SandersSides Oneshots

Soothing

Morality was the first one to find out. Anxiety was usually pretty averse to contact; if Dad lay a hand on his shoulder sometimes Anxiety would flinch back, and sometimes he would move away from someone if they were just a bit too close. But other times, Morality had noticed, he would come forwards. He would almost lean into someones personal space, like he wanted a hug. But he always hesitated and held himself back, like he was afraid of rejection (but he should know by now that Dad would never say no to a hug.) Anxiety seemed to want contact most when he was at his lowest, however. When he was running on no sleep, when he was having a bad day, anything that made the dark boy feel worse than usual made him seek out human contact. But whenever somebody tried to give it to him, he;d flinch away. So for a long time, Morality didn't know what to do.

Until one time, late at night, they held a movie night.

****

Prince and Thomas were sitting on one couch together, Logic was resting in an arm chair and Morality and Anxiety were also sharing a couch. They were onto their third movie, it was very late, and Anxiety evidently hadn't been getting much sleep lately. The room was dark and warm, the only light coming from the TV. The volume was quiet and everyone was calm. Slowly, due to the comfortable couch, the warm atmosphere and his general exhaustion, Anxiety began to relax more and more against Morality, to the point where he was practically leaning on him. Dad raised a silent eyebrow as he watched the younger trait's eyelids droop then fly open again and again.

"You should try to sleep." He advised finally. Anxiety lifted his head off Dad's shoulder and blushed, seeming to only now realise what he;d been doing.

"M not tired." He mumbled, scowling. Morality just nodded; Anxiety was stubborn, he would only try to force himself to stay awake longer if Dad kept talking about it.

"Alright, kiddo." He smiled gently. Anxiety narrowed his eyes and studied his face, but Dad simply turned his gaze back to the TV screen.

It took only a few minutes for Anxiety's head to start resting on Morality's shoulder again.

****

By that point, however, Dad was once again absorbed in the movie. But Anxiety's hair was tickling his neck, so he absently reached over and brushed it out of the way. Anxiety sighed sleepily, but happily, which made Morality freeze and smile. He causally brushed the hair back again and again, and all the while felt Anxiety relax against him more and more. It became a subconscious rhythm after a few minutes; he would brush Anxiety's hair back or maybe play with a few strands of hair, and continue to watch the movie peacefully. By the time the movie finished and everyone decided it was time to stop and go to bed, Anxiety's breathing was slow and deep. He had fallen asleep. Morality smiled and simply teleported Anxiety to his own bed. But he made sure to remember that Anxiety liked having his hair played with.

****

Logic noticed next, although he didn't exactly act upon it. Although he was perhaps not the most attentive or perceptive towards emotion, patterns and actions were something he noticed. And when something changed, it was always brought to his attention. He noticed how ever since that night, when Anxiety was especially exhausted or on edge, Morality would make a point to sit close and casually run his hands through Anxiety's hair. Sometimes Anxiety would flinch or bat his hands away, but Dad would usually persist, and Logan noticed that if often made Anxiety more relaxed or at least slightly calmer. It was an interesting observation, and an activity that Logan was sure was fairly new. He decided, however, that is was not a topic he should approach Anxiety about; that could lead to Anxiety resisting more forcefully when Morality tried to play with his hair, which probably wasn't good because it evidently helped Anxiety.