2,263 WORDS YALL THIS GOT OUT OF HAND FAST HELP

it's kind of all over the place I'm sorry

But it's a continuation from the last short so I'd recommend reading that first to see how the boys got to this place.

Also, Sammy may act like he doesn't care but when he saw a financial need among his musicians, he delivered. Some needed care for the instruments, others needed them tuned, and at least one needed help with student loan debt.

that is why Sammy currently has most (if not all) of his utilities off now bc he covered for his musicians instead of paying the bills.

Pairing: Norman x Sammy, no other pairings mentioned.

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      Oh, he had not signed up for this.

       Had he gotten a fairly restless night of sleep? Yes. But during the night, Norman's arm had come over his waist. He could feel the projectionist's breath against his ear and neck, making him shiver just by the way it was unexpected along his body.

      Still, it took a while for him to wake up. On the plus side, this would make for some good blackmail.

     If only Norman would wake up. Then he could come to realize why he didn't mind waking up with Norman pressed against him.

      "...what time is it..." Norman grumbled behind him, almost incoherent from the sleep he was still in. The words sent shivers down Sammy's spine, and he had to remind himself that he was staying for extra blackmail against Norman. Not because he enjoyed the contact. Who would suggest such a thing?

       "Time to get up, Polk," Sammy muttered, trying to shove the arm off of him.

      "...jus' five minutes..."

     Sammy managed to squirm around enough to turn around and face Norman, probably to yell at the projectionist.

   Why couldn't one thing go according to plan today?!

     Norman's half-asleep face was, dare Sammy to admit even to himself, cute. As Sammy turned to look, the projectionist gave him a sleepy smile that poked at the cracks within his stone heart.

   "Mornin' Sammy," he said through a yawn. If his smile had made cracks, the way he seemed to brighten up when the first person he greeted was the grumpy music director shattered any walls around Sammy's heart.

    "We've gotta get up, so stop being cute and get up."

   Why in the name of Bendy was Norman so cute when he drew back into the comfort of the mats? And why did he do nothing but chortle when Sammy became flustered at what he'd said?

   "If it's past eleven you owe me dinner," Sammy conceded. "But you can't stay here forever."

   "'m not comin' to work today."

   "Yeah. You're going home. Where we are supposed to be."

  "If goin' home means I gets to see your face in the mornin' I sure ain't gonna complain."

    He got a pillow in the face for that.

    Somehow, the projectionist wasn't angry. Or upset. He just laughed and sat up. "If tha's the worst of wha' you can do, it'd be worth it each mornin'," he said.

    Sammy stood up and grumbled. "Are you sure there's nobody here?"

   "Studio's empty so Stein can get his proposal ready for Saturday. Woulda had to drag him from his desk if Drew saw him at his desk."

   Sammy didn't even bother to thank the projectionist, opening the door to the sanctuary and leaving when he saw Norman's words to be true.

   The bendy clock didn't lie, though, proudly displaying the time- 11:59 am.

     Hah! That meant he'd be able to get a free dinner!

    Sammy turned right back around to announce to Norman that he'd won the little wager, only to run right into him.

    "Miss me already?" The projectionist chuckled.

    "You owe me dinner," Sammy replied.

   To his disappointment, Norman didn't show a hint of disappointment when he lost the wager. All he did was look at a nearby clock and shrug.
 
   "So I have. What sounds good?"

   "Do you care what my preference in food is?"

   Norman shrugged. "If it means you're eating something, that's good enough for me. For at least two weeks all you've been going off of is the bacon soup, which is disgustin' and not healthy for you. 'Sides, goin' out would give you a reason to get cleaned up."

   The music director opened his mouth to say something, but one whiff of himself confirmed what Norman had said. He was filthy.

   "Fine. What time do you want to meet?"

   "Whatever time you're ready to go. Want me to drop you off?"

     "I'll catch a cab. Pick me up around 5:30, and if you're late I'll tell everyone how much of a cuddler you are."

   "You got it. Send me an address then?"

