Work Text:
Going outside first thing into a new universe was probably the stupidest thing you could've done if your name was Skeppy.
And Skeppy's name was definitely Skeppy.
Which meant that gods, he was so fucking stupid.
First there was a person who had come up to him and ask him very personal questions out of the blue, a person he was one hundred percent sure they were a complete stranger to him. Then, it became a whole swarm of apparently adoring fans who all wanted different things from him he couldn't give a fuck about giving at the moment.
Rushing back inside after using a poor excuse about forgetting the stove on – because of course that one was a classic -, Skeppy decided that there was no way he was ever going to leave his home ever again.
Okay, maybe that was a little more dramatic than he wanted it to sound like, but gods.
As the minutes passed, everything about the crowd became clearer.
He was an artist! And- oh, oh holy shit, a very famous one it appeared.
Skeppy reached for the phone in his pocket, unlocking it easily and heading straight to his socials: well, the astounding double digits on his follower count confirmed his newfound memories to be true.
This meant …
He let the phone fall back into one of his pockets in favour of reaching his painting room, which he found terribly messy. Now that chaos felt more like home.
Chuckling to himself, he hesitantly picked up one of the brushes he had neatly put away beforehand and went to prepare the colours. Once everything was set and ready to go, he tried to let a few strokes do the magic. Nothing impressive came out of it, but the motion was natural and familiar, although Skeppy had never picked up painting before ever in his first life.
Huh.
A smile crept up on his face.
He set aside the practice ruined canvas to pick up another one; this time, Skeppy chose a pencil and thought up one of the earliest memories he had of his latest human universe. The background was still blurry in his head as he just concentrated on the person, sketching out the pose which … yeah, no. That came out terribly.
Skeppy scrunched up his face as his right arm dropped at his side.
Maybe he was just good at painting?
Then, he looked around, a thought forming in his head before he could even conceive it. Quickly enough, a book was laid and opened up on his desk and the painter retrieved some pictures he had printed years earlier.
Of course he needed references, what was he even thinking?
He snorted to himself, because it sounded terribly amusing to forget and remember your skills all in one go, but hey, Skeppy was doing his best in each universe to maintain the balance.
Not too long after, he would've had a pretty well done sketch of the scene he had in mind, which obviously wasn't exactly what his memories pictured, but the expression … he could almost hear his voice and the hurt and panicked eyes.
Skeppy missed him. He didn't know which one anymore, probably all of them. He missed him.
He sat down cross legged and took out a phone that would've looked completely harmless but was actually foreign to this universe: DreamXD would've killed him by now if he had not been allowed to keep that, but it had probably been funnier to see whatever the hell the boy was going to do with it.
Skeppy looked around himself, as though expecting someone to barge in and question him about his belongings. Then, he quickly tapped away on the phone before putting it against his ear.
The robotic sound of a voicemail rang.
« Hi Skeppy, » there was a small sigh on the other end, yet hearing Bad's voice alone was what made his heart clench in his chest. « I'm still here at the apartment with Sam and Ant in the end … I'm glad I didn't have to move away, I would've missed them. » the sound paused for a moment and Skeppy decided to close his eyes and pretend it was real. He had forgotten why Bad needed to leave in the first place.
« I'm glad too. » he said out loud, probably sounding like an idiot to anyone nearby.
« You know, they think I'm actually calling you when I leave these voicemails … they keep asking and I've been making stuff up. You're currently on a trip to Greece! » Bad giggled and Skeppy found himself smiling.
« Exciting. Loving the architecture. »
« They're buying it as long as I'm concerned. I just need to be sure they're not eavesdropping. » there was a noise and he imagined him shifting around.
« Yeah, you gotta be careful. »
« I genuinely hope you're doing okay, though. » there was another sigh. « I still sound insane to myself for doing this, but it helps … still, whatever you're doing- it sounds so dangerous, and all the … all those dreams I keep having. » Bad's voice was choked up and Skeppy's heart sank even lower than he could've imagined.
« It's- it's okay, I'm okay. »
« God … » he heard a sob from the other line. « It's so … »
He lowered his head, eyes basically shut tight. « No, no, no, no, it's alright. I'm okay! »
« Last night … it was another one of those terrible ones, why do you have to die so much? »
Skeppy was going to strangle a certain god and that was final.
There was a deep sigh. « Sorry for bringing the mood down, today was pretty rough. I haven't been going out as much as I had started … the coffeeshop must be worrying about my absence. » Bad giggled, but the other could tell how he must've been smiling sadly, tears still welling up in his eyes.
« You don't need to apologize at all. »
« Maybe I'll go tomorrow, you know? I could promise that to you, maybe doing that would help me. I'll try doing that. »
« Yeah, you go and do that, Bad. You're doing amazing. »
« I'll- I'll go now. I'll talk to you soon. Bye, Skeppy. »
He let out a shaky smile, finally opening his eyes. « Bye- »
« I love you. » Bad added in a whisper, before the voicemail ended and a robotic voice started asking whether Skeppy wanted to listen to it again.
