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English
Series:
Part 1 of Doomed Fantube Collection
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Published:
2025-08-05
Completed:
2025-10-26
Words:
3,766
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3/3
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59
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118
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First Love/Late Spring

Summary:

What if Fan missed?

Notes:

Spoilers for IIIV ep 2!! Kinda? Not really?
I hope this is good, I may make changes here and there lol!

Chapter 1: First Love/Late Spring

Summary:

First Love/Late Spring

Notes:

(See the end of the chapter for notes.)

Chapter Text

“And neither will you!” 

 

Suddenly, Jack hurled the device in a fit of rage, aiming blindly towards the host at the podium, missing him by a hair. It flew over the dumbfounded Fan, instead striking sharply at Bot’s leg, knocking them off balance. In an instant, they lost their grip on Test Tube, sending her plummeting from the towering height. The scientist reached her arms out desperately for something to grasp onto as she cried out in alarm. Bot, startled as they were, desperately reached out to catch their creator, but their metal hands swiped frigid air and barely grazed her fingertips. Shock flashed in the air like an invisible current, striking every helpless witness and stabbing Fan right through his chest 

 

“Test Tube!” 

 

Fan leaped off the stage and bolted towards the blue ray, mind flashing with both determination and fear to save his partner. Turning his attention towards the commotion, he aimed the blue ray right where the scientist was estimated to land, just enough space to save her in time. Without an ounce of hesitation, he fired. 

 

The world stood still as he made the shot, seeming to slow down before him. He felt the recoil of the blast shoot through his trembling body, nearly knocking him over. Chaos rippled through the elimination grounds and spiraled inside Fan’s head, making him dizzy. Despite the terror haunting him, hope flooded over him as if assuring him that everything was going to be okay.

 

Everything was going to be okay; she'll be alright. Sh e’d land safe on impact, blue and startled, but she’d be alright. He’d be able to embrace her and tell her everything is okay. She’d continue making inventions like she always strived to do. She and him would lay under the night sky and stargaze in each other’s arms. They’d plan their future together. Have the wedding they’ve always dreamed of having and expand their family. Everything would go back to normal.

 

A sickening thud followed by the crack of bones and a cut off scream silenced the rustling of forest leaves and impaled the bystanders with terror as their eyes laid upon the unfathomable sight before them. Fan stood still, letting the ray slip from his trembling hands.

 

He missed.

 

For a faint moment, he thought it was all in his head. That his mind was playing a sick trick on him. 

 

Test Tube was alright! She had to be! They had so much in front of them! She was okay! Fan continued to assure himself, his eyes beginning to sting with doubt. But as soon as he blinked, he still saw the broken body of the woman he loved, mangled on the floor, unmoving. 

 

All his hopes crumbled in an instant and he felt his heart shatter into a million irreparable pieces. 

 

“Test Tube!” he screamed, his cry shattered the silence like glass as he sprinted towards the limp figure. He drew her close, flinching at the cold touch of her skin. His hands scrambled to find a pulse or any sign of life. Just anything to show that she was still here with him. She had to still be here! 

 

“Everything is okay! I’m here! You’re going to be okay!” he whispered with a shaky voice, still searching for any signs of life. 

 

For a moment he stared at her praying that maybe she’d regain cautiousness and that she’d squeeze his hand in reassurance. Instead, her eyes stared right through him, dim and lifeless; cold like the touch of her skin. Her once radiant green eyes that he had dreamed of drowning in for eternity were now gray and empty. They were glazed pure terror prompted by the terrifying final moments of her life, glistening with tears that never fell before she hit the ground. Her face still retained the beauty he cherished so much, but now she was a shell of herself, empty and gone forever.  

 

She’s gone. 

 

With his hands trembling, he reached out to grasp her hand, noticing a tiny glint, knowing immediately that it was the engagement ring he had given her only a few weeks ago, matching his. The memories of that beautiful night washed over him, making him sob as he remembered the happiness that dazzled in her face as she accepted his proposal. She knocked him over in an embrace as she cried out in tender affirmation, the two falling to the grassy floor and laughing whilst holding one another. Since that day, he had dreamed of their wedding day; yearning for that special day where'd he see her walk down the aisle. He ached to see her beauty, their future reflecting ever so clearly. They would finally be together. 

