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"Foolish!" Bad’s voice echoed up the tower. Foolish sighed. He could pretend he wasn't here. He was really not in a good mood today and really didn't want to have to deal with whatever Bad was up to. But he also knew the demon well enough to be sure that he would not leave until he got what he was here for. He would continue to wait downstairs and shout Foolish’s name or, worse, come up to where Foolish was right now.
Another deep sigh and Foolish wooshed down the elevator putting on his best facade.
"Bad!" He smiled an over the top smile before he dropped it to his usual annoyed expression regarding Bad. "What do you want?"
Bad looked shocked. "Do I have to want something to come visit my friend?
Foolish rolled his eyes. "You don't have to but usually when you come by you want something or have a prank for me or to do something that's gonna get me riled up."
Foolish knew that it wasn't necessarily true. A lot of the time Bad just wanted to hang out but that's how they worked and honestly that probably falls under the third point he made so Foolisgh was technically right.
Bad pouted. "Is that really all you think of me?" But he seemed to be over it very quickly and he smiled again. "Anyways. Contrary to your belief I just wanted to see how you are doing. So, how are you, Foolish?"
Foolish squinted as if he didn't quite trust that there was no ulterior motive. But actually he was just wondering how the demon had known that he had an especially bad day. Did he have some kind of special sense for the misery of others? Or maybe was it just a coincidence?
"I'm doing great!" Foolish put on the smile he had perfected, almost indistinguishable from a real smile. Almost.
Bad frowned. Fuck. Foolish knew he didn't believe him. Why did it have to be Bad of all people who could read him so well? Well, maybe that came with the territory of knowing someone for many centuries. But still! It was extremely inconvenient and annoying!
"Are you ok, Foolish?" Bad sounded more sincere now. The usual teasing tone completely gone and replaced by a slight note of worry. Foolish sighed. Apparently they were doing this today.
"You know what, Bad, no, I'm not good." Foolish couldn't tell if actually acknowledging his bad mood lifted something heavy off his chest or crushed it even more because he now spoke it into existence.
Bads frown deepened. It wasn't often that Foolish let even him know he wasn't doing well. Especially not in a plain way like this. They usually talked about the important stuff in the most cryptic way only they understood. "Wanna talk about it?"
Foolish opened his mouth to say something to make the demon go away but stopped himself. Maybe it would be good to talk about it? And even with their whole hating each other situation they had going on, Bad was his best friend. Not that he would ever tell him that to his face. So Foolish gave in.
"It's just... you know Vegetta has been gone for... a while now. And it's not like I haven't been alone before! I can deal with being alone for a century or two! But it’s just... it feels like a different kind of loneliness. It's not like I'm actually alone cause there are a lot of people on the island. But still... I guess it's different when you are not just alone but have someone you are actively missing? I've never really had that before and I have to say it sucks."
Bad looks dramatically shocked. "Are you saying you have never missed me in the centuries where we haven't hung out?" But there is also a flicker of something else Foolish couldn't quite recognise because it was gone so quickly.
Now Foolish got angry. Not really angry but their usual kind of anger. "Is that really all you got from that? I don't know why I even bothered telling you. No, I dont miss you in those centuries! I'm usually glad I get a break from having to deal with you!"
And for the first time in ages Foolish could see real hurt in the demon's eyes. That's what he couldn't identify earlier. Bad put up an unbothered mask almost immediately and if it was anyone but Foolish he was talking to they probably would have missed it. Maybe Foolish pushed it too far this time. Or he hit a specifically sensitive nerve today.
"Ok. Then I'm gonna leave you to enjoy your break from me." And with that Bad turned to leave.
Foolish sighed. "Bad."
"No, it's fine. I’m just gonna go bother someone else." This wasn’t even Bad's usual theatrics. There were almost no negative emotions in his voice. He really tried to sound completely neutral.
"Bad." Foolish put more determination into it. And this time Bad actually stopped and turned around. Foolish could practically see the moment Bad realized that Foolish didn't believe him and he decided to switch tactics.
Bad put on a big pouting face. Foolish knew what he was doing. He was trying to hide the real hurt behind a fake, overly dramatic hurt.
"Ok, yes, Foolish. I am absolutely crushed and devastated and will never recover. You broke my heart and I'm now gonna go cry my eyes out."
Foolish looked at Bad with a raised eyebrow for a second before he started talking again. "Bad, you know you don't have to do this with me. You know that I know you better than falling for this. Go on, talk to me. Why did what I said hit you differently this time?"
Bad didn't say anything for a while, just sulking. He finally sighed and went back to serious.
"It just... I don't know why! I know you hate me and everything and I'm annoying and stuff but... I still thought we were friends. That you would at least miss me a little bit when we haven't seen each other for a century or two." Foolish wasn't sure if he had seen the demon like this before and if so it had been a long time ago. He almost seemed small and breakable. This one comment also probably wasn’t the only thing bothering him. They all had been through a lot on this island.
Foolish rubbed his hand over his face and took a few steps closer to his friend. "Just so you know, in the future I will absolutely deny I ever said this." He sighed. "Bad, you are my best friend and of course I have missed you! Also I think the fact that we annoy the shit out of each other is probably the reason we are this close friends and still friends. If we wouldn't we probably would have gotten bored of each other centuries ago! It keeps this interesting."
Foolish almost expected a teasing comment or something from Bad but the other just smiled shyly back at him. "Thanks, Foolish. You are also my best friend. I guess I just really needed to hear it. I... I do understand what you were talking about. Maybe not exactly, well..." Bad pause for a second and Foolish could imagine who he was thinking about. "I guess I've also been pretty lonely even with so many people on the island but... I guess being a single parent is also a different kind of loneliness than I'm used to."
