#pill roach

[fly-sky-high-bug-games]

Long overdo design update for one of my first Hollow Knight OCs, Rhamuel~

Use to be just unspecified roach but I settled on pill roach recently and it works PERFECT for him :D

Rham on toyhouse

[cuddledot]

I wanna make a little hierarchy system of these fellas, but yeah these are Introopers, aka Dr. Blattodea's low ranking robobug minions. (And sadly, stompable </3)

[lulubeanie]

Dubia roaches carrot treat !

Pill bugs carrot treat !

[vampirebiter]

HELP I WENT TO LAY DOWN AND A BIG ASS ROACH CRAWLED ACROSS ONE OF THE PILLOWS AND NOW THAT IM BEATING THE BED WITH A BROOM I CANT FIND IT

[clannfearrunt]

found a date for when i found out about the only card

[pikinmin]

ROACHES?? WHEN THE ROACHES COME OUT?? OF MY COOCHIE??

[psiwhirl]

nothing has gone smoothly since i moved out of my parents like just everything has gone wrong and on one hand things could def be worse but on the other hand things could be going a lot better

[badgaymovies]

All My Puny Sorrows (2021)

All My Puny Sorrows by #MichaelMcGowan starring #AlisonPill and #SarahGadon, "so well acted and directed that its dramatic conceits are never difficult to watch despite how relentlessly dour the subject matter is"

MICHAEL McGOWAN Bil’s rating (out of 5): BBB Canada, 2021. Carousel Pictures, Mulmur Feed Company, Sugar Shack Productions. Screenplay by Michael McGowan, based on the novel by Miriam Toews. Cinematography by Daniel Grant. Produced by Tyler Levine, Michael McGowan, Patrice Theroux. Music by Jonathan Goldsmith. Production Design by Danny Haeberlin. Costume Design by Renee Fontana. Film Editing by…

[ghosts-cyphera]

Harder.

╰﹒ sometimes a slip of Simon ‘Ghost’ Riley’s hand is all the push you need.

content/warnings: swearing and suggestiveness; gn!reader; wc: 1k

a/n: gods, it's been years since I've last posted my stories online, but I couldn't sleep after playing CoD and... well. those who get it, get it. feedback and requests are welcome! ♡

Your feet pounded the cement as you ran through the cargo hold, finding security from the midst of the rusty metal containers.

All around you shouts and calls erupted from your friends' lips—some followed by warm laughs, others by deep curses, as the Task Force 141 submerged into the practice session.

"Gaz, do you copy?" The call passed your lips as a warm chuckle, as you crouched behind an oil container. "I've just gotten Soap's dog tags."

"Oh, I know." The reply was spoken with a laugh. "He's sent Ghost to come and find you. Fuckin' dumb on his part, considering that—"

"His tags are the last ones we need to win." You nodded your head. "Any visual on him? The last I've seen him was when he swiped poor fucking Roach off his—"

"I only needed his dog tags, didn't I?"

You grinned at the deep voice echoing from the other side of the container. You should have focused on listening to him approaching, but then, when did you ever really hear him coming?

"Funny," you chuckled back at the man, as you planted your feet steadier against the ground, careful to not make a sound. "You see, Lieutenant, your tags are exactly what I need. So why don't you just go ahead and toss them to me? We can take it real nice and easy."

"'Cause that's how you fuckin' like it, eh?"

You could hear the laughter in his voice, slightly breathless from the time spent dashing around under the scorching sun. Just moments before you had cursed the heat under your breath as you'd felt the pearls of sweat rolling down your forehead. Running in full gear tended to get to the fittest of the force, yet it did have its benefits, too.

Benefits, such as the sound of Ghost's vest brushing against the metal of the container. At your ear level, right around the corner to your right.

You wet your lips with your grin. "Want me to show you just how I like it, Lt.?"

"Darlin', you and I both know that I can read you like an open fuckin' book."

You could hear the brush of his vest against the metal again, as he moved closer to you. You knew he was out of paint-ammo: Gaz had gotten away with his tags from mere luck only moments prior, which meant that you had the higher ground. The moment he moved to lunge at you, could take him down with a single pull of the trigger, and grab his tags off his soon-to-be paint-covered vest.

Yet what was the fun in that?

With an arched brow, you laid your gun on the pavement. The screech of it against the ground, as you kicked it out of both your reaches, did not go unnoticed by Ghost.

”Sure you wanna do that, love?”

"Just to make it fair and square," you chuckled.

"You know I can't just kick off half my fucking body, yeah?"

"Wasn't it just this morning that I wiped the floors with your—"

A gasp and a curse were all you could manage, as your back collided with the hard cement of the ground. Handling the shock of the impact was one thing, but seeing him towering over you, fucking victorious, was another pill to swallow.

"Jesus fuck, Ghost." Despite your voice being a mere pained groan, you could not shake off the laughter from your features: the same laughter that glimmered in his eyes. "You know we're just fucking practicing, right?"

"I know. But you see, whatever the fuck it was that you said about takin' it nice and fuckin' easy—," he chuckled, as he crouched by you, "just doesn't do it for me. So what do you say I take these…"

His skeleton-patterned gloves reached for the chain around your neck, and just as you rolled your eyes at the certainty of your team having lost over you letting down your guard, the events began to unfold.

Whether it was from his finger slipping on your glistening skin, or from you turning your head at the exact wrong moment—perhaps it was from the combination of both—his hand did not wrap around the chain of your dog tags.

Instead, Ghost's fingers wrapped around your throat.

One moment he was sure of the victory of his team. Next, his brain could not function. For there you fucking were, on your back with your eyes slightly widened and lips parted, and his hand—his goddamn gloved hand around your throat from all the fucking places.

The worst of it all was not the wave of embarrassment that flushed through him. The worst of it was how fucking good you looked.

Yet he knew.

He knew.

No, he should have known better than to let his guard down: to allow himself to get distracted by the tug of the corners of your lips, as you tilted your head ever so slightly, chest rising and falling with your heavy breaths, your eyes fucking twinkling. 

Yet as the fingers of your hand rested on his and the word passed your lips, fucking pretty, who could blame him?

"Harder."

To hell and fucking above. From your breathless request, his lips parted involuntarily under his mask. To say what, he did not know: plead, maybe, for the first time in his life.

No, it wasn't pleading and begging you wanted from him, was it? Quite the fucking opposite.

No. Focus.

Fucking focus, Lt.

Using the fleeing moment of his racing thoughts to your advantage, you pushed off the ground and brought your knife—sheathed—to his throat. The twinkle in your eyes was brighter than ever, and as you laughed, the sound was all but menacing.

"Really, Ghost?"

"Don't even fucking begin," he cursed, breathless, as your fingers wrapped around the chain around his neck, and tugged off the dog tags. 

Yet as long as he had tried to deny it, it was not the slight touch of humiliation of having lost that made his head spin. You—he wet his lips, as he watched you twirling the tags around your finger—were going to be the goddamn death of him, and for one reason or another, he was ready to welcome it with open fucking arms.