 

That day would never come. That broke him further. 

 

He cried out her name again, a half sob that split the haunting silence once more. It felt like his ribs were splitting open and his throat closed up as he wailed out her name desperately. He called for her over and over despite knowing that there was nothing that could be done. Murmurs of grief and shock surrounded him, coming from all directions, but he couldn't differentiate the voices. He didn't even care to look up. 

 

She can't be dead! She can't be dead!

 

He could sense the figure of Bot standing speechless, staring at the limp body of their creator in pure dread and guilt. After a long moment of cold silence, they stammered “I’m sorry”, their voice shaking with grief, tears beginning to well in their eyes.  

 

It wasn't their fault. Keeping an arm around Test Tube, he extended his arm to embrace them. In an instant, Bot collapsed into the hug, beginning to sob. His murmurs of comfort fell short as he began to sob uncontrollably, his chest heaving as he gasped for air. He held his now broken family close, for this would be the last time they would all be together; the last time that he would be able to hold the love of his life. 

 

Fan looked up, his eyes catching the glint of moonlight that hid behind the swaying leaves, glistening the tears that spilled endlessly down his cheeks, stinging his face. His brown eyes, once full of light and love, were now drained with anguish. Reduced to a broken shell of his former self. He was empty. 

 

With a sniff, he leaned down to give her one final kiss on the forehead. He then pressed his forehead to hers softly, cherishing now dwindling warmth between them, shuddering painfully with agonizing grief. 

 

Everything had gone wrong…this wasn't supposed to happen.

 

Shattered and empty with grief, a burning sensation rose up to his throat and lungs, making his sobs sting and breath hitch painfully. He looked up, his face partially buried into his late fiancé's shoulder, his glare burning with hatred, piercing right through the man that had caused this tragedy. 

Notes:

heyy, heyyy...how y'all doing? ;^^

I don't usually write stuff like this but uhhh.

Edit (8/5/2025): I made some changes here and there and fixed some mistakes that bothered me.

Chapter 2: Promise

Summary:

Promise

Notes:

I wanna apologize to all of you for what I did. It was very wrong and I am very sorry. I just would like to move on and lead a normal life. You know, get a job and a wife and change my ways. And I hope this apology impresses you, even though my grandmother made me do it and I don't really mean it /ref

Anyway, some fluff...

(See the end of the chapter for more notes.)

Chapter Text

Flashback: One day before the tragedy 

Rain trickled softly against the window, affixing to the serenity of the bedroom which was casted with the aroma of sleep. Under the comfort of the covers, Fan shifted slowly, edging closer to the radiating warmth nestled against him. Test Tube’s gentle breathing relaxed him, causing his cheeks to flush wildly as he buried himself into her warmth. 

The pair had been dating for months at this point, heck, they were now engaged. Despite that, he would still find himself blushing wildly whenever she was near; his cheeks flushing a deep scarlet almost as red as his hair. Even a brief glance from her turns him into pathetic mush in an instant. All he ever wanted was to bask in her warmth tonight and for eternity.  

A sense of mellowness flooded over him as he held her close, his fingers weaving tenderly through her curls. Since she had been working on a project for most of the day, she had come to bed late that night, joining Fan who had recently slipped into a slumber after a long evening of writing on his blog. After putting his laptop away, she slipped into bed where she was met with the gentle touch of her fiancé wrapping his arms around her, clingy but affectionate. She immediately pressed into the comfort of his arms, falling asleep almost instantly. 

Hours had passed since then, and Fan found himself awake with curiosity he couldn't shake off. While he had no insight on what she was working on, he did notice a little box on the counter in her lab alongside an assortment of tools. He couldn't decipher what she could be working on with that information alone, but he didn't want to investigate further so as to not invade her privacy, despite her not minding much if he pried around the lab. She meant to tell him what she was working on and he also meant to ask, but sleep made the pair forget. 

