It took a little while for the existential dread to come, probably because it had been such a sweet date, but come it did. Taako ended up draped over Lup and Barry’s sofa dramatically, bemoaning the things sex made him say. Lup was completely baffled by Taako’s reluctance to commit, but then Taako pointed out that it had taken her fifty years to actually go on a date with Barry.
The problem was, Taako couldn’t really define what it was that scared him so much about committing to this. There was perfectly good logic to counter everything he could come up with, but it didn’t change his mind or make him feel any better.
But he had, in fact, committed to this, and he remembered how happy Kravitz had been when he had brought it up. He knew he couldn’t back out of it now. And it wasn’t as though he hadn’t meant what he had said. It wasn’t as though his feelings for Kravitz were any different. Being alone was far worse than getting hurt, and the two fears didn’t compliment each other. He would just have to deal with shitty anxiety. It would be better with Kravitz around. Right?
And so, he pulled himself forward like a big boy and dealt with it. They talked to Magnus and looked at floor plans, and Kravitz picked something because Taako honestly have any opinion. And then the structure started going up, right outside his window in Lup’s cottage, and he started sleeping in the bathtub so he didn’t have to look at it.
And then, finally, the house was finished being built. It was beautiful and everything Taako had come to expect from Magnus, although he hadn’t really done very much of the exterior work himself. There wasn’t a lot of furniture just yet, but Magnus had made them a few things.
By this time, Lup had gotten herself a new body and the Raven Queen was letting her get used to be corporeal before starting she and Barry on their Reaper training, and Taako was…relieved, but also unhappy about that too.
Taako hadn’t been inside since it was finished, and he was pretending it was because he wanted to see it at the same time as Kravitz, but that was a huge lie. But it didn’t matter because today was the day, and Kravitz had promised he’d be over as soon as he could. So Taako put on his cutest clothes and pinned up his hair in an elaborate braid and perfected his glamor to make him feel less like running the other direction as fast as he could.