#sweetcap

“What are you workin’ on?” Sweet asked, pushing his glasses up along the rim again. 

Cap’n shrugged as he squatted to the ground, sketchbook in hand. 

Sweet followed and took a small peak at the drawing. “Wow, that’s really good, dude.” It was a drawing of the tree in front of them, it looked really good for a beginning sketch! 

“Thanks,” his friend mumbled. The tension made Sweet feel uneasy. “So… how were your group activities?” 

Cap’n groaned and slammed his pencil down on his sketchpad, “terrible!” he shouted. “I had to canoe around the lake all morning and then they made me do arts n’ crafts– and usually I like that class– when they let us do what we want! I don’t want to make a flower pot that looks exactly like everyone else’s!” He dropped his head to his knees, “I don’t like summer camp. I don’t see why I have to go every summer. Dad knows I hate it, so why does he send me?”

Truthfully, neither of them liked summer camp. No arcade, no movies, no comics, even the manga was confiscated. They hated having to share a room with close to seven other guys, plus the communal showers were rank. Cap’n went every summer begrudgingly due to his father's request. Some part of his dad just wanted his ‘little man’ to be just like he was when he had been a kid. And that expectation was forced down him at every opportunity. Sweet, on the other hand, was forced to go because his parents had a yearly vacation out of the country and they never took him. Sweet never asked why, he knew better than to expect an honest answer. 

“Well, I’m happy you’re here,” Sweet nudged him. “I mean… without you here I’d probably be lonely and just… you know, picked on.” Their eyes couldn’t pick something to look at, “I’m just happy we have free time together this year.”

“Man,” Cap’n groaned, “that was the worst.”

Last summer the two had barely even seen each other outside of the cafeteria or cabin. It made surviving the near-month away from civilization even worse. At least at school, they had each other and no parents to bug them all the time over their ‘odd’ interests. But here everything they loved was taken or molded into something different by the counselors. They truly only had each other. 

“Do you think we’ll ever be normal?” Cap’n sighed, idly drawing some designs in the dirt with his hand. Sweet looked down, “I hope so.”

“Do you think other people will like us one day?”

If Sweet had the guts he’d say ‘why does it matter what other people think? I like you and that’s all that matters.’ But he didn’t have guts. He had wires and bolts and whatever else made up their anatomy. This was Sweet’s third year having a crush on his long-time best friend. He played it off well… not really. Cap’n was just super oblivious to other people’s advances. Or maybe he did know and was just trying to be polite by not saying anything? Sweet wasn’t sure and that’s what kept him quiet. 

“I hope so,” he replied. “But… uhm, we have each other, ya know? And that’s great, right?” He fidgeted with a fallen leaf. “We make a pretty good team… right?” They just wanted to hear their confirmation.

Cap’n nodded, “yeah, we do.” He smiled, “your right, we have each other. That’s what matters.”

Sweet felt his face heat up. “That’s what matters.”

“Sorry I got all emo there, what about your groups?”

Sweet was thankful for the change in topic as he pulled out his notebook with pictures from earlier. Lucky for Sweet, he hadn’t been forced into too many activities he absolutely hated. Bird watching was fun, and he almost enjoyed it, sort of like a scavenger hunt. He did not like fishing. He hated touching the worms, he hated the hooks, but most of all he hated his ‘fishing buddy.’ It was some guy who seemed as bored as he was, except like, ten times worse. Sweet would try to talk while they were on the boat, but the guy never responded. The two usually opted into just sitting in silence, never even baiting their hooks. Sweet’s least favorite activity was Wilderness Survival. He had tried to make a fire with sticks once… it uh, didn’t go well. They put the group into small sections and asked each section to ‘survive’ a few hours. His group asked him to set up the tents. When they came back he had managed to somehow get himself stuck up in the air by his pants on a tent pole. Don’t ask how. Even he doesn’t know what happened. 

The only good part was free time. Where they could comfortably be with Cap’n and just relax. Which he really, really wanted to do. He was so tired of the activities and all the walking around. But there was one good thing about summer camp.

“At least King isn’t here, right?”

Sweet physically felt Cap’n deflate beside him, “yeah.” He leaned his head back against the wood. “I don’t think I could take a whole year of school and summer with that guy.”

Sweet nodded, “Me either.”

The sun rays danced through the tree's leaves, warming their faces just a little bit. It made the already tired Sweet a bit more drowsy. He could barely keep his eye open. The two fell into a comfortable silence, just enjoying the slight breeze that drifted by the trees. 

Cap’n didn’t even mind when he noticed Sweet had drifted off. He continued to not mind when Sweet’s head fell to his shoulder. It was fine. They were both just a little tired after all. This was nothing more than two best friends taking a little nap together. 

He didn’t mind. Honest! He didn’t even mind the lingering, warm thoughts that entered his brain as his eyes closed. 

Hours had passed before Cap’n opened his eyes to complete darkness. “Shit! Sweet, Sweet! Wake up, it’s dark!” He tugged on their arm, “wake up! Dude!” 

