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After the End Fight, Boomie returns to the Shop. Exhaustion pulls at him, but the need to restock is greater. He needs to figure out what to do next, prepare something to get the Shop working as he intends. Maybe he can sell restocks to the players who lost gear in the End Fight, if he’s quick enough to get the materials that is. At least Boomie was lucky enough not to die during the fight, which speeds up the material gathering process somewhat.
The plans he makes however, are immediately derailed when he enters the Shop. Because lounging casually on the communal bed, as if he didn’t just slaughter half the server, was Flame.
“What are you doing here?” Flame looks up from his communicator with a grin, shutting it off before swinging his legs over the edge of the bed to sit up.
“What, am I not allowed here? I thought this bed was for public use or something.” He obviously wants something, Boomie just isn’t sure what yet.
“I mean it is, I’m just surprised you want to use it. No one’s slept in it yet.” Flame laughs at that.
“Oh, I’m not sleeping here. Do you really think I’d sleep somewhere as open as this when everyone’s hunting me down? You know, ‘cause of the Dragon Egg.” Boomie rolls his eyes. This guy’s ego. “What, jealous?” Flame notices his annoyance.
Boomie scoffs. “Of you? Why would I care about the Dragon Egg, I don’t need it.” He finally takes his eyes off Flame, maybe a mistake, but regardless of whether or not Flame attacks he needs to restock.
Behind him, he can hear Flame flop back down on the bed. “Yeah, you made that clear with your little cheats.” Boomie pauses from where he’s rummaging through his barrels, hand instinctively moving to his neck. The skin is unblemished, there’s no sign of where his head had reattached to his body.
“You sound like the jealous one now.” Flame responds with a dismissive sound, and turning around Boomie finds him back on his communicator. “What, calling for back up? You need all your teammates to jump me again?” He’s mostly just taunting, he doubts that’s what Flame’s actually doing.
Flame pauses whatever he’s doing to look at Boomie, a sharp grin on his face and stare burning into him even from behind a blindfold. “Paranoid little Boomie,” his voice is heavy with mockery. “Are you scared of me?”
Boomie shuts the barrel he was looking through, deciding not to answer Flame, and instead heads towards the back of the Shop where more barrels await.
Flame however, decides that’s not happening, and lunges for him as Boomie passes. Exhaustion slows him down, meaning Boomie isn’t even able to draw his sword before Flame’s grabbed him and dragged him down. It’s only a matter of seconds before Flame has him pinned to the bed, hands around his wrists.
Boomie struggles, but it’s no use. Flame’s always been physically stronger than him, and that’s without the Dragon Egg increasing his strength. He could teleport out, but Boomie’s already drained from the End Fight, and then Flame would start complaining about him cheating again and Boomie doesn’t want to risk a fight inside the Shop. Especially if it’s a fight with Flame. He’d much rather have the building stay standing.
“You didn’t answer my question.” Flame leans in closer. “Are you scared of me?”
Boomie glares up at him. “No.” He’s not, that’s what he tells himself, and it’s not like there’s anything Flame can do to make him stay dead. But that doesn’t mean Flame isn’t still powerful, that he isn’t still dangerous. And Boomie still remembers what it feels like to burn.
Flame grins, grip tightening to a point that’s almost painful, and for a moment Boomie’s worried they are going to fight. But then Flame’s lips are on his, and he relaxes slightly. Flame probably isn’t here to kill him.
It’s a nice kiss, Flame is warm and the bed is comfortable, and it would be so easy to fall asleep like this. But he can’t.
He breaks away, trying again to struggle out of Flame’s grip. “Flame,” he growls, “I’ve got shit to do.”
Flame huffs, still unmoving. “No you don’t.” Boomie blinks.
“What do you mean ‘No I don’t’, I–” Flame cuts him off with another kiss, and it’s so tempting to let him win, to give in to the exhaustion. But Boomie refuses to give Flame this victory, and turns his head away when he gets the chance.
“Flame.” He hisses. “I’m serious.”
“So am I.” Flame begins to trail soft kisses down his neck, far more gentle than he normally is. “Come on, what do you need to do? You didn’t even die.” Boomie feels the sharp prick of his teeth at that, and is worried for a moment that Flame is about to try and change that, but they vanish just as fast as they appeared.
Boomie knows that at this point arguing will get him nowhere. Flame’s not going to listen to him, and he’s not going to move unless he gets what he wants. “That doesn’t mean I don’t need to restock. Look, just let me up and I’ll let you stay here for a bit.” At this point it was inevitable he was going to stay the night anyway.
Flame doesn’t answer at first, before letting out a sigh. “Fine.” He lets Boomie up, but not without dragging him into one more kiss.