Although Fan wasn't much of a science person and he didn't understand much of what she was explaining most of the time, he still listened intently as she ecstatically explained her new inventions and her plans for future ones. He adored every single invention the scientist crafted, entranced on how clever and beautiful she was. She was amazing; how did he get so lucky? 

Fan tightened his embrace, promising silently that he would never let her go. Just as his eyes began to weigh down, he felt the woman shift in his embrace, a soft mumble arising from her lips. His eyes flashed with all the love in the world as his eyes met hers. “Hey, sleepyhead,” he hummed, pecking her on the cheek a couple of times before attacking her with a flurry of kisses, prompting her to laugh softly. 

"Fan!" she exclaimed tenderly as she playfully ducked away from his barrage of kisses. Her eyes, although glazed with the drowsiness of sleep, stared adoringly at her partner. She managed to trap him in a kiss, catching him off guard for a moment before he relaxed into her lips. 

They’ve kissed many times before, obviously, but he’d still find himself dazed from every kiss and make-out session. Fan could feel himself already getting flustered and red with embarrassment as the kiss deepened, tensing him up a little bit. He again wondered how he got so lucky as he held the back of her head to further deepen their connection. 

Quickly noticing the tension in his shoulder, she broke the kiss, leaving the man dumbfounded and craving for more. “Relax, Fan” she whispered, rubbing gentle circles on his back. 

He chuckled lightly. “Pretty hard to relax when you're faced with the prettiest girl in the world,” he professed, averting his gaze shyly. 

Fan then immediately cringed at himself for the corny remark, his face turning a deep shade of crimson. He half expected her to cringe alongside him and give him an affectionate cuff on the shoulder. 

She stared at him for a split second, her eyes blinking with both shock and affection, betraying the fact that his remark had struck her tenderly right through the heart; feeling as if her heart had suddenly stopped and she had dropped dead. Now, it was Test Tube’s turn to blush wildly. 

It took her a while of awkward stammering before she managed to sputter out an affectionate “Oh, hush" as she tried to hide her burning face from Fan, who smirked dorkishly at her, gaining him that affection cuff on his shoulder that he anticipated. 

Sharing a laugh and quick kiss, the couple adjusted themselves until they were face to face, laying against the bed and wrapped comfortably in one another's arms. Fan managed to relax as Test Tube settled into his arms as she wrapped hers around the small of his back.

He loved their late night talks, silently wishing that they could last forever. The pair would find themselves trapped in conversations that lasted all throughout the night, going from one topic to the next. The rest of the night was filled with the bliss of talk, topics pertaining from their shared concerns about the Inanimate Island residents and their plans for their wedding next week. 

When exhaustion drew them to a comfortable silence, he noticed that Test Tube’s demeanor changed slightly and she grimaced a little. Her eyes dimmed faintly with ache and anxiety as she shifted closer to Fan, trying to find a sense of solace in his arms. 

Something was wrong. 

“Test Tube, are you alright? Do you need me to get you anything?” Fan asked, voice cracking in concern as he drew his hands to cup her face. 

She paused for a couple of seconds before leaning into his touch in reassurance, “No, it's okay, hun.” Pausing for a moment before continuing, “Just tired…I overworked myself today” she admitted, eyes still glazed with malaise. 

Fan paused, his hands drifting to grasp her own, feeling how calloused and cold her hands were from handling rough equipment all day.  In a gesture of comfort, he ran his thumb over her coarse knuckles. “You’d…tell me if there was anything wrong, right?” he added, his gaze not leaving hers. 

She squeezed his hand in reassurance, their engagement rings shimmering in their shared clasp. “Of course” she smiled before letting out a small chuckle, “I guess I need to start fixing my sleep schedule” 

Fan laughed softly,  “You’re not the only one” he admitted, recalling earlier that evening when he drifted to sleep in the middle of working on his blog.

