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Bonnie and Freddy had been best friends since their freshman year of high school. They’d recently graduated, and ultimately ended up going to the same college. Freddy was a business major and Bonnie had settled on majoring in art. He hadn’t really been sure about what he’d wanted to do with his life, but art seemed like a safe option. The only downside was the unforgiving criticism from the teachers. Logically, he knew it was simply their job to be brutally honest and he knew what he was signing up for. However, it did end up frustrating him sometimes when he spent hours on a piece only to have it ripped apart by his professor.
Freddy was good comfort when that happened. He and Bonnie shared a dorm as well and he reassured Bonnie that his work was great, but the professor’s information could make it even better. Bonnie made his roommate artwork quite often and Freddy kept all of them displayed right above his desk in their dorm.
He loved sharing a dorm with the bear. And, while he’d always found his best friend rather attractive, there wasn’t anything beyond that. Or so he thought. That all changed when they began living together. All of Freddy’s positive traits seemed amplified now that they shared a living space. He was kind, considerate, and he always knew just what to say to make Bonnie’s day so much brighter. At first, it wasn’t an issue. Just a few comments that made Bonnie’s face feel a bit hot and his heart flutter. But it kept getting worse.
Every little action made Bonnie feel lighter. The way Fredy laughed. The glassy, sleepy way his blue eyes shimmered in the early hours of the morning. How he always knew just what to say, for some reason. He made Bonnie feel safe. Safer than anyone else ever had before.
Bonnie had fallen in love with him. It was beautiful and terrifying all the same, because he was certain his best friend didn’t feel the same way. Not in the slightest. And he didn’t want to start hacking up flowers– he knew that Hanahaki disease was real. His aunt had started coughing flowers and eventually, it took her life. He knew the risks. He was terrified of it happening to him. Especially because he and Freddy lived together. Freddy would find out so quickly and would want to help him win whoever it was that was affecting him over– then what? Bonnie couldn’t invent a person.
So, he’d just have to keep it a secret if it happened. He crossed his fingers that it wouldn’t. He didn’t want to die because he got choked up on some damn plants. He just wanted to ignore his feelings and hope that they go away.
Everything was okay for a while. Until he woke up in the middle of the night with a wretched itching in his throat and an undeniable cough. He scampered out of bed and attempted to rush to the bathroom, accidentally hitting his elbow on the frame of he and Freddy’s bedroom door. He tried to spit out a curse out of pain, but he began coughing uncontrollably. He doubled over on the floor, desperate to soothe the rising agony in his throat. Each cough burned and scratched at his insides, until something came out.
One petal. It was followed by a bit of blood, but its figure was undeniable. It appeared to be a petal from a lilly– Bonnie’s brother was plant obsessed and the rabbit knew a thing or two about his flowers.
He stared at it blankly as he began breathing heavily. His stomach twisted and turned with absolute dread and his chest rose and fell rapidly. Bonnie’s panic was short lived as he began coughing again, another bout of petals coming from his throat with a horrible, strangled sound. After he’d managed to get about four or five out, it ceased. He shook his head and muttered curses over and over again, sweeping up the petals and quickly disposing of them. He finally found himself in the bathroom, looking at his reflection with teary eyes. He lifted a hand to his muzzle, wiping the stray blood from his purple fur and washing his hands shakily. Bonnie was arguably terrified. The light in the bathroom seemed too bright. Every little noise in their dorm was too loud. It was getting hard to stand– he was completely petrified.
With a nervous sigh, he gripped the bathroom counter. He couldn’t afford surgery to rid of this condition. Not with the combined expenses of his student loans– but what other choice did he have? Freddy would never want him. He wondered how long he could stall it.
“Bon? You good in there? I heard you coughing up a storm,” Freddy asked from outside the bathroom door, voice dazed with exhaustion. “Don’t tell me you’re sick. I can’t be getting sick too now– I’m just joking with you. But seriously, what’s up?”
