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It doesn't happen often to have a day free of charge and without teammates around in one large bedroom. But today it seemed to be quite the special case, as Team Momo mostly stayed with Team Primary and the Midnight Wisps went for a night out around the streets of Glidavik. Given it was immediately after Skiing Rally, Wispy decided to skip the night out and prefer to watch a movie instead.
As he prepared the chips, he heard a slight knock at the door. He paused the movie, letting it load for a little bit (because for some reason the internet was working like a snail in this part of the town), before rushing to open it. He was met with the gaze of a man that was propping himself on a single crutch, in just a mere black shirt and pajama pants, with the prosthetic in plain sight.
"Momomomo? What's with you here?" Wispy asked, looking surprised to see the Team Momo member in front of him.
"Came to visit, heard you weren't with the other Wisps in Glidavik. Did I disturb you?"
"Not at all, wanted to watch a movie. Wanna join?"
"Sure, I don't mind! After all, anything works as long as I'm not alone in that bedroom..."
Wispy helped Momomomo enter the bedroom - his bed, specifically, given that he knew very well the other members wouldn't have liked for someone to intervene with their beds - before taking the crutch and putting it somewhere safe. Momomomo looked curiously at the screen, hoping he'd recognize the movie at the very least, but he was accompanied by a black screen and the bar put in pause.
"Pillow?" Wispy offered, with the Momo member nodding. He brought some extra pillows, mostly to support Momomomo's leg. After his accident back in 2017, his leg mobility didn't fade away but he was left with intermittent pain that could go as bad as to make him reliant on crutches to move around. Today it seemed to be one of those days, as Wispy saw Momomomo flinch in pain once in a while, closing his eyes tightly as a response. The pillow was a small comfort, as it was placed below his knee.
"Thanks, Wispy. You're the best." He smiled, as he made himself quite comfortable in Wispy's small bed.
"I'll never understand why you refuse to opt for painkillers when you can barely walk in this condition." Wispy muttered, his arms crossed. "You just like being that stubborn sometimes."
"I don't want to get addicted to painkillers and we're in the middle of a competition. I'm not risking it at the tests, would be more embarrassing if I get disqualified for doping due to a mere painkiller."
Wispy placed himself on the edge of the bed, laying down with the laptop in his lap. "Of course you don't, you want to live through the pain for some reason. Chips?"
"Sure!"
------
The movie was... a bit boring, according to Momomomo.
It was one of those cheesy romcoms he got accustomed to from Wispy. He never understood the infatuation for these kind of movies, much so given that Wispy didn't look like the type of guy who would be the prime audience for. By that time, they were both huddled under the blankets, with a small white one hanging above just so it would make the setting more movie-like. The plot was nothing new from what he had seen before - protagonist moves to a new town and absolutely despises it, meets love interest, small drama in the middle, the two meet again and share their first kiss, hero saves the day and everyone is happy.
So he focused his eyes on Wispy, who looked quite enthralled by the setting.
He barely knew him until that accident happened and Wispy felt like everything was his fault. Wispy tried his very best to make it right to Momomomo though - besides his teammates and Team Primary who may as well be family at this point - Wispy was the one regularly checking up on him and his condition. The Midnight Wisps member wasn't always this talkative though, he was slightly shy, it took Momomomo ages just to get him to maintain a small conversation. But they managed to bond over some common interests and a few words of reassurance.
And, well... with time it transformed into something else.
There was something about Wispy that Momomomo just found so enchanting, like a mystery ready to be uncovered. It felt almost silly to have a crush, let alone to another marble athlete that lived in another part of the world, but can't help if the heart wants what it wants. Wispy felt like an enigma to the Team Momo athlete, an enigma hidden inside the body of a beautiful man with jet black hair and electric blue streaks that would avoid any resemblance of touch.
...or at least so he thought.
Momomomo noticed that he kept his full attention to the screen, on a small scene with the couple holding hands, head on shoulder, as they reminisced about the progress they made. He was still flinching in pain due to his leg, which may have kept him a bit distracted from the time being, but he managed to maintain his composure nonetheless.
