Mari’s death. Yet, after a little bit of time and introspection, she found that, in her heart, she reciprocated those feelings. And so, on one balmy summer afternoon, Sunny and Aubrey decided to try being a thing.
They were a happy couple whenever Sunny came back to Faraway on the weekends, meeting up with the gang at the lake, Aubrey bringing him around with the Hooligans for fun, hanging out by themselves at Hobbeez or OtherMart or in Aubrey’s room. They took things step by step – it kept Aubrey calm knowing that Sunny was improving, if incrementally, and the socialising wasn’t bad for Sunny either, especially considering his recent move and re-emergence from four years of isolation. It wasn’t like those times weren’t fun either; whether it was a picnic with the gang, messing around at the candy store with Kim and Vance, or losing to Aubrey at Yahtzee, they enjoyed those moments together. All things considered, their relationship was getting off to a good start.
The only thing is that they never hugged.
They held hands. Sometimes, they even crossed fingers while running through the streets of Faraway. But they never hugged, or cuddled, or did anything more touch-intensive.
At first, Aubrey was fine with it. Aubrey didn’t want to push it, knowing that Sunny was probably worn out from trying to get used to his new home and surroundings; not to mention any drain on his mental state from his weekly therapy sessions. But after a few weeks, it started to bother her more and more.
This lack of physical affection plagued Aubrey incessantly. In the deep, dark hours of the night, where dusk and dawn seemed to merge into one, Sunny crossed her mind like a pedestrian trying to find the right train platform at rush hour. It bugged her; her mind kept trying to find rational explanations for his behaviour.
Is it because of what happened with Mari? Or did the fights before the hospital make him scared to be closer to me?
Her heart pained to entertain the thought that the hurt she caused him still affected him to this day. Still, she wanted his touch, his warmth. He wanted his arms around her, if only to keep her warm, to remind her of the better times in the past and a brighter future together. She wanted to hold Sunny close to her and tell him that everything was going to be alright.
Why won’t Sunny hug me?
How do I tell a girl I want to hug her? Sunny tossed and turned in bed. Ever since he mustered the strength to reveal the truth to his friends, the part of his mind he used to call Headspace gradually disappeared, giving way to more mundane, “regular human” dreams. However, his mind still stayed occupied at night, focused on Aubrey. As childish as it was, he had held onto his crush on her for so long, that now being her... boyfriend felt surreal. Even so, he didn’t know how to proceed. Sunny didn’t want to make Aubrey uncomfortable; to have pushed away the first love he’d ever known would’ve been a disaster. His four years of solitude didn’t help his relationship skills either. He took it slow and steady at first, trying to let his head guide his way through their relationship, but eventually, things between them hit a plateau. Now, he was left wondering what to do aside from hanging out. It felt nice when they held hands, but Aubrey always started things. He wanted to reciprocate with something more affectionate. He wanted hugs. But Sunny didn’t even know how to work his way towards that. Sunny figured that he should probably tell Aubrey he wanted to cuddle, but how do you even do that? How do you make things like that not awkward? Should you just do it? The questions plagued his mind, swirling between the joy of heart-warming imagined scenarios and crushing defeat of life-destroying, jarring rejections.
Tonight though, Sunny resolved to bring this week-long train of thought to its final destination. It was Thursday night, and he had a long weekend ahead before he had to get fully stuck in sorting things out for city life. The next morning, he was free and could probably catch a train to Faraway. He resolved to ask the one friend he trusted with love the next morning.
Knocking on Hero’s door filled Sunny with a vague sense of worry and unease. He wasn’t sure if he had left for college yet, or if he was willing to talk to him about something like this. It took him more time than the others to come around, but eventually he did. Still, their friendship didn’t feel quite as warm as it used to be.
“Y-ello! Oh, Sunny!” A golden retriever personified answered the door and greeted Sunny with a wide smile.
“Hey Kel. Is Hero home right now? I need to talk to him about...” Sunny mulled over how to phrase his request. “Something personal.”
“Oh!” Kel spaced out, his mind rebooting, trying to process what Sunny said. Once he recovered, he picked up the conversation like nothing happened. “Yeah, he is! Gimme a sec, I’ll go get him!”
