high rise hearts ☆ lifesteal smp au

𝐋𝐈𝐆𝐇𝐓 𝐑𝐀𝐈𝐍𝐒 ✦

𝘁𝘆𝗽𝗲: fluff/humor
𝘀𝗵𝗶𝗽𝘀: swagdoons :]
𝘁𝘄: n/a
𝗿𝗲𝗾𝘂𝗲𝘀𝘁𝗲𝗱 𝗯𝘆: n/a
𝗰𝗼𝗻𝘁𝗲𝘅𝘁: red shows up to ash's house in the pouring rain

─── ⋅☆⋅ ───

𝐏𝐎𝐕: ash

He never asked much out of the day. He never had any high hopes, nothing to plead the unseen gods for, if they were even real. All he'd wanted to do, on this drizzling, dreary, stiflingly spiritless Tuesday, was to sit on his shitty couch and watch TV until his brain buzzed out his worries with radio static.
That was all he'd asked for. But since life was a little bitch, obviously he couldn't have even those few meager hours of peace.

The rain outside gradually rose in fervor, escalating from a quiet thrumming on the roof to cascades pouring from the heavens. He'd have felt bad for anyone outside, if he was that kind of sentimental.

Correction: he'd have felt bad for anyone, except for Reddoons. (Sure, maybe it was a little mean to wish that on your boyfriend, but his insufferable ass deserved it.)

