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Impulse and Bdubs's house went up in flames as Joel and Etho cackled.
It was a harmless prank, really.
Bdubs didn't quite agree.
"Hey! Hey! You two! Come back here right now!"
But Etho and Joel were long gone, running towards the woods and failing in their attempts to stifle their laughter.
"Come back here!" Impulse yelled at them, and the new knowledge that they were being followed only made the pair laugh harder in pure glee.
They ran through the woods, dodging trees and jumping over forgotten crafting benches and avoiding ravines and smiling in delight through it all as Impulse uselessly followed after them.
"I can still smell the fire," Etho commented with a grin. Joel laughed harder.
From behind them, their chaser interjected. "Shut up, both of you!"
It really didn't help their case. Etho and Joel were too busy having the time of their lives to care.
"So long, idiot," Joel called behind them, snatching Etho's hand and suddenly pulling him to the right, away from the straight path they had previously been following.
They continued running anyway, fully aware that Impulse had long since been left behind. They just continued running, pulling each other by the hand wherever they felt like. And they laughed.
They stopped nowhere special, when they could barely breathe anymore due to the physical strain of running and laughing simultaneously. They let go of each other's hands and all but fell into two neighboring trees.
They were both heaving and barely able to stand up straight anymore, but they were elated.
Etho looked at Joel, and the only word that could describe him was beaming. His eyes shone, clear joy written all over his features, and he was smiling as though hiding his euphoria would be a crime.
Idly, Etho thought it was wonderful.
"You're staring," Joel said. He was still smiling and out of breath, and teasing his soulmate was too good of an opportunity to pass. "What? You wanna kiss me or something?"
Etho barked out a laugh at the unexpected comment. He raised his eyebrows, then, and asked, "Why? Do you like that thought?"
Joel shook his head at him, amused. "Yeah, sure," he mocked. "Every single day of my life, I dream about it." He snickered. Then he glared, though it was anything but genuine. "You're the one who was staring."
"Well," the corners of Etho's lips quirked up, "you are the one who brought it up."
Joel spluttered. "You were the one who was being weird!"
"Oh, I was being weird?" Etho pointed at himself. "You put an unneeded mental image of us kissing in my brain!"
"Oh so now you're thinking of us kissing. And you say you're not being weird."
Etho shook his head with a smile. "You are insufferable."
"And you are thinking about us kissing."
"There, see! You brought it up again! I'm not trying to say anything here, but it really looks like you want me to kiss you." He held up his hands and shrugged. A mocking smile escaped him.
"That I want you to–?" Joel parroted back in disbelief. "What do you mean? You sound like you want to kiss me!"
"Ah, no, no, that's what I said. You still sound like you're trying to get me to kiss you."
"No!" Joel straightened up from the tree he had been leaning into. "And besides, you keep saying that you would be the one to kiss me, but that's just not how it would go. I'm not a wimp. Obviously I would be the one to kiss you, if I wanted to kiss you."
"Oh, is that so?" Etho looked thoroughly amused. It was downright offensive for Joel.
He turned defensive. "Yeah! But I just don't want to, so that's why I'm not doing it. That's all! But if I wanted to, I would definitely be the one to do it."
Etho had the audacity to laugh.
"No you wouldn't. It would be me, obviously." He straightened up from where he was slouching as well. He shot Joel a sly smile. "And you know that."
Joel scowled at him. "No it wouldn't. You're—unlike me—a coward. I am tall and strong and brave, so it would obviously be me."
"You barely reach my shoulder."
"I'm tall," Joel repeated. "It would very clearly be me."
"Aha. No. You're tiny." Etho smiled down at him. "Yeah, no way. You know it would be me."
"Thing is, Etho, that you're not as tall and strong and brave as I am, so it couldn't be you. That's alright, though, because I am tall and strong and brave enough for the both of us. You don't have to feel ashamed, it's okay that you're a wimp and that you–"
Oh.
Etho was kissing him.
Etho had stepped forward, grabbed him by the jaw, and he had shut him up.
Etho was kissing him and Joel found that he didn't quite mind.
"You bastard," Joel said, and immediately went back to kissing him.
It was not unlike a competition. It certainly felt like one for both of them.
They both wanted control, both wanted to show the other one that they held the power. Who would they be if they didn't put up a fight?
It was exhilarating.
It might've been a stupid decision, what with the literal death game going on around them, but Joel found concern far from his mind as Etho pushed him against a tree.
Joel broke apart for a second. "You're a bastard, did you know that?"
Etho laughed, but it was cut short by Joel fisting the mask now around his neck and pulling. He took the lead.
He decided he liked the mask there better.
Joel let a petty smile show. They were now even.
They had definitely not expected any of this to happen when they set out to "accidentally" drop a flint and steel at Impulse and Bdubs's base, though they were definitely not complaining.
In fact, one could argue that they quite enjoyed it, actually, judging by their pleased and smug expressions the next time they were seen. And their swollen lips, too.
Not that they'd admit it, anyway.