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Rocket lied in bed, staring up at the white ceiling as the morning sun shined through the window. There were a million thoughts running through the rocketeers mind, and his best friend was one of them. His face flushed just thinking about him— God, it was stupid.
The inphernal groaned as he rolled over the messy bed and sat upright, taking the time to look outside and observe everything. It seemed awfully busy in crossroads already, despite it being— 12 PM?!
“ Shit. “
Apparently, Rocket spent so much time thinking about Sword that he was late for a hangout with the very guy. He shoved on his prosthetics, a random coat, and his signature goggles before rushing out his bedroom door. He practically slid down the stairs, spotting Zuka standing by the kitchen entrance.
“ Morning, sleepyhead. You should probably get going already. “ Zuka greeted Rocket as usual and teased, holding a cup of coffee in hand.
“ Good morning— and yeah, I know; Thanks for telling me, man. “ Rocket sarcastically replied, rolling his eyes. He slipped on his sneakers as quick as he possibly could before running out the door, accidentally slamming it behind him.
The beaming sun hit his face as soon as he stepped outside, and wind rushed past him as he sprinted toward the park near his neighborhood. All he could think about was how Sword was probably waiting for him already, and it made him feel like such an idiot. What kind of asshole shows up late to something as simple as a quick hangout? The rocketeer slowed down, panting as he saw the park entrance and a ton of lit up lights surrounding the path.
Rocket thought to himself— ‘ Why do they need so many lights when the sun is already bright enough?? ‘ He shrugged it off and followed the pathway, scanning the area for a certain inphernal. There’s no way in hell Sword wasn’t there yet, since he knew the dude loooved to be early to things; and damn, it got on Rockets nerves sometimes. He suddenly stopped in his tracks as he spotted the swordsman, and he swears he felt a shift in the air while he did so. Rocket simply stared from a distance until Swords gaze locked onto his. Rocket just stood there like an absolute fool as Sword cheerfully waved and darted towards him.
“ ROCKET!!! “ Sword beamed as he pulled him into a tight embrace, squeezing the other inphernal so unbelievably hard. It wasn’t surprising how strong he was, considering how much training he did. Rocket didn’t mind it.
“ God, do you have to hug me so tight? “ Rocket yelped and squirmed.
“ Of course I do! It’s been soooo long since i’ve seen my best friend!! “ He chimed, smiling ear to ear as he pulled away— for Rockets sake.
Rockets grin faltered at the title. Best friend. Sure, they are best friends, they have been since they were both kids; but, sometimes he wishes to be more than that. All Rocket has heard his entire life is love this, crushes that, and he never understood it. He thought it was stupid, honestly. Being alone isn’t as bad as people say! Maybe Rocket thought the concept of love was that dumb because he couldn’t imagine spending the rest of his life with anyone other than Sword. Regardless, he continued speaking.
“ You saw me like… what— 4 days ago? “
“ That doesn’t matter!! Am I not allowed to miss you? “ Sword complained, and glided to Rockets side as the two started walking. The usually loud and obnoxious inphernal beside him didn’t have anything to say this time, and Sword noticed. He always did.
“ Hey, why so quiet all of a sudden?.. “ Swords smile dimmed as he looked over at Rocket, still walking alongside him.
Rocket didn’t say anything for a moment. He could feel the concern dripping in the swordsman’s voice, and gods was it killing him. After a minute or two, he finally broke the awkward silence hanging in the air. He looked away from his best friend and at the floor beside him, trying to hide whatever expression he might have in the moment.
“ It’s nothing. “ His chest tightened. Rocket hated lying to him. He hated lying to the person he cared about most.
Sword studied his voice, looking for any underlying truth on why he might be acting this way. He decided not to push anymore and turned to look infront of them. After a few minutes, the tension in the atmosphere eased and the silence didn’t feel so awkward anymore… well, atleast for Sword. Rocket, on the other hand, was silently crumbling inside. He was fidgeting and his heart was racing, wondering what would happen if he mentioned his feelings towards Sword. It was eating him apart, but he could never imagine what would happen if Sword didn’t wanna be friends with him anymore cause of it. Maybe if he—
“ Woah, look!!! An ice cream stand! “ Rockets overthinking was cut short by Sword finding an ice cream stand, and before he knew it, Sword was already dragging him over there by his hand.
“ You could’ve warned me first, y’know?!! “ Rocket yelled from behind Sword, almost slipping because of the sudden change in movement. They could both smell the aroma of soft serve vanilla, chocolate, and many other flavors.
‘ At least ice cream would cheer him up a bit... ‘ Sword thought.
After they both got their hands on the two ice cream cones, they mutually agreed on sitting down on the grass in the shade. They were both making small talk and laughing about random everyday things as they munched on the ice cream. The park was fairly empty and a lot of the shop owners had gone home by the time they finished the ice cream and made that much conversation. Rocket was catching his breath from cackling so hard when Sword suddenly reached out and wiped ice cream from his mouth.
“ Sorry, you had a little something there.. “ Sword giggled, and Rockets heart almost skipped a beat. The way the sun hit his face so perfectly, the softness in his voice, and everything else in that small gesture left butterflies in Rockets stomach. It was almost pathetic how corny this feeling was. After a few silent moments of eye contact, Rocket looked away and started speaking again.
“ Could I say something really stupid? “ He questioned nervously, telling himself there was no going back now. It didn’t really help.
“ Of course! Hit me. “ Sword replied with a huge smile on his face, still looking at Rocket, who was sitting across from him.
“ I think I love you. “ He whispered, trying to swallow the lump in his throat as he fidgeted with his hands.
