Chapter Text
Boredom is one heck of a drug. When you're shot into space to save the Earth on a suicide mission, you tend to have a lot on your plate.
However, when you survive that suicide mission, you have a new enemy: endless amounts of free time.
And thus:
I'm learning to sew.
Now this is a useful skill I am learning. I could say it was because I'll need to be able to repair my clothes in the future(I have a future!). But really I just wanted something to do with my hands. Movie nights are fun, but not cutting it; I'm going insane here.
I got the spare cloth from some of my clothes that are really starting to get worn down. Curse you fast fashion.
And now, after a couple of failed attempts, it's finally done.
“Tadaaaa.” I proudly present it to Rocky. He's busy doing… something I don't know on the other side of the xenonite. I tap on the barrier.
“Look! Rocky, meet Lil Rocky”
“Hello Small Rocky.” He says, continuing his work.
“I made him so I have someone to hang with this side of the xenonite.”
“Good, maybe Grace can interrupt Small Rocky now.”
Ouch
Well two can play at that game.
“Lil Rocky would never be that rude to me.” Rocky tilts his carapace up, unimpressed.
“Small Rocky is inanimate.”
I gasp and cover Lil Rocky's ‘ears’
“Lies! Lies and slander! Come on Lil Rocky we dont have to hear this” I march away laughing as I hear Rocky grumbling.
**********
Carrying Lil Rocky around was initially a bit to bother real Rocky, but honestly it's kinda nice. I drag him along everywhere with me, and I sleep with him close to my chest.
Touch-starvation: that's probably what I'm dealing with considering the whole “Never gonna see let alone touch another human being again” thing. I try not to let it get me down. Lil Rocky helps with that. It's not like touching a person, but hey, it's something.
Is it maybe a little sad for a grown man to be cuddling a stuffed animal? Eh, who's here to be judging me?
***********
Welp, it's been another long day of trying to breed taumoeba to not taste nasty, read random novels, and attempting more sewing projects. I think it's about time to eat dinner and go to bed. I get up and stretch, popping my back.
Rocky perks up and sets down his project as soon as he notices me getting up from the lab.
“Are you done, question?” He stomps one of his legs twice.
“Yeah, I'm getting tired. I'll pick this up tomorrow.”
“Is it time for movie night, question?” He asks.
“Oh yeah buddy, I'm thinking we go with another classic, let's do-”
“No, we do documentary”
Rocky tended to prefer these to fiction movies given that they didn't have cultural references I needed to explain.
I put a finger on my chin pretending to consider.
“How about we put it to a vote Rock?” I pull out Lil Rocky.
“Do you think we should do another boring ocean documentary? Orrrr should we do an awesome, exciting classic Earth sci-fi film, Alien?” I make Lil Rocky's carapace bob up and down. “Well buddy, looks like you've been outvoted!”
“Grace cheating!” Rocky whines. “Fake Rocky gets no vote!”
He rams his ball into my legs. This is too easy. I pat his ball, laughing.
“Ok, ok, but I get to choose tomorrow.”
We settle in to watch, and I put Lil Rocky on top of real Rocky's ball. He wiggles around till it falls off.
*************
Rocky comes back from the other room. He's just finished eating, which means!
“I sleep you watch.”
I nod.
And then I pull out Lil Rocky and set him beside where my bestie was.
“What Grace doing question?”
“Lil Rocky needs to sleep too, so I'm watching you both.”
Rocky almost seems to tense. Ha! He's so fun to tease
“Fake Rocky is a ball of cloth, you are ridiculous!”
I give Lil Rocky a kiss on the top of his carapace.
“Disgust”
“Rude! That's a sign of affection.” I kiss the xenonite right above him. “That one's for you.”
I expect more whining, but all I get is a quiet thank, and he's out like a light
************
Our journey continues. We're still about a year and a half from Erid, so there's nothing super pressing at the moment. I'm mostly still trying to make food that tastes good. I still had plenty of coma slurry and, of course, endless Taumoeba. But the thing about that is one of them tasted like aspirin and the other like something you'd find at the bottom of a lake. Not exactly 5-star dining. So here I am, attempting to improve the taste. It's not going fantastically well.
I sigh and lean back in my chair, rubbing Lil Rocky. He's soft but not warm.
Rocky rattles up in his ball and bumps against me.
“Are you ok, question?” I slide off my chair next to him.
“Yeah, I'm alright.” I lean onto his ball, relishing in the faint warmth. “Just getting a little frustrated.”
“Tell”
I rest my head on his ball and clutch Lil Rocky to my chest. “It's about my food supply, just a warning”
“Disgust, continue.” He pushes closer to me.
I go on. “It just tastes gross. It's hard to choke down, and this is gonna be it. Like for the rest of my life. I know you don't taste, but it's not a pleasant experience.” I sigh. “I just. I don't know. I worry that the rest of my life is gonna be choking down this in wherever I live on Erid. And-”
And I'll miss you is what I want to say, but I don't want to guilt Rocky. He'll almost certainly want his own space after this, to go back to his mate. And that's ok, but I'm going to have to get used to not having him around all the time, which is gonna suck.
Rocky leans up as close as he can through the xenonite. “Rocky fix.”
I laughed wetly; tears were beginning to slip down my face. “I don't know Rock, it's a lot.”
“Is fine; all of Erid will help. We'll make your food better.” He wiggled uncomfortably before continuing. “We will build you a home there. You are a hero. You will live a long life on Erid and be happy happy happy. I will make sure of it”
I clung to his ball as tight as I could. Tears were fully streaming down my face.
“Leaky,” Rocky teases.
“I wish we could hug for real.” It slips out before I can stop it.
Rocky just hums, and I pull Lil Rocky closer.
***********
I wake up blearily as someone starts moving me around. “Armando?” I groan out, waking up.
“Grace, go back to sleep, is ok,” Rocky says.
Rocky sounds much closer than when I last saw him. I open my eyes and
Oh my gosh!
He's here with me, but not in the ball like I thought. Somehow he's actually here with me. A spike of panic runs through me until I realize he's wearing a suit. A skin-tight (carapace tight?) suit, and he's right by me. As I'm laying there astonished, Rocky grabs Lil Rocky right from my arms and tosses him away!
“Hey!”
“Is alright; you no need it. You have real Rocky. Better Rocky.”
I chuckle. “Are you jealous, bud?”
As I say it, he settles in next to me and pulls me into his arms.
“Don't know what you mean”
I would have said something clever, but as he held me, my brain went quiet.
Rocky was hugging me. A real hug, not just draping myself over his ball. One of his arms went to my head and started playing with my hair. Another rubbed my back rhythmically. It was bliss. I shuddered. He was warm and even soft somehow.
How long has it been since I was last touched?
How long has it been since I've been touched affectionately?
I started crying, of course.
“Oh! Are you hurt?” Rocky starts to pull away.
“Wait, no!” I curl around him to keep him from leaving. “No, it's just…. It's been a while. Overwhelming, but in a good way.” Thankfully, Rocky continues.
“Thank you,” I whisper.
Rocky hums. “Continue sleeping, I watch” He taps his carapace on my forehead.
A goodnight kiss.
“I love you,” I manage to say it right before I drift off to sleep.