Work Text:
Alastor was relaxing on the couch in his and Vincent’s shared living room, sipping the last of his mug of tea. His partner should be getting home soon. Alastor could use the entertainment after the rather boring day he’d had.
Finally the front door unlocked and slammed open, revealing his partner… and a large cardboard box filled with vhs tapes.
“Alastor, we’re having a watch party tonight!” he shouted, absolutely beaming as he kicked the door shut behind him.
Alastor had certainly grown more accustomed to the television after all these years with ‘The God of Entertainment’, but it still wasn’t his preferred method of entertainment.
Vincent slammed the large box on the ground in the living room, rattling the massive amount of tapes it contained.
“And what exactly are you having me watch?” Alastor asked as he approached the box and sat beside it.
“The studio is pulling all its old recordings and porting them to VHS’s for media preservation. I got copies of almost all my performances from my entire career!” Vincent excitedly rambled as he dug through the box. “I can show you stuff from before we got together or recordings you missed that you totally should’ve seen. That telethon, my first musical performance, that era where we started doing skits, all of it!”
As the tapes shifted around, Alastor got a glimpse of a particularly interesting label. He grabbed the curious tape and held it up, reading the words written on it. “Weatherboy?”
Vincent’s head shot up, his cheeks a light pink. He quickly snatched the tape with a pout. “The guys at the studio like to tease me for starting as a weatherman and call me weatherboy. This tape is me during that time.”
“Can we watch it?”
“What? What do you wanna watch that for? I was so young and dorky.”
Alastor grinned. “That’s exactly why I want to watch it.”
Vincent pouted even harder. “You’re just gonna make fun of me.”
“Perhaps, but I’m eager to see what you looked like! We didn’t meet until you were well into your time as a news caster. How old were you on this tape?”
“Probably around 21?”
Alastor pinched his cheek with a teasing coo. “Oh, just a cute little boy.”
Vincent grumbled and waved him off. “Fine, fine, we can watch it. But afterwards we’re totally watching the stuff I mentioned.” Vincent both was and wasn’t looking forward to this. It was definitely going to be embarrassing, but every time Alastor cooed over him it gave him butterflies in the most addicting way. Alastor was the only person in this world to make Vincent, The God of Entertainment feel… well, shy.
Vincent slid the tape into their CRT and sat back on the couch with the remote, sat squashed up against his partner as he preferred to be. He fidgeted nervously with a loose thread on the couch as the screen fizzled to life.
“And now, for the weather report!”
And there he is. Ugh, Vincent totally forgot about those big thick frames on his glasses. He looked like a complete dork.. And that big painfully earnest smile.
Alastor gasped. “Oh, darling, you look adorable!”
Vincent felt his face warm and couldn’t help his bashful smile. God, how did Alastor always make him feel so flustered and giddy. If it were anyone else he’d be ripping that tape apart.
“And now for a shocking situation up in the east,” The Vincent on the screen winked with heavy emphasis on ‘shocking’ before pointing to a thunderstorm marker on the background.”
He cringed remembering all those puns he tried to force in, thinking they were funny or made him more memorable. Oh they were memorable alright, but for the worst reasons.
Alastor laughed loudly with a hand held to his mouth. Oh, right, he forgot how much Alastor loved puns. It was pretty cute. He always loved how the corniest jokes made Alastor laugh so genuinely.
“And remember, trust us with your weather!” He spun his pointer with a big doofy grin as the screen fizzled into the channel logo.
“Sweetheart, I can’t imagine why you’re so embarrassed, you’re such a charmer!” Alastor spoke with such delight that it made Vincent’s stomach do a flip in his belly.
He giggled nervously. “Thanks, Al.”
The next segment fizzled in, showing his 21 year old self in front of the weather background, though this time a voice was heard off camera.
“And what did you think of that story, Vinnie?”
Oh, shit, he remembered this one. Of course the guys at the station would want to remind him of this moment.
“That scientists are proposing medical benefits to being tickled.” The voice continued.
The Vincent on tape chuckled nervously, opening his mouth before being interrupted.
“I don’t think Vin would ever be able to make it through a doctor’s visit if that became standard.”
Even in the black and white filter, anyone could see the darling on his cheeks as he struggled to respond.
“W-Well, that’s enough about myself. Onto today’s weather!”
Alastor turned to Vincent with an amused grin. “And what was that all about?”
Vincent groaned and paused the recording. “Eddie and Paul were coworkers closer to my age that liked to tease me. They were like, fresh out of a fraternity kind of attitude. They found out I was ticklish and liked to bring it up. The story that day was about some scientists looking into the health benefits of tickling and I could see it on their smug fucking faces that morning that they were gonna do something to make fun of me.”
“And just how did they find out about that?”
Vincent flinched noticeably.
Alastor snickered. “Now, this is a story I have to hear.”
Vincent sighed into his hands, palms cooling his overheated face. He was so embarrassed.
