Chapter 66

Waking up to the ground of giggling was a bit odd for Hefty. So was the feeling of not being able to feel his arms. When he opened his eyes, he saw not only Clumsy and Smurette peering down at him but Poppy was well. Though unsure of when the Troll princess would have arrived he tried to figure out what was causing their giggles. He looked around and immediately spotted that his torso was wrapped in Branch's hair like a makeshift blanket as Branch was still sleeping, head next to his as the rest of Branch's body faced the other way.

Seeing Branch back to light blue and how his hair wrapped around Hefty in their sleep made Hefty smile and the giggles to renew themselves above him. Lifting his numb arms, he motioned for them to be quiet and turned a little to cup the back of Branch's head and kiss his forehead.

The hair around Hefty squeezed him briefly but Branch remained asleep.

Giggling again, Clumsy watched the pair, "I wish I could get Stormy to relax like that."

"Just be patient and as stubborn as she is," said Hefty, still smiling at Branch's sleeping face, "It worked for me."

"With a little help," pointed out Poppy.

"With loads of help," corrected Hefty, making Poppy smile. "When did you guys get here, anyway?"

Poppy shrugged, "It was pretty late. We came here after a lot of stuff happened with Brainy and Creek and Branch told me about it."

"Brain-man heard Creek singing and I told him to go check it out," commented Hefty, "What happened afterward?"

As Poppy explained what she knew, Branch began to slowly wake up. Reaching out, his hands mirrored Hefty's in cupping the back of Hefty's head and he moved closer to nuzzle him the best that he could in the upside-down position.

Stopping her explanation, Poppy giggled, "Branch, your adorableness is very distracting."

"My what-the-what?" Branch grumbled, peering up at her with a frown.

"Adorableness," Poppy emphasized each syllable.

"I am not adorable," Branch protested.

"Are too," Hefty, Smurfette and Clumsy chimed in with Poppy.

Looking around at them, Branch retracted his hair and sat up, "You've all hit your heads."

"Not recently," grinned Clumsy.

Branch stared at Clumsy, uncertain if he should make fun of him or make the Smurf a helmet.

Chuckling, Hefty sat up as well and rotated his shoulders, trying to get some decent feeling back into his arms.

"I was just telling them what you told me about Creek and Brainy," Poppy interjected.

"Where did you leave off?" asked Branch.

"Pretty much right at the end," said Poppy.

"Poppy said that you thought Creek's magic was what made his colors, um, switch," Smurfette attempted, "Do you think his eyes will go back to their normal color when he's happy again?"

"I hope so," said Branch, looking down, "Being gray was never pleasant but Creek's eyes being gray," he shook his head, "There's just something off putting about it."

Pausing his stretches, Hefty scooted closer to Branch and put and arm around him.

Branch smiled at him softly.

Standing up, Clumsy stretched a little, "Why don't we all go get ready for the day, get Stormy, Brainy and Creek and head to Chef's for breakfast? I'm starved."

"Sure, thing Clumsy-bro," nodded Hefty, kissing Branch's cheek before standing and offering him a hand up.

Though he rolled his eyes, Branch took Hefty's hand and stood. As they started to clean up the blankets, he whispered, "Did it go alright, last night?"

Pausing, Hefty looked over at Clumsy and Smurfette before smiling and turning back to Branch, "Yeah, they're pretty amazing."

Smiling, Branch cupped one of Hefty's cheeks and kissed the others, "They'd have to be; they're your friends after all."

His own smile growing, Hefty kissed Branch softly, "Love you, Siren."

Colors brightening up to his bright blue, Branch kissed Hefty again, "Love you too, Hero."

Waking up was slow going because Brainy was just so pleasantly warm and comfortable. Plus, he was tired, it took ages for him to fall asleep last night with how much his heart had been pounding after what Creek said as he put his arm around him.

Sure, they had slept beside each other before but the only places they were touching had been their hands. And while holding Creek's hand while he slept made Brainy feel so many things ranging from joy to guilt, being held by him brought out so many feelings Brainy wouldn't have thought it was possible before. Part of why it took ages to fall asleep was because he wanted to stay awake to enjoy it longer.

Unable to see without his glasses, Brainy had no choice but to just feel. The warmth of Creek's skin, the slight movement of their bodies with each breath, the sound of Creek's breathing as it evened out and fell into slumber, and the soft sleepy murmur as Creek's hold loosened but curled closer were more than enough to keep his heart pounding, his skin tingling and his face flushed as he tried to commit every bit of it to memory.