Seeming more relaxed, she pressed her forehead against his. “We’ll work on it.” she promised. 

Fan flopped his head against her shoulder, affectionately pressing a couple of kisses along her collarbone. She let him rest there, her hand cradling the back of his head as her eyes wandered in blissful thought. Her heart beat softly against his as she began to think about their future together. They were so close to having everything they had ever wanted, so close to getting married and having a family of their own. Unbeknownst to Fan, one of those dreams were closer to them than he ever expected. Test Tube smiled softly.

At that moment, everything felt right. Perfect. 

“Hey Fan?” 

She heard a muffled hum in response, his face still cradled into her neck, eyes half closed.   

“I love you…so much.” 

Fan had heard that from her several times and every time he heard it, it seemed to intensify the burning sensation in his heart and a flood of gratitude and love crashed into him once more. He squeezed her in his embrace. 

“I love you, too.”

A comfortable silence complimented the soft pattering of the rain against the window. 

Fan broke the silence suddenly, curiosity suddenly itching his mind. “Oh, I almost forgot to ask you, what were you working on?” 

Her eyes glinted with a mixture of mischief and excitement, the glimmer of ache in her eyes fading slightly, “That’s a surprise.” she hummed, adjusting herself, pressing herself against his warmth. “I’ll show you tomorrow evening” she promised, closing her eyes. 

Smiling, he gave her one last tender kiss before burying himself into her shoulder once more. They melted into each other as sleep whisked them away into tender dreams; both wishing that everything could stay like this forever.

He couldn't wait for tomorrow.

Notes:

...before the storm.

Chapter 3: Smoke Signals

Notes:

Surprise!

(See the end of the chapter for more notes.)

Chapter Text

The rain had stopped and had dissolved into a tranquil drizzle, leaving a glimmering dew on the glass. Fatigued, Test Tube trudged back to bed, finishing up a cold glass of water, washing down the acrid taste from her mouth. An intolerable blend of ache and exhaustion trembled through her as she rubbed her temple, trying to knead away the dull tension prodding at her. Doing her best not to wake Fan up, she carefully slipped back to bed, but she suddenly found herself recoiling in discomfort. Slouching forward with a spasm of malaise, she pinched her eyes shut, placing down the empty glass on the bedside table. In an attempt to relive the pain tearing ceaselessly through her, she wrapped her arms around herself for comfort

During sick days like these, she’d usually take it easy and indulge in light research in her lab and work on small projects, avoiding any strenuous work. However, for the past week or so, she could barely focus on anything without being bothered by persisting aches, even the lightest of tasks made her unsteady. She did her best to continue on with her day normally; it didn't make her helpless, but it was frustrating to go through. Not only did it cut back on her productivity and responsibilities around Inanimate Island, but it just generally sucked. Her mind buzzed with invention concepts and ideas of new experiments were soon replaced with malaise.

Yearning for a wave of comfort, her gaze searched for Fan, quickly finding him half-hidden and tangled up lazily in the sheets wearing his oversized Spoiled Lemon tee, which matched with hers. He snored lightly, mumbling incoherently into a pillow. As soon as she caught sight of him, her face softened, the persisting ache eventually ebbing away, giving way to affection. His hair, recently dyed, was frazzled and unkempt like always; Test Tube always found it charming. The dim light pooled upon his bright red hair, complimenting the yellow streaks that ran down the sides. His soft, round face was rough with stubble and dotted with ache patches.

She smiled, resisting the urge to cup his face and bombard it with affectionate kisses, not wanting to wake him up, of course. Instead, she carefully settled on the edge of the bed, admiring him for a while before being with a pang of guilt. For the last few days, she had been keeping something from him, about her current condition. It wasn't just an ailment she was experiencing.

To be fair, she had just found out about the true reasoning behind her condition. Still, her heart ached with guilt. Fan had helped her though so much. Not only that, he had been caring for her ever since the symptoms arose. Holding her hair back as she purged, bringing her medicine, and holding her on bad days. Oh, what did she do to deserve him.

