Au: High school

WC: ~2.4k

Probably the longest title I've ever given a oneshot! I wrote this months ago and I never intended to publish it if I'm being honest. I always enjoyed those 4+1, 5+1, etc fics and just wanted to take a spin at one myself! But then I saw a clip from Doc's Episode 42 and he and Bdubs were interacting. Real genuine Bdoc crumbs!! So in celebration of that, I wanted to post this! And I thought Doc having a rare Bdubs card was going to be the last of my crumbs for the season!

This doesn't take place within the same week btw, I like to imagine multiple weeks go between each interaction

-

It was a Saturday evening, and long-time friends Bdubs and Doc had taken a bus into the city and had spent the entire day out. They had no plan, simply hoping for an adventure. They shopped, tried new food, found an arcade, and caught a movie at the cinema.

Doc couldn't help but lightly laugh when Bdubs yawned for what felt like the fifth time as they sat on the bench, waiting for the bus that would get them within walking distance of their homes.

"Long day, huh?" He teased.

Cracking a smile, Bdubs nodded. "Fun too," he added. "I like being spontaneous with you."

His compliments never failed to leave a warm feeling in his chest. "I like being with you- being spontaneous with you," he agreed, minding the brief moment of panic that came with his slip-up.

When the bus finally arrived and they took seats next to each other - Bdubs, of course, getting the window seat - Doc finally calmed down.

But his calm only lasted so long.

"I think I'm just gonna nap for the ride. Wake me when we get to our stop," Bdubs mumbled, leaning his head back against the seat and closing his eyes.

"Oh, sure, yeah." He wasn't sure if it was weird of him or not, but he couldn't help but watch as his friend dozed off. There was something he always found... nice about how peaceful he looked when he slept.

Then Bdubs' head began to dip. Then it rolled towards Doc.

"Ah-" The moment his head rested against his shoulder, Bdubs exhaled, his body shifting ever so slightly. His heart skipped a beat but his body froze up. Flexing his hands, Doc swallowed and faced forward.

Bdubs then snuggled more against him and he sharply inhaled. He desperately hoped the booming of his heartbeat wouldn't wake him if he could even hear or feel it.

Daring to look down, his fingers hesitated to reach for the hands folded in Bdubs' lap. No, that's stupid. Don't touch his hands. Don't touch him at all. Why is this making you so nervous?

He argued with himself that he shouldn't move his friend, because he'd just slump against the window, and that would never be comfortable.

The rational part of him wanted to get home sooner. However, the rest of him prayed every traffic light would be red if it meant just a few more minutes.

-

"After you," Bdubs insisted, holding his front door open.

Doc thanked him as he stepped inside, eager to get out of the Tuesday afternoon rain. Although it was only a drizzle, he knew it was a matter of time before it grew into a heavy downpour. Thankfully if it did, his house was just one street over and his dad had already assured him he could pick him up if need be.

Regardless, for the time being, he was at Bdubs' house.

Shoes removed and school bags left by the entrance, he followed his friend upstairs to his room, despite the path being one he had been following for over a decade. "Is it fine if I-"

"Yeah yeah, just sit on my bed. I don't care if you make it a little damp." His friend assured him. So he sat down with a little bounce while Bdubs stayed standing. "Anyways! Can you believe what Joe did? I'm mad I didn't think of that first!"

Leaning back with his arms to brace him, Doc laughed. "You'd rather be the one to hide small plastic cats around the school? I mean yeah it's pretty funny but I heard the principal is actually upset about it. I'd rather you didn't get in trouble," he pointed out.

"True I guess. Ugh okay, I need to take this off," Bdubs grumbled, turning to face his back to Doc.

At first, the hybrid didn't think much of it when his friend began tugging at the back of his mossy green hoodie. But when he started to pull it up off his back, his black shirt was pulled up with it, exposing his bare back. And at that moment, Doc's heart stopped.

It was nothing he hadn't seen before; tan skin covered in freckles and moles.

Yet still, he slowly sat back up straight and drew a hand over his face which was growing increasingly warmer. He was finding himself resisting the urge to place his palm against his skin and trace his fingers along his markings. If anything, it was undeniable proof that he most certainly had developed a crush on his friend.

