Chapter Text
This had to have been the best sleep Spamton‘s had in literal decades. For once, the annoying sun didn’t shine into his eyes through the drawn curtains, nor could he hear the obnoxious yapping of his neighbors outside and not even a nightmare stirred him from his rest.
For once, he woke up on his own terms, letting out a hearty yawn, stretching his stiff body and slowly cracking his eyes open.
He blinked confusedly, taking in the unfamiliar surroundings. This wasn’t the old bed that‘s always been too big for just him, nor the house that hosted nothing but painful memories; Instead, it was some kind of underground nest? A small circular room, seemingly dug out, surrounded by all kinds of soft material laid out on the ground, from clothes to pillows and blankets, anything comfortable was thrown onto the giant pile. The calming scent of herbs and wet earth wafted through the air, a dim lamp by the stairs bathing the small room in a warm, relaxing glow.
The memories returned to him. And with them, a wave of relief and peace overcame him, urging him to relax back down into the comfortable pile with a relaxed sigh. No wonder he slept like a baby, this was Ant‘s bedroom. So it wasn‘t a dream, he really did decide to leave it all behind, head up the mountain and make the jump for the slim chance of seeing his spouse again.
He really had reunited with his husband after so many years, exhaustedly clinging to each other before ultimately sinking into the makeshift nest to sleep in his oversized partner’s arms. The miserable longing and gnawing loneliness had finally gone to an end, he‘d made it home.
Spamton‘s eyes fell shut, a smile tugging at his lips as he snuggled back into the warm nest, yesterday‘s events still fresh on his mind.
Even if he could never return, the barrier keeping him and the monsters trapped in the underground forever, he couldn’t find it within himself to care. In his opinion, the surface wasn‘t worth living on if his husband couldn’t be granted mercy. He had no regrets. No one he left behind would miss him, and frankly, they‘d be doing Spamton a favor if they would stay away and out of his thoughts.
The king and queen of monsterkind had treated him much kinder despite just meeting him than any of those rotten humans he‘d known for nearly all of his life ever did. While they‘d initially been hostile, intending to protect their people, they‘d welcomed him with open arms as soon as they realized that he wasn’t a threat and even brought him to Ant.
From now on, Spamton would stick with the monsters, on the right side of life and by his giant bug husband. Just how he always wanted it. They had finally gotten their future back and he‘d be a proper fool to trade it for shallow freedom in a world that rejected him and his love.
But now that Spamton‘s thoughts were on Ant again, he had to note a surprising absence of his fluffy spouse. He distinctly remembered waking up in the evening from his nap, comfortably nestled in his husband‘s arms and greeted by an onslaught of frantic kisses and wet laughter from Ant. They had briefly detangled themselves from their entwining embrace to eat some dinner, right before heading back into the nest for more cuddles.
Spamton had feared he needed to sleep at least one full year until he could rid himself of that heavy fatigue that’d been plaguing him for decades, falling back into a peaceful slumber with his husband holding him close and humming calming melodies to him.
Ant must’ve already woken up and gotten to work already, taking care of the underground‘s monster children was a demanding job, after all. Luckily, the daycare was right above, two flights of stairs and he could probably see those little sponges climbing his overgrown husband like a tree and riding on his shoulders already.
That was alright, Spamton told himself. While he didn’t see himself engaging with those anklebiters anytime soon, he was just fine in taking some time to explore the new home he‘d be living in for the foreseeable future before visiting Ant upstairs. After all the time they’d spent separated, he wanted to stay as close as possible to his husband.
A strange scratching noise from above, presumably coming from the living room upstairs, caused his eyebrows to furrow and his train of thought to derail completely. The last bit of grogginess faded away and made way for a burning curiosity he had to satiate right this instant. No point going back to sleep now, time to face the day head on; starting with exploring that weird sound.
With a groan, he thoroughly stretched his stiff limbs, immediate relief hitting him when a few of his joints popped, before climbing out of the nest and heading up the stairs.
While the earthy smell had already been strong in the bedroom, it was nearly overwhelming in the living room area, with Spamton letting out a surprised cough at the sudden intensity. It hadn’t been nearly as overpowering yesterday, and the scratching had only gotten louder. Just what the hell was going on?
