Dinner at the Walters’ place was never quiet, but tonight had a special brand of chaos simmering under the surface. The big wooden table was crammed with plates, bowls, chopsticks, forks, and an amount of food that could feed an army. Hank sat at the head of the table, eating calmly, as if this were any normal family dinner. It wasn’t.

Across from him, the twins were talking - loudly, rapidly, and far too competitively - while their boyfriends sat beside them with very different states of awareness. Axel was contently eating dumplings without a care in the world. Yuki sensed danger and looked like a startled cat. Luca sat between Theo and Josh, clinging to safety like Theo could protect him from his brothers. (He could not.)

“So I’m just saying,” Josh said, slamming his chopsticks down for emphasis, “that Axel’s laugh is objectively the cutest. That little squeaky thing he does? You can’t beat that.” Axel blinked. “I what?” James frowned, offended. “Absolutely not. Yuki’s laugh is cuter, hands down.” Yuki choked on his water. “W-Wait, why am I? No! Don’t talk about that!”

Hank sipped his coffee, eyes half-lidded, already exhausted. Theo raised a finger, mouth opening to chime in, but Josh steamrolled right over him. “Axel has the best reactions!” Josh insisted. “I barely even touch his sides and he goes all-” he broke into high-pitched giggles in a shockingly accurate impression of his boyfriend.

Axel covered his face with one hand. “That is SO not- okay, maybe a little true, but don’t demonstrate it!” James leaned in, scoffing. “Please, Axel’s cute, yes, but Yuki? My boyfriend practically melts. You tickle his ribs? Gone. Reduced to sparkly little giggle dust.” “I DO NOT!” Yuki yelped, turning red immediately. Josh narrowed his eyes. “Oh? His ribs?”

James smirked, enjoying Yuki’s horrified expression. “Worst spot, completely defenseless.” Yuki grabbed his boyfriend’s sleeve. “James. Shut up.” Theo tried again, “Actually, Luca’s laugh is-” “Also!” Josh cut in dramatically, holding up a finger. “Axel’s thighs. Absolute gold. He gets this little gasp-laugh like he doesn’t know whether to laugh or scream.”

Axel slapped both hands over his face. “WHY are you saying this at the dinner table?!” Theo closed his mouth again. Luca snorted a tiny laugh beside him. James fired back immediately, leaning toward Josh with the intensity of a war general. “Oh yeah? Well Yuki has this adorable little squeak when you get his lower back and when you touch his-”

“James!” Yuki hissed. “That was ONE TIME!” Josh grinned, fanning the flames. “So you admit it?” “I admit NOTHING.” Theo tried one last time, leaning forward: “Luca’s laugh is-” But by now the twins were in full debate mode, ignoring everything but each other. Josh gestured wildly with his chopsticks. “No, no, Axel’s laugh is sweeter.”

James waved him off. “Yuki’s is cuter.” “Axel’s.” “Yuki’s.” “You’re wrong.” “You’re blind.” “You wouldn’t know cute if it hit you-” “BOYS,” Hank said, not even raising his voice, but the weight behind it made everyone freeze for half a second. Only half, because then Luca murmured, “Uhm… Theo’s right, maybe we shouldn’t-”

And suddenly every pair of twin eyes snapped toward the brunette beside him. “You think YOUR boyfriend wins?” Josh asked, eyebrows lifting. Theo almost choked on air. “I DIDN’T SAY THAT!” “You kind of did,” James sing-songed. “I WAS TRYING TO- UGH!” Luca sank into his seat. “Please don’t drag me into this.” But it was already too late.

Because somewhere in the midst of the chaos, the twins traded one of those dangerous, silent glances and Theo, who knew those glances all too well, felt dread pool in his stomach. “Oh no,” he whispered, “no, absolutely not. Guys…” “New plan,” Josh said with a wicked grin, “we settle this right here, right now.”

Theo’s eyes widened, James and Josh cracked their knuckles dramatically, Luca squeaked giving a pleading look to Theo, Yuki looked ready to flee the table, and Axel continued eating dumplings like nothing was happening.

The room fell silent for half a breath, then everything exploded. “GET THEM!” Three chairs scraped violently over the floor. Three- no, two boyfriends yelped as they tried to make their escape. Three Walters launched into action, ready to prove that their boyfriend had the cutest laugh among them.

