Don't Hide
[A/N] Not my usual fare, but I recently got into the RoosterTeeth fandom and noticed how this poor thing doesn't even have a separate category of its own, let alone a good fanfic archive, so I wanted to give it some love. Pairing: Gavin Free/Michael Jones.
This short was inspired by this gif: i50 tinypic com / 10h3jeo gif (not my creation), which in turn was based on Let's Play Minecraft episodes 35 and 36. The story itself is not based on those episodes. It takes place within the Minecraft environment, which is to say it treats Michael and Gavin as characters in the Minecraftverse, itself rather than players in a video game. I haven't read much (well, any) Mavin over here, so I'm not sure how often this shows up in fics. But anyway. *shrugs* Hope it's turned out alright.
oOo
Michael liked to watch Gavin out of the corner of his eye. Sometimes. Sometimes, he repeated to himself.
Sometimes when Gavin thought nobody was looking. Times like these, in fact, when he dropped his moronic act completely and pulled himself straight and the goofy twinkle in his eyes disappeared. Those eyes now glowed with a single-minded fire as his arms drew the bow and took aim while his suddenly grim mouth whispered, "Mark Nutt."
The arrow took flight. Several blocks away, a pig squealed and fell to the ground.
Michael continued to watch as Gavin made his way over to his kill and scooped up the porkchop. His eyes were still ablaze with a light that he thought no one would see.
Sometimes, Michael thought, all I can do is watch him.
I just wish he'd show himself to others like this…
Don't hide, Gavin, he didn't say. Instead, he scowled and called out, "You done showing off, fathead? The sun's going down, we should get moving."
"Yeah, we should", Gavin replied. His voice was punctuated by his approaching footfalls, but it still sounded strange to Michael's ears. You forgot for a moment that you're no longer by yourself. I just got a sentence from the real you, didn't I? "I thought I'd get some more food first. With my luck, I'll be the first to die if I'm not prepared."
"We're Team Nice Dynamite", Michael said shortly. "We don't go down easily." He cast what he hoped was a disparaging glance at the porkchop in Gavin's hand. "Put that away—your health isn't low enough to eat something like that. You need some lighter shit."
You're strange when you're like this. …You're wonderful, but you're fucking strange. I can't look at you for too long. Michael threw a cookie at Gavin's feet and began walking away. "Eat that, and you're welcome, you stupid fuck."
"You're the fuck", came the reply from behind him, and Michael was unnerved by how easily the Brit could return to normal. How much practice did it take for you to perfect that dorky little lilt in your voice, Gavin? He turned for a quick look at the mild face of his teammate and sure enough, it had the goofy grin that everybody saw every day.
Dumbass, I want to see what you're really like.
"Listen up, Gavin. We're going into this jungle biome here. The sun will be setting in a few minutes, and if you fuck this up by getting blown up or finished by a monster, I will fucking personally end you."
"Right", Gavin replied, still grinning. "But what about Geoff?"
"Geoff is off fucking himself cause he has two gold blocks and can't find the rest", the redhead said, face deadpan. "He won't be finding the rest any time soon, but he won't find us either. We're too far away."
"Why won't he be finding the rest?" the Brit asked curiously, even as he swept ahead of his Michael, his creeper outfit flashing green in the evening sunrays. Michael gave a smirk that nobody could see.
"Because they're in a safe place." Because I have them, but if I tell you, you masquerading numbnut, you WILL fuck this up.
"Really? Like up in a fortress in the sky? Like when Geoff hid the Tower of Pimps—"
"They're in a safe place", Michael repeated, a great deal more loudly. "Now shut up and keep moving."
"Fine", Gavin chuckled. "But don't blame me if I accidently pour lava all over your safe place cause I don't know what's inside."
Why am I paired with a fucking griefer? "That won't be happening." …Unless I die in lava, in which case the gold blocks will be going bye-bye. Holy shit. He gritted his teeth. "Just stop talking already, Gavin. Jesus, you talk like you're fucking paid to or something."