Taking in his surroundings only furthered Spamton’s confusion. There was dirt haphazardly strewn all across the living room, completely covering the furniture and ground. He had imagined there would be the occasional drizzle from living in a self-dug burrow, but this just seemed completely ridiculous.
Just as Spamton turned around to investigate more, he recoiled at a large clump of dirt hitting him square in the face. He sputtered, trying and failing to scrape wet earth off his tongue while his expression scrunched up as if he‘d been suckling on a lemon. Damnit, he could feel it between his teeth, this was actually the worst.
Before he could even fully process what the hell happened, yet another heaping handful of soil landed perfectly on the top of his head, further staining his already greasy hair. A full body shudder wracked him when cold grit crumbled off and fell into his clothes.
He nearly jumped to the ceiling from the awful sensation, chugging off his jacket and frantically shaking and swatting at his ratty sweater to try and rid himself of the deeply uncomfortable feeling.
„Ugh, it’s everywhere. What the hell even-” He grumbled to himself, spitting out some more dirt before finally spotting the unintentional culprit.
Where there was previously a relatively sturdy dirt wall in the comfortable living room was now a large, gaping hole surrounded by piles of soil and grit. Ant was presumably kneeling inside, only his legs and insect abdomen sticking out while he haphazardly flung dirt behind himself with his three arms.
„Ant?!“ Spamton squawked, ruffling both hands through his hair to somehow try and get all the grunge out. Why he even bothered was beyond him, only a bath could salvage the mess that two heapfuls of dirt catapulted directly at his face turned him into.
At least Ant finally stopped his ambitious digging process, fully sitting up and turning to face his spouse with a huge grin: „Spammy!! Good morning! Did you sleep well? Did you like sleeping in my nest? Is it comfortable? You like it, right? It’s the best nest you‘ve ever seen, right? Right? I’m so glad to see you!!“
Spamton could barely hold back his laughter at how ridiculous his beloved bug looked, dusty all over, more brown than white, with a tiny, conveniently placed pile of earth precariously balanced on top of his snout. His antennae were twitching the more he talked, flicking off grit in every which way. His paws and claws were almost black from his relentless digging, the casual red shirt and loose brown slacks borderline unrecognizable with how much they were stained. All the while he sported that joyous and contagious smile that always pulled Spamton right in; all evidence of a diligent bug hard at work to create a new tunnel in his burrow, for some yet to be explained reason.
It was strangely adorable, a sense of warm nostalgia filling him as Spamton was reminded of those warm days at the surface where Ant just began digging holes in their yard for fun. Maybe it was enrichment for him, ants usually lived in underground nests after all. He‘d always return home covered in grime with his fluff sticking every which way, beaming as if he aimed to rival the sun and excited to show off whatever ‚cool‘ junk he found while digging; usually rocks.
„What the hell are you doing?“ Spamton laughed, a light and airy sound as he gestured to the entirety of his husband and the gaping hole behind him instead of answering the question. Later, he told himself, first he had to get to the bottom of this.
Ant just tilted his head in confusion, antennae rubbing together as he pondered his answer. „…Digging?“ Was what he finally settled on in a matter of fact tone, his face scrunching up in return. Almost like he thought Spamton was silly for asking and that the answer was obvious.
„I can see that!“ Despite the confusing situation, Spamton couldn’t help himself but laugh, clearly endeared by Ant‘s antics. „But why are you digging? Wouldn’t it be less of a mess if you did it outside?“
Just as Ant was about to answer, he sniffed, nostrils flaring, lips curling and sharp teeth on full display before letting out an earth-shattering sneeze. The walls shook from the sheer force, some loose dirt trickling from the ceiling to join the heaps on the ground and the tiny little pile on Ant‘s nose was sent flying in a comical fashion.
Spamton cackled, holding his stomach as he threatened to double over. He‘d missed this so much, Ant never failed to make him smile just by being himself, always bringing the best out in him.