Theo dove after Luca, catching him first. Luca squealed and stumbled backward onto the couch, Theo following him down, fingers spidering into his sides. “NOHOHO THEOHOHO!” Luca burst into giggles instantly, curling in on himself. “Why meheehee?!” “Because you’re the only one I can catch!” Theo yelled back as Luca dissolved beneath him.

Across the room, the real chaos began. James tackled Yuki before he could even reach the hallway, dragging him down gently but efficiently. The ravenhead shrieked, kicking his legs uselessly as James settled above him. “NONONONO JAMES WAIT!” “Ribs, right?” James said with a smirk, wiggling his fingers. “DOHON’T YOU DARE!” But he did.

Yuki arched off the floor in a squealing, musical laugh that filled the room immediately. “JAHAHAAMES! I’M GOHOHONNA KIHIHILL YOUUU!” he cursed, but the threat lost its value as his laughter bubbled out of his lips. “You sound so adorable,” James said sweetly, unswayed. Meanwhile, Josh turned toward Axel.

The other glanced up lazily, mid-chew, but you could clearly see his eyes sparkle with excitement. “Oh, are we starting now?” “You didn’t even TRY to run?!” Josh demanded. Axel shrugged. “I didn’t want to.” Josh lunged. Axel burst into bright, breathy, high-pitched giggles the instant Josh’s fingers dug into his sides, not even trying to resist.

“Haha Johohoshy! Waaait! I’m- I’m eheheating!” “Are you now? You’ll live!” Josh declared triumphantly, pulling him into his lap as Axel laughed and squirmed helplessly, legs kicking under the table as Josh fingers danced over his sides and wormed in-between his ribs.

The three scenes overlapped into a pure, messy storm of laughter, shrieks, and chaotic declarations: “Luca’s is CUTEST, listen to him!” “No way, Yuki wins by MILES!” “Axel’s laugh is literally HEAVEN, accept it!” None of the three brothers was giving in, using all their knowledge and skills to tickle the cutest reactions out of their other half.

Theo, who had at last gotten into the spirit of things, poked at Luca’s tummy, making the younger boy yelp and kick adorably. “I- I CAN’T- THEOHOHO!” the black-haired pleaded, laughter spilling out sweet and bright. “Stohohop- nohohot THERE!” “You have the cutest laugh,” Theo muttered, tickling him mercilessly anyway.

Yuki was cackling high-pitched chortles, tears of mirth streaming down his face as James fingers squeezed both his thigh and waist. The police officer tried to break free, but the other had his legs embraced with his own and the tickling made him unable to think clearly. "WAH J-JAHAHMES just waiHait until I- aHA! NOHO!" "It's so cute when you try to fight back Yuki~"

Josh was still having Axel on his lap, nuzzling his neck with kisses and whispering things into his ear that made the blonde’s red face only redder. "AHAHAh Joshy, don’t stoHop!" The fingers that had sneaked under his shirt, squeezing his bare stomach now, made his face heating up and Axel had to be careful that not something else would heat up as well.

In the middle of this pandemonium, Hank sat at the table, still calmly sipping his coffee, watching as three boyfriends were reduced to puddles of giggles.

Axel wheezed hysterically in Josh’s arms, Yuki thrashed on the floor under James and Luca curled on the couch, red-faced, shrieking with laughter under Theo. The twins were arguing louder than the laughter they were causing. “He’s cuter!” “No, MINE is!” And Hank, in the eye of the storm, exhaled a long, deeply put-upon sigh.

“Uh...what now?”

Luca’s eyes were trained on the three erasers stacked on his nose. Alberto had dared him to see how many he could balance, though they couldn't find any more than those few.

“I guess you win that one? Point for you,” Alberto grinned, marking a little tally in his notebook. He was laying stomach-down on Giulia’s bed, chewing the end of his pen out of habit.

Luca and Giulia were home from school for break, and the girl had taught them a new game. It was called “Truth or Dare.” She’d rushed through the rules before heading out to spend some quality time with her dad, leaving the boys to their own devices in the house. Alberto could’ve sworn she’d mentioned a point system, hence the notebook.

“Yes! Am I winning?” Luca grinned, eagerly tossing the erasers in his bag to peer over Alberto’s shoulder. They’d only been playing for around ten minutes, but he was enjoying himself. He wanted to win.

