Dangit, I’m late 😭 Well, now I’m posting this on Espingle day, whoo!
A bit of context for why Cosmo is part of family Chaotix
My characterization of Team Chaotix in general comes from a mixture of ideas from a variety of lovely fanfics; in particular, Another Word For It by TurnedWorm, where I got the idea about Espio’s laughter. Gotta give credit where credit is due :)
Anyhow—All My Ghosts, Part 2 :)
____________
All my ghosts are with me
I know you feel them too…
They know all of my habits,
but they don't know about you
—
all my ghosts by Lizzy McAlpine
Charmy dropped a red four on the top of the discard pile, removing his hand with a flourish.
“Uno!” he declared loudly, a smug expression on his face.
“What.” Espio narrowed his eyes at the boy. “I swear you had three cards last turn.”
“Well, too bad. I have one now.”
“What—oh, come on! That doesn’t count.”
“Does too!”
“Vector—”
Vector grunted. “Don’t get caught, doesn’t count.”
“But I did catch him,” Espio insisted. “He had three cards last time.”
“But you might have miscounted,” Cream piped up.
“They’re right,” Vector said, suppressing a smile as he sorted through his own cards. “Unless you saw him hiding the card…Sorry, Es.”
Charmy looked much too pleased at that. Cream giggled from behind her own set of cards, looking far too mischievous for an innocent bystander. Cosmo, from her spot on the couch next to Vanilla, looked up from her book to stifle a laugh behind her hand.
Espio rolled his eyes, pulling the deck closer to him as he grabbed the card on top.
The doorbell rang. Espio’s gaze snapped up.
“I’ll get it,” he said, dropping the cards on the table as he got to his feet. He strode over to the entrance, pulling on the handle to reveal Tangle, beaming, with camping chair bags hanging from both of her shoulders.
His heart did the little thing he’d gotten used to.
“Delivery!” she said cheerily. A smile crept onto Espio’s face.
“Thanks,” he said, taking them from her. “How was the trip?”
“Oh, it was great!” Tangle chirped. “We went hiking a lot, which Whisper liked. And we were right at the edge of the lake, which Jewel liked. One day, I’m gonna get the whole group to go, and that will be awesome.”
She chuckled to herself.
“And thank you guys for letting us borrow the chairs. You saved us from having to crouch around the campfire.”
“Anytime!” Vector called from the living room. Tangle brightened.
“Oh, hello!” she called back, waving. “Ooh, are you guys playing a game?”
“We’re playing Uno!” Charmy piped up. “I’m winning!”
“Kind of,” Espio said.
“Kind of winning?” Tangle said, crossing her arms. “Or kind of playing Uno?”
“Well…both.”
“You wanna come in?” Vector said, beckoning for her to join them. “We’re having game night!”
“Ooh, sounds fun! I don’t want to intrude on your family time, though,” she said, dropping her hands to her pockets.
“You’re not intruding,” Vanilla said, sitting up straight and offering her a warm smile. “You’re always welcome to join us, if you’d like.”
Tangle looked from her to Vector to Espio, who nodded encouragingly.
“Well, alright,” she chuckled, stepping inside. She walked with Espio over to the living room table, putting her hands on her hips. “How do you play kind-of Uno?”
Charmy grinned. “Oh, it’s easy. It’s all the same rules, except you can cheat!”
“So there are no rules.”
“Exactly.”
“I see,” Tangle said slowly. “Just one question. How is it all the same rules if you can just break them all?”
“You can break the rules,” Cream explained. “But you can’t get caught. Otherwise, you get kicked out.”
“Fascinating,” Tangle said, a mischievous smile slowly making its way onto her face. “A game of trickery and deception.”
“You have to just watch first though,” Charmy butt in. “We’re almost done. You can join next round.” Tangle shrugged.
“Fair enough.” She plopping herself down on the couch, next to Cosmo. “Whatcha reading?”
“O—oh, um…” Cosmo turned the book over, showing her the cover. “I borrowed it from the library yesterday.”
“Ah. Is it good?”
“…Yeah.”
Espio felt a tap on his shoulder, and turned around to see Charmy’s irritated expression. “It’s your turn.”
Espio dropped a red card onto the pile, his gaze wandering back over to the couch.
“That was a very convincing yeah,” Tangle was saying, amused.
Cosmo blushed. “It’s interesting, but…the writing style is off.”
“Off how?”
“Well…” Cosmo opened the book. “The dialogue feels so…I don’t know. Like, the characters know what they’re supposed to say, instead of talking normally.”