His phone dropped to the ground as he curled in on himself. « Fuuuuck. » he let out, hands covering his eyes, almost pressing on them not to let any tears escape. « Fuck. » his insides were in all sorts of knots and ties, twisted between those three words he hadn't heard in so long.
Not that genuinely at least, not like that, not the way Bad always meant it.
But Skeppy did not have time to miss him, because the other phone, the one from the present universe, decided to ring and give him a heart attack. Scrambling for it, he immediately answered and put it to his ear.
« Bad?! »
« What? » a voice that definitely did not sound like his best friend let out an amused chuckle. « No, I'm pretty sure I'm good. »
He remembered that was his manager, cause yeah now he had one of those too. « Sorry, I was- I fell asleep, had a kinda weird dream. »
« Mh, I figured, you should really fix that schedule up … Anyways! I was wondering how the new project was coming along, gallery's pressing to know when your next presentation could be, so I wanted to ask if you had anything in mind so that I could give them a timeframe? »
Skeppy wondered how they could talk so fast all in one breath, before looking up. Yeah, the project … he had been … he had been looking for inspiration for a new series of paintings that he would be showing whenever the hell was the right time, god his head was so jumbled about it all.
Then, his eyes fell on the sketch on the canvas, the only one who could've possibly been his muse, as an idea formed in his mind.
« I think I might have something, actually. »
Everything Skeppy had needed were a couple of references and the trick was done: there was no way he could've forgotten about how Bad looked, no matter what version – human or demonic or else – his image would be forever stuck and engraved in Skeppy's mind. Thus, this little experiment was brought to a start.
He didn't think it could've actually worked, but maybe … given his popularity and fame, there must've been even the smallest chance that Bad could've seen it and pointed out how oddly similar he looked.
Interviewers and such had already tried to pry into Skeppy's private life, dancing around explicit questions about whether his subject had been a secret lover he hadn't talked about before.
Leading them on was funny, because he would never tell.
He'd say all sorts of “maybe”s and “who knows”s and keep the tension up until he ultimately confessed that he would never tell. In hindsight, he wasn't really allowed to, but his fanbase went crazy with theories and everybody was absolutely convinced he was hiding a boyfriend behind their backs and told him he wasn't slick at all.
Skeppy just laughed to himself at the allegations that he would never confirm nor deny.
After all, what's in an artist if they cannot fall in love with their creations a little?
He was sure he had fallen in love with each version of Bad he had found, each depicted image served as a memory of that lost affection that got stuck in its blossoming.
Sometimes Skeppy would spend time looking at one of the paintings and remember what he'd experienced, almost as if he could enter the canvas itself and go back in that universe to make sure its Bad wasn't suffering as much as he was.
His attention got drawn to a sudden Twitter notification popping up: he was certain he had muted any kind of push notification, but the app sometimes still sent some recommended tweets because of how rarely he used it anyway.
His eyebrows furrowed and he blinked rapidly as he read through the first line.
“@notAntfr0st tweeted:”
Skeppy sat up immediately, as if the armrest of the couch was hotter than he'd imagined. He opened up the tweet.
“don't you guys think the guy from skeppy's new paintings looks oddly a lot like my friend?”
A hand flew to his mouth as he swiped through the images attached, there were a couple of his paintings and a picture of Bad himself, he was awkwardly smiling at the camera in what seemed like an impromptu selfie he and Ant had taken.
« Holy fuck it worked, it actually fucking worked. »
The amount of likes and retweets that Ant had gotten confirmed that the majority of the app's population thought the same exact thing.
He scrolled through the replies, seeing the same old people making theories about them knowing each other – the top one had Ant confirming Bad had never met Skeppy once in his entire life – or others just being absolutely flabbergasted about how identical the two looked.
What could he say, he was pretty talented.
His heart raced a million kilometres per hour as his thumb hovered over the tweet. Oh to hell with it! He pressed the like button and went to write down a reply as well.
“The resemblance is uncanny.”
And send.
« And now let's watch chaos unleash. »
Chaos came on pretty quickly.
“@notAntfr0st replied: DUDE WTF???????????”
“@theawesamdude replied: lmao rip your notifs ant”
And then, cherry on top. “@badboyhalo replied: O_o”
« Oh my god, he's a dork. » Skeppy couldn't help but giggle to himself as he watched their reactions, something warm welling up in his chest as he finally found, somehow, his long time friends.
He decided to open Bad's tweet and see what kind of mess there was under there.
“@theawesamdude replied: mans gets noticed by a celebrity and all he can say is 0_o”
“@notAntfr0st replied: he said that when i told him my cat died once”
“@badboyhalo replied: HEY THATS NOT TRUE”
The other thousands of replies and quote retweets were either accusing Bad of hiding something or asking him to spit out the truth. There was quite a handful of people being jealous about the whole thing, but the majority was just entirely speechless.
Skeppy decided to like Bad's little emoji tweet and leave it at that, because he thought that the general commotion was absurdly funny. He noticed he was trending first place already, which was his sign to close the app and leave his phone be for a while.
Now, how the hell was he going to meet him?
