F/O prompt blog

Caine having cuteness aggression for you has its pros and cons. (mostly cons)

There can be times where you appreciate his affection towards you, but DAMN is it rough.

Since Caine has cuteness aggression for you, you would probably be his (dear he say) favorite.

But don’t get me wrong, he loves all of his little prize winning contestants! You just so happen to be the most appealing one!

No matter how laid-back, shy, jolly, grouchy you are. Just expect Caine to always be there.

Having this aggression for you didn’t just come from thin air (I mean, it did but not in the same context i’m going to).

When you first came into the circus, you became to target of his interest. He wanted to know everything about you if you would let him. And when you did, he almost short circuited from excitement.

As Caine got to know you better, the more attached he became. Everyday he had wanted to hang out with you. And you would spend your day talking with each other. Then, the two of you became more comfortable around each other.

First, it started out as a confusing feeling for him. Caine couldn’t understand why he had wanted to just squeeze you until your eyes popped out. He could never! You were his prized possession after all!

He kept it to himself, trying to figure out his weird behavior of his.

(He tried talking to Bubble about it, never again. He was no help…)

You soon noticed how distant he was, and questioned about it to him. Caine caved, he knew he could talk to you about things.

(Imma write a little snippet of it, cuz that’s what I do in my headcannons.)

“I just— I don’t know!” He rambled, floating back in forth in your digital room. Gloved hands gripping on the bottom of his jaw like everything in the world was wrong with him.

“One second I want to hang out with you, and the next second I just want to bite your head off!—But in a affectionate way, of course!” Caine explained, sort of expressing his feelings by almost wrangling your neck with his hands.

Caine then backed up in a quick motion, now hugging his body as he looked almost mortified with himself. “Is there something wrong with my programming? Am I experiencing what you guys go through—SICKNESS?!?”

Before he had a chance to fully go out of it. Caine heard you let out a laugh, making him freeze and look at you. Why were you laughing? Why WOULD you be laughing at the fact he wanted to hurt you?

After letting out a good laugh, you explained what he was feeling. The words ‘cuteness aggression’ didn’t really help him. But when you explained that humans would feel this way for cute animals and things. Caine was sort of amazed to know that he was feeling of what humans would feel. And when you had told him that it was completely normal, he had sort went quiet in thought.

“So… This is a totally normal feeling and not something that I should be completely concerned about?” He questioned once more time for a better understanding. And when you nodded your head at him, he stood there for a moment. “Andddd are you in any way uncomfortable?” Caine asked for your personal opinion about it. and when you shook your head at him, he let out a noise of understanding.

Then there was a pause, a long one. Then, Caine’s voice spoke up. “Okay explain this one more time—“

You had to explain it to him MANY more times. This new feeling of his was all sorts of confusing. Then you also had to explain it to him that this emotion was normal and that you understood him.

Soon, he pretty much went to normal. If this new emotion was not going to harm him or you (hopefully), he didn’t have a thing to worry about!

NOW here comes the hard part. dealing with Caine every time he had this emotion.

You could NEVER know his next move. It’s impossible to even know what he would do next.

You could be talking to him, then he would just hover over you with an intense look.

Hell, you could be talking to anyone else. Then you notice their eyes widen behind you. You didn’t even have to guess who it was. (It was Caine hovering his straining hands over you with dilated yet terrifying eyes like he wanted to rip you to shreds.)

And when you complimented his work, it was bad. (writing this part)

After an adventure, you couldn’t help but be amazed (and relieved) on how smooth and relaxing this adventure was. So you wanted to give your compliments to the maker!

Seeing Caine float near the exit portal of said adventure, you caught his attention.

“Hello, my little soft served scallop! What can I do for you?” Caine excitedly greeted you. You then complimented him adventure, to the storyline to the small details. You noticed how stars practically beamed in his eyes.

“Oh my little award winning winner, I couldn’t just TEAR your little limbs APART with my TEETH—“ As he began to slowly began to float menacingly before you, he quickly caught himself. Now floating all flustered before you.

“Your helpful commentary is much appreciated!”

Yea there will be spurts of affectionate threatening here and there, but it just shows how much he appreciates ya!

Then there are the times where you are hanging out with Caine. I think those would be the times where he lets loose a little.

After a long day, you were hanging out with Caine in your room, talking away about what went on in the digital world. Laying in your plush bed as you stared up at the ceiling as you spoke. You were talking about your day, sort of excited when you were telling him about your hobbies and such.

However, you felt something clamp down on you. Looking in that direction, you were shocked to see Caine giving you a soft affectionate bite.

After a moment of silence, Caine let go to peek over his teeth. Seeing you stare at him made him quickly let go and back away. You floating in the air and coughing into his fist. “Pardon me! So, as you were saying!” He awkwardly spoke.

Then there would be time when the two of you would hug. Caine would probably give you the most tightest hugs in the world. You would probably glitch out and accidentally get flinched somewhere else.

just a little smth I whipped up

Im going to try second pov in this you guys let me know if you like it better :))

After today's adventure you went on a search for caine - of course checking his office first. It was kinda weird when he wasn't there to welcome all of us back from his adventure and asking for pointers and such.

You didnt bother knocking and entered his room casually. You looked around before spotting him. He was hunched over a desk typing furiously, you wanted to see what he was typing so intensely for.

He didnt notice you yet, you tip-toed until you were behind him and looked over his shoulder, reading the computer screen.

'How to compliment a female human' he searched up, he was now scrolling at the endless ideas.

You covered your mouth to muffle your laugh. You started to get kind of scared what will he do when he notices you...?

"I see...." he clicked on a YouTube video, the natural youtuber voice starts playing.

"This video will teach YOU how to compliment your girlfriend, like a pro." Your body shook trying to hold in your laugh, but you couldnt contain it, letting out a snort. You froze.

"Hm.." he looked over his shoulder and spotted you instantly. "WWAAAAHHH!!!" He started to abuse the computer mouse to exit the video but mis-clicked many times due to panic. He resorted to climbing on the desk and blocking the computer screen with his body frantically before looking at you again.

"I d-didnt..uhh.... notice you there! Aha..." he laughed nervously. Finally you let your laugh that you had been holding in out. Caine flushed before he started pouting.