Brainy's face hurt from smiling when he finally drifted off and there was still a residual ache there as he drifted back to consciousness. Though he was warm and comfortable, it only took a moment of concentration to realize that he was in bed alone. Still the pillows had been curled and the blankets tucked around him in a sort of embrace that kept in the heat that made not moving very tempting.

But, once awake, Brainy's mind was too active for his body to stay at rest. He mournfully slipped out of the cocoon and reached out to carefully pat his nightstand until he found his glasses. Slipping the glasses on, Brainy sat up and looked around.

For the most part, Brainy's mushroom appeared as it normally did. There was an additional snore from Pudgy, whom was still snoozing with the dozing ladybug as they slept beside each other on Snappy's bed on her shelf. At the foot of his own bed, he could see the back of Creek's head and hair as the Troll sat on the floor, probably meditating.

Concern filled Brainy but he recalled Creek's promise to not suppress his memories again and relaxed. Creek may not think highly of himself but Brainy trusted that Creek wouldn't go against his word. He would show that confidence by not interrupting him.

Curling up a little, Brainy sit with his knees to his chest and rested his arms on them as he watched the back of Creek's head. There was very little movement but Brainy couldn't help but be spellbound by the Troll's hair. How he wished he had savored it more that time Creek allowed him to touch it but he had been so nervous, their relationship just starting to get to know each other that he allowed his big mouth to accidentally turn it into an uncomfortable subject.

Fingers pulling a bit at the blanket, Brainy longed to touch Creek's hair again, longed to kiss him and be in his arms again like he had the night before. But while Brainy was not an expert like Therapist Smurf, he knew that he was walking a thin line between trying to further their relationship and taking advantage. And he had come close to crossing that line last night. There had to be some sort of balance he could find to keep it from happening again.

Mind going over the options, Brainy got out of the bed and quietly moved to the foot of the bed to sit on the ground across from Creek, mirroring his cross-legged position.

There was no denying that Trolls were pretty. Each one was so colorful and varied that they couldn't help but catch your eye. But Creek was simply beautiful. The more time Brainy spent around him, the more there was to admire. The shades in his hair, the way his glitter freckles actually seemed to sparkle when he smiled, the grace of how he moved doing the simplest of actions and the way he held himself up even when he felt the world around him crashing down around him.

Not that there was anything beautiful about the pain that Creek was going through. If there was a way, Brainy would go back and stop it from after coming close from happening, even if it meant they never met. But Hefty was right; if it was possible Papa would have done it, for Hefty, long ago.

Still Brainy admired the strength Creek had to keep going, to try, even though Creek didn't see it. Brainy wished Creek could see what he saw.

Abruptly, Creek's gray eyes shot open, looking straight at Brainy.

A small shout escaped Brainy as he jumped and nearly fell backwards.

Creek raised an eyebrow, "I should say serve you right for staring at someone while they're meditating but I can't say that I blame you, knowing your attraction towards me."

Flushing, Brainy pointedly did not look at Creek, "Jerk."

"As accurate as that is, I can't say I'm too fond of that pet name of yours," commented Creek, moving his hair to take hold and comb his fingers through it.

Humming, Brainy watched Creek's fingers.

Pausing, Creek stared at him, "What?"

Blush renewing itself, Brainy nibbled his lower lip, hand slowly raising to point to Creek's hair, "Can I do that?"

Staying still, Creek continued to stare, "You want to run your fingers through my hair?"

"Yes, I mean no, I mean I could comb it for you," Brainy said quickly.

"You could," Creek admitted, "But you do realize that would be considered a rather intimate gesture, right? Usually reserved for family, extremely close friends or lovers."

"I hadn't thought about it," Brainy conceded, "But that makes sense."

Letting go of his hair, Creek reached for his pocket but then stopped, remembering that he was still wearing the white pants from Tailor and he had left his comb in his regular pants with Tailor to use for measurements. He looked up at Brainy, observing his hopeful expression, "Alright."

"Alright?" Brainy repeated.

"If you have a comb you can-" Creek began but stopped when Brainy broke into the biggest, almost goofily happy smile and nearly leapt to his feet to rush to his washroom. By the time he turned to look, Brainy was already rushing back, "You absolutely hate this, don't you?"

