Saturday // Peterick Oneshots

69. Closing the Gap

Just me planning what me and my best friend are going to do once we can stop social distancing. Pure fluff. TTTYG era.

"Mom?" Patrick asks tentatively, standing in the doorway of the kitchen.

"Yes?"

"Can I go over to Pete's?"

His mom doesn't look up from the pie crust she's making. "I don't know, Pat. I know the governor just lifted that distancing order, but I think we should wait a day or so. To be safe."

Patrick shifts his weight to his other foot. Pete's messages from the past couple days spring to mind, and his heart clenches in his chest. "Please?" He pouts, pulling out the puppy dog eyes. He doesn't do it often, but this is an emergency.

Patrick's mom looks at him and sighs. "Okay. Call me when you get there, and take proper precautions."

Relief washes over Patrick. Before he grabs his keys, he rushes in and gives his mom a giant hug. He then runs out the door and clambers into his car. He starts the ignition and sends Pete a text that he's on his way over. The whole time he's driving, his phone lights up with an excited message from Pete.

Patrick's skin itches from the lack of contact. He didn't notice how used to Pete's touches he had gotten until they stopped. He found himself missing Pete's head on his shoulder, or his tattooed arms around his middle. If he's starving for Pete's hand in his, he can only imagine how Pete feels.

It only takes ten minutes for him to drive to the Wentz household, but it feels like twice as long.

Patrick is in the middle of locking his car when Pete barrels into him, making Patrick stumble until Pete wraps his arms around him and pulls him back up. Pete makes himself small, burying his face in Patrick's chest. Patrick drops his keys and wraps his arms around Pete, squeezing tight. He lays his cheek against Pete's head; his scalp is greasy, Patrick think he's probably gone a few too many days without showering, but his familiar smell calms Patrick's nerves.

"I missed you," Pete mumbles into Patrick's chest. "I'm never letting you go again."

Patrick sighs. "You know what? I wouldn't really mind that."

Pete laughs quietly. "Good, cause that's your new reality."

Patrick borrows the phone to call his mom. Pete is plastered to his back the whole time, arms wrapped around Patrick's waist. When Pete whispers, "Ask your mom if you can stay the night," Patrick does without a second thought. She says yes, and he and Pete both grin ear to ear.

Patrick tells Pete to go take a shower. He refuses to cuddle anymore until Pete takes care of himself. Pete pouts, but he doesn't argue. Patrick was going to wait in Pete's room until he got out of the shower, but Mrs. Wentz comes upstairs and asks Patrick if he'd like anything to drink, so he follows her to the kitchen and ends up talking to her for the duration of Pete's shower.

She asks Patrick about school and the band and his family. She offers to bring over some groceries if his mom needs them, and Patrick politely declines. When Pete comes downstairs, hair still damp and dressed in a clean shirt, Mrs. Wentz waves Patrick away with the promise that they could talk more at dinner that night.

Pete closes the door to his room, then sits down on his bed and pulls Patrick down next to him. They lay down, and Pete pulls Patrick to his chest. Patrick has no problem pressing his face to Pete's chest and breathing in the fresh smell of his body wash, and yep, those are definitely Pete's legs wrapped around his.

"I meant it when I said I'm never letting you go again," Pete says, running his fingers through Patrick's hair.

"Except for if you have to shower," Patrick corrects.

"Next time a virus comes to the U.S, we should plan better. As soon as people start going crazy, we meet at someone's house and we quarantine together," Pete says, determined. He softens a moment later. "I don't want to go through this without you again." He kisses the top of Patrick's head.

Patrick scoots in closer. "I know this was really hard on you," Patrick says simply. He slips a hand underneath Pete's shirt, rubbing the smooth skin of his back soothingly.

Pete curls around him tighter, but doesn't offer any other response.

Pete keeps playing with Patrick's hair. It feels more like Pete's petting him than anything else, but Patrick doesn't mind. The motion starts with Pete's hand on top of his head, then slowly his hand falls to the base of Patrick's neck. It makes Patrick drowsy with content, skin no longer itching from the desperate need for contact.

Pete sighs and presses another kiss to Patrick's head. "My Patrick," he whispers, so soft that Patrick doesn't think he was supposed to hear it. He holds Pete tighter anyway.

Mrs. Wentz knocks on the door and announces that dinner's ready. Pete groans, but lets Patrick get up. Their ankles are hooked together under the table the entire time it takes them to eat.

They watch Planes, Trains, and Automobiles before they go to bed. When Neal and Del wake up spooning, Pete turns to Patrick and jokes that that's how they're going to be in the morning. Patrick rolls his eyes and curls up closer to Pete's side.

"You think I can get your mom to let you stay another night?" Pete asks when they turn the TV off and climb under the covers.

"I won't stop you from trying," Patrick says with a small smile.

They fall asleep tangled together, holding on to each other tight. When they wake up, there's not a gap between them.