“Ready for round two, sarge?” His chuckle was deep as you tossed his dog tags back to him, your eyes twinkling with challenge. “You know, I’m not gonna take it fuckin’ easy on you now.”

“Oh, that’s mutual, Lt.” 

That—Ghost wet his lips with a chuckle—that he was fucking counting on.

[lunnybunny12]

Husk X Daughter reader

Requests open

I've always been a gambling man

Masterlist

Husk was your dad when you two were still alive. He was at his bar in the Hazbin Hotel, when you suddenly fell from Heaven down, through the roof of the hotel right into the bar

You died

Pretty simple right?

You died in a pretty normal way. No drink or drugs or pills just slipped away in your sleep.

At first, you felt weightless. like a balloon in the wind. Going up and up with no thoughts, just floating. The higher you went, the brighter it got. Brighter and brighter. It was all blurry.

You were so close. You felt warmth. You felt joy.

But then it stopped.

everything stopped when you felt something cold and heavy snap around your neck.

-----------------------------------

"OK, everyone. gather around were going to do another session" Charlie sang earning a groan from most of her guests.

It was an average day. Well ... as average as a hotel in hell could be. The Sky was red, the bar was full and Nifty was killing bugs.

"Seriously? What now?" Angel asked

"Yeah, do you need me to bring you some roaches to use as an example of what happens when they don't play nicely?" Nifty maniacally giggled with her knife.

"I appreciate the offer, Nifty, but maybe another time. No, today we will be doing 2 truths and a liiiiieeeee !!!! " Charlie cheered.

Another collective groan echoed through the lounge.

"Wiiiiithhhhhh alchoholllll !!!"

-------------------------------------------------------------

One by one everyone had their turn. some were relatively harmless and others not so much.

"And Alastor, It's your turn" Charlie smiled nervously

Across the room, a grumpy old cad was grumbled under his breath.

"As if you'll get that bastard to play this fucking game"

"Now now Husker don't be so quick to judge. that's what got YOU into trouble in the first place." Alastor chimed and walked to sit with the others in the lounge.

Husk growled.

"Now, let's see" Alastor grinned. " 1) I like dogs. 2) Jambalaya is my favourite food. 3) We will be expecting a new member of staff very soon."

Vaggie glared at the man " What?"

" A NEW PERSON!" Charlie beamed. "When are they gonna get here?"

Suddenly a loud crash was heard from the upper floors and came through the ceiling. Dust and rubble went flying everywhere leaving a thick cloud of muck in the air.

It smelled like fire and burning flesh. It made everyone caugh.

A claw crawled out of the mess. Large black eyes were darting around in panic. The creature stumbled to the bar, a mist of dust following close behind them.

"Ey! What the hell! My bar! Get away you fucker!"

"I just fell through your roof and you're giving me shit?" You hissed, trying to shake off as much dust as possible.

You erupted into a fit of coughs and wiped your eyes.

"Where the fuck am I?" you blinked. Your vision was hazy until a tall, red figure walked to meet you.

" Ah hello there my dear. Welcome to the Hazbin Hotel. My name is Alastor, and you are?" He asked extending his hand for you to shake.

"I'm (Y/N)?" you answered, looking around.

It was a bit of a dump. But you did just fall through the ceiling. A lot of circus imagery covered the walls and everything was dripping stem to stern in red and gold.

The more you looked around the clearer it got you began to see other faces. One was a young lady. Long blond hair and a huge amazed and excited grin on her face. she was practically jumping for joy.

Another was a shorter lady. She wasn't as excited to see you. More like suspicious.

And then there was... A cat? A very horrified-looking cat... and a spider-person? A snake?

You started to panic. "W-What the fuck is this place? Why are some of you guys animals?"

"Speak for yourself there toots. You look like poos in boots" The spider laughed.

You looked at yourself and almost screamed. You were covered head to toe in ash grey fur, with black paw-like hands and claws for fingers. A long tail wrapped around your leg making you jump almost 3 feet in the air.

Tears were welling up in your black eyes and your heart was going a million miles an hour.

"Ok, understandably you're a little freaked out. Come with me. Im Charlie by the way." She smiled, taking your hand and leading you to a chair.

The second you were sat down Husk practically flew over the bar and dragged Alastor into the hall.

"What. The. Fuck. Is SHE doing here?!"

"The Hotel needed a Receptionist. She has plenty of experience and-"

"YOU KNOW WHAT I'M TALKING ABOUT!" Husk seethed.

"Did you do this to her? Did YOU kill her?"

"Husker I can do a lot of things but killing the living, I can not. You know exactly why she is here."

Alastor walked over to the door and looked at you with an evil grin.

"I can't say I see much of a resemblance Husker. Must take after her mother."

[queermentaldisaster]

Rumor has it that the Riley family is cursed. First, their youngest son, kidnapped under mysterious circumstances. The nephew? Hit by a motorcycle that just happened to roll off the road. The oldest and his wife? Crashed into a tree that was in the middle of the asphalt. The father? Murdered in his hospital bed. The mother? Overdosed on pills she'd never had.

Task Force 141 knows the rumors. Who in the UK doesn't? One day, 141 is sent out to help a team in Las Almas called Los Vaqueros. Apparently, the Las Almas cartel is having a territory dispute with the neighboring city's cartel, the Zaragoza cartel. While Los Vaqueros is handling the Las Almas cartel with Gaz and Roach's help, Price and Soap go to handle the Zaragoza cartel. They go undercover, and discover someone with brown eyes and blond lashes, wearing a balaclava, being passed around like many of the blunts in that room.

Soap manages to get his hands on this person, who's clearly out of it. After some finagling, he manages to get them outside, wrapping them in his coat to provide them with some decency.

When they wake up, they're in a bed in the Los Vaqueros base. Soap asks them for their name and pronouns, and he introduces himself as Ghost.

[tac-the-unseen]

COD Random character quirks

Fluff

Ghost:

•Remembers every story somebody tells him, but can't remember where he left his sweater

•Bites the inside of his cheek constantly, to the point of scarring

•If somebody doesn't drag him out of the house he would never leave. Despite this he does love going on a walk from time to time

•Hates talking about his past and will always redirect the conversation

•Extremely fast eater, it's a combination of Trauma and military training. Can finish a whole plate in less than 10 minutes

•Pauses for a long time in between speaking but can't stand it if someone else does the same

Soap:

•Obsessed with swords, but is terrible at wielding them

•Screams “DON'T GO IN THERE!” to the T.V when watching any horror movie

•Wears the ‘I <3 my hot S/O’ shirts unironically, and the loves them because “It's true!”

