All Hands On Deck

Heart to Heart

teehee. I HAD A WAVE OF WRITING MOTIVATION SO HERE'S A 1171 WORD CHAPTER *smooch*

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It had been a mere 10 days since the boarding of Ranboo Beloved onto "The Blade", yet they couldn't help but feel a sense of belonging when around all who occupied said ship. All of the crew members had been so very kind to this tall, unfamiliar face. It is normally quite unusual for people to so quickly feel a familial bond towards people they'd known for such a short amount of time. But to Ranboo, well it was the norm, as they never really had had a place of home. They weren't actually visiting family, but rather an old friend, whom of which they hadn't seen in ages. Ranboo obviously didn't want people to know of their lack of family, as they feared being shunned, and laughed upon. They didn't think any of the other people aboard would understand them in this way.

Currently, Ranboo was leaning against the railing on the deck, thinking about these past few days. They thought about the people, the food, which they thought was quite delicious, and their sleeping situation. Now, Ranboo did say they were alright to sleep on the floor, but they didn't realize it would be that uncomfortable. Lying on the floor, with but a blanket to keep them and the floor separated. Ranboo sighed.

"I'll ask him about it later." They said, turning around, blissfully unaware of the person who was stood next to them.

"Ask who about what?" A different voice said, causing Ranboo to jump, startled. "Oh, sorry for scaring you, Bossman." Ranboo then realized it was just Tubbo, who was also leaning against the railing.

"It's-it's alright. You don't really need to apologize." Ranboo said, turning to face the brunette. Tubbo turned to face them, and smiled.

"You sure? Because you jumped pretty high." Tubbo asked, tilting his head slightly to the side. Ranboo looked at him, admiring the way his hair moved whenever he moved his head. The way his eyes sparkled depending on which way he was facing the sun. Ranboo felt mesmerized, and couldn't quite pinpoint what was so mesmerizing about this short boy.

"I-uh.. yEP! I'm good!" Ranboo said, realizing they'd been staring for too long. "And uh, sorry for um, y'know, staring at you for so long.." The taller looked away embarrassed. Tubbo merely chuckled.

"It's fine. Admittedly, I did stare at you for a bit when I first saw you, so I reckon we're even now." Tubbo said, a cheerful grin on his face. Ranboo smiled, slightly, but it faltered when they remembered the question they had to ask.

"So uhh.... Prime this is so difficult to ask- uhm.. so, you know how I said I would be fine sleeping on the floor..?" They asked, rubbing their knuckles against the other. Tubbo hummed in response.

"Mhmm, let me guess, you want to sleep on the bed because the floor is incredibly uncomfortable and you can't get any sleep on what feels like a rock?" Ranboo stared at him in slight shock.

"Y-yeah, exactly that- how did you know?" they asked, eyes wide with confusion. Tubbo shrugged.

"I kept hearing you shuffle around all night." He giggled.

"O-oh... sorry?" Ranboo said, trying to look everywhere but Tubbo's face.

"Nah, no need to apologize. I understand. How about this; we take turns sleeping on the bed. Like, you'll sleep on it for three nights, and then we swap, continuing that pattern." Tubbo recommended nonchalantly. Ranboo thought about it for a second, and settled that they liked that idea. They nodded.

"Yeah, I like that idea!" They said, happily flapping their hands. Tubbo smiled at that.

"Alright! It's settled then. You can have it for these next three nights, and I will be on the floor." said the auburn haired boy.

Ranboo turned back towards the sea, admiring how it glistened and shined in the sun. They sighed, knowing they'd never get to know shat it's like to swim like normal. Like a normal human.

"Whatcha thinkin' abouuutt?" Tubbo asked, elbowing the taller. They shrugged, frowning.

"I wish I could swim like you all can. I just.. I just feel so left out." They sighed, slumping over the railing, propping their chin with a hand. Tubbo patted their back.

"Why can't you? Do you not know how?" He asked, leaning on the railing aswell. Ranboo shook their head no.

"I have this weird condition, where, if I'm in the water, my skin starts to burn, and.. it sucks. It really, really sucks." Tubbo frowned.

"Oh.. I'm sorry you have to deal with that. Wait, how do you bathe?" he asked, quickly making the subject less depressing. Ranboo giggled.

"I don't." they joked. Tubbo, for whatever reason, didn't pick up on that, and scrunched his face in disgust.

"EWWW!! I'M NOT LETTING YOU HAVE THE BED WITH YOUR STINKY BODY!" he shouted whilst backing away. Ranboo bursted out laughing, so hard to where they had a tight grip on their stomach. Tubbo's eyes widened as he realized, they'd been lying. His face turned red as he began laughing at his stupidity.

"Holy shit I'm a fucking idiot!" he laughed out. The two eventually stopped laughing and caught their breath.

Ranboo sighed happily, looking over at Tubbo as discreetly as possible. They admired the way his hair was blowing in the wind. And the way his eyes squinted as he looked near the direction of the sun. They just admired him in general.

Tubbo was thinking the exact same thing. He adored the way Ranboo's hair was put in a neat little braid, and how their eyes were so bright when they laughed. The stood there, silently admiring the other, completely unaware that the other was doing the same.

Until they made eye contact.

Tubbo's face warmed up, and he felt his chest tighten. But, not in the way it did when he was in a fight. Nono, in a way that he didn't even know it could.

Ranboo's mind was absolutely swarming with nervousness and embarrassment. The poor thing was all warm. Ears, face, stomach? No, their stomach wasn't warm. They just felt like they were going to throw up, but in the good kind of way. Ranboo opened and closed their mouth, trying to get words out, but was left silent.

"Uh, sorry for staring at you... again." They finally managed to say. Tubbo smiled, and Ranboo's heart felt like it would just burst open.

"'ts alright. I mean to be fair, I was staring at you too. You apologize too much." Tubbo said, leaning his head against Ranboo's shoulder. Lord have mercy on them, because they were going to die.

"Sor-" They stopped themself before they apologized again. "Yeahh, I really do that too much." they chuckled awkwardly. Tubbo giggled. and pulled their hand.

"C'mon big guy. Let's go eat, because I am absolutely starving." he said as he dragged them to the kitchen. But Ranboo let themself get dragged, if it meant getting to hold the boy's hand.