As Kel ran up the stairs to get his brother, Sunny continued to rue his decision. This is going to be so awkward. Why did I even decide to come here? I should’ve just asked Basil or something. Maybe even go onl-
Sunny’s train of thought was interrupted by the arrival of a tall figure towering above him. Hero had a face of concern.
“Is everything alright, Sunny?” Hero said softly, mindful of their privacy. Sunny tried to give him a reassuring smile but could only muster a light grin.
“Uh, everything’s fine. I just have something that I wanted to ask…” Sunny considered asking the question then and there, but the prospect of Kel mercilessly teasing him didn’t seem that appealing to him at the moment. “Could we talk about it at the lake?”
Hero looked at him. Sunny felt uncomfortable; like Hero was trying to gauge his mental state with a scan.
After a short pause, he smiled warmly at him. “Sure, I’ll meet you there. You can head along first.”
With that, Sunny nodded and set for the hideout.
“Wow, who’s the lucky one?” Hero cast Sunny a smirk upon hearing the question. His expression nearly made Sunny abandon the idea of even asking for help. For all the times that Sunny and Aubrey spent together in Faraway thus far, the closest moments they had were always between themselves or with the Hooligans. Kel and Hero had no idea they were dating, or at least, from the times they all were together, they never let off on it.
“That’s… a bit too personal for me right now. Sorry.”
“Ah, alright then. Won’t prod you for it.”
The wind blew through the trees, gently rustling the leaves. The summer wind always blew harder in Faraway. Sunny closed his eyes as he let it run through his hair, splaying it around. The rippling waters of the lake buffeted the area in a soft layer of noise.
“Well, can you tell me some things you know about them at least? Might help me tailor my advice to your situation.”
“Let me see…” Sunny knew he had to choose his words carefully, lest he be too hasty and give his predicament away instantly. He formed a mental image of Aubrey in his head and redacted it until he found a few general descriptors that would be just specific enough to give a rough idea of her.
“She’s a bit of a punk. Had a rough childhood. Seems like a nice person, though.” He tried to play the statements off noncommittally; the way one would talk about a white egret orchid that they kept in their backyard.
“Interesting description.” Hero chuckled. His eyes showed a certain level of suspicion. “That’s a tough nut to crack.”
Sunny folded his arms, hands supporting his elbows. He wasn’t sure if Hero had figured it out or if he was just jesting, and Sunny wasn’t willing to breach that line to ask. “Yeah. Any tips will help, really.”
Hero picked a leaf up from the ground and let it drift onto the lake’s placid waters. “Well, you kind of have to… Read the room.” Hero looked at Sunny’s confused expression and proceeded to explain. “I mean, if it’s a nice place where you guys are comfortable, it’s probably a good opportunity to hug her. You could probably also set the mood yourself if you want to.”
“Like with candles or something?”
“Sure! Maybe put a good movie on or something. That would help give you two something to bond about.” Hero paused to ponder the situation once again. “If she’s warm to you, you could tell her that you love her. Give her a gift. That might help.”
Sunny’s mind went blank for a moment. He tried to consider what he could do, especially in the time-frame he had in Faraway. He tried to form a plan in his head, but all he had now was broad strokes. He didn’t want to give away any more information either though, so he just left it at that.
“Thanks for the advice, Hero. I really appreciate it.”
Hero gave him a tender smile. “Sure thing, Sunny.” His gaze grew vacant, his smile held back slightly. Sunny had a hunch of what he was thinking about. He didn’t want to broach that topic in case it brought up bittersweet memories, or worse, resentment.
“A-anyways, I need to get going. Meant to meet up with Basil.” It wasn’t a complete lie; he was going to be staying over at Basil’s for the day, but it wasn’t urgent. He just didn’t know how to continue the conversation and decided to curtail it in the most natural way he knew: by leaving.
“Sure, I’ll walk you there!” Hero beamed a smile towards him.
At the intersection, Hero bid Sunny farewell as he made his way to crash at Basil’s house. He watched Sunny walk halfway down the street before turning around. Wispy clouds covered enough of the sky that the sun wasn’t as searing as it was at the lake. It felt like a good day for relaxing. Maybe I’ll head over to Hobbeez and see if they have anything new.