He quickly got rid of the evidence, snapping away the computer. He crossed his arms when you continued laughing at him.

"Quit laughing.. at... me...." his blush worsened, he clamped his jaw shut before walking to the corner with his arms still crossed in a pouty manner.

With an amused smile, you went to check up on him. You tested the waters, tapping his shoulder.

"Caine...?"

"HMPH." He turned to face away from you, still flustered.

You rolled your eyes with a smile. "Will you ever forgive me?" Your head leaned on his shoulder while your hands wrapped around his waist, mocking guilt.

"I'm sorry Caine~~"

"Ugh! Fine! I wont be so forgiving next time though...!"

A few weeks later.

Caine made sure you would forget that entire situation before he would try anything.

One day after the adventure he would get you two alone so he could try out his tactics. Both of you are sitting across from eachother - on a date - once he ordered your guy's digital food he got right to it, endless ideas in his digital brain.

"Have I ever told you how addictive you are to be around?" He batted his eyelashes.

"Thanks..." You smiled innocently knowing where this was going.

"You're just so breathtakingly gorgeous, my dazzling girl." He hyped himself up.

You leaned your head into your hand with your elbow resting on the table. About to show him how its done.

"You're the most-" "Caine you're so smart,,, I love your ideas and I admire how you handle challenges, you make me so so so happy." You gushed. You wondered how he'd react to me complimenting him non-stop,,, especially since you mean everything youll say.

He sunk in his seat in shock "r-really...? You really mean it...?" You noticed his hands trembling, so you reached over the table, signaling that you wanted to hold his hands. Once he gave you them, you softly rubbed my thumbs over his knuckles. Also touching his leg with yours under the table, despite his feet not being able to touch the ground.

"Of course, I mean look at this fantastic date you set up and planned just for me." You looked around, the whole room was your favorite color and your favorite color only, decorations filled every corner and table, you looked back at him realizing he never took his eyes off you. Its like he's frozen in place.

"I just really feel safe with you, you always know how to make me smile." You started to get nervous of him not moving, about to ask if he's okay before he ripped his hand out of yours covering his face and letting out a *SQUUEEEAAALLLLL*

He kicked his legs excitedly, hitting the bottom of the table a few times. You thought about squealing to - you stood from your chair abruptly, and waited for Caine to calm down. You could cry thinking about how cute he was being right now. He gained his composure for only a second until you pounced on him in his chair, which he makes sure you and him don't fall over. "You're so adorable!!!!!" Your hands around his neck, and sitting on one of his legs, you shower him in affection, kissing his teeth endlessly. He melts instantly, loving the attention.

"Hehehe!" He giggles turning red

"I love being with you!! You make me forget about everything else!" You take his hand in yours "your hand is my favorite thing to hold!"

"Warning: Over Heating" You take that as a sign to stop for now.

"You're so nice, y/n..." he leaned towards you to press a loving kiss on your cheek. "Adorable too" he added, since you previously said it. Cuteness aggression threatened to take control squeezing him before noticing the chef NPC was walking towards you guys. 2 plates of digital food along with dessert. Moving to get off his lap he quietly whined pulling you back. You smiled and stayed there the whole time, feeding eachother and enjoying the others presence

This healed something in me

"$#@$ @$#&*!?@ $#&@-#&@$* @$&#@?&! because they want to #?$!"

"How do you even know what those words mean?"

Whatever Bubble said makes pink blush circles appear around where Caine's cheeks would be if he had a face.

You place your free hand on Caine's teeth to turn him back to your direction. "What do you say we go on an adventure of our own while they do theirs. Just the two of us?"

"Do you not like the theme of the current adventure? I - I could spice it up a bit if you want! More passion! More intrigue!"

"The adventure isn't the issue, but I wouldn't mind more passion or spice as long as it stays between us." Caine's eyes follow your finger as you trace a heart on one of his teeth.

Oh! Oh.

You... That's new. From a player at least.

You let go of his tie. "Only if you want to though. A charming AI such as yourself must get this kind of attention all the time."

"Ooooo~ They wanna @$!? you so bad-" Caine uses his cane to pop Bubble.

He laughs awkwardly and lets himself float all the way down to ground level. "That's awfully forward of you and I don't- I don't know how to... Respond. To that." He adjusts his tie.

You shrug and make your way to the portal before a gloved hand grabs your sleeve.

What did he just do?! What did he just do?!?! WHATISHEDOINGHESSTILLHOLDINGYOURSLEEVEOHGODSOMEONESTOPHIM-

Caine clears his imaginary throat.

"I'm- I'm sure I could throw something together! What do you think about a Candlelit Dinner™? You just keep saying those sweet nothing's while I try to generate an answer that best fits the situation."

"They're sweet but certainly not 'nothing's' to me, sweetheart." You take his hand and kiss it.

Caine stares blankly at you.

The circus glitches momentarily.

He collects himself and waves his hand at you, looking away and holding his other hand to his face.

"Oh you charmer! nerdlihcruoyraebottnawI."

"What?"

Gangle just couldn't keep her mouth shut, could she? 

She's been an asshole all day. You hated bad mouthing her - she was usually such a sweetheart - but ever since Zooble gave her that plastic happy mask, she's been on a rampage. Or perhaps a psychotic episode. 

Anyhow, Ms. Manic Panic over there just had to tattle to Caine. Punishment? Seriously? As if! There were never any consequences for your actions before, why would there be any now? Everyone knew that Caine wasn't malicious and wouldn't actually hurt anyone. ... On purpose, anyway.  

SNAP!

The familiar sound sent you tumbling through space and time, falling flat on the carpeted floor of Caine's office with a grunt. It was a very... stereotypical looking place, the monotony disrupted only by the various drawings of bees scattered across his desk.  

"So... this is upper management?" You took a moment to sit up and glance around, purposefully ignoring the ringmaster floating above you. "Looks..." Tacky? Errie? You couldn't quite place the feeling you felt from being in the equivalent of a stock photo.

"Tsk, Tsk! That mouth of yours is exactly what landed you here in the first place, you know!" Caine spoke in his usual excitable tone, in a volume way too loud for normal conversation. His mismatched eyes stared you down with a strangely sinister tint as he snatched his cane out of the air. 

