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Sigh.
It was late at night, possibly past 12. Peepers had stayed up to do extra duties on the skullship after a long day of conquering. As he walked, his top eyelid weighed him down, but he knew he had to stay awake to finish his routine nighttime checkups.
He paced the halls peeking into each room he passed to ensure the night shift watchdogs were doing their jobs. He peered into the TV room and was met with a familiar scene.
The huge, dark, empty room's only light source was the massive TV that displayed a "game over" screen. Peepers then heard a loud snore and darted his eye toward the skeleton making the noise.
Hater was passed out cold, chin up in his swivel chair. As Peepers walked towards him, he observed the bright screen making his face lighter than usual and illuminating the rest of his colors. The game controller was still in his hand.
This wasn't the first time something like this happened. Hater falls asleep playing video games atleast once or twice a week. Every time, Peepers would clean up any mess like chips or ice cream on the floor and put everything away. He had gotten good at carrying Hater to his bed. His usual goal was for the overlord to have a proper good night's sleep as to avoid being met with a grumpy mood the next morning.
Peepers turned off the TV and put the controller back in place. Being careful not to wake him, the commander gently removed Hater from his chair and picked him up bridal style, something he could thankfully still do even while tired. He carried the big skeleton down the hall to his room, while snores echoed down the halls.
He made sure to avoid slipping on any of Hater's mess when entering the room, which was difficult to do in dim lighting. Carefully, Peepers laid Hater down on his side in the giant bed and pulled the blankets over to tuck him in.
This was typically the part where Peepers leaves and goes to his own room to fall asleep, but he couldn't bring himself to move. He stared at the sleeping overlord for what he wished was forever. His chest began to ache with the urge to crawl into the covers and stay there for the rest of his life. That's where he could die happy, in Hater's arms.
Peepers sighed, bent over, and softly lifted his hood to give him a kiss on the forehead.
"I love you, sir," he whispered. The commander thought Hater was too deep in sleep to ever hear him. He was wrong.
"Love ya too, C. Peeps," Hater mumbled back quietly.
Peepers' tired eye shot open. What? He couldn't believe it. Did he hear that correctly?
"Wh- huh?!" Peepers was nearly flashbanged by neon green when Hater's eyes opened in realization. He sat up in panic, which startled the commander and made him step back a bit.
"I MEAN- I HATE YOU! GET OUT OF MY ROOM PEEPERS!" Hater shouted as lightning began to crackle around his fingertips.
Fearing for his life, the commander sprinted out of the doorway. But before shutting the door, he could've sworn he saw Hater's cheeks flush with an emerald glow.