A pout tugged at Ant‘s mouth, who wiped at his snout and took his time to ensure Spamton saw how pitiful he was. „Don‘t laugh at me… It‘s too cold to dig outside…“ He bemoaned with a dramatic whine, „The ground is so hard, it’s not fun to dig and my paws get all numb when I have to dig through the snow…“
„You poor thing.“ Sympathized Spamton with a chuckle, his tone about 95% genuine while the remaining 5% was reserved for sarcasm. „So you have to dig holes into your own house to have fun instead?“
Ant giggled, mirroring Spamton‘s lighthearted tone, „No, silly! I still dig plenty outside! You don’t wanna know how many monsters already fell into my holes! The snow covers them so quickly, they‘re basically pitfalls, and then I get distracted by something and forget to fill them up-“
„HAH!! I’d pay to see that! Just like the time back then, when that witch stole some of your flowers out of the garden and then fell into one of your pits!“ Spamton snorted, tears gathering in his eyes from all the chortling and cackling he‘d been doing. When was the last time he was able to laugh like this? When was the last time he was this happy, aside from their reunion yesterday? How could he live so long on his own?
At the memory, Ant couldn’t help but chitter, his antennae wriggling excitedly. „Oh, I remember! It was raining on that day too, so she was waist high in water.“ He snorted, putting his dirty paws over his mouth to try and stifle it, „Oh, she cursed at us for hours, you didn’t even wanna help her out at first. I feel a little bad for laughing, but she really deserved it!“
„You bet your cute gaster she did!“ Exclaimed Spamton, pointing at Ant‘s abdomen with a seductive eyebrow wiggle; something so ridiculous that it caused the monster to erupt into sputtered giggles all over again and attempt to hide his red face behind his paws.
„Ohoho-” Ant was shaking from laughter, a sliver of his sunny disposition visible through his hands, „You‘re so silly~ I almost forgot what it’s like to laugh so much.“
All too casually, Spamton leant against the wall, his own smile resembling something much softer, somber and longing, „You tell me. It’s been so long since I’ve just… genuinely laughed. I don’t even remember the last time.“
In any other situation, it would’ve been funny to see Ant‘s antennae drooping at the rapid speed they did. „Spammy…“ The monster‘s voice cracked, no longer caring that he was dirty in favor of reaching out to wrap his arms around his husband in a comforting embrace . „I’m sorry. I- I can’t even imagine how hard it’s been for you…“
„For me?“ Spamton sniffed, trying and failing to play it cool with how he wiped at his eyes with his sleeve and clung onto Ant like a lifeline, „I‘m not the one that got hurt in the war and- and got banished to down here…“
Ant‘s giant paw carded soothingly through Spamton‘s hair, whose breath hitched at the familiar sensation. Back at the surface, he‘d longed to be held like this again, only to almost lose it every time when he thought he might never see Ant ever again.
A wet chuckle escaped him when he felt Ant nosing affectionately at his neck, the warm puffs of air from his exhales causing Spamton to squeak and squirm away. When they could be like this, it almost felt like no time passed at all, and they were still young, freshly married and in love.
At least one of those three was still true.
„It‘s okay, Spammy.“ Ant pressed a caring kiss to Spamton‘s temple, who basically melted into the tender gesture. He couldn’t help but long for more „It‘s not a competition. You don’t have to be okay just because you think you didn’t have it as bad as me. And you don’t have to be strong and pretend you‘re fine for me. We can… both not be okay.“
„Goddamnit all…“ Spamton cursed, realizing that Ant was right: They were both not okay. Red hot anger flared up within him all over again, seething words clumsily tumbling out of his mouth „It‘s just… it’s not fair! Why did- why did this have to happen to us?! We didn’t do anything! We- we just…“ He shook his head with what might‘ve come close to a sob and buried his face into Tenna‘s dusty chest fluff. They were both already covered in soil anyway, it couldn’t really get much worse. „These- these goddamn humans stole the life we were supposed to have!“
Another kiss from Ant quieted Spamton down. When he looked up at his husband‘s smile, he held on even tighter. Closer, he needed to be as close as possible, any space between them was an affront.
