Reunion In A Restaurant In Michigan

I'm Over Sleeping Like A Dog On The Floor

Alfred's POV of when Ivan was trying to hide that he wasn't on his meds. Yeet.

Alfred POV

"No...that's not it.."

I hear Ivan on the stairs, talking to himself. Slowly sitting up, I shuffle to my doorway, peeking my head out to see Ivan staring into space, one hand absently scratching at his arm, mumbling to himself.

I stop in place at the top of the stairs, stomach turning in worry for Ivan. "Nyet...he was sick before Mattie found him."

I decide to distract him, pretending to be completely clueless. "D-dude! What's takin so l-long?! I kn-know you're here! D-dude? You look like you s-saw a ghost."

I lean on the wall, feeling woozy. Ivan shakes himself from his daze and his eyes land on mine, eyebrows knitting in concern. "Oh. Hello, Alfred."

I want to say hello, but... I'm really dizzy. Ivan rushes over and lifts me up bridal style, laying me on my bed.

The big guy begins bouncing up and down on his toes like he does when he's very anxious. "D-dude, did you have c-caffeine or s-something?"

He averts his eyes. "No. It's just a hectic day today. Am I being obnoxious?"

I've missed this dork so much! The relief of being home again to see Ivan pushes me into a laughing fit. "N-no, d-dude! I've m-missed you so much. I l-love your quirks."

Ivan snickers and jumps on my bed, accidentally landing on my legs. "I love you too!"

"I love you, you big dork!"

He tries to strike a sexy pose, but ends up looking like the dork he is.

The laughter eventually calms down, and we lay on his bed in a pleasant silence. That's when I decide to voice my concerns.

"I could hear you on the stairs, Vanya."

Ivan's entire demeanor changes, from happy to tense. "....oh."

I find his hand in the quilts and sheets. "You know I don't think you're weird, right?"

Just like that, Ivan is hiding in his scarf. "You don't?"

He looks so cute, I embrace him. "Of course not, you big polar bear!"

"I'm a polar bear now?"

A little smile on his face appears as I spoon him, surprised at how small he can make himself just by pulling his knees into his chest.

"Did you hear everything I was saying on the stairs?"

I rub circles into his back, noticing the nervous tone in his voice. Does he think I'll judge him now because of what I was like years ago?

"Random Russian words and mumbling but that's it. Hey, are you sleeping?"

He murmurs into the bed, "Baguettes can't be fried."

Pfft. "Okay, Ivan. I'll let you sleep. No, I'll sleep too!"

Ivan starts coming over more and more often. Eventually, I simply suggest one afternoon that he just move in. He doesn't hear me at first; he's staring into space and sitting curled up under the window.

It takes a few times of saying his name and doing a Tik Tok dance, but I finally get his attention. "Renegade, renegade-dude!"

Ivan jumps and blinks, trying to reform coherency in his head. "Alfred? Chto? What am I doing here?"

Slightly disturbed, I sit next to him. "What are you doing under the window? I don't know, Ivan. You okay, dude?"

Ivan blinks in confusion and then agitatedly rubs his face. "I think I need to go to bed."

I frown at my watch, a nice analog specimen from Goodwill. "It's only 4pm."

He accidentally bumps his knee into mine, but doesn't notice. "What were you going to say to me, Alfred? I want to hear it!"

He earnestly looks at me, eyes widened in interest. That's #3 on the list of Reasons I Love Ivan. When he talks to you, he makes sure you know he genuinely cares about what you have to say.