#hows that

I've said it before but it really can't be said enough times how much I recommend just NOT FOLLOWING blogs that say or reblog stuff that is stressful and unfun. I feel like it's part of the same thinking that tells us that we are Bad People if we don't absorb as much content as possible about everything bad happening in the world, like if we care about Louis we have to Read Up and Be Concerned and Be On Top of Developments but I cannot stress enough that it is NOT TRUE and DOESN'T HELP ANYONE. It is so so valid to just log on, look at some pretty pictures, and then have a nice day! Filter content tags, filter whole URLS, unfollow, ignore, just...

ouille im not much of an individual headcanon maker but ill try to categorize some things i like to ponder

- for their relationship itself i think nickel is romantically attracted to balloon for a while and balloon hasn't figured out she's aromantic yet so they Try a romantic relationship and it..... Sucks💖 which is okay. so they go back to being friends and they find that they like that a lot more. i would say ideal nickloon is something akin to a queerplatonic relationship. they're best friends but they also Like making it a weird unusual situation. they'll be around each other forever and they love each other but they like romance to be out of the picture

- i like to imagine them moving off of the island and moving to hawaii, specifically kona on the big island. they're used to living on an island by now and i think they'd rather live a more lowkey life than go to the mainland. i did their budget and they are indeed able to live on one job by balloon + disability benefits for nickel + affordable housing which was really fun to do (however they are kind of broke at the end of it).

here's the budget if you're curious (i have a Specific address they'd be living at and a Specific job for Balloon at a place that does exist near that address but i won't share im just adding that to clarify that everything in this budget is Calculated according to real places, real prices (such as average grocery and utility prices in kona), and real obtainable income):

Income: 2600$ from Balloon, 644$ from Nickel (SSI reduced by 1/3rd due to Balloon's income)(also im not from the USA so this is just an estimate of the amount of SSI he'd get, i gave him quite a bit since he's literally missing both arms and alsooo this budget was done with gijinkas in mind so missing limbs isn't common like it may be in object worlds as i think the politics would work differently in that case)

Rent: 1700$ originally, reduced to 973$ with subsidized housing

Transportation: 550$ on car payments, 20$ in gas (which is an exaggerated amount actually because this place is so goddamn walkable), 90$ in insurance

Utilities: 150$ in electric, 150$ in water, 50$ in internet, 75$ in phone plan

Groceries: 800$

Miscellaneous: 100$ for vapes (for Nickel), 100$ in some sort of emergency fund or saving, 186$ on whatever else

they don't actually Need a car because they live in quite a walkable area but i just really needed them to have a disgusting messy car covered in receipts and fast food bags and random garbage. it's just so them 💕 also this is somewhat of an ideal budget, i can see either of them impulse spending on random bullshit and then struggling with groceries because they're not very good at self control lmao

- another hc, i draw this sometimes but i dont think i clarified how he got here, is that nickel vapes BECAUSE he was trying to quit cigarettes but just ended up getting addicted to vaping 😭 and he STILL smokes cigarettes. just less now. this is one reason why his voice is so scratchy!

- on the same matter, balloon can't do any of that shit because she has asthma. nickel is good about it i would say (especially since he's disabled himself) and he's careful not to smoke or vape close to her

- oh an easy one is sexuality hcs. nickel is bi alloace with a pref for women and balloon is aroallo and probably bi or pan ive never actually thought about it past aroallo? but she's mspec for sure and definitely prefers men (i think the idea of her having a crush on oj is the funniest thing and i do hc that)

- balloon started transitioning before ii but joined the show about halfway through her personal transitioning process. nickel only Realizes he's a trans woman after s2 and he has a different transitioning process, he's a lot more hesitant and indecisive but he also likes retaining some of his old appearance and having a sort of purposefully transgender presentation. he enjoys not really "passing" while balloon strives for it

- a lot of the time i tend to imagine nickloon taking walks together? i think they both enjoy sunny weather so they like to go on walks to little shops and buy a little something they can eat while sitting on a bench (as nickel needs to take sitting breaks often)

- i forget this isn't canon because it feels obvious to me but balloon definitely writes poetry for and about nickel. she has some that she reads to him and some that she keeps for herself. i think balloon is quite the romantic while also being aromantic if that makes sense? she loves beautiful and grand expressions of feeling (and she's a theater kid) but her love for others has no actual romance in it, she's just full of magical joy that they exist 💖 lots of flowery stuff about nickel in her poetry journals