Again, his answer came right through the phone's ringing.
« Hello? »
« Hey, Skeppy! We got some calls, would you be interested in participating in some panels at conventions? Maybe a meet and greet? »
He smiled wide and shook his free hand up and down rapidly. There was no way this was actually happening. « Meet and greet sounds perfect. You know what? Sign us up for any important convention in the country. »
« Alright, I like your spirit! Will be done, that's gonna be one hell of a tour so make sure you rest up this time, okay? »
He could already see the nights spent awake daydreaming about all the possible outcomes if he ever were to actually meet Bad so soon.
« Will do. »
Antfrost was basically skipping along the pavement in excitement as he and his friends made their way inside the building.
It took an incredibly long time to get Bad to agree to come with him and Sam and take the chance of meeting the famous artist, because what the hell he was not going to miss out on the opportunity to have something incredible happen; everybody knew Skeppy was not that present on socials, so the fact that he had seen his tweet was already odd on its own.
What if it was meant to be?
And yeah, maybe Ant was fantasizing about getting indirectly famous- look, many online articles were already talking about his tweet because of the chaos it had created, what could he do?
He took Bad's sleeve and pulled him along while he and Sam practically ran towards the entrance.
Bad would've rolled his eyes if he hadn't been so keen on not tripping over his friends' feet.
God, ever since the series had been released, everybody in his town had been giving him either curious or weird looks, people started staring at him and for someone who just generally disliked being noticed by anyone, it was hell brought upon the earth.
So no, the thought of quite literally an entire crowd at a convention just pointing and staring at him did not sound appealing.
The thought alone of Skeppy himself seeing him made his stomach turn.
He couldn't really explain it, it just was terrifying.
« Hurry, hurry! »
Bad thought there was no point in hurrying, he could already see the longest queue ever from dozens of feet away. There was no way they were going to wait in there.
Sam slowed to a stop, tone disappointed. « Fuck, that's- »
« Not worth it. » Bad intervened, opening his arms in a sort of “told you” manner.
« If someone had gotten at the station on time, maybe we would've taken the earlier train! »
« Ant, do you really think thirty minutes would've made a difference? » Bad sighed, then looked around himself. « C'mon, let's just look around- »
« Nope, » Ant grabbed his arm again. « No, this is- Bad it's not everyday something like this happens, you have to meet him at least once! »
« Why do I have to do this all of a sudden? »
« I don't know- It just feels right! »
« Uh-huh, you sure you don't want to end up on another headline? »
« What?! »
Sam placed himself behind the two. « Guys, you're acting like literal kids, please. » he eyed both of them, who seemed to calm down after taking a breath.
Ant looked behind himself at the neverending queue. « I just thought … I thought it was exciting, it's the biggest coincidence I've ever seen and maybe he'd want to see you too. »
« I don't know … » Bad sighed again. « Maybe? What if it's just a coincidence? He must've already forgotten about it. »
« Well, it's gonna make up for a fun conversation! Aren't you taking up digital art anyway? You could ask for tips. » Sam poked his shoulder, which made the other glare at him. He chuckled.
« It's- wildly different, Sam. He said he only ever drew traditionally. And I literally just started. »
« Eeeh, » he circled around his friends and then put one arm around each of them, directing them towards the queue. « You can ask him about the weather instead, it's fine. »
The effect was immediate.
The moment they had reached the back of the queue, people had started whipping their head around to take a look at Bad.
« Holy shit it's him. »
« Huh? »
The group right behind them all took an interest in him. « Oh my- you know what? » one of the teens looked behind themselves. « Ah fuck it, you guys just get in front of us. »
« Uh, what? No, that's not needed! » Ant waved his hands in front of himself.
« No, no I insist! It's gonna take so long for you the event might end before we get there, just go. »
« Yeah, I really wanna see you two interact! » another one barged in, looking directly at Bad. « You guys should get to skip the entire line, this is like, a BIG big opportunity! »
« Hey is it really true you two don't know each other? »
« Uh, no, never met him in real life before, ever. » Bad was twisting one of the hems of his sleeves in nervousness.
« Well, thank you then, guys, we appreciate it. » Ant stepped in so he could make his friends skip over a few people who eagerly let them pass.
Thing was, that kinda … never stopped.
People kept turning around and letting them pass every time they saw Bad, like they were supposed to skip the queue. It made him a little uneasy. It felt wrong, like he was doing something he shouldn't have and like he was going to get caught anytime now.
They reached the front in a matter of minutes.
« Hell- » the girl in front of them had to do a double-take the moment she realized what the fuss behind her was about. « When did you get here? »
Bad shrugged. « Like … just now. They just let me pass. »
« Holy shit. » she snorted out a laugh, before looking between the three of them. « Yeah, alright, would not be as funny if I didn't let you go too. »
« Oh, no, no, no, there's literally no need to, we're right here- »
« Ah, nonsense, this is all insane as it is, go, go! » he pushed them past herself and Sam couldn't help but join Ant in the giggles.
It felt hysterical.
