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When Tubbo finally, finally saw Ranboo in real life for the first time, it was like the world stopped still, and finally made sense for the first time in a long while.
Tubbo’s life had a lot of highs and lows- many of which had come in the current year, due to his popularity practically skyrocketing in 2020. He’s gone through a lot, dealt with more than anyone else his age had probably gone through, and was probably a completely different person than he was when this all started. But this moment, this one point in time when the morning light of the United Kingdom finally shone on Ranboo’s face as he turned his head to spot Tubbo in the crowd of people- nothing could compare to this high.
Hours of time spent on Facetime, on Discord, on every messaging platform they owned couldn’t even begin to top being able to see the other’s face split into a toothy grin in real time as he quickened his pace towards Tubbo. Nothing else mattered as the world blurred around them, the lights of the airport and the sounds of people rushing to the baggage carousel blurring into one as the two boys crashed into each other.
It was a long hug. not just because they both loved hugs (Tubbo always says he doesn’t, but he also lies a fair amount), but because they’re still in a state of disbelief that the other actually exists , that their body, their soul was real, alive, not just a picture or voice from a computer .
“Hey, you.” Tubbo’s face is buried in Ranboo’s shirt, but he can still tell that Ranboo’s smiling down on him.
“I missed you.”
Ranboo responds to this with one of his soft, fond laughs that he only reserves for Tubbo- and it makes the shorter’s heart melt.
“Missed me? This is the first time we’ve met , Tubbo…”
Tubbo raises his head up from Ranboo’s chest to stare at him in the eyes. “Do you know how long the flight is from stupid fucking California to here?”
“About 10 hou-“
“It's supposed to be 10 hours and 10 minutes, but since your flight was delayed a bit, it was 10 hours and 25 minutes !”
Ranboo snorts. “And?”
“And,” Tubbo uses his arms to accentuate his point, waving them around at the very best of his ability (since Ranboo still had his arms around him). “That means I practically had to go 10 and a half whole hours without talking to you.”
The taller boy hugs him tighter, letting his head rest near the space between Tubbo’s neck and shoulder.
“Well, I'm here now. And I’m not leaving for a long time.”
—
The afternoon passed by like a dream. Ranboo had originally wanted to keep his arrival a secret for a couple days, just to throw off their fans and laugh at their confusion, but the excitement the two boys felt from coming home from the airport completely overthrew those plans. From the moment Ranboo first launched that plushie at Tubbo’s unsuspecting head while he tried to avoid suspicion from the thousands of people watching, the two of them knew that they’d have to start this new “era” in their lives that they’d always talked about.
Ranboo loved sitting with Tubbo during mcc, watching his eyes shine as he focused on the game. In the time between games, he would carefully slip his hand into his and squeeze it, a silent piece of encouragement. Tubbo usually wouldn’t look away from the screen, but would grin when he felt Ranboo’s fingers interlock with his own.
It was dark outside when the event ended, the stars fully out and twinkling in the distance. Neither of them were tired, though- they were used to a crazy sleep schedule that made sense to nobody but them.
After eating their first meal together at the mildly concerning time of 12:30 am (Ranboo hadn’t realized it yet, but he was starving- he had practically inhaled the unauthentic-yet-satisfying Chinese food that Tubbo ordered for the two of them), they found themselves laying down on the floor of the living room in silence, taking in the events of the day.
Ranboo’s thoughts wander. the mental image of seeing Tubbo’s face in person for the first time, meeting his family and stepping inside of his house, doing the long-awaited height check- all of those moments would stick with Ranboo for the rest of his life, he thinks.
And, of course, the exhilarating rush of finally holding Tubbo in his arms, feeling the warmth of his hands on his. Ranboo closes his eyes in contentment, letting the happy memories replay in his mind over and over.
The quiet is comfortable. It’s not an awkward silence at all, just a mutual understanding that both of them needed a moment to space out and digest (both the food and everything else)
However, Tubbo’s always the first to break it.
“I realized something,” Tubbo says timidly.
Ranboo’s eyes open. “What did you realize?”
“I realized,” Tubbo sits up and stares down at Ranboo, who directs his eyes from the ceiling to the other. “That there’s only one bed.”
It's an invitation to a joke.
“Well,” Ranboo states, playing along. “That's a problem.”
Tubbo nods, furrowing his eyebrows in faux seriousness.
“After all,” Ranboo continues. “Only couples sleep in the same bed, don’t they?”
They share a knowing smirk for a brief second. Ranboo sits up as well, and Tubbo has to tilt his head back slightly to maintain eye contact with him.
“Ranboo.”
“Tubbo.”
“What do couples do , exactly?”
They’re awfully close to each other now, Tubbo scooting closer and stretching his neck up towards Ranboo’s face- leaving just about a foot of distance separating them.
“I think- and this is just a guess, by the way- most couples would cross the ocean to see each other.”
From this angle, Ranboo realizes he had the power to end the twitter “Tubbo’s eye color” debate, once and for all- they’re a warm ocean of pale blue with speckles of hazel, and Ranboo can feel himself getting more and more drawn into them the longer Tubbo focuses them on him.
“What else?”
“Hmm,” Ranboo wonders if Tubbo can hear how loud his own heart is thumping. “Couples… couples kiss a lot, don’t they?”
The tension in the silence that follows is so thick that a simple knife probably wouldn’t be able to even make a dent in it. They’d need a chainsaw at this point.
Tubbo’s legs are touching Ranboo’s- they're so close that Ranboo could count his eyelashes, or his freckles, or his-
“Ranboo?” Tubbo’s voice, soft and sweet, interrupts his thoughts.
“Yeah?”
“Can I…?”
Wordlessly, Ranboo frantically nods.
And Tubbo closes the distance.
If you had told a 14 year old Tubbo that years of being a content creator, years of streaming and videos and meticulous planning and studying an algorithm that shifted and morphed into something new every day would eventually lead him to be kissing a boy he met over a Minecraft server, he probably would’ve told you that you’re crazy- And yet, this whole thing simultaneously seemed extremely on brand for him.
He wouldn’t have changed his circumstances for the world.
Neither of them have had much experience in romantic relationships, so the kiss isn’t perfect or sweet in flavor like those overused tropes in movies- In fact, if Ranboo were to describe it, he’d probably say it tasted like skin (duh) with a hint of Chinese food (also duh). Their noses had bumped into each other at first, Tubbo had accidently opened his mouth and nicked Ranboo’s lip with one of his teeth, but the imperfections are what make it the best first kiss they’ve ever had.
Ranboo vaguely recognizes one of Tubbo’s hands coming up beside his cheek to brush a lock of dirty blond hair from his forehead, the touch sending electricity down Ranboo’s spine. he takes it as an invitation to make a move of his own, so he cups Tubbo’s face with both of his hands- and the smaller boy responds to it by smiling into the kiss.
They have to pull away from each other eventually, since oxygen is still a thing that exists (much to the disappointment of them both), but Ranboo keeps his hands on the side of Tubbo’s face.
And they look at each other, wide-eyed and flushed with embarrassment at what they just did.
“So,” Tubbo murmurs after they’ve caught their breath. “You a big or little spoon?”