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Will had been sitting on the floor of Mike’s basement for twenty minutes before he realized something was wrong with his ear.
It wasn’t the way Mike was looking at him—that was normal. Mike looked at Will a lot. It wasn’t the silence either, or the half-finished game of Dragon’s Lair paused on the screen. It was a feeling. A strange tugging sensation on the left side of his head, like his ear had decided to stop holding itself up.
He reached up, fingers brushing against the soft fur there. And froze.
His ear, which had always stood straight and alert like other rabbits’, was drooping. The tip bent forward, flopping over just enough to brush against his hair. He tugged on it gently, testing its weight. It was happening. His ears were officially drooping.
Panic fluttered in his chest. This wasn’t supposed to happen yet. His mom had said it would eventually, that all lop rabbits went through it when they got older, but he’d always figured “older” meant sixteen or seventeen, not thirteen.
“Mike?” he asked, his voice smaller than he intended.
Mike blinked, like he’d been caught staring. “Yeah?”
“Does my… does my ear look weird to you?”
Mike leaned in a little closer, like he needed a better look even though he’d clearly been staring at it already. He tilted his head, dark eyes flicking briefly over Will’s face before settling on the traitorous ear. His tail gave a single, curious thump-thump-thump against the carpet.
“It’s… floppy,” Mike said slowly, like he was deciding if the word fit.
“I know,” Will mumbled, dropping his hand and wishing he could sink into the floor. “It’s drooping.”
Mike didn’t say anything else for a long moment. He just kept staring at Will’s ear, his stare so intent it made Will squirm. Then he did something strange: he reached out a hand, fingers hovering just an inch from Will’s head.
“Can I…?” Mike started, then stopped, swallowing hard.
Will’s breath hitched. He nodded once, a short, jerky motion.
Mike’s fingers were gentle as they brushed against the fur of his drooping ear. He traced the curve of it from base to tip, his touch light and questioning. It was so careful it sent a small shiver down Will’s spine, his ear tingling under Mike’s touch.
“It’s so soft,” Mike whispered, more to himself than to Will “And warm.”
Will’s remaining upright ear twitched at that, swiveling toward Mike’s voice even as heat flooded his cheeks.
“Does it… does it hurt?” Mike asked, finally looking away from the ear to meet Will’s eyes.
Will shook his head. “No. Just feels different.”
Mike’s thumb stroked along the inside of the ear again, a slow calming motion that made Will want to lean into it. Behind Mike, his tail had started wagging again, sweeping back and forth in wide arcs against the carpet.
“It suits you,” Mike said suddenly, his voice filled with conviction.
Will blinked. “What?”
“The droop,” Mike clarified, still slowly petting Will’s ear. “It suits you.” Then, as if realizing what he’d just admitted, he pulled his hand back quickly, a faint blush creeping up his neck. “I mean—not that you didn’t look good before! You always look good. I just mean—”
“I get it,” Will interrupted, saving Mike from further embarrassment. He couldn’t help the small smile that tugged at his lips. “Thanks.”
Mike’s tail gave an extra enthusiastic wag at that, thumping against the leg of the couch.
They sat in comfortable silence for a while after that, the game still paused on the screen, forgotten. Will found himself hyperaware of the drooping ear, how it shifted with every turn of his head. He also found himself hyperaware of Mike, who kept stealing glances at it every few seconds.
Then Mike shifted closer, their shoulders pressing together. “Can I ask you something else about rabbit ears?”
Will nodded, trying to ignore the way his heart was beating a little faster.
“Do they… do they both droop eventually? Or just one?”
“Both,” Will confirmed. “Mom says it takes a few weeks for the second one to catch up sometimes.”
Mike’s eyes lit up with genuine interest. “Really? So you’ll have one up and one down for a while?”
“Apparently.”
“Cool,” Mike breathed, looking utterly fascinated by this information.
Will wasn’t sure “cool” was the word he would have used for something that felt like his body betraying him, but coming from Mike, it sounded like the highest compliment.
Over the next few weeks, Mike’s fascination only grew. He watched Will’s ears with an intensity that made Will’s stomach flutter—first with embarrassment, then with something warmer and more exciting. Mike would notice every little twitch and flicker, at the way they’d swivel toward a sound or flatten against Will’s head when he was concentrating.
“It’s like they have their own language,” Mike said one afternoon as they sat side by side on Will’s bed while Will sketched in his notebook. Mike had been watching his upright ear swivel toward the window every time a car passed outside.
“They kind of do,” Will admitted, not looking up from his drawing. “Mom says she can always tell when I’m lying because my ears give me away.”
Mike’s tail gave an interested thump against the mattress. “What do they do when you lie?”
“They get all twitchy and nervous,” Will said, demonstrating by making both ears give a quick series of little jerks.