As he looked back at Wispy, at that exact scene, he noticed that his friend laid his hand gently onto his prosthetic, his left hand intertwined with the rubber glove that protected the mechanism. Momomomo didn't feel much around that region given that his prosthetic was mostly maneuvered by muscle movement rather than the newer, more complex sensorial bionic like arms that could burn a hole in the whole team's wallet - but the sight of Wispy wanting to hold hands and be so close just melted him on the spot. Made him wonder how it would've felt if he held his actual hand instead.
The final scene was, predictably, the wedding scene. Not all of them included a wedding scene, some would cut out to just the happy ending and then the celebratory kiss, but seems like this movie had a wedding. A small ceremony, an union of two lovers now prepared to move to the next step forward, a happy ending for one of the romcoms of all time.
He took another glimpse at the Midnight Wisps member, now seeing another version of Wispy he was not yet familiarized. His eyes were dead set on one of the characters, hesitantly mimicking a few moments in the scene like the putting the ring on or lifting the veil.
...Wait, lifting the veil?
Was Wispy imagining himself in the bride's position?
Momomomo's always known that Wispy indulged a lot in the "happy endings" narrative, after all, he adored fairytales and the sort. He was the first one to cheer for anyone that found their better half, and that made the otherwise mysterious man look even more confusing in Momomomo's eyes. He loved these happy endings, but he didn't find the power to seek one for himself in all those years? Or he didn't find the right person to spend his life with?
Regardless, these small gestures and that tiny sparkle in Wispy's eyes made Momomomo absolutely smitten over the guy. If only Wispy saw the same...
By the time he came back to reality, the movie ended. And his leg was not paying him any breaks either, as the pang made Momomomo immediately jolt off his comfy position, much to Wispy's shock.
"Everything okay?" Wispy lifted himself on the same level, closing his laptop and placing it on the drawer next to the bed. Momomomo was breathing heavier than usual, making him think that this one must've been heavier than the others.
"I'm... I'm fine, Wisp- argh!" Another one of those struck and he couldn't maintain the composed act anymore. Wispy looked alarmed by that point, clearing everything from the bed besides the blankets just so Momomomo would have some space for movement.
"Are you sure you don't want a painkiller?" Wispy asked, his voice gentle.
"I'm sure, Wispy. Just give me a second, I'll recover. It's not like I haven't endured it before."
Momomomo could sense Wispy's stare on him, one mixed with worry and concern, as he debated on what to do next. He saw Wispy rush into the drawer, looking frantically for something as the pain continued to strike Momomomo like a sharp knife. By the time he opened his eyes, he felt Wispy's hands lifting up the trouser, exposing the scarred skin. After placing a pillow for support, Momomomo felt something cold on his leg - something that appeared to feel like a gel of some kind - as Wispy applied slight pressure on the length of it.
Momomomo knew that massaging wouldn't do much to alleviate the pain, only marble gods know how Momomo tried the same thing with all their local medicines and herbal recipes that one could find, and yet... He felt like his heart was doing flips as Wispy's fingers travelled across his bare skin with that gel on top. The man looked focused, checking once in a while to see if there were any hot spots to put more pressure into, as he proceeded to massage the leg with circular movements.
"Does this feel better?" Wispy asked, putting the cap on the tube at the last. "It's not much, but it helped me once in a while with the tension."
"A little bit, yeah. How long do I have to stay with my leg like this though?"
"It absorbs quickly, so not longer than 5 minutes I suppose."
A relief, given how the sensation felt like someone dropped a whole bar of ice on the length of his leg. He could wait 5 minutes for the gel to make its effect. Wispy put the gel back in the drawer, as he returned to the bed, sitting in his little bubble of comfort.
And yet, something felt off.
Momomomo couldn't help but watch the small gestures coming from the Midnight Wisps member. As far as he recalled, Wispy wasn't big on affection, he'd usually be polite and accept a hug or two, but besides that not much else. He had no clue on whether it was because of cultural discrepancies (as he heard that Helarve people are usually very closeted to themselves in contrast with Om which felt like a grand party with everyone invited) or if he's afraid of something. While the accident took a massive toll on Momomomo physically, it scarred Wispy emotionally given he was the only athlete in the area to see the Team Momo member's body as the emergency team rushed to save his life during the Fidget Spinner Collision.