“Like it feels planned?”
“Yeah. And it’s kind of sad, because the plot is so cool.”
Tangle nodded solemnly. “That’s the problem with books these days. They sound so cool, but then you open them up, and they’re so hard to read!”
Cosmo nodded vigorously, lowering the book to her lap and sitting up a little straighter. And words came tumbling out.
“I know! Especially fantasy books. They always have good ideas, but then the author doesn’t know how to worldbuild properly, or something like that. And then they aren’t that good at character development. They focus on the adventure, and things like that, which is alright, but most people are more interested in the characters.”
Espio’s mouth dropped open. Vanilla, who’d been sitting next to her, swiveled around, locking eyes with Vector. Cream and Charmy, too, had stopped mid-game, all staring at Cosmo with mouths agape.
How the actual heck Tangle had gotten his quietest sibling to ramble, in a matter of seconds…Espio was at a loss.
And yet, she didn’t stop. He watched as Tangle kept the conversation going, having no clue how rare of an occurrence she’d just brought about. When Cosmo did falter, self-consciousness creeping back into her voice, Tangle gently pointed at the cover of the book, asking about a character or the plot, and they fell right back into it.
They continued the game, but Espio couldn’t focus. Tangle was listening intently to a character arc analysis, nodding and cringing and gasping loudly like it was the most exciting thing in the world. She laughed out loud at some line Cosmo read, curling in on herself, and Espio realized how easily she fit there. She fit well, nestled on the couch with his sister and mom, chatting as easily as everyone else during family game night. He could easily see her playing along with whatever ridiculous games Charmy and Cream came up with, as easily as she was talking with Cosmo.. They would love her energy, her silliness. He could see her helping Vanilla around the garden, or jamming out to Vector’s music, or—
Espio stared down at the carpet, face warm. Stop that.
Cream tugged on his sleeve.
“It’s your turn,” she said softly.
“O—oh, right.” Espio distractedly shuffled through his hand. Wait.
“What the—I did not have this many cards!”
—
Espio woke up late.
He jumped out of bed, throwing on the first acceptable outfit he came across in the closet. He tossed his laptop and a few books into his backpack, trying to balance being quick and quiet as Charmy shifted in his bed on the other side of the room. Flying down the stairs, he nearly crashed headfirst into Vector.
“Hey,” he greeted, glancing up at the clock. “You’re still here?”
“Woke up late,” Espio said, maneuvering past him to get to the counter. He grabbed the keys, running over to the entrance to pull on his shoes.
“Hey, Es,” Vector called. “Did you finish filing those documents I gave you yesterday?”
Espio’s heart sank. He slapped a hand to his forehead.
“No, I…” He groaned. “Sorry.”
Vector nodded. “Let me know if you need help with anything, alright? We need those done before noon tomorrow.”
“I’ll—I’ll get to it later today.”
He ran out the door, and was in the car and out of the driveway in seconds.
Espio exhaled through his teeth, reminding himself that speeding didn’t save as much time as it felt. He inhaled sharply as he got caught behind a three-minute stoplight, and glared at the car that was taking its sweet time pulling into the university parking lot.
He pulled into a parking space right as the clock read eight. He bolted down the sidewalk and through the hallways, running into someone for the second time that morning.
“Hey, Espio!” Tangle said, blinking in surprise. “You good?”
“Yeah, just—late.”
“Ooh, gotcha. See you later?”
“Yeah.” Espio gave her a quick wave, rushing past her, until he finally slid to a stop in front of his classroom door.
They had already started, of course. Espio opened the door as quietly as he could. It creaked. Loudly.
All eyes turned to him, and he flushed red, pretending not to notice as he shuffled over to his seat. He dug through his backpack, heart sinking as he pushed its contents around a third time. He’d grabbed the wrong set of books. Of course. Why not.
Class was…class. He zoned out for most of it, focused more on willing his eyes to stay open than the actual content of the lesson. Perhaps going to bed past three when he had class at eight was…not the greatest idea he’d come up with.
There was a fifteen-minute break between the end of his first class and the next, most of which he used to get to the right room. Only four minutes remained when he slid into his chair, mind reeling as he sorted through his schedule for the day. He had two more classes after this one. An exam in two days he needed to study for, in addition to the usual stack of homework. And the files. He’d be lucky if the pile hadn’t increased by the time he returned home.
He needed to prioritize. Class, obviously, he couldn’t skip. But those files were a mess, and he couldn’t risk leaving them alone to multiply. And he could not let that exam ruin his grade—merit-based scholarships were the only reason he was even in school in the first place.