Mike laughed, a warm sound that made Will’s chest feel tight. Then he sobered, his gaze fixing on Will’s face again. “What about when you’re happy?”
Will considered this for a moment. “I don’t know… they just… relax?” As he said it, he realized it was true—both ears were in a calm, neutral position, neither alert nor flattened.
“What about when you’re around me?” Mike asked quietly.
Will’s breath caught. His remaining upright ear gave an involuntary flick toward Mike’s voice before settling into a relaxed position again. The drooping ear stayed soft and heavy against his hair.
“They’re relaxed,” Will said softly.
Mike’s tail began to wag slowly against the bedspread. “That’s good,” he said, sounding pleased.
Then came the day when Will woke up and felt that same strange tugging sensation on the right side of his head. He stumbled into the bathroom mirror and saw it: both his ears now drooping in perfect symmetry.
He should have been embarrassed, maybe even a little upset about his ears drooping so early. Instead, all he could think about was how Mike would react.
He found Mike in the Wheeler basement exactly where he expected him to be: sitting on the floor in front of the TV, controller in hand.
“Mike?” Will called out softly.
Mike looked up immediately, a smile already forming on his face as he spotted Will. Then his eyes widened slightly as he noticed something different.
“They’re both… down now,” Mike said slowly, setting down the controller.
Will ducked his head, feeling a bit shy. “Woke up like this this morning.”
Mike stood up and crossed the room in three long strides, stopping just in front of him. His eyes were fixed on Will’s ears, his expression one of pure wonder.
“They’re perfect,” Mike breathed, his tail beginning to wag behind him in wide, enthusiastic sweeps.
“Perfect?” Will repeated, confused. “They’re just… floppy.”
“No,” Mike said firmly, reaching out to gently trace the curve of one earr. “They’re perfect. They suit you.”
Will couldn’t help but smile at that, a real smile this time that reached his eyes. “You said that before.”
“Because it was true then and it’s true now,” Mike said, still softly stroking Will’s ear. “Actually…” He hesitated, seeming to think carefully about his next words.
“What?” Will prompted.
Mike looked up from Will’s ear to meet his eyes, his expression serious but soft. “They’re my favorite thing about you.”
Will’s breath hitched. Of all the things he’d expected Mike to say, that wasn’t even on the list.
“Really?” he whispered.
Mike nodded, his thumb stroking along the inside of Will’s ear in that careful motion that made Will want to lean into it. “Really.”
Without thinking, Will closed the small distance between them and wrapped Mike in a hug. Mike’s arms came around him immediately, holding him close. Will could feel Mike’s tail thumping happilly against his back.
“Can I… can we just sit for a bit?” Mike asked softly against Will’s hair.
Will nodded into Mike’s shoulder. “Yeah.”
They ended up on the couch, pressed close together in comfortable silence that felt natural between them. Will shifted slightly, then leaned his head against Mike’s shoulder.
Mike went very still beside him. “Is this okay?” he asked softly.
Will smiled into his shoulder, feeling a warmth spread through his chest. “It’s more than okay.”
Mike’s fingers found their way to his ears again, cautiously stroking and exploring their shape. Will found himself leaning into the touch, his body relaxing completely against Mike’s.
“They’re so expressive,” Mike murmured after a while. “I can tell what you’re feeling just by watching them.”
“Is that a good thing or a bad thing?” Will asked, his eyes half-closed in contentment.
“Good,” Mike said immediately. “It means I know when you’re happy.”
Will smiled at that, tilting his head slightly to give Mike better access to his ears. “I’m always happy with you,” he admitted softly.
Mike’s tail gave an extra enthusiastic wag at that, thumping against the couch cushion. “Me too,” he whispered.
They sat like that for what felt like hours but was probably only minutes, with Mike gently playing with Will’s ears and Will leaning into the touch. The game on the TV screen remained paused, forgotten in favor of the quiet moment they were having.
Eventually, Mike spoke again, his voice barely above a whisper. “You know what else I like about them?”
“What?” Will murmured, feeling drowsy and content.
“They’re yours,” Mike said simply. “So that makes them special to me.”
Will didn’t know how to respond to that, so he just shifted closer, pressing their shoulders together more firmly. Mike seemed to understand, because he wrapped an arm around Will’s shoulder and tucked him against his side.
In the quiet of the basement, with only the hum of the TV and the soft thumping of Mike’s tail against the couch to break the silence, Will felt something settle deep inside him—a happiness that had everything to do with the boy beside him.
Mike’s tail slowed slightly, curling loosely beside him on the couch.
Will stayed tucked against Mike’s shoulder, Mike’s fingers still lightly stroking one ear. “I could stay like this forever,” he admitted softly.
“Me too,” Will whispered back.
And as they sat there in comfortable silence, with Mike gently touching his ears and their shoulders pressed together, Will realized that maybe drooping ears weren’t so bad after all—especially if they led to moments like this.