"So what? You want me to do slave labor for fun-?" Your words, echoed from Zooble's previous complaints, caught in your throat as the ringmaster nudged your chin up with the ball of his cane. The cool metal, sitting directly beneath your chin and on the curve of your throat, made you shiver. 

"Exactly like that! But, according to Gangle, you were a very rude employee. I thought more of you dear!" 

It almost seemed like Caine was grinning down at you, with how his jaws curved upwards slightly. It was hard to read him, but that look in his eyes made you want to run out of the room and never look back. 

"Those customers were acting crazy! I mean, one of them had cereal in line! Who does that!?" You protested as he shifted his cane, using it to tilt your head from side to side as if to inspect you. The cold ball rolled, tracing along the edge of your jaw. 

Caine nodded, as if completely agreeing with your complaints. His top hat bobbed ridiculously with the sudden movements of his head. "Mmhm, buuuut the customer is always right! Or have you forgotten such a simple thing?"

You opened your mouth to fire back some witty retort - probably an insult in the name of the devil incarnate known as the retail industry - but you couldn't get a word out before your vision was suddenly spinning with the force of another teleportation. "Would you stop doing tha- ow!" Your head collided against the wooden desk above you when you tried to sit up, heightening the disorienting feeling in your temples. 

Only when the pain seemed to ease up did you finally realize he transported you to the cramped space beneath his desk.

"Caine, what the hell-!" 

"Ah, ah, ah! Enough of that foul language! You know better, my dear!" Caine cut you off, plopping down into his office chair in front of you. "I do believe you need a lesson on appropriate language in the workplace!" 

When you tried to push past his legs, Caine placed a foot squarely on your stomach to keep you in place. "... Or perhaps it would be better if you couldn't speak at all, hm?" 

You blinked. Offended, bewildered... horrifically turned on. The casualness in his tone made your heart race, pounding in your ears and threatening to jump out of your throat. 

"You're insane!" The words came out forced, although you knew that you'd probably jump the ringmaster any chance you got. ... You just didn't expect your first time with him to be like this. 

... Wait, weren't sexual acts against his programming? 

"Come now," His voice was oddly calm as he palmed himself through his black slacks, spreading his knees wider to make room for the growing tent. "This will shut you up, won't it?" 

You swallowed. Fuck. Fuck this. Fuck the exceedingly hot AI sitting above you, staring down at you with those stupidly pretty eyes like he expected you to comply. 

Unfortunately for you, your body moved without your mind's permission. You scooted forward, your hands wrapping around his calves and trailing upwards. 

Caine hummed in approval, his fingers dipping into his slacks to tug them down slightly, freeing himself from the confining fabric. 

The first thing you noticed about his cock is that it was thick. Not particularly long, but definitely girthy around the base. Black in color - which was to be expected - but red at the tip. Like... neon red. Your brows furrowed slightly at the sight. 

You weren't able to voice any questions, however, before Caine was becoming you forward with two fingers in a come hither motion. 

You shifted forward just a bit more, giving in despite your nerves and placing your mouth against the base of his cock in a soft kiss. 

Caine shuddered, his hand moving to caress the crown of your head as you trailed kisses up his shaft until your lips met his tip - which was still pulsing bright red. He gasped when you took him into your mouth, his cock sinking into the wet heat of your mouth perfectly. 

"H-ha, goodness, my dear," Caine stuttered, his thumb rubbing over your hair in an attempt to keep himself grounded. Though it wasn't working too well, with how his hips twitched upwards into your mouth, making his tip bump against the squishy part just behind the hard palate. "Mmh..."

Your hands tightened around his knees, beginning to move as you pressed the flat of your tongue against the veins on the underside of his cock and paying special attention to his tip when you came back up. You should've known it would cause a whine to tumble from his jaws, his fingers curling into your hair. 

... If only you hadn't sucked so harshly on his tip. Then maybe he wouldn't have shoved himself into your throat. 

Practically gagging on his cock, your throat convulsed around his length, squeezing him until his eyes rolled back in his jaws. You tried to pull away, tapping his thigh. But he held tight to your hair, keeping you in place while he panted and groaned, his hips thrusting into the warmth of your throat.

You didn't know how much longer you could take. Drool spilled from the edges of your lips, dripping onto your chin and Caine's pants. Though, he didn't seem to care about the mess, too focussed on rutting into your mouth with reckless abandon. It was all you could think of - the rubber-ish texture of his cock plunging in and out of your poor throat. 

Thankfully for you, Caine's rhythm had begun to falter. He whined, his fingers pulling at your hair desperately. Moans and babbled words spilled from his jaws, rising in pitch when you swallowed around him. With a whimper of your name, he cried out, finally cumming into your throat. 

He panted as he finished, slumping back into his chair while you coughed and sputtered. 

Looking up, the sight before you sent you reeling. The all-powerful ringmaster, panting and flustered, his suit slightly askew as he regained his bearings. Which he did so quickly, perking back up with a jolt. 

"Well!" A snap of his fingers, and the mess was gone. "That was exhilarating!" 

Caine jumped up from his chair, pulling you out from under his desk. "Perhaps now you'll know better than to mouth off to your superiors!" 

Next, Jax poked his head into Zooble’s room. The purple rabbit’s square-shaped pupils studied the gaudy decor. His eyes landed on Gangle, who was wearing a plastic mask he had never seen before.

“What the heck is this?”

The rabbit cooly leaned against the doorframe, followed by Ragatha and Pomni.

“You’re just givin’ away parts now?” Jax asked.

“So what if I am?” Zooble fired back, crossing their arms defensively, “I’m not giving any to you.”

The thin man tsked through his yellow teeth, sarcasm saturating his every word, “Darn, I guess you’re never gettin’ that unicorn horn, Pomni.”

Pomni squinted up at him, confusion painting her features, “When did I ever say anything about that?”

Gangle examined the jester standing in front of her, then turned to observe Pomni’s reflection in the mirror. “I think you’d look good with one!” She piped up.

The anthropomorphic ribbon’s words must have been enough to convince the little jester, because Pomni lit up instantly.

She reached for her blunt, brown bangs, “Well, it’s possible...”