For ages, Wispy took the full blame for the accident. He felt responsible for the whole ordeal, and no matter how much he tried to make up for the damage that had been caused, something kept gnawing inside in a manner that made him spiral again. Momomomo and even the rest of the Momos have constantly reassured him that it was not his fault and the accident could've happened to anyone, but Wispy still felt that guilt to this day.
And it hurt to see Wispy that way. To feel so hopeless, so paralyzed by the impact emotionally that he barely manages to function.
Today, Wispy felt in contradiction to his usual reserved self though - that never left, especially his quietness and his way of retreating himself in dire need of peace and quiet... but there was something even more intriguing which Momomomo hoped to see more of.
Desire.
That movie awoke something in Wispy to the point where he wanted to be touched. Not just any touch, but his touch specifically. Wispy wanted to get closer, to mimic all those sappy, soft scenes he saw in the movie, to have someone near so dearly. His blue eyes were pleading, almost yearning for some kind of contact that wasn't just something superficial.
And Momomomo would have given all of it in a silver platter if he could.
"Momomomo?"
He blinked a few times as he looked over at Wispy. "Yes?"
"You can unfold your trouser."
Oh yeah, forgot about his leg. He rose up slightly to cover his leg, now feeling like the gel had dried up significantly, as Wispy placed the blanket over it. The scene would've made him smile if it wasn't for Wispy looking so worried.
"Hey, Wisps?" Momomomo extended his prosthetic over Wispy's shoulder, catching his attention. "Something's bugging you, what's up?"
"I'm fine."
"No, you're not." Momomomo rose up, sitting next to Wispy. "I've known you for a while and I can tell. You can talk to me, you know?"
"I don't... I don't know..." Wispy started fidgeting a bit, a sign Momomomo knew too well. He's continuously battling with himself, wondering how to proceed and what to say further.
"I promise I'm not here to judge you, there's no one else in here besides you, me and the midnight. Or at least I think it is midnight, it's really dark outside. You don't have to hide, I can try to help. Deep breaths, one step at a time, remember?"
Wispy felt slightly calmer at the reassurance, Momomomo had a way to make him feel like he wasn't entirely alone in this universe. At his cue, Wispy took a handful of deep breaths before exhaling after some time, his fidgeting being replaced with a heaviness he knew too well. The urge to cry. To let it all out.
"It's the nightmares again, Momomomo." Wispy finally muttered, as tears started to gather. "Why do I keep seeing them when I feel like I've finally reached some peace of mind?"
Momomomo remained speechless, only grabbing the Wisps member into a hug. The nightmares were pretty much the same, he's heard them countless times, a product of Wispy's never ending guilt after the Fidget Spinner Collision. Where he felt blamed for the accident and all eyes stared at the monster that he'd become, ruining someone's life for the sole purpose of winning a competition. It felt like a heavy sling tied to Wispy that he couldn't disconnect from no matter how much he tried. Presumably that's why he picked that movie specifically - he wanted a distraction, a moment where he could feel like he got his life back together again. A happy ending.
"There, there..." Momomomo couldn't help but hold him closer, just as he did many times before, out of sight from their teams. "I'm here, I'm alive, and I'm with you. See?"
"...But you're hurt."
"Small price to pay for my life. I can handle a few jolts from time to time and the prosthetic became part of me by this point."
Wispy didn't look that convinced with Momomomo's explanation. No matter how much comfort he tried to give towards the Midnight Wisps member, it felt like he tensed up more, almost defensively.
"Wispy?" Momomomo asked, lifting Wispy's chin slightly. Wispy looked almost petrified, as much as he tried to hide it. Whatever nightmare he had, it was significantly worse than the usual ones, which raised an alarm.
"I'm scared... It feels like all the people I care about get hurt at one point or another and it's all because of me..."
As far as Momomomo could tell, the rest of the Midnight Wisps were fine. Wispy still visibly carried that guilt to the very end, and the constant repetition of the event may have caused him to doubt himself.
