#rw22

"It's Easter, you're meant to live on sugar."

A little late but it’s still the 20th in some time zones. 😉

I had to do this one as it’s my fave hug. Robert is so relieved Aaron’s back and he hugs him so, so tight.

🥲❤️🥲❤️🥲❤️

A Special Treat (AO3) Aaron and Robert try to surprise each other at Easter

A/N: This was supposed to be a little fluffy something... but it got a little long - mostly because I couldn't figure out the timeline. In the end I decided it's set a few years into the future, Rob still went to prison but got out summer 2021 and left the village with Aaron and Seb - and now they're back.

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“What are your plans for Easter?” Chas asked Aaron as she let herself into the mill with the spare key, reminding Aaron to have a chat with her about what exactly classed as an emergency.

“I don’t know.” He shrugged, closing his laptop and moving the papers aside. “Nothing really. Have a lie in if Seb will let us.”

Chas gave him a look that sad she wasn’t happy with his answer but didn’t say anything.

“They’re my family, mum. That’s not going to change. I love them. Both of them”

“I didn’t say anything!”

“You didn’t have to.”

“Oh you can read minds now?”

“I don’t have to be a mind reader to know what you’re thinking when I mention Robert or Seb.”

Chas sighed and sat down at the table.

“I don’t have a problem with either of them… I just don’t want you to get hurt, love. Again.”

“I won’t. I’m happy. I’ve got my family back. Life is good.”

“Hmm… I just hope it stays that way.”

Aaron rolled his eyes and sat back in his chair.

“Is that why you came round? To lecture me about Robert? To try to get me to leave him? Because let me just tell you, you’ll be wasting your time and energy on that.”

“No, I wanted to invite you over for family brunch at the pub.”

“Brunch? Since when does this family do brunch?”

“I thought it would be nice! A little classier than uncle Zak and Bear burping their way through whatever is on the telly.” Chas explained. “I thought we could push some tables together outside. The weather is supposed to be nice. What do you think?

Aaron shrugged.

“I don’t know. Are all of us welcome?”

“Of course. I wouldn’t come here to ask you if you weren’t.” Chas insisted. “We’ll get some fresh fruit and some chocolate treats for the kids. We could even have a little Easter egg hunt for them in the beer garden.”

“Alright. Sounds good. But you might want to get more than just some chocolate treats if Robert is invited.” Aaron said, amused.

Chas frowned until the proverbial light switched on.

“Oh right, I forgot about his sweet tooth.” she commented. “What?” She asked when Aaron gave her a surprised look. “I shared a house with him for a long time, I did notice things. It's hard not to notice someone putting that much sugar into their tea and apparently never getting a cavity.”

“He's trying to cut down on the sugar.” Aaron laughed. “He's worried his luck will run out and he hates the dentist.”

“Don't we all.” Chas lamented. “Where is he anyway?”

“Picking Seb up from a friend's house.” Aaron told her. “He got invited to a birthday party. The third one this month. He's got a busier social life than the both of us together.” He smiled and got up from the table. “At least he’s having fun. Do you want a brew?”

“No I should head back to the pub. I left Charity arguing with Mack so I hope the place is still standing when I get back.” She sighed. “I don’t know why I thought things would calm down when she got back with Vanessa.”

Aaron laughed.

“It’s nice not to be at the centre of the family drama for once.”

“Just enjoy the peace and quiet until Seb is a teenager. If he takes after the both of you, you’ll have your hands full with him.” Chas warned him and they both laughed. “So you’ll come to family brunch on Sunday then? I promise you won’t have to help me set up. I’ve got Noah and Samson for that.”

Before Aaron got the chance to reply, his phone buzzed on the table. He quickly grabbed it and swiped and tapped at the screen, the confused frown on his face changing to a smile.

“Good news?” Chas asked, trying to keep her voice neutral even though she was curious as to what or who was making her son smile at his phone like that.

“Yeah. I got Rob a special Easter egg and I just got an email that it's ready to be picked up.” He turned the screen towards her, showing her a picture of a large chocolate egg with Robert's name on it on one side and I love you on the other. “There's a surprise inside. Like one of those eggs for kids with the little toys inside, you know?”

Chas nodded.

“You loved those when you were little.”

“Yeah. Rob loves them too. He usually shares the chocolate with Seb and then he has to put the toy together.”

“You always made me do it. Some of those toys were so complicated, you had to have an engineering degree to assemble them.”

Aaron laughed.

“Yeah not much has changed since then. But this is different. There’s a ring inside. An engagement ring.” He said, waiting for Chas to catch up to what he was saying.

“You… you’re going to propose with a chocolate egg?”

“Don’t say it like that! This is Robert we’re talking about. He’ll love it when he thinks it’s just a fancy chocolate egg, and then when he opens it and sees the ring… he’ll hopefully say yes when I ask him to marry me. Again.”

“I’m sure he’ll say yes.” Chas said, pulling her son into a hug. “All I’ve ever wanted for you is to be happy… that you’d find someone who would make you smile every single day of your life together. I never thought that person would be Robert Sugden… but after all this time and everything you’ve been through together…even I can see he is that person for you.”

Aaron nodded.

“I’m the happiest I’ve ever been when I’m with him.” he vowed. “And I’ll be even happier when he’s officially my husband again.”

Chapters: 1/1 Fandom: Emmerdale Rating: Teen And Up Audiences Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings Relationships: Aaron Dingle/Robert Sugden Characters: Robert Sugden, Aaron Dingle, Seb White, Andy Sugden (mentions), Jack Sugden (mentions) Additional Tags: Established Relationship, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Self-Doubt, Communication, Supportive Aaron, Discussions about parenthood, reflections, Angst Summary:

as things are changing in robert and aaron’s life, robert has some thoughts he has to process.

