Chapter Text
The first to learn about it are, unsurprisingly, Cosmo, and surprisingly, Astro.
Solo runs are more and more rare, the more dangerous the floors become with time. Their clones—Twisteds—do not evolve, but with each death, each respawn, each run gone wrong, their numbers grow, and, slowly, they just decide to stop sending people alone altogether. Yes, not all runs end badly, but despite the constant missions they send down, ichor will only last so long, and they can’t continue to sacrifice their lives like it’s just a game when one day they might just run out of materials to bring someone back to life. It’s better if they take it cautiously and just go in a group to prevent losses.
This was a… special case, of sorts.
With Cosmo’s birthday nearing, Sprout decided to go on a small run to one of the kitchen floors to look for supplies to make a cake. More specifically, the cutters for the decoration.
It didn’t matter that Cosmo insisted left and right that it wasn’t necessary, and that the risk wasn’t worth it—something Astro agreed with, even if he thought Cosmo deserved the nice gesture. No, Sprout huffed and breathed in to puff his chest and insisted that he’d ’just go a few floors down’ and he’d be safe.
And they didn’t question that, his ability to stay safe. Didn’t want to question that. But oh, well, the strawberry was stubborn, and so Cosmo followed.
Except now it was ‘dangerous to go’ and ‘Cosmo should stay and keep an eye on the elevator just in case’, and whatnot.
At least that’s what Cosmo told Astro as they sat down under the tree by the elevators, Swiss roll loudly rambling under the moonlight, waving his arms around while he, with luxury of detail, blasted Sprout.
“But no! He always has to know best!” Cosmo grumbled, hands balling into fists that he waved in front of himself before hitting his lap. “That dum dum!”
Astro gave an amused smile at the pastry, humming softly. “You know how he is… I bet he would’ve preferred if you were asleep instead…of being here… worrying.”
His voice was carried by the wind, a soothing tune that made Cosmo relax. Not at all aided by his magic, no, how could anyone assume that?
Ah, well. Astro…
It was a routine for Astro to stay up that late.
Two in the morning, rounding the rooms, listening for nightmares and easing everyone’s dreams. He also helped Dandy, if the flower needed it, but more often he was just guarding the sleep of all toons in Gardenview. And if anyone was stupid enough to stay for a run so late at night, well, it was his job to check up on them, or to initiate the respawning sequence once the run was over. He didn’t mind, he quite enjoyed the work.
The moon would be unable to sleep, anyway. The days fell short and the nights dragged long, for him. Sleep, ironically, escaped him when he needed him, and it followed him when he ran from it.
“I know.” Cosmo sighed, leaning a bit towards Astro. It wasn’t uncomfortable when the roll rested his head on the moon’s shoulder, but it was… definitely unusual. “I know. I just wished he let us take care of him like he takes care of us, you know!”
And Astro was lucky that Cosmo was too busy looking at the elevator to notice the way his expression tightened.
“…yeah. I know.”
They fell into a comfortable silence, the slight breeze that came from the tunnels, the sound of distant crickets, the light of the moon peeking through the leaves of the tree, just their breathing breaking through the noiseless night.
Astro and Sprout aren’t close.
Not anymore.
They used to be, during the days the museum was open. All mains were close friends back then.
Even after Gardenview closed, they still remained really good friends, going out together, joking and playing and passing time together.
When the ichor operation came, Sprout, Astro and Vee were the first to confront Dandy. They talked about it and discussed what was going on with the flower.
All of them had ended up angry at the flower, but Astro stayed to listen, and he ended up supporting the flower, which made a breach in his friendship with Sprout.
Nowadays they don’t speak as much.
To say they are on bad terms would be a lie, too.
They were mostly ambivalent. Awkward. Hanging into a tension each time they hung in the same room.
They did care about each other. Sprout gave him the occasional thanks after a good night sleep with joyful dreams, patting the moon’s shoulder, or the moon’s head with a smile, offering pastries here and there, scolding Astro whenever the moon toon took risky gambles.
