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It was a regular Tuesday evening, which meant Technoblade was sat on his couch reading his much-loved copy of The Art of War. Unfortunately, the poor thing was quite literally crumbling apart with how much he read it.
No matter. On this regular Tuesday evening, he was determined to sit here with his book and tea and finally just relax for a little bit.
Should I really do this?
The thought came to him randomly. He could tell it wasn’t his; it was the admin of the server’s, Dream’s. Techno could hear his quiet voice in his head, along with everyone else’s he came across. It was truly quite remarkable that they could be heard over the Voices.
This ‘gift’ was something he was born with. A glitch in his code. It didn’t do anything harmful, so he decided to leave it be and just enjoy the free information. However, at times like this when Techno was trying to relax, he wishes he could just rip the thoughts out of his head and-
Who am I kidding, just get it over with.
“Sounds intense,” Techno commented aloud. Wonder what the homeless dude was doing.
A knock on his door.
BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD
Technoblade set his book down with a sigh, reluctantly getting up from the comfort of his couch. The knocking persisted, growing more insistent.
"I'm coming, I'm coming," he muttered to himself, making his way to the door.
When he opened it, he was greeted by a familiar face- or, mask. It was Dream.
“Hey Techno!” he greeted cheerfully.
HI DREAM!!
Said man raised an eyebrow. “Dream. Whadda doin’ at my front door this late?”
Ignoring him, Dream stepped inside and looked around as if he hadn’t been in his house before. Techno shut the door and went right back to reading on the couch.
“Did you do some renovations?” the man asked instead of answering. Techno sighed. Unfortunately, he was used to the man showing up randomly. At least the admin still knocked, unlike basically anyone but Ranboo and Niki.
“Yup.” It was the boring answer, short and sweet. Probably not suitable for the hours of hard labor he had put in to make his house more of a home.
Dream flopped down on the new couch next to him and lowered his hood. His blond hair had Techno almost running his hands through it. To see if he had snuck gold in it, of course. No other reason.
“You better not have any dirt on ya, teletubby. Who knows when ya last had a decent shower if ya don’t even got a house.”
“I HAVE A HOUSE!”
Techno chuckled. It was fun having Dream riled up.
“Mhm. And I’m a wheat farmer.”
The admin sat up suddenly, looking him up and down. They were awfully close. “No, you’re not. You went to war with a little child over potatoes.”
okay he wasn’t THATTT young
yeah maybe like 18??
legal age to join the military cmon now
“Ah, so you’re homeless and a stan.” Techno smiled lightly at the punch his shoulder received.
“Well, maybe. I used to go to a few of your tournaments and perhaps one or two Minecraft Monday competitions, but that’s not-“
I went to every single one of them.
Dream stopped at the incredulous look he got from Techno. “Aren’t you the guy that asked to be my Minecraft Monday partner? You’re such a stan, Dream, admit it. I bet you’re a Technomillionaire to boot.”
“Am not!”
“Don’t lie.”
“I’m not lying! I have a limit of three hundred dollars a week to donate-“ he slapped a hand over his mouth. “To… everyone,” the man finished weakly.
Techno stared at him. Dream shrunk back and whispered, “Maybe I am a stan.”
“Chat already knew, Dream. They say you’re a channel member too.” Patting the green man’s arm jokingly, they lapsed into a comfortable silence only broken by the crackling of the fire.
His membership started like three years ago btw
Well, and Dream’s thoughts. Since he was so close, Techno had a way easier time reading them, even if he didn’t want to. Right now, he was desperately trying to keep his composure for some reason. Poor guy must be embarrassed at being called out. Then again, he didn’t really care. It was funny.
“Can ya stop panicking?” Techno snapped after a while of this. Dream jumped at that, and his thoughts were now extremely panicked. He would’ve felt bad if he wasn’t listening to them for for too long. “I can’t really blame ya for being a stan, Dream, but you look like yer about to collapse and I don’t want to have to clean you in addition to my poor couch.”