Alberto laughed a bit, hiding the notebook against his chest. “Hey, no peeking! Only the point guard can know who’s ahead.”

“I thought that was something else…” Luca furrowed his brows, remembering the term “point guard” from school somewhere. Unfortunately, the thought slipped away, so he went along with Alberto. “Fine. Is it your turn?”

“Uh...yeah! I want a dare, best you’ve got!” Alberto lightly elbowed Luca in the side, grinning with slightly foolish determination.

Luca giggled a bit at the side shot before an idea formed in his mind. He wasn’t exactly sure how to win the game—they hadn’t gotten that far before jumping in—but he knew exactly how to make it more fun.

“I dare you to keep your arms above your head for…five minutes,” Luca hummed, trying his best to keep the giddy grin off his face. It wasn’t often he received such a golden opportunity to mess with Alberto, especially in a way that he’d enjoy.

Alberto could sense something was fishy, but he assumed it was the nature of the game. They both wanted to win; he was going to claim those bragging rights. “Easy-peasy. Get ready to lose, Paguro.”

After cracking his knuckles (and holding back a surprised gasp when he got a decently cool serious of pops), the boy lifted his arms above his head and tucked his hands behind his neck. He was wearing his typical yellow tank, so his underarms were exposed. He thought nothing of it.

Once Luca started the little oven timer, however, he saw the mischievous glint shining in the boyâ’s eyes. “Luca? What’s...oh.”

Alberto’s cheeks quickly turned a bright red as he saw Luca start to wiggle his fingers in the air in front of him. He couldn’t help the little flinch of his arms at the sight, a bubbly feeling of anticipation growing in his stomach. Dang it.

“Just keep your arms up, Alberto. Like you said, easy-peasy,” Luca grinned, taking a few purposeful steps forward. His fingers were still wiggling. “Unless you’re giving up the point?”

“Wha- No!” he huffed, sitting up as straight as he could. He was not going to lose, no matter what. Shutting out his inner Bruno, Alberto let impulsivity take the reigns. “Bring it on!”

Luca was slightly surprised by that. He knew the other sea monster had a competitive side, but he was willing to get tickled to win a point? There was also the fact that he liked the silly affection, but still.

Experimentally, he gave one of the stubborn boy’s underarms a poke. Alberto flinched forward, biting his cheek as he tried not to giggle. He would not let anticipation get the best of him and start giggling. Definitely not.

Luca saw the stubborn determination on his face and knew he’d have to step up his game. He climbed up on the bed, sitting behind Alberto so the boy couldn’t see what he was up to. Then, ever-so slowly, he started to spider his fingers up and down his sides.

A giggly whine escaped Alberto as he began to squirm. He couldn’t help it; his sides were annoyingly sensitive to soft tickles. They weren’t one of his worst spots, but they did make it impossible to sit still. “I-Ihihi’m nohot gonna lohohose!”

“‘Course not, Alberto. You’ve only got...four minutes left.”

Luca knew exactly how daunting that time sounded. One of Giulia’s favorite ways to tease him while away at school during free-time was to count down while she tickled him. She didn’t do a thing differently aside from verbalize the time, but that little technique always made him loose his mind.

“N-nohohot a prohohoblem,” Alberto squeaked, trying not to let his arms shake. He was tensing to try and keep them above his head, but that was only serving to tire him out faster.

That was an easily disproven statement. Luca kept one hand on the stubborn boy’s side, moving the other up to begin poking at his underarm. He could feel the jolt of surprise from Alberto, followed by the vibrations of his laughter.

“W-WAHAHAHAIT!”

His underarms were his worst spot by far. The purple sea monster wriggled and writhed, doing everything he could to keep his arms up. It was incredibly challenging; he felt like he was a hair away from dropping them.

So, naturally, Luca made it harder for him.

“Does this count as a problem?” he teased, scribbling under the boy's raised arm. His other hand began slowly traveling upwards, giving Alberto plenty of time to save himself. “If it is, I think dropping your arms would fix it.”

“YOHUHUHU SUHUHUCK!” Alberto screeched as Luca bullied him, his arms shaking. That was just cruel.

As much as he wanted that point, Alberto couldn’t handle any more teasing. He finally caved, dropping his arms in an effort to defend himself. It was almost impressive, how fast he was able to curl up and hide from his “attacker.”

