Deleted user
"i will. do you want some painkiller?" juniper put the plate in the sink. he needed to do the dishes, but he'd probably just get magik to do it if he was busy with damian.
"i will. do you want some painkiller?" juniper put the plate in the sink. he needed to do the dishes, but he'd probably just get magik to do it if he was busy with damian.
Damian peered into the kitchen, frowning at the stack of dishes in the sink. "Um, yeah. That'd be nice," he said distractedly, wandering up to the sink and looking around for a sponge and some dish soap. It wasn't long before he found what he was looking for and started scrubbing through the stack of dishes.
juniper jumped slightly at the sound of running water, turning around with the naproxen magik had picked up the day before.
"¡oye! damian, be careful!" he wasn't going to force him to stop, as he was being rather helpful, but he also didn't want him to tear at his wounds any more.
"I'll be fine, madre," he teased, laying out a towel for the dishes to dry on. "I'm just washing the dishes, stop looking at me like I'm a three year old about to stick a fork into a wall socket."
"washing dishes involves the muscles in your back. it's good to be active after an injury, but maybe not when you've still got gaping cuts. just don't hurt yourself, okay?" juniper walked over, leaning on the counter beside the sink with an empty glass, waiting for damian to finish so he could get him some water.
"i know i act like a mother hen, but i swear it's for your own good."
Damian rolled his eyes, finishing up with the plates and bowls and moving on to the silverware. "Yeah yeah, I know how dangerous washing the dishes can be." He moved away from the sink to dry everything off. "I really will be fine, passerotto, you don't need to hover."
"alright, alright. here." he filled the glass up, setting the painkiller and water down on the counter. "for you."
Damian took a small sip of the water, eyeing the painkiller skeptically. He normally just took ibuprofen, and this definitely wasn't the little red pill he was used to. "What is it?"
"it's the strongest stuff you can get over-the-counter. nothing crazy, just a little bit more intense than ibuprofen." juniper shrugged.
Damian was still giving it the stink eye, but he trusted Juniper more than he distrusted suspicious new drugs so he reluctantly picked them up and chugged them alongside the rest of his water. He still felt twitchy and nervous, but it would be fine. He knew how to manage. "What's it called?"
"naproxen. look it up, i swear i haven't poisoned you. just don't consume alcohol until it's out of your system." he watched damian act skeptically towards the medicine, mildly amused. there's probably a serious reason that he was wary, but hey. if that isn't the funniest glare juniper had seen in forever, what is it?
"I know you didn't," Damian insisted, completely sincere. "I trust you, Juniper. You wouldn't hurt me." His hands were light around the cup and he set it down on the counter, reaching forward to hug Juniper lightly. His eyes flickered up to meet Juniper's, suddenly doubtful. "You wouldn't, right?"
"no. of course not." juniper still had a slightly playful aura, but seemed sincere. "listen, even if being born into a mob makes me cold-blooded, i'm not that much of an asshole. who takes care of someone just to hurt them again?" he slung an arm around damian's lower back, under the bandages.
'You'd be surprised," Damian mumbled, taking a few tiny steps closer so he could hold Juniper close and hide his face in the other boy's neck. He'd relaxed when Juniper gave his answer, going soft and happy in his arms. "But… um… thank you. For everything."
(bump)
(sorry! been caught up working on a comic.)
"you're welcome, love." he returned the hug, albeit a little stiff. he wasn't really used to the idea of having someone other than his dad initiate contact with him, but he was… sure he'd warm up to the idea. damian seemed to like it anyway.
Damian was as affection hungry as a person could be and he soaked in the contact eagerly. It took him a few seconds to realize that Jupiter was uncomfortable, but when he did he pulled away like he'd been burnt. His cheeks were pink with embarrassment. "Fuck, sorry, I… um… I'll go back to the couch. Thanks for the food, I'm sure you had lots of more important shit to do."
"oye." as damian walked away, juniper caught him by the shirt and gently pulled him back under his arm.
"where do you think you're going? i don't have shit to do today, unless we're given an assignment. i usually make breakfast anyway, what's another plate matter?"
he cracked a genuine smile, seemingly making an effort to appear friendly.
Damian froze as he was pulled back in, fumbling over where Juniper was pulling him and frowning slightly when he realized it was back under his arm. Hadn't he fucked this up with the hug? Or… was it only okay when Juniper was initiating? "I was going back to the couch," he mumbled, more uncertain than embarrassed now. "I… you can come with me if you want. I promise I won't get all cuddly 'n shit."
"you can get cuddly if you want to, it's alright." juniper walked with him over to the couch, not making any difference in expression or body language, but internally grimacing.
it won't be easy to prepare for a hit with him around, but we'll get by.
Damian gave Juniper a searching look as they sat down before he decided to just take him at his word. Juniper wasn't a kid, he obviously knew what made him comfortable and what didn't. It should be fine to curl up against his side the way Damian so desperately wanted to. But… he hadn't seemed comfortable at all during the hug, so Damian contented himself with sitting close and waiting or Juniper to initiate anything.
juniper arched an eyebrow when damian sat just beside him, raising his arm as an offer.
Damian gave it a skeptical look before he hesitantly settled against Juniper's side. He laid there lightly, just in case Juniper suddenly wanted him off.
The following keyboard controls are supported across Notebook.ai. All keyboard controls are disabled when editing a document or notebook page.