Boomie returns to his barrels, trying to keep one eye on Flame as the demon wanders around the Shop. He doesn’t get very far before he catches Flame digging into his floor. “What are you doing?”
Flame glances up at him. “What? You said I could stay, and I already told you I’m not sleeping on that.” He gestures towards the communal bed.
Boomie frowns. “What does that have to do with destroying my floor? We can just set up a bed or something in the corner.” Flame scoffs at that.
“I’m not sleeping out in the open. Besides, I know you have some secret underground base around here somewhere.” And because nothing can ever go Boomie’s way, as Flame’s talking he manages to uncover the ladder to Boomie’s hidden bed.
As much as Boomie desperately wants to wipe the smirk that he’s given off Flame’s face, there’s not much he can do as Flame heads down the ladder. “Hey! At least fix my floor!” He shouts after him, but gets no response.
Boomie refuses to let Flame run around his base unsupervised, especially not the more secret parts, so he follows him down. As he covers the hole above him with a temporary piece of stone he adds “fix the floor” to his mental to-do list.
Blinking as his eyes adjust to the dim light of his bedroom, Boomie finds Flame sprawled out on his bed, grinning up at him. “That’s my bed.” Boomie glares at the other, not that it does much.
“Yeah? It’s comfortable.” Flame looks so smug and it makes Boomie want to do… something. It’s a difficult choice between kissing him or trying to kill him, but he manages to choose neither. The best choice for him, seeing as one option would definitely fail and the other would just be giving Flame what he wants.
Instead, he crosses his arms and continues to glare. “You’re not sleeping there.”
“Nah, I think I will.” He still has that stupid grin on, and Boomie can feel his resolve slipping away by the second.
“No.”
“Make me move then.” It’s a trap, he knows this, but Boomie’s too tired to care anymore.
He lunges for Flame without a real plan in mind, only to make him shut up. Unsurprisingly, it only takes moments for Boomie to end up pinned down in the same way as before.
Boomie struggles half-heartedly, testing to see if Flame would let him go. He doesn’t, of course. “I need to restock.” He repeats, not sounding as annoyed as he’s trying to. “You said you’d let me if I let you stay.”
Flame’s grin turns mean, and Boomie knows something’s about to go wrong. “That wasn’t the deal we made. You said I could stay if I let you up.” He laughs, and Boomie accepts that he’s not getting out of this one. “You of all people should know to pay attention to the wording.” He really should, and Boomie wants to kick himself for missing the obvious flaw in their deal.
He doesn’t get that long to dwell on that thought though, as Flame distracts him easily by kissing him breathless. Flame’s clearly in a good mood, based on the lack of biting. It makes sense, considering how the day went.
Boomie shifts as his chestplate digs uncomfortably into his back, but can’t do much with his wrists still pinned. “Flame,” He breaks away, much to the other’s disappointment, if the slight growl he gives is any indication. “If I’m sleeping here I need to take my armor off.”
Flame grins, letting go of his wrists to sit up. “What, are you no longer scared I’m going to kill you?”
Boomie glares at him with faux annoyance, yanking his helmet off and storing it in his inventory. “That’s against the rules. And really? Killing me with no armor? You’re at plus five strength and you won’t even give me a fair fight?” He starts on his chestplate, but it’s a little difficult considering that he’s still laying down.
Flame helps him. “You’re offering me a fair fight?” He asks as he undoes the straps keeping the chestplate in place.
Boomie bites back a grin at how eager Flame sounds. “Maybe.” He sits up as much as the other allows him and taps Flame’s chestplate. “Now take this off. I’m not sleeping next to you if you’re wearing netherite.”
Flame makes a show of pouting and complaining, but he does get off Boomie and takes his armor off quickly. He’s back on him just as quickly though, dragging him into another kiss and pushing Boomie down onto the bed.
Boomie is content to let him do what he wants, between Flame’s warmth and the comfort of his bed he’s almost asleep already, but he forces his eyes open when Flame moves away.
“You’re cute like this.” Flame is staring down at him, and Boomie can’t tell if he’s teasing him or not in his exhausted state.
He can’t help a small grin at it nonetheless, before grabbing Flame by the collar of his sweater and dragging him down so he can bury his face in the soft fabric. “Shut up and let me go to sleep.” He mumbles into Flame’s shoulder.
Flame laughs at that, but the other does eventually fall silent after rearranging himself so that he’s laying on his side, arms wrapped around Boomie.
He’ll deal with everything in the morning: Flame, restocking, the rest of the server. But for now he’s comfortable and wrapped in warmth, and it only takes minutes before he’s fast asleep.