He couldn't help but feel blessed when Bdubs got stuck for a few more moments, his shirt still clinging to his hoodie. "I- I don't know how this happened!" He heard his somewhat muffled voice laugh. Then he turned around and Doc suppressed a curse.

Bdubs' whole abdomen was on display for him to see. He couldn't help but gawk. His heart was racing and he was gripping the blanket beneath him. Doc found himself imagining his hands running up and down his sides, caressing the shape of his rib cage, kissing the freckles sprinkled over his warm skin.

But instead, he stayed seated, laughing at his friend's predicament.

Although it couldn't have been more than a minute or two, it felt as though he was given an eternity to admire him before the hoodie was given a final tug off. The shirt let go and draped back over his body, though the images were burned into Doc's mind.

Bdubs plopped down next to him, too close to him. As the bed dipped their shoulders brushed for a moment and Bdubs lightly hit his knee with his own. "So what would you do then? What would be your epic school prank?" Bdubs teased.

If he noticed how much Doc was burning up, he said nothing.

Swallowing thickly, he blinked his gaze away from him. "Uh, I'm not- I'm not really sure what I would do. But, maybe it'd be fun to do something crazy. I guess I'd- regardless I'd want to wait until the buzz around Joe's stunt died down." He eased into his normal trains of thought, rambling in a tone a bit more serious than necessary.

"Well hey; if you ever do come up with a genius plan, I'll be your help if you need it, 'kay?" Bdubs offered, bumping his arm with a big smile.

He matched his smile, the butterflies in his stomach getting set off by his touch. "Okay," he breathed.

-

It was a sunny Wednesday afternoon. Doc offered that they went to his house to rehearse their scene for their theatre class, but Bdubs argued that his was closer.

"How well do you know your lines?" The hybrid asked as he leaned against the desk behind him.

Bdubs made a face and made a 'so-so' gesture with his hand. "I mean- I know I know them, but I'm not super confident and I don't really have my cues down," he explained.

He nodded. "Well, that's better than me for sure. I've only got like, half my lines memorized," he admitted, glancing at the script in his hand. What he wouldn't admit to was the reason he wasn't memorized. Bdubs had chosen the scene, which meant that in front of their class, Doc had to urge Bdubs' character that they could be together, despite their difference in status. Professing his love to his crush was not something he wanted to do so publicly. "Maybe we start with us practicing just your lines and cues. I'll read off the script to test you once or twice and then we switch so I can figure out exactly where I know up to."

Bdubs agreed before taking a deep breath and got into character; a butler to the newly-crowned king. "We are on schedule for the ball in four days. After which, the noble guests will leave, and our treaties will be strengthened if all goes well. You still need your fitting for your suit and finalize the main course you want to be served." A pause, then; "Your Majesty?"

Doc swallowed. He was jealous that his friend never seemed embarrassed whereas his eyes were glued to the paper. "Ray I- you know I'm simply Octavius to you."

"Forgive me, Majesty, but I'm afraid that's far too improper. You're a king; appearances are of the most importance. When we were small children, it was a different story." Bdubs frowned. "Was that right, or is the children line before the appearance line?"

"No, you had it right," he assured him, shaking his head. He then read out his line. "Have I done something to make you angry?"

"Oh, wait, hold on!" Bdubs clapped his hands together.

The hybrid exhaled with relief. Another line and he would be declaring he'd rather give up his crown if it meant sharing a life with him by his side.

But then Bdubs moved closer to him, and his anxiety quickly arose. "We should use this."

"What're you-"

Doc's mouth went dry. His question faded into the air as Bdubs stood in front of him, reaching up to grab something off the shelf behind his head. He stared at the other's face, who was so close that if he even began to stand up straight they could kiss.

Surely it was intentional, right? He could've easily asked him to move.

When Bdubs grabbed what he wanted, his eyes dropped to meet his gaze, his smile softening. "What? Something on my face?"

He could barely shake his head. "No, sorry."

"Don't apologize," Bdubs giggled. "Here; to help you get in character." The golden crown that was on the shelf was placed on his head. Doc couldn't help but notice how Bdubs' hands lingered by the side of his head. Though it could be argued that he was making sure it fit.

"Thanks." He was too nervous to raise his voice. His heart was about to run right out of his chest.