While Astro shared his candies during runs where Sprout took over the twisteds, or checked up on him and his health, offered nice dreams and dreamless nights.
The bark of their backrest–the tree–protruded against their clothes, the texture not uncomfortable but very apparent. The patchy grass, at least Astro did not feel, but he could see Cosmo shifting his arm to his legs, fingernails scratching the underside with a restlessness that Astro completely understood. The dirt was humid. Not enough to call it wet, or say it was mud, but it stuck to their clothes and skin, and it moisturized the blanket that Astro carried.
And, once more, Cosmo broke the silence, this time frowning a bit. “Is it me, or is he taking too long?”
As if planned with anticipation, just after the question was up in the air, the control pad of the elevator Sprout had descended in turning a bright yellow, a silent ping before the screen showed something that both of them were too far away to read.
Cosmo was the first to scramble up, his heel almost slipping and sending him face down to the ground had Astro not used a star to catch his forearm, standing right behind the pastry, who shot a quick ‘thank you!’ before dashing towards the metal frame.
The ground shook slightly under their feet. Cosmo reached the border of the terrarium, crouching, using a hand for balance as he slipped down, and Astro followed, hopping to the ground underneath.
“Well?” Astro asked, smiling a bit as the other reached the pad.
He was fairly sure what the response would be, but it still eased his mind and threw a way off his shoulders when Cosmo gave a deep breath, deflating with relief.
“He’s up.”
Machinery clicked as the elevator reached the top floor, creaking loudly, generating expectation.
The ground trembled, then the gears announced the arrival of the elevator, then a small ding to prepare anyone close by before the door goes up.
Nothing out of the expected with the way the elevator worked.
What was unexpected—and very quickly noticed by the only two toons that remained in the lobby—was the sound of voices, plural, coming up from inside the elevator as the structure pulled it up.
Cosmo and Astro shared a glance, both wearing matching frowns, before looking back at the elevator, staring as it opened, the muffled voices turning clearer and the metal plate giving space for the show.
Four different Sprouts, standing in the middle of the enclosed box, all of them in different stages of an argument between each other in a semicircle that let clear view of the group to the outsiders.
To the far left, is a gray version of Sprout.
A literally, black and white, scale of grays, from the top of his leaves to the sole of his feet–or at least Astro assumed so, since he couldn’t actually see the sole of his feet–just… completely gray.
He was taller than the rest of the… Sprouts? standing in the elevator, and the energy he exudes is pure confidence and pride.
His arms crossed over his chest, his expression almost bored, or annoyed, as he impatiently listened to the screams of one of the others, tapping his foot up and down on the metal ground.
On the opposite side of the group, was a blue Sprout.
He was a tad shorter than the rest of the group, dressed in similar tones of blue, black and white, yellow accents and stars decorating his clothes, with star stickers plastered on his cheeks. He wore a coat and cute yellow rain boots that squeaked a bit as he shifted his position on the ground, like basketball tennis on a court.
He stood lower, defensively, chest puffed to make him look bigger, his center of gravity badly placed as he leaned his upper torso and head towards Gray, hands over his hips. His expression hides nothing, pure irritation, teeth bared as he screamed at the other, “Who do you think you are to give me orders, huh? Think you’re so good? Hmm? Because you’re not!”
In the middle, between the Gray Sprout and the Star Themed Sprout, there was… yes. Another Sprout.
This one is the same height as Astro’s normal, regular, every day Sprout, with the exception that his skin is a bit darker. His head and hair are covered in what looks like dried caramel, and the clothes he used were similar in aesthetic to Sprout’s but all dyed in colors that matched the dried piece of Candy in his head.
He looks softer, somehow. A bit bulkier than Sprout, if anything, but his eyes were rounder, and there is a bit of fat to his cheeks that made him look more innocent, or younger, and he did not hesitate to place his hands towards each party of the argument, visibly trying to de-escalate the issue.
Legs slightly apart, a more open gesture in comparison to the more… prickly counterparts.