The first warning sign was his doorbell, insistently pressed not once, but at least 13 times before Ash could get to the door. By then, he already had a good idea of who was there.
Lo and behold, a sopping wet Reddoons was waiting in the hall, his usual stupid grin seemingly unbothered by the rain. "Hey Ash. Thought I'd stop by today."
"Dude, you have a key. Why are you so insistent on breaking my doorbell?" Ash shook his head in exasperation as Redd let himself in, dripping water all over his floor. "You better clean this up later."
Redd only chuckles, enjoying the irritation that was undoubtedly surfacing on his face, despite his attempts to keep his cool. "How else would I get to see your irresistibly cute annoyed face?"
"Shut the hell up." Ash feels himself flush a shade darker, and he quickly turns away before Redd can catch sight of his victory. "Just- go dry yourself off."
"Aw, I'm your boyfriend now and you won't even let me call you cute?" Redd continued to tease, his words carrying through the apartment even as the sound of his footsteps faded away, towards the bathroom.
"No." Ash rolled his eyes, even though there was nobody else there to see. He stood awkwardly in front of the door for a while longer, debating whether to sit back down on the couch or check on Redd. Inevitably, he decided on the latter.
The door to Ash's bedroom, the only one in the house, was unlocked. Redd sat on the edge of his bed, pulling one of his sweaters over his head. It was slightly oversized, and for a moment Ash allowed himself to consider it cute before he smacked his brain on the head with an imaginary shovel for even considering the idea. It doesn't work, because the thought burns bright and alive and shows up on his face as the heat of his blush.
"Oh hey. Knew you couldn't get enough of me." Redd pokes his head out of the sweater and gives Ash his trademark smirk. (That look is definitely not the subject of half his day to day thoughts, it totally isn't. Ash does not spend his time thinking about Redd at all.)
"Oh, please. I just came to make sure you weren't doing dumb shit in my bedroom." It's a not-very-subtle reference to the many times Ash has discovered Redd carrying out what he considers to be harmless pranks. Like rigging a gallon jug of milk to drop on his head when he enters the door, because that's totally fine and acceptable.
"Me? Nonsense." Redd chuckles, giving Ash his best innocent look as he fiddles his arm through the sleeve, allowing his hand to stick out from the excess fabric. "I'm a very nice houseguest."
"Sure." Ash scoffs. He gives Redd his best glare, but that corny smile doesn't even waver. (It isn't cute, not endearing in the slightest, sure he's your boyfriend but you're being really sappy, Ash.)
"Oh, come on. I'm a good kisser and everythin', I should get some credit here..." Redd pushes himself off the bed and walks right up to him, pressing a short kiss onto his cheek. Ash is certain he turns a nice shade of cherry red, glitches sparking in reflex at the connecting of lips on skin, and Redd catches all of this, much to his chagrin. "See? You're blushing."
"Am not." He gives Redd a playful shove on the shoulder, but even he can't restrain the smile that bubbles up from somewhere within him. "Fuck you."
"Love you too, Ash." Redd follows him out of the bedroom, plopping down right next to him on the couch and leaning his head on his shoulder. Normally, he'd be opposed to contact like this, but something makes Redd different. The warmth of his cheek through his suit fabric, the soft pulse that runs through the hand folded on top of his own- it's like some sort of drug has been injected into him, and now he's addicted. Just great.
"So, what're we doing today?" Redd interrupts his thoughts, and when Ash turns to face him he's staring expectantly up at him, sunglasses shading bright blue eyes that look genuinely interested. He feels bad for saying he has no plans for the day, so he tries desperately to think of some remotely interesting rainy day activity.
Redd knows him too well for that though. "Lemme guess- you want to rot on the couch for 5 straight hours?" He laughs at his own joke, and the pure mirth in that sound makes Ash want to bottle it up and drink it like whiskey. But since you can't do that with sound, he resorts to offering a small chuckle instead.
"I mean..." Ash can't really defend himself at this point. "You got any better ideas?"
"Yeah. We should go outside!" The grin Redd is giving him is a telltale sign that what he is suggesting is idiotic- not like he didn't know that already.
"And do what?" Ash entertains the concept anyway. "It's literally pouring outside-"
"I dunno, walk me to McDonald's or something?" Redd shrugs. "Have a romantic date night?" He mentally facepalms, because this man is so dumb (but he's the one who's hopelessly in love with him, so maybe he's actually dumber).
"Yeah, like 'McDonald's' and 'romantic date night' fit together at all." Ash rolls his eyes, but his partner continues smiling at him with that stupid ass grin and he already knows the answer.
"What do you say?"
"This is a horrible idea."
"Alright, go get ready then."
Ash can't find it in him to further protest as Redd grabs his hand and pulls him out of the comfortable imprint in the couch, tugging him towards the bedroom and shoving him inside before shutting the door in his face. How very kind of him.
He pulls one of his leftover hoodies over his head, idly wondering how it managed to survive Redd, because in his vocabulary "borrowing" was another term for keeping forever. He doesn't bother to change out of his sweatpants, and when his comb gets stuck in a particularly nasty tangle of hair he just gives up and walks out of the room. Redd's waiting outside, scrolling through his phone, but he looks up at Ash quickly.
"Looking fashionable today." He remarks sarcastically, eyeing his tousled purple locks and slightly stained sweater with an amused smile. "I remember our first date, when you actually bothered to put effort into what you wore..."
"You're one to talk." Ash ruffles the slightly damp hair on Redd's head- the rain's washed out some of his hair gel, so it puffs up when he does so. He wills himself not to melt into a puddle when Redd gives him a playful pout in response.
"At least I brushed it, man..." He tries his best to fix his hair, running a hand through it to smoothen it out, but he's fighting a losing battle. "Your hair probably murdered your comb in its sleep." Ever the comedian, that Reddoons.
"Whatever, let's just go. The rain will ruin it anyway." He glances around the slightly messy living room, eyes sifting through the piles of useless junk he doesn't bother to clear away. "Now where the fuck is my umbrella..."
"If I were you, I'd have given up before I even started." Redd just watches him scan the room, not even offering help, and Ash would have snapped at him for that but it'd ruin his concentration (that isn't an excuse). "Or cleaned up, actually. This place really needs it."
"I'm like 100% sure you just pay someone to clean your house. No way you keep that place organized on your own." Ash does one final futile sweep over the room before he accepts reality. "I, on the other hand, have to struggle with the idea of buying a new umbrella."
"Oh, I'll just buy you a new one next time." Redd shrugs- the concept of spending ridiculous amounts of money (especially on Ash, for some reason) isn't new to him, regardless of how much Ash insists he doesn't need the cash. "Let's just go get soaked for now- it's good character development."
"Finee." He really isn't looking forward to this- but the way Redd smiles at him makes it a little better.