Espio’s hand began to shake. He ignored it, trying to reach around his desk to grab a pencil. It slipped out of his grasp twice before he managed to get ahold of it. Breathe. He grasped the pencil in his fist, closing his eyes as his hand tightened. Focus. Inhale. He hadn’t eaten breakfast. That would be a distraction, but driving back would take up too much time. No, focus. Exhale. He hadn’t even opened the study guide for his exam yet. His hand was shaking again. No. No, not now—
His phone buzzed softly, and he hesitated. He glanced at the clock. Three minutes until class.
He tapped the screen, and saw a message from Tangle.
heyyy
u good?
He exhaled, opening the keyboard.
yeah haha. Just woke
up late
oh oof
did u get breakfast??
well
I kinda woke up 20 minutes
before class
dude you need food.
where are u now?
um.
in another class ;D
ESPIO.
are you free after tho?
sorta. Got another class, but
not for a couple of hours
Okie then
you wanna come study
with me??? I will bring
snacks. and a sandwich
for u
you don’t need to make me
a sandwich
TOO BAD you’re
getting one anyway
get loved idiot
Espio couldn’t help but smile, despite everything.
sure haha
Anyhow class is starting
in a minute
aight I’ll leave you
alone lol
—
Wed, 3:46 PM
hey
Thanks for inviting me to
come study
and for the sandwich
ofc!!! If u are ever in
need of sustenance
just lmk okay
haha okay
Thu, 11:42 AM
hey are you free for
lunch??
yeah
I don’t have a meal plan
though
that’s alright I have
extra guest meals!!!
Do not pull your
“you don’t have to do
that”
I’m literally not gonna
use them
haha
Sure I can meet for lunch
Fri, 9:25 AM
EYYY YOURE DONE
WITH YOUR TEST
:DDD
Yeah :)
how was it???
Good I think!
not terrible at least
yay!!!!!
Haha thanks
Dude we should
celebrate
Haha okay?
If u want to I mean
ofc
no I do! What were
you thinking?
hmm
well what do YOU like
to do?
Idk I’m good with
anything
Like lunch or something?
special lunch!!!!!
OOO PICNIC??
Picnics are cool :)
oh I do have class at 2
though
Is dinner okay instead?
special dinner!!! :D
Where do you want to
have the picnic?
You probably know more
about places around campus
than I do
Hehe, I thought you’d
never ask
y’know the big hill near
the cafeteria
oh?
Yes!!!!!
meet by the big tree next
to the cafeteria
I can bring the food, but
I don’t have plates and
stuff
I can bring those
sounds good!!
also what time did you
wanna meet?
I was thinking around 6?
perfect :)
—
“Espio!”
He whirled around, eyes landing on the figure waving enthusiastically from the other end of the sidewalk.
His heart melted a little.
“Tangle!” He waved back, as she bounded right down the sidewalk and into his arms.
Get it together!
“Celebratory picniiiiiic~!” she sang, stepping back. “You got the plates and stuff?”
Espio looked down at the tote bag hanging from his shoulder, which Vanilla had graciously taken the time to help him put together. Paper plates, cups, utensils, napkins. He hadn’t forgotten anything this time.
He nodded, and Tangle beamed.
“Great! And I got the food!” She lifted the cooler in her hand, and the blanket balanced on top of it tilted precariously.
“Careful,” Espio said, grabbing it. “We don’t want it falling like that pasta.”
Tangle stared at him, blinking rapidly.
“Pasta…oh!” She laughed, holding the blanket steady. “Oh my gosh. That feels like forever ago!”
Espio smiled. “Yeah.”
A beat.
“So—” he started.
“Yes!” Tangle snapped her fingers. “Picnic. C’mon!”
She headed up the sidewalk, beckoning for him to follow. They followed the path for a few minutes, before Tangle took a sharp right off the path, turning toward a large hill Espio had never noticed near the back of the cafeteria.
The sun hung low in the sky, tinting it yellow as they climbed. The cloudless sky, shone a soft blue, fading into gold near the horizon. Sunlight beat down on them, unobstructed by clouds and by buildings as they trudged higher. The hill was steeper than it looked, and by the time they were nearing the top, he was more out of breath than he would’ve wanted to admit.
All that training, and you can hardly crest a hill.
“Come on!”
Tangle turned to him from the top of the hill with a grin. She nearly fell over as she took a few steps backwards, waiting for him.
Willing more energy into his legs, he sprinted through the last few steps, meeting her at the top. A slight breeze greeted him, tossing his hair about and creating waves in the grass around his feet. Her gaze had turned to the other side of the hill, and he followed it.