•Loves to be the best at everything

•Consistently orders the same thing at a restaurant. Has a specific order for every restaurant he goes too

•Learned some magic tricks as a kid and can still do most of them

Price:

•Wears crazy socks, think Spencer and his friend Socko (from iCarly)

•Laughs to jokes no one else laughs at to make the other person not feel bad

•Has one nipple piercing on his left nipple, He doesn't want to get the second one and just likes having the ones.

•Overly Humble, You have to fight him to take a compliment

•Eats while driving and has made adjustments in his car to be able to eat with full effect

•Knows a surprising amount of useless trivia and will bring it up in any conversation he can

Alejandro:

•Screams and runs at the sight of the bee

•Notorious for his eye rolling abilities

•Has a pretty sizable jewelry collection. Necklaces, bracelets, earrings, rings, and brooches (and he's willing to share)

•Frequently complements his S/O

•Steals food off of his S/O’s and friends plate

•Great cook and spends most of his time around/in the kitchen

Gaz:

•Secretly wants to be in a boy band

•Can't swallow pills normally

•Make fake scenarios in his head about him being the ultimate hero

•Snorts when he laughs

•Eats healthy snacks and playful shames others for eating unhealthy snacks

•Surprisingly good at impressions specifically impressions of British government officials

Roach:

•Sneak attack hugger

•His all-time favorite book is Dr Seuss's ‘Put me in a zoo’

•Sometimes forget other people don't know sign language/can't read it that fast and signs so fast that others have no clue what he said

•Gets a bad case of the giggles when someone trips (He cannot stop no matter how hard he tries)

•Likes to eat in private and feels weird looking at other people eat (Not a fan of restaurants or Mukbang asmr)

•Squirms in his seat/Can sit still for that long

Konig:

•Wears a bunch of hair ties around his wrist

•Has to spend hundreds of dollars making custom shoes that actually fit him

•Is an adrenaline junkie on the battle field. He lives for the blood rush

•Has a house shaking laugh and Horangi makes fun of him for it

•Is a very neat eater, he's not overly delicate with his food but just likes to eat in a certain way

•Likes stretching out and popping his joints all the time.

Rudy:

•Sits on the floor rather than the couch

•Will politely remind you how good he's being in the midst of chaos

•Always supports/Roots for the underdog

•Always has Snacks in his pockets/backpack

•Messy eater, somehow always ends up with sauce on his shirt or crumbs in his pockets

•Lean onto the people closest to him

Mace:

•Puts hot sauce on everything

•Tells jokes with a serious face

•Always looking for new adventure, loves exploring, hiking, climbing, and learning about different cultures

•Frequently adjusting his shirt to show off his body modification (traditional tribal scars)

•Likes to eat food with his hand more than with utensils. He'll use forks, spoons, and knives when at restaurants, but when he's at home everything is finger food.

•Gets spontaneous piercing / tattoos

[starandcloud]

Y/N X 141

This a part 2 of that suicidal Y/N I posted a few days ago-

Cause someone said they wanted to know how Price, Ghost, and Roach would react to hearing that-

TW: Talk of past suicide attempts, morbid humor, ooc 141 boys

Y/N and the boys: Having a good night

Y/N: Absentmindedly starts fiddling with the trigger of their gun

Soap: You alright there Lass?

Y/N: Not really on earth Ya know, when I was like... thirteen I took like... one hundred fifty pills to kill myself and I didn't die and I just had an upset stomach...

The boys: Dead silence

Gaz: Spits out his coffee again (poor man can never get his coffee)

Price: Are... Are you okay Kiddo?

Y/N: With a bright ass smile Mhm!

Soap: Starts laughing only to shut up when Price looks at him

Y/N: Laughs with Soap

Ghost: Physically shaking and trying not laugh

Roach: Oddly concerned and flicks his eyes between Y/N, Price, Soap

Price: Y/N... Do you need someone to talk to..?

Y/N: Stops laughing and smiles sweetly No Sir!

pssst @originaldeerhottub This is for you

[fixfoxnox]

Request idea: Roach having a rough/emotional day and Soap and Ghost kiss/fuck him better, and they end the sesh with snuggles (Roach being in the middle)

PS You're an incredible author! I really loved SitO from start to finish <3

Did my best with this one, I love a good hurt/comfort so hopefully I wrote it well!

Replacement

Pairings: Soap/Roach/Ghost

Description: Roach gets put on medical leave for a few months and worries that the man brought in to temporarily replace him on the team is trying to take his spot permanently.

Warnings: NSFW, Biting/Scratching (in like a sexy way tho), hurt/comfort, hand jobs

Word Count: 6k (I did not mean to make this that long)

"I'm going to have to take you off of active duty for at least two months."

"What?" Roach lurched forward, a bad choice considering the splintering pain that rocketed up his back with the movement. "Fuck," he muttered under his breath, gritting his teeth to try and prevent the groan that threatened to pull from his lips. When he looked back up he was met with a raised eyebrow from Dr. Sanchez.

"You need rest and time for the steroid shots to work their magic," She pointed at him with her pen, "And, if in a months time we've seen no improvement we'll have to try something else out. Two months is a best case."

"But I'm fine," Roach complained, "I finished the mission just as good as usual!"

"Sergeant Sanderson," a small smile tugged at her lips, "You were hit by a car and you just told me five minutes ago that even laying down hurts your back. You'll just end up hurting yourself and being off for longer if you don't." She placed a comforting hand on his shoulder and gave a slight squeeze, "Take the two months."

"I hate taking time off," Roach grumbled under his breath. He didn't argue with her any further though. As much as he hated to admit it, she was definitely correct about his back. It had been shit to deal with for the past several days and even Price had noticed the sluggishness to his usual movements and the pain he seemed to be in. Thats what had gotten him sent to the doctor and now meant that he would be taking time off.

"That seems to be a running theme with you 141 boys." Dr. Sanchez moved across the room to type a few things into a computer, "You should try to enjoy the time off. Maybe pick up a simple hobby in the meantime or," she turned to him and shrugged, "I guess take up some desk work." She paused for a moment before playfully adding, "Or just lay in bed and let your boys wait on you hand and foot."

Roach groaned, his face feeling hot at the words. He could hear Dr. Sanchez laughing at him and he gave a brief huff but said nothing. If anyone deserved to laugh over how overprotective Soap and Ghost could get when he was injured it was her. After all, not every doctor had to deal with two hulking men leering over them as they tried to stitch up a wound. He just hoped that Soap and Ghost might be a little more normal about his injury this time around.

"You guys are back early," Roach wrinkled his brow and looked up to meet Soap and Ghost's eyes. He hadn't been expecting them back for another few hours at least. Usually meetings and packing for a mission took a good four hours, but the two were back after only two.

Soap leaned down to press a kiss on his head as he passed the cozy couch Roach was seated on, "New guy made packing up quick today. He had everything done in like thirty, it was insane."

Roach stared at Soap with confusion as another kiss was pressed to the top of his head. "How's your back feeling, Bug?" He turned his attention to Ghost, though he was sure his face still showed how confused he was by Soap's words.