    The cab ride to his home was uneventful, and only a cold, dark foyer greeted him inside.

   Great. After a quick faucet check, he had his worst fears confirmed. Bills had been due. Bills he had not been able to pay.

   He should've been; after all, he certainly wasn't earning minimum wage and was usually comfortable. That being said, getting instruments tuned and the equipment needed to keep them working was pricey. At least his phone bill wasn't due for at least a month now.

   Lawrence had bigger problems. He needed a proper shower, but without running water, he couldn't get one.

   Instead, he wandered around his home alone, using his phone as a flashlight. It wasn't uncommon to be uncomfortable or scared of your house in the dark because the furniture and belongings often looked very different in the dark, but...other than his instruments, there wasn't a lot of furniture.

    "Shoot! What the hell!" He exclaimed, almost dropping the phone as it buzzed.

    'Hey, Mister Lawrence. Just checking in on ya. Have ya gotten freshened up yet? Let me know if you need anything.'

  Leaning against a wall, he typed a response.

  'Doesn't matter. It'd be better if we just didn't do dinner.'

    A pang of regret brought a flood of anxiety and fear. What if Norman thought that he was angry about this morning? He couldn't remember the last time he'd been held like he'd been only an hour or so ago.

    'We don't have to go out. Your place or mine?'

     The projectionist was so determined, Sammy could feel...something funny. To think that Norman would go to such lengths to make sure that the music director was okay? Absurd. Still....free dinner.

   'Yours. No utilities at mine at the moment.'

  The text hadn't been sent for a minute before a response came through.

   'No utilities? If you want, get some clean clothes and bring them over as well. You can use my shower.'

   Thankfully nobody was around. The perk of living alone is that if you blushed or became embarrassed nobody could tease you for it.

    'Fine. Better come early then.'

   The phone was on the counter, Norman's last message ignored as the music director raced to find some clothes.

  'Counting on it. Be there at 15.'

   Up the stairs he went, tearing into his dresser.

   Downstairs he went, finding a small knapsack to stuff everything in. As soon as he'd gotten it down, a knock came on his door.

   "It's open!" He called out, from somewhere in the kitchen. The phone was somewhere, dangit.

    The hinges of the front door creaked open, yet despite the squeaky floor just a step into the foyer, he heard no footfalls.

    "Lawrence? What happened to your lights?"

   The door closed behind his unexpected guest, yet if Norman went to the kitchen, Sammy couldn't hear.

   "Making sure instruments are in tune and good shape is expensive. Some of the musicians told me they were struggling, so I took care of it," he snapped, jumping when Norman put his hand on the music director's shoulder.

    How in the world could Norman navigate the dark so quickly?

    Granted, the kitchen wasn't that far from the foyer, so it wasn't like there was a huge distance to cross.

    "Do you need help with paying the bills?"

     "Don't want to talk about it."

     "Fine by me. Do you want me to help you through the dark?"

     In the darkness, Sammy scoffed and turned on his heel, walking to the entrance of his home. After a pause, Norman chuckled and followed after him.

   Now headed to Norman's apartment, the drive passed in mostly silence. Once they were parked, the walk up to Norman's apartment went by quickly as well.

    "Shower's down the hall to the left," Norman said as they stepped inside. "Before you get in I'll get a fresh towel for you to use."

   "Alright. C'mon then, don't just stand there."

    The shower was more pleasant than Sammy would have liked to admit, and he almost stayed in the warm water longer than he should have.

   Still, he didn't want to make Norman worry more than he already was, so he got out sooner than he'd liked, using the spare towel to dry off before stepping into the clothes he had packed.

   Note to self: offer to have the towel dry cleaned. The ink wasn't gonna come out anytime soon.

    After drying his hair just enough to where it wouldn't drip everywhere, he tied it back just enough to stay out of his face.

    "Feelin' better?" Norman asked, picking up his phone. "If it's alright with you, I'll put in an order for some pizza."

   "Fine. How long till it gets here?"

   "About five to ten minutes. Have a preference for the topping?"

   "No."