Sweet’s eye opened and he immediately bonked his head against Cap’n’s. The two rubbed their heads. “Are you okay?” Sweet asked, mainly worried if he broke a piece of the headgear. “I will be when we get out of here,” a hand grabbed his arm. “We need to get back to camp, I– I can’t–”

“No worries, I think… I think I know which way we came.” At least Sweet hoped he did. If they were actually lost then they were goners. Only thing Sweet knew was how to tell a poisonous berry from an edible one. Sweet helped Cap’n stand as they stumbled their way through the dark, rigid trail.

Cap’n clung to Sweet’s arm the entire time, leaving no room for distance. “I can’t even see anything, man.”

“Do you want to stay back and I can go look for help? I think we’re like… a mile out from camp? I wouldn’t be–”

“NO! No!” Cap’n’s grip tightened. “I don’t like the dark,” he whimpered. “Please, don’t leave me,” his grip on Sweet’s wrist tightened. 

“Okay, okay,” Sweet turned around, “I’m not going anywhere.”

When Cap’n said he didn’t like the dark, he really meant it. Any small movement or sound made him jump and pull Sweet closer. It made it awfully hard for the pair to walk with how close they were on the narrow trail. The speaker would mention that it was taking them longer to get back because of this if he wasn’t enjoying the closeness so much. They’d gone about an hour in one direction when Sweet stopped. 

“I think we went the wrong way,” he looked down at the trail. They should’ve been back by now. “Please don’t tell me that,” Cap’n whimpered. “Yeah, I think we need to turn around,” Sweet mumbled, “sorry.”

Cap’n shook behind him, “o– okay, just get us back to camp.” He wanted to kick himself for being so useless, acting like such a baby. Sweet must think he’s such a dweeb. He was a rising senior and scared of the dark? This was humiliating. He’d been scared of the dark ever since he was a kid, he had no explanation, just something he couldn’t control. Fears of seeing something that wasn’t there or hearing things, they all surrounded him. The only thing keeping him grounded was the hold he had on Sweet’s arm. 

They walked back, this time a bit quicker until Sweet stopped again. “I– I don’t know where we are, Cap.”

Cap’n’s entire body stiffened as Sweet turned to face him. He could barely make out their face in front of him. Their hands gently squeezed his shoulders, they felt so close.

“It’s okay, someone will find us, it’ll be okay. We have each other, right?” 

Cap’n tried to stay calm. Sweet was right, they had each other. As long as Sweet was with him then everything would be okay. Everything was fine. He closed his eyes, raising a hand over Sweet’s to hold. “Yeah, we have each other,” he breathed. As long as Sweet was here, he didn’t mind the dark, “we have each–”

C R A S H

Cap’n screamed as Sweet instinctually jumped in front, their grips on each other's hands tightened as Cap’n cowered behind them. 

A flashlight turned on and pulled away to reveal their group leader. “You boys are in so much trouble!” The counselor yelled. “We were just about to send another search party out! You two are getting points deducted from your team for all this hassle you caused! And another thing– !”

Cap’n wished he could pay attention to the yelling of their group leader. But his thoughts were far too preoccupied with how Sweet was gently squeezing his hand back. They stood in front of him despite also being a little shaken from the yelling. Were they trying to comfort him? It didn’t matter. He didn’t mind the comfort. He found himself taking a step closer, placing both hands on Sweet’s, hoping to offer something back. Slowly, gently, Sweet began to run his thumb on top of Cap’n’s hand. 

It’s okay

A loud shout and a string of unpleasant words followed. Definitely Sweet.

Cap'n raced to the workroom, forgetting the headphones. He skidded to a halt at the door, almost sliding past it.

"Sweet? Sweet, are you okay?" He stopped short when his eyes zeroed in on the cube. Sweet was on the floor, cradling a hand in the other. Close by him was a welding torch, lying on the ground.

Cap'n ran to him, sliding to his knees. His hands hovered over the cube, "let me see it." It was a demand.

"I just burned it a little-" "Let me see it." There was no room for arguing with his tone.

Sweet's defiance wouldn't be tolerated, not when it came to his health. Cap'n repeated himself once more, his hand already on Sweet's wrist. The two were at a stand-still for a moment before Sweet relaxed and let Cap'n inspect the wounded area. He let out an annoyed sigh as Cap'n gently turned his hand over.

"You burned it pretty good, dude." "It's not that bad, it just hurt like hell."

Cap'n's features shifted, distress evident. Truthfully, it wasn't nearly as bad as what Cap'n was making it out to be. The glove on Sweet's hand was burned through. It looked like the glove had taken the brunt of the damage. Their hand itself was a little tinged and misshaped, nothing that couldn't be fixed quickly. However, that did nothing to help his concern. This might as well be worth an entirely new hand to him. Sweet might be more durable than he was, but that didn't mean they weren't without limits.

Sweet pulled away, “it’s fine, Cap, really. I can handle it myself.”