“Y-Yeah, you should totally go for a new look, Pomni!” Ragatha clasped her hands together and swung her body in Zooble's direction, “Zooble, do you have any spare horns you’re not using?”

They scratched at the underside of their pink, isosceles-shaped head, “Uh, yeah. I used a mint green one last week. It should be—”

“Did somebody say ‘adventure’?”

Unexpectedly, Caine swooped in from the skies above. Your beloved ringmaster perched himself on your head as if you were his very own bird’s nest. You didn’t mind. In fact, you seemed to be the only member of the circus who didn’t mind the AI. The others found him mildly inconvenient at best and conceivably malicious at worst. You, however, thought his cheerful persona was infectious—a welcoming presence in your 3D-rendered existential crisis.

It was a well-known fact that you and Caine were fond of each other, though nobody knew to what extent. All they could surmise was that you were genuinely charmed by the ringmaster, and he eagerly accepted your affection.

With the snap of his fingers, Caine warped all of you, including Kinger, to the circus’ main stage for today’s adventure.

He wanted to plunge you into another horror-themed campaign, aptly titled The Curse of the Violent Psychopath Butcher.

...He was promptly shut down by Zooble and Pomni.

“Well, if you’re all gonna be such critics, why don’t you suggest a better one?”

“We do!” Zooble decried, “Have you not checked the suggestion box once?”

Dumbfounded, the AI floated over to a red and yellow box labeled “suggestions.” It was crammed full of letters and undergoing a digital abscission.

“We have a suggestion box?” Pomni asked.

Zooble motioned to the papers carpeting the circus’ checkerboard floor, “Basically, no.”

Caine mustered every bit of his strength and yanked the suggestion box off the wall.

He must have nailed the thing through a branch line because a gush of water shot out of the newly-made hole, nearly soaking Jax.

The anthropomorphic dentures wiggled his fingers in anticipation. He pulled a random suggestion to read aloud, “’How about an adventure where Zooble gets turned into a piñata, and we take turns beating them up?’”

Jax chuckled, “Heh, that one’s mine.”

The ringmaster leafed through some more suggestions, “’Let’s just have an adventure where—’” he clamped his jaws shut with a zippering motion “’—Jax can’t talk through the entire thing.’”

“Oh, real mature, Zoobie,” the rabbit drawled.

Zooble rolled their eyes at him, “Oh, %$!# off, I didn’t write that.”

”Yeah, that was me,” you admitted easily.

“Can we maybe pick one that’s more...normal?” Gangle requested, not wanting to see you, Zooble, and Jax brawling before the adventure even began.

Exasperated with his humans' indecisiveness, Caine threw his hands up in the air, “W-Well, I don’t know what’s normal to you people! How about, ‘Let’s have one where we all work at a fast food place?’ That seems normal enough!”

Caine teleported back onto the main stage, making a big show of his excitement, “Today’s adventure is...An Honest Hard Day's Work At Spudsy’s Restaurant Chain! And you can be the shift manager, my locally grown butter lettuce!”

A cavalcade of clown cars circled around you in a heart shape, as if you had just been crowned the King or Queen of England and not the highest-ranking staff member at a fast-food eatery.

“Wait, me? Based on what leadership skills? I’d be, like, the worst cult leader ever. Seriously, pick someone else.”

A red ribbon briskly tapped at your shoulder. You looked over to see an unusually confident Gangle grinning at you. That new mask must be doing wonders for her self-esteem.

“I think I might be able to give it a swing. Being a shift manager was my job at one point.”

“You didn’t even have to ask, Gangle.” You shook her hand enthusiastically, as if you two were long-time business partners, “The position is all yours.”

“Well, see you guys when it’s over. I’m not gonna be a wage slave for fun,” Zooble declared. As they began wandering off, they pivoted towards Caine, “Besides, seven of us in your average fast-food kitchen? That’s a fire hazard waiting to happen.”

“Aw, Zooble, you have to come with us.”

The mix-and-match toy shot you an annoyed look.

“You’re going to make Caine cry,” you whispered, pointing upwards at the ringmaster, whose heterochromatic eyes were welling up, threatening to flood the common area with his tears.

Kinger, who had been quiet this entire exchange, gasped like he suddenly remembered how to breathe, “Oh! I know! I could sit this one out, and Zooble could take my place!”

“Wh—That’s not how that works,” they protested.

“You can shut up now!” Caine unearthed a bright red button from behind his back, activating a remote-controlled trap door, sending the mix-and-match toy plummeting into the great unknown.

“Now that that’s taken care of, what are we waiting for? Get your nonslip shoes ready, ‘cause we’re going to Spudsy’s!”

· · ─ ·✶· ─ · ·

As it turns out, Zooble’s trap door led to the dining area of your AI-generated fast-food restaurant.

Spudsy’s had a sleek and modern design that was somehow both warm and entirely too corporate, like a sweet grandma who happened to be the CEO of Berkshire Hathaway.

The six of you quickly familiarized yourselves with the one-story building, making comments here and there about the realistic map.

“So, I’m gonna end up killin’ myself in a McDonald’s?” Jax.

“Y-You shouldn’t make those kinds of Jax, jokes. Uh, I mean, jokes, Jax. What am I even saying?” Ragatha.

“A McDonald’s? I was thinking it looked like a KFC. You know, with all the red and white?” Pomni.

“Have none of you ever been to a Jollibee, like, ever? We probably sell virtual Palabok Fiesta and ube cheese pie.” You.

“Who the %$!# cares? It’s all the same minimalist-driven corporate box designs. But...at least it’s not all greys and neutrals. I can live with that.” Zooble.

Gangle went about delegating your tasks for the day’s shift. Your job was to man the drive-thru window.

The station had a napkin dispenser, to-go bags, a cash register, and a screen for displaying orders. There were a few posters advertising slogans, like “the customer is always right!”

As you were equipping your Spudsy’s earpiece, you found yourself in a smash cut to a bland, beige office you didn’t remember seeing during your ten-second tour of the place.

Caine sat in a black leather chair, doodling his favorite bumblebee. He noticed your presence immediately, his posture becoming straighter than his pearly whites.

“So, what do you think of the adventure?”

