Austeled one-shots

"You listen?.." (remake)

Context: they're friends
3rd person

It had been almost a year since the two miis had forgiven each other. They often sat in the mii channel, talking. Well, Austin did most of the talking, but still.

Austin quite liked talking. He used to talk to himself a lot in the electric chair room, but since the two had started healing and forgiving, he talked to Eteled a lot.

He never thought that Eteled listened to his constant droning, but he kept talking anyways. Although sometimes he'd forget he already told Eteled something, and re-tell him.

There was one point where he was talking about a game he was making back when he worked in Nintendo. 'Reclamation' he called it.

Eteled had remembered the pieces of paper he'd ripped up which had the same name on the front, so he figured that's what he was talking about.

Unbeknownst to Austin, he had already talked to Eteled about this game around five times already, but Eteled didn't mind.

"So there was this game I was working on called 'reclamation'! It was where a queen was overthrown by her people and-"
"Wait."
Austin tilted his head slightly, almost taken aback.

"Wasn't it a king?" He asked, raising an eyebrow. Austin thought for a moment, trying to recollect the memories of the game. He was right. It was a king.

"Oh- oh yeah. It was, wasn't it? How did you know that?" He questioned.
"You've told me about it before." He answered. "Not that I mind at all though. It's nice hearing about stuff you're passionate about. Even if you've told me before."

He smiled softly up at Austin, receiving a surprised look back.

Austin's pov

I looked quietly at Eteled. He.. listens?. He actually listens? To me? Why? Why would he wanna hear me ramble on about random things? I figured he'd just tune me out.

But he listens.

I felt tears well up in my eyes as I stood completely still, unmoving.
"Hey woah-! Are you alright?" He asked, and only then did I realise tears were beginning to roll down my cheeks.

"Ah- shit. Yeah, yeah. I'm fine. I Just.. didn't think you actually listened is all." I chuckled quietly, looking far off into the distance.

"Of course I listen! What makes you think otherwise?" He interrogated.
"I don't know.. I just ramble on for hours about the most random shit! I mean, who would want to listen to that??" I replied.

"Well me, clearly."
"Evidently so."

There was a short pause between the two.
"But why?" His voice cut the silence like butter with a butter knife.
"It's nice hearing about things you're interested in."

"Well.. thanks."
"Anytime."

3rd person

The moment passed, time went by, but still Austin could not shake the memory from his mind.

If he had reacted like that from just knowing that Eteled actually listens to him drone on, imagine how he'd fell if he found out Eteled wrote little snippets of what Austin said at him in a small journal.

Eteled couldn't help but think about this. Although he thought it wouldn't have been a smart idea, and he didn't wanna make the other uncomfortable, so he kept it a secret.

For now at least.