« What the fuck? »
« I know! »
« Wow, anyone else feeling dizzy? »
Sam put a hand on Bad's shoulder. « It's gonna be fine we'll be right next to you. »
« Yeah, no way I'm losing this. » Ant had already whipped out his phone.
The three could already see Skeppy just a few feet away from their reach, still talking with the same person that had gone in a little bit before they had reached the front line.
Had excitement always felt that akin to anxiety?
Ant locked arms with Bad as the guard in front of them stepped aside to let them pass. The artist was still looking at the previous fan leaving, waving at them when they turned around.
And then Skeppy looked to the other side, at the three people approaching him.
He abruptly leaned back on his chair. « No fucking way. »
Ant could barely contain the laughter as he waved, Skeppy waved back before raising his hands back to cup part of his face in disbelief, laughing as well.
« Well, hello. » Sam bowed his head a little for a second.
The painter looked like he could've had a heart attack right then and there. « Hi. » somehow he looked like he was the one meeting celebrities.
« Care to explain why you've been drawing my friend, here? » Sam asked between giggles he really couldn't keep in, his face hurt so badly already for how widely he was smiling and trying to keep the laughter in. The situation was funnier than he had imagined.
« Look, can I just. » Skeppy hesitated for a second, before getting to his feet and reaching them on the other side of the table. He gave Bad a once over, which didn't exactly seem to make him that comfortable. He wanted to frown, but decided against making any obvious move. He chose to focus on his face, not directly the eyes for long, more on the hair and the head shape, as though he were studying a reference.
« Okay, no. This is insane. » he declared right after, turning around to take a few steps away, before turning back. « You're not real- What's your name? »
« I'm Bad. »
He extended his hand. « It's an honour! » he said, as the other slowly shook it. « I honestly don't know what to say. Rendered me speechless. » he went to sit on the table instead.
« I'm just interested in understanding how the hell you found my tweet. You follow five people! »
« Yeah, no, would you believe me if I said it got recommended to me? »
Ant put his face in his hands. « It's fate, this is impossible, what the fuck. »
Sam interrupted his friend's mental breakdown. « Did you know Bad's also an artist? »
Well, that piqued Skeppy's interest. Bad also was not seeming like the talking type. « Really? Can I see? »
« Nope. » Bad put a hand in front of his friend who was about to take his phone out to show some pictures. « No. I just started, please. »
« Ooh, yeah no, I get that, first pieces embarrassment. Why'd you start? »
Bad looked away and around. « Just … just thought why not? »
The other nodded solemnly. « Good enough for me. » he chuckled. « You know, I actually was kind of hoping you'd show up at some point. »
« Oh, really? » that got a small smile out of Bad, still a shy one that Skeppy found adorable.
« Mhm, » he nodded. « Probably part of the reason why I decided to schedule for so many places. Yeah, I'm satisfied now, everyone else go home. » the others joined in his laughter at the joke. « May I ask, this might sound crazy, but like … » he locked eyes with Bad and leaned forward, as though he were examining him. « You have very pretty eyes … you see, I'm never able to capture the right hues when I paint eyes and I think – if you'd agree to it – you'd be the perfect person to help me. »
« What. » Ant whispered to Sam, stepping aside to just witness whatever that was.
« A-agree to what? »
« Would you pose for me? Or just be around when I practice, I'd make sure to find a way for it to not take long, but I'm afraid no camera would take a good enough picture of that gorgeous colour you have in there. »
Bad fiddled with his hands, entirely speechless. « Thank … you? » was the smartest thing he could say at the moment. He had to admit, he was beyond flustered.
« He says yes! » Sam barged in, taking the painter's attention, which later shifted onto Ant as well.
« Yeah, he's just a little timid- »
« I want to hear it from him. » Skeppy pointed towards Bad, who was still looking at anything but him. You could just see he was basically fighting with himself to find a response. « You don't have to choose right now, » the artist said then, upon noticing the discomfort. « I'll leave you my manager's contact in case you ever decide, you can just send a text, it won't be ignored. Also, please, make sure you don't leak it, thank you. »
« Oh, okay. » Bad took the slip of paper that was passed to him. « Okay, sure, will do. Sorry. »
Skeppy tilted his head to the side. « For what? »
« I don't know … probably wasting your time? »
« Mh, just had the most wildly fun time of my life, dunno what you're talking about. » he shrugged, but smiled when he saw the other perk up a little.
« You don't even know if I'll agree. »
« So what? I met the living replica of my creation, I'm beyond amazed as it is! » his attention got swayed by one of the event runners that notified him time was up. « Oh come on, can't we give them like five more minutes? » there was a shake of their head and he pouted. « Well, seems like they don't care about us having fun. It's been an absolute pleasure meeting all of you. »
« Same goes for us! » Sam was already waving along with Ant as another guard started escorting them to the exit of the panel.
Then, Bad stopped in his tracks, turned back and reached Skeppy again; he leaned forward, making sure nobody would be able to hear him when he spoke.
