Work Text:
When Aubrey had started dating Sunny, she had expected that she would be initiating most of the intimacy in the relationship. Sunny had always been more reserved, it’s been that way since they were children. Even with him being a bit more outgoing since leaving his house, he’s still what most would consider the “quiet” kid from the outside.
That’s why it came as a surprise to the girl when Sunny would be the one to initiate most of the contact. Kissing, hugging, lying down with one another, Sunny would be the one to initiate most of it.
She wasn’t upset with the way things were, far from it. Sunny wanting to be intimate with her filled her with a certain warmth she couldn’t find anywhere else. It did make her think though, about what changed from when they were kids. Aubrey had never been afraid of showing platonic physical affection to any of her friends when they were young, Sunny being a not-so-platonic target frequently. He didn’t mind then, he welcomed it in fact, yet he still never initiated.
“Hey, Sunny?” she asked, the two currently lying down in his room watching tv.
“What’s up?”
“You ever notice how you’re a lot more touchy these days?”
“What do you mean?”
“I mean, when we started dating I always thought I’d be the one who took all the first steps. Holding hands, hugging, kissing and all that, you initiate it a lot of the time.”
The boy took a minute to think before responding. “I dunno. I haven’t really thought about it. Is that bad?”
“No, don’t get me wrong, I love the feeling,” Aubrey said. “I just didn’t expect it. You never shied away from contact, but you never really went out of your way for it either.”
Sunny hummed in response, and the two fell into another comfortable silence. Neither of them were really paying attention to whatever was on the tv, Aubrey was using Sunny’s Gameboy and Sunny was just resting with his head in the crook of Aubrey’s neck.
He began to think about what Aubrey was saying, and what might have changed since they were young.
What she said was true, he never shied away from physical contact yet he also never sought it. Having a tightly nit group of friends and a doting older sister meant that friendly intimacy was a given.
So what had changed between then and now? Maybe he could chalk it up to the results of finally being with his childhood crush, but he didn’t feel like that was all.
An obvious difference was that Mari wasn’t around anymore. It’s likely that the change is connected to that in some way, he thought.
What is it about Mari’s passing that had made Sunny more physically affectionate? She hadn’t been the only one in the group who had been that way with him, so it’s not like he was trying to make up for her absence in the group.
As he thought about it, he came to one conclusion.
“I think I know why,” he said.
“Hm?”
“I think I’m just touch starved.”
Aubrey pondered his statement for a moment before humming in response. “Yeah, that makes sense.”
“Four years with little to no contact with anyone will do that to you I guess,” he said.
They fell into another comfortable silence, though not one that lasted long.
“I think I can relate honestly,” Aubrey said.
Sunny didn’t verbally respond, but he looked to her to indicate he was listening.
“I mean, you know how shitty my home life is. Even when it was better, I didn’t get too much physical love from my parents. I think that’s why I was so touchy with you guys, or was always hugging Mr.Plantegg.”
“Makes sense,” Sunny said.
The conversation hadn’t been particularly revolutionary, they already knew how they felt beforehand, if only subconsciously. Still, now the couple found themselves feeling more comfortable in each other’s arms, knowing that they were there for each other in the same way. The two both silently said to themselves that as long as they were around, neither of them would let the other feel touch starved again.