“Ow! You fucking – ”

Aaron walks through the front door to the sound of Robert loudly cursing and sees him sitting cross-legged on the floor in front of the sofa. He’s surrounded by a sea of ribbon and string and tissue paper of all different colours. There's so much chaos on the floor he can barely see the rug.

“What the hell are you doing?”

Robert winces and sucks the tip of one of his fingers in his mouth.

“Stabbed myself with the needle.”

Sure enough, he’s holding a needle and thread. Aaron lets out an amused, slightly baffled huff and sits opposite him on the rug.

“Gonna ask again, what’re you doing? Since when do you sew?”

“I’m not, really,” Robert says, finally removing the finger from between his lips. He carefully picks up a small straw hat that was resting on the floor next to him. “Just trying to make Seb’s Easter bonnet, ‘pparently he needs one for this party Charles is throwing the kids at the church tomorrow. Best bonnet wins an Easter egg.”

The hat is half-covered in blue ribbon, paper flowers and tissuey green tufts that Aaron’s guessing is supposed to represent grass.

“Because we don’t have enough Easter eggs in the house already. Which we have to keep replacing because someone kept eating them all the way through Lent.”

“Chocolate always tastes better when you win it, though – pass me that bit of pink tissue, will you?”

Aaron picks up a sheet of pastel pink tissue paper from the pile next to him and stretches his arm out, passing it to Robert. He watches in mild fascination as his husband immediately starts folding and twisting the paper into seemingly random shapes, smoothing and arranging it until it transforms into a small flower in his hands.

Satisfied, Robert grabs his needle again and starts attaching the flower to the straw hat, stitching it into place with the ones already on there.

“Where the hell did you learn to do that?”

“Youtube,” Robert says distractedly, tongue sticking out the corner of his mouth as he concentrates on the task at hand. “And I sort of remembered my mum doing it for mine when I was a kid.”

Aaron continues to watch him, distractedly wrapping a piece of ribbon around his fingers. “She made bonnets for you?”

“Oh yeah.” His mouth curls into a small smile as he grabs a handful of tiny yellow decorative chicks and starts slotting them in among the flowers. “She was good at homemade stuff – think she had to be, since Dad would never fork out for anything like that.”

Aaron smiles softly as he watches him, refraining from pointing out that they could – and did – usually fork out for whatever Seb needed. Though he’ll probably never admit it, Robert’s clearly content – in his element, even – doing things the old-school way.

“You know I'm gonna need to see photos of that.”

“No chance.”

“Fine, I'll just ask Vic.” He pushes himself up with a quiet groan. “You want a brew while you work on that?”

“Hm, please.”

“‘Kay, two ticks.”

“Oh,” Robert calls to Aaron’s retreating back. “Can I get a hot cross bun too, while you’re at it?”

“Sure.”

“Thanks. Or, actually, I wouldn’t mind a bit of that Cadbury’s egg that’s in the snack cupboard?”

“For god’s sake, we’re not gonna have any eggs left at this rate! How’re you not sick of them yet?”

Robert’s eyes turn wide and innocent, an expression that Seb had picked up by the time he was a toddler.

“But Aaron, it’s Easter, you’re meant to live – ”

“On sugar, I know,” Aaron sighs, fond despite himself.

“Exactly, Jesus said so.”

“He did not.”

“How d’you know? You’ve never cracked open a bible in your life.”

“Neither have you, you idiot!”

“No,” Robert shoots back, looking at Aaron like butter wouldn't melt in his mouth. “But Charles told me.”

“I don’t care if the Pope himself told you, I’m not buying any more Easter eggs and if we want to put together a half-decent egg hunt for Seb later then we’re not touching the ones we have. You’ll have a hot cross bun and you’ll like it.”

Robert sighs and huffily sticks another chick on the bonnet.

He‘s taking a little break, standing outside with his face turned towards the Spring sun, eyes shut. Robert‘s still moping.

Suddenly hands slip over his closed eyelids and a body presses against his back. He instantly recognised those rock hard pecs that are poking his shoulder blades.

“Knock knock.“ Aaron‘s raspy voice reaches his ear and Robert starts grinning.

“Who‘s there?“

There is a short silence and Robert tries to hold back a snort.

“Woo.“

Okay, no chance, Robert snorts. “Woo who?“

“Woo who, it‘s your birthday!“ Aaron exclaims and the hands disappear from Robert‘s face.

He‘s being spun around and then he blinks to focus on the adorable scruffy face that‘s smiling up at him.

“That joke wasn‘t bad. You know, for a fourth grader,“ Robert smirks and Aaron rolls his eyes.

“What happened to ‘It’s the thought that counts’?“

“Oh that one left this morning with you,“ Robert teases.

Aaron swallows, ducks his head sheepishly, looking stricken. “I‘m sorry.“ Then he looks up, his bright eyes fixing on Robert‘s face. “I‘m here now. Happy birthday.“

Finally, he gets his birthday kiss and it‘s a good one, too. Aaron kisses him slowly and hungry. Longing. Promising.

When the lips are gone Robert‘s chasing the sensation, tries to pull Aaron‘s face back on his.

“Robert! Stop it!“ Aaron laughs and slaps his chest.

“Why?“ he whines, not even embarrassed how needy he sounds.

He’s had a shitty day so far and it‘s his birthday - he deserves a bit of love, alright?

“We gotta go now…“ Aaron says ominously.

“Why?“

“Because otherwise we‘ll be late for your surprise, idiot.“

Read the whole fluff here

https://archiveofourown.org/works/38396761