“The adventure? Caine, we haven’t even opened yet.”

“Gadzooks, you’re right! I guess I was a little premature with my questioning. You know how artists are about their art! My apologies, my tapdancing tilapia of affection!”

He stared at you noiselessly, his eyeballs slowly separating from his jaw, giving him a wall-eyed look.

Huh, he looks sort of cute like that. In a...psychotic kind of way.

Out from under Caine’s top hat floated his right-hand man, Bubble. The translucent nuisance observed you from behind his boss’s desk, then scrutinized the frozen set of dentures.

Caine’s buoyant best friend immediately caught on to the awkward silence, and his solution was to make the silence even more awkward, crying out, “Wow, Caine! You have no rizz!”

“Y-You have no rizz!” Caine shouted back, popping Bubble out of the map.

“Okay,” you stood up quickly, making a beeline for the door, “I’m going to get back to work, boss. Nice talking with you!”

“Wait!”

Caine zoomed over to you and covered your hands with his own—his eyes shiny with wonderment. You could see his little legs kicking in the air, like how a teenage girl’s would when writing in her diary.

He is so adorable for a...whatever he is. A robot?

“It was...’nice’ talking with me?” He asked. His manner of speaking rose in a hopeful cadence.

“Oh, absolutely! I always love talking to you.” You gently removed your hands from Caine’s gloved grasp to pat him on the head. “Caine, I don’t mean to cut our meeting short, but I really should be getting back to the adventure, wouldn’t you agree?”

You didn’t even want to begin imagining the motorcade outside your window due to your absence.

The ringmaster nodded vehemently, “Of course, my dear! I’ll see you back here for your performance review!”

“Performance review? What—”

“Gasp! I’ve said too much!”

Caine waved his hands around his head, like he was trying to stave off his rashness before snapping his fingers and sending you back into the fray.

· · ─ ·✶· ─ · ·

You had been standing at the drive-thru window, taking orders over the intercom and punching them into the system for who knows how long. You smiled to yourself at your intuitiveness. Who knew working at a fictional fast-food chain would ever lower your cortisol? After what seemed like a lifetime of mind-bending, heart-stopping capers, this scrap of mundanity Caine had fed you satisfied a craving for normalcy.

If you focused hard enough, you could visualize yourself—your real self—balancing the cash register and mopping the commercial kitchen’s quarry tiles.

Your mind wandered onto your “coworkers’” real selves, too. There was a hard line drawn between your friends and the circus’ NPCs, but it was easy to forget that they had lives before this.

They had names.

Does Kinger have kids waiting for him outside of the circus?

Is Zooble involved in any alternative subcultures?

Does Pomni prefer the beach or the park?

Does Ragatha have a favorite sports team?

Does Gangle have any cousins?

Was Jax bullied in high school, or was he the bully?

Your thoughts were interrupted by the man himself, striding over to you and Zooble near the restaurant’s industrial stovetop.

You were helping Zooble by picking up Ragatha’s slack. The doll seemed out of her mind, and nobody knew why when you asked around.

“So, you two are just, like, actually doin' the job? Why?” Jax asked dryly.

You opened your mouth, set to give him a genuine answer based on your recent musings—about how nice—how normal—it felt to be in a conventional setting. However, you found it in your best interest to keep quiet about that. You knew the rabbit had some...hang-ups about the real world, and you didn’t need him taunting your sentimentality.

“Yeah? I don’t want Caine to punish me,” Zooble answered for you.

“You can't seriously be that much of a pessimist. Caine wouldn’t punish any of us. He’s too...sweet to do something like that,” you told Spudsy’s sole line cook.

“Well, look at you defendin’ your boyfriend. I gotta say, I never pegged you for the robot %$!#-er type,” Jax teased.

“What? Caine isn’t—he’s—I’m not a—”

“He’s kind of right,” Zooble went back to grilling patties, “When you guys went on that haunted house adventure, Caine tried to give me his version of therapy. He went from asking me about inkblots to prying ‘human romance rituals’ out of me. I think he’s on a romance kick right now, and you put him on it.”

“Hah! You look so embarrassed right now,” Jax doubled over in laughter, pointing at your dumbstruck face. “So, the robot %$!#-er actually got the robot to want to %$!# them! Oh, wow, that’s comedy gold!”

For a second, you thought about making him slip on the black, anti-slip mats under your feet.

“Jax, will you shut the %$!#—oh...my...god..?”

You were no longer in the restaurant’s back of house, but instead, inside the familiar four walls of a bland and beige office. The AI must have teleported you again, but why?

You were a few minutes away from the lunch rush! Did you even punch in the eight orders of Dobby Dogs and the five orders of Mega Mega Stacks?

Holy %$!#, you were getting way too into this roleplay.

“Glad to have you back, my dear!” Caine exclaimed, clicking his heels together for emphasis. The ringmaster looked so giddy upon seeing you back with him.

You couldn’t help but notice the giant bulletin board in front of you, now decorated with yellow Post-It notes of Caine’s drawings. You made out a few bees and...a small sketch of you?

“Caine tried to give me his version of therapy. He went from asking me about inkblots to prying ‘human romance rituals’ out of me. I think he’s on a romance kick right now, and you put him on it.”

“Wow, Caine! You have no rizz!”

Zooble and Bubble’s words scrolled steadily through your mind like a ticker for the news.

Oh, was Caine...had Caine actually been flirting with you? For how long?

“Did you need something from—”

“Hold the phone! I’ve been gathering valuable intel, and only you can help me put it all together.”

“But, don’t you want me to participate in your adventure?”

“Take five!” Caine snapped his fingers, and your Spudsy’s uniform poofed into a cloud of pink smoke. He snapped his fingers again, replacing your visor, shirt, apron, and pants with a well-tailored suit and tie.

“Let’s go somewhere...grander. Shall we?”

Caine grabbed your shoulders and spun you around until the world surrounding you melted away, revealing a much nicer restaurant than the one you currently worked at. The only other patrons, besides you and Caine, were his unskinned NPCs.

This fancy restaurant, located outside the circus grounds, was reserved for fine dining and in-depth conversations. The room had floor-to-ceiling windows and marble finishing, accented by warm mood lighting. You vaguely remembered Bubble telling you that he originally designed this place to enjoy foie gras made using gavage methods—far away from judging eyes.

