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"DUDE how far is this concert??" Ze groans, they've been walking for seemingly hours, thank GOD for the stacks of carrots keeping their hunger bar up so they can sprint.
Honk honk honk!!! Moe excitedly squealed, looking at Ze and Regect. Obviously it was worth it to her, and whatever made her happy was worth it.
"Oh Ze c'mon you're just pissy you're the slowest here c'mon" Regect was flying, that doesn't even count!! "I like it, I'm not gonna crack-" Regect started to sing before Ze threw the closest block at him, giving him a crash landing. "JESUS- OKAY OKAY- FUUUuuuck dude if you didn't like Nirvana you could've said something-"
"It's not about it being Nirvana can you do ANY trips without singing??"
"Oh so you wanna hear my majestic voice without my beautiful-"
"SHUT UP."
HONK HONK HONK HONK HOOONKK!!!!!!
"Sorry Moe." "Yeah we'll be best friends, right Ze?"
Ze threw his hands to his head, seeing the moon starting to raise. "It's gonna be night soon- is this even on peaceful.??" He questioned, getting honks in return.
HONK HONK!!!! Moe squeaked, holding up little tents for everyone. Hers of course being colorful and rainbow! There was also a black tent and a white tent to house both the men for the night along with a campfire. As she gave the boys their appropriately colored tents she looked at them almost expectantly, like she knows what is bound to happen.
"My favorite color is white, I should get the white tent." Regect said, clearly to give more hassle to Ze but also in part to tease him.
"What the fuck are you on about- just- we can trade. It's fine." Ze said, trying to keep the peace so everything would go quicker. He held out his white tent and took Regect's black one, setting them up around a campfire that Moe had also pulled out from her inventory, she really was prepared. However right as everyone was getting prepared to sleep she saw!! A wild wolf!!! Of course she has to go tame it!! And just like that the clown was off, leaving Ze and Regect all alone which is of course prime bickering time. They decided to start arguing over who put up their tent better and later who roasted the best marshmallow which ended with both marshmallows being devoured MERCILESSLY by the void aka Regect's invisible mouth.
"Dude that was my fucking marshmallow." Z groaned, now lacking one.
"Well unless you plan on reaching into my stomach uhhh you snooze you lose." Regect mocked, feeling on top of the world while standing up at full height above the fire, arms reaching to full height.
"Oh I'm gonna goddamn get you.." Ze hissed, ready to pounce.
While Regect was laughing, he felt a drop on his arm, confused he looked at Ze. "Dude did you spit on me?" He uttered out, completely confused before another one and another until it felt like little drops of acid.
"Why would I SPIT on you??" Ze mocked, standing up to match his height before Regect cowered. "Hey- I didn't mean to star-"
"It's not you it's this FUCKING ACID." Regect interrupted, shaking with his invisible teeth bared, although the water made him more visible, just translucent. Of course it wasn't actually acid but rather.. rain. It's raining.
"Dude are you like allergic to water is that why you smell like shit all the time?" Ze almost giggled out, thinking it's still just a joke. Well he thought it was as a joke until he saw Regect retreat to his tent and curl up. "Dude what- are you a cat?" He had to hold back his laugh
"Shut UP dude! It's a long story! And just shut up!!!" Regect couldn't think of anything witty to say, covering his ears and clawing at the sides of his head to quiet the rain.
"Regect don't claw at yourself like that, I already said I'm sorry." Z murmured and inches closer to him, starting to see gold blood and tears leak from his eyes and the side of his head too. "Regect." Z called out, "Earth to Regect!" He basically yelled, grabbing both shoulders of the pathetic entity and shaking him.
"I HATE the rain." Is all Regect to whine out along with curses under his breath and choked sobs.
"Regect- ah c'mon man. Stopstopstop. Just calm the hell down! It's rain! Get out of that tent!" Z said, trying to pull Regect out to give him exposure therapy only to get Regect's full entity screech in his ear. It was something he's never heard before and something Regect had told himself was just for self defense.
Z stumbled back, clutching his now echoing ears. He's sick of learning Regect's powers first hand. "Just get out of the tent and calm down!" He moved one hand from his ears to yank Regect out.
Regect, now in the rain took to pathetically writhing around on the ground trying to use the mud as rain cover. It felt suffocating, like he couldn't escape it as it enveloped him, like little drops of acid on all of his skin. It was cold, the only warm coming from his own blood still dripping from the side of his head.
"C'mon get up you're getting exposure therapy!!" Z pulled the entity up to a standing position thinking it would help, but oh boy.