He made his way to Faraway Plaza. He was about to dive into the cool air-conditioned oasis that was Hobbeez when a loud, pink and yellow figure walking towards his direction got his attention.
“Hero!” Aubrey’s shout carried from one side of the strip mall to the other. Hero couldn’t make out her expression from a distance, but from the tone of her voice, one of three outcomes were possible:
- Aubrey had something to say or wanted to catch up with him.
- Aubrey just wanted to startle him as he was going about his day.
- Kel did something stupid again and he’d have to talk Aubrey out of introducing him to her nail bat.
Weighing out the probabilities, he made a measured response.
“Oh, hey there Aubrey! What’s up?” He smiled, hoping that in the case it was something bad, the charm would act in his favour.
As Aubrey neared him, he could see she was smiling. Not in the way that she did when she was raising hell with the Hooligans; this smile was softer, more heartfelt than hair-raising. “What’re you doin’ here?”
“I was just going to check out some stuff at Hobbeez. How about—”
“Could I talk to you about something for a bit? Need your oh-so-stellar advice.” Aubrey’s grin grew sly.
Hero thought back to his conversation with Sunny. This seems… foreboding.
“U-um, sure! I’m free right now, anyways.”
“Great! Let’s head to Gino’s. My treat.” Aubrey nudged him.
“So, here’s the problem…” Aubrey took a pause to finish the pizza in her mouth. “I’m dating Sunny.”
Hero nearly spat out his soda. He quickly gulped it down after his conscious mind caught up with his reaction, the carbonation leaving a bitter taste at the back of his throat.
“That surprising, huh?”
Hero cursed his luck. Sunny clearly discussed his Aubrey game plan with him in confidence, but he couldn’t tell her that, right? If Sunny couldn’t tell him that they were dating upfront, telling Aubrey that he had already asked him for advice about her would probably make things awkward between the two of them.
“Well, I didn’t know, but I can see you two together.” Hero tried to shoot Aubrey a cheeky grin, though his recent near-miss at making a sandwich-cola soup had left him a bit winded.
Aubrey didn’t seem to pick up on any issues with his general demeanour. “That’s reassuring.” She took a quick sip of her soda before continuing.
“The thing is, we haven’t done anything besides hang out. I even brought him to the lake, alone. I thought he was scared of the others, but we just ended up skipping stones, shooting the shit and left.”
Aubrey slumped over the table, her arms cushioning her head. Hero continued listening intently. He tried his best to hide his amusement.
“I don’t know, Hero. Is he scared of me or something? Do you think he’s scared I’ll hurt him? Or that he’ll hurt me?”
“I don’t think so. I think he just needs some time and growth, Aubrey. He’s still recovering, y’know?”
“Yeah, I guess that makes sense.” Aubrey let out a long, exasperated sigh. “But he’s so cute, alright? I just want him to hug me!”
“Why don’t you just ask him?”
“Asking is for losers.”
Hero pouted. “In that case, it could take some pushing.” He took a sip of his water. “Maybe you could try to hint it to him if you don’t want to ask him outright.”
“Like?”
“I don’t know. Don’t you have plushies and stuff? Maybe you could hug those.” Hero chuckled. “Make him a bit jealous.”
Aubrey glared at Hero. “What is this, some sappy rom-com?”
The angry look on her face quickly subsided in Hero’s sheepish grin and defensive posture. “I guess that could work,” she said, looking off to the side.
“You could probably hint at him with eye contact or something like that. If you give him more eye contact, it might help with the egging on.”
Aubrey blew bubbles into her soda. “I’ll try, I guess.”
With that, Aubrey took the last slice of pizza and ate it up. I guess that’s that, then, Hero thought to himself. After they finished their food, Aubrey got up to pay and they left.
As they stepped out into the heat of Faraway Plaza, Hero could see the wheels in Aubrey’s mind turning, forming connections and roadmaps. Heh, reminds me of myself back then, he thought to himself. Hero walked Aubrey down the street to the park.
“Anyways, thanks for the advice, Hero. Gonna head off now, seeya!” Aubrey and Hero fist bumped.
Aubrey made her way down the road to Kim’s house. Hero turned around to head home. As he walked, a funny thought came to mind.
Those two are going to have an… interesting time.