Finally, Sprout, regular Sprout, wearing a pink cardigan, his usual scarf, comfortable clothes and a messenger bag that looked fuller than it had when Sprout went down, annoyed by the copies, standing behind them all with the face of a toon that was considering pushing every single clone towards a twisted just to get rid of the issue.
“...Am I drunk?” Cosmo’s voice interrupts any thought Astro had at the moment. Voice shaking, a shuddery breath rattling his chest, his eyes centered on his best friend and the three copies that came with him. “Or… is this a dream? Did I fall asleep on your shoulder?”
“I… don’t think so?” Astro muttered back. “Unless we’re both asleep… but this doesn’t feel like a dream?”
“…what the fuck,” is all Cosmo managed to say in response.
Their presence doesn’t go unnoticed for long. The Gray Sprout seemed to notice their motion for a second, eyes darting to them from the corner, then back to the star themed Sprout, then he smiled, turned on his heels, and walked out of the elevator.
“Hey! Are you listening? What is your problem, you—!” Star—As Astro had decided that Star Themed Sprout is too long—continued the argument, right up to the moment he realized what Gray was doing.
“Cosmo! Astro!” Gray smiled warmly, circling them before pushing his way into the middle of both the pastry and the moon, resting his arms over their shoulders and pulling them into a hug. “It’s late. It’s late, right? You should be asleep.”
Cosmo is the one to answer. “We were waiting for Sprout,” his tone conveys the entirety of his confusion, fairly sure that he’s either drugged or asleep.
“Of course you are,” Gray raised the arm that was over Cosmo’s shoulder and used his hand to ruffle the pastry’s sweet cover like it was hair.
“Hey!”
Astro couldn’t recognize who was speaking. All their voices too similar. Maybe this one was a bit high pitched, and it looked like it was Star, since the blue strawberry was stomping his way to them at the moment.
“You can’t just ignore us, Vintage! Even less just- just grab our friends!”
“You’re scaring them,” Caramel spoke up, following Star close behind.
“I can do a lot of things actually,” Vintage? Gave a side looped smirk. “That’s why I got hands. See?” He wiggled his fingers from the sides of each friend he held in his arm.
“Oh, you—“ Star had a tight smile as he stomped forward, before being pulled back by the scarf.
“Enough,” Sprout cut through the argument with a voice that left no space to snap back at him. “Caramel—“ he gave a deep sigh, irritated he was playing along with this, “—is right. Cosmo and Astro have no idea what is going on. And arguing isn’t helping.” This time he gave a withering glare at Vintage, who just smiled wider before dropping his hold on both of the toons he held close.
“Sheesh.”
Cosmo Wasn’t amused. Not that Astro was, but Astro at least found it funny how they kept talking back. On the other hand, the Swiss roll looked cooked with the whole situation from the get away.
He pushed aside Caramel’s hand when the strawberry tried to put a consoling hand on his shoulder.
“Can you guys like.. explain? Because I’m starting to believe I’m having hallucinations.”
That made all the Sprouts share a look, each darting their eyes in the direction of the others in a silent communication that only broke when Sprout cleared his throat and stepped forwards, pushing between Caramel and Cosmo, and ‘sneakily’ grabbing Vintage’s arm to pull him away from his friends, making the taller Sprout stumble as he struggled to keep his footing.
“Hey!”
“So, as you know, I went down a few floors to find the cutters for the stars because Pebble chewed down on the last, yes?” He crossed his arms as he stood a wall between the other Sprouts, and Cosmo and Astro, proceeding to not wait for a response. “Yes, well, I went, got them, had not the slightest issue, really, and while I was running back to the elevator, something hit me. Honestly I thought I was done for,” there was a second of something grim in Sprout’s face at the idea that that could’ve been his end, down there, alone.
“I told you not to go alone!” Cosmo chastised, horrorices by the same thought.
Sprout doesn’t bother with the clear annoyance on Cosmo’s voice. He places a hand over the sweet cover of the Swiss roll and he pushes him down in a playful way, ignoring the sounds of complaint that his best friend made.
“Yes, well, my mistake,” he replied nonchalantly, “it doesn’t matter, because the next thing I knew, these three idiots were in front of me.”