“ Huh? “
“ I THINK I LOVE YOU!! “ Rocket exclaimed, being a little louder than intended.
The world felt like it went silent for a second, and was probably about to collapse. Rocket, who was staring at the grass, looked up at the other inphernal when he didn’t respond. He was trying to ignore the fact that he was sweating even though the two were in the shade.
Sword simply blinked, a smile no longer plastered on his face. He had a confused expression while he slightly tilted his head.
“ How is that stupid? I love you too, Rocket! “ Sword… clearly didn’t get the memo. Rockets whole face lit up and his posture straightened as he finally made eye contact with the other.
“ Wait— really? “
“ Of course! Isn’t that what friends are supposed to do? Love each other? I’d be worried if you didn’t… “ Sword remarked, and Rockets heart dropped. He quickly realized the feelings weren’t being reciprocated, and Sword was just being a huge dummy. It was pitiful how his mood shifted so quickly. Rocket wanted to crawl into a hole and stay there forever, he didn’t even know if he’d come out of his room ever again. Sword noticed the change in his best friends attitude and was about to confront him when he suddenly stood up and turned to leave. Sword also got on his feet and grabbed Rockets hand from behind, starting to speak again.
“ Hey, what happened?? Did I do something wrong? “ He sounded so worried and confused, it was making Rocket feel like a jerk.
“ Just forget it. “ He muttered. The rocketeer shoved his hand off and started walking away, not letting Sword see his face.
Sword ran after him, trailing behind him and asking him numerous questions. He was so anxious and thought he did something bad to upset Rocket. Rocket wasn’t even mad at him, he was mad at himself for thinking that Sword would understand or even share his feelings. They both got near the entrance of the park and Rocket was about to walk out.
“ What is up with you?? Just tell me what I did! “ Sword choked out. Rocket suddenly turned around and Sword stumbled back, almost falling down.
“ I said just FORGET IT, okay?!! God, you’re so annoying! “ Rocket barked. He caught a glimpse of Swords startled but concerned expression. He quickly turned his back to Sword so he wouldn’t see his helpless face and mumbled something to himself before walking away. Sword was left at the entrance of the park, staring like a deer in headlights. What went wrong?
At home, Rocket completely avoided Zuka and dashed to his room, locking the door before anything else. He felt his vision getting blurry and tears pricking at the corner of his eyes; sooner or later, he started silently sobbing like an idiot. He felt like such an idiot for the stunt he pulled back at the park— seriously, what was he thinking? He sat on his bed, trying to avoid getting any tears on his prosthetics. He was too busy weeping to take them off.
Back at square one, he thought; with no friends, no life, and certainly no partner. Sword was the only one he could stand, and it just made him cry harder thinking about how he just ruined their friendship.
7:23 PM
Rocket was still in bed, just laying there and staring outside the window. The food that Zuka had made for him was already cold, and he had went out to run errands. Rocket had the whole house for himself, and decided to use it by rotting in his room like a depressed teenager. He had multiple missed calls and texts from Sword, who was clearly very worried about him— and he was debating answering until he heard a knock on his bedroom door. Could it be Zuka? No, he only left an hour ago and on top of that, he doesn’t really knock… Rockets thinking process was interrupted by a familiar voice. The soft one that he’s admired plenty of times before, the caring one that made him melt. Sword. His heart practically stopped and he froze in place.
Sword swallowed, trying to hide the concern in his voice. Didn’t work.
“ Rocket? Are you in there? “
He could hear the rustling of a blanket from the other side, so there was his answer…but then why wasn’t he responding?
A few minutes of awkward silence passed before Rocket opened his mouth to speak, sending Sword away.
“ Leave me alone. “ He hissed, his voice still slightly raspy from crying. He really didn’t wanna deal with this right now, even if he knew the other would never back off. It’s what he liked about Sword, after all.
“ Were you crying? “ The swordsman on the other side of the door quickly replied, already catching on. It ultimately made him more worried, and he tried the doorknob before realizing it was locked.
No reply. He slowly lowered his hand away from the doorknob, starting to speak again.
“ I… “ He paused, thinking of what to say.
“ thought about what you said, y’know. Back at the park. “ Sword rested his body on the wall beside the door, not knowing if the other inphernal was listening or not. It didn’t matter. He knew Rocket all too well to believe he would respond.
“ I think I know what you meant now… and i’m sorry for being such an idiot. “ Sword watched the floor beneath him, wondering if he should go or not. After a few minutes with no response, he furrowed his brows, sighed, straightened up, and stepped away.
“ So stupid. “ He muttered as he walked down the stairs, referring to himself. He held onto the railing, slowly stepping down before he heard a clicking noise from behind him. The door suddenly opened, revealing awkwardly standing Rocket in the doorway. He looked like a mess, and he was basically already crying.
Rocket expected the other to leave after all that. Everyone always did.
Sword quickly made his way back up the stairs, almost tripping in the process.
“ Awh.. “ He murmured before pulling Rocket into his arms. He was frozen up, surprised that someone didn’t leave him for once— but sooner or later he melted into Swords touch, sobbing into his shoulder like a big baby.
“ I’m sorry— i’m so sorry that i’m such an awful person, Sword.. you don’t deserve it, you really— really don’t. “ He hiccuped and cried, hugging Sword tighter with every apology.
“ It’s okay, don’t cry… let’s get you all cleaned up, okay? “ The swordsman momentarily pulled away, wiping tears from the other’s cheeks. Rocket suddenly embraced Sword again before talking.
“ I love you. “
“ I love you too, Rocket. “