It was supposed to be simple. A beautiful Valentines day. He, Agent Three, would meet up with Agent 8, a quick morning coffee and cruller down the Bean Bros coffee shop, a nice walk down the park. And then, BAM, a surprise date to Wahoo World! One of her favourite places to go! It should have seen simple, so EASY...
And Callie, KINDA sorta messed it up.
She didn t mean it, of course. She just got wind of the plan from Marie, and wanted to make real sure she could make their Valentines day as cute and cool as possible! After all, if she had no date for...the fifth year in a row, she would brighten up someone else s! And what better way to do so than a sudden outburst of song in the park! She waited for hours to see them hone into view. She saw Agent Three get close to Agent Eight, and he was about to reveal the surprise date, when;
SURPRIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIISE!
And belting out into song. Well, for all of a few minutes. She stopped when Agent Eight collapsed to the floor, shivering wildly, lashing out with one arm and clasping a hand to her ear with another.
Too loud! she squealed desperately, TOO LOUD!
And soon, Three had managed to drag her home, in total silence. Callie likewise had been dragged home by the ear from a very angry Marie. Perhaps this WASN T the time to learn that Agent Eight had autism...whatever that was. Marina had told him over the phone about it. Aspergers, to be a little more specific. Old human...well, not a condition. Not an illness. It was...something. All she could say was, it made Eight...think differently to the vast majority of even other Octolings. And also, highly sensitive to loud noises. Sensory Overload, she called it. It was different for everyone.
Three sighed, brushing his blue tentacles aside as he stared at the Agent. Hair done up in a ponytail, red in colour like the old Elites. She was on the couch, staring dejectedly at the floor. He couldn t see her face, but he could tell she was still distraught. Upset. Like she had just been sick on his favourite trainers. Wouldn t have been the first time. Three came close, sitting down and keeping his distance.
...I m sorry, Eight whispered after a while.
Sorry? Three asked, Sorry for what?
For...f-flipping out, Eight mumbled, I couldn t...c-couldn t take it...it was just-
Ssssh, it s okay, Three sighed tiredly, placing a hand on the space between the two; Eight would place her hand down as well, and he reached for it, squeezing it hard. He continued, It s just...how you see things. I-I think. Callie was bein ...REAL loud, even for me.
I ruined everything... Eight sniffled, It...it s my fault.
It s not.
It is! Eight whimpered, raising her voice, We were supposed to have a big, sorta...uh...cele-no...prize...thing? You planned everything, and I had to be so SELFISH... she sniffled, I ruined your big day...
No you didn t, Eight... Three slowly came in for a hug. He checked to see if Eight was okay with it; she responded with a nod. He brought her into a hug, softly stroking her tentacles, There we go...it s not your fault, okay? What you did was natural for you. Marina said as much...
M-Mama...? Eight asked.
She told me all about it, Three said quietly, softly rubbing his thumbs in circles on her back, She said how it all works and how to work around it. I ll keep that in mind. No more loud...things, yeah. We ll keep it niiiiice and quiet and slow.
But...what about Agent work? Eight asked, fearfully, What if...I c-can t...
We ll cross that bridge when we get to it, Three sighed, I m sure Marie will find a good role for you outside of field work. Ever thought about armoury work? I hear Sheldon has the same thing you do...explains a lot, actually.
But... Eight sniffled, I...I-I...
It s okay, Eight... Three assured again, It s all fine. We can fix this... he looked down to her hands, which she had wrapped around herself subconsciously. He noticed something about the fingertips. They looked...warped. Chewed. He gulped, Eight? What s with your fingers?
Eight paused, breaking from the embrace. She stared down at her hands, whimpering slightly, then brought her hand in and began to...nibble on her fingers? She tore into them, taking some of the skin with them with her sharp fangs, before Three patted her softly on the shoulder. She jumped, then looked back to him, sniffling, I m sorry...I-I chew on my fingers when I m stressed. It...helps.
I dunno, look pretty...infected to me.
I m sorry...
It s fine, Eight, Three sighed, Marina says that s overstimulation. And uh, I gotta gift for you... he brought out a box, handing it to Eight. It wasn t wrapped or anything, so Eight could see what was within the packaging. It was a round spinny thing, with three wings, each with a black metal weight in the middle of it, as well as a plastic gripping space in the middle. Three nodded, Marina says it s a...fidget spinner? Pearl said they re good for people on the spectrum...
Eight took the spinner out of the box and stared at it, mesmerised. It was red, like her tentacle colour, and made of heavy plastic. She gripped it between her finger and thumb, staring at it with a look of wonder in her eyes, and then pushed it with her middle finger. It began to spin with a ratcheting noise, the wings becoming a blur as it spun in place in her hand. She was staring at the spinning object, a small look of contentment spreading slowly across her face as she looked on. She smiled warmly, head tilting to the side, so fixated she was on the spinner, It s...beautiful.
It does seem quite amusing, Agent Three said in his usual dour way. He cleared his throat, So, Eight...Eight? Eight paid him no attention, continuing to stare unwaveringly at the spinner. Three tried again, Eight...? Still nothing, still transfixed on the spinner. He sighed a little, then reached forward and shook her slightly on the shoulder.
Eight jumped from the touch, finally breaking her attention from the spinner and towards Three. She sighed, Sorry...a-again...
Three chuckled slightly. He guessed that this DID explain Eight s tendency to lose eye contact when speaking with him, and looking elsewhere or fiddling with whatever was attached to her clothing after a while. He brought Eight close and began to stroke her tentacles, It s okay, Eight. You re good...I know now. How to deal with this.
T-Thank you... Eight sighed, snuggling further in, It s so...wonderful. Seeing someone understand. I look and I m just...why don t people see what I see?
It s just how you are, Three sighed, You re doing perfectly fine. In fact, some could say you re unique. There are so many round here, wear the same clothes, talk the same trash talk. But there s only one you. There s no-one in the world like you, Eight.
R-Really?
Really... he reaches in, quickly pausing to ensure Eight was okay with it - she nodded. He went in, planting a deep kiss straight onto her lips. Eight, initially shocked, eventually reached further into the kiss, wrapping her arms around Three s torso, her touch light and dainty. Three broke for air, And that s why I love you so much... he broke from the embrace standing to his feet, Now, we still have the rest of the afternoon to ourselves. How bout we go on a...quieter Valentines? Your treat.
...Can we still do Wahoo World?
Are you sure? It may be a little loud.
I know... Eight smiled, But, I ll be alright if you re with me...
...Welp, if you say so, Three smiled back, stretching out his hand, Shall we, Agent?
Y-Yes... Eight smiled, taking Three s hand, spinner tightly clenched in the other, We shall.