“I carried him back to the elevator,” Caramel’s voice was soft, softer than the rest, like dipped in honey. “Luckily we weren’t too far off, it was mostly the scare,” he smiled, a kind chuckle rattling his chest and making his shoulders bop up and down.
“For the record,” Star made his presence known, peeking his head from Astro’s side, a hand over the moon’s shoulder, startling the other, “we don’t know either how we got here.”
“Yeah,” Vintage’s bored tone pitched in. One second I was on the eight floor, looking for Shelly, then poof, I’m crashing into an idiot.”
“Alright, you,” Star turned towards, his hand slipping from Astro’s shoulder as he stomped down again towards Vintage, huffing when Caramel stepped in between. “He started it!”
“And he’s being childish. Are you gonna be, too?”
Caramel’s ’not angry just disappointed’ look is barely enough to get Star to huff, shoulders raised to his ears with irritation and a small pout.
“Fine. Whatever. He’s the jerk, not me.”
“Yes, Blue, he’s the jerk,” the candy-covered Sprout sighed and waved him off, like telling a child you agree with them just to get them off your back.
Instead of calming down Star, as was probably intended, that just made him let out a sharp exhale. Despite his childishness in comparison to the rest, it’s clear he was not foolish, or easily dismissed.
He gave long steps behind Astro, pushing his head in between Cosmo and Astro where Vintage previously was.
And he rested his chin over Cosmo’s head with a small smile.
“Right? Cos? That he’s the one being a jerk?”
“Oi, get off,” Sprout clicked his tongue.
“Blue, stop annoying Cosmo,” Caramel joined.
Astro took a step back, allowing them the space to crowd Cosmo as Sprout and Caramel tried to pry Star off of the pastry.
“Hey! You’re crushing me!” Poor Cosmo yelped, a single arm stretched from a small opening, flapping it desperately as a drowning man would. “Quit it!”
“Dude, stop hogging Cosmo!”
“Hogging? This is literally my Cosmo” Sprout made a long ‘heh?!’ sound, his hand over Star’s face as he pushed him away by the cheek.
Fortunately, Astro believed, and most importantly, hoped, the amount of energy in the area should drain them soon.
He felt like an unnecessary asset to the current event. Sprout—he and his clones—was healthy and so was Cosmo.
Maybe, if he went to sleep right then and there, maybe he’d wake up to a calmer day, when this was nothing more than an exhaustion -induced hallucination.
Yes, yes.
He’d wake up early, against the tree, or in the common couch of the Main’s dorm floor area, and Cosmo would let him know later in the day that he had just passed out while waiting for Sprout, and this would all be just a tiny interesting dream to tell Dandy or Brightney during lunch.
He had already taken three steps towards the elevator to the toon’s rooms when his plans were cut abruptly by an arm over his shoulders, pulling him towards someone’s chest.
Astro couldn’t help but feel his face heat up as he looked up to see Vintage’s cocky smile.
“Tired, hm? I don’t blame you.” Vintage closed his eyes and shook his head, free hand raised like saying ‘it is what it is’. “With your prickly Sprout I guess anyone would be tired. Come on! Less ditch these losers and Cosmo.”
The jab at the other clones did get to Astro, making him stifle a laugh with a blanketed hand over his mouth, hoping he didn’t look rude by laughing about a friend. Pride made Vintage shine at the reaction.
Not a second was wasted. Vintage pulled him along towards the exit, away from the ongoing argument in the background, a bounce to his step as he led Astro.
“Hey!“ Sprout’s voice interrupted their escape. “Don’t think I don’t see you taking Astro away!”
“He’s just showing me where I’ll sleep!” The gray copy defended himself, half heartedly raising his free hand in a disarming way.
It didn’t amuse Sprout in the slightest, but the other two Sprout’s seemed to get excited at the idea, to different degrees.
Astro felt exhaustion hang over him when he saw Blue’s excited smile, illuminating the whole room with a childish wonder before he pulled back from Cosmo, flapping like wings his arms to keep his balance as he almost fell backwards from the strength which with he stepped away.
