(After going so long without updating this fic, I forgot how hilarious the titles sound).

Round 6 (previous)
Masterlist
(I also plan on making this available on AO3 soon).

The final elimination is (finally) upon us! Just as a refresher, the options on the last poll were:

A. ExpensiveSpicyHoneyDog
B. Puppymoney
C. Plot Twist!

Let’s see which option won out. 😏 (Warning for tooth-rotting fluff).

🌸🌸🌸🌸🌸

For once, Cash awoke
before Twist. Out the window, the sky was beginning to glow pink. Too early to
be awake, basically. Cash closed his eyes and squirmed in Twist’s grip, trying
to find sleep again. But sleep didn’t seem interested in finding him.

Carefully, he
wriggled himself out of Twist’s arms and slipped out of bed. He looked at
Twist, still heavily asleep. He looked strange in sleep. Unusually tranquil
without a lazy grin on his face or clever comments coming out of his mouth.
Cash almost woke him, then decided against it. It was too early to deal with
Twist. After finding his cigarettes and lighter, he crept out onto the balcony.

He leaned over the
dew-damp railing and watched the sun come up. The smoke from his cigarette
glowed milky orange in the light. He inhaled deeply, holding it in his chest
cavity. He heard the double doors swinging open behind him. “were you even
asleep?” he sighed.

He felt Twist’s arm
around his shoulders and shrugged it off, but relinquished when he replaced it.
“Nah, didn’t get much sleep.” Cash hummed and breathed out a stream of smoke.

“next time you’ll
sleep in your own bed.”

“That is my bed,”
Twist pointed out.

Cash scowled. “every
bed in this house belongs to me.”

Twist snickered
softly. “Well, bed’s comfier with you in it.”

Cash pressed his
cigarette out on the railing. “what do you want?” he asked.

“Just wanna know what
yer doin’ out here. ‘s cold.”

“came here to think.
and you’re not making it very easy.”

“Wan’ me ta leave?”

Cash shrugged. “i
don’t care.” He swallowed when Twist squeezed his shoulder.

“Thinkin’ ‘bout the
ceremony?”

“don’t need to. i’ve
already made a decision.” He felt Twist go stiff. “i’m thinking about… after.”

“What happens after?”

Cash lit a second
cigarette and inhaled. “dunno. guess i’ll find out.”

Cash stood in the
shower for longer than was probably necessary. He turned the hot water on high
and let it rush over him, clearing out his skull. He cleaned his damaged socket
tenderly, dabbing around the edges of the sensitive bone. After climbing out,
he studied his reflection in the fogged mirror.

His face was flushed
purple from the hot water, and pink magic had flooded the area around his
broken socket. His chest twisted and he glanced away, placing his eyepatch back
on. He wrapped a towel around his waist and headed into his bedroom. It almost
surprised him when Twist wasn’t waiting to ambush him.

After dressing, he
was about to head downstairs when he noticed Slim’s jacket hanging over the
back of his chair. He’d forgotten to give it back. He swallowed and brushed his
hand over the ruff. It took a moment of fidgeting and deliberation before he
decided to slip his own off and wear Slim’s instead. He caught himself inhaling
it and froze. Shaking his head, he walked swiftly downstairs.

He found the others
waiting for him at the foot of the stairs and his soul pulsed. Twist was
standing near the front door, away from the rest of the group. He winked at
Cash. “Good luck, Patches.”

Cash managed a grunt
of acknowledgement. He eyed the other three and swallowed. Stretch folded his
arms. “got a speech prepared?” he asked snidely.

“fuck you.”

Stretch grinned.
“again?”

“Quiet down, love,”
Edge said, bemused.

“why?” Stretch
smirked at Edge, leaning in. “you didn’t.” Edge dug his elbow into Stretch’s
ribs and he snickered. Cash glanced quickly at Slim, but he was grinning.

“let’s just get to
the point,” Cash said dryly, summoning a sleek violet bone of magic. He placed
it in Edge’s hand, glancing at Stretch. “you get to share one.”

“How appropriate,”
Edge said, faintly amused. Cash frowned.

“is this because we
shared you?” Stretch purred, leaning in.

Cash pinched
Stretch’s jaw. “next time, i want you on your knees.” He let go, and Stretch at
least had the decency to blush. Edge’s arm crept around his waist and he leaned
in as Cash moved on to Slim.