Also wait, did he say he cared about Momomomo indirectly? Food for thought.
"Wispy, it's not your fault and I'll repeat it for another millionth time if that helps any bit. The accident could've happened to anyone, you were just as a casualty as I was."
Wispy was again lost in thoughts. He really wanted to trust this guy, after all, Momomomo should be the one opinion that mattered the most in the whole ordeal given he took the heavy brunt during the accident, but it felt like he didn't even deserve that sliver of hope.
And then he felt his hand warmer, unexpectedly warmer. The touch was electrifying, almost as if it blast any trace of that awful nightmare into oblivion.
Momomomo made the bold move to hold Wispy's hand into his own, his actual hand rather than the prosthetic. Wispy was trying to find anything in the Team Momo member that could resemble hatred, resentment, dissappointment... but Momomomo was just extremely worried. Content, but nevertheless, worried.
"Why don't you hate me?" Wispy muttered, almost quietly. Momomomo was startled by the question, even if he heard it countless times before in the first years since the accident, that didn't come up again until now. "You have all the reasons to."
"Hate is a strong word, and I definitely never hated you, Wispy. You deserve to heal just as much as I did. Besides..."
Momomomo could help but bring their interlocked hands near him, kissing the back of Wispy's hand. Wispy felt like he was about to collapse by that point, his face flushed with a tinge of pink over his cheeks as he avoided the gaze.
"...you wanted this, didn't you? To feel wanted, to feel loved, to feel like someone would fight for you no matter the cost. You craved for touch and affection silently, I noticed you leaning on my prosthetic during the movie."
Wispy kept quiet, his face turning from that tinge of pink to such a lovely shade of scarlet, he could've been confused with the Raspberry Racers. Momomomo lightly chuckled, as he proceeded to move closer to what technically would be his crush.
"Tell me what really bothers you, Wispy. Sincerely. No hiding out, no lies, no anything. As it is."
Wispy's breathing felt uneven at times, as he tried to process it all. He felt cornered, but at the same time, he felt safe as he went through the conversations on a loop. If there was one he could genuinely rely on outside his teammates, it would be Momomomo without a singular doubt.
"Is it too selfish of me to want you here? To crave for your warmth and comfort? To make me feel like I actually have someone that understands?"
Momomomo stared widely, as he let Wispy ramble his feelings in a few questions.
He felt the same?
He felt Wispy was at a crossroad between wanting this moment so badly and feeling like he didn't deserve to be happy. He considered his feelings as having "selfish needs", as if it felt like a sin to even ask for genuine affection. Momomomo had to stir the direction to the right path, as he refused to let this man descend into the abyss further than he'd already been.
"...Is it bad that I love you?"
That last question... For as elated as Momomomo could be that he shares the same feelings, he felt a pang of sadness hearing Wispy's voice break in defeat. To see the man that was craving a simple happy ending for himself being reduced to sheer guilt for even asking to be loved was hard to watch.
This was Wispy at his most vulnerable form, and he couldn't fathom ruining him further.
Momomomo stood up, much to Wispy's confused look, as he detached the white blanket that acted as a cover for their movie. It was a small, fuzzy blanket that covered a one person's bed with ease, but it was essential for the next move.
"Stay with me, Wispy, alright?" Momomomo came down to his level, the blanket held by both hands, as Wispy watched his every single move. Momomomo winced a bit due to those jolts in his leg, but he couldn't let that distract him, he only brought Wispy back on the bed, sitting in front of each other.
Wispy felt the blanket surrounding him, as Momomomo quietly arranged it like a small cape initially, covering his back. He lifted up the blanket, placing it on top of his head, making it look like some kind of makeshift cloak, arranging it throughout the ordeal.
"You know," Momomomo spoke up, his hands intertwined with Wispy's, "you're gorgeous with a blanket on top of your head. It's probably the closest thing I could have to a veil in this bedroom."
Wispy stared in absolute shock as he just realized what Momomomo implied. The wedding scene from the movie, the one he looked so intently on... Was this some kind of reenactment?