“Oh yeah!” Blue bounced slightly on the ball of his foot.
Once his two feet were back in the ground, he twisted his heel and ran towards Vintage and Astro, taking a bit of the blanket’s fabric into his fingers to keep a hold of Astro while Vintage led them towards the main elevator, Blue pointedly ignoring the annoyed look the tallest of the bunch sent his way.
“It is pretty late, Nay?”
From the corner of his eye, being led by the two copies.
The next he saw matching their speed was Caramel, who smiled pleasantly, walking by the same side Blue was following Astro and Vintage, although, unlike the other two, he didn’t bother to get too close to Astro. “I could use some sleep, we need to rest if we want to solve this after all!”
His positive energy was contagious, to the small group of clones and Astro, who looked confused between the tree copies, before turning his head back slightly, watching Cosmo and Sprout from the corner of his eye.
Obviously, neither of them are happy.
Cosmo’s thousand yard stare of annoyance turned into a sigh, then into a pity look as Astro pleaded silently for help. A small shrug of ‘sorry, bud’ that basically told Astro he was on his own.
On the other hand, Sprout sputtered loudly. Confusion, anger, surprise, all flashing over his reddened face. The audacity of dropping him and then ignoring him clearly left him stunned.
“You can’t just—! That’s…! He’s..! Ugh!!”
“Sprout, slow down!”
The moon headed toon could hear two extra pairs of footsteps growing closer as the small group that had him captive reached the elevator.
Blue and Caramel were kind enough to give him space, but Vintage pulled him along towards the elevator buttons, flashing a smirk towards Sprout—and Cosmo—when the original entered the elevator.
“Well, Astro, where are we going?” Vintage turned to him.
Suddenly all eyes were on him. Expectant of his response, of his decision. Usually it’d be Dandy who’s pulling the last word, but the flower was somewhere else, probably asleep, and Astro was right there and then, exposed by Vintage’s whim.
A wave of anxiety began to bubble in his stomach. Shifting his feet awkwardly, looking away, a canine digging into the inside of his lower lip.
“You don‘t have to,” Sprout said in a huff, dusting off his pants and straightening, then placing a hand over Cosmo’s shoulder.
“Let him choose,” Vintage threw a nasty look Sprout’s way, annoyed by the intervention.
Irritated by Vintage’s arrogance, Sprout let out a low ‘hah?’, lips upturned into a smile that provided not a sliver of kindness. “Well, excuse me, but—“
“We can go to the circus floor.” Astro spat out, words rushed in an attempt to stop the argument.
Fortunately, Cosmo instantly supported that idea. “Sounds perfect! Most of the troupe is sharing a floor with the red segment anyway, so we can take the empty rooms for these… Sprouts.” There was a hint of bite while saying the last word, as if he’d been calling them idiots instead, and it wasn’t quite that, but the Sprouts let out noises of offense, so clearly, it had been the intended meaning.
“You calling us clowns?” Vintage raised an eyebrow at Astro.
And despite the way it was said, Astro didn’t feel attacked by the question. There was no harshness to it; not that he could feel.
“Well, the aquarium is also open… Do you mind a small dive?”
Silence followed his teasing response, as if nobody had been expecting the sass.
Interestingly, the first to react was the gray copy, stifling a laugh for exactly a second before letting out a louder crackle.
His hand was raised in a second, ruffling Astro’s head, leaving the cap in an awkward position, and wisps of dark, soft energy floating from the moon.
“Ah, there you are. Fine. Let’s steal the troupe’s floor.” The other replied, leaving Astro’s head a mess, before lightly nudging Astro towards the buttons.
The moon followed the motion, turning on his heels to look at the elevator control. There were quite a few options, but Astro had most of the levels memorized, and he didn’t take long to press the desired button, the fourth level.
The door of the elevator made a single noise before it slowly lowered, sealing the group in before it started moving down. Only the hum of the machine and the creaking of the gears could be heard.
Sprout—the Sprout—was firmly staring at Vintage, arms crossed and standing firm like a soldier between the clones and Cosmo in a protective way.