"Its okay, I took my pills today. PT tomorrow." He turned back toward Soap, "New guy?"

"Yeah!" Soap turned around from the little mini fridge in their shared room and tossed a bottle of water to Ghost. He kicked the door closed with his foot, "With everything that's been going on, Price brought in someone new to fill your spot."

Roach stared at him for a long moment, something heavy curling in his chest. "It's temporary, of course," Ghost assured him.

Soap's eyes widened with the words and he was quick to nod his head, "Yeah! Its just someone to help us out until you get back." He moved forward to plop himself in the seat next to Roach. He was quick to press a kiss to his cheek and nuzzle against his shoulder, "Just temporary, Bug."

Roach cleared his throat awkwardly. He didn't like feeling so useless and hearing that Price had brought someone else in, no matter how temporary, certainly didn't help. He disliked more, however, his boyfriends worrying about him and believing he was upset. He didn't want to be a burden on them. "It's no problem, I was just surprised is all. And, hey, if this new guy gets my boyfriends back to me quicker, I've got nothing to complain about."

Turns out, Roach did have something to complain about. He fucking hated the new guy. He fucking hated the new guy and he could tell that the rest of the 141 fucking loved the new guy.

He'd tried, really he'd tried, to like the new guy. He'd given him a fair chance for the first month, he'd tried to chalk everything up to his own mind and insecurities playing games with his heart. After a certain point though, he had to face the facts. And the facts, as much as he cringed to say it, were telling him that the new guy was after his job. And potentially his boyfriends, though Roach had decided to tuck that back into a corner for later.

The "new" guy was more than friendly with Roach when they'd been introduced. He was positive and helpful and never seemed to have an issue with Roach or with being a temporary member of the team. In fact, he'd been so kind that Roach hadn't felt worried in the slightest when he'd returned to the room with Soap and Ghost at his side. He'd felt more than happy having confirmation that the man knew he was only going to be working with them for a bit before going back to his own team.

The next few times that Roach had seen him had been similar. They were spread out, but the man was quite pleasant to him every time they met. Of course, as Roach knew now, that was likely only due to the fact that another member of the 141 had been with him. The first time that Roach saw the man while alone was the first time that he got an idea that things weren't quite right.

He'd been tiredly (and painfully) making his way back from his physical therapy appointment when he'd seen the man. They were passing one another in the hall and Roach had given him a quick friendly smile. It hadn't been returned, but he hadn't thought much about it at the time, at least he hadn't thought about it until the man moved over just enough that he could painfully slam his shoulder against Roach's. The move had sent Roach stumbling into the wall next to him, his back screaming. When he'd looked over his shoulder at the man, shock running through his system, he'd been met with a harsh glare.

The man had disappeared around the corner of another hall before Roach could fully comprehend what had happened. It had left him reeling for the rest of the day. Later, when he'd seen the man again while with Soap and Ghost, he questioned whether he'd hallucinated the incident. After all, the new guy was just so nice, wasn't he?

Roach hadn't told Soap and Ghost about what happened. He hadn't even told them when it happened again. Or when other incidents of the new guy being an ass to him happened. He just kept trying to convince himself that he was reading to far into things. That he was looking for a reason to be upset. He just kept trying to blame himself.

It hadn't been until he was talking to Jackson about the man's odd behavior that he finally began to accept that something was amiss.

"He sounds like an asshole?" Jackson tilted his head at him, "Have you told Soap and Ghost? Or like...Price at least?"

"No?" Roach shook his head, "Listen I'm sure it's nothing-"

"No, no, hell no," Jackson cut him off quickly, "You're doing that thing again where you try to blame yourself for other people being assholes."

"What?"

"This guy is being a dick!" Jackson pointed at him, "And he's only doing it when its just you around. Pretty fucking two-faced if you ask me."

Roach had quickly rebuffed his friend, but after the call ended, he'd found himself thinking more about what Jackson had said to him. It was true. This guy was being an absolute dick to Roach and he had no idea why. At least he had no idea until he'd overheard Soap complimenting him about how quick he was during a mission. He'd responded, "It makes you guys want to keep me around, eh?"

He'd laughed it off afterward, but Roach had heard the hope in his voice and, when he'd made his presence known, he'd seen the disgust on his face. The dots started connecting for him from there.

The way that the man always seemed to be trying to make his presence known and make himself important to the group. The way he was always complimenting and kissing ass to the rest of the group. The subtle remarks he would make about wishing his own team was like the 141. Roach had also noticed the rather unsubtle looks that he'd been giving Soap.

The issue, though, was that Roach had no proof that any of what was happening was true. He had no proof that the man was being an ass or that he wanted his job or that he was constantly staring at his boyfriend's ass. He had no proof, so he kept quiet. All he had to do was make it back into the field. All he had to do was get confirmed healthy enough for active duty at the end of his two months. After all, the 141 surely wouldn't replace him after just two months.

"Are we," Roach grit his teeth and resisted the urge to groan as Dr. Sanchez felt along his back, "done yet?"

There was another moment of pressure before she finally lifted her hands away from his skin, allowing him to collapse back into his seat with a relieved huff. He watched her move around the room for several moments, her face serious as she typed several things into her computer. He didn't like the look that she wore. He was hoping for smiles or some sort of indication that the turn out was good.

"What's the verdict?" He dared to ask. There was another moment of silence before Dr. Sanchez sighed and turned toward him, her face apologetic.

"I'm sorry," she started, "But I can't put you back into the field like this."

"But you said two months!" Roach winced a bit, but pushed himself up from his seat.

"I said two months at the least," Dr. Sanchez gave a sigh, "I know this isn't what you wanted to hear. But its going to be at least another month." Roach collapsed back to the chair his chest feeling heavy and his eyes stinging with the need to cry. He pushed it down. This was not something he was going to be crying over. "You've made a lot of progress," Dr. Sanchez placed a hand on his shoulder comfortingly, "I'm confident that with another month you'll be back in tip top shape."

Roach was on his way back to his room. He was already feeling down on himself, so it only made sense that the world would try to beat him further into the ground.

He was moving past one of the meeting rooms when he just caught the sound of Soap's voice. He paused, his lips quirking up a bit. He could always stop and say hi to his boyfriends. Surely that would make him feel better.

He stepped up to the door, intent on knocking, "I honestly wouldn't mind having him on the team permanently."

Roach froze in his place, a lump forming in his throat. "Neither would I, he's been a good addition to the team." Ghost's voice.

Roach stepped back from the door, feeling as though a bucket of cold water had just been dumped over his head. He felt numb, his mind running over itself. They didn't say that they wanted to replace him on the team, but wasn't that the implication? Wasn't that what his replacement had been hoping for? Sure, maybe they didn't want the guy over him, but with another month...Roach couldn't be sure.

He made his way down the hallway and back toward his room, feeling a slow building of dread in his chest. It seeped up his throat as he made his way into the room. By the time he'd plopped into a seat, he was already crying.

