Dream SMP and Other MCYT Oneshots

Selfish- Platonic Tommyinnit + Tubbo

TW: swearing

"Hey, Tubbo! Can I ask a favor?"

Tubbo was exhausted.

"Sure thing, Wil! What do you need?"

He just wanted to go home.

"I need to get this to Phil as soon as possible and it looked like you were headed that direction. You're a lifesaver, dude," Ghostbur said, grateful for Tubbo's help as he pressed a ziploc bag with some blue and other things into Tubbo's palm.

"No problem at all," Tubbo smiled.

***

"Tubbo! Are you busy?"

He was running an errand for Ghostbur, so he was a bit preoccupied.

"Nope! Need something?"

He was looking forward to going to sleep after a detour to Phil's house.

"I ran out of sugar but I need to get back to the bakery. Could you bring me some?" Niki asked.

"Absolutely!"

***

Tubbo's house was closer than Phil's, so he stopped there first to get some sugar from his kitchen. As he rummaged through the disorganized cabinets, he heard a knock at the door and his heart would've jumped out of his chest if he wasn't so tired.

He dropped the task at hand to open the door, meeting eyes with Tommy.

"Hey, man! You almost ready to go?"

Tubbo blinked in confusion. Was there something he'd forgotten?

"Fuck, I'm sorry!" Tubbo just remembered that he promised Tommy he'd help him with some potions.

Now he had to tell Tommy that he had to deliver sugar to Niki's bakery and stop by Phil's house before he could help him. The sun was already setting over the horizon and he had so much to do. It was overwhelming to the point that he started tearing up, and soon enough he was crying on his doorstep right in front of his confused friend.

"Hey- wait, it's okay! What's going on?" Tommy closed the door behind him, knowing that he'd be embarrassed if anyone walked by and saw him crying. He put his hands on Tubbo's shoulders, a warm gesture that always seemed to ground him and calm him down.

Tubbo flushed red. He hated crying in front of people. "I-I'm sorry. I'm just stressed. Fuck- I need to find sugar-"

"Tubbo-"

He was already pulling away and returning to the kitchen to continue his search, even though he was too upset to even process what he was doing. He knelt down to open a cabinet, and didn't have the energy or motivation to stand up again. Tommy joined him on the floor and leaned his head against the cabinet next to his panicked friend.

"What's going on, Tubbo? I can't help if I don't know what's wrong."

Rubbing his eyes with the heels of his palms, Tubbo spoke up, almost too quiet for Tommy to hear. "I need to go to Niki's, then Phil's, then yours, and- I'm just..." the rest of the sentence was muffled as he buried his face in his sweater sleeves.

Tommy was more than aware of his friend's inability to say no, but he'd never seen him so choked up about it. Now that he was paying attention, he could see that Tubbo looked awful. He had dark circles under his eyes, and he even looked a bit skinnier.

"When's the last time you slept? Or ate?"

Tubbo shrugged. "I got a few hours last night. And I ate an hour ago."

"What did you eat?"

"An apple."

Tommy sighed. "Okay, let me rephrase. When's the last time you had an actual meal?"

Tubbo didn't want to admit that he'd been too busy for such a thing, and instead settled for grabbing snacks every few hours. He knew he could never lie to Tommy, so he had no choice but to be honest. "A couple days, give or take."

"Tubbo..."

"I've been busy! People need my help, and I can't just be selfish!"

Tommy almost looked offended. "You can absolutely be selfish."

"I can't."

"Sure you can. C'mon, tell me about the last time you were selfish," Tommy said.

Tubbo didn't respond. In the silence, he could nearly hear Tommy's heart shatter.

"You can't remember a time you were selfish...isn't that terrible?"

It didn't seem very terrible to Tubbo. "I don't want to be selfish, anyways. I like putting others first."

"Well, look where that got you."

Any other person would've cringed at the harsh words, but Tubbo knew that was just how Tommy spoke. He knew Tommy was worried about him, he saw it in his eyes. He hated worrying people.

The room was deadly quiet for a bit.

"How about this?" Tommy started.

"Yes?"

"You know me, Tubbo. I'm selfish. So I'm gonna lend you my selfishness."

"...what does that even mean?" Tubbo asked.

"You can't seem to be selfish on your own, right? So, I'll let you borrow my selfishness, and while you're off being selfish I'll be selfless. That way there's still the same amount of selfishness and selflessness in the world. You won't be inconveniencing anyone."

Tubbo giggled quietly. "That's stupid."

"Is it?"

Tubbo glanced over at his friend. He was 100% serious.

"I guess not," Tubbo almost laughed to himself again. This was the strangest deal he'd ever made, but Tommy's good intentions made him smile. It was nice to be cared about. "So, how long do I get to be selfish?"

"As long as you want. And when you're ready to switch back, let me know."

They were both grinning like idiots now. It was truly ridiculous, but neither minded because it was nothing new for the two.

'It's interesting,' Tubbo thought to himself, 'how we can be so different but everything works out so perfectly.' He wasn't sure what he did to deserve him.

"Okay, I'll be selfish for a day. And then you can have it back."

"Hell yeah! Now good god- please go to bed."

"Right now?" Tubbo fumbled through his sweater pockets to grasp the ziploc bag Ghostbur gave him. "But I'm already running errands for Wil. And Niki-"

"Hey. Mom said it's my turn with the selflessness," Tommy wheezed, earning a smile and a head shake from Tubbo.

"Awful. Absolutely terrible."

"Oh please, you love me," Tommy taunted.

"You sure do make it difficult with bad jokes like that."

"Ouch." The two continued laughing hysterically until Tommy calmed down and added, "But seriously. Just let me know what you had to do tonight and I'll take care of it."

"Mhm...take this to Phil and some sugar to Niki's bakery," Tubbo mumbled as he handed Tommy the ziploc. His head dropped onto Tommy's shoulder and his eyes fluttered shut.

He felt a hand carding through his hair as he slipped into unconsciousness. "You've got it, Big T."