Honestly, Astro sort of began to regret butting in. No dirt in this burial, no reason to be here at all. He had just been the unlucky third party that happened to get involved because he had the night shift.
His friendship with Sprout was already tense, and by the glare the strawberry was sending, he had not the slightest doubt he was in as much trouble as the copies were.
Relief exuded from the little sigh he gave when the elevator dinged, stopping on the troupe’s floor, bright colors welcoming them once the door swung open.
“You can take this floor,” Astro mumbled.
“Sorry, bud,” Blue peeked his head in between Astro and Vintage, spooking the former into jumping and annoying the latter into groaning. “What was that? I couldn’t hear you!”
“I- uh…” he cleared his throat, moving away from both copies. Too close. “I said you can take this floor.”
He hoped that he did a good job at hiding the small blush that covered his face. The last thing he needed was to explain the reason why his face turned a brighter shade of blue.
“Great!” Blue, pushing Vintage aside—receiving a low curse of complaint that he took no mind in—before sprinting to the hallway.
The circus troupe floor wasn’t huge. With only three rooms, one per member, and a common area, like all the dorm floors had. It meant it was a bit more spacious for each toon, but, considering their owners, it was also a mess.
Candy wrappers thrown all around, marking the path to Yatta’s room. Remains of ink blots and balloon sculptures. It seemed like a party had been thrown and abandoned, and it smelled like popcorn.
“I’d take you to a different floor, but…”
“Most are busy, or unusable,” Sprout finished Astro’s sentence, his voice firmer than before.
“Don’t worry,” Caramel waved him off, passing by their sides on his way to follow Blue. “This will be more than enough!”
Vintage didn’t seem entirely convinced, though.
“Can I stay in your room instead? I’ll take the floor.” He turned to Astro, the question barely loud enough to be heard inside the elevator.
His expression seemed so exhausted, suddenly looking younger with the small eye bags that showed under his eyes, and the small pout on his lips, and although Astro wanted to argue that no, why would he take Vintage Sprout to his room? Wouldn’t it make more sense to ask that to Sprout or Cosmo? His heart didn’t allow it. A crushed puppy eyed stare was more than enough to pull at his heartstrings, and his lip quivered before he sighed, in defeat.
Fortunately, he didn’t need to say anything, because Sprout and Cosmo were in between him and Vintage in seconds.
“Off you go to pick a room before they leave you Yatta’s,” Cosmo smiled pleasantly while Sprout placed his hands on Vintage’s shoulders, pushing the stunned strawberry out of the elevator.
Pure irritation shone in Vintage’s expression before he sighed and power walked to Blot’s room, opening the door and slamming it behind himself.
Blue snorted. “That’s what he gets.” His hand raised to open the door of his chosen room; Yatta’s. A last glance was given to the elevator’s occupants. “Thanks for the floor! Goodnight! Don’t let aliens steal your dreams!”
Just like Vintage, he didn’t wait for an answer. He entered the room and closed the door behind himself with a soft click.
That just left Caramel.
The candy covered strawberry turned to the remaining members of the group and smiled kindly, bowing deeply. “Thank you for taking care of us. Hopefully we’ll solve this soon and go back to our norm.” Straightening quickly, he turned to the only empty room, Looey’s. “Have a wonderful night!”
“Same,” Astro smiled at him.
“Goodnight.”
“Rest well, Sprout… Caramel!” Cosmo waved over.
And just like that, it was only them.
Silence reigned for exactly a minute before they all sighed in relief, in unison. The sudden calmness made them three deflate like balloons.
“Holy…” Sprout groaned, running a hand down his nape, massaging the small bump that had formed after years of hunching. “Please tell me I’m not that annoying,”
Cosmo snorted. “Only on days that end with y, bud. Don’t worry.”
“Oh, you,” the strawberry attacked back with a flicker to the pastry’s forehead.
Back to being a side piece.
Not that Astro minded. He’s been used to it for a long time. Despite being a main, he’s always held a small presence, falling easily to the background. Sometimes it stung a bit.