The cassette player grabbed their wrist, careful to avoid hurting them. “Stop being stubborn. I’m helping you whether you like it or not.”

"You don't have to, it was my mistake. I should've been watching-" "I know I don't have to, I want to, idiot."

There was a few seconds of silence. The only sound was the steady beats from their chests.

Cap'n sighed when Sweet didn't respond, "I'll get the aid kit. Just- don't move, okay?"

When Cap'n left Sweet looked at their hand for themself. It wasn't that bad, why was Cap'n acting like it was so serious? They looked at their wrist. He had held it with earnest, not meant to be forceful, it was almost desperate. Sweet sighed, what was he going to do now? Knowing Cap'n, he'd insist on closing the shop, lazy. And when Cakes gets back he'd be smothered by it as well. Their chest tightened, they didn't mind being cared for. This was just... embarrassing. He'd never burned himself before. This wouldn't have happened if he had been focused. He wanted to say this was Cap'n's fault, but it was an unfair accusation.

While Sweet had been working, his mind had drifted from the metal pieces in front of him. He wondered how Cap'n was fairing upfront. Maybe he was bored and slacking off again? If he was... they could always go join him, work together at the counter. Which, truthfully, would just mean the two goofing off by themselves. There wasn't much to do in the shop anyway. Yeah, goofing off was okay on a slow day like this. Especially with Cap'n. He just had a way of dragging them from work and letting them relax. Yeah, it would be okay-

And then the burning sensation had struck his hand.

Cap'n walked back in with a small basket of tools and other material. He sat down beside him, took a bottle, and dabbed some of the liquid onto a towel. "Take your glove off. Carefully," Cap'n emphasized. Sweet did as asked, holding back a grimace when it slipped over the burn. Cap'n held a hand out for them. The speaker complied and placed his hand in Cap'n's.

"This might sting a little," Cap'n studied Sweet's face as he placed the towel on Sweet's wound. It caused him to jump, the mechanisms in his arm extended as he fought the urge to push the towel away. "Sorry, sorry," Cap'n moved the towel. "Let me... try something else." Something smoother might be better. Plus they needed to cool the burn to keep it from spreading. This might be a better idea than the disinfectant.

Cap'n took off his own gloves and found a bottle, he poured some of the gel into his palm and took Sweet's hand. "Let me know if this hurts," he mumbled. Slowly, gingerly, he massaged the coolant into the wound. He made sure to not apply too much pressure, just enough to get the job done. He took note of each tiny twitch from Sweet's fingers. The gentle flexing of their palm as the coolant set. Cap'n swallowed, he hoped he wasn't hurting him. He wasn't sure what he'd do if he made his pain worse. Once in a steady groove, the massaging became methodical. Circular to avoid any scrapes, gentle pressure near the center, apply more on the outer area, and don't look up. Don't look up.

He didn't want to meet Sweet's gaze for a few reasons. If it was pained he'd have to stop himself, convinced he wasn't doing something right. He'd watch as Sweet catered to his own wounds. The greater reason was the mental image he had already painted in his head. Sweet looking down at him, his eye zeroed in as he repaired the burned metal. The way they wouldn't be looking at their hand but at him. The thought alone made his hands unsteady. He needed to be focused.

Meanwhile, Sweet wasn't sure how he could feel hurt, seeing how gentle Cap'n was being. He didn't want to admit how it felt comforting to have Cap'n's hands holding his. The gel hadn't stung as bad as the first thing Cap'n had grabbed, and in honesty, maybe that was partly because he wasn't focused on the pain. They closed their eye, only feeling the slightest throbbing from their hand as Cap'n continued.

"Are you okay?" Cap'n asked. Sweet hummed as a response.

It was relaxing, comforting to feel his hands on his. He was being so attentive, such an odd characteristic of the cassette player. Not that Sweet would complain, this was nice after all.

Like a happy accident.

The massaging stopped and Sweet's eye opened to see Cap'n digging in the box. He pulled out the industrial tape and began wrapping Sweet's hand.

"I don't think you should be in the shop for a while." He was probably right. What use would he be with a hand he could barely bend?

"Fine, are we done?" A smirk made its way to Cap'n's lips, "not quite yet. Gotta add the final touch."

Cap’n brought the banaged hand to his lips and kissed the space between his knuckles. "There. All better." He winked.

"C- Cap!" Sweet blushed as he yanked his hand away, which only caused Cap'n to laugh. "What? Doctor's prescription, gotta seal it with a kiss," he shrugged. Sweet rolled his eye and held his hand to his chest. "Y- You just like seeing me flustered!"

Cap'n shrugged, "maybe? But say-la-v, ya know?" "Say-la-what?" "That's life, maybe you'll figure it out or you won't." "You mean... c'est la vie?" "What did I say?"

Cap'n had finished putting everything back in the box. "You probably shouldn't wear a glove on that hand, by the way. But I'll get you an old one just in case." He stood up with the box in hand, "try not to think about me while I'm gone," he made a kissy-face.

"As if!" Sweet shouted as he disappeared from the entryway.