Sunny tuned out Basil’s lecture on proper care techniques for hyacinths. He was grateful that things started to go back to normal between them. The therapy had helped with their issues and sorted through their emotions; but it did mean Basil rambled a lot more now, which was equal parts comforting and irksome. It helped that Sunny could keep a stony face throughout, giving nothing away. His mind was still running over the ideas he got from the talk he had with Hero, like they were equations for rockets.
Would flowers set the mood? What flowers would help? Does Aubrey even like flowers? Do girls like flowers? What are flowers – miserable little piles of secrets?
His head spun, thinking up a game plan. He didn’t know how he was going to tell Aubrey he wanted to hug her tomorrow, but he figured it’d be best to plan than to go in blind. He mulled all the variables in his head, but he lacked confidence in his calculations. He wanted a second opinion to verify his ideas.
As such, he made use of the only extension of his knowledge at his fingertips.
Sunny pulled his laptop out of his bag. He turned it on and logged onto Yahoo Answers, where he laid his concerns and anxieties bare.
How do I tell my girlfriend I want to hug her? – posted just now by itsalwayssunny
I want to hug my girlfriend, but I don’t want to make her uncomfortable. Should I give her flowers? Do girls like flowers? What do girls like? What do I do? Any help is welcome. If you’re a girl, please give me advice I need help
Sunny posted the question and waited. He was about to change to some other forum or meme site when he got an answer.
Answer by aubunny16 – posted just now
it would totally help!!! girls love flowers! if your gf likes you, you should ask her for a huggg. or like, just lean onto her and let whatever happn happen! ^^
Reading the answer cast a light on the way forward for him. He could feel the cork board full of red string and pinned statements in his mind beginning to make sense. It was all coming together. He looked away from his computer to Basil.
“Hey Basil… what flowers mean ‘love’?”
Aubrey didn’t feel the most comfortable giving help that she couldn’t personally vouch for, but she was hoping for a quid pro quo at least. And hey, it was what he was asking for: a girl’s perspective!
She sat waiting for another response to her question; or at least, one that wasn’t a political tirade or ad for some supplement scam. Going over to Kim’s to hang out was always fun; her taste in music was alternative, but she liked it. The computer was a nice plus so that she could settle any Internet things. And today was time to settle One Very Important Internet Thing.
I wanna hug my bf but idk how to??? help!? – posted 36 minutes ago by aubunny16
So i started trying 2b bf/gf with 1 of my childhood friends and it’s been really great tbh, but weve never hugged or done anything really close! Weve only held hands and stuff but we never hug. I don’t want to push him but i really want him to hug me :<
She refreshed the page once again, watching as the screen reiterated itself line by line, only to show the exact same page. Aubrey sighed.
Maybe I should just wing it or something.
She chatted about it with Kim earlier but they both got nowhere. Aubrey was about to start hashing a plan out with Kim when she heard a ping.
Answer by itsalwayssunny – posted just now
You could set the mood with lighting and cushions, to get the right ambience for it. Good luck for you and your bf
Aubrey furrowed her brow. Hmm, I guess people really do try to answer back. She didn’t know how she felt about taking advice from some rando who had been in the same rut she was in, but Aubrey had to admit that it was the only coherent two cents of advice she got from the Internet thus far, regardless of quality.
Armed with the sum of her new knowledge, she began to form ideas in her head. With that final piece of the puzzle, everything else fell into place. She knew what she needed to do, and she knew she could, no, she needed to act now to get everything ready in time for tomorrow.
“Kim, we’re going to OtherMart!”
“What, why?” Kim rose lazily from her bed. She had been enjoying a mixtape she got from some out-of-town record store.
Aubrey turned to her, a mix of steely determination and excitement in her eyes.
“We have an evening to plan for!”
Sunny and Aubrey locked in Saturday evenings when they started dating. It was the time they had set aside for themselves: playing board games or watching TV or just shooting the shit while eating takeout. Tonight though, was going to be a very different night. Even if they didn’t know that the other thought the same thing, the game was already afoot.
It was hug night, and they were going to hug, so help them God.
They went back together to Aubrey’s attic after a long day of hanging out with the Hooligans, chasing down cats and being a general nuisance to the people of Faraway.