It’s a bit… shameful to admit it. But the attention Vintage gave him, in just a few minutes, it made him ache for more. He wanted more. More bickering, the way Sprout and Cosmo currently were.
“Oi! No poking the sides!”
“Says who?”
“Cheater, it’s always been a rule!”
“Nuh huh.”
“What do you mean nuh huh? Yuh huh!”
The closeness. The care.
Ever since Dandy revealed to them part of his operation, Astro and Sprout have been distant.
Of course they get along… but..
They’re not exactly friends, anymore.
Longing. That was the feeling that filled his chest as he raised a hand to the shoulder Vintage had been hugging him from, his hand behind the fabric of the blanket, softly tapping the spot. It’s not that he wanted Vintage back. It’s that he deeply missed that closeness he had to Sprout.
Not that he would ever admit that out loud. That’s stupid. Sprout clearly didn’t miss him. If anything, the strawberry resented him. His choices, his silence.
“Astro?”
Cosmo’s voice snapped him out of his thoughts.
The faint taste of burnt sugar further cemented his consciousness back into reality. He tasted the ichor melting into his saliva like dye drops inside a glass of water. His jaw unclenched as he realized he’d been biting down in his lip until he broke skin, looking up with wide eyes at the duo.
Neither of them seemed upset. Cosmo, a bit worried, maybe. Sprout had his head tilted to the side, like analyzing what the heck was the issue with Astro.
Despite their initial reactions, both softened their gazes when they caught the surprise and confusion that Astro exuded.
“We asked if you’re coming back up with us or if you’re staying a bit longer,” Cosmo replied softly, kindly. His voice was warm, like hot cocoa in winter.
“Though, I don’t know why you’d want to stay longer in here,” Sprout apported to the conversation an irritated grumble, crossing his arms over his chest and looking away, brows furrowed and lip twisting.
Astro wasn’t surprised. He could physically feel the dislike Sprout felt for the copies. Such a reaction was expected.
So he smiled, the best he could–wobbly, awkward–and shook his head. “No, no… I’m good to go”.
“Great,” Cosmo smiled brightly, his hands that had been settled over his lap, playing with his fingers, moved to his hips, making him look more confident. “Come on, let’s go, then!” he waved him over.
And Astro followed with swift steps, settling on the corner of the space, the elevator door closing behind him, just allowing him one last glance at the now empty, rainbow hallway, right before it sealed them in.
He did not expect to see Sprout stomping down his way, like a toon on a mission. Luck on his side, he froze and did not flinch when the strawberry stopped right in front of him, looking him over for a moment before looking behind him.
Oh, yeah. The buttons.
A side step to the side is fortunately more than enough to give space for the other to control the elevator.
How shameful. The way his heart beat wildly. What was he thinking would happen? Stupid is an understatement for how he felt at the current time.
Hopefully, no one noticed the bright color covering his face. No, that would just be the cherry on top of this disastrous situation.
After that, it took no more than a minute to reach Astro’s floor. Not enough time for anyone to start a conversation, and he was truly happy about that, because there was an uncomfortable tingle on his left temple that forebode a headache.
“Uh… Good… Goodnight,” Astro lowered his chin under the blanket, his voice barely loud enough to be heard even when muffled. “I’ll… see you later.”
“Goodnight, Astro!” Cosmo returned his farewell with enthusiasm. “We’ll see you tomorrow!”
Sprout did not match that energy. He seemed to still be upset, because he sighed for the nth time in the night, head lowered down to his shoulders, and looked away with contempt for the floor, apparently, stepping back to stand by Cosmo’s side once more. “Yeah. Sleep well, Astro, I better not catch you dozing off tomorrow.”
Under the fabric, the moon’s lip twisted, just slightly disappointed by the dry reply.
There was nothing else to say. Like curtains in a stage, the door lowered one more time, and now, the moon was all alone, standing under the dim, blue lights of his observatory-themed room.
“...” his head tilted forward with defeat and exhaustion. “...I don’t think I’ll be able to sleep tonight.”