What? Is my mask not on or something? Dream’s fingers reached to touch his mask. How did he know I was panicking?
“Sorry?” he said finally. “I’m confused. How did you-”
“Nothin’ to worry yer pretty little head about.” Techno wondered how it was possible to stutter in your thoughts. Dream seemed to know. Maybe he should ask.
Wha- WHAT. Did he just call me?? Oh my gosh?? Was he trying to call me pretty, or dumb, or just casually say a common phase even though we never say that sort of stuff around each other, but I wish we did, but kinda not at the same time because if we jokingly flirted like I do with my other friends I would just get my hopes up-
What a run-on sentence. Honestly, Player was his third language, and he could still speak it better than the admin of the server he was on. And why was he getting his hopes up? Not that he could ask, of course, because having someone casually reading your thoughts without your knowledge was just a little bit creepy.
“Dream?” Techno said instead. “You alright?”
No. “Yeah, sorry, I just-” am really disappointed. “-zoned out a bit.” Dream’s leg was bouncing. Techno frowned. He wasn’t acting right at all.
What’s teletubby nervous about :-(
I think we all know!!
How did you make that face you’re a voice
“You look disappointed. What’s wrong?” Honestly, Techno wasn’t acting right either. He himself didn’t know why he asked, it just slipped out like he cared about what was going on with his rival.
Dream looked down at his shaking leg and stood up, tugging at the sleeves of his disgustingly bright hoodie. Techno could see his shivering. “Do you have any more wood?” Avoiding the question. Nice. And to make it better, the mind reading thing just suddenly stopped. Great. Now he was hearing the thoughts of Phil in the house next to him.
What should I make for dinner? Old man.
Techno decided to let it go. He stood up, easily towering over the smaller man. Throwing some more wood in the fire, which admittedly was getting quite low, he stalked off to his small linen closet in search of a blanket for Dream.
“Where are you going?” the man asked. He didn’t deem this worthy of a response and soon had the blanket. “Technooo, answer-” he was cut off by a fuzzy something hitting him in the head. “Oof!”
I’m feeling chicken noodle soup tonight.
“That was so dramatic, Dream, how do you fall on the couch from the force of a blanket hitting you-”
“Oh, don’t act like you threw it really gently-”
“Not if you act like it's a forty-pound weight-”
“Am not! You just threw it too hard!”
In their bickering, Dream didn’t notice Techno walking over until he moved the blanket and wrapped Dream up in it.
“What are you doing! I don’t want to be a burrito!” he screamed angerly, thrashing around in his cotton prison. Techno simply laughed at him.
awww!!
simpnoblade soon??
blood for the-
QUIET
Yeah, I’ll do that. Now where’s the- Finally, he was free of Phil’s thoughts. Wonder who was next.
"Stop squirming. You’re cold and you need to warm up," Techno said firmly, tucking the blanket snugly around Dream. Dream eventually stopped thrashing and sighed, settling into the warmth of the blanket and the crackling fire. Techno brought his fingers to the clasp of the younger man’s mask and waited for an objection. There was none. With a clatter, the article fell to the coffee table, revealing Dream’s red face.
The silence stretched between them, comfortable but with an undercurrent of tension. Techno returned to his spot on the couch, picking up his book again but not really reading it. His eyes flicked over to Dream, who was staring into the fire, lost in thought.
"Why are you really here, Dream?" Techno finally asked, unable to let it go. "You don’t just show up for no reason."
He stayed silent for a moment longer. “I was just in the area and decided to visit,” he said with a shrug. That’s not true. Wow, Dream’s thoughts again, nearly twice in a row. This is new.
Now, Dream was an excellent liar. Without his own thoughts outing him, Techno probably would’ve believed him. The only problem- why was he lying?
“Don’t lie to me,” he said firmly. The speedrunner looked startled. Guess he thought he was a good liar too. “Now, I’ll ask again. Why are you here, Dream?”