“I’m fine,” the rabbit replied hoarsely, clearing his voice to try and sound more confident. “Just have a cough. Maybe I’ve got a cold or something.”
“Alright. Let me know if you need anything. I’m gonna head back to bed,” Freddy shrugged, not sounding completely convinced. Bonnie would take his submission nonetheless. He sighed with relief, rubbing his temple. He was so, so fucked. How was he gonna hide this? It was only gonna get worse.
He didn’t have time to process it all. He just stumbled back to he and Freddy’s room, crawling into his bed and tugging the covers over his head. He was successfully hidden, allowing him to be alone with his thoughts. Would this be what killed him? Would Freddy somehow find out and not want to be around him anymore? Each morbid thought made his throat feel itchy all over again. He just needed to fall asleep and forget about all of this. It would raise Freddy’s suspicions even further if the bear caught Bonnie up coughing once again.
Somehow, by the grace of whatever higher power, Bonnie was able to drift off into a rather fretful sleep. Sure, it was terrifying and filled with nightmares laced with flowers, but it was sleep nonetheless.
Classes got hard to manage. He spent a lot of time hiding in the bathroom stalls vomiting flowers. They increased in size and intensity until he was constantly in pain. Breathing was becoming more and more difficult. Freddy was still clueless– Bonnie had no idea how he was getting away with this. A few of his classmates had noticed but didn’t mention it to him. His friend Foxy would just rub circles into his back while he threw up almost entire flowers– they were only missing the stem now. It would take several minutes to get the heads out and it was the most painful thing he’d ever experienced. Mass amounts of blood would follow the flora. Every day was agony. He couldn’t keep living like this– literally. He would be dead if he didn’t do anything about it. It’d progressed so quickly. It went from a few loose petals to entire plants in such a short amount of time.
Foxy had been scolding him for it profusely, warning Bonnie that he would confront Freddy himself if the bunny didn’t attempt to confess. Bonnie reassured him that everything was okay and that he’d handle it soon.
He wouldn’t. He knew very well he wasn’t going to tell Freddy. How was possible embarrassment worse than death–? Bonnie wasn’t sure he could answer that. He was just so scared to lose their friendship.
It got worse when he was in their dorm. Sharing any moment with Freddy ended up in violent upheaval of flowers. Freddy was getting more and more concerned, pleading with Bonnie to give him some insight as to what was happening. Bonnie kept everything private. He began avoiding Freddy, which also didn’t help. His heart longed to be close but his lungs begged to be as far as possible. He was constantly wheezing. He couldn’t walk far without an intense struggle to catch his breath. He was going to die.
He was curled up on his bed, unable to do anything but lay. It hurt to move. It hurt to breathe. It hurt to even exist. Freddy was home, staring across their bedroom at Bonnie with a perplexed look on his face. He had caught ear of Bonnie’s wheezing and coughing once again.
“Something’s up with you. I know it. Please, tell me,” Freddy pleaded from across the room. Bonnie let out a few coughs, quickly gathering the petals in his palms. He rasped out a response, worried that it wasn’t even coherent.
“I’m fine,” Bonnie muttered. His statement was followed by more and more flowers. Was it his punishment for lying?
He never wanted to see flowers again. He wanted to reach his hands down his own throat and pull that god forsaken plant out. He just wanted to feel normal again. Would he ever? Should he just be honest?
“Dude, I know you. You used to love to go walking and shit and now you barely even go to class. Every time I see you, you’re just coughing and choking. It’s not just a cold, Bon. It’s been months. I know you better than you think I do,” Freddy replied swiftly, voice laced with frustration. Was he mad at Bonnie? That couldn’t be good. Bonnie’s oversized ears fell limp against his head and his heart began racing. He sat up, facing Freddy with a nervous expression.
“I– I’m okay. Everything’s okay. I’ll go to the doctor or something if— if that— if that would make you feel better,” he stammered, trying to fight off the urge to hack up more flowers. Freddy didn’t look pleased with his response. Not in the slightest.