   "Alright. Want to see if anything's on?"

   "Fine. Where's the remote?"

   With Sammy flopped on the couch, grumpily scrolling through channels, Norman got an order for some pizza going. Thankfully, from Sammy's position on the couch he couldn't see into the small kitchen where Norman had...a surprise, to say the least.

    "Well are you coming or what?"

    With pizza on the way, there wasn't a need for Norman to stand around in the kitchen. So he came into the living area, where Sammy had gotten himself comfy among the throws that Norman had laying around.

   It almost looked like Sammy made himself at home. Like they were already living together-

   Well that was a train of thought for another day. Would Sammy mind if he sat closer? He kept his apartment fairly cold; it wasn't a bother most days since he was hardly in it, but the chill made it more pleasant to slip under the covers and kept him awake when he needed it.

   "Your place is colder than hell, Polk. What are you doing all the way over there?"

     Norman glanced over to see that Sammy was opening up the nest of blankets.

    "Stop staring and get over here before I leave you to the hypothermia."

   Well, if he was offering, best not to make him wait. Carefully crawling into the offered space, he tried not to think about the close contact and how cozy the whole thing was. Nope. Do not think about how- wait Sammy?!

   "What are you-?" He asked, startled when Sammy, saying nothing, curled on the projectionist's lap, resting his head against Norman's chest.

   "Your place is too damn cold."

   Now that Sammy brought it up, a pang of guilt shot through Norman. The musician had goosebumps up and down his arms, and the fact that he'd just gotten a shower wasn't making it any better.

   "Sorry 'bout tha'. Didn' think it'd be a bother to you."

     Though Sammy mumbled something in response, Norman couldn't understand what it was.

    "So...what movie are we watchin'?" He asked, looking at the screen. There was a lot of films he was expecting to see; maybe a musical or something like that.

   .....

   "...so...Jaws...?" Norman asked.

   "You said once that you'd never seen the movie before. It just so happens to be one that I enjoy."

   Oh.

   *ding-dong!*

   "The pizza!" Norman yelped, moving the blankets aside and trying to get up. Sammy did not cooperate.

    Well, not at first. But with the pizza secured, he was happy to help get things comfortable- though he still preferred to stick to Norman's lap, claiming it to be more comfortable than the couch.

   Their medium-sized cheese pizza was enough for the two of them, and as they finished the box, the movie really got moving. A quick glance at the clock told Norman that it was nearing 7:30. Where had the time gone?

   "C'mon, stop staring at the time and watch the movie. You'll like it."

   Before he could stop himself, Norman chuckled and pressed a kiss to the top of Sammy's head.

   The two of them froze, ignoring the scene of beach-wide panic playing on the screen in front of them.

    "...I didn' mean ta do tha' oh lord I'm so sorry..."

   Sammy laughed at him, turning to face Norman properly. "Promise I won't tell anyone about this..." he said, a coy smile making Norman gulp in worry. "If you'll take me out next week?"

   Nervous laughter broke out among them, and despite his nervousness, Norman felt brave, pulling the two of them down so that they could lay on the couch together.
  
   "Of course, of course."

    Sammy hummed, content, and drew the blankets around them. He now knew why he didn't mind the position he had woken up in; and now he was content to remain right where he was. But part of him was slightly mortified that he'd said something so bold, even though he still had no running water. "Still might need to borrow your shower," he said quickly.

   "Anything for you," Norman chuckled, running his fingers through Sammy's hair, now tugged free. It smelled like the projectionist now, and it was addicting.

    "You big dummy. Couldn't even get through one movie," Sammy teased, though it gradually faded to a yawn.

   "Goodnight Sammy," Norman said softly, wrapping his arms protectively around the musician. For a heartbeat, he listened to Sammy's gentle snoring (which was not something he would share with anyone, he decided) and played with the musician's hair.

   Still, as the night progressed, he couldn't keep himself awake, and so they stayed right where they were, content in each other's arms.

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I have responsibilities why have I been focused on this for the past few days AHSHAHHSHDDNDN