★osc oneshots★

bfb ★ firey x leafy ★ a pathway to closeness

Summary:
Two lovers, separated by their bodily differences, try to find a way to show each other love.
(Set after the finale.)

⇀ ❁ ↼

"Have you ever received affection, Firey?"

Firey turned his gaze from the star-filled sky to his dear one, lying on the grass beside. They had been stargazing on their newfound dream island.

The question surprised him. He scrunched his brows in thought. "Well... I guess so..." he said. His face lit up a little at a memory. "My family often shared heat with me."

"Shared heat?" Leafy asked curiously.

"Yeah! Flames can keep each other burning. You know, that way parents make sure their kids don't extinguish."

"How does it... feel? To share heat?"

"Really warm," Firey beamed. "It's like the energy is coming onto you. You feel renewed."

Leafy smiled, dreamily gazing into his eyes. "Must be amazing."

"What about you?" he asked.

"Oh... yeah, I've hugged many people, just... not recently," she said, her tone melancholic.

He cocked his head. "You seem sad about it."

A deep sense of longing crept up Leafy's face as she fiddled with her hands. It made Firey worry: did she not feel appreciated or loved? He would hate himself if he was the one who caused that.

"Hah, it's nothing," she flounced. "It's stupid."

The flame turned to face her fully and put his hand on hers.

"Hey... you can go on," he encouraged. "I know I'm sometimes not the best at it, but I'll listen, I promise."

Leafy's eyes anxiously rested on him, and then darted to the sky. While she thought about what she wanted to say, Firey waited patiently.

She took a breath. "I wanna have contact with you." A blush washed over her face.

Firey intuitively looked at their fingers touching. "Like this one?"

"No... different..." 

With a mixed expression, the leaf lowered her gaze. Her next words were barely a whisper.

"I want to kiss you."

Firey flushed upon hearing the request, his mind occupied with wonderful visions, but at the same time racing with reminders of how awfully such interaction could go. He raised his brow with an uncertain smile. "You'll burn, Leafy."

"I know..." she murmured, glancing to the side. "But... I just feel so empty, and... incomplete... and lonely. I wanna be with you, I wanna love you, I wanna feel you."

The flame frowned, guilt fully kicking in. His loved one felt touch-starved because of him... and he was powerless to do anything about it. Oh, how he hated his physical form at this moment.

How could nature allow them to love each other, but not to express it? It felt like a cruel joke. Leafy was highly flammable while he was pure fire. They could never touch as closely as other objects did. Some interactions were just unattainable for them.

Firey had never needed affection, he was used to being intouchable, but Leafy... She must've yearned for physical contact. She had given him clear signs of it, often asking to hold hands with him.

Hands... Firey wondered for a minute. 

Eureka!

Leafy watched his expression brighten; she blinked her eyes wide with curiosity.

"Our limbs are fireproof," he declared, like it was a science breakthrough.

"Yeah, so...?" she pursued.

"Sooo..."

Her boyfriend brought a hand to his lips, made a smooching sound, and then put it on her lips. Leafy giggled shyly, grabbing his wrist.

"Firey, I don't think that's how it works."

"Why not? It's a long-distance kiss."

She rolled her eyes, but kept a light-hearted smile on.

"Let me try something," Firey whispered and gently took her hand. Leafy felt her heart beat faster as he brought it closer to himself.

He slowly rubbed his thumb on her palm, caressing every one of her fingers, admiring every uneven spot or scar. Whether earned from using knives or hiding in bushes or thorns, or simply born with her, these marks were all Leafy - and he wanted to love that Leafy.

He lowered his head and kissed her hand.

Leafy felt her breath catch up in her throat. His lips were so warm, yet so faint and fleeting in touch. Just like his body: a majestic manifestation of an element. Heat swam up her arm and into Leafy's chest, bringing a pleasant shiver down her spine. She closed her eyes and let out a delighted sigh.

Not letting go of the kiss, Firey looked up at Leafy. Her content expression made him happy. He had never done this with anyone and until now he had no idea how great showing affection could be.

"My turn," Leafy murmured, opening her eyes. Firey let go of her palm and watched her curiously.

She reached down for his hand and closed it in both of hers. She smiled lovingly.

"You always have warm hands, you know?"

He laughed. "Yeah."

Leafy studied his palm with her fingers. His skin was rough, but he didn't have many scars. She wondered if his high body temperature quickened wound healing. Bringing his hand closer, she let it meet her lips.

Firey felt his body vibrate and burn brighter from excitement. He hushed his thoughts down a bit, not wanting to scare Leafy, yet he couldn't help but feel emotional. A stupid smile crept up his face.

Her turn lasted shorter. Once she let go, Firey lifted his hand and placed it on Leafy's side, pulling her closer to himself.

"What are you doing...?" she asked nervously.

"Sharing heat with you," he said. "Don't be scared. I won't burn you."

He loosened his hold. They were now only a few inches apart. 

When she realised she wasn't on fire, Leafy's tense limbs relaxed. "Oh..." she whispered and closed her eyes. "It's really warm," she recounted. "Hot, even. But it feels nice."

"I'm glad," he beamed. His hand traveled from the ground to Leafy's body again. Her skin felt so soft to the touch, so fragile. Firey felt proud and honoured to be able to hold that fragility.

Warmth made Leafy comfortable and sleepy. She hummed something incomprehensible.

"What?" Firey chuckled.

"Nothin," she muttered, falling asleep.

The flame gazed at her for a bit longer, observing and memorising her peaceful expression. He finally let his hand fall back to the ground, where it met and intertwined with Leafy's.

Firey smiled. After all, they could be together. They had found a pathway to closeness.

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A/N

physical stuff is so cool to write man

headcanon that Leafy has scars on her hands (I seriously can't get over the scars trope) because she uses knives a lot