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As the sky blended with specks of bright stars, two distinct figures rested on the damp ground. Their bodies were close but distinguishable from one another, bodies simply lying together in the bliss of moonlight and complementary colors.
“I wish I could touch the moon.”
Outstretching towards the sky, Tubbo felt like if he stuck his hand out hard enough, he’d be able to. The beauty of the somber moon brought a smile to his sleepy face, entranced in the way it lay still as the world spun around. Gazing at the stars, letting the chill air blend with his and Tommy’s natural body heat, he allowed himself not to think; not think about the dangers around, how his body could get sick, how Tommy could get sick. He convinced his brain to not worry about any of that.
Thumping his head against the ground, he relaxed his body. He wanted to enjoy the moment with the stars. Enjoy the moon’s reflected light from the sun, like the shine would keep his thoughts afloat.
Tommy eventually turned his head, blond hair mixing with blades of green grass as curious eyes met with his best friend’s.
“Let’s make your wish come true.”
Giggling, Tubbo shook his head, covering his face with his arm. It was endearing how sincere Tommy was, how much he cared about his silly little ideas.
The ground crunched beside him, a warm hand pressing down on his shoulder as he continued to laugh. His arm was forcibly moved away from his eyes. Tubbo blinked up at a grinning Tommy, raising an eyebrow with an amused smile. The blond grinned wider, wilder, like he knew Tubbo had no choice but to follow along with his idea. In a way, he was right.
Rolling his eyes, Tubbo watched his best friend jump onto his feet. Tommy was subtly hopping from foot to foot, too much energy trapped in his body, offering his hand like his life depended on it. A warm huff into the cold air, Tubbo allowed himself to be yanked up, almost crashing into the other. With a loud laugh, Tommy grabbed onto Tubbo’s hand, leading him away while walking backwards. The mud was still indented with their bodies.
“So, what's the plan?”, Tubbo gazed up at the stars, fully letting Tommy lead him to their destination.
“We’ll make a rocket!”
Looking at Tommy, he blinked slowly, processing what he just said. “How are we gonna do that?”, deadpanning, the cogs in his brain went faster as his best friend turned back to him.
“It’ll be easy to figure out! It’s not rocket science.”
“It quite literally is.”
Dismissing his “negativity”, Tommy continued to lead him away, peeking behind his shoulder every few seconds, cautious to not trip. Tubbo found it silly to watch, giggling each time he stabilized the taller from falling.
The moon was high in the sky now, snow crunching beneath their shoes, their fingers and noses being pricked by the cold. Soft chirps from crickets and the slight gust of wind, Tubbo admired the silence, his eyes floating away towards the moon. He wondered if the two of them could do this, could go to the moon, be free and happy. Glancing back at his best friend, who had lost his footing for a split second, he smiled.
Yeah. They could do this, together.
★
Building a rocket wasn’t going to be easy.
You need plenty of materials, supplies, and patience.
Tommy has none of those, but he has a Tubbo.
He tried helping as much as he could, gathering as much food he could scavenge, stealing useful items from unsuspecting people, and making sure his best friend takes breaks. The last part was the hardest by far. Getting Tubbo to stop and just breathe, eat or drink anything, was impossible. Sleeping wasn’t even an option.
The days blended in with the nights, leaving Tommy no choice but to rely on the clock in his body. Tubbo had muttered what it was called, after insinuating he’s an idiot for saying “bod clock”, but the blond couldn’t remember for the life of him. He couldn't recall much these days.
Sitting on a tree stump, Tommy nibbled on an apple and a stale piece of bread, watching as his best friend scuttled around. He looked silly. Tubbo had a coat encasing his body with warmth, brown and blond hair peeking out from the top. Tommy wondered how he could even work, imagining himself in that same stupid jacket. He’s surprised Tubbo hadn’t fallen over from all the extra weight.
Finishing his snack, Tommy’s brain gradually caught up with his eyes. Watching him frantically pulling at his tools, kicking papers away, groaning into the air; Tubbo was looking for something.
Sucking his teeth, he felt the grain of leftover apple and bread crumbs coat his mouth, scrunching his face up in discomfort. He hates the feeling after he eats, almost as much as he hates the feeling of eating. Food had been tamer, a pleasantry for when you accomplished something, a nice way to heal and nurture your body. Now, all it does is sit like a brick in his stomach.
“Tom?”
His haze fading away, blue was able to make out the form of Tubbo. “Yeah?”, amused, Tommy laughed at Tubbo’s curt sigh. He was barely able to catch the eye roll.
“Do you know where I put the beehives?”
Blinking, Tommy tilted his head.
“Beehives?”
“That’s what I said,” teasing and airy, Tubbo pulled his coat down just enough to show a toothy grin.