„It‘s okay, my little mailman. Don’t think about that, don’t think about the humans.“ Ant whispered, taking one of Spamton’s hands and clutching it close to his chest, „We‘re here now, we got separated for too long, but now we‘re here. It‘s all gonna be okay. We have so much to catch up on, we- we‘re together again…“ He sounded close to tears, equal parts somber about their lost past as he was hopeful for their gained future. „We have our life back. And I wouldn’t wanna spend it with anyone else, you’re the only one for me, my Spammy.“
Spamton hastily wiped over his eyes, deciding that he‘d already cried enough yesterday upon seeing his husband again. „You- you‘re right. Damnit, you always are, you and your endless optimism, how the hell do you do it?“
„I… I don’t really know…“ Ant shrugged, kissing a stray tear Spamton couldn’t wipe away in time off his face, „I guess it just… helps the people around me. When they see that I can keep going, it gives them hope. And when I see that this is how I can help people, then… It gives me hope, too. It feels like there‘s always a way, somehow.“
That’s just how Ant was, wasn’t he? Somehow, despite the war and the horrible circumstances he‘d been dealt, he still managed to see the best in everyone. Even those damn humans, he never lost a single bad word about them - for better or for worse.
Spamton didn’t get it, he wanted them to burn and rot for what they did, for sealing the monsters away and for the war itself. How could Ant still remember them so fondly, recall past interactions with warmth in his smile as if they hadn’t dragged him out of their home like he was vermin? Spamton felt bitter and vengeful just from watching the awful way they treated his life partner, so how could Ant just keep going on like nothing happened?
Maybe Spamton would never understand. He didn’t think he had it in him to forgive the humans for what happened. But, he mused to himself, it also didn’t matter anymore. He was in the Underground now, with his husband and the other monsters, while all those other humans stayed on the surface.
„What are you thinking about?“ Ant‘s voice made quick work in derailing Spamton‘s train of thought. With a hum, he glanced up at his spouse, right as he brushed a strand of greasy black hair behind his ear.
Spamton shrugged in return, taking a moment to consider his response, „I guess… I’m just glad that I get to be down here, with you.“
„Aww, Spammy~“ Crooned Ant, basically smothering his husband in kisses, „I’m so so so happy to have you back, too, you don’t even know! I’ve been dreaming about you for all these years, I can still barely believe that you’re right here… that- that I’m actually holding you. I’m just…“ He squeezed Spamton just a little bit tighter. „So happy to have you back. You‘re my soulmate…“
Spamton decided for himself that he would do anything to protect that sweet smile from now on. Ant‘s been through enough, all that pain, the physical and emotional toll he‘d had to carry on weary shoulders for so long…
Never again. Ant shouldn’t have to suffer like that ever again. It‘s enough and it would end now, Spamton would make sure of it, now that he was here. He‘d do anything to see his husband happy.
„So are you.“ Spamton didn’t hesitate to reply this time, burying his face into the crook of Ant‘s neck, right into the soft fluff. „It could never be anyone else. It had to be you. It’d always been you…“ He hummed, nuzzling into the comforting, warm fur with a pleased sigh.
God, words could never describe how much he missed this or how much he longed for it on days spent all alone at his home on the surface. How long he‘d searched for something that could even somewhat compare to the feel of his husband‘s fur, with nothing ever even coming close. It was always cold and loveless and only made him yearn to see his spouse again even more desperately.
„It‘s all gonna be okay.“ Ant declared confidently, showing off his sharp fangs with a chipper grin, „It‘s different and, well, a lot happened, but we‘re good at that, aren’t we? At taking on challenges, I mean. Even back then. Cause we‘re a team, right?“
„Suppose I can’t argue with that.“ Spamton smiled, allowing himself a moment to take in the scene.
They‘d both gotten older, even if the age barely showed on Ant‘s face. He was still just as handsome as the day Spamton lost him all those years ago, that pristine white fluff and chitin currently covered in dirt thanks to a passionate digging session, the twitching antennae, huge smile and even bigger body, massive paws with impressive claws and the gaster with a dark grey marking that spelled TV for some reason. It was like nothing changed.
But it could never be so easy, could it? The longer Spamton looked at his husband, the more he saw the wounds left behind by the war. The missing arm that was lost in the war, the old scars hidden underneath the fluff, the scuffs in the chitin he knew for a fact weren‘t there before, it was all a reminder of that awful time. Of the life they‘ve been robbed from.
It wasn’t fair. It would never be fair. Bitter venom burned in Spamton‘s throat when he recalled those lonely years he spent on the surface, listening to the humans talk about the monsters like banishing them had been for the greater good; as if it was some inevitability, that it just wasn’t meant to be for humans and monsters to share a world.
What a load of garbled nonsense.