When they reached the top of the ladder, Sunny looked across the room. Aubrey had laid out two futons in the centre of the room, replete with duvets and plushies. That’s cute. Probably really comfy too, he thought to himself. He went to the table in front of the futons and set his backpack down.
Sunny took the scented candles and DVD out from his backpack and set them on the table. He arranged the candles, setting them to flank the TV. He grazed his finger against the lighter in his hand, the friction of the flint grating on his thumb. It hurt a bit, but Sunny tried to hide it in front of Aubrey. After a bit of fumbling and stray sparks, the candles were lit. The warm scent of bergamot and vanilla slowly filled the air.
He went to the back of the room and hung his backpack on a set of hooks next to Bun-bun’s enclosure. He tried to fit the strap onto the hook’s bend, but it barely made it over. The bag sagged under the weight of what was left in the bag, the edges of its handle peeking over the barb. Think that’s stable enough, he thought to himself. He turned around and went back towards the TV.
Aubrey turned off the light for the sake of ambience. The candles lit the room in warm hues, only interrupted by passing cars and the gentle glow of a halogen streetlight. She laid her eyes on Sunny. His face was gently shaded by the candlelight, rounding out his features. His free eye reflected the flames, adding a hazel sparkle to the iris. It looked like his eyes were shimmering gems.
Soon enough, her conscious effort at building eye contact dissolved into gawking. Just as quickly, Aubrey snapped out of it. Come on, stick to the game plan! She made herself comfortable on the futon spread out on the hardwood floor. She picked one of the plushies out and held it tight.
Sunny took out the rented movie and popped it into the DVD player. It was a romcom; an old one, but the only interesting one he could find at OtherMart. He set it playing, navigating through the menu at speed. He turned around and found Aubrey sitting on one side of the futon, smiling and staring at him while clutching onto a Mr. Plantegg. He tried to give her a reassuring smile and a wink, but his right eye was still blocked by his eyepatch. It ended up looking like he was wincing and smiling through some incorporeal pain.
Trying to recover from that blunder, Sunny quickly settled next to Aubrey, a few purple and pink stuffed animals between them. He rested his arm against the plushie divider. Aubrey took his hand while keeping one arm wrapped around her eggplant mascot. The opening credits acted as a floor of noise upon which they conversed, if a little stiltedly at first.
“…What a day, huh?”
“Yeah, it was fun. Can’t believe Kim and Vance actually made off with a bagful of candy this time!”
They continued to talk about the day. When the conversation tapered off, Sunny and Aubrey focused on the movie, letting the soundtrack and dialogue fill the void. The movie was fairly humourless, showing its age in its “romance” and “comedy”. That didn’t bother Sunny and Aubrey much; both of them were busy thinking back to their oh-so-valuable advice from Hero and Yahoo.
Should I give her the gift now or later? Should I have given them to her as soon as she came here? Do I say ‘I love you’ now?
God, I hope the eye contact wasn’t too much for him. Surprised with the candles, though, nice touch. Looks like I didn’t have to break out mine, after all.
Midway through the movie, Aubrey initiated the next part of her plan. She rested her head against Sunny’s shoulder.
Sunny felt a warmth radiating from his arm. He looked to see Aubrey’s smiling face against him, eyes on the movie but glazed over. He felt butterflies in his stomach. He felt emboldened. He let go of Aubrey’s grip and brought his arm behind Aubrey. Sunny was about to place his arm on Aubrey’s shoulder when-
Thud!
They both turned to the noise. A quick glance in that direction revealed the source of the sound: Sunny’s bag had fallen, and brought Aubrey’s bat down with it, making a loud thump. Sunny got up to get his bag. Might as well give Aubrey her gift now, I guess. As he unzipped his bag, he realised something.
The thumping was moving. He looked towards the cordoned-off area of the room.
Bun-bun had jumped out of its enclosure. The shock from the sudden noise had set it off on a rabid run. It made haste, running up around Aubrey’s room.
It jumped onto the TV table, knocking one of the candles off it, onto the edge of the futon.
“Oh shit!” Aubrey shot up out of the now-too-toasty duvet and put distance between her and it. The candle broke out of its glass jar and set fire to it.
