#parsesquad

he’s in the forest

Tater, on the other hand, has a dog named Yuri (named after Yuri Gagarin). Yuri is bug-eyed (no, really, his eyes bulge out of his head) and his tongue is usually hanging out. None of this really matters to Tater though because he falls in love with the dog, sad, squished face and all.

They both have to endure a lot of ribbing from their teammates and family for having such ugly animals. So, when Kent and Tater finally meet each other, they bond over over their respective pets.

Tater listens to Kent talk about how cute it is when Kit will snuggle up to Kent she’s cold, and Tater tells Kent about how Yuri has a favourite stuffed animal he always plays with.

It should be a recipe for a perfect relationship, but the reality ends up being more like those movies where the kids hate their mom’s new boyfriend and plot to drive the interloper away.

To say that Kit hates Tater and Yuri is a bit of an understatement. Yuri doesn’t hate Kit because he’s not capable of that emotion, but he is terrified of her.

Kit hisses at Yuri whenever she’s forced to be around him, and sits in Kent’s lap whenever Tater is in the room. She makes a point of being territorial, and Kent does very little to curb that because he spoils that cat. It annoys Tater more than he’s willing to admit out loud.

Kent is not used to dogs, so it takes him some time to get used Yuri’s level of enthusiasm. Yuri is a slobbery kisser which makes Kent cringe a bit, but he makes an effort whenever Tater’s dog greets him. Kent, however, does not hold back the sigh of exasperation whenever Yuri barks madly every time there’s someone at the door.

Kent has broken up with guys in the past because they couldn’t deal with Kit, but he really likes Tater. Tater doesn’t want to make Kent choose between him or the cat, but he’s not willing to let Yuri get bullied by Kit either. They end up fighting over their pets and their relationship gets rocky for a brief while, but somehow, they make it work.

Tater eventually wins Kit over after months of trying to bribe her with food and toys. Kit lets Tater walk around Kent’s apartment with his ankles unscathed now, but she still glares warningly from her cat tree.

Kent develops a soft spot for Yuri, even though he did chew up Kent’s favourite pair of sneakers. He defends the dog when his teammates chirp him about it, and isn’t even embarrassed when the Aces start calling Yuri Kent’s stepchild.

my collection of sweaters for fictional sports teams grows one stronger

The Aces all knew that their captain was moody and almost unbearable around after difficult losses, especially during away games. No one wanted to sit with him on the bus or the plane, but they all felt like they were obligated to at least try (but also because they cared too). So, they had been on a rotation schedule to make sure that their captain never had to sit alone.

At first, when Swoops joined the team, it had been “make the rookie do it because he didn’t know better”. The guys on the team figured they would get a month’s reprieve before Swoops would bitch, and they would be back to taking turns again. They were all surprised, however, when Swoops never said a word about Kent’s unpredictable moods. In fact, he almost seemed happy to sit with their captain, even when Kent was snarling and wanted to bite everyone’s heads off.

So, it became a thing that everyone accepted but never really acknowledged: Parse and Swoops sat together.

And if the rest of the guys noticed that Kent’s shoulders were looser and his fists weren’t clenched so tight when he was with Swoops, they kept it to themselves. Just like they pretended they missed the saccharine glances that Swoops gave their captain when he thought Kent wasn’t looking.

(It wasn’t matchmaking, they told themselves. It was a mission.)

It started with a few inconvenient, but wholly unoriginal pranks.

“Ha-ha, guys. Very funny. You hid all my clothes while I was in the shower. Now, give them back.”

“I think they’ve actually all left.”

“Swoops, you’re the only one here?”

“Yeah, I got held up. Hey, wanna borrow my clothes? I have extra.”

Then, they graduated onto more sophisticated plans (complete with secret diagrams drawn out on whiteboards).

“Hey, where are the rest of them?”

“Vinny said his baby got sick, Marsh and Dougie got last minute Cirque du Soleil tickets, and I actually really don’t know what happened to the rest of the guys.”

“So, it’s just you and me then?”

“I guess so.”

“Well, since we’re already here, we might as well eat.”

“Yeah, sure, whatever. Wait, I thought the reservation was for eight. Why are they taking us at a small table, and oh—it’s got candles on it too?”

It was for the good of the team, the guys told themselves, and it was good for the team.

Kent’s smiles grew soft, and he laughed more now (and it wasn’t the hollow, self-deprecating laugh from before either). Some days, he showed up at practice with an expression that could be described by Smithy as “head over dick in love” and an infectious energy that brought them all closer.

Life was pretty good.

Kent still took some losses hard on the road, but by the time he settled into his seat with Swoops beside him, it always turned into a tired contentedness.

And if any of the guys on the team caught their captain asleep and smiling with his head nestled on Swoops’ shoulder, none of them said anything.

☆ 6 Kent Parson + Space Icons ☆ (legojacques icons 16/?)

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