Foolish smiled back. A real smile. "This island really has done a number on us, huh. Two immortal idiots bonding over being lonely on an island full of people. Some day you will find someone who's around and there for you, Bad. You deserve it."
Bad looked at Foolish contemplatively. "You know, Foolish, you also deserve to have someone who's around and there for you."
Why did that one sentence hurt so much? Foolish tried to look anywhere but at Bad. The demon wasn't wrong. And maybe it hurt so much because Foolish knew deep down that it was true. Maybe he had hoped so much that Vegetta would be the one. He had promised Vegetta to wait for him. But Vegetta had been gone for months now. Foolish had no idea where he was or what he was doing. And honestly he had no idea if he would ever come back. "It's not that easy, Bad..."
Foolish looked back at Bad and just now realized how close they were standing.
“It could be…” Bad got just a tiny bit closer, looking up at Foolish.
Foolish knew exactly what Bad was talking about. It’s not like in all these years he had never thought about it. And Foolish wasn’t sure why he wasn’t stepping away from Bad. Maybe it was curiosity. Maybe the loneliness was just getting too much for him to think straight.
So when the demon crushed their lips together Foolish didn’t pull away, he even kissed him back. It wasn’t a sweet, soft kiss. But it had been so long since he had been this close to someone and it felt nice.
The kiss didn’t last long before they were interrupted by the whooshing sound of the elevator. And it took them just a second too long to jump at the sound, away from each other, and look at the other with big, shocked eyes.
Foolish instantly turned around, just to see his daughter look at him in horror for a second, place down a sign and run in the opposite direction out of the tower.
“I hate you, pa!” Was written in Spanish on the sign. Foolish’s heart broke.
“Leo! Wait!” Foolish shouted after his kid but they didn’t even slow down.
“Fuck.” Foolish’s heart beat incredibly fast in panic. He needed to make this right. What was he even thinking? He wasn’t. That was the problem.
“Foolish, I’m…” Bad started quietly before he got cut off.
“Not now, Bad.” Foolish was already running after the most important person in his life. He had an idea where she might be going.
******
Foolish was right and found Leo in Vegetta’s tower.
“Please don’t run away again, Leo. Please let me explain.” Foolish was bagging and slowly approached his kid.
Leo started placing signs. “I don’t wanna talk to you. I want my apa back. You lied to me. You said you missed him like I do.”
If it was possible, Foolish’s heart would break more. His voice almost broke as he continued to speak.
“Leo, please. It’s not what it looks like. I didn’t lie to you. I miss Vegetta so so much. What you saw there…” Foolish paused to try to push that moment out of his mind. “What you saw wasn’t what you think.”
“So now you tell me I’m stupid? That I didn’t see what I saw.” Foolish had never seen Leo this angry and it felt like a punch in the face. But Foolish also knew that she was hurt more than anything that made her lash out like this and it was all his fault.
“No! No, I’m not saying that! You are the smartest kid out there! It’s just… it didn’t mean what you might think it means, you know. It doesn’t mean I don’t love Vegetta or that I don’t miss him just as much!” Damn, Foolish really wasn’t good at this and he could have punched himself for how badly he was wording everything.
“I saw you kissing another man. Someone who is not my apa. You betrayed him. You betrayed me.”
Foolish couldn’t quite hold back tears anymore because he knew they were right. He knew he messed up. “I know, Leo. I’m sorry. And you have every right to hate me. I didn’t mean to. It’s just… it’s hard not having your dad around, I know it’s hard for you, too, and it’s been pretty lonely since he’s been gone and…” He didn’t finish the sentence. He couldn’t tell his daughter that he wasn’t sure if her other father would ever come back.
“Are you gonna be with tio Bad now?” They almost seemed scared of the answer.
Foolish was almost shocked out of his sadness. “What? With Bad? Eww! No! Never!”
Leo looked at her father very confused. “Eww? What do you mean? I just saw you kiss him.”
“For the record I didn’t kiss him, he kissed me!”
Foolish could imagine Leo raising an eyebrow. “But you kissed him back.”
“Well, yeah, but…” Foolish tried to put his thoughts into words. “Again it wasn’t like that. It was just… we were both talking about how we were lonely and… to be honest with you I have no idea how or why that happened. I guess after centuries of hanging around each other it just had to happen eventually?” Foolish could see Leo get to the wrong conclusion so he hurried to continue talking. “Just to try it once and get it out of our system! Not in it’s gonna be a thing! Bad and I are definitely not gonna be a thing! It will never happen again, Leo! I promise! It didn’t mean anything!”
Foolish meant what he was saying but part of him wondered if it was actually true.
He could feel Leo being hesitant. “You promise, pa?”
“Yes, I promise! And I promise that I love you so much, Leo, and I never wanted to do anything that hurt you. I’m so sorry! And I also love your apa Vegetta so much. But until he comes back it’s gonna be the two of us against the world, right? Always juntos?” Foolish was so scared his kid would not accept his apology.
Leo placed a sign. “Ok.” And another one. “Always juntos.” A huge weight lifted off of Foolish’d heart. He still felt horribly guilty. But if Leo could forgive him maybe he could forgive himself at one point.
“Come here.” Foolish crouched down and opened his arms for a hug and Leo ran up to him so he could wrap his arms tightly around them. And maybe another tear escaped Foolish’s eyes.
Afterwards, Leo placed another sign. “He is gonna come back, right?”
Foolish smiled at his little girl. “Of course he is. And we are gonna wait for him.” His voice almost broke as he put all the confidence he didn’t have into his words.