Oh.
Oh, wow.
Hundreds of feet below, the whole city was laid out before them, bathed in the gold. Glass and metal glittered in the light, catching the last of its rays as the valley overshadowed it. The loud, bustling streets looked so…small, and quiet, from up there.
“I thought you’d like it.”
Espio turned.
Tangle was looking out at the view, the sun haloing her form from behind. Her hands were playing with some wildflowers she’d found on the hill, threading the stems through each other. The breeze tossed her hair about, the light fell upon her skin. She gazed down at the gold-tinted landscape, eyes sparkling in amazement. She beamed, and gosh, she was right. He hadn’t even known he’d care so much for a sunset, or a view like this. But she had.
His heart pounded. His hands began to shake.
Get it together get it together get it together—
She turned, her gaze falling on him. The shine never left her eyes.
And the barrier broke.
He could see her playing along with Charmy and Cream. He could see her chatting with Cosmo. He could see her helping Vanilla around the garden, or jamming out to Vector’s music, or coming over for family game nights. He could see her inviting him to the next camping trip; could see them all staying up to watch the stars. He could see them going grocery shopping. He could see her pulling him into another karaoke song. He could see them in the kitchen as he failed the simplest of tasks. He could see the picnic dinners and unnecessary apologies and attempts to make him laugh. He could see them coming back to that gas station, year after year after year. Remember that first time? When you grabbed me that straw and I looked at you all weirdly? Gosh, that’s how it all started, huh?
He could see her standing, a few feet away, the widest grin on her face as she suppressed the urge to go running up the aisle. A different set of flowers in her hands. The disbelief mounting in his chest as he tried to wrap his mind around the fact that after everything, it could turn out this way, with his family in tears in the front row and a dress that matched the color of her hair.
It would still be messy, though. He didn’t think her hair couldn’t be messy.
“Espio?”
She yanked him back into the present. The blanket was already spread out over the grass, cooler dropped on top. His face was completely flushed red. And yet, he couldn’t bring himself to hide his face, to look away.
“I—I—” He stammered, caught on his own words. “I—I’m sorry.”
She laughed. “For what?”
“I—I don’t know—”
Tangle chuckled. She flipped open the cooler, pulling out a sandwich and tossing it to him. He yelped, hands fumbling to catch it.
“Careful,” Tangle giggled behind her hand. “We don’t want a whole mac-and-cheese- incident repeat.”
An image flashed into his head, of golden liquid flying out of the cup in slow motion, splashing all over his clothes and the floor. Of Tangle laughing her head off, and Silver giving him a knowing smile.
Espio lost it.
He laughed. So hard he doubled over, so hard his sides hurt and he almost dropped the sandwich he’d worked so hard to catch. And it felt good. It felt so, so good.
He finally glanced up, caught a glance of Tangle’s dumbstruck expression, and burst into laughter again. This time, she joined in, and they laughed for so long and so hard that he started to feel a little lightheaded. He laughed so hard he was wheezing by the end of it, gasping for breath.
“I—I can’t believe that made you laugh!” Tangle gasped, wiping her eyes, the widest grin on her face. She grabbed his shoulder to steady herself. Their eyes met, and she burst into a fit of giggles again. “Oh my gosh, Espio. You—you have such a great laugh.”
He grinned. “Don’t get too used to it. Your one free Espio laugh has been spent for the year. You—you’ll have to wait until at least January for the next.”
“Well then, goshdangit,” she said, hands on her hips, “I’m gonna have to pay for a subscription.”
“Cool, I could use the money. That’s a hundred and fifty per year—”
“Espio!” She gasped dramatically. “C’mon. Don’t you have a discount for friends?”
“Frankly, I don’t think anyone else is buying it, so.”
She poked him in the shoulder. “Dang it, Espio, I’m a broke college student!”
“I am, too!”
She let out a long sigh. “Well, at least it’s going to a good cause.”
She chuckled, playfully punching his shoulder.
“You, my good sir, need to laugh more.”
He smiled, the breeze playing with his hair as she turned back to the cooler, twisting the wildflowers’ stems around its handle. She brushed her bangs out of her face as she reached down, and he let go of any vestiges of doubt that remained in his head, telling him he wasn’t completely, helplessly in love with her. That he couldn’t be.
He thought back to mere seconds ago, when his shoulders had been shaking with laughter and his hands were entirely still. It was a rare moment she’d managed to pull out of him. He didn’t laugh often.