On instinct, Sunny pulled the wax paper-wrapped flowers out of his bag and whacked at the fire. After hitting the flames a few times, they finally died down. The emergency was over, almost as quickly as it had started.
Sunny looked at the scene before him. There wasn’t much fire damage, thankfully; a few singed patches of blanket, some stray pieces of glass and a slightly sooty stuffed bunny were the only apparent casualties. Luckily, the flowers served as a good fire beater.
Oh no, the flowers!
Coming to his senses, he looked at the bouquet of purple lilacs and pink camellias in his hand. Some of the petals had fallen loose from the thrashing, laying on the floor. The wax paper itself bore the brunt of the fire damage, a charred stripe running down the side. One of the ribbons had been completely burnt, forming an ashy layer on the bottom half of the bouquet. Sunny felt bad about it; the effort he and Basil put into it had almost gone up in flames. Nonetheless, the flowers were still mostly intact, and they were out of the bag now anyways.
He held out the bouquet to Aubrey with both hands. “Um…I was planning to give you these after the movie. I read online that girls like flowers. I got these with Basil’s help.”
In spite of her anger from nearly dying, Aubrey couldn’t help but smile at the gesture. The flowers were pretty; a cornucopia of fuchsia that had a nice fragrance to them that helped cut through the acrid wisps of smoke.
“Thanks, Sunny.” She took the flowers from him.
“The lilacs symbolise new love and the camellias mean ‘I miss you’.” He recited the flower meanings from the quick gist that Basil gave him as he helped him bundle them up.
Aubrey appreciated the sheer thoughtfulness put into the flowers. She hadn’t expected something like this coming from Sunny. It felt like such a textbook-cute gesture.
Then, it dawned on her.
“Wait, did you say you saw it online? Where?” Aubrey tried to hide the rising amusement in her voice.
“Yeah… on Yahoo Answers.”
“Are you itsalwayssunny?”
Sunny’s pale face turned a bright shade of red. “U-uh…” All the cats were fully out of the bag at this point. “Yeah…” He looked away, in shame. “Did you see the question?”
“Yeah.” Aubrey giggled. “It’s okay. I gave you bad advice anyways.”
“aubunny?” Sunny had thought of it in the back of his head when he saw the answer but he didn’t think it was possible. The world couldn't be that small, right?
Aubrey gave him a mock salute in response. Sunny let out a little laugh.
“What made you go there?”
“I asked Hero for help, but I needed more advice. I sure as hell wasn’t gonna ask Kel, and Kim wasn’t much good so…” Aubrey waved her hands around to indicate the ineffable nature of the world.
“You also asked Hero for help?” Sunny asked, his head tilted to one side.
“Oh my God!” Aubrey and Sunny started laughing. They were messes; hug-wanting, adorable messes, who didn’t know how to tell the other that in a logical way, resorting to the most convoluted schemes to try to do so.
Once they settled down, they looked at each other. They both smiled, open and honestly to each another. Aubrey opened her arms. “Come ‘ere, Sunny.” Sunny walked towards her and wrapped his arms around her.
For Sunny, it felt like an achievement. After four years of languishing in his room, grappling with his inner psyche and grief, he finally mustered the courage to tell everyone the truth about his situation. And even after that, he chanced into starting something with Aubrey, the one he’d loved for so long. In her arms, he felt safe. Secure. The loneliness he had felt for the last four years seemed to evaporate, replaced by something warmer; something that made his heart beat faster and made the sun burn brighter in his heart.
Aubrey held Sunny tight in her embrace. Sunny rested his head on Aubrey’s. Aubrey felt so glad to have Sunny in his arms there; after the four years of silence and loneliness, after the three days of fighting and making up again, after the horror of what happened in Basil’s house, after what happened at the hospital. Feeling Sunny in her arms, living and breathing, filled her with relief and happiness.
And so, they stood there, comfortable in each other’s embrace. In that moment, Sunny and Aubrey were everything to each other. The lilacs, the dying wisps of smoke, the bright purple flowers against her iridescent pink hair all melded into one. They held each other tight. Being together filled them both with a feeling they had been lacking for years, one they had longed for for so long.
They felt happy.
They felt comforted.
They felt loved.
Sunny and Aubrey had been together for a month and now, they had finally hugged. For them, that was enough.