Luca cheered, leaning forward to hug Alberto; the boy liked affection when he was trying to calm down. “Yes! Add one for me, point guard.”

“Jeheheez…” Alberto groaned, glaring at Luca as he caught his breath. “That was cheating!”

“No, you said it wasn't a problem, remember? Bring it on?”

He scoffed at that, hating that Luca was right. He had challenged Luca to “bring it on” once he figured out the boy’s scheme. Curse his competitive side…

…though there was a way to make himself feel better about losing.

Using the hug to his advantage, Alberto tightened his arms around Luca’s middle like a vice. His hands gripped the blue sea monster’s sides, fingers wiggling as they dug in.

“GYEEEHEHehehey! Ahalbertohoho!”

Luca wriggled within the hug, trying to escape the playful payback. True, he fully deserved it, but that didn’t mean he had to take it without a fight.

“What’s wrong, Luca? Can’t take what you give?” Alberto teased, grinning devilishly. He was greatly enjoying getting back at Luca—and, from the looks of it, Luca was in a similar boat.

Luca’s cheeks were bright red, his hair slowly becoming even messier than normal with each thrash and shake. His eyes showed nothing but nervous excitement, and he wasn't making any real effort to get away. “W-wahahahait!”

“Nah, I’m good,” he smirked, his fingers slowly approaching Luca’s upper back. Alberto had won many a tickle fight by exploiting that spot; by the way Luca was wriggling, he knew it too.

“Nohohoho! Ahahalbeherto, plehehehease!”

Luca smooshed his face against Alberto’s shoulder, giggling up a storm as the offending fingers slowly crept closer and closer to one of his worst spots.

“I might go easy on you…if you admit that I won.”

That was an easy way out of his torment, but the boy was hardly thinking straight. Without considering the consequences, Luca replied, “B-buhuhut youhuhu dihihidn’t!”

“Fine, your loss.”

“Wahahait, wahait! Ihi dihihidn’t— NAHAHAHAHA!”

Luca jolted, his back arching as Alberto’s evil fingers teased his spine. He couldn’t sit still, thrashing and looking lightly slapping at the other boy’s back.

“What? Sorry, didn’t hear that.”

Luca couldn’t even protest through his laughter, instead shaking his head and squirming in whatever ways he could.

Alberto found it adorable. Luca obviously wasn’t trying very hard to get away, even though it was his worst spot being exploited. They were both dorks in that sense.

“PLEHEHEHEASE! AHALBERTOHO!”

That set of protests sounded a bit too real for Alberto’s tastes. He slowed down, switched to gentle strokes up and down the boy’s back instead. “Sorry, did I go too far?”

Luca shook his head, still lost to giggles. He pressed his face into Alberto’s chest, soaking in his presence.

Alberto could swear his heart skipped a beat at the sight. He moved a hand to the top of the other boy’s head, giving his scalp some gentle scratches. It was one of the fun parts of their human forms: soft hair to play with.

“Jeez, you’re really ticklish…” he sighed, not even trying to tease. It was simply a fact: Luca was adorably ticklish, and he enjoyed it just as much as Alberto did.

“Shuhut up,” Luca whined, knuckling one of Alberto’s ribs. The little squeak he got in return was satisfying. “So…who won?”

He looked down at Luca’s face, admiring it for a moment. Bright cheeks, dopey grin, happy eyes…beautiful.

“Eh, it’s a draw,” he shrugged. He wasn’t really wanting to play anymore games. Simply spending time under some blankets with Luca seemed perfect. “Wanna go look at one of your space books together?”

“Oh…yeah, sure! I just got this new one about Jupiter, and it’s really cool!”

Alberto smiled as Luca’s excitement grew, watching him dart off to grab the book from his school belongings.

“Keep up, Luca!”

Alberto laughed as he sped ahead, zipping through the water. He was smoking Luca and being a smug goofball about it.

They’d decided to race from the town back to Luca’s undersea home. The boy was back from school for summer holiday, and it was time to visit his parents underwater. They’d met on the surface already, but he still wanted a day at home with them.

And, of course, Alberto is included in that.

“You can’t say it’s a race after you already start swimming!” Luca huffed, his tail flying back and forth as he tried to catch up.