A part of him longed for justice, to hurt them just as much as they hurt both him and Ant. As much as they hurt all the monsters, in fact. Give them a taste of their own medicine and show them all the harm they caused. It‘d only be fair, right?
Not just for him, but for all of monsterkind, for the friendships, partnerships and relationships that got destroyed in the war. Why would those humans deserve the luxury of living in peace at the surface, patting themselves on the back for a job well done in banishing the monsters?
Spamton‘s hold on Ant tightened protectively, loosening only when his husband pulled him into a deep kiss. Curious antennae combed through his hair while they relished the sensation of their lips moving against each other.
He hummed, pushing into Ant’s mouth with overwhelming urgency. It didn’t matter anymore. Nothing going on on the surface mattered as long as they were here, together and away from it all. It‘s just like Ant said, they had their life back, a second chance at happiness; and Spamton intended to make it count, he‘d do anything to keep this feeling, protect this closeness, ensure they would never have to suffer again.
They had a lot to catch up on, nights spent together, shared meals, dates, kisses, hugs, affirmations of love, he needed it all, he needed it right now, he just had to get the past out of his head and focus on the here and now.
Spamton pulled away to take a breath, cradling Ant‘s face in both of his hands. „Cuddlebug~“ He breathed, stroking his thumb along a fluffy cheek and eliciting a pleased chitter in response. „You‘re so…”
A small snort escaped him, taking a moment to rove his eyes up and down his husband‘s body. „…Dusty-” Is what he finally settled on with a snicker. „Seriously, I can barely even tell your fur‘s supposed to be white. We’ll both need a bath and imma brush you after all this.“
„Oh, don’t worry about that, I can deal with it.“ Ant smiled, brushing some earth out of his fur, only to dirty it further with his stained paw. Once he noticed, he giggled to himself, taking a step back and proceeding to shake himself off like a dog before Spamton could even try to stop him.
Dirt was flung every which way, causing Spamton to shriek and flail in a hopeless attempt at protecting himself. All in vain, as another load of wet earth hit him head on, dirtying his clothes, hair and skin even further. He blinked, taking a moment to stew in his current state. It was starting to look and feel like he was the one that did the digging instead of his husband.
Ant stared at the mess he accidentally caused for a moment. „Oopsie~“ came his proclamation at the glare he received, unable to stop his dopey grin from widening and the subtle blush dusting his cheeks. „Sorry, I forgot.“ His tongue poked out, two of his hands brushing along his head with the fingertips in a played up display of ditziness.
With a groan, Spamton attempted to wipe some of the grime off his face, tossing it into a random direction, „Alright, now we definitely need a bath, you stinky bug.“
„Stinky?!“ Gasped Ant, putting a hand over his chest in mock offense. „Take it back!! Take it back right now! I groom myself meticulously! I’m not stinky!“
Spamton‘s smile curled at the corners of his mouth, barely able to suppress his chortles at the truly ridiculous exchange. „Oh, but you are! I don’t even know if you‘re s‘pposed to be an ant or a stink bug!“ It was nothing but lighthearted teasing, an old habit from their time on the surface. Back then, they were constantly ribbing and joking jovially until they had to hold onto each other to prevent falling over from laughter. Something inside Spamton felt warm upon realizing that they could so easily return to this old habit; it’s not been lost to the past.
„I‘m not the one that smells like wet human!“ Countered Ant, sticking his tongue out and teasingly wriggling his antennae towards Spamton as if to sniff him, only to purposefully pull them as far away from him as possible.
„And whose goddamn fault is that?! I’m not the one that rolled around in the dirt for fun!“ Spamton cackled with a fond shake of his head. Even if he was dirty, wet and cold now, he couldn’t bring himself to be upset. Not when he was having so much fun.
He reached out, planting both of his hands firmly on Ant‘s chest to push at him and declare: „Aight, that’s it, roll over. I gotta get my hands on your fluff right now, Cuddlebug.“ He waited until his massive husband flopped over with a confused expression that quickly melted into delighted purring and chittering once Spamton began to scritch along his stomach fluff.
