A/N: This is essentially shameless fluff. I'll be honest, I came up with the idea in a couple of seconds, and then sort of wrote it in half an hour. So I apologise profusely for any errors. It was a spur of the moment thing. There might be another chapter if people want to see them get together or already together. It is up to you. Enjoy the fluff.

Disclaimer: No, the Boosh is not mine, although give me a few thousand and a good agent and you never know... (muhahahahahaha!)

"Ow. Howard, that really hurts."

"Look, I'm sorry. I need to clean the cuts." Howard was in the process of wiping the gash around Vince's left eye with an antiseptic wipe.

"Why does it sting so much?"

"It's antiseptic, Vince. Kills the bacteria."

"Feels like it's killing me."

"Calm down, okay? It's alright."

"It's not!" Vince flinched away as Howard wiped the last bit of blood off. "I'm gonna get a black eye! I'll never be able to cover it up. I look like a panda." He crossed his arms and looked away. It was true that his eye was beginning to bloom dark purple. He had another bruise on his other cheek, and more cuts on his forehead.

"It's your own fault." Howard muttered.

"How is it my fault?"

"You're the one who told him he had a big head."

"Well, he did! That hat really didn't suit him. No one with a big head should wear a fedora."

"That's as maybe, but you should have kept it to yourself."

"Sorry for speaking my mind." Vince scowled down at the floor. Howard sighed, and said:

"Come on, little man. It'll be fine, right? I know how you can make your eye a bit better."

"How?" He looked up a little, but still didn't make eye contact.

"Ice."

"What?"

"Ice. It'll make the swelling go down."

"Okay…" Vince watched as Howard went to the freezer and took out a small bag of ice cubes.

"Here." He said. "Hold that to your eye. It'll make it feel better." Vince took the bag, and held it over the bruised patch.

"Oh." He said in surprise. "That feels nice. Cold."

"See? I told you."

"Howard, you're a genius."

"Nah. Common knowledge."

"Well, I didn't know that."

"That probably says more about you than you'd want people to know." Howard said as he sat down next to Vince on the sofa. Vince hit him half-heartedly with the ice cubes, but smiled. Howard smiled back.

"Thanks, Howard."

"What for?"

"For trying to look after me. I know it's a difficult job. I'm a pain in the backside. I get into trouble. And you were right. This was my own fault. But you don't care, you just care about me."

"Yeah, well… You're my mate. It's my job to look after you."

"It's not, mate. I should be able to look after myself. But I can't."

"Vince, that's how it's meant to be. I've always looked after you, but you always save me from danger. It's right."

"Are you sure? Cause I'm not."

"Yes, Vince. Come on. You're the sunshine kid. It shouldn't be like this."

"I know. I'm sorry."

"You have nothing to apologise for."

"I do, Howard. I've done so many bad things, and you've always just put up with me, and-"

"Shh, shh, Vince." He held Vince, his usual repulsion at touching people momentarily suspended. "If anyone should be apologising, it should be me."

"No. Just… be quiet, Howard." Vince replied softly. So for a moment, they both were. Howard noticed that Vince's eyelids were beginning to droop, so he stayed quiet, his silence like a lullaby, lulling Vince to sleep. Well, he'd had a hell of a day, and it was two am. He sighed gently and closed his eyes too, listening as Vince's breathing slowed down. It was pleasant to just be here, with his best friend. Holding him close. Sleeping together. And that was what they did. They slept through the night, growing somehow even closer as the dawn arrived. When Howard awoke, long before Vince as usual, he kept as still as he could so as not to disturb him. Their faces were inches apart, and his raven hair was escaping from its cage of hairspray to tickle his cheek. Howard noted that even with all his bruises, his battle scars (and that cut on his eye was sure to scar), he was still beautiful. There was a sort of love for Vince that he was feeling. It was somewhere between romance and friendship. He couldn't fathom it in any way. It was like a guilty secret, except that he knew Vince felt it too. He knew deep in the dark bloody pit that was his heart. He knew in his mind. He knew in his deepest being. This was what it was, how it was meant to be. It was his. His emotions. He looked at Vince, with his long eyelashes brushing his cheeks, with that hair, with his eyeliner totally rubbed off. With all his little imperfections that just made Howard love him more. He sighed and stroked his hair softly, gently enough not to wake him. Vince sighed and shifted in his sleep, and Howard closed his eyes again, wanting this moment to last forever.

Sooo, what do you think? I love reviews as much as Old Gregg loves drinking Bailey's out of a shoe. :)