« Could I please know how you came up with your subject? » the look in his eyes was something akin to worry. « Just to … just to calm my doubts. I won't tell a soul. »
Skeppy thought he seemed genuinely terrified about something, so he complied, leaning in as well. « The only way for me to have ever known you or seen you before your friend's tweet would be having met you in a past life. » he lied, it was some sort of white lie, though, because part of it was sort of what was really going on. « Does that help? »
« A little … »
« Maybe I did happen to see you once and my subconscious locked in on you, who knows? But rest assured, that's as far as I can theorize. »
« So it really is just a big coincidence? »
« I'm positive it is. » Skeppy shrugged, then was glad to notice Bad's entire body relaxing. Being that close to him really was dangerous, cause gods he wanted to kiss him already. The wait was always so painful. Yet, it was funny how in his original world he had never had the guts to be as bold.
« Okay. I'll … I'll think about your offer. »
« Don't feel obligated to accept. »
Bad smiled a little and nodded, before waving him goodbye and joining the rest of his friend group.
Skeppy didn't take his eyes off of him until the next fan took his attention.
He hoped for the best.
« Ohi, wake up. » a hand was waved in front of Skeppy's face, which made the other blink rapidly.
« I am awake. » he grumbled, sipping his coffee right after.
« Yeah and you did not listen to a single word I said about you having a special guest over today. »
« I tuned you out when you said I had to tidy around. » he received a glare from his manager. « Who is it? »
« That's a secret I'll never tell. »
« Wow you are annoying sometimes. » he declared, progressively throwing his head back as he drank the last remains of coffee. He then left the mug in the sink. « When are they coming? »
« Half an hour, you better get started. »
« Eh, they know I'm an artist. »
« You can't keep using that as an excuse for having so many things lying around for no reason at all! »
He shrugged as he picked up the computer he had left on the kitchen's table the day before. « Eh, I think I can. »
His manager rolled their eyes. « Well, I ain't helping you, have fun being judged later! »
« Love you too! » he said as they stepped out of the building to carry on with their work.
The thought of eventually meeting Bad again didn't cross his mind until he noticed a familiar silhouette on the other side of the opaque glass door.
Thrilled, the door swung open and a smile was on his face in seconds.
« My manager wasn't lying when they said I was gonna have a special guest over! »
« They didn't tell you I was coming? » amusement could be found in Bad's tone, which relaxed Skeppy's doubts about him possibly being too nervous. He didn't want him to feel like he had been forced to come.
« Not really, they're a bit of a cryptid. » he stepped aside so that the other could enter.
« Alright! » Skeppy clasped his hands together before extending his arms towards him. « Gimme that. » he said as Bad handed over his jacket, but kept his bag. « Let me show you around. »
Bad thought there was no way someone could've made use of that much space, but at the same time it seemed to fit Skeppy really well.
« And this, » the artist said, opening the door to possibly the messiest room one would've ever seen. « Is my sanctuary, where the magic flows. » they both stepped in. « I find myself in this chaos, no worries. »
Somehow, that was to be expected. « So … are we just gonna start? »
Skeppy just stared at him for a second. « Oh, yeah! We can, so- » he walked to one end of the room to get a chair and place it next to a good light source, before dragging his canvas as close as he could. « You can sit there, just look at me, you don't have to keep any sort of position. »
Bad sat down. « So ... I just look at you? »
« Yeah, and if you don't want to just look at a specific spot nearby my face, just … » Skeppy had been checking he had everything he needed at hand until he looked back at Bad and stopped talking when he found the other staring right back at him.
Okay, look, the thing was, one single look from that man was already way too mesmerizing for him and now he wished he had just decided to take a picture with a very expensive and professional camera.
He kept looking between the two irises, before stepping closer. Bad's eyes still followed him; the sunlight from the windows on his side made them glow a brighter green hue and Skeppy really really wanted to capture that.
Reflexively, he put a finger under his chin to lift his head a little or move it to the side, to try and see how the colours changed according to the lighting.
Skeppy thought he really had never seen anything prettier than that.
« Okay … » he whispered, though he was convinced his breath had been taken away long before.
The way Bad kept diligently and silently staring was just way too much for him to take. Why had he come up with this idea? Why had Bad even accepted? Could DreamXD just take him already?
« Something wrong? »
« What? » really, he didn't mean for it to come out as a squeak.
« You look agitated. » Bad's tone was calm, like nothing he had seen at the convention's event.
« What do you mean? »
He shrugged. « It's your demeanour. »
« Huh? » Skeppy could barely keep up as green eyes studied him instead.
Bad got up from his seat and suddenly danger alarms sounded off in the painter's head. « We don't have to do this today. » he said as he approached him.
And got closer.
And Skeppy's heart was beating in the most abnormal way he ever felt.
« No, yes, we have to, sit down, please. » he fidgeted with the brush in his hands.
« We really don't. »
« Bad, sit down. »
« You're not even looking at me. »
« I need to concentrate and get the colour right. »
« So I distract you? »
Skeppy looked up with a frown on his face only to see the other was very obviously smirking.
« What game are you playing? »
Bad shrugged. « Just having fun. »
« You barely know me. »
« Or do I? » he asked, daringly as he took a few steps back, a mischievous smile still on his face. He waited for Skeppy's gears to turn.