“Can you please stop lying to me? I’m not stupid. I know you’ve got something wrong with you and you know it too. I’m your best friend, right? So just, be honest. Please,” Freddy frowned, rounded ears twitching with displeasure. Bonnie inhaled sharply– or at least he attempted to. His attempt was followed by violent coughing and he whipped his head around to catch the flowers in his hand. He was so, so scared. He didn’t want Freddy to be angry. He needed to tell him. But how could he? “Bonnie!”
“I’m– I’m sorry, I can’t tell you,” the bunny cried, still facing the other way. He spoke through his wheezing and struggled to contain all of the petals in his hands. “Just– just trust me, please–”
“How? You’re not okay! Something’s really wrong and you won’t tell me and you’re scaring the shit out of me!” Freddy began yelling– not voluntarily. Bonnie could tell he was just genuinely worried for his roommate. That was all he would ever be. A friend. Freddy didn’t love him as deeply as Bonnie loved him. The very thought made more flora and blood rise in his throat. He couldn’t hold his body up anymore, falling limp on the bed as the flowers spilled out of his mouth. He could only taste blood. “Bonnie! Dude, are you okay?”
Freddy rushed across the room, turning Bonnie over on his bed and cupping his face. Bonnie was sobbing, terrified and panicked by his sudden inability to breathe. He felt like he was being strangled from the inside of his body. Is this what it felt like to drown? Was he gonna die right here in front of the person he loved more than anything? What the fuck was going to happen to him?
“Bon, holy shit,” Freddy gasped, picking him up off the bed and flipping him over. He crawled onto the bed and squeezed Bonnie’s middle in an attempt to rid his body of the current flowers. He didn’t comment on the plants oozing from Bonnie’s mouth. He just wanted to help. Bonnie was so, so grateful. With each grasp, he felt his throat ease off some of the pressure. “Deep breaths, don’t– don’t hyperventilate, just keep it steady,” Freddy whispered, moving one hand to card his fingers through Bonnie’s head fluff. His touch made it worse. He began retching up more and more flowers– this was it, wasn’t it? Freddy’s attempts to help went from positive to disastrous. It kept getting more and more intense–
“Why is it– Bon, you need a doctor– why is this happening? Who’s making it happen?” Freddy gasped out, still trying to squeeze the flowers out of Bonnie. “Why didn’t you tell me? I could’ve– I could’ve helped–”
“You idiot,” Bonnie rasped out between his retching. “Oh, Freddy, you idiot–”
“Wh– What do you mean? I’m gonna call 911, I can’t sit here and let you choke to death on your own feelings,” Freddy whispered, not having any of Bonnie’s replies. He hugged his middle one more time before getting his cellphone from his sweatpants pocket.
“No, it’s– it’s you, it’s always been you,” Bonnie mewled, his voice barely audible from how hoarse it’d become. “I was– was too scared–”
Freddy froze in place, eyes widening. He stared at Bonnie with an unreadable expression before flipping the rabbit back over quickly, cupping his face delicately. He wiped Bonnie’s mouth free of the blood and gazed at him for a few more moments, as if he was hesitant to proceed with what he was going to do. Bonnie was getting weak. Why wasn’t Freddy calling the authorities? What the fuck was he doing?
He leaned in close before pulling Bonnie up even further. To Bonnie’s utter shock, he pressed his muzzle against Bonnie’s and kissed him. Bonnie had to process that it wasn’t his delirious, oxygen deprived brain making it up. They sat there for a bit, neither of them daring to move. Bonnie didn’t know exactly how he was even going to move. The rest of these flowers had to come out somehow. What now?
Freddy pulled back, staring down into Bonnie’s eyes lovingly before turning him back over a final time. He hugged Bonnie’s stomach once again, resting his head against the bun’s neck.
“You gotta get the rest out now, Bon,” Freddy mumbled, clutching the rabbit’s middle everytime he coughed. Bonnie was sobbing as he desperately tried to rid his lungs of the plant growing inside. The choked noises he made were horrific to hear, but Freddy kept attempting to help clear out his breathing. Flowers just kept pouring out and he was losing a concerning amount of blood. Freddy hummed and rubbed his muzzle against Bonnie’s cheek wordlessly.