“Paul teased me but like kind of how a friend would, Eddie was a bit more of a highschool bully kind of guy. Not as bad, but annoying. He put me in a headlock one day and his hand slipped to my ribs and yeah he found out pretty quick.” Vincent sighed. “And he tickled me like… way longer than a coworker should, that being not at all. He got fired less than a year later for inappropriate work place behavior, should've been sooner in my opinion.”
“So it was just those two who teased you?”
“I mean, most of the guys made one or two comments. Like I said, to this day I still get called weather boy, but it's from a place of respect and fun. I was bottom dog as a weatherman. Me and my big stupid glasses... I was basically a walking kick me sign to the two frat boys.”
Vincent threw his head back. “And my god the tickling. Eddie did that, like, multiple times.”
Alastor laughs loudly. “Oh, the idea of little 21 year old you being tickled by a couple of bullies is the most adorable thing I've ever heard.”
Vincent pouted. His face was so red it burned. He couldn’t remember the last time he'd been this embarrassed. His stomach was fluttering and fizzling with a swarm of butterflies and he felt like he'd just melt under alastor's cooing.
But it wasn’t over yet. Because Alastor turned to him with a mischievous grin. “Are you still just as ticklish as you were then?”
Vincent startled and his arms instinctively flinched towards his torso. “Ah- w-what I- No, I'm not!”
Alastor burst into laughter. “Oh, you absolutely are!”
“I'm not!” he shouted shrilly.
“Are you suuuuuure?” Alastor cooed, wiggling his fingers in the air.
“I-I’m super sure,” Vincent stammered as he scurried to the other side of the couch. “J-just don't!”
It was too late. Alastor launched forward with a barrage of wiggling fingers at his torso and Vincent shrieked with unstoppable laughter.
Alastor gasped with sheer joy. “My, you're so reactive! How did I not know about this sooner?”
“AHAHAHALSTOR- EEHEHE- TH-THAHAHAT TIHIHICKLES!”
“I thought you said you weren't ticklish!” Alastor spoke with nothing but fondness and silliness. “You didn't lie to me did you?”
This was so much different than being tickled by Eddie and Paul. He hated being tickled by his coworkers. It was demeaning and mean-spirited.
But this was... oddly fun. It was still deeply embarrassing, but Vincent was starting to wonder if maybe he liked feeling embarrassed if it was coming from Alastor.
“It was your ribs you said?” He didn’t wait for an answer to start clawing at said ribs. Vincent shrieked like a mouse on helium and thrashed on the couch cackling his heart out.
“Dear Lord, you're ticklish!” Alastor cackled. “I can see why those two felt the need to tickle you like they did. You're so adorable I could just eat you up!” And the bastard did. He leaned down and began nibbling on his neck!
Vincent wheezed as ticklish hysteria crashed over him like a tsunami. “AHAHAHAL! AHAHALl! IHIHIHI CAHAHAHAN’T! IHIHI’M GOHOHONNA DIHIHIHIE!”
“So dramatic, dear! Does it really tickle that badly?”
“YEHEHES! YEHEHES IHIHIT DOHOHOES!” He absolutely howled. Curse his body for being so stupidly ticklish!
“You can't even bear it for some kisses?” Alastor cooed condescendingly. He switched his nibble to peppering light and quick kisses along his throat, lighting up his nerves in the most ticklish manner possible.
Vincent was absolutely gone. He was squealing. Wheezing, cackling with tears in his eyes as he cried out. “IHIHI CAHAHAN’T- EEHEEK! IHIHI CAHAHAN’T TAHAHAHAKE IHIHIT!”
Alastor barked out a laugh and sat back up, stilling his devious fingers. “I never thought I’d see the day I hear you say so confidently that you can't handle something.”
Vincent went boneless onto the couch while he desperately gasped for air. His face was now burning both from embarrassment and lack of oxygen.
Alastor hummed in satisfaction looking down at what he did to his partner. “You look good like this.” He leaned in for a kiss which was eagerly accepted.
Vincent sighed into it, relaxing finally after the ordeal he just went through.
But it wasn’t over yet. Alastor brought his hand up to gently tickle under his chin. Causing Vincent to snort loudly in Alastor’s face.
Vincent felt himself go red to the very tips of his ears. Alastor grinned and began chuckling whilst Vincent whined into his palms.
“Now, I’m gonna die of embarrassment.”
“I will say, I don’t think I’ve ever seen you this red. You wear it well.”
Vincent simply whimpered. His brain was combusting, melting, disintegrating. He’d never been so flustered in his entire life.
Alastor chuckled and laid on top of him. “I suppose I can have mercy. I think I've done enough teasing for tonight.”
Vincent groaned with relief. “Yes, please.”
“But later we will be exploring... this.” He jabbed two fingers into his ribs, making Vincent squeal like a little kid.
“Al, you said no more teasing!”
“That wasn't teasing!” Alastor laughed right back at him.
“No more teasing or tickling!”
“Hm... we'll see.” He brought him in for another kiss, something Vincent would always accept.
And no matter how much Vincent didn't want to admit it. He was definitely looking forward to how Alastor would use this information again.