The little psychopath.

“Caine, what are we doing here? I thought you said you weren’t going to see me until my performance review?”

“Hah! That didn’t—wait. I...did...didn’t I? Uh, let’s talk about something else! What do we think about cedar-smoked salmon?”

You rested your elbows on the gingham tablecloth, cocking an eyebrow at the ringmaster, “Is something wrong? The only thing you love more than us going on your adventures is talking about your adventures.”

“Save your sympathy, my dear! Nothing’s wrong with—”

Caine’s whole body locked up, his sclera and pupils replaced by a flashing Windows BSOD.

“Oop,” you arose from your chair and got closer to his face, shaking the man’s shoulders a bit, “Caine, you know, if something’s wrong, you can tell me, right? I care about you—a lot more than you know.”

You murmured the last part, not knowing if you wanted him to hear it or not.

The AI came to and gawked at you, shocked by how close you were to his face. Your ears picked up the sound of the distant whirring of computer fans coming from somewhere within him.

“You’re touching me,” he simply stated.

“I am,” you responded.

“Now, can you please tell me why you’ve been acting so weird? You’re worrying me.”

“Worrying...you?” Caine covered your hands with his own, as he did earlier in his office. “I apologize, my dear, for that was never my intention! I was designed to take care of you, not to worry you. Well, I guess that leads me right to my next topic of conversation. Might as well spill the beans! I’ve been learning how to take better care of you!”

“’You’ as in me or ‘you’ as in everybody?”

“You, as in just you, my caramel apple empanada!”

Caine floated out of his seat, hands still holding yours. His blue and green eyes sprouted cartoonishly long eyelashes surrounding pupils transformed into hot pink hearts.

“I’m about to confess my feelings!” He boomed in his deep, baritone voice.

The room full of mannequins halted their activities to rubberneck at the two of you seated in the middle of the restaurant. They shamed and shushed the raucous ringmaster for his outburst.

“Whoops.”

Caine ruefully tipped his top hat to the NPCs and directed his attention back to you.

Hat in hand, Caine stared at you with the most endearing expression his avatar could offer, “I...apologize for not finding a better time to do this, my dear. I just had to say something after watching you be the sole admirer of my art—something I made. That, uh, that never really...happens.”

Caine let out a self-conscious laugh as you tilted your head, knitting your eyebrows sympathetically. You nodded at him to continue.

“I knew you were special since...since the day my hundreds of all-seeing eyes saw you. You treat my creations with care. You treat me with care.  And that affects my processes in ways I have yet to fully understand, my dear. Now, I know I’m not programmed for feelings the way you humans experience them, but...something in my system changes around you. I want to see you happy. I want to make you happy. And that’s something I’m clearly good at—as true as the pope is oblong!”

You gave Caine a simpering smile, so irrevocably charmed by his eccentric sense of whimsy.

Reaching out for the man’s slender waist, you pulled him in for a hug, resting your head on his shoulder.

“Has anyone ever told you how lovable you are?” You murmured against his blindingly white molar.

“Not at all!” Came Caine’s ungainly reply, tumbling out of his mouth.

You shook with laughter, withdrawing yourself from the man, but the AI instantly chased your affection, wrapping his whole body around your avatar like a sloth clinging to a tree. You pressed a butterfly kiss onto one of Caine's canines, enjoying the sound of his internal fans whirring to life.

“So, do you have any date ideas? Something tells me that’s more your forté than mine.”

“Buckle your satchels and feed your racehorses, my dear, because we have a marriage adventure planned for tomorrow!"

· · ─ ·✶· ─ · ·

You managed to slip back into your Spudsy’s chores without a hitch. You were surprised to learn that it was Jax—of all people—who manned the drive-thru in your absence. Apparently, Gangle had put the purple rabbit’s nose to the grindstone to the point that he was now a brain-dead contributor to society, not that you were complaining.

For the remaining hours of the lunch shift, you and Jax shared stories and pared vegetables. There really was no point in having closing duties for a restaurant that wouldn’t exist tomorrow, but Gangle reminded you all that it was a factor in your performance review.

You filled Jax in on Caine and—in turn—he filled you in on Gangle.

He described her as being a, “%$!#-in' %$!# who was %$!#-in' up his day by bein' the %$!#-in' %$!# that he %$!#-in' knew she was.”

For once, you were glad to see that gimmicky, childish censor bar.

You couldn’t defend Gangle’s behavior from today. It wouldn’t make sense to, either, considering you were coincidentally spared from her manic episode. But you definitely felt bad for her. She did you a favor by taking on the shift manager role, and if it wasn’t for her, you would probably be swashbuckling a paraceratherium made of spaghetti right now instead of wiping down windows.

After you finished restocking ketchup and mustard packets, you hung your body out of the drive-thru window, gazing at the gorgeous “starscape” interspersed throughout the midnight blue sky. You were basking in the cool night air when a muffled shrieking pierced your eardrums.

You craned your body to the left and met an unmasked, but still masked, Gangle.

She stumbled back at the sight of you, nearly falling off the curb and into the road.

“Hey,” you said.

“Hey,” she said back.

“...You don’t have to tell me anything if you don’t want to, but are you okay?”

Gangle flumped against the brick wall with an audible thud, sliding down until she could cower behind her knees.

“My comedy mask is usually broken by now,” she muttered from behind her ribbon appendages.

What does one say in this situation?

“I’m sorry to hear that, Gangle. I’m sure Caine will fix your original one as soon as we get back to the circus.”

She sniffled and turned away from you, curling even further into herself.

You two sat in the comfortable atmosphere of the night. The occasional buzz from the streetlamps’ fluorescents and the low hum of cars came together in the soundtrack to your closing shift.

“Hey, um, I didn’t get a chance to thank you earlier, but thank you for taking the shift manager position. I’m not much of a leader, so you probably saved me from a whole lot of anxiety,” you tried.

Gangle scooted further away from the red door marked “staff-only” and closer to your drive-thru window. She looked hesitant to say anything, but decided against her intuition, “It was no problem. I told you, this used to be my job in the real world.”