„Thank heaven you still like belly rubs.“ Spamton leaned over his partner's body, craning his neck to give Ant a quick peck on the cheek before returning his affections. „I might’ve actually lost it if you didn’t anymore.“
Ant‘s initial attempt to answer was effectively interrupted by an almost embarrassingly loud purr when Spamton petted just the right spot, eliciting a hearty chuckle from the mailman and a flustered mumbling from the monster. „I do… But it’s been so long since… well- Like I said, you‘re the only one for me, all of this is reserved for only you!“
„Just for me?“ Crooned Spamton, roving his hands all over Ant‘s abdomen, „Aren‘t I lucky~“
„No one else could do it as well as you anyway.“ The face Ant made suggested that he may have tried to find someone else to trust enough with his petting desires, only to be left thoroughly disappointed by their lacking skill. „But hey, you‘re back now!“ He chittered, his antennae vibrating excitedly, „And we‘re never gonna be separated, never ever again! Right? Nothing is gonna happen, right Spammy? I’m not gonna let anything even try! Please, I can’t lose you again…“
Spamton quickly shushed his husband: „Shh, none of that. Don’t even worry about that, alright? You’re not gonna lose me, I’m gonna… I’m gonna do whatever… whatever the hell it takes to stay. I’m gonna stay right here, where I wanna be.“ He reached out to scratch a spot on Ant‘s head, right between the antennae. „With you, my cuddlebug~“
A full-body shudder went through Ant, his fur puffing up as soon as Spamton began scritching at his absolute favorite spot. He chittered loudly, pushing his head insistently into Spamton‘s hand with a pleased sigh. „Spammy…~“ He sounded blissful, like nothing outside of this moment mattered, „Ah, you‘re so good to me… my little mailman~ I‘m so lucky to have you. Sometimes I still can’t believe you chose me~“
„Anyone that wouldn‘t choose you would be a proper idiot.“ Returned Spamton, peppering Ant‘s face in loving kisses. „You‘ve always made me feel like someone that mattered. Even when I was at my lowest, I still felt like I could do anything, as long as you were there.“
Ant giggled, squirming a little under all the attention he wasn’t used to anymore. „Oh, I wish you would’ve said something so sweet for your vows. What was it you ended up with?“ While Spamton‘s face turned beet red at the memory, Ant‘s joyous laughter only amplified, „You‘re not a queen ant, but you still make me feel like royalty~ hehehe~“
With a loud groan, Spamton removed his hands from Ant‘s head in favor of hiding his burning face in them. He wanted to die, someone strike him down right now so he would never have to remember that mortifying moment. „Don‘t say it like that, that‘s so embarrassing. I swear I had actually good vows prepared, but then- I just got- there were- ugh…“ He groaned, shaking his head to himself, „There were just… so many people and they all gave us looks and- and they all had those stupid faces on. I just… I got nervous. I’m sorry, I shouldn’t have, but they got to me. They didn’t deserve to hear what I actually wanted to tell you.“
„I know, my dear mailman.“ Ant playfully bumped his snout against Spamton‘s face, pulling him closer into a hug, „That‘s why you also started a fistfight with that one woman who scoffed at us and then read me your actual vows later, when we were alone. I still know them by heart~ I still thought the silly ones were great though!“
Their wedding was so messy back then, Spamton couldn’t help but think he completely ruined it by allowing the other villagers to get under his skin instead of focusing on his spouse. Yet, he found he didn’t regret it, the wedding was just as he wished for Ant‘s and his union to be: Chaotic, fun, freeing and, most importantly, with the most important monster by his side. Ant hadn’t just endured his admittedly bad temper and worse patience, but somehow even found it endearing.
No more proof was needed to know that the Ant was the one for him.
„We should redo the marriage at some point, here in the Underground.“ Spamton mused suddenly, speaking purely from the heart without giving himself any time to think it over. „Redo our vows while we‘re at it, too. I think we deserve it.“
„Funny you mention that.“ Ant nudged his head against Spamton, indirectly asking for more pets as he spoke, „I thought of the exact same thing yesterday! My friends were so upset that they couldn’t make it to our wedding, but everyone was super busy and the tension between humans and monsters was so high back then, it just wasn‘t in the cards. But we can actually have a redo now! And I really wanna introduce you to my friends!“
Spamton chuckled, reaching out to rub at Ant‘s fluffy cheeks, „If it were up to me I’d drag you to the altar right now!“ Even if they were both wet and dirty, he couldn’t imagine a better opportunity to marry the love of his life a second time than right now.