« What do you … » the painter furrowed his brows, confused as to why he'd … was something off? Had he fucked up the timeline and universe, was XD pulling a prank on him? « Who are you? » his tone was accusatory. He took a painting knife he always left on his desk for emergencies and hid it behind his back.
Bad giggled, then looked at him unimpressed, almost amused. « Really, Skeppy? »
« Who are you, answer the question! »
« Last time I saw you, you were begging for me to run away with you and now you want to fight me? »
The knife clattered back onto the desk. « What? »
Bad extended his arms, presenting his hands to him, but Skeppy was too busy being shocked to notice. « It's me. »
« What? » he repeated, voice small and broken like shattered glass, tears welling up in his eyes as he seemed to curl in on himself against the desk.
Bad stepped forward, caging him in an embrace, slowly but firmly letting the other know that yes, this was real and he could let go just a little.
It took only a moment for Skeppy to wholly break down, gripping his friend's shirt tightly as he hid his face in his chest. Bad made sure to hold him just as close, pressing comforting kisses on his hair and giving soft caresses on his back.
They spent an incredible amount of time simply holding each other, finding that to be the most fitting thing to do.
« Tell me you love me? »
Bad finally leaned back, cupping his cheeks as he gazed into his puffy red eyes. « I love you. » he whispered, placing a kiss on his forehead.
It took a whole minute before Skeppy opened his eyes after that.
« I thought- I thought XD said I'd have to wait so long before I'd see you again. »
« Well, how long has it been? »
« Months …? »
« That's a long while. » Bad commented, brushing his thumbs against the other's cheeks.
« Is it true that you've been travelling between worlds too? »
He tilted his head to the side. « What? No, I'm still in our- » he stopped when he noticed Skeppy's confusion. « I'm dreaming right now, Skeppy. XD visits my sleep often … gives me nightmares mostly, » he frowned. « But it warped the dream's dimension once to let me into the universe you were in. I think it's the case for this too. »
« That bastard. » Skeppy untangled himself only to pace around the room. « I should've thought twice before trusting their every word. »
Bad followed him around like a little lost duck. « I know, but just play by its game. It's the safest option. » he reached out for his hand. « I don't want you being in danger. »
The other turned around at that, a smug expression on his face. « Wouldn't you rescue me? »
Bad rolled his eyes to the ceiling. « If it were within my realm, sure, of course, but if XD chucks you into the End's void and watches as you keep falling down with nowhere I could get to because no matter how hard you try to escape your predicament, they keep extending the dimension so I never catch up to you … no, I don't think so! »
Skeppy blinked at him slowly. « That sounds … sounds like you're talking from experience. »
His friend nodded and then shook his head right after theatrically. « You don't wanna know. »
The two started catching up after that, Skeppy informed him about how DreamXD was letting him see Bad without being able to reunite completely - which was the current case -, then Bad told him how things were in their world, how their friends were missing him terribly as well. Of course, Bad had it worse out of all of them, but those little moment XD gifted him were more than enough for the time being.
Skeppy left out the detail about what had happened in the previous universe.
« One of the constants next to you are also Sam and Ant, to be fair. »
Bad smiled at the notion. « Really? »
« Yeah! They're always friends with you in one way or another, the four of us always find each other. »
« Aww, I'm gonna tell them. I think they'll break into a crying fit. »
Skeppy snorted out a laugh, seemed fair that the smallest cute thing would be enough to shatter their friends' highly emotional states. « Tell them I'm actually always looking for them too, so that they don't get jealous. »
« Mh, but are you really? »
« Course not, just you, love. » he had no idea where all that boldness had come from, but he would be lying if he said he didn't enjoy the flustered reaction he got out of the other.
« Well- you better be, I'm your favourite. »
« Never said that. »
« I am, though! »
« When did I say that? »
Bad looked up at the ceiling and cupped his hands around his mouth. « Alright, XD, I'm ready to come back! »
« NO, NO, NO, WAIT- »
« I'm good down here, ready to leave for a couple more years! »
« NO, I'M SORRY, I'M SORRY, YOU'RE MY FAVOURITE IT'S TRUE, YOU'RE COMPLETELY RIGHT, I'M SORRY! »
He looked back down, face contorted in a “told you so” expression. « You said it, not me. »
« Ugh, fuck off- »
« Hey! »
« -you used my emotions against myself. »
« Still worked. »
« You're a monster. »
« Tell me something I didn't hear already. »
Skeppy frowned at that. « Who told you that? »
Bad looked him in the eyes with a half amused expression, before gently patting his head. « I'm an ancient demonic being, you don't think anyone would ever tell me that in my centuries of existence? »
« You look pretty human to me. » Skeppy shrugged and the other let out a soft laugh. « And also, I'm very sure demon you is just as mesmerizing as you are right now. »
Bad looked away, mumbling. « You're just saying that. »
« Nah, I know that. »
He smiled a little, still not daring to lift his eyes as a hand found his.
I know that, because I fell in love with each and every part of you, how hard is it for you to notice that?
