Continuation from this post here:
Aaaangst!!!
𖦹*⊹.𖦹*⊹.𖦹*⊹.𖦹*⊹.𖦹
Squirt stormed towards the changing rooms, that all too familiar crackle of the school speaker system echoin
I'm so glad y'all liked the first part, hopefully this one will be good too, it's angst with some hurt/comfort, sibling fluff and 100% feels.
Thanks to @tracybirds and @mrmustachious for looking it over and beta reading it for me.✨
It wasn't long before a light knocking broke their spiral of doom.
"Hey Squirt, you ok?" A cheery voice called from the other side of the changing room door, the one they'd been dreading, the first and last voice they wanted to hear.
"You seemed a little upset back there, and I just wanted to check in with you. Can I come in?"
They knew they wouldn't be able to avoid him forever.
"Yeah..." Squirt's response coming out a lot more mangled and scratchy than they'd hoped.
Gordon pushed the door gently, laying eyes on the sopping wet, chlorine covered mess that was his little sibling, squished up against the wall. The kid was so ashamed, they didn't even look up as he entered.
Grabbing the big bath towel from the bench, he made his way over, draping it over Squirt as he plopped down on the floor, wrapping his little bud in a soft cocoon. His hands remaining clenched to the fabric, he tried his best to meet Squirt's gaze under all those soppy strands of red hair.
"Hey." He started firmly. "I know what you're thinking..."
Squirt's eyes darted away anywhere they could escape their brother's, they started to well up again.
"I'm sorry..." They whimpered, tears spilling over their cheeks. "I let you down, I- I- you- I mean..." They stumbled over their words, searching for the right ones to patch up the damage.
Gordon pulled his sib a little closer, still clutching the towel like a big net to prevent the little guppy from escaping.
Suddenly, the weight lifted, the air was clear and they could breathe. Squirt lifted their head to look at their big brother, wide eyed and relieved. As another batch of tears slid down their cheeks, Gordon released Squirt from their soft prison and took their face in his hands, gently wiping away the damp around their eyes.
"Third place?? That's awesome!!" He beamed "I'm so proud of you, kiddo!!"
Squirt sniffled. "But, I- I should've done better. We trained for months, I'm an IR aquanaut, my coach is an olympic champion, how..." They trailed off. "You've given me so much and I failed."
Gordon sighed. "You're also still learning. How old are you? Twelve?? You were up there with fourteen and fifteen year old kids, they should have had a huge advantage but you still beat 7 of them!!"
Squirt shifted uncomfortably in their towel.
"And it wouldn't matter what happens, you could never let me or the others down." Gordon tilted Squirt's gaze towards him to drive his point home. "I am proud of you."
Here came the tears again...
Gordon pulled Squirt into a tight hug and just let them cry it out for a moment, their face buried in the crook of his shoulder, rubbing their back gently. They needed it.
"I love you, you dork." He muffled, his face smushed into the towel. Squirt replied with an incoherent mumble but Gordon knew what they meant.
"Right!!" Gordon released from the embrace, grabbing the towel and pulling it over his sib's head. An outburst of protests and giggles came from underneath as the aquanaut ruffled up the kid's hair with it. Squirt emerged from the makeshift guppy trap, a mess of wildfire now occupying the top of their head.
Gordon, sensing the possibility of revenge, had already gotten up and made his way towards the door again. "I'll let you get changed." He blew a mock kiss as he backed out of the room. "I wuv you!!"
Squirt scowled but couldn't help cracking a grin. "I love you too, weirdo..."