Piecing two and two together has never been easy for Tommy, especially when the other was always confusing. Sometimes, he picks and pries until his brain translates whatever Tubbo was trying to say. Sometimes, he just lets it be. Tubbo is Tubbo.
He let out a laugh at Tubbo calling him “hopelessly unhelpful”, watching the other continue his search by himself. Situating himself back on his seat, Tommy let himself drift off into his head. It was a sunny day with snow littered on the floor. He can take a breather.
★
“Are you sure this’ll work?”
Turning to Tommy, Tubbo took him in. He was fidgeting with his fingernails, picking at them as his helmet sat on the floor. He was paler than usual, even though he’s been taking in more sunlight than ever. Gulping down his own nerves, Tubbo bent down to pick up his friend’s helmet. Thumbing over the seams holding the glass and fabric together, he smiled.
“It has to.”
Shaky breaths and repeating “okay’s” beside him, he felt Tommy take his helmet, holding it close to his heart. He heard him tap sporadically against the metal collar, up to the tip of the glass. Tubbo didn’t let his fear show.
Lifting his head, he took a deep breath, blindly grabbing his best friend by his hand. He squeezed it once, twice, three times. He waited patiently until he felt the same pressure. They were as ready as they’ll ever be. Taking a shaky step towards the rocket, Tubbo bit his lip. He needed to be brave, for both of them. They were finally escaping. They were finally going to be okay. They were finally going to be free. With a final look at his best friend, he smiled once more, all the way up to his eyes.
With his wobbly legs, Tubbo situated himself in the rocket, Tommy following suit. He watched as lanky limbs fumbled around, barely able to fit and keep still. It was a tad bit funny to see his best friend in this state, but Tubbo didn't laugh in consideration. Checking to see if everything was right then checking again, and again, he deemed the rocket worthy for takeoff.
With Tommy’s loud breathing and repetitive tapping of his foot, Tubbo verbally prepared them for takeoff, making sure to say exactly what he was doing. It was to make Tommy calmer, but it also took his own mind off of the thoughts of failure. With the last action, Tubbo took a loud breath.
“Takeoff in three,”
Exhale.
“Two,”
Inhale.
“One,”
Exhale.
The engine roared as Tubbo was pushed further in his seat, his ears ringing at the noise and his fear. If they were to die right now, he found comfort in dying with his best friend.
★
Standing on the edge of nothing and everything, Tommy sighed deeply, his warm breath fogging up the glass helmet. His tether was crudely made and his body ran cold in his spacesuit, but he was managing it the best he could. Counting his breathing, a habit he picked up recently, he watched the empty universe get covered up by steam before being revealed again. Space seemed so still without his constant motions, so quiet in the pocket he resided in. He guessed that was part of the appeal.
Tommy was smiling, observing the twinkling lights down below. The moon casted a shadow onto the world, slivers of sunlight barely visible from where he stood. Times like these, he misses the land. He misses breathing the fresh air and lying on the spikey grass, his hands resting on the damp soil as he sunk down into it. He missed the sheep and the cows greeting him when he awoke, nothing but curiosity and purity in their eyes. He missed when times seemed simpler. He knows in a way it’s not anymore.
Eyes shaky and hands cold, feet firmly planted into the regolith– or as well as gravity would let him– Tommy took one more longing look at the vast emptiness. The stars sparkled unapologetically, bright and loud, a wave of nostalgia for a promised time washing over him. Before he could dwell, he puffs out his chest and tightens his fists, starting his way back to home base. He’s safe now.
“Tubs?”, he called out, stepping through the airlock, hanging his equipment wherever he saw fit. Tommy waited for any sounds from his best friend, picking at the imaginary dirt under his nails subconsciously as he walked down the hall.
The walls of the base were bare, not having enough spare resources to decorate. Tommy found it eerie and hospital-like. There were clean, white walls and a weird humming throughout the buildings, but it was the start of their new life; it was their new home. Reaching out to touch the wall, he felt between the grooves of sleek paint, distracting himself for a moment. They could make this into a home.
Suddenly, a mop of brown and blond peeked out from the corner, startling him. Tubbo was leaning from behind the wall, his goggles perched on the top of his head, curiously watching his best friend. A large grin formed on Tommy’s face with his hand over his heart. “There you are,” he laughed, making his way over.
“Here I am!”, Tubbo replied, his voice cracking slightly from lack of use, fully entering the hall. “How are you, bossman?”
Stopping a few feet short, Tommy glanced at the tall ceiling and gathered his thoughts and feelings, trying to put the homesickness and fear behind a wall. He wanted to be honest with Tubbo, wanted to be brave for himself, create a comfort inside for the both of them. With a crooked smile, he whisked the shorter’s goggles off his head. “Best I’ve ever been,” he joked, putting them on upside down.