"Bug?" Roach tucked himself deeper into his blanket, trying to avoid the harsh light that was turned on in the room. He didn't look up, but he could hear Soap and Ghost shuffling around the room. A moment later and he could feel the bed next to him sink down. "We heard from Doc about you being out for another month." Soap's voice was soft and Roach could feel his hand land on his thigh through the sheets. "We're sorry."

"It's for the best," Ghost's voice was just as soft as Soap's and Roach could tell from how clear his voice was that he'd taken his mask off. "The team will be fine, we just want you to get better."

"Yeah," Soap agreed, "and besides, it isn't like we're down a man, I'm sure-"

Roach couldn't help the sob that pulled from his throat at the words, cutting Soap off. He tried to quiet himself, but it was too late, both Soap and Ghost had clearly heard him.

"Bug?" The bed dipped down again and, ever so slowly, the blankets were pulled away from his face, exposing him to the gaze of his boyfriends.

"Roach," Soap was quick to turn his face, getting a good look at him with wide concerned eyes, "Bug, whats wrong? Are you hurting? Is it your back?"

Roach turned away from him, trying to bury his face in his pillow, "I don't want to talk about it."

There was a pause before Ghost was asking, "Somethings bothering you. What is it?" There was another long pause, Roach didn't answer. "We aren't letting up until you tell us."

Roach took a moment before muttering, "The new guy wants to replace me."

There was another long pause before, "What?"

Roach shoved himself up from the bed, pushing himself into a sitting position. "The new guy wants my spot on the team! He's such an ass when you guys aren't around and he keeps making comments about wishing he could stay on the team! And he's constantly staring at Soap's ass which, like," he rubbed at his face, "I get it! Me too, but also have some respect? And did I mention that every time he and I are alone together he gives me dirty looks or says something fucking rude!"

He finally forced himself to stop talking. He didn't dare meet the gazes of Soap and Ghost. He didn't want to see their disbelief.

"Bug," Ghost's voice was low, "Why didn't you tell us?"

Roach hesitated for a moment before looking up at them. Their faces were stormy, a mix of anger and concern written across their brow. "I don't have proof," Roach hunched over slightly and fought back the desire to cry again, "I knew how much you guys liked him. Hell, I heard you guys today talking about how you'd like to have him on the team for good! I was," he took in a deep breath, "I was worried you wouldn't believe me."

Within a moment, there were arms wrapped around Roach's shoulders, holding him tightly. A kiss was pressed to his cheek as Soap nuzzled their faces together, "Bug, of course we believe you."

Roach relaxed into Soap's arms at the words, leaning into his hold. "We're telling Price about this." Roach met Ghost's gaze and he could see how serious the other man was. His tone left no room for argument.

"Later," Soap assured, pressing kisses to his face, "Right now we're staying here."

"Yes," Ghost moved closer to them, pressing his chest to Roach's shoulder, "Right now we're staying here. Right here until you feel better." He pressed a kiss to Roach's hair, then his cheek.

"How's your back feel?" Soap muttered the words against his shoulder, his mouth tracing across the exposed skin of his collarbone.

Roach sighed, trying to stretch slightly, "Better, still shit though. Its tight right now, I probably need to lay back down." He noted that his voice was still a bit shakey. Despite that, he already felt better than he had moments ago. Soap and Ghost believed him. That was what mattered.

"We'll lay back then," Ghost was quick to tug Roach over into his lap, stealing him away from Soap with an apologetic glance. Once Roach was settled, he slowly reclined so that they were laid back together with his chest to Roach's back. Soap was quick to move as well, tucking himself between Roach and Ghost's legs to lay over Roach's chest. He resumed his previous activity of placing kisses along Roach's neck.

Roach gave a small satisfied sigh. He liked being there, pressed between Soap and Ghost. It felt like exactly where he was meant to be.

Soap hummed against his neck before giving a quick and playful nip to the skin. Roach shuddered a bit. A moment later and Ghost's hands were running along his side softly, tucking his shirt up to stroke along the skin there.

Soap continued nipping at his neck, growing more and more bold with his mouth. At the same time, Ghost's hand started moving further and further under Roach's shirt, tracing the muscle of his chest until he was just missing Roach's nipples.

"I'm beginning," Roach cut himself off with a slight yelp as Soap bit particularly hard on his neck. Ghost took the opportunity to flick his fingers over one of Roach's nipples, beginning slow teasing strokes and flicks over the nub. He gave a gasp, tilting his head back against Ghost's shoulder, "I'm beginning to think the two of you are trying to do something other than comfort me."

"Now what would make you think that, bug?" Ghost's voice was teasing and he punctuated his words with a quick pinch of Roach's nipple that pulled a small yelp from his mouth.

Soap chuckled against his neck, his hands trailing down to grip at Roach's thighs. He ground himself down briefly, pulling a gasp from Roach's lips. "Our intentions are purely in the realm of making you feel good." He ground his hips down again, this time pulling a moan from all three of them as the movement pushed Roach's backside down against Ghost's cock.

"We haven't touched you in so long," Ghost tilted Roach's head back with one of his hands, the other still teasing at his chest. He connected their lips together, quickly opening Roach's mouth with his tongue. They shared sloppy kisses as Soap continued to grind against Roach, pulling the occasional moan and sigh from the three of them. His mouth was tracing further down Roach's skin, tugging at his shirt to expose more pale skin to his teeth and bruising mouth.

"Well," Roach pulled back for a moment, but his lips were quickly recaptured by Ghost's, the man's hand grabbed tight to his chin to hold him in place. Roach whimpered at the tight grip, he wasn't allowed to pull apart for several moments, "it isn't my fault that you haven't touched me." He gave Ghost a quick pout and the man nipped at his lips in response.

"You're hurt," Soap muttered against his skin, "We were being gentle."

"Are you saying you can't be gentle when you fuck me?" Roach teased slightly. He pushed himself up from Ghost's chest a bit, wincing at the tightness the move exposed in his back. He ignored it in favor of stripping his shirt off, Soap and Ghost helping him with the movement.

As soon as his chest was exposed, Soap was back on him, his mouth surrounding the nipple the Ghost wasn't playing with. Roach arched into his mouth and gave a low whine at the feeling. "You don't know how tempting you are," Ghost pressed a kiss against his cheek, "Its hard not to lose ourselves in you."

Roach gasped as Soap bit his nipple, he ground back slightly to pull a slight groan from Ghost's lips. Roach could feel his boyfriend's rapidly hardening cock pressed against his ass. Soap's was already hard and his slow grinding movements had been slowly working Roach up as well. His pants and underwear were beginning to feel uncomfortably tight.

"If I'm so tempting," Roach whimpered as Soap ground down against him again, "You'd think someone would be inside me already." He punctuated his words by grinding back against Ghost and grabbing tight to Soap's hair with one hand, tugging him up to connect their mouths in a filthy open mouthed kiss.

