Work Text:
Sasha makes her way into the kitchen with the intention of refilling her water bottle, not to get into a discussion about Ken and his abnormal fear of stepping foot outside.
“He can barely go outside normally,” Barbie stresses, deep in her and Gloria’s conversation.
Ken is sitting in the living room, happily playing by himself. Barbie knows that she needs to get the conversation over with quickly, because Ken will eventually get bored of playing on his own. He’s constantly full of energy, nagging everyone around him to play. She isn’t even sure that he noticed her leaving the room.
“Yeah, I know,” Gloria sighs, sounding conflicted. “But I don’t think we can shop for him. He’s so particular.”
“So picky,” Barbie echoes quietly, emphasising Gloria’s point.
“What’s up?” Sasha asks, turning from the fridge. Barbie and Gloria look surprised to see her, being so caught up in their own conversation.
Barbie glances from Ken to Sasha. “We need to get things to accommodate Ken while he’s in headspace. But, since he’s so afraid to go outside normally, we don’t even know how he’ll react to having to share that side of himself in public.”
“Whether he’s little or big,” Gloria adds. “Because if he’s big he’ll worry about the things that he’s buying, or not tell us what he actually wants. And we don’t know how he’ll react to being little outside of the house.”
“Right now he only has, like, Arthur and his switch. That is not enough to keep him entertained, or to let me have a break from playing,” Barbie concludes.
Sasha pauses to think about it, weighing their options. She looks between them. “And you can’t just go out and buy it for him? Just buy a bunch of horse shit.”
“Language,” Barbie tells her before Gloria can.
“We’re not sure what he’ll want,” Gloria answers then, ignoring Sasha’s swearing.
“Just try bringing it up to him, see what he thinks,” Sasha suggests. “Work out a compromise through that.”
As if on cue for the conversation to end, Ken peaks his head into the doorway, searching for Barbie. When his eyes land on her, they widen with a smile. All three women turn to look at Ken.
“Barbie! I was lookin’ for you,” he tells her. Barbie knew that he was, she saw him looking under the couch and the coffee table, as if they were playing hide and seek.
“Sorry, buddy. I just needed to talk to Gloria about something super important,” she excuses, an apologetic smile on her face.
“That’s okay. You don’t wanna play anymore?” he asks, sounding slightly sad. He’s trying to make it seem like he’s unbothered, not wanting to seem too needy, but he’s not great at disguising his emotions.
“Are you kidding? I can’t wait to play some more with you!” Barbie exclaims enthusiastically, making Ken break out into a grin.
He nods his head, looking determined. “I’m gonna go make sure everything is ready.”
With that, Ken runs back into the living, with Gloria calling after him to be careful.
Barbie looks at Sasha, her thoughts circling back to what Sasha last said. “I’ll talk to him before bed.”
“Alright, great. Problem solved,” Sasha answers simply.
“I hope so,” Barbie mutters, before making her way to the living room after Ken.
After a solid half an hour of trying to convince Ken to get ready for bed, he finally gives in. Only with the promise of a bedtime story, which is one of his very doable requests. He’d normally request a real life horse, or “if I go to bed early tonight… I get to stay up super late tomorrow? Please?”
Teeth brushed, pyjamas on, already half asleep without Barbie even opening the story book, Ken is cosied up in bed. He stares at Barbie through tired eyes.
“Hey, Ken? Before I read your bedtime story, can I ask you a question?” Barbie starts softly, a small smile on her face so that Ken doesn’t jump to conclusions about being in trouble or having done something bad.
Ken nods his head while yawning. Barbie takes a breath.
“What about tomorrow, Gloria and I take you to the store?” She asks hesitantly. She studies Ken’s face for a reaction.
“The store?” he repeats, sounding anxious. He fidgets with his fingers. “I dunno, Barbie… ‘S scary out there.”
“I know, baby, but you’re so brave!” Barbie tries to encourage heartily, a big smile on her face. Ken shifts at the praise, but still looks conflicted. “We’re going to the store for you. Isn’t that fun?”
“For me?” Ken whispers, sounding slightly more convinced. “Why for me?”
“To treat you, silly.” Barbie grins, now hopeful that Ken might actually agree to it. “We’ll go to the store and you can pick out as many things as you want. Whatever you want.”
Ken perks up at that. Barbie pauses, rethinking her words. She knows exactly what he’s thinking.
“Whatever you want, within reason,” she adds. “No real life horses.”
“You never let me do anything!” Ken whines, deflating at her words.
“They don’t sell real life horses at the store, Ken. It’s not that easy,” Barbie tells him sincerely, like she has a million times before. Ken still looks grumpy, his arms crossed tightly over his chest. “Plus, if you got a real horsey, how would Arthur feel?”
Ken pauses at that, looking at the stuffed horse next to him. She’s tucked in under the blankets, just the same as he is. He sighs.
“I guess you’re right,” he mutters reluctantly. Barbie holds back an endearing laugh at his behaviour. She’s so used to seeing him admit to her being right straight away, and this is, surprisingly, a welcomed change.
Barbie bites her bottom lip nervously, waiting for a moment. “So, you want to go to the store tomorrow?”