You shrugged, “Well, you still saved my skin. Let me know if you ever need anything. I owe you one.”

Gangle nodded, then picked up her mask on the floor. She gave you a slight wave before silently slipping back into the sterilized world of Spudsy’s.

“You handled that pretty well.”

“What the %$!#!”

As soon as Gangle exited the premises, the circus’ newest member, Pomni, had crept out from the shadows and sneaked up on you.

“Someone should put a bell on you,” you told her, clutching your heart. As if you could die from a heart attack in the digital circus...

She laughed lightly, “Sorry, I thought you were having a heart-to-heart, so I didn’t want to barge in. Gangle was...a bit...much today. I was just taking out the trash when I overheard you guys. Actually, I came over to ask you about something.”

“Is it about my wedding tomorrow?”

Pomni's multicolored eyes widened in bemusement, “Uh...no..? I just noticed that we were the only two 'employees' in high spirits. I wanted to see if you would help me take over Gangle’s closing shift duties. She looks like she could use a break. Ragatha is out of commission, Zooble did enough today, and I don’t think Jax is holding on for much longer.”

You put a hand over your mouth to hide your yawn, “Sure, why not? You should come inside and tell Gangle yourself. I’m sure she’d appreciate it.”

“Will do! And, thanks.”

“Don’t mention it, Pomni.”

୨୧┄⋯┄୨୧ ᴀᴜᴛʜᴏʀ'ꜱ ɴᴏᴛᴇ: ᴀʜᴇᴍ. ᴀʟꜱᴏ, ɪ ᴡᴀꜱ ᴛʜɪɴᴋɪɴɢ ᴏꜰ ᴛʜᴇ "ᴀɴᴅ ʙᴜᴍʙʟᴇʙᴇᴇ" ᴍᴇᴍᴇ ᴛʜᴇ ᴇɴᴛɪʀᴇ ᴛɪᴍᴇ ɪ ᴡᴀꜱ ᴡʀɪᴛɪɴɢ ᴛʜɪꜱ. ᴘʟᴇᴀꜱᴇ, ᴛᴇʟʟ ᴍᴇ ʏᴏᴜ ᴋɴᴏᴡ ᴡʜᴀᴛ ɪ'ᴍ ᴛᴀʟᴋɪɴɢ ᴀʙᴏᴜᴛ.

୨୧┄⋯┄୨୧ ᴄᴏɴꜱɪᴅᴇʀ ʟᴇᴀᴠɪɴɢ ᴍᴇ ᴀ ᴛɪᴘ 💌

୨୧┄⋯┄୨୧ ᴅɪᴠɪᴅᴇʀꜱ ʙʏ @ꜱᴏᴍᴇʙɪᴛᴄʜᴘʀᴏʙᴀʙʟʏ-ɢʀᴀᴘʜɪᴄᴅᴜᴍᴘ

CAINE

LOVE love loves cuddling with you- hes never actually cuddled another person... bubble doesnt count and thats more of like... comical clinging hug than actual cuddling!

odds are youre physically larger than him but thats not going to stop him being big spoon- definitely has the traditional "men need to be the one in that position" not because he feels he NEEDS to as a man... he just likes feeling like youre personal protector- your man, your guy, your... uhuhuh... yeah!

he sometimes like to cuddle you mid air... hope youre not afraid of heights and the odd feeling of defying physics!

POMNI

again, odds are youre larger than her. she seems more of a little spoon person... though she strikes me as the type to be an awkward cuddler. she doesnt really know where to put her hands- even if its far from the first time youve cuddled into one another

i love her, and she loves you- but pomni looks like the type of person to run uncomfortably hot and doesnt like being touched because of it... clammy and gross feeling, doesnt like it. dont touch her she will get irritated from the feel... its not that she doesnt like you she just doesnt like feeling sweaty

compromises by holding your hand in bed... looping your fingers together as you sleep feels... more tender honestly...

RAGATHA

shes soft and plush- of course she is, shes a doll! definitely has some weight to her... sleeping with her arm wrapped around you is so comforting, genuinely the best sleep youve gotten in a while

she also vaguely smells like berries! so thats a bonus! she totally gets it if you nestle your face into her hair and drift off smelling her! sure its a little quirky but shes not going to judge you for it... honestly if you smelled nice like that she might do the same

no big spoon/little spoon thing... you two mostly just cling onto one another in the bed by any means necessary

JAX

only ever cuddles you when he knows for a fact other people arent going to come in and see him like this. i still stand firm that he hates being seen as soft and vulnerable. even letting himself indulge in stuff like this in an unapologetically tender and sincere way for YOU takes some time

and even then hes most likely to shift into you and cuddle if youre asleep, unable to perceive his rare moment of just... being soft.

he doesnt like being little spoon though, even without the vulnerability stuff

hes kind of sticky.. hes not fluffy in my mind. hes like those rubber squishy toys

KINGER

its... nice holding someone again... but when was the last time hes held someone? why does it feels so familiar but so different- it wasnt you in his arms before was it? it was... someone else, wasnt it? ...hes hardly in the moment long enough most of the time to really dwell on it

he likes being the big spoon- keeping you in his arms... er... hands... makes him feel anchored, calmer. he knows hes missed this even if he cant quite pin point why

but... he kind of melts right into you when you turn it back on him and make him the little spoon. its like seeing a stunned animal relax into comfort

GANGLE

cuddling with her can be a little... hard.. shes made of ribbon so there isnt much to hold and she doesnt have much weight to her... it.. definitely is a sore topic for her. it makes her feel like shes falling short somewhere. like she cant properly cuddle you

even holding her bundled up in your arms doesnt feel right, and shes going to pull away the entire time- doesnt want to waste your efforts even if you try to reassure her... times like this call for creativity--

wrapping her ribbons around you might be a little unconventional... and might lead to tangling- but its something, and its something only you two can do.. no one else! its special and unique to your relationship specifically.. word it like that to her and she'll cheer up a bit!

