Hear me out. Rabbot at the Pittsburgh Noah Kahan concert.
(A little AU hc exploration, wip)
• Jack purchased the tickets. Actually he paid for the tickets — the actual purchasing action was carried through by Santos and Ellis who had enough experience with ticketing app chaos that, after some promised favors, Jack was able to leave his credit card with the younger doctors with the confidence and trust of a drill sergeant who understood his soldiers’ talents and learnt to put them to use effectively.
• Robby had been talking non-stop about this new album and insisted them listening to it on the drives home. Jack considered reiterating the fact that the custom stereo system in his truck was made for blasting and rocking out to the Killers or the Smashing Pumpkins, driving 50mph with the windows down through brisk Pittsburgh autumn nights. He did not get these surround sound speakers for the mellow tenderness of indie folk. But relationship often came with compromises, Jack knew, even if sometimes that meant watching your partner get emotional in the passenger seat and loosing him to someone singing devastatingly about horses.
• When they got to the stadium on the day of the concert, Robby and Jack fell into their familiar dance of dividing and conquering — Robby joined the dense crowd to get food and drinks, and Jack was left with the task of powering through the merch line for a hoodie that Robby swore he definitely needed. Robby would’ve offered to wait out the merch line himself, but he intended to keep the price of their beers unbeknownst to Jack. That man would never accept a 15 buck miller lite if he found out, and inevitably Robby would be subjected to the accompanied rant about mediocre beer and unnecessarily ridiculous prices in the current economy.
• Jack started to feel restless around eight minutes into holding the fort of the merch line, and as he surveyed the crowd, he soon realized he was barricaded on three sides by young people half his ages and double his energy. He felt out of place and for a second unsure of what he was even doing there. But that was before his gaze landed on the camo cap on the merch wall and decided that was his calling.
Of course when Jack found Robby half an hour later, hoodie acquired, Robby would look over and nearly drop the two beers and chicken tenders he was balancing in his hands. Jack looked unfairly hot with that freshly acquired baseball cap he decided to wear backwards, his silver curls peeking out from underneath in a way that made Robby’s face flush with heat.
Jack obviously noticed the effect. He always did.
Safe to say that camo cap became a staple in his date night wardrobe.
(Camo cap and Noah Kahan’s set list for Pittsburgh for reference)
• The hoodie Robby asked Jack to buy was twice his size, a preference of Robby’s that Jack learned and found awfully adorable. The way Robby preferred to be enveloped by a bunch of fabric to feel small even though he was objectively taller than average adult men.
Robby put the hoodie on as they walked back to their car, since the weather at night had grown a bit chillier. Jack watched Robby tug his hands into the sleeves that were a bit too long for him, and found himself staring at how the hem of the hoodie rode lower and contoured just enough to suggest the shape of Robby’s ass.
He had waited all night to get his hands on Robby. And this was bringing more tinder to the fuel.
They allegedly spent more time than necessary in that parked car before they gained their composure again to make the drive home.
• When the concert started, Robby managed to hold on for two and a half minutes before his emotions let loose and he started sniffing. As the chorus of Doors came up, Robby reached over and grabbed Jack’s hand, lacing their fingers together without saying anything.
“I just live here, babe, but you’re the one who decided to knock. You knocked.”
And Jack felt the weight of the lyrics settle in his heart, together with all the things Robby left unsaid, their intertwined past perfectly conveyed through a single squeeze of Robby’s hand against Jack’s.
• Jack spent the first two acts watching Robby. The way Robby’s eyes got bright and his face softened as he lost himself in the music. Of all the people around them recording and taking photos of the concert, Jack proudly directed his camera to the person standing next to him, unapologetically capturing every moment. Because happiness never looked better on anyone. He wouldn’t think twice about paying an absurd amount of money for anything if that meant seeing Robby like this. Content. Relaxed. Present.
Right next to him, enjoying what life could offer if he actively participated.
• When Willing and Able came up though, Robby instantly crumpled and Jack followed suit. They’d been through too much to pretend that a song like this didn’t manage to reach the raw matter that was still healing within both of them. Ugly, maybe. But real. Tangible in a way that was intentional, led with a deliberate awareness that whatever this was between them — love, companionship, partnership or however they choose to define it — that they were in it together.