At the question being brought up again, Ken looks unsure. He’s staring off into the distance, clearly debating the two answers he can give.
“Maybe…” he finally answers. “I’ll think about it.”
Barbie accepts his answers. It’s not a no, she hasn’t lost hope yet. She smiles at him.
“Alright! You just let me know in the morning, okay?”
“Okay,” he whispers. “Can you read me my story now?”
“Of course!”
Barbie’s already awake and in the kitchen when Ken shuffles in. He’s still wearing his pyjamas, Arthur hanging floppily from his fist — he’s holding her by her leg, upside down.
“Good morning, Ken. How’d you sleep?” Gloria asks, practically on instinct now. She asks every morning.
“Good,” he answers simply, sitting himself down at the table, on the chair right beside Barbie. He then turns to face her, staying silent for a few beats before speaking. “I thought about going to the store.”
“You did? I’m glad to hear that,” Barbie starts off encouragingly. She hopes the encouragement will help persuade him into agreeing. “What do you think?”
He presses his lips together, looking away from Barbie. “I still dunno.”
“That’s okay,” Barbie answers straight away. While she really does want him to accompany them while shopping, she completely respects his right to say no. She can’t, and won’t, force him to do anything he doesn’t want to. “What are you unsure about?”
He shrugs, fiddling with Arthur. “People’s gonna see me.”
“And that scares you?” Barbie asks.
Ken nods his head slowly. “A little.”
Barbie knows it scares him a lot.
“Is it because of what you might buy?” Barbie continues, wanting to get to the root of his worries. If she does so, maybe she can reassure him.
Ken nods again. “Mhm.”
“No one’s going to know they’re for you, you know,” Gloria tells him, sliding his bowl of cereal across the table to him. He looks up at her, eyebrows furrowed. “It’s like… if Barbie told you that strangers in public were being mean to her, what would you say?”
Ken’s face turns shocked and upset, like this is a real thing that happened to Barbie. “Don’t listen to them, ‘cause… ‘cause they don’t know her. They’re just meanies.”
“Exactly.” Gloria raises her eyebrows at him, urging him to take the hint. “So why isn’t it the same with you? The people at the store don’t know you.”
Ken shifts, lifting his spoon. He stares into his cereal. “I guess.”
“No, not ‘I guess’,” Gloria says, sitting down opposite him. “It’s true.”
“Ken, you’re the best baby a Barbie could ask for,” Barbie continues. Ken smiles smally into his cereal at the words. “You deserve to go to the store and get yourself these things. You shouldn’t let strangers stop you from doing what makes you happy.”
“Okay,” he answers after some silence. “I’ll go to the store.”
Barbie and Gloria exchange a relieved look.
“Only,” Ken adds on, making them worry that his request wouldn’t be achievable, “if I get to hold someone’s hand. Jus’ incase I get scared.”
Gloria lets out a breath, a smile forming on her lips. “Of course, Ken.”
Even in the car, Ken insisted that Barbie sit next to him in the back. What surprises Barbie is that Ken leaves Arthur at home.
“Did Arthur not want to come to the store?” Barbie asks. She hopes that getting Ken talking will take his mind off his anxieties about being in public. It’s obvious that he’s nervous, he’s staring out the window and fidgeting with anything he possibly can — the car window, his fingers, his clothes, his seatbelt.
Ken just shrugs. “Don’t wanna lose her. Real World is big, and scary.”
Barbie nods understandingly. “Well it’s good you left her behind. Now there’s someone to protect the house while we’re gone.”
Ken smiles slightly, not having thought of it that way. He seems to be more content at hearing that, and Barbie is so glad.
When the car is put into park, Ken seemingly freezes up. He stares out the window, biting down on his lip.
“You’re gonna have my hand the entire time, Ken. There’s nothing to worry about. I promise.”
Ken looks determined, like he’s trying to convince himself to be brave and open the door. Barbie watches, not wanting to rush him. They’d do this at his pace.
“I’m so brave,” Ken affirms to himself quietly. Barbie smiles proudly.
“So brave,” she reiterates.
“Let’s go!” Ken exclaims, his mood randomly doing a complete 180. Neither Barbie or Gloria question his mood, not wanting to discourage him. They simply listen, unbuckling their seatbelts and stepping out of the car.
Ken waits until his door is opened for him, then gets out onto the cement. He stares the store down, reaching for Barbie’s hand. Barbie gladly takes it.
They walk into the store, Ken with increasing anxiety. He blinks uncomfortably when they step inside, the bright lights hurting his eyes and the music over the speakers ringing in his ears. His hand instinctively squeezes Barbie’s, and she does the same back, but reassuringly rather than panicked.
Ken’s still scared, like, super scared, but he puts on a brave face. He’s doing this for Gloria and Barbie. It’s manageable, now that the gut-turning panic has eased. He’s not at ease, but he’s not worried. He’s okay.
“Where do we go first?” Ken asks curiously in a whisper, directing his gaze back and forth between Gloria and Barbie.
They’d normally ask Ken where he wants to go, but this is completely new to him. He doesn’t know what there is to look at.