„Mhh, why don’t we wait at least an itty bitty bit?“ Purred Ant with a deep rumble from his chest as he practically melted into the affection. „Wait until Snowdin is a bit more established and you have safely settled in and made yourself at home? This is probably all still super strange for you.“
With a non-committal shrug, Spamton kissed the tip of Ant‘s snout, „I guess you‘re right. It‘d prolly be best to get to know the underground and all the monsters first. It’s weird enough that I just barged down here and live here now.“
„Then it‘s settled!“ Ant sat up, spreading his three arms ecstatically: „We‘ll have something to look forward to!! And in the meanwhile…“ He came closer with a chitter, his antennae tapping gently along Spamton‘s head in a display of affectionate curiosity, „We can get to know each other all over again~“ With a sweeping motion, he wrapped his spouse into a bear hug, exclaiming excitedly: „This is your home too, now! And I’m gonna make sure that it‘s the best home ever! I won’t ever stop digging until it‘s perfect, promise!“
„So that’s why you‘ve been digging that hole into the wall?“ Spamton settled comfortably into the hug, the comforting pressure and warmth enough to soothe the remainder of his frazzled nerves, „You don’t gotta worry about that, Cuddlebug. I already love it. It suits you perfectly. A little anthill house, just for us.“
With a shake of his head, Ant insisted: „It‘s not enough yet! I already got you furniture, but you don’t have a room for all your things yet! Where you can tinker and do woodwork and stuff!“
Spamton froze, eyes flying open at the revelation, „You-„ He began, swallowing around the emotions building up in his throat, „You‘re… digging a room for me?“
Ant‘s enthusiastic nodding was enough to make him dizzy, his antennae moving in subtle circle motions until he got his bearings, „Yes!! Yes yes yes! I didn’t do it before, because… I don’t know, it was just too sad to dig a room I knew would stay empty until you were here. But you‘re here now, so I can- I can finally do it! I’ll make you the best room so you can feel at home here! I know it’s humble, but… I want it to be ours… something nice and comfortable for us to share and spend the rest of our life with.“
A surprised squeak escaped Ant when Spamton smashed their mouths together into a more passionate kiss. He couldn‘t take it anymore, he needed to kiss him right now, yesterday and just now had not been enough. And now Ant was talking like this and expected not to be kissed silly? A foolish mistake.
There were so many thoughts and emotions coursing through him, far from the emotional wreck he was yesterday but definitely still not ready to properly digest everything that was going on in his frantic mind and pattering heart. All he knew was that he needed to be closer to Ant, kiss him more, hold him closer, cherish him, this home and this new life they‘d get to share.
„Spammy…“ He looked up at Ant‘s breathless huff, taking a moment to stare unabashedly. As handsome as Ant was, he really couldn’t take being wet and dirty anymore.
„How about you take a break from your digging project to take a bath with your husband instead, hm?“ Spamton suggested with a sultry smile, his hands gravitating back to scribble along his spouse‘s neck fluff. While he knew there was no possible scenario where Ant would deny him, it could never hurt to be just a little extra convincing.
If Ant‘s delighted chittering got any louder, it could probably be heard on the surface. He preened at the attention, right before lurching forward and scooping his spouse into a three-armed bear hug. „Oh!!“ He gushed, peppering Spamton‘s face in an onslaught of kisses, „You know I can‘t say no to you when you‘re being so cute!! Let‘s go!!“
„You know I’m gonna have to brush you after that bath though, right?“ Spamton‘s teasing smirk evolved into hearty laughter when Ant tensed and tightened his hold around him.
„Noooo!“ He complained, carding his claws through Spamton‘s hair in a futile attempt to distract him, „I don’t need to be brushed! My fur is perfect and silky and fluffy and smooth! We can just soak, that’s much nicer than sitting around forever with that stupid comb.“
While Spamton enjoyed the intimacy, he remembered all of his spouse‘s manipulative tactics to avoid the evil brush. „You‘re matted!“ He exclaimed in a sing-song voice, giving his partner a coy grin. „You gotta get brushed or it’s gonna hurt.“
„Nooo!! Never!! You’ll never take me!“ Cried Ant out dramatically, hastily whisking Spamton away into the bathroom before anything else could be said.
Sometimes it really felt like nothing changed between them. And Spamton couldn’t be more grateful for that.