#And for him to call Kale a jackass means it's a long while

[random-cattai]

Flinging to the tag a question again,

I headcanon the whole thing of “Perfect Drug”/ ”In a Blink” being not Chai’s heart/mind pumping music in as normal, but Kale. Chai was controlled by Spectra (in turn Kale) during the start of it, so it fits logically. Also, it’s not the first time the game’s put in a different POV being in charge the music, see: “Invaders Must Die”/ “Intruder”

So the question is, before I go into AO3, is there any fanfiction of Kale one sided pining for Chai? Kinda like “This daft idiot is ruining all my plans, WHY DO I WANT HIM?!” kinda fanfiction. I saw someone mention on reddit that a good number of fanfictions have Chai slammed with the “Lack of Self confidence” stick something fierce and I don’t want to dig through that.

[doctorsorders-deathboy]

Cake

Based on the one word prompt “Cake” sent in by @rainyclodstoday (ty!!).  I seriously considered writing a fic based on the Melanie Martinez song but decided, "NO! NO ANGST. ONLY FLUFF," and I ended up with this. I hope you enjoy :)

Summary: There are few problems chocolate and a considerate boyfriend can't fix. Even if it's the middle of the night.

Word Count: 1259

Read on ao3

Nico had always enjoyed solitude. No matter how happy he was or how many people there were in his life that he cared about, alone time had always been important to him. Will apologized sometimes for always being so busy but Nico didn’t mind all that much. Will made an effort to spend as much time with Nico as possible despite the fact that he was working his ass off to become a doctor, and Nico appreciated that. They had fallen into a rhythm in their relationship that they were both happy with.

Nico regularly got plenty of time to himself in their apartment while Will was at school and interning. The longest of these times was Monday nights, when Will had to stay out until 10pm, which meant it was usually the most productive time for Nico.

Nico would get the bulk of his own schoolwork done and usually managed to clean a bit of their apartment before burrowing in their bed and reading or watching some TV. One Monday, Nico found himself so engrossed in a history documentary that he barely registered the door opening from across the apartment.

“Hey,” Nico called out a few moments later, once his brain had processed the noise he’d heard.

“Hey,” came the half-hearted response.

Nico frowned but didn’t move. It wasn’t unusual for Will to be tired on Monday night. It was routine for him to get ready for bed before cuddling next to Nico and venting a bit if he needed it.

Sure enough, Will appeared in the bedroom and moved to grab his pajamas like he did every Monday. His eyes were redder than usual, though, causing Nico to turn down the volume on the TV.

“You okay?”

Will sighed as he began to change. “I didn’t get the internship,” he admitted after a short silence.

“Oh. I’m sorry.” Nico tried to sound as sincere as he could as he wracked his brain for details surrounding said internship. He could recall Will talking about it previously but couldn’t remember any specifics. He’d been more focused on helping Will study and prepare for his upcoming tests. The internship application hadn’t felt like such a big deal in the long run.

“It’s just frustrating,” Will continued, “because the guy who got it doesn’t have nearly as many qualifications as I do. He just got the internship because he knows the right people. He didn’t put in half as much work as most of the applicants did.”

Will left to brush his teeth before coming back and getting in bed next to Nico, who turned off the TV and rolled over to face Will.

“I don’t know. I’ve just had a lot on my plate lately and to see this jackass just get handed what he wants without having to do much to get it… It was the last straw, I guess.”

Nico smiled at him sympathetically, pushing a golden curl out of his face. “I’m sorry. But hard work’s going to get you a lot farther in the long run. This guy might be able to accomplish some things while slacking but he won’t get far. Your brain’s going to accomplish much more.”

Will smiled tiredly. “Thanks, Nico.”

Nico kissed him on the forehead. “Do you want some tea or something?”

“No, thanks. I just need sleep.”

Nico nodded and rolled over to turn out the light before facing Will again. “You’re kicking ass, you know. I can’t believe the amount of work you put in every week without keeling over.”

Will laughed shortly. “No, I definitely end up keeling over.”

Nico smiled at him in the darkness. “Goodnight, Will.”

“Night, Nico.”

~*~

Sometime in the middle of the night, the bed shifted as Will got up to go to the bathroom. Nico grumbled in his sleep at the minor disruption before hearing sniffling. He cracked his eyes open to see Will leaving the room before getting up and following him.

Nico went out to the hall where yellow light shone from beneath the bathroom door. He knocked softly. “Will?”

Will gave a small laugh, but his voice was strained. “Sorry, I didn’t mean to wake you.”

“It’s okay. Can I come in?” There was no response, which Nico knew to take as a yes. He slipped into the room and sat across from Will, who was sitting against the wall with his knees pulled up to his chest. “What’s wrong?” Nico asked softly. He tried to meet Will’s eyes, which were trained insistently on the floor.

Will let out another shaky laugh and moved his hand up to wipe at his eyes. “I don’t know. Everything. I’m just so stressed and I know I need sleep but my mind’s racing and I don’t… I don’t know.”

Nico reached out and took Will’s hands in his own. “Can I get you anything?”

Will shrugged noncommittally but didn’t pull away from Nico’s hands. “Chocolate would be great,” he quipped.

Nico raised an eyebrow at that. “Hm. I’m going to remind you of this moment the next time you go on one of your health shopping sprees. Chocolate heals, not kale.”

This time, Will’s laugh held a bit of its normal joy and his smile felt more genuine. “Fair enough.”

Nico pulled him up and led him to the kitchen where he began searching their cupboards. “What the hell happened to our chocolate?” he asked after searching for a minute.

Will shrugged sleepily. “Dunno. Did you eat it all?”

Probably.

Shit.

“Aha!” Nico exclaimed, victoriously pulling a package out and setting it on the counter.

Will raised his brows. “Cocoa powder?”

“Don’t give me that look, it’s the best we’ve got.”

“Nico, I don’t think you can make hot chocolate with this stuff.”

“I know that. We’re making chocolate cake.”

Nico turned away from Will’s skeptical expression and began to gather the other ingredients they’d need.

“Nico?”

“Yes?”

“It’s 1am.”

Nico sighed, setting a large bowl down on the counter. He looked at Will tiredly. “Are you saying you don’t want to?”

There was a short silence before Will exhaled. “Fine, but you’re cleaning up.”

~*~

Two hours later, the kitchen was a wreck, but the smell coming from the oven made it worth it.

“How edible do you think it’ll be?” Will asked as Nico pulled the cake from the oven.

“Edible enough.” Nico set the pan down on the counter and went to grab plates.

“Nico, wait, it needs to cool. If we try to cut it now, it’ll fall apart.”

Nico yawned. “I’m not waiting for frosting. I’m not waiting for cooling. I’m eating and then I’m going to bed.”

A spatula turned out to be the best utensil for scraping the cake out of the pan and onto plates, and a spoon was best for eating it. Will and Nico laughed as they struggled to get servings onto their plates.

“They weren’t kidding when they said college is crazy,” Will joked. “We’re eating cake with a spoon. At 3am. On a Monday.”

“Tuesday,” Nico corrected.

“Mm.” Will took another bite. “On the bright side, this is very much edible.”

Nico hummed in agreement. “You feeling any better now?”

“Oh, I’m feeling great at the moment. I will definitely hate myself, though, when I’m trying to make it through the day with hardly any sleep.”

Nico yawned. “Gods, me too.”

“Nico?”

“Yeah?”

“Thanks.”

Nico smiled sleepily. “Of course.”

“The next time you’re feeling sad, I’ll make you a cake in the middle of the night, too.”

Nico laughed. “Gods, please don’t.”