"Is that what you want?" Ghost chuckled lowly and nipped at his ear, "I think Johnny and I can make that happen." His hand finally moved away from Roach's chest to trail down and slip under the waistband of his pants. His hand moved between Soap and Roach's hips so that he could palm at Roach through his underwear, forcing Roach to break away from Soap's mouth with gasping breaths.

"I'll grab the lube," Soap gave a bright grin and pecked at Roach's gasping lips before pushing himself up and scrambling off of the bed.

Roach could only watch him move around the room through lidded eyes, his mind crowded with pleasure. It spiked down his spine as Ghost's hand slipped under his underwear so that he could wrap his hand fully around Roach's cock and stroke over him slowly. "Oh, fuck," Roach's hips canted up into Ghost's hand, "Si- oh, ah, Simon!"

"Perfect little thing," Ghost pressed several more kisses along his throat, his hand tightening around Roach's cock as Soap finally rejoined them on the bed, his shirt discarded and a bottle of lube tossed to the bed beside Roach's legs. His hands set to work unbuttoning Roach's pants and tugging them down his legs. Ghost helped him as much as he could, one of his hands helping to lift Roach's hips to make the slide easier. Within a few moments Roach was fully naked under their touch.

"Fucking pretty," Soap dived down to begin licking and biting at Roach's exposed hips. Roach was flushed red, a thin layer of pink settling over his skin as heat pounding at him. He jerked his hips up slightly only to have them immediately pinned by Soap's hands. "None of that now," he bit Roach's hip hard, "Be good."

Roach gave a low whine at the words but did his best to keep his hips still. His mind was completely foggy as both Soap and Ghost worked at him. Slowly arousal built in Roach's gut, pooling and curling around him in a warm sensation, he could hardly breathe with the feelings that were being pulled from him by Ghost's hand around his cock and Soap's slowly wondering mouth and hands.

"Remember what he said, Soap?" Ghost pressed another kiss to Roach's temple, "he wants one of us in him. Open him up, would you?"

Soap groaned at the words, his hands grasping quickly for the bottle of lube on the bed. "Why only one?" He poured a generous amount onto his hand, warming it up between his fingers as best as he could. "Why not both of us, hmm Bug?" His hands trailed down, stroking just lightly across Roach's balls before slipping between his cheeks to begin circling around his hole, teasing at him with his fingers.

"Maybe when he's feeling a bit better," Ghost chuckled a bit, "I don't think he could handle being stuffed so full right now."

"Aww," Soap started working a finger into Roach slowly, pulling a desperate gasp from his lips as his fingers pressed against his warm walls. "You could take it," Soap started quickly working another finger into Roach, fucking him shallowly with his hand, "Couldn't you, Bug?:

Roach nodded his head rapidly, his mind too far gone for him to even think logically. All that he wanted was one of the two men he was pressed between to split him open with their cock. To make the pleasure in him build even higher. He wanted them to make sure that he would never doubt his place with them again. "Please, please," desperate moans escaped his lips as Soap started working his fingers in and out of him faster, soon adding a third finger to help scissor and stretch him open.

Ghost hand was still tight around his cock, moving slowly in time with Soap's thrusting fingers. Roach's hips jumped again when Ghost ran his thumb over the head of his cock, fingering his slit slowly. "Simon- fuck, oh god John!" He jerked his hips again, pulling a chuckle from Ghost and a grin from Soap. "Please, please, just fuck me already!"

"He begs so sweet," Soap twisted his fingers inside Roach, pulling another long whine from his throat. "What do you say, Simon?"

Ghost hummed playfully, as though he was thinking, "Since he asked so nicely. Though, it is tempting to just keep him like this. I mean, look how he's leaking. I'm could watch it all day." Roach whined at the words. The thought of Soap and Ghost keeping him like this for hours made him breathless. He knew that the two men could and would do it too, they'd be more than willing to tease him until he was crying for them.

Ghost slowly removed his hand from Roach's cock. "Lift your hips a bit, Bug." Soap helped guide him off of Ghost just enough that Ghost could undo his own pants and pull his aching cock out. Ghost was pressed against Roach's ass, just slipping between his cheeks as Soap poured a bit more lube onto his hands. He helped Roach lift up again and wrapped his hand around Ghost's cock, giving several long slow jerks to spread the slick substance along his length.

"Fuck," Ghost latched his mouth onto Roach's neck, his hips moving just slightly into Soap's hand. After several moments Soap helped to guide the tip of Ghost's cock to Roach's entrance. Soap helped guide Roach back onto Ghost's cock, grinning wide as both of the men groaned at the sensations. Ghost was stretching Roach open pleasantly and the sensation of Roach squeezing tight around his cock was forcing desperate pants from his throat.

"There we go," Soap chuckled at the groan that left both Roach and Ghost once they were filly pressed together. He pecked at Roach's lips, spreading kisses along his face, "Feels good, doesn't it?"

Roach nodded, a whimper leaving his lips as Ghost gave one hard thrust up into him. On instinct Roach reached forward, grabbing tight to Soap's shoulders for support as Ghost started to slowly buck up into him. "God, hmm- oh fuck," he gave another long whine, "John, I- oh please, please! Can- you should-" he couldn't figure out what he was trying to say as he tugged at Soap's shoulders. Ghost's cock driving inside of him kept pleasure panging through him in an addictive way. The heat burning through him was becoming overwhelming.

"What is it, bug?" Soap pulled back just enough that he could start unbuttoning the top of his pants. Roach and Ghost watched the movement with hungry eyes, scanning over every inch of skin that Soap exposed to them. Soap pulled his cock out and wrapped a hand around himself, giving several slow strokes to his hard cock. He tilted his head back at the sensation, a satisfied sigh pulling from his lips.

"S-Simon," Roach moaned as Ghost fucked up into him harder, just brushing against his prostate. Ghost repeated the movement, his hungry eyes watching Soap jerk himself off slowly. "Please, fuck, need both of you!"

Soap moved back in between Roach and Ghost's legs and leaned down to capture Roach's lips in a quick kiss. He pulled back before leaning further to connect his lips to Ghost's in a similarly desperate kiss. When he pulled away, he buried his face in Roach's neck, latching on to the skin there with his teeth as his cock rubbed against Roach's own hard length and Ghost's hand. Ghost was quick to wrap his hand around both Roach and Soap's lengths, stroking them in time with his thrusts.

Soap whined against Roach's neck, biting down just a bit harder and lapping at the bit of blood that pricked up from the move. "Fucking hell," Ghost's voice was desperate, "So fucking tight, Bug- oh fuck!" He bucked up harshly into Roach.

Pleasure spiked through Roach's system and he felt delightfully overwhelmed. The slide of his cock with Soap's was sending jolts up his spine and pooling in his gut. Ghost was still brushing against his prostate with every thrust, the feeling both not enough and too much for him. In combination, he felt as though he couldn't breathe or think. He could only lay there pressed between two hard warm bodies to have pleasure pulled from him.