Test Tube took a deep breath, wrapping her arms around herself in a gesture of comfort meant not just for herself. She found herself lost in her mind for she didn't know how long until she felt soft arms enveloping her.

“Still not feeling good, Test?” he asked, his voice enfolded with slumber and his eyes half-closed, but still locked lovingly with hers.

There was no hiding the stiffness in her movements and the exhaustion painted on her face. Her hands reached to hook onto his arms, dragging him closer until she practically snak into his warmth.

Frowning with sympathy, Fan kissed her shoulder blade in comfort. “Come back to sleep, Test.”

Her eyes flickered towards the bedside clock, blinking 6:07 unpleasantly in the dark. Rest sounded nice, but she reminded herself that she still had some work to do in a couple of hours.

“Test Tube” a half-chide, half-plead came softly from Fan, “You need to rest.”

Effortlessly and gently, Fan heaved Test Tube off the edge of the bed until they were both nestled in the middle of the messy bedsheets, pulling one of them up to envelop them both. He curled himself around her, resting half of his body weight on her, preventing her from moving. Well…she could move, quite easily actually. Fan was relatively light and his hold on her was nowhere near as strong nor was it forceful, so she could easily slip out if she wanted to. And she didn't want to. His hands tenderly ran up and down her spine, sending waves of comfort through her. He pressed a tender kiss on her forehead before nestling himself in the crook of her neck, leaving her pleasantly dizzy with warmth and affection.

Finding herself defeated with the comfort emanating from his warmth, exhaustion started to weigh in and soon she fell into a deep sleep.

---

Lightbulb was spinning around in the office chair, rolling from one corner to the next. She nearly avoided crashing into Test Tube’s lab equipment and Test Tube herself, who stepped out of the way in time.

By the afternoon, Test Tube was feeling much better. Much better than she had calculated, although some discomfort still pricked at her. Sleeping in for most of the day with Fan gave her some much needed rest. Despite that, she felt as energetic as ever and was currently preparing the blue ray for Lightbulb’s new coat.

Once the spining woman was nearing the middle of the lab, Test Tube caught Lightbulb midway, settling her before putting the blue ray to work.

“SOO, Tube, did you tell Fan yet?” Lightbulb asked, leaning dangerously at the edge of her seat to grab a newspaper, opening it with one flick.

Lightbulb wasn't meant to know, but it was hard to hide anything from her.

The woman chuckled, “If I had told him already, I think he would have told the whole island by now,” she remarked affectionately.

Lightbulb furrowed her brow slightly, suddenly serious, “You gotta tell him sooner or later, Tube.”

“I know, I’ve just been trying to find a way to tell him.” she remarked, “But one thing's for sure, I’m telling him tonight.” she said more confidently, but it was hard to hide her concerns.

The shimmering blue women nudged the scientists encouragingly, “Well, if you happen to need any support, I gotcha, girl!” Lightbulb exclaimed.

“Thanks, Lightbulb” she replied, smiling gratefully at her friend before continuing to apply another layer of blue ray, listening to Lightbulb chatter for the next few minutes.

---

Test Tube could barely hear the commotion going on below, but she could tell that the short-tempered Jack was not happy about his elimination. She could see the faces of apprehension and discomfort from the other contestants from this height as the argument continued.

Suddenly, she felt her entire world lurch abruptly and the secure hold that Bot had on her loosened as they exclaimed in pain. Panic surged through Test Tube as she was flung out of grasp, plummeting to the ground below. Her fingers slightly grazed metal fingertips, but they were soon out of reach. Fan, from below, had cried out her name, making her heart lurch Her mind reeling, clawing for a solution, anything…

Everything reeled seemed to fall apart before her, shattering into-

CRACK!

Notes:

Hey chat, I'm back! I was found dead after writing chapter 2!
Sorry for not updating, I got really sick after writing chapter 2 and I lost all my writing skills. And I recently started college so I'm busy with that as well!
I'm sorry if this may be ooc, I tried my best!
Another chapter soon, I wanna sleep it's 3 am!

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