It seems Ze forgot that a common phobia (which he didn't know was a phobia at the time and thought Regect genuinely thought it was ACID RAIN) symptom is vomit. And taking Regect out of a safe spot when he can't think straight and is obviously having a panic attack is free real estate for nausea.
Z watched Regect slump to his knees gagging and gripping at the sand, trying his hardest to keep his composure just enough to open the command menu but when he finally got it up all control was ripped from him as everything was torn from his stomach and onto the mud.
Regect was covered in vomit, mud, blood, and now shame. He looked up at Ze uselessly, begging him for a little help when Ze took off his own hoodie to lay on Regect while he ushered him back in the tent.
"Regect- shit. I thought you had just a fucked up case of paranoia and acid. Listen, I can call someone to take Moe to the concert. You need to like- go home or something!" Z said, shivering from the cold on his skin from just his now drenched tshirt.
Thankfully being in cover now, Regect was able to get rid of the rain and even change the time to daytime, still breathing intensely. He felt himself sweating profusely and his heart racing making him even more nauseous. He finally ended up teleporting home, taking Z's hoodie with him by accident.
Moe finally appeared, holding a frog with her face paint perfectly in tact (thank the lord for waterproof makeup!). Honk honk honk? She nervously yelped.
"Listen Moe, I need to go home to make sure Regect doesn't get worse. If I call Msak and Ptolemy and give them our tickets would you be okay?"
Honk honk! Honk hoonkk :c
"Yeah I'm sorry Regect took away prime frog weather, and take those worms out of your pockets I can see them. But look I think Regect has a phobia or something of the rain. When the concert is over I want us to help him. Maybe he's an asshole but he literally threw up." Ze explained still scared to admit he's genuinely worried. He's supposed to be the smart and logical one. He's the logical one, Moe is the sweetheart, and Regect is an annoying asshole. That's how it should stay, and when Regect goes down and has a panic attack the dynamic breaks.
Honk hoonkk?
"Yes Moe, as.." Ze stumbled on his words, struggle to say them. "As a family."
HONK HOONKK :DDDD Moe SQUEAKED! She had a family now! Well they were already her family and she loves them very much but SHE GOT ZE TO ADMIT IT!
After Z had called the monsterfucking duo he decided to try and chat with Ptolemy. "Hey dude. What's up with Regect and the rain."
Ptolemy simply sighed, already sick of the topic simply said "Pretty sure he had an old friend? He never talks about it."
"Thanks for the tickets though!" Msak said, already ready to go.
Z ran home. Moe was safe, the tents were taken down, and now he could focus on Regect and finding out the truth.
Ze was home. He basically slammed the door open and closed before rushing to Regect's room, knocking on the door nervously. "Regect. Regect are you there?" He tried to open it but it was locked.
He found a note on the floor, it's the one Regect puts up on his door when he takes a shower so nobody mistakenly enters his bathroom because of course the selfish prick got a bathroom all to himself. In fact! Ze is the only one without his own bathroom!
I mean it was good Regect was showering obviously because vomit and stuff but!!! God Ze can't think straight! He just paces back and forth for what feels like days but is actually 5 minutes where Regect finally opens the door, but seeing Z he immediately shuts it, feeling everything coming back.
"Just GO you've already made it worse." He growled, locking the door again.
"Fine. I'll go." Z sighed, maybe Regect needed some privacy to calm down, but he can't be alone in a house after a freakout like that.
"Nonono you're supposed to fight for me- not- don't leave.." the last words came out as a soft whine, flaring all of Regect's abandonment issues.
"Alright, then tell me what's going on. The rain, Ptolemy said it's related to a friend?" Ze asked, back against the door.
"More like my kid." Regect said. This was honestly scary for him to talk about. The fact he was even letting Ze in during an episode when Z could easily turn it around on him, or worse, realize it's his fault.
"Your... Kid? You're a father?"
"...His name was Micha. My first protagonist. And he was.. everything." Regect couldn't help but say before he could catch the words, deciding to continue because this was his family now.
"At first I was serious. I tried to be as scary as possible because it's my job it's what I was made for. A shapeshifting entity with a loud deep voice and commands to change the entire world. And Micha didn't think I was scary. He's the reason I was rejected and sent to you as a retrial."
"Well. You know how days for you is longer for me? I waited 5 years your time. It was over 300 for me. I waited 300 years in the rain for him to come back, hoping he'd log back on." Regect could feel the nausea coming back. "I hate the rain. I don't wanna be along or in the rain again." Regect huffed.
