Chapter Text
“You have one last wish, master. What will it be?”
Aladdin sighed. Sure, he could act like he didn’t know. Pretend for just a little bit longer. He could say “can I have a little more time to think?”, and the genie would back off for a while. They could sit there together in silence some more- an hour, maybe, until the genie asked again. But that wasn’t going to get him anywhere.
“If I ask for you to stay, would you?”
The genie paused for a moment. “Stay?”
“Y-yeah. I mean… if I wished you outta’ there. I wouldn’t have any more wishes left, right?” He looked away, digging his fingers into the fabric of his pants. “You’d be free to just… leave. I might not ever see you again, ‘n I don’t want that.”
“I see.”
They stood in silence for what felt like an eternity until Aladdin spoke up again.
“You make me feel… warm. Like, my chest. ‘N my stomach does all this flippy floppy stuff when I look at you. ‘specially when you smile. Y’know? Like how I thought I was supposed to feel when I look at girls. But I don’t. ‘S just when I look at you.”
“You could always wish that feeling away.”
“No— i-it’s not a bad thing! I like it, I think.” A sigh. “I-I just don’t want you to leave. It’s selfish of me, but I wanna’ keep livin’ side-by-side with you. Teach you human stuff. Take you places. We could see the world together, y’know? How cool would that be?!”
“…I have ‘seen the world’ many times over, master.”
“But not with me!”
Silence again.
Aladdin’s chest felt tight. This wasn’t going anywhere, was it? He let out a defeated sigh, rubbing his hands over his face.
“…Okay. I get it. I’m being weird, right? Sorry. I’ll make my wish, ‘n you can go. You okay with that?”
“Do as you please, master.”
As frustrating as that response was, Aladdin decided not to push it any further. “Okay. Then I… I wish you were free from the lamp.”
The genie’s eyebrows twitched upwards, but he nodded.
“Understood. I shall grant your wish.”
A snap and a puff of smoke. Aladdin flinched, shutting his eyes tight - sure, not being able to see if the genie was still there or not wouldn’t change the reality, but…
“You look foolish, master.”
Aladdin’s eyes shot open. Huh? No way… “Y-you’re still here?!”
“Of course I am. I have to thank you, at the very least. You were talking about… what was it? Seeing the world together?”
Speechless, Aladdin just nodded.
“Then… as thanks, I will accompany you wherever you’d like to go.” The genie smiled. “Where would you like to start?”
“I-I don’t know!” Aladdin laughed, breathless. “Wherever… wherever you want.”
The genie raised an eyebrow, taking his hand. “I’ll lead, then. Do you trust me?”
“You won’t— you’re not gonna’ kill me, right?”
“Who knows.”
“O-oi…!” The blonde protested, but tightened his grip on the genie’s hand as he started to move.
...Wherever they’d go, as long as they were together, Aladdin decided it would be fine.