Archive of Our Own ^beta

The rain was ending, the cool drops that had pattered against the windows for hours left trails of water, flashing silvery in the light, trailing down the panes. The world outside was blanketed in a fine mist, turning the world a soft and hazy grey.

It had been a team effort to get the giant metal tub onto the roof when the storm had first rolled in, with lots of scrambling, pushing, and curses. Then there had been the rush to put out every other available (and sometimes not) container they could find and to open the water tank. Kobra had been the only one not involved, having been laid to bed with a sprained wrist and a penchant for grumpiness.

Now that the rush was over and the rain had begun to slow, it was quiet and peaceful.

Party tilted their head back in the water, revelling in the feeling. The world was muffled under the surface, that, and the feeling of the little ripples lapping at the sides of their face lulled them into a comfortable haze where few thoughts passed through their mind. Someone began carding their fingers through their hair, gently working at the tangles. They cracked an eye open and saw Jet’s soft smile and gentle gaze. They closed it again, feeling safe and content.

They felt bubbles brush their cheek and hummed happily, Jet was washing their hair. It had been so long since they had felt clean. It was hard to get the water to drink in the desert, let alone wash their face. They could almost imagine they were back in the city, with warm water, soft towels, and- They cut the thoughts off, focusing hard on being relaxed and enjoying having someone else touch their hair.

They could hear the sound of Jet’s voice above the swish of the bubbles and the thrum of their pulse, but couldn’t make out the words. They didn’t really need to think about it, they decided. It was fine. Then Jet’s fingers disentangled themselves from Party’s hair and that changed the situation to decidedly not fine.

They opened their eyes, trying to discern why he had stopped, only to be met with a face full of sudsy water. Party jerked upright, spluttering and coughing, trying to wipe the stinging liquid out of their eyes. Wet hair clung to their cheeks and dripped down into their eyes, obscuring their vision further, but the cause of the commotion was obvious. They could hear the girl giggling away and Jet giving a show reprimanding her, though it was obvious that he was trying to stifle his own laughter. 

Party glared at the two of them, not actually mad just a little startled. She waded over and pressed a kiss to the furrow between their eyebrows, her small face very serious as she said, “didn’ mean to splash you, honest buba.” Then her whole face lit up with a grin that showed off the gap from where she’d lost her tooth a week before and they were forced to smile back.

They playfully splashed a little bit of water at her, making her shriek with delight, then pulled her in for a quick, tight hug. “I know sugar,” they told her, “I’ll hold nothin’ against you.”

The air was just as cold as the water, but the soaking t-shirt that clung to them made it feel more so. They felt exposed, even with the fabric covering them. They pulled the fabric away from their chest in a futile attempt to keep it from sticking, knowing if they didn’t do something about it, dysphoria was soon to follow. 

“If you wait around a minute,” they told her, “I’d be happy to wash your hair, and I’m sure Mama Jet here would be more than obliging if you want it braided.”