The distorted vision was jarring, laughing loudly. Ignoring the feeling of a headache forming, Tommy attempted to look at his friend sincerely. Tubbo’s facial features were skewed and hard to focus on, but he could tell he was smiling.
“You’re such an idiot.”
“What the fuck?”, Tommy erupted with playful hostility, pulling the eyewear off.
Shaking his head, Tubbo snatched his goggles back, “I need these,” he said over his shoulder.
“For…?”
“Building! I’m making an apiary,” Tubbo walked back to his makeshift office, leaving the door open for Tommy.
Furrowing his brows, Tommy looked around the large office. Tubbo had a plethora of knickknacks and unfinished machines– from weird looking contraptions to simple mechanisms– his attention eventually landing on the temporary station holding bees. Glancing back over to his tinkering best friend, who paid him nor the bees any mind, Tommy piped up.
“How did we get bees on the moon?”
Dropping his tools, Tubbo toothily smiled, “I have my ways.”
★
Tubbo was wrapping his bandana around Tommy’s hair, capturing the sweat glistening on his forehead. Tommy hadn’t stopped fidgeting since he started doing his hair. Whether from anxiety of their situation or disdain for the hairstyle, Tubbo didn’t mind it all too much. It was a simple gesture, a simple task, a simple motion. He simply stood as Tom stayed seated, tapping his fingers against one another as he waited.
Naturally, his hair was tangled, strands of white twisted with blond. His own wasn’t any better, brown roots twirling up with blond flat at the edges. They both looked messy and disheveled, but despite the uncomfortable feelings in their bodies, they were still happy to be together.
“Don’t you think it’s clean enough?”
Tugging on a knot, hearing his best friend yelp, Tubbo cracked a smile. “Is it?”
A huff and more readjustments, Tommy titled his head to a more favorable position. “You’re such a dick,” he whined, kicking his feet out.
“And you’re a child,” Tubbo laughed as he threaded his fingers through Tommy’s hair that didn't have knots. He tightened his bandana, tucking Tommy’s slightly less knotted hair into the back.
Stepping back, he grabbed the red fabric discarded off to the side.
“Am I pretty, Tubbo?”
Shaking his head, Tubbo moves his fingers across the fabric, a faint smile and a bubble in his throat. “Maybe in your dreams”
Tommy twisted around, his mouth hanging open, his eyes wide. “That’s so mean to tell your husband.”
Laughing, Tubbo tied the red bandana around his neck, walking past without another glance. He’ll deal with him later.
★
Working with moon bees definitely wasn’t on Tommy’s to-do list. It wasn’t on any list of things he thought he could possibly be doing, but when Tubbo’s involved, anything is possible.
He was kneeling beside the temporary apiary, wooden and shack-like, replanting some potted flowers into soil. Tulips to rose bushes, Tommy wasn’t sure where they had gotten all these plants, but they smelled nice and seemed to be living despite everything. He dug his hands into the dirt of their indoor garden, faintly aware of Tubbo walking around and planting grass all over the room.
The lights above them were bright and hot, making Tommy sweat. He ran the back of his hand over his forehead, ignoring the flecks of dirt falling past his face. He felt gross and sticky.
“Why does it have to be so hot in here?”, he complained, shaking his hair out.
“The temperature and light helps these plants grow. These lights mimic the sun, and in the base we don’t get the sun’s warmth as much, so it’s very cold. That’s why it feels hot,” Tubbo’s crunching of his shoes made their way towards the other, explaining nonchalantly.
Tilting his head up to look at him, Tommy whispered “what the fuck”, breathy and astounded. Tubbo simply laughed and continued to work. Staring for a moment, the younger wondered how he’s even still going. He’s exhausted.
Planting a daisy, a low buzzing was somewhere near him. Delicately, a bee perches on the flower, peacefully going about its day. Tommy smiled, softly patting the dirt, being careful not to disturb.
He watched with awe as the bee rubbed its body, collecting the pollen. He had never been attentive to bees – that was Tubbo’s favorite insect, he left them to him. It never swayed his adoration for the bumbles of pollen, though. Chuckling when the bee stumbled on the flower, he resisted the urge to wave it off as it flew.
“Tubs?”
“Yeah?”
Turning to face him, Tommy grinned as wide as he could. “I understand it now.”
“What? Loving bees? Yeah, they’re so fasci-”
“No,” he shook his head, catching Tubbo’s eyes as he walked. “I understand why I wanted to make your wish come true.”
“And that is…?”, stopping beside him, Tubbo plopped down, his pants being dirtied. Tommy made a face, dusting them off for him.
“I wanted to get away too.”
Giggling, the other rested his forehead on Tommy’s shoulder. “How did you get that from planting flowers?”
“I have my ways.”