Jet Lag

chapter 2

Ranboo had a carefully maintained file of the things he loved about each of his friends. Every time one of them did something that made his heart warm, he pocketed it away for later. For the days when the internet was too much and there was nobody there to talk to about it. He could remember the way Tommy's teasing was the best indication of true affection, Niki's quiet check-ins and Tubbo's floodlight attention. Sometime around December, it had switched onto him and hadn't stopped. Every time he started to stream, Tubbo was in his ear, voice rusty with sleep over discord.

Being with Tubbo in-person meant that the section dedicated to him had expanded exponentially. He talked without caring if Ranboo was listening, not out of arrogance but out of blind faith. He trusted him to listen anyways. And Ranboo did. He liked staying up late, even without somebody to stay up for. Ranboo had mistakenly thought that Tubbo's sleep schedule was his doing, but realized quickly that he was just a bonus for him. When Ranboo's eyes drooped and he sagged against the pillows, Tubbo just flicked the TV off and switched to his phone without a protest. He didn't fold to Ranboo's tired yawns, he accepted them. His hair was wavier than he'd thought. When Tubbo came out in PJs, freshly showered, it curled at the ends. And his fingers were long, good for piano and pointing out seagulls on their way home from the airport.

There was one thing, however, that drove him absolutely nuts. It had been two days, and Ranboo was hoping to be back on track. The meet-up video would be going live soon and they had planned a game of bomb diffuser to reveal it. When he woke that second morning he realized rather abruptly that it was not morning at all.

The golden light of evening filtered in through Tubbo's blinds, painting the rumpled bed in stripes. Tubbo himself was nowhere to be seen, but when Ranboo pressed his nose to the pillow, he could still smell him. It was oatmeal and honey and Tubbo.

He ceded himself to waking up, nose scrunching at the awful feeling of stiff limbs and pillow creases. It was well past the time he'd set for his alarm, but his phone lay where he left it on the bedside table. He scooped it up and flicked through to the clock app. His alarm was nowhere to be seen.

"Tubbo." He rasped out, scrubbing a hand over his face.

"Hm?" Tubbo's head appeared in the doorway that led to the bathroom. He had a toothbrush in his mouth and froth smudged on his lips.

"Why is it 4pm?"

Tubbo disappeared again and he reappeared after the tap ran. "We slept in." He said as he crawled back onto his side of the bed.

"I set an alarm. The vlog." Ranboo let his voice land on the side of whiney. There was still froth on Tubbo's bottom lip.

"Yeah, yeah. You were so tired though. Didn't want to wake you!" Tubbo's cheer chipped at Ranboo's annoyance.

"You're a menace you know. You're such a menace." He sighed and reached out to swipe his thumb across the offending toothpaste.

Tubbo scooted off the bed again. "Yes, I am. An evil mastermind who knows your password is herobrine and disables your alarm." He plucked up the sweatshirt he'd staked his claim on.

Ranboo gave up the charade of anger and stretched his arms over his head. They could still make a day of it. Tubbo cleared his throat and Ranboo glanced over. "Yeah?"

"Uh." Tubbo's nervous grin struck Ranboo like liquid sunlight. "Shall we still upload it now?"

"Mhm, yeah," Ranboo said and peeled back the covers. He wiggled his toes for a second, trying to feel alive.

He carefully filed away in a special section, part annoyance, part endearment, the way that Tubbo let him sleep in.

-

They uploaded it, then streamed bomb diffuser. Ranboo pulled out the bound copy he packed in his suitcase and wore the dumb mask and Tubbo teased the hell out of him. They borrowed Lani's chair and crowded around Tubbo's suddenly too-small desk. Their knees knocked, and they fought over camera angles, barely able to keep both of them in the frame. Tubbo threatened to just sit on him if he was going to be a bother and Ranboo shut up quickly.

It was nerve-wracking and exhilarating and so much better in real life.

"Let's fucking go!" Tubbo screeched when they won, and it was so different when they were in the same room.

"Let's go!" Ranboo echoed, caught up in the way Tubbo bounced in his chair. He abandoned it altogether and leapt around the streaming room. Ranboo swivelled his chair to watch.

"That was awesome." Tubbo beamed and used his hands to swivel Ranboo back round. He leaned over the headrest and let his arms drape around his shoulders. "We're so fucking good at this."

"Yeah, we are." Ranboo stared at the tiny viewfinder. Tubbo's shaggy head was tilted just so. Like this, he was finally taller. His eyes flicked to the chat which was exclaiming equally about the win and the familiar black and white sweater Tubbo was wearing. Tubbo leaned forward too to read.

"Oh yeah boys, Ranboo's lent me this." He said and stepped back to show it. It was less about the way it swamped him and more about the way it was his, Ranboo reasoned. Only that was worse. It made his hands clam up.

Ranboo felt that same selfish desire he'd felt at the airport. To have the moment for himself.

"Well, guys, I think we're done for the day. Glad you guys enjoyed the stream." Ranboo said, mustering enthusiasm. "I'm sure we'll do tons more before I'm gone."

"Yeah, I've got loads planned. Loads and loads."

-

"Don't mess with my alarm tomorrow." Ranboo blurted out as soon as Tubbo turned the TV off that night. They were lying face to face, just the bare light of the street-lamps illuminating them.

Tubbo's brows scrunched. "Why?"

Ranboo didn't want to say. He didn't want to admit that the idea of wasting their time together sleeping is infuriating, that even this close to him, he felt like it wasn't enough. He didn't want to wake up to an empty bed and half their day gone, one step closer to good-bye.

"I want to make you breakfast." He said instead. "Pancakes. American pancakes." He knew the thin flap-jacks Tubbo was used to, and they were fine, but they weren't the same.

"Alright then, Boo," Tubbo said.

"Alright." He replied. "Sleep well."