Then Bdubs put his hands on his shoulders and it took everything in him not to jump. He had a death grip on his script. "Now you're King Octavius!" I could kiss him. We could kiss right now. Forget working on our scene I'd rather make out with him.

Yet the only thing he could do was give a weak smile. "It's- it's perfect," he agreed.

Finally, Bdubs stepped back. "Can we start over?"

"Of course, yeah."

He cleared his throat, looking back at his script. Yet, when he snuck another glance at Bdubs, he could've sworn his smile was bigger. And maybe it wasn't his imagination; maybe his cheeks were as red as he thought.

-

Despite the chill in the air, the pair sat on Doc's back porch on a Sunday, watching the sun disappear from the sky before Bdubs had to head home.

"Sunsets and sunrises always look like paintings to me," Bdubs sighed. "They're beautiful." He looked over at Doc and grinned.

He nodded in response, finding himself wishing Bdubs would call him beautiful like that.

Instead, he switched the subject. "Are you cold? Is your hoodie not enough?" He asked, a mix of teasing and concern coming out.

His friend was hugging himself, his chin tucked into the collar of the mossy green hoodie. "Not really, but I'll be fine."

The hybrid gave a half-shrug. "I mean, it feels fine to me," he admitted.

Bdubs scoffed. "Yeah, it's not fair! I'm in two layers when all you have is that long sleeve shirt and I'm the one who's cold? You've got heaters in those bionics of yours, don't you?"

He couldn't help but laugh and admit that yes, he was well-heated thanks to his upgrades.

"Dude, share," Bdubs muttered, scooching closer.

Doc's heart stopped as Bdubs wrapped himself around his arm and squeezed him while pressing against him. He couldn't breathe. Was he even aware of what he was doing to Doc?

"Yeah- sorry, uh-" he whispered. Despite feeling on fire, his body was frozen stiff, as if the slightest movement would scare Bdubs away.

His friend lifted his head slightly. "Are you... Okay?"

He nodded. "Of- Of course, why wouldn't I be?" He laughed, forcing himself to meet his eyes.

Unfortunately, Bdubs began to pull away. "If I made you uncomfortable, you know you can always say so." His friend reminded him.

No, no, don't go away. Don't let go of me, I wanted it to last longer!

Without thinking if it was the right thing to do or not, he touched his arm. "You'd never make me uncomfortable," he insisted. "I'm more than happy to keep you warm." He spoke with such seriousness to mask how flustered he felt.

"No, no I-" Bdubs sighed. "It's not that I'm cold I was- god this embarrassing it was a stupid attempt to be- y'know- I don't know what I'm doing." His face was growing redder as he stumbled on his words.

Doc's eyes widened, still holding onto his arm. "Were you... were you trying to flirt with me?" He asked in disbelief.

"Maybe. Don't make fun of me okay? I get it; I was being stupid and I promise it won't-"

Any sort of self-control the hybrid had finally deteriorated after months of Bdubs unknowingly chipping away at it. Taking hold of his other arm, Doc pulled him back in and kissed him. A part of him felt instantly overwhelmed with a sense of pure bliss. Finally, he got to do what he had only dreamed of. Yet a larger part of him regretted it the moment their lips touched. He wasn't even sure if that was what Bdubs wanted. What if he got upset? It left a gross feeling in the pit of his stomach.

But then Bdubs pressed against his lips, gripping at his sleeves.

When he couldn't breathe, he finally pulled away. As he caught his breath, he lifted his hands to cup his face. "I've liked you for so long. Every time you're near me, even when you just brush against me, you make me crazy. You have no idea how long I've wanted to do that," he confessed.

"Doc," Bdubs breathed, trailing his hands down his arms to hold onto his wrists. "I- I can't even- my words are just- gone."

He laughed, leaning his head down to press their foreheads together. "Let's go on a date."

"Absolutely. What if we went into the city, and had one of our spontaneous adventures? Call that a date?" He suggested, each breath bouncing off his face.

"Sounds perfect," he murmured before kissing him again.

They parted to return to watching the last of the sunset, Bdubs tightly holding onto his arm. "It's getting dark. I should probably head home soon," he quietly noted.

"I'll walk you home," Doc whispered as he leaned his head atop his.

His heartbeat had yet to return to normal. Maybe it never would. But at least he didn't have to hide it anymore.