This went on for about half an hour until a considerably high pile of flowers had formed beside Bonnie’s bed. Most of them were covered in blood, the others simply stained with droplets. Once they were gone, Bonnie sat in Freddy’s arms and took his first breath of fresh air in a long, long time. He sat up, relaxing his body against the bear’s and sniffling.
It was over. He blinked a few stray tears out of his eyes and laughed half-heartedly. Nothing was funny, it was just… a relief.
“Well, that scared the shit out of me,” Freddy stated bluntly, moving his hands to Bonnie’s waist and kneading it soothingly. Bonnie’s chest was still rising and falling rapidly– he was equally, if not more, terrified.
“You could say that again,” the bunny sighed, falling limp in Freddy’s arms.
“I wish you’d said something sooner, Bon. I could’ve saved you so much pain,” Freddy murmured, muzzle pressing close to the rabbit’s. “But I’m glad you’re okay now. I was so worried about you.”
“Aw, how sweet,” Bonnie giggled weakly, his body still sore from the events of the past few months. “I regret that. Shit, it hurts.”
“Take it east. You just threw up an entire garden onto our bedroom floor. How long has this been happening? Since I found you coughing that night?” Freddy questioned, moving back further on Bonnie’s bed and laying down. The rabbit quickly positioned to lay beside him, making intense eye contact with his roommate. Bonnie meekly nodded, seeming a bit embarrassed. Freddy raised a paw to his cheek and scratched it affectionately. “I’m so happy that you’re alright. I’ve loved you for so long, Bonnie. I was scared that I’d be the one vomiting flowers,” he laughed, still stroking the rabbit’s cheek.
“That makes me feel a little silly,” Bonnie bashfully huffed, coughing through his words. Freddy shook his head.
“Nonsense, bunbun. I didn’t know either,” Freddy smiled, kissing Bonnie on the nose. “How– How bad was it? Before tonight, that is.”
“Awful. I couldn’t breathe, like, ever,” Bonnie groaned, weakly moving closer to Freddy. The bear grabbed Bonnie and pulled him onto his chest, firm hands resting in the small of his back. Bonnie tried to purr, but it was too hard following his most recent health condition. “I’m just happy it’s over.”
“You should’ve told me. You know, it’s kind of like one of those fairytales when the prince kisses the princess and she lives or something. Except– except those were always really weird. Who kisses an unconscious person? And why were they always okay with it?” Freddy began rambling, a bit puzzled by this rather random conversation. Bonnie found it incredibly endearing. He laughed softly, the best he could manage.
“Does this mean I get to be your princess?” Bonnie giggled, nuzzling Freddy’s neck.
“Ew. That sounds weird. We can be together but I’m not calling you princess,” the bear huffed, flicking a rounded ear.
“I was just joking,” Bonnie rolled his eyes playfully. “I’m exhausted. I’m glad to be sleeping right here, though. You’re comfy,” the rabbit gushed, tense muscles relaxing slowly but surely. Everything seemed to finally be okay.
“Who said you get to sleep on me?” Freddy quirked an eyebrow, staring down at Bonnie. Bonnie grew warm with embarrassment.
“Oh, I– I’m sorry, I just assumed–”
“No, no, you’re okay. I was just playing around. You can sleep right there if you want. I want you there, actually. Your fur is so soft,” Freddy grinned, kissing Bonnie right on the forehead. He blushed, still a little ashamed that he didn’t pick up on the joke. He seemed to do this quite often. “Get some rest, Bon. You’ve had a rough time. You deserve a good night’s sleep.”
Bonnie yawned, nestling his head in close.
“Goodnight, Freddy,” the bun drowsily concluded their conversation, letting his eyelids flutter shut peacefully. Freddy leaned closer to the base of one of his ears.
“Night, Bon.”