ZOOBLE

they dont... much care for cuddling. for multiple reasons. partly because its just not for them, and partly because it forces them to actively become aware of what their body is like... the shape, the textures... its all a bit much...

but zooble doesnt want to make you feel rejected- its a hard situation all around. they are going to at least talk to you about it so youre not left in the dark... though it might take a while for them to bring it up

CONTEXT:

If he was honest with himself, Caine was beginning to get fed up of the current cast members. NONE of them appreciated how hard he worked! In fact, they all seemed almost...happier without him. No, that couldn't be right. He was made for entertainment. The issue was that they wouldn't tell him what was wrong! Not to his recollection anyway, and he had GREAT recollection. They never enjoyed his adventures, they never cooperated with him and they never gave him any feedback. He felt useless...no, they made him feel useless. Well, until you came along.

It was rare to get two new circus members so close together but nevertheless you turned up relatively soon after Pomni. So, Caine did the usual quick introduction and name deciding before proposing a simple adventure idea. It seemed to work last time. To his annoyance, this was met with immediate protest from most of the other cast members -- namely Zooble. But before the arguing could escalate any further, Pomni had interjected, "wait! Could we... maybe just go to the carnival for the day? It's kind of like the circus, and based on what I've already seen it would basically show them how this place works."

This was a more than welcome suggestion to the others and you were basically forced to go along, so Caine begrudgingly accepted it. However, he became significantly less begrudging when he heard his name being called by you when they got there. When you looked around, you saw how everyone had already grouped up in partners and (not wanting to make anyone feel awkward) decided to grab his attention:

"Hey! Er, Caine, was it? Could I maybe go along with you? You are the ringmaster, after all! Who better to show me around..?" You had tried your best to sound friendly to him and it worked just a little too well. It took about 2 seconds worth of resistance before Caine swooped down to your side and latched onto your arm. Finally, a human who'd interact with him! Willingly!!! The thing that really caught him by surprise though was when you laughed at his gags and engaged in proper conversation with him. You weren't pretending, you were being genuine, you were actually enjoying yourself...

Oh yeah, he liked you.

ACTUAL STUFF NOW YAY:

You are NEVER free from his hundreds of all-seeing eyes, ever. He loves knowing where you are, what you're doing and who you're with at any given moment. Especially who you're with.

Anytime you all get back from an adventure, he not-so-secretly watches how you behave after it. He may or may not have a highly detailed notebook filled with scribbles of what you react well with vs what you don't.

Caine is HIGHLY dramatic and childish, so if he ever feels like you're starting to like someone else more than him expect to be pulled into an impromptu therapy session. This mainly consists of him resting his teeth on your lap and giving you the best puppy eyes he can, asking if he's done anything wrong.

You gave him a hug once and now he can't get enough of it. Whenever he gets the chance he's always hugging or cuddling with you, holding your hand, resting his teeth on your shoulder or head...etc.

There have been a few times when he's actually forgotten the other circus members are there when talking to you. He usually gets snapped out of it after someone makes a comment on how close he's being. He usually responds with something about how he doesn't have favourites, even if that was never implied. Real smooth.

Even if you are his favourite, you still aren't fully safe from how unintentionally manipulative he can be. A few of his "adventures" with you have been things like "oh no! It seems your room's door has somehow locked you in and the only way to get out is to spend time with me!" or "what would you do if suddenly EVERYBODY ABSTRACTED and you were stuck with me?"

After one of the adventures he had each member meet in his office to give him positive feedback. He left you alone briefly after entering the room because he could, "hear Bubble smoking a rolled up Spanish flag!" The way he tugged at his collar and avoided eye contact gave away that it was a poorly crafted excuse.

Naturally that leads to you snooping. Why wouldn't you?

What you found though was far too adorable to slip through the cracks. You gather up the drawings and Polaroids of yourself and look through them on the desk. They were cartoony, somehow more so than your current character model and the page was covered in hearts, stars, and the occasional bee.

Your favorite of all the pieces was one of you and Caine holding hands. It was so innocent, likely conceived on what little understanding he had of human relationships, but it was a wish that cried out from the confines of its page.

"WOAH!" Caine jumps in front of you, taking a full body slam onto the desk to cover all the pictures, "How did- How did this get here?" Caine adjusts his pose, still laying on the desk, jaw rested tensely on his fist, trying to feigh relaxation, "I-I'm asking because I've totally never seen any of these items before!"

"Why would they be at your desk then?"

He looks around nervously, likely for another excuse,"BUBBLE!!! This was absolutely 100% Bubbles doing and no one else!"

"Bubble is a very talented artist then." You smile knowingly.

"Yes, yes, I'll tell them to immediately stop drawing you right away-" he pauses and looks back at you, "Wait what?"

"I said Bubbles is a talented artist." You hold up the piece you declared your favorite, "This one speaks to me the most. Though I don't quite understand why Bubble drew us holding hands."

"Ha ha... You know Bubble! Always doing the strangest things!"

"Caine."

"Y-Yes my bubbling bullfrog?"

"Bubble doesn't have hands."

"He has... teeth."

You deadpan him.

"FINE! It was me! I'm the culprit - lock me up and throw away the key!" He falls onto you dramatically.

"Didn't know you were into that." You help prop him back up, helping him get seated facing you on the desk.

He swings his legs.

"Into what?"

"Nevermind. Really though, I like your drawings." You hold your favorite closer to you, "Can I keep this one?"

His legs stop swinging.

"You... like them?"

"Okay fine, I love them. They're cute," You boop the top of his gums, "like you."

His eyes dilate so much you can practically see your reflection in them.

"Well I-I-! I love you too! " He throws confetti in the air, then realizes you said he was cute not that you love him, "Wait no, that wasn't-" he makes a noise between a laugh and whine, "You know me, always being, I-I mean- I- I DRAW YOU BECAUSE YOU'RE MY FAVORITE!"

His teeth clench shut and silence hangs in the air. He slowly opens them again to your taken back expression. The upper set of teeth crease in panic.

He taps his fingers together.

"I didn't-"

"Can I keep it?"

He interlaces his finger tightly, "Yes it's yours!" Like his hypothetical heart.

You take his hand and gently squeeze it, "Thanks, Caine." You come closer to whisper where his ear would be if he had any,

"Don't tell anyone but you're my favorite too."

You wave and walk out the office, his eyes glued to you the entire time.

Favorite...?

He's your favorite?

Oh that's just the most magnificently marvelous-!