Just as hard as it was for him to say that in the first place.
Skeppy could've simply stood up from his chair and kissed him right then and there. Yet, he persisted on keeping himself away from him, the same way XD was doing.
He couldn't understand why it was so much different compared to any other universe.
Their hands shifted and now it was Bad who was gripping his tightly. « Skeppy, I … » he hesitated, looking for the right words as the other dedicated his entire attention to him.
The latter didn't know why he was expecting something else when Bad looked up with a doleful glance. « I think I have to go. »
« You have to? » Skeppy asked in a small voice, as if he could've prevented that.
His friend nodded and an incessant ticking of a clock started becoming louder with each passing second.
Skeppy closed his eyes and intook some breath to speak, but the moment he looked ahead of himself again, there was no one left to listen to him.
Then, he heard his doorbell ring.
His manager stood next to, again, Bad as they revealed the special guest was indeed going to be him. The sheepish greeting that was given to him by the boy confirmed to Skeppy that this time, there were no more of XD's tricks.
When it was finally only the two of them standing in front of each other, he abruptly caught the other in a hug, which was very slowly and very uncomfortably returned.
« Sorry, I- that was a little too touchy, should've asked. »
« No, well, yeah … » noticing how Skeppy refused to look up from the ground, Bad tilted his head to the side. « Everything okay? If I can ask. »
« Oh, you're allowed to ask, yes, well, uh … how to put this. I've been missing my old friends, that's all. » the painter let out a soft laugh and shrugged, looking up again. « My body acted before my brain and sought comfort. »
« Ah I see … that's okay. I found that distractions work well for me? »
« Mh, what do you mean? »
« Like, if you're having a hard time, you distract yourself? It's kinda like repressing, though. Not sure it's healthy. »
He laughed again. « We can try that, then. » he then let Bad in, finally closing the door behind him. « We can skip the house tour honestly, it's kind of boring. You don't wanna see that. »
« Okay. »
He then led him towards the painting room which felt still horribly like there was Bad from a few moments prior. Skeppy lingered on the doorway, before turning around. « Know what? Let's try something new. » he gathered his tools and, helped by his new friend, they set their painting spot outside in the private garden – god forbid any passerby ever saw them in the front one.
« En plein air! » Skeppy gestured towards their surroundings with a polite smile.
« That's … Spanish right? »
« … it's French. »
« Right, I knew that! »
He glared at him, amused. « Of course you did. »
« I'm sorry you don't understand my great sense of humour. »
« Ah, so your great sense of humour would be just saying things wrong? »
« Yeah! »
« You really are someone. »
Bad furrowed his brows in confusion. « Well, I hope I am. » he said, and then sat down on a chair they had brought outside from the kitchen. He wasn't sure whether it would've been appropriate to bring white furniture on mildly wet grass, but he complied.
Skeppy was glad about the other's nervousness and pretty visible embarrassment and avoidance of eye-contact, because if he had to handle him staring back he thought he was going to explode.
« What convinced you to come? Was it your friends? »
« I'd be lying if I said they didn't push me to it a little bit. But also, it would've been crazy if I didn't accept. I mean, how many times could've this happened to me? »
« Many, cause I wouldn't have let it go. » he joked, letting the other relax in it.
« Also, if I ever go anywhere with art as well, having met you would probably have a good impact on my resume now, wouldn't it? »
« Oh, dude, let me know, I'll recommend you to the greatest places. »
Bad put his hands in front of his chest. « Woah, slow down, there. » he chuckled. « I'm not gonna have money for that. »
« Ah yeah, education … maybe with scholarships? »
« The scholarship for kinda knowing Skeppy and having talked maybe three times. »
Skeppy took a step back to giggle. « They should make it real! »
It was unsurprising how easily the two fell into comfortable conversation. Skeppy had never really worried about that, he knew they were going to click one way or another; needless to say, the study was quickly forgotten once he had gotten a hang of the right colour he wanted to go for and the two ended up simply chatting outside.
« Look, come here. »
« No, are you insane! »
« Come on, it's not like I need to publish this or send it off to the freaking British Museum. » he offered Bad a hand which the other gladly took after rolling his eyes.
Once to his feet, the latter joined the painter in front of the canvas, before the other handed him a brush. « Go. »
« Go what? What do I even do? »
« Anything! »
« This is not funny. » Bad sighed, before picking a colour and attempting at some random stripes as the other watched him like a proud parent would. Eventually, some sort of blue cube was painted underneath Skeppy's previous tries.
« What's that? »
« Dunno. » Bad shrugged. « Cube. »
« The tesseract. »
He snorted out a laugh. « Could be. »
« Hang on. » Skeppy made to take the brush, but the other backed away abruptly.
« Wait! Wait, » he approached the canvas again, changing colours and drawing something else on top of the cube. Two pitch black dots.
« Are those … eyes? » Skeppy thought it looked awfully similar to the box he used to cover his head in one of his universes. What the fuck.
« Yeah, that's … » Bad tapped on his chin to figure out something, before he looked towards his new friend, a grin growing on his face. « You. »
What the fuck.
