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“how many freckles do you have?”
gillion’s question is quite out of the blue, startling chip out of his zoning. it’d been a lazy day, the sun now setting over the ocean as the albatross—cough, millennium chipper—drifts easily on the waves.
“what?” chip turns his head, tearing his gaze away from the soft waves of the sea.
“how many freckles do you have?” gillion repeats, blue eyes locked on the bridge of chip’s nose.
“wh— how am i supposed to know that?” chip asks, raising an eyebrow and turning his gaze back toward the sea.
“well, they’re on you, i thought you would know....” gillion seems to tense in chip’s peripheral vision, hands that were at their sides now nervously fiddling with each other.
“i don’t think to count them.” chip shifts his hair away from his face, rubbing his eyes with his other hand, turning his head back to face his co-captain and opening his eyes to meet gillion’s gaze. the triton’s icy blue eyes are downcast, now, looking nearly....ashamed.
chip sighs, pushing himself off the deck rail. “but why’d you wanna know?”
gillion’s head nearly snaps up, face ever so slightly more blue than usual. “it’s....no reason. it does not matter.”
chip wets his lips, cocking an eyebrow once more before turning back to the sunset.
“it’s pretty, isn’t it?” he says, half to himself, half to gillion.
“yes....yes, it is.” gillion’s voice sounds almost wistful as chip flicks his gaze, briefly, back to them. they're standing facing the sunset, but their eyes are still on chip's face, skimming around, mouth moving ever so slightly.
"you're trying to count them, aren't you?" chip smiles, watching as gillion seems to pause for a second, then continue their counting. chip exhales fondly, shifting himself so gillion can get a better view of all his freckles. the triton's mouth turns up in a slight smile, then drops into a frown.
"i lost count," gillion huffs, clearly disappointed.
"that's okay, bud, take your time," chip says with a smile.
a brief moment of silence falls over the two again as gillion seems to pick their counting up again, but they abruptly stop.
"i think you are right, chip, i believe i cannot count them all," they say, a small frown crossing their lips again. chip stares at them for a moment, watching to see if they'd start again, when a small snort escapes him. gillion's eyes flick up to chip's as chip breaks out in laughter, nearly giggling.
"what's so funny?" gillion asks, expression confused as chip collects himself.
"you."
gillion's face all but flushes, a look of almost surprise crossing their face.
"and i mean that in the best way possible, gill, trust me." chip takes a step closer to gillion, noticing how the nearly fiery orange glow of the sunset catches the seaweed green curls of their hair, nearly wrapping their head in a halo of light. they looked almost.... ethereal in the light. truly one of the gods' picking, something so wonderful he could never keep for himself, someone who he wants —
"-chip, chip, are you alright?" gillion's voice seems to slice through his thoughts, bringing him back to his senses.
"yeah, yeah, i'm fine." chip shakes his head, trying to bring his thoughts back into place.
"are you sure? your gaze seemed very far off...." gillion asks, voice laced with concern.
chip promptly waves them off. "i'm fine, gill, just...." he exhales softly. "looking at you."
"at....me....?" gillion seems to tense.
"at you." chip gives them a warm smile, taking another step closer to the triton. "you're wonderful, you know that, tidestrider?"
gillion's mouth opens slightly, but curls into a soft smile. "not as wonderful as you."
chip's eyebrows fly up, a small exhale of a laugh slipping from him. "explain?"
"these freckles....it's almost like you were blessed by the moon goddess herself. she gave you a group of stars and placed them upon your face, creating new constellations of your own making." gillion's voice is as quiet as they can make it, soft and intimate as they bring a hand to chip's face, cupping his cheek and running a thumb across the bone under his eye.
"i've got more than just the ones on my face, y'know," chip notes, a smile crossing his face. "got them on my shoulders and my back and my legs and pretty much everywhere."
gillion's eyes light up in excitement, softening as they gently place a hand on chip's side. "then she gave you the whole sky for your whole body. you may say the gods do not care about you, chip, but they truly must if you've been given your own map of the stars."
chip laughs softly, resting his own hands atop each of gillion's. "i guess they do, then. if the champion of the undersea, hero of the deep says so." his tone is light, teasing, and pulls a laugh out of gillion, who rests their forehead against chip's own.
"chip, may i...." gillion begins, but trails off, biting the inside of their mouth.
"hmm?" chip hums, entwining his fingers with the hand gillion has on his side, nearly subconsciously.
gillion swallows. "may i kiss you?"
chip's head whips up, startling gillion, who ends up hitting their forehead against chip's.
"shit, sorry, sorry, dude, are you okay?" chip frets, eyes scanning gillion's face for any sort of damage.
"i am fine, no worries." gillion smiles, slightly uneasily. "are you?"
"yeah, yeah, i'm fine, dude." chip exhales with a smile."
gillion nods, wetting their lips, body tense again. "so is that a no?"
chip's eyes widen. "wh— gill, what— hey, hey, i was just surprised, that's all!" chip brings a hand up to gillion's own face, cupping their cheek the same way they had to him.
"how's this for an answer?"
chip unwraps his other hand from gillion's, snaking it around their waist and pulling them close. he gently presses his lips to gillion's, feeling as the tension in their body melts as they return the kiss. they taste like seawater and fish, but chip couldn't care less. in this moment, it was the best thing he'd ever tasted.
they break apart after a moment, the sun's final streaks of light barely illuminating the deck now.
"....thank you." gillion says softly, a smile on their lips.
"anytime, gill." chip smiles back, but his cheeks flush when he realizes what his words imply.
"anytime?" gillion teases, promptly kissing the tip of chip's nose in response. "i think i'd like that."
"i....i think i would, too." chip's mouth widens into a grin, face pink.
"so be it." gillion smiles back at chip, bringing their lips together once more.