"Not giving you the chance to change your mind," Brainy grinned and sat on the bed behind Creek. He let his legs dangle off the end of the bed on either side of Creek and absently petted over the hair as he gathered it up to comb it, marveling at how soft it was.

"Are you going to comb it or play with it?" asked Creek.

"I can do both," said Brainy, hoping Creek couldn't hear the brush in his voice. Picking up the comb, he got to work, running his hands over the hair with every other pass of the comb.

Remaining silent, Creek wondered when the last time he had let someone comb his hair like this was. When they were younger, Poppy had combed his hair a bunch of times but while Poppy had been taking care of Creek before he suppressed his memories as probably the last time it happened. Since then he always insisted on being the one to comb her hair when it came up; left her hands free for scrapbooking or painting her nails as they talked. Miss Frizz had combed his hair the first time he was in her care but Creek considered himself too old for it the second time even though she had offered. Of course, his uncle had and his parents so long ago it was hard to recall the tune his mother used to hum while she did it.

Absently humming the bits of the tune, he could remember, Creek relaxed a little, letting his eyes drift shut and continued to think it over. When he was too young to know any better he had let Satin and Chenille comb his hair but they ended up fighting and his hair came out messier than when he had started with. Suki preferred to braid than to comb but Guy was a master of taking care of his friend's hair whenever they allowed him the opportunity. Biggie, of course, had been as gentle as can be and Creek had never been foolish enough to allow Smidge near his scalp. Fuzzbert and Cooper, the enigmas, were never really options all things considered. But all of those instances stopped with his memory suppression. Instinctively he had always made an excuse to never let anyone too close, including his past lovers.

But, like with many things, Cinnamon had been an exception. While they were together, Cinnamon played with Creek's hair all the time, tucking stray hairs behind his ear, wrapping a strand around his finger to kiss, kissing the back or the top of his head at any random opportunity and combing it as if it was the most natural thing in the world. Feeling safe with Cinnamon had given Creek a level of intimacy he had never experienced before and-

"Oh," Creek blinked, he was an idiot.

"I'm sorry, did I hurt you?" asked Brainy, hands going still.

"No," Creek said slowly, still thinking about the implications, "I just realized an answer to something Therapist Smurf asked me."

"Do you want to talk about it with me or wait for Therapist Smurf?" asked Brainy, going back to combing Creek's hair.

"I am unsure," admitted Creek.

Thinking it over, Brainy asked, "What was that song you were humming? It was pretty."

"Thank you," said Creek, "It was something my mother used to hum."

"Was she a beautiful singer like you?" asked Brainy.

Smiling a little, Creek answered, "My voice pales in comparison to hers."

"I don't believe you," Brainy said in a teasing tone.

"It's true," Creek insisted, "My father used to tell me that Trolls throughout the tree used to stop whatever they were doing to listen to her. She was the most highly sought-after Troll in her generation and he never knew how he got so lucky to be chosen by her."

"You parents sound like they were very sweet," commented Brainy.

"They were and a bit of an odd couple in some ways but they're what I think of when I think of what being in love means," said Creek.

"Why is that?" asked Brainy.

Creek was silent for a while and Brainy didn't push. When he spoke his voice was distant, "The Trollstice I lost them, they were holding hands as we were trying to get higher into the tree to avoid the Bergens. My mother slipped and though she didn't fall due to my father holding onto her, she was in view of a Bergen and grabbed. My father tried to hold on, to get her back, but it ended with the Bergen getting them both."

Hands going still, Brainy softly asked, "Did you," but couldn't finish.

"I didn't see them eaten," Creek concluded, "But seeing them taken was just as bad. I don't even remember the rest of the day, I was in such a shock." He twirled his fingers together and continued, "If my father hadn't tried to hold on, he probably would have survived that day to escape the following year. If my mother hadn't slipped I might have had both my parents. Either way, my life would have been much different."

Setting down the comb, Brainy put his hands onto Creek's shoulders and squeezed softly, "I'm sorry, Creek."

Creek stared at his own hands for a while before releasing their grip on the other. Reaching up, crossing his arms, he put his hands onto the top of Brainy's, "Thank you."

With Creek's hair mostly in his lap, Brainy leaned down and placed a small, gentle kiss on the top of his head.

Leaning back into it, into Brainy, Creek couldn't stop his eyes from watering, greedily soaking up the comfort and safe haven Brainy encircled him with.