Stop talking like an idiot. You're not an idiot.
"You know", Gavin muttered thoughtfully, "that might not be such a bad idea." He took an abrupt turn to the right, leaving a bewildered Michael to follow in his wake.
"What up, Einstein? What the fuck was that?"
"Creeper."
I should have noticed that before him. "You ever think creepers might be attracted to you because of your fucking clothes?"
"But by that logic, they shouldn't explode near me either if they think I'm one of them." Even in the half-light, Michael could see Gavin's amused smile. "Which means it's because of you that they explode, Mi-cool."
"Well, fuck me then", Michael said dryly. "At least that's one intelligent thought out of your mouth though."
There was a split second of silence in which, all at once, Michael knew Gavin knew. Jesus fucking Christ, he knows I've been watching him. He knows I've seen how he really is.
For how long has he known?
"Here's another intelligent thought", Gavin said suddenly, and his voice was different again. "You've got the other two blocks, haven't you?"
Michael stared.
"I don't want to hide from you, of all people… Then again, I've never been able to hide from you." Gavin averted his eyes, focusing instead on the shrinking square of sun that occasionally winked out from behind the trees. "I'm not as stupid as you people think I am."
I know that. I've known all along.
Some part of Michael was clamoring.
Gavin, it breathed. Gavin.
"Well, you know what they say", Michael replied after a long silence. His voice was hoarse. "Third time lucky, you moron. Speak. And make sense."
"Well…" Gavin's grin slid off his face, replaced by a soft smile. "We're surrounded by monsters and Geoffrey's going to find us eventually. So are Jack and Ray. You have the other two blocks and a stone sword, and I've got a damaged bow. And neither of us has won the Tower in weeks."
"That's not an intelligent thought", Michael snapped. "You're stating the obvious."
"Ah, of course", Gavin murmured. "Hey, Mi-cool?"
Michael couldn't speak. The words stuck in his throat. He nodded, but it was already too dark for Gavin to notice.
After a moment of silence, Gavin repeated, "Mi-cool?"
Say something, ass! Say "yes"! With some effort, he managed a shaky "Yo?"
"Yo"? Did I just fucking say "yo"?
"I'm scared, Mi-cool."
Those gold brown eyes were on him again, burning brighter than any sun. Burning with something only Michael could see. The redhead fumbled beside him in the darkness until he found a sweaty hand, which he grasped fiercely. He could feel Gavin's racing heartbeat meshing with his own in that connection and thought he might burst.
"Don't be", he said.
His blood was rushing in his ears. Gavin's eyes were closer now; too close. Michael could see the dancing flames in his teammate's eyes and for a second, he swore he saw himself in that fire.
But that's stupid, right? That would mean I'm the light in his eyes. I'm the reason he's different when he knows I'm watching. It's fucking stupid because I'm—
The second passed; Gavin's lips met Michael's and he stopped thinking altogether. He was blind and deaf and had no thoughts outside of a serene blankness in his mind… Only the blankness was somehow Gavin. Everything was Gavin.
Gavin, his heart whispered, trembling.
Some time after they broke apart, Michael managed to say, "Can we get a move on now?" Gavin seemed to shrug in the gloom and pulled out a torch, which he casually attached to the trunk of a nearby tree.
"You idiot! You had torches this whole time and we've been wondering around in this fucking forest like retards?"
"I kind of forgot about them…" Gavin's sheepish grin was back in a flash. Michael resisted tearing his hair out in frustration with great difficulty. "We could've died, motherfucker! Fucking monsters!" He stomped over to the torch and punched it out. But in the moment before the light went out, his eyes found Gavin's and he was no longer angry at all.
We would never have had that conversation without the dark. He knows I can't look at him for too long when he's like that…
He's wonderful and strange and fucked up. And he's still an idiot.
"Let's go", Michael muttered. "You prick."
"You're the prick", Gavin whispered into the night, but Michael knew better now. And because he knew Gavin would not notice in the darkness, he allowed himself to smile.