• Of course The Great Divide was the song that started it all. They had sat in silence in Jack’s truck that May evening, the engine still running, as every second of this three minute song made an impression in each of their hearts, an impact substantial enough to drag that jumble of unspoken feelings to the surface. The air in the car had grown dense in the way only tension specific to two emotionally constipated middle-aged men was able to generate. The three-minute aperitif had ultimately trickled into an hour filled with confessions and occasional tears leaving both of them raw and exhausted. But below all of that, a buzzing indicator of a shared future that won’t be short of love.
most of the time, artists use handprint marks either in a horny sense or in a... ☠️ way.
but I decided to go for a wholesome approach – Whitaker is happy with every touch from Robby, even though they're still at the stage where physical contact only happens at work.... Also, I stylized them as heat spots rather than flat handprint drawings
casually talking about dr*gs with @spencapenca 😭 and suddenly I need a hucklerobby angst fic where robby finds out dennis is high and he loses his shit "first langdon and now you?!?! I expected more from you" type shit
Someone mentioned the trope where character A sees character B with another person of the same gender and thinks they're homophobic which made me think of Hucklerobby in this situation.
Like Dennis has gone on a few dates with this guy now, he comes by The Pitt to pick up Dennis for a date. Everyone is joking around and teasing Dennis but Robby starts feeling irritated seeing them together. Robby telling Dennis The Pitt isn't a date night spot and that he shouldn't be bringing people who aren't patients into the ED. Dennis immediately apologizing and Robby in turn immediately feeling bad, waving him off and telling him to leave for his date.
The next time the guy swings by to pick up Dennis for another date he waits at the ambulance bay. Robby runs into him while trying to get some air, he still kinda hates the guy and watching him and Whitaker walk off together irritates him even more now. After he can no longer see them he stops to think about why he hates seeing them together and can only come to one conclusion, he is homophobic.
He's never had problems with gay people before, but seeing Dennis with another man gets him so mad he must be. The next time Jack and him hang out he gathers the courage to tell Jack he thinks he's homophobic and asks for advice on how to fix his bias. Jack, very confused, asks why he thinks he's homophobic, Robby explains that everytime Dennis' boyfriend comes around he gets so unexplainably angry seeing them together. Jack laughs so hard he starts crying.
currently watching: the vampire lestat (i’m like three weeks behind, keep your spoilers AWAY)
currently reading: the long game by rachel reid! and also little women but i barely have time to read these days :(
current obsession: i’m deep into zodiacs right now and learning to read birth charts. also kurt cobain.
currently working on: there’s a bob ross painting i started on like a month ago currently sitting in the corner of my room i’m waiting for the motivation to hit so i can finish it
last search: the population of birmingham, al. also a murder case that happened 30 years ago in my town.
favourite flowers: lily of the valley! also a big fan of hibiscus and frangipanis
tagging: @spencapenca @nursevanhorn @langtakerceo and anyone else who reads this and would like to :)
tagged by: @spencapenca omg idk how I missed this sorry hiiiii
last song: so hot you're hurting my feelings by caroline polachek
currently watching: starting to watch er (also finishing my superstore binge bcuz working in retail and then watching that somehow makes my shitty days better 😭)
currently reading: besides pitt fics honestly nothing but I have a free trial of audible rn if anyone has a good fantasy/drama/thriller suggestion 👀
current obsession: the pitt, no seriously it's unhealthy lmao
currently working on: trying to finish old 819 fics I have half written and a hucklerabbot edit that I can't get out of my brain but can't seem to perfect it
Noah confirming S3 set on Nov 12, 2026, i.e. the day after Veteran's Day, i.e. Robby's first day back is Jack coming off the shift that he started on Veteran's Day do they realize the rabbot angst implications of this because im barking like a mad dog
The fear of loving someone when they might not be alive tomorrow—because the burden became too heavy to bear—leads to trying to distance oneself despite the love, driven by the fear of not being able to go on without them.
every caps signing I see today I go "it should have been duhaime" :((
I can't accept that he's not going to be here next year genuinely so sad. Like I know he probably isn't that much of a net good on the team but like :(( my blorbo :((( from my shows (hockey) I even made a slide about you !!
blakekathryn
areudirty
titsay