He grabbed at Soap's shoulders as the pleasure in him began to tilt toward the edge. "Simon! Oh fuck, ah, you feel so, so fucking good!" He dug his nails into Soap's skin, scrambling for some sort of purchase as Ghost picked up the pace of his thrusts and his hand over their cocks.

Soap grabbed tight to him, similarly desperate gasps pulling from his throat, "Fuck, fuck, Simon, just like that! Just like that!"

"So fucking tight around me, Bug," Ghost growled against Roach's ear, "So fucking good. Do you like this? Hmm? You like it when I take care of you and Johnny like this?"

"Yes," Roach managed to cry out, nodding his head rapidly.

"And you know," Soap joined in, "How much we love you? You know that we'd never want anyone else? Not on the team, not here. Only you." Roach didn't say anything, too distracted by the pleasure that threatened to snap in him at any moment. Soap slapped at his thigh, "Answer us, sweet boy."

"Yes," Roach clung to Soap tighter his voice going higher with every word and moan that left his mouth, "Yes, love you both! Please, please keep going! Can- oh god please, can I come? Ah, oh fuck, fuck, fuck, fuck-"

"Go on, sweet boy," Ghost muttered against his ear, "Show us how good you feel."

It only took another few moments before Roach was scrambling again, the pool of pleasure in his gut snapping and sending his vision white with the intensity of the feelings that washed over him. He could only vaguely register the sounds of Ghost cursing behind him before his hips stuttered and the feeling of cum inside of him hit. He didn't mind it though, the feeling only adding to his desperation as Ghosts hand continued to work over his cock, the slide between him and Soap made even smoother by his own cum acting as further lube.

"Too, ah, too much," he groaned as Ghost continued working him and Soap, driving him into overstimulation as he finally came down. He tried to scramble away from the hand on his cock, but that only resulted in Ghost's cock hitting inside of him again, pulling a groan from both of them. A moment later and Soap was pinning his hips down, his face buried in his chest as moaned out chuckles left his lips.

"John hasn't finished yet," Ghost teased, his own voice sounding wrecked from his own orgasm, "Don't you want to make him feel good? Be good, Bug. Take what I give you."

Roach could do nothing as he found himself quickly hurtling back toward the edge of pleasure, his entire body tense. His hand grasped and clawed against Soap's back as both of their moans grew more and more desperate. Higher and higher. "Gonna- fuck, gonna come with me, Bug?" Soap bit at his chest, trailing his mouth down over his skin, "Be good for me, yeah?"

Ghost tightened his fist a bit around their cocks and it was only a few moments later that Roach was coming again, his senses fizzing out for several moments.

When he finally came back to himself it was to Soap panting against his skin, coming down from his own orgasm as Ghost carefully released their cocks from his hand. "Fuck," Soap gasped against his skin, "God I love you both."

"Hmm, love you guys too," Roach mumbled, exhaustion pulling at his bones, "I'll love you both even more if we can just...stay like this and nap."

Ghost chuckled from behind him, "Something tells me if we don't at least clean you up first you'll love us a little less when you wake up."

"Impossible," Roach whined as Soap moved off of him, nearly stumbling as he landed on his own two feet.

Soap gave a low chuckle and stretched upward. Both Ghost and Roach watched him with hungry eyes, trailing his bare chest down to the cum staining his skin, and his spent cock still hanging out of his unbuttoned pants. "I think you two did a number on me," he stretched out his legs, completely oblivious to the staring from Roach and Ghost. "Let me go get a rag to clean us up!" He shot them both a grin and turned away, heading toward the bathroom. The moved exposed several angry red scratches along his back and shoulders from where Roach had clawed at him in the midst of pleasure. A few of them were dotted red where Roach had broken the skin.

Roach and Ghost both watched quietly until Soap had disappeared into the bathroom. After a long moment of silence, Ghost whispered, "Good job."

"I did not mean to do that."

"Fucking phenomenal sight, though."

"Agreed."

"I just saw you yesterday," Dr. Sanchez raised an eyebrow at him, "You only had to stay resting for one more month!"

Roach winced slightly, a blush lighting up his face. He'd woken up that morning with a searing pain in his back and he knew that something was wrong. His back hadn't hurt so bad in weeks. "I'm sorry."

"What the hell did you even do?" Dr. Sanchez looked at her notes, "I mean its like you've regressed yourself by like a month!"

Roach winced again and avoided her gaze, his face a bright red. He knew exactly what he'd done to his back. There was a long pause before "I'm waiting, Roach? What were you doing?"

He winced again before nervously mumbling out an answer.

"I'm sorry, I couldn't hear you."

"I was with Soap and Ghost...and you know."

There was another long pause that filled the room. Roach shot his head up, his face red as he heard a bit of laughter. He was met with the sight of Dr. Sanchez covering her mouth, laughter clearly shaking her shoulders as her eyes lit up with mirth. "You," she cut herself off with another laugh, this one nearly hunching her over.

"Hey!" Roach's face felt like it was burning and he was sure he'd never felt so mortified in his life.

"I'm sorry," Dr. Sanchez waved him off, "I'm sorry, good for you." She stood up fully, still trying to contain her laughter, "Just tell Soap and Ghost to lay you flat on the bed next time not...whatever the three of you did." She laughed for another moment. "Anyways, because of the regression, we're going to have you another shot and do another two months off."

Roach groaned, covering his face with his hands. Not only was he going to be off for another two months now, but he knew that he was never going to hear the end of it from Soap about how he and Ghost had actually managed to blow his fucking back out while fucking him.

[clannfearrunt]

I'm sure it isn't even a recent doodle anymore but I was going through my tagged posts and "how do you lose a guy???" "you forget to cherish him" isn't that just season 4 in a nutshell

the only thing that happens in season 4 is that Haga/Weevil fucking kills Pillroach, The Only Card :(

[hype-blue-fixation]

RADIOSTATIC WEEK - DAY 5 - SICK DAY/RAIN

Vox has a virus and he's trying to walk Alastor through the troubleshooting process.

Alastor was at the bar. Eyes on the clock. If he thought he showed up early for their business meetings, Vox always showed up even earlier. But the hand tipped past 12 and the box-headed sinner was nowhere in sight. Alastor fidgeted with his pen. Unable to help the thoughts running through his head. Visions of Vox being caught by thugs in an alleyway. A greedy demon breaking into his house. Blood. Wires. Gunshots. Is this what it felt like to worry about someone? He'd almost forgotten what it was like.

He waited a few minutes longer before deciding it was enough. Hurried clicks on the ground followed him on his way out the bar and down the road. The sound of his own footsteps thundering in his ears in spite of the usual screaming and chaos of the hellscape. Above the rainstorm rocketing down. He stopped at an old apartment complex. Going to Vox's door but not even knocking. Inviting himself inside with the spare key hidden under the doormat.

