Yay, fluffy romance stuff :3

It had only been a few years after they had been sent home, Grif and Simmons were the only ones that really kept in touch (except for Donut, but no one wanted to talk to him anyway besides Caboose). They didn't talk all the time or get together often, but they would call to say hi and talk about how they were doing and what they were up to, sometimes cracking a joke about their crazy adventures, or talk if they ran into each other. Everything seemed fine and Grif was happy with that, happy being normal for once. But when he came home he played back messages on his home phone, like he always did when he came home in the evenings, and he listened to Donut go on about a reunion he was planning, a few calls about bills, some stupid offers, and then came one that didn't start right away and Grif couldn't stop that feeling that crept into his chest, telling him that something was wrong. There was a heavy breathing, much like a sob and Grif turned around to stare at the phone, a box of oreos still in his hand.

"Grif? Please, if you're there, please pick up." Another short pause, Grif hadn't moved. Simmons sighed. "I-I guess you aren't there. L-listen, I can't do this, anymore, none of it. I'm not doing fine, life is worse than ever and-well, I never thought I'd long for Blood Gulch. I wanted to tell you, tell you that I'm dying inside and that I hate myself, more than ever. I'm not going to make myself worry about it anymore, I'm ending it all tonight. But, Grif, you...you were the one good thing ever, in my entire life. I love you." A long pause, then Simmons hung up. Grif dropped his oreos and trembled where he stood, staring at the phone. No more messages. Grif grabbed his keys and his cell, bolting out the door without even pausing to lock it as he slammed it shut and ran down the apartment hallway, down the stairs and out into the cold night.

He didn't have a car, his work was just down the street so he didn't need one, and he couldn't afford one anyway, so Grif was left to run all the way to where Simmons lived. Grif didn't know he could run that fast as the earth moved under him as he ran. He prayed, begged, to any god that was up there to please let him be there in time, don't let him get there to find Simmons dead on the floor, that he couldn't have stopped it. But he could have, he knew that Simmons had issues, many of them, and he could have stood up and helped at any time, but instead he just stood by and watched without a word. Not this time. No more. Grif didn't know how long he had been running, but everyone could sense that he had somewhere to be and that he had to be there as quickly as possible, every person on the sidewalk jumped to the side, not scolding but watching him with a sad glance, wondering why he looked terrified and ran so quickly.

Grif skidded to a halt as he came up to Simmons's building and walked up to the door, grabbing his keys and sifting through them to find the key Simmons had given him, so he could visit whenever he wanted. He had never used it. Grif found it and shakily unlocked the door. He yanked the keys out of the door and ran up the stairs, one flight, two, three, then down the hall to what he knew to be Simmons's apartment. Grif went through the keys again as he jogged through the hallway, he pulled out the key and stopped at Simmons's door. He only hesitated a second, worried that he'd either find Simmons dead or he wouldn't find him at all. What would he do then? Where else could Simmons be? Grif took a chance and put the key in the lock, yanking it back out and walking into the apartment, shutting the door behind him.

There he was. Sitting on the couch with a pistol in his shaky hands. It was loaded and Grif felt his heart stop. Simmons had only just started to turn it when Grif ripped the gun out of his hand. Simmons lept to his feet and stared right into Grif's eyes. Grif wanted to puke when he saw all the pain in those eyes. Eyes filled with rejection, abandonment, fear, sadness, anger, and most of all hurt. So much hurt. So, that's what reaching out with nothing to grab did to a man. Grif dropped the gun and stared at Simmons, a sort of realization covering his face. This was the man he had ignored, the man he had mocked and laughed at, and Grif was the man who had added to his pain. Simmons's eyes filled with tears as he looked at Grif, neither one moving.

"Grif, I-"

"Shut up." Grif yanked the cyborg forward into a bruising kiss. Simmons latched onto him instantly, trembling as he held onto Grif as if for dear life. Grif wasn't going to let go either. The kiss was filled with not only years of tension but desperation and a need for closeness, a need for someone who could understand. The kiss was slow, gentle and real. Grif, admittedly, had kissed a lot of girls before, but none were like this. They all seemed fake, but this was real. When they pulled back Grif grabbed the sides of Simmons's head, the soldier before him still crying. "Hey hey, look at me, look at me." Simmons looked right at Grif. "You're going to come live with me, got it? You're never going to be alone again, do you hear me? I've got you, now and for the rest of my life, I've got you. You're never getting hurt again, not while I'm around. Do you hear me? You got it, Sims?" Simmons nodded.

"Yeah, yeah I got it," Simmons sobbed out, a funny smile playing on his lips. Grif grinned back.

"Good." Grif gave Simmons a soft kiss on the lips then on the forehead. "Come on, you're coming tonight. Pack up what you need, we'll figure out the details later." Simmons nodded but didn't move. Grif leaned their foreheads together. "Don't worry about it. Whenever you're ready buddy, whenever you're ready."

AΩ

Grif lay with Simmons curled up in his arms, his head pressed against Grif's chest contently. Grif listened to his even breathing and the whirring of his mechanics, something he had gotten used to over the years of having to share a room with him. After they all went their separate ways Grif couldn't sleep in the silence for the first few weeks, he filled it with fans and stuff but it was never the same as what Simmons's robot parts sounded like, or his calm breathing once he really feel asleep. Simmons took awhile to fall asleep, he would keep completely still but he was so tense Grif could feel it across the room. But this, right here, was Simmons really sleeping. Calm, content, and happy. Grif smiled lazily and closed his eyes, taking in the familiar sound and the new feeling of having Simmons in his arms. It didn't take long for it to lull him to sleep.

And that's a wrap~

Thanks for reading, please review and have a bow chicka bow wow day~

Petchricor, QotG, signing off ;)