« Wow, that's not nice. »
« Don't you like blue? »
« I'm not a blue cube! »
« I think you'd make a fantastic blue cube. »
« See, now you're just bullying me. » Skeppy took the brush from the giggly boy, before drawing a little shape himself.
« Ah, so I am a black triangle. »
« I'm not finished. » a few red stripes were added, plus two white dots for eyes and equally black horns. « That's you. »
« Aw … that's actually kinda nice, thank you. »
If only you knew, the other thought, shaking his head in amusement as the other cooed at the cute doodle. « Somehow, I knew you'd like demons, but … » he added a small halo around the little drawing's head. « You're nice. »
« Oh, that's so cute … »
« It's yours! Your little creature to play with now. »
« Aw, what's its name? »
« Bad! »
The other looked at him perplexed. « But that. That's my name. »
« Yeah! »
« Alright, » he said, before the two couldn't keep up the act anymore and simply burst out laughing together.
The day passed by eventfully and very quickly they found each other in front of the very same door where they met a few hours prior.
« Honestly, we should do this again. »
« Yeah, I had fun! » Bad smiled brightly and it was possibly everything Skeppy needed for the rest of his life. « Maybe next time we can go out and you can wear a blue box on your head. »
« Can be arranged. » the other agreed, nodding theatrically.
Bad didn't stop smiling as he gazed into his eyes, before tentatively opening his arms in a silent invitation for a hug. What the painter had confessed him as he had greeted him that morning still rang in his head.
Skeppy took it gladly, wrapping his arms around his chest. « Be back soon. » he half whispered against his shoulder.
« Will try to. » the other promised.
And just like that, months kept passing in function of Skeppy waiting up on Bad to come back. There wasn't really anything else he was looking forward to, sometimes even neglecting his needs because goodness, they were meeting again in a week! And his mind couldn't stop thinking about it or do anything else but wait.
DreamXD seemed to be getting bored out of that, because Skeppy started hearing the clocks ticking way louder than usual and the god seemed to be giving some teasing pulls here and there, an obvious warning to make his behaviour less obsessive, or else it was going to take measures.
« I know it's sudden … but I was thinking … » Skeppy was chilling on the couch as Bad scrolled through sites in search of references and inspiration. His skills in digital art had improved greatly and the two often had drawing sessions together. « I might go on a very long personal journey. I don't know when I could come back. »
Now that caught Bad's attention as he whipped his head towards him. « You're leaving? » his tone sounded hurt and Skeppy wished anything about the situation had been in his control.
« It's something I was always bound to do … just disappear for a while before the fame made me go insane. Maybe people will start forgetting about me a little. Maybe I could come back less important and be treated as a person rather than an idol again. »
« Oh. »
« I'm sorry. It's not completely under my control. »
« Can I know where you're going? »
« No, I can't see anyone. » he shrugged, trying to come up with details on the spot. « No contacts. Just me. »
« Okay. » but the way Bad said it reminded them that it really wasn't okay.
Skeppy sat up and slid right next to his friend. « I want you to take my place. »
« Wha-? »
« You're the only person I trust to make good use of everything I leave behind. Promise you'll make something out of it, just use it, make an entire studio to help other beginner artists out of this house, I don't care, just take everything. »
« Are you- are you sure that's not too much? »
Skeppy took one of Bad's hands in his own. « I don't know how long I'll be … » he paused. « So just take it. If I come back, I'll just join you. »
« If? What do you mean “if”? »
He grimaced. « Bad, »
« No, what do you mean?! » Bad leaned forward. « Look at me. » he demanded, but it was in that soft tone that hinted his voice was about to break.
Skeppy couldn't help but comply and got lost immediately.
His hands went to cup his cheeks instead, brushing the skin there comfortingly as Bad's eyes welled up with tears.
« Just- Just tell me. »
« I can't, I'm sorry. » he whispered back, still studying him like the first time.
The ticking became incessant.
Skeppy tilted his head a bit and leaned forward, pressing a feather light kiss onto his lips, gentle enough for it to be almost inexistent. Leaning back to look back at him, he saw the same sombre expression of a few moments earlier. He wished he could've easily kissed it away.
« You'll always have a part of me with you, » he said, lacing his arms around his neck now. « I promise. »
And it was true, because each time he left a place, part of himself was lost in there, bit by bit and piece by piece, he'd leave behind something for it not to hurt too much.
The last thing he remembered of that universe was lying down with him, eventually falling asleep in each other's arms, impossibly close. Skeppy remembered the comforting beating of Bad's heart becoming one with the ticking of the clock in his head, until the warmth of his body became the heaviness of the portal claiming him back to DreamXD's room.
They shared no words upon seeing each other again. Skeppy wanted to remember more … but he had forgotten all details of his meeting with his original Bad. Everything had started slurring together the longer he spent in a single specific universe, his life, jumbled, just kept … it was messed up.
His surroundings kept changing and Skeppy could barely keep up.
DreamXD was really curious to see what was going to happen once the universe hopper would fail to persevere.