Regect wasn't used to being this honest, it made him sick and he felt pathetic, but Ze was listening. He wasn't alone in his suffering.
"Do you know what hospital he went to?"
"Stewards Medical Center." Regect replied matter of factly.
"They closed down, what was his full name? I wanna try seeing if I can find anything online."
"Micha Tanner. His primary doctor was Doctor Thatcher, if that matters."
"...Thatcher can kiss my ass." Ze remembered from the book, slowly googling it and seeing not only the channel with Micha's gameplay but his obituary. "Hey Regect can you give me a minute?" He had a plan. He was going to make Regect open his doors with something that reminded him of Micha and by showing his knowledge of music. Then they'd both be okay. Ze ran out of house before he could hear the choked sobs to stay.
Ze looked around, trying to find allumias... What were they called? Illuminas? No that's Roblox... Allium! He needed to find some for Regect and sing for him. When he finally had a bouquet it started raining AGAIN but he made it home.
He threw a rock at Regect's window and he opened it slowly and cautiously, not wanting the rain to get in.
"HEY REGECT! LISTEN TO THIS!" Ze held up the flowers and started singing the first thing that came to his mind which was unfortunately, a 70s song.
"Life had juuuusstt beguuunn- fuck thats- that's 70s." Ze stuttered, looking at Regect's disappointed face "One more chance okay!!" Z yelled out, the rain already making his hair wet again when it was finally starting to dry.
"Take me ouuutt tonighttt.." Ze started, seeing Regect's eyes appear just to dialate. "Where there's music and there's people and they're young and alliiiivvvee." Ze could tell through Regect's finally forming face he was doing something right.
"Driving in your car I never, never want to go home. Because I haven't got one.. anymore. Take me out tonight. Because I want to see people and I want to see life. Driving in your car, oh please, don't drop me home Because it's not my home, it's their home and I'm welcome no more." Ze continued.
"And if a double-decker bus" Yes!!! "crashes into us.."
"To die by your side is such a heavenly way to die."
"And if a ten tonne truck kills the both of us?"
"To die by your side well, the pleasure, the privilege is mine."
"Take me out tonight. Take me anywhere I don't care, I don't care, I don't care. And in the darkened underpass I thought, 'Oh God, my chance has come at last!' but then a strange fear gripped me and I just couldn't ask."
"Take me out tonight, Oh take me anywhere I don't care, I don't care, I don't care. Driving in your car, I never, never want to go home because I haven't got one. Oh, I haven't got one"
"And if a double-decker bus crashes into us?"
"To die by your side is such a heavenly way to die."
"And if a ten tonne truck KILLS the both of us??"
"To die by your side well the pleasure the privilege is mine."
"There is a light and it never goes out."
"There is a light and it never goes out..."
"There is a light and it never goes out."
"There is a light and it never goes out." <3
The two stay in there respective position until Regect teleports out into the rain with Ze to kiss him, lips and tongue invading his. Ze, not wanting to drop the precious flowers moved it to a different inventory slot so he could hold and map out Regect's face, tasting the toothpaste he stole from Ze to wash out the bile.
Maybe they weren't perfect and maybe they weren't regular and maybe they had to take Regect's phobias one by one, but they were together and they were a family. That's what matters.
Of course the rain inevitably makes Regect nauseous again and they have to go inside before Regect throws up again but it's better than last time. And they're home with each other. Although maybe they both need... A shower. Together. Alone. Without anyone to bother them. Just Ze showing Regect he'll never leave.
Thats probably a good place to stop taking pictures of them. Hired by Moe to take pictures because Honk Honk HONK!!! Honk Honk HONK HOOONKK honk honk honk hoonkk honkahonka honk squeee! Aka "I'm going to a concert but I can feel the love!!! so can you pretty please find their first kiss so we can hang it up? As a family photo!" Which is where you got hired.
(Little epilogue)
Moe got home from the concert, she was quite sleepy but when she opened the door and waved goodbye to Ptolemy and Msak she saw Regect and Ze at the coffee table just chilling, Regect on his lap while some shitty 80s movie played. Of course this DELIGHTED her! Letting out excited honks as she found her way to cuddle them both.
Honk honk honk! ^_^
"YEAHHH let's take a family photo!"
"Alright then, Regect how about you wear one of your OWN shirts."
"You didn't care before."
honkkk :o3
What? A girl can cheer for her parents being in love!
Plus Ptolemy owes her 5 bucks :op