Work Text:
Tommy and Määnin were sitting on the couch in the latter's living room. There were empty cardboard boxes around them, waiting to be filled with the most important belongings. The men were supposed to be packing up Määnin's things as Tommy was finally going to get someone to share his apartment with, but instead the only thing they'd done was sit in near-complete silence for almost an hour. Määnin was drinking his beer at a snail's pace which was an improvement to how he'd knocked them back in the past. Tommy was leaning back and staring at the ceiling, lost in his thoughts. Neither Tommy or Määnin felt uncomfortable in the lengthy silence. It would have been different if Tommy had been by himself, in which case he probably would have been talking to himself just to keep his thoughts from getting too loud. And there had been time when he'd had to fill the silence with his at times nonsensical blabbering even when he'd been with Määnin. But now they were more comfortable in each other's company than they'd possibly ever been, and it didn't seem to bother him anymore. At least not when he felt at ease, like he did now.
Another half an hour passed like that, until Tommy finally was pulled back from wherever his thoughts had taken him. He sat up straight, placed his hands firmly on his knees and turned to look at Määnin. Tommy noticed how Määnin, despite not moving his head, glanced at him.
"I think I know what we're going to do,"
Tommy announced, sounding upbeat. Määnin hummed in that certain which told Tommy that he was listening.
"We'll turn this into a competition. I get one half of the apartment, you get the other. And whoever's done with his side first, wins. Loser has to buy dinner for both."
Tommy then looked at Määnin like he waited for approval. He got it only a handful of seconds later when Määnin set the now almost empty can on the coffee table and also sat up.
"Is there a time limit?"
he asked and pushed his shades a little further up his nose. Tommy thought about it and then shook his head.
"No.. No, maybe not. Or, maybe we should.. No, never mind. Let's just stick to the original rules."
Määnin chuckled at his best friend's indecisiveness but then nodded again and patted Tommy on the back. Encouraged by this, Tommy gave him a brief but bright smile.
"Great. Okay. I'll get the side with the bedroom, you can start here in the living room."
After saying that, Tommy stood up quickly and scrambled to pick up some of the boxes closest to him. He was already about to make a run for it, but was stopped by Määnin's next words.
"Why exactly do you want the bedroom, Toms?"
If Määnin suspected something, he wasn't letting it show. Tommy just shrugged and turned back with his best attempt at a pokerface.
"I think it's easier. More things are in the same place or otherwise really close together,"
he responded, feigning nonchalance, something he had never been good at. They stared at each other for a short while before Määnin nodded, letting Tommy go. The sooner they'd get started, the sooner they'd be done. Especially because they'd already wasted quite a bit of time doing nothing.
Like they'd agreed, Määnin got started in the living room while Tommy retreated into the bedroom and closed the door behind him. He exhaled as he dropped the boxes on the floor, all except one of them which he placed on the bed. It wasn't like he had exactly lied to Määnin about the reasons behind his decision. He opened the wardrobe and looked at the shirts and other clothes which in fact were mostly bundled together, making them quick and easy to move around.
Most of the garderobe really seemed to consist of T-shirts and underwear. But of course Tommy already knew this well as he was just about as familiar with Määnin's bedroom than he was with his own. He had borrowed Määnin's clothes more often than he was able to count, for a whole number of different reasons. Some of those reasons had something to do with him, some others didn't.
And then there, of course, were the pairs of socks, some of them mismatched as their pairs had gotten lost somewhere at some point or another. A few pairs of jeans and other pants. And a denim jacket, newer than the one Määnin was currently wearing. Tommy picked it up from the shelf and just continued to hold it for a while. The fabric in his hands felt more rough and unforgiving, not having been worn down and softened just yet like the other one had, thanks to the passing of time and being worn almost constantly. Tommy smiled as his thumbs brushed the fabric. A few seconds later he had to pull himself out of his daze. And so, he placed the jacket in the box with great care. But the tiny smile on his face remained.
To make things even easier on himself and to speed up the process, he picked up the red plastic container filled with miscellaneous socks and underwear and just dumped them all into the cardboard box to keep company to the denim jacket. Tommy was so focused on his task that he didn't even stop to think how Määnin might be doing in the other room, which was surprising to say the least.
Then it was time to finally move on to the shirts. Tommy was able to go through the first ones with no distractions. That is, until his fingers first touched the black Karhu shirt which Määnin had worn a lot in the past, in the times before he'd gone to rehab. The print on the front of the shirt was a little bit faded in places but still perfectly identifiable thanks to it most going unworn these days. The shirt still smelled like Määnin, and there had been a time when Tommy had wanted to steal it for himself. But he never had done it in the end. Tommy's smile turned into a sadder one as he kept holding the shirt in his hands as it brought back a lot of memories. Some fun and rowdy ones from their gigs from a few years back. Those had been some carefree times, for the most part at least. Both Tommy and Määnin had been drinking heavily, to have fun, but also for their own reasons. Tommy had done it to stay close to Määnin, out of fear that he wouldn't be worth hanging out with if he was boring and sober. But he had also done it to drown out his secret feelings for Määnin. But the result had somehow been the opposite; it had only made him feel worse. And so he had been drinking even more. It had been an endless cycle of doom.
Tommy shook his head and placed the shirt down in the box with the other clothes. The very next T-shirt, another black one, almost made his breath get stuck in his throat. This time for a more positive reason. It was the Vörodagan Fyrbanna shirt which Määnin had started wearing almost all the time, post-rehab. It signified how Määnin had claimed Tommy as his. And just like that, as Tommy picked up the shirt and held onto it fondly, the sad smile was gone and a bright, happy one took its place. He felt like he was getting sentimental but just couldn't help himself. The shirt and especially the person it belonged to.. They just meant way too much to him.
Suddenly, the concept of time lost its meaning as Tommy brought the shirt closer to his face and started gently rubbing his cheek against it. Sniffing it, even.
He still stood there when the bedroom door opened. Only Tommy wasn't aware of it and was, instead, lost in his own world. His back was turned so he never even saw how Määnin stopped in the doorway and stayed there, just watching him. Only hearing Määnin's voice pulled him back to the present moment, into the dim, messy bedroom.
"Toms, what are you doing?"
Määnin asked, sounding amused. Hearing his voice made Tommy jump and almost drop the shirt. He had been caught with his pants down, figuratively of course, snuggling his best friend/boyfriend's shirt.
"I, uhm.. Well.."
Tommy stuttered, going completely red in the face. He had no explanation planned, not a single one. They only stared at each other for a few, embarrassing moments until Määnin finally announced smugly that he was ready with his side of the apartment.
"You took so long that I got done with my half. Now I know what was keeping you."
Tommy turned his head away in shame, almost wanting to bury it in the shirt.
"According to the rules you came up with, you owe me dinner,"
Määnin continued and simply walked over to Tommy who was still frozen in place. He took the shirt from Tommy's hands, threw it on the bed and pulled the other man into a kiss. Despite his remaining embarrassment, Tommy leaned into it, wrapping his arms around Määnin's neck.