The apartment seemed to be undisturbed, but dark. As if Vox went to sleep and never woke up. More of those terrible images flashed in Alastor's mind. Pills. Nooses. Guns. Goodbye letters. A strange sort of fear went through his body at the mere thought of seeing any of those beyond the door. To the point that his hand was shaking on the bedroom door handle. Annoyingly so. What were these…feelings? And why were they stopping him? He had only a moment to be repulsed by himself before he forced the door open.

On the bed laid Vox's limp body. Screen dark. But there were none of the things that Alastor imagined there to be, which was at least some sort of relief. He unhooked the charging cord and knocked against the side of the clunky box head. “Vox. Vox. Wake up. We're supposed to have our meeting at the bar at the current moment.” His usual tone sounded a bit louder. A bit faster. Is this what it was like to speak frantically? It had been a long time since he heard his voice sound that way.

His whole body shook with some kind of… joyful rush… when the screen finally flickered on. Vox's face was visible, though distorted by several rainbow colored lines and misplaced pixels. It meant nothing, really. Alastor had seen several broken down pieces of technology in his life. That unreliable stuff had no shortage of glitches and weaknesses. But for some reason, knowing this was the face of someone he'd  come to care for in some arcane way, it deeply unsettled him. Made his stomach want to crawl out of his mouth. If that was even possible.

“What is wrong with you? What can I do?”

He pressed his ears against those speakers, trying to make sense among all the garbled buzz. Nothing. But then he saw one of Vox’s antennas flicker to life. His voice faintly broadcasted into Alastor's head. He focused. Attuned himself to the frequency to hear it more clearly. The voice came faintly.

“I got a bug. Can you help me get rid of it?”

Alastor squinted. A bug? He began checking the other's body, as if expecting to find a wire-eating roach or something boring through the plastic.

“A glitch.” Vox clarified with a weak chuckle, “Open my head. There's a screwdriver in my drawer.”

Alastor wasted no time in answering the whim. He'd already seen the entrails of animals and humans, surely this couldn't be worse than that. Except that seeing the mess of cords inside, knowing they were the only things sparking his business partner to life, gave him a nauseous feeling. What if he bumped the wrong one? Pulled too hard and it snapped? Technology was fickle and fragile.

“There's a green board in there. Do you see it?” 

The deer squinted… finally seeing the green board. His hands shook as he went to unscrew it. Nervous that he'd mess it up. Feeding into the shakiness. A vicious cycle. The voice of Vox echoed in his head to calm him down.

“It's okay. You're not going to hurt me. Just relax.”

One deep breath and some fidgeting later, the board came unscrewed. He held it in his hands like a baby bird. One wrong move and it could snap. The wires going in and out looked so thin. Breakable. It surprisingly wasn't too much different from a human body. One very small piece could be the entire secret to life.

“Alright. Now you see the red wire? I need you to unplug that and put it back in. I'll go offline for a moment, but don't worry.”

Panic really started to settle in. Of the several wires going in and out, he could not decipher all their colors. The oranges, reds, and yellows all blended into one amalgamation of color. “Which one is the red one!?” an unsuspected panic crept into his voice, and he had to clear his throat to make it seem like an accident.

A sweet, staticky chuckle from Vox. “I knew you were colorblind, so I tagged all my wires. It should have a triangle.”

Alastor didn't have time to question how or why Vox would do such a thing, so he only gave it a few moments of thought. Searching arduously for the tag. Humming with delight as he found the triangle. Wasting no time in unplugging it. Startled as the monitor died and all signs of life faded. He nearly forgot where to plug it back in. A moment passed. Another. Still the screen was black. He tapped. Shook. Flicked. Impatient.

He checked the cords again. That strange shaky anxiety building up again. Had he messed up? Was there another instruction after the wire that he didn't give Vox enough time to explain? Suddenly he felt like his chest sank to his feet.

If only he knew more. Had taken the time to study Vox half as much as Vox had studied him. He fondled around on the green board until his finger found a moving piece. A small black sliding button. With no hope left, he switched it from one side and back to the other. Suddenly fans kicked on. Hope returned.

“Vox? Vox, hello?” Alastor tapped and shook as if it would make the booting process go any faster. The spinning circle on Vox’s screen was at least some reassurance that something right happened. Then suddenly a black screen with thousands of tiny white monospace words. Flying down the screen. Registers. Directories. Databases. Drives. It was nothing but senseless garble. But he knew one word: “Deleted”.

And the screen was filled with lines of code. Deleted. Deleted. Deleted. More worries filled his mind, if that's what such thoughts were called. Perhaps every aspect of Vox was being deleted and all he could do was watch helplessly. His personality. His memories. What if he woke up and it was just the same as when they first met on that raining bridge? On a night not so different from now?

A playful chime and startup sound pulled Alastor back into the moment. The screen flashed on. It was Vox's usual face without all the distortion and lines. Text across the screen read “restoring backup.”

The Radio Demon had a vague idea of what that meant. But how far back did the backup go? Would Vox remember him? Would he remember their meeting that they were due nearly an hour ago? Suddenly Vox's voice graced his ears. Not just a broadcast in his head, but something audible and real.

Vox's eyebrows furrowed. “IF YOU SHUT UP FOR 2 SECONDS, I COULD SAY HELLO, TOO.” This explosive display let Alastor know that his business partner was back in his right mind. “I still can't move. Can you unplug the blue wire and stick it back in, please?”

“Vox! Did I do it correctly? Hello? Hello? Hello?” Alastor kept repeating like a broken record. Caught on a scratch of concern. That's what he'd decided this emotion was.

Alastor couldn't be more delighted to. But once he did, Vox's whole body jolted and he rolled out into the floor. Crashing head first on the green board. Whatever this new emotion was, Alastor's face managed to get even more pale. The paralyzation of his business partner possessed his body instead. “VOX!? I'm sorry, I didn't have a proper hold on you!”

I'm sorry? Where did that come from? He'd never felt the need to apologize for anything. Vox slowly pushed himself up. Oddly…laughing? “You're so nervous about messing me up, huh? It's adorable. Really! But I'm not that easy to break.” He offered out the green board. Unscathed. “Can you screw it back in for me, pal?”

Pal? That was something they'd called each other for convenience sake or for jokes. But Alastor got the sense that Vox meant it in a different way this time. Not just a business partner. Not just someone to lick your wounds and be a convenience. But a real friend.

“Of course I can. Pa…p…” Alastor couldn't get the word out. What were all these biological malfunctions today? He wasn't any better off than Vox was only moments ago. But as he screwed the board back into Vox's head, a warmth came over him. This wasn't just a normal favor. Or something done for an advantage. It meant something.

“There. Now shall we have our meeting? We're an hour late as it is… friend.”

The word came out effortlessly. A silent understanding was shared between them as they went to the bar for their meeting. Although this had been a sick day for Vox, perhaps they were both a bit healthier that evening.