The panic would’ve been obvious even with a mask on. Only thing is, Techno didn’t know why.
Lol obliviousblade
crushnoblade??
shhh im listening
Dream took a deep breath. “So, Tech, we’re good friends, right?”
“Right…” he responded slowly. “Where are you going with this?”
“Ihaveacrushonyouimsorryifthismakesthingsawkwardijusthadtogetitout-“
“Slow down, Dream. I’m not fluent enough in Player for that.” Admittedly, the words came out a bit harsher than he’d meant them to. Techno made sure to reach over and squeeze the man’s shoulder to soften the blow.
“Sorry,” Dream said automatically, face as bright as the sun. “It’s just that I, uhm…”
Like you. No, love you. I have for a year now and I'm just too scared to tell you.
What.
Outside of Dream’s thoughts, he continued more normally, “Well, there’s no way to say this easily… I’ve liked you for a while now. More than as a friend I mean. A crush if you will. I understand if you don’t like me back. Completely understandable. I just needed to get that off my chest because-“
“You’re rambling, Dream,” Techno said gently, standing up. He could vividly see the admin’s face fall in disappointment.
Maybe that wasn’t the best choice of words to articulate his own feelings towards Dream. In his defense, they were presumably not reciprocated for years.
Shut up, chat.
This was a mistake. I told myself that he wouldn’t care about my crush but he does and I’ve ruined our friendship.
“I understand,” Dream murmured sadly as he stood up to leave. “I’ll just go now-“
“Wait.” Techno turned on his heel sharply. “Sit back down. I need to grab something real fast.”
The man sighed but sat on the couch once more, head tilted down. Techno didn’t get much more of a read on his body language before turning around and stalking off to his bedroom.
Innocently sat in the middle of his nightstand drawer lay a simple red box, tied with a light golden bow.
(The same color of his hair..)
Y’ALL ITS TIMEEE
ITS HAPPENING OMG
IM SO EXCITED
GO GET YOUR MANS TECHNO!!
SHUT UP GUYS I WANNA LISTEN
The box was awfully heavy when he picked it up, due to its contents no doubt. However, the mental implications of giving this to someone was heavier.
Dream had to be the one though. He was perfect. Golden skin, green eyes like emeralds, agile, and strong enough to hold his own against even Techno.
Perfect for a mate.
The man on the couch hadn’t moved when Techno returned. However, his thoughts were a different story.
What’s going on? Did I do something wrong? Is he getting the sharpest sword to stab me with? Is the idea of me crushing on him that bad? He’s coming back omg omg omg-
“Dream.” Techno stopped right in front of the man. “You might not understand what I’m about to do, as it is a piglin tradition. I don’t blame you.”
So I am getting stabbed..
Sighing at his own bad conversation skills, Techno brought out the red box and opened it. Dream audibly gasped at the sight.
In it lay a woven golden ring. Almost mimicking smoke, the band swirled delicately until it presented the most beautifully crafted ruby Dream had ever seen. Strands of metal encompassed the delicate gem and ended with swirls so intricately designed it was nearly impossible to tell where it ended.
“This is beautiful,” Dream muttered, “but Techno, why are you showing me this? Oh! I get it now, I’m sorry, I didn’t know you were already dating someone-“
Techno chuckled lightly. “This isn’t an engagement ring, Dream. That’s why I said its meaning is piglin in origin. It’s a courting ring, meant to start a courtship with one you’re interested in pursuing.
“I know you’re confused. Dream, as long as you’ve had your crush on me, I’ve had a bigger crush on you. Ever since we met in that duel I was entranced. Piglins look for mates of similar strength, determination, and courage, as well as other factors. You met all of my expectations and then some. So, in simpler, player terms, I’m asking you to be my boyfriend. Count this as a promise ring I suppose- OW!”
Dream had slapped him. “You had me worried sick for nothing, you big oaf! I should reject you right now for all that!”
“So that’s a no?”
“That’s a put the ring on my finger already, you idiot.”