Alberto had pulled a classic “Alberto move” and taken off before yelling back to race him. It was a game—neither was taking it seriously—but still. Integrity.

Predictably, Alberto won their race by quite a few seconds. Luca was huffing and panting as he reached the small clearing, glaring at Alberto.

“You…you cheater!”

Luca pointed a finger at him, though it was a bit hard to take the boy seriously when he was so winded. It was honestly a bit cute.

“Aw, c’mon! You've always gotta be ready for action, Luca. Not my fault you were slacking.”

Luca scoffed at that, narrowing his eyes. His time spent with Giulia had built up his sass skills, as well as his revenge repertoire. Thanks to the mad dash of their race, the boys had a bit of time before his parents were expecting them. Perfect…

Luca stood his ground, crossing his arms. “Nuh-uh. Admit that you cheated.”

Alberto could tell that Luca wasn’t seriously upset or anything, yet he couldn’t tell where the boy was going with it. There was a hint of something mischievous in his tone, definitely, but what?

“No way. You lost, fair and square,” Alberto goaded, trying not to smile. He knew he was asking for trouble, but it was really fun to annoy Luca. Plus, well…the consequences were always amusing.

“Fine.”

With that, Luca charged at the other boy, a wide smile on his face. Alberto laughed as they collided, wrestling and shoving and tumbling. Eventually, Luca’s arms wound up around Alberto’s waist, and the purple sea monster knew he was done for.

“No! No, wait, let’s— GYYEEhehehe! Crahahahap!”

Alberto curled in on himself as Luca’s fingers dug into his sides. Of course he’d use tickling against him. Alberto had been the one to teach Luca about tickle fights in the first place, but still.

Smiling at that, Luca gave each of Alberto’s sides a few sporadic squeezes. He’d learned a few tricks from Alberto’s many tricks and plays he’d giggled through. “Just admit you cheated, and then I’ll stop. Easy.”

“Ihihi dihihidn’t!” he whined, shaking his head. Sure, on some level, he did, but where was the fun in admitting that? Besides, he had an idea to turn things into his favor.

“Yes you did!”

Luca couldn’t help but laugh his denial. He knew he cheated, but he simply refused to admit it. It was kind of cute, although incredibly dorky.

Suddenly, Alberto used his fins to thrust himself backwards, catching Luca off-guard. Once the boy was released, he slammed into Luca, taking him down to the sand. He immediately went right for Luca’s spine, wiggling his fingers along the divots.

“NYAHAHAHOHOHO!”

Luca thrashed, burying his face in Luca’s shoulder. It tickled so badly, and he knew he had no chance of getting away. Still, it was kinda nice to be held, even with the tickly side effects.

“How about this: you admit that I won, fair and square,” he smirked, resting his head atop the other boy’s. It seemed they frequented a back-and-forth cycle of sorts, one always trying to prove the other wrong. It was in a fun way though, a healthy competition. “Or I can do this until we go to your parents’.”

He dragged his fingers up Luca’s spine, making him squeal. “I mean, this is really fun, and you’ve got a pretty cute laugh.”

“AHAHALBERTOHO, PLEHEHEHEASE!” he cackled, kicking his feet as he treaded water. His tail swished back and forth as he squirmed, making his whole body wriggle in Alberto’s grasp.

Alberto laughed at that, pulling Luca closer. He was acting rather adorably, clinging to him. “All you gotta do is say I won the race.”

“F-FIHIHIHINE!” Luca panted, holding onto Alberto’s arms. He didn’t want to be completely out of sorts when they went into his parents’ place. “YOUHU WOHOHON!”

That was all he needed. Alberto slowed his tickling to a stop, instead pulling Luca closer for a hug. He knew he’d worn the boy out. “Okay, all done. You alright, Luca?”

“Y-yeahahah…” he nodded, trying to catch his breath. “Youhu’re a buhully.”

That got a laugh out of Alberto. He pressed his forehead against Luca’s for a moment, smiling wide. “Nah, I’m just creative.”

“Uhugh…” Luca rolled his eyes, enjoying the contact for a moment. Once he felt like he’d pulled himself together, he patted the boy’s back a few times. “Wanna head in? I’m hungry after that.”

“Yeah, sure,” he nodded, giving Luca one more squeeze before pulling away. “I wanna try your mom’s cooking, see if it’s as good as Massimo’s pasta.”