“Why don’t we look at some toys? Does that sound good to you?” Gloria asks. Ken nods slightly.
Barbie leads Ken towards the toys, and she can see his mouth fall open out of the corner of her eyes. She holds back an amused chuckle. He tugs on her hand, like he’s stopping himself from running ahead and grabbing everything he likes.
“You see something you like?” Gloria asks, an entertained smile on her face.
Ken immediately nods his head enthusiastically. “Lots!”
“That’s good,” Barbie encourages. “Can you show us the things you like?”
Straight away, Ken’s attention diverts to a pack of small toy cars. Truck cars! And he can finally have them! He points these out to Barbie and Gloria, bouncing up and down on his tiptoes.
Gloria, who’s holding the basket, picks them up without hesitation. Ken can barely hide his excitement, and they’ve only just got here. He can’t believe he was ever scared of the store!
They continue browsing through the isles, until Ken stops in his place. His eyes widen. “Barbie! Barbie, look! It’s Batman!”
Ken points at an assortment of Legos, but specifically at the Batman sets. Ken had recently gotten heavily into superheroes, Batman and Spiderman being his favourites.
“Can I get him, Barbie, please? Please, please, please?” Ken pleads excitedly, looking at Barbie with wide eyes. She can already tell she’s going to have a hard time saying no to him. Not just now, but ever. She nods her head.
“Yes!” he celebrates, pulling Barbie closer to the shelves. He inspects all of the sets thoroughly, before settling on a box that contained figures of Batman and Joker.
He politely handed it to Gloria, a wide smile on his face. While they continued browsing the legos, Gloria went searching for other things she thinks that Ken would like — things that he maybe wouldn’t pick out for himself. Most likely because he wouldn’t know what they actually are.
She gets him some Play-Doh, knowing he’s very tactile and creative. She buys simple things like blocks and the boring things like his plates and some regular bottles. She’s sure that more colourful and playful things will stick out to him, but she likes to be prepared.
At the bottom of the aisle, she shakes some plastic keys. Ken’s head whips around at the sound. He tugs on Barbie’s sleeve.
“Keys,” he whispers.
Barbie looks at him, smiling softly. “You want the keys?”
“Uh huh,” he answers instantly. “Can we go ask Gloria?”
“Of course. Lead the way.”
Ken shuffles down the aisle, frowning when he notices that the keys aren’t in Gloria’s hand anymore. He taps her on the arm.
“Gloria?” he asks, sounding incredibly small.
“Yes, Ken?”
“Can we— the keys?” he asks vaguely, gesturing towards them.
“Sure,” Gloria agrees happily. She picks the keys back up, but Ken holds his hands out for them before she can put them in the basket. She chuckles and hands Ken the keys.
He immediately shakes them, eyes lighting up at the sound. He’s fully starting to process that he gets to keep all of these things. They’re his.
They continue looking through the aisles, Ken hinting at the things he likes rather than outright asking for them. And every single time, showing no hesitation, Barbie and Gloria let him have it.
Well, everything apart from a Nerf gun. Ken wasn’t too bummed about it, though, because he still has everything else! He doesn’t even have time to think about what he doesn’t have.
Ken almost forgets to hand his keys to the lady behind the till, but politely does so when Barbie gently nudges his arm.
He can’t wait to show Arthur and Sasha everything he got!
“Look! Sasha, are you looking? Look what’s in it!” Ken rambles, holding up his new colouring book. He skims through the pages, letting Sasha get a quick glance at the drawings.
“That’s so cool, Ken,” Sasha tells him. Cool is very clearly Ken’s favourite adjective, so Sasha makes sure to use it to show that she’s impressed.
It works. He grins brightly.
“They’re horses, Sasha! Every page has a different horse!” he explains excitedly. He rummages through the plastic bag. He pulls out a pack of markers, immediately showing them to her.
“They’re scented,” Sasha comments, to which Ken nods.
“Isn’t that so cool?” he asks. “I’ll make sure to colour some pages for you.”
“Oh, no, Ken, you don’t need to—“
“Shhh, Sasha! Shhh!” Ken stops her. “I’m gonna colour you a horsey, okay? And you’re gonna keep it and say, ‘wow, Ken, this is the bestest colouring of a horsey I’ve ever seen’, right? And I’ll say, ‘thanks you very much, Sasha! It’s for you!’ and then you’ll keep it up in your room with your other thingys. ‘Cause you love it so much.”
“My posters,” Sasha informs him. Not to be rude, but because Ken likes learning about the real world. She likes teaching him.
“Posters, yeah!”
“Sure, Ken,” she promises. “If you give me a colouring, I’ll put it up with my posters. Okay?”
“Okay! Okay, okay, okay. I’m gonna make you one right now.”
Before he can rush off, Sasha stops him.
“Maybe wait until after dinner. You don’t want to get it dirty. Y’know, with food and stuff.”
Ken considers this. He nods his head slowly. “Yeah. You’re right.” Then, his face lights up again. “Oh, oh! I got new games for my Switch! Do you wanna see everything else I got?”
”Uh, yeah,” Sasha answers in a ‘duh’ like tone. “Of course I do!”