"That wedding wasn't anything too special." Momomomo continued, his hands cupping Wispy's attentive face, with their foreheads touching. "I imagine ours to be better than that. After midnight strikes, on the highest hill in the north of Helarve, when the sky is clear and the moon and the stars are shining so bright, with the aurora glazing over the horizon. You'd be in that veil, me awaiting your every step until we say our vows in front of everyone witnessing. By then I'd let the world know you're my other half, my soulmate. I'd be delighted to call you my husband, have that happy ending you'd always dreamt of."
Wispy's heart grew like ten sizes from that speech. He could only imagine the setting, the way everything would look like in his dreams - feeling loved, feeling whole again. A small ceremony, outdoors, with only the night as their blesser and a moment so intimate he could only cherish it with his whole being.
And he couldn't help but let the tears flow as he smiled. Momomomo wiped a few of them with his thumb, as he planted a small kiss on his nose.
"I love you too, Wisps. I'm here for you. You deserve this and so much more than that, you deserve to love and be loved back."
You deserve your happy ending, Wispy.
"You... you really mean it?" Wispy's eyes switched from that hesitation earlier to a glimpse of hope. He's seeing the light at the end of the tunnel after so long.
"If you'd allow, I could show just how much you mean to me."
Wispy's nightmares tried to overcome yet again, make him step back from this moment, get him back into the same abyss that he was confined into for the past years. But they weren't even close to a match for the increasing feeling that overpowered the Midnight Wisps member, one of determination, a will to fight.
He wasn't gonna back down this time, especially when someone else was about to fight with the same ardor as him.
"Aina."
["Always."]
Momomomo stared slightly confused. He wasn't used with Wispy speaking in his native tongue, he rarely used it besides talking to the other members of Midnight Wisps, this was new to him.
But at the same time, he couldn't help but feel warm, soft even. That he was comfortable enough around him to switch to his language, especially since some feelings cannot be described otherwise. Must be a special word for him, one Momomomo will probably decipher it later.
He felt a pair of lips reaching his, as Momomomo held onto his waist, pulling him closer. Wispy clung to his shoulders, kissing with such force, leaving everything out and transforming it into passion and tenderness. By then, the blanket fell off his head, as the two laid down on the bed still with their lips interlocked.
This kiss, as clumsy as it was, represented a new start for the two of them. For Momomomo, it meant a chapter where he could now celebrate with his beloved, one where he could be accepted for who he is in spite of the obstacles he'd endured throughout the years.
For Wispy, that kiss meant forgiveness. He felt like he was finally forgiven by the universe, a sign that he could finally move on and strive for that happy ending he was patiently waiting for. And what way to achieve that forgiveness if it wasn't by the one he felt like he hurt the most?
They shared a few more kisses in the meanwhile. Short ones, again and again, as if neither were willing to let go of one another. It felt like bliss.
...Until Momomomo felt his leg manifesting again, that being. He closed his eyes tightly once more, stopping what was perhaps one of the sweetest moments he'd ever had. But Wispy held close, placing Momomomo's head on his chest, at least until the pain subsided.
"I'm sorry, my leg..." his gaze looked like he was pleading with Wispy, but the latter only softly smiled and ruffled his hair as a silent comfort.
"It's okay. It doesn't hurt as much, does it?"
"It's bearable." He smiled, dozing off in his beloved's arms. "Would it be fine if I sleep here for the night?"
"Wouldn't your Momos search for you? And my Wisps would also come back..." Wispy said, checking the time. It was past midnight.
"I don't care. Let them see it. Let them know I'm not letting you go anymore."
"And your prosthetic?"
"I've slept a few times with it, it's not as bad as it sounds, believe it or not. Besides, I still have to take the crutch home."
Wispy laughed a little bit at the remark, as he forgot that he did come with a crutch. "What would I do without you, really?"
"I wonder the same, but at least we don't have to worry about that for the time being. I mean it, Wispy. We may be broken one way or another, but that doesn't mean we can't move forward together."
Wispy kissed the few streaks of hair that covered Momomomo's forehead, with his eyes peacefully closing for the first time in ages. Finally, the storm stopped on his alley after so long. "Perhaps you're right."