Treebros Oneshots

Whumptober Day 5: Touch Starved (alternative propmt)

Hello everyone!! I realize I'm very behind, but we're catching up! Before we start, if you celebrate Halloween and/or dress up for the holiday, what are you being? My friend and I are going as Jack Skellington and Sally :)

Tw: brief mention of anxiety, depression and insomnia, crying, touch starvation

Evan had spent his week counting down the minutes until Connor would return from his family vacation; 978 minutes to be exact. Along with the dread of missing his boyfriend, Evan had been under such unbearable stress between work and summer homework assignments and he was craving touch.

Touch starvation was an issue for Evan. He craved physical touch constantly, whether it be cuddles or hugs or hand holding, it was just a necessity like water or air.

And since Heidi was always working overtime to avoid her position at the hospital getting terminated and paying the rent on time, Evan's only source of affection was Connor, but now, he had no one.

Yes, they FaceTimed every night and texted non-stop, but it wasn't enough to ease Evan's anxiety and sudden depression.

"The second I get home tomorrow I'm heading to see you. You're off, right?" Connor's smile widened as he saw Evan on the video chat screen.

"Yeah... yeah I'm-" He trailed off, covering his mouth as he yawned, "I'm off,"

"Are you okay? You seem exhausted, why don't you get some sleep?"

It was true, Evan was completely drained. Another effect of his touch starvation; insomnia. God, when Evan was touch starved, he could not sleep for the life of him. He wanted to, he tried to, but he would just lie there awake until the early hours of the morning.

"No! No, I'm... I'm good. What were you saying?"

"Evan, honey, go to bed. You can barely keep your eyes open. I'll see you tomorrow, alright? I love you,"

"Night, I love you,"

Evan sighed as he hung up the call, throwing his phone down and pressing his hands to his face in an attempt to ground himself.

He needed Connor. His mind was racing. If only Evan could just get a few hours of sleep he could nip the eventual breakdown in the bud.

But, sadly, by the time his eyes began to droop down, he could see the blending oranges and yellows of the sunrise over the horizon.

Throughout the day, Evan kept busy with simple chores around the house. Vacuuming, tidying up his room, anything to keep him occupied until two o'clock, when Evan could finally see his Connor again.

Hours passed by gruesomely slow, but soon enough, the sound of a car door slamming shut came from the driveway.

"Connor!"

Connor watched as the front door swung open, revealing Evan, still dressed in his pajamas. His heart skipped a beat. "Ev!"

The two ran towards one another, latching on tightly once Evan and Connor collided. Connor inhaled the familiar scent of his boyfriend's coconut shampoo as he hugged his lover.

He was engulfed by a wave of peace, not a care in the world. That was, until he suddenly felt the smaller boy trembling and soft sobs escaping his lips.

"Oh, Ev," Connor's heart shattered, pulling out of the embrace and coming face-to-face with Evan, who hid his face as he cried. He placed Evan's shaking hands in his. "What's wrong? Are you okay? Did something happen while I was gone?"

"No... No I- I just missed you. Missed this,"

Ah. Now Connor understood the issue at hand. Quickly, he opened his arms and allowed Evan to rush back into them, clinging to him like a lifeline.

"Is this okay? Too much right now?"

"No, this..." Evan leaned into the touch of Connor stroking his sandy-colored hair, "this is... is good,"

The couple stood in the driveway for another minute or so, soaking in the relief that flooded over them from being back together again.

Evan hadn't been this happy in a long time. To finally be back in his lover's arms again, experiencing the much-needed physical contact once more was a dream come true. A weight lifted off his chest.

"How about we go inside, yeah? I think we're both overdue for some cuddles," Connor asked, being met immediately with nods of approval from Evan.

And if Evan passed out in Connor's arms amidst cuddling underneath his weighted blanket as a random Disney played in the background—gently snoring and all— it was never brought up.

I hope you all enjoyed today's prompt! I love you all so so much, I hope you had/have a wonderful day, and I will be back with a new one soon <3