He summoned another
bone. It tingled against his fingers, infused with accidental affection. His
soul was racing a mile a minute, and his breaths felt thin. “u-um…” Fuck, he
couldn’t even look Slim in the eye.

“you’re wearing my
jacket.” Slim ran his hand down the sleeve. He was smiling. “you gonna give
that to me?” he asked, nodding at the bone in Cash’s hand.

“i don’t know!” Cash
snapped. He took a deep breath. “only if you want it…”

“was there ever
really any doubt?”

Cash rolled the bone
over in his hands. “i’m not very good at this, you know,” he murmured, so the
others couldn’t hear.

Slim held his chin
and pressed their foreheads together. He was grinning. “oh yeah, you’re awful.”
With a soft breath, he touched their teeth together, slipping his tongue into
Cash’s mouth. Cash felt him taking the bone from his hand as they broke away.
“i’ll be keeping this, though,” he said, tapping it with his finger. “as a
promise.”

Cash narrowed his
socket. “what promise?”

“a promise that you
won’t chicken out on me,” Slim said, crossing his arms. “i actually kinda like
you, you know.”

Cash had to look away
for a moment to get his blush under control. “yeah, okay.” He gave Slim a faint
half-smile. “put out enough and i might actually stick around.”

Slim grinned. “good
boy.” He glanced over Cash’s shoulder, then gave him an inquiring look. Cash
looked behind him and found Twist watching them with a crooked smile. He
quickly turned away, frowning. “remember,” Slim whispered, stroking his jaw
with his thumb, “no chickening out.”

Cash slapped his hand
away and turned around, exhaling. He approached Twist with slumped shoulders.
“Good decision, Patches,” Twist said with a warm smile.

“i’m not done,” Cash
said, a little abruptly. Twist’s smile dwindled as he summoned another bone.
His hands shook around it and he stared at the ground. He didn’t know what to
do. A million regrets and terrors were already crushing him under their weight.
He could feel the others watching him, and that really wasn’t helping. “it’s
for you,” he said at last, scrambling the bone into Twist’s hands.

“What’re ya doin’?”
Twist’s voice was unnaturally quiet. It was unsettling, and only heightened
Cash’s panic.

“i think he’s giving
you his bone,” Stretch said unhelpfully. Cash didn’t even have the clarity of
mind to glare at him. He stood weakly in front of Twist, his courage quickly
diminishing.

“i-i’m picking you,”
he said. Fuck, he sounded pathetic. “you were the one who said i… didn’t have
to play by the rules.”

“Patches, I think ya
misunderstood me,” Twist said quietly. “I ain’t one a’ the options.”

Cash could feel his
jaw trembling. He grit his teeth and swallowed. “i don’t care, you stubborn
asshole,” he growled. “i’m picking you.”

Twist breathed and
closed his socket. “Ya can’t.”

“well—well why the
fuck not?” Cash snapped, taking a step back. “do you not want me?”

Twist didn’t answer.
He frowned at the floor, rolled his shoulders, then shook his head. “Tha’s not
what I said.”

“then—”

“Ye’ve got Slim—and
Edge and Stretch. What d’ya need me fer?”

Cash stared at him,
fists trembling at his sides. “fine,” he spat. “fuck you.” He turned without
another word and marched upstairs, slamming his bedroom door behind him.

Cash was relieved
when it was Stretch and Edge who found him in the darkness of his room. And
disappointed. He’d faintly been hoping for someone else. He barely glanced
at them when they quietly closed the door. He turned on his side, facing away
from them, and flicked his lighter. Stretch sat beside him and placed a hand on
his shoulder. “don’t,” Cash hissed, pulling away.

Stretch glanced at
Edge, who sat on Cash’s other side. “Slim is talking to Twist,” he said. Cash
said nothing, but a lump formed in his throat. He stopped flicking his lighter,
squeezing it in his palm.

“do you want to come
downstairs?” Stretch asked gently.

“i don’t want to talk
to twist,” Cash said coldly.

Edge sighed and
yanked him up by his arm. “Come on. Sit up, you stubborn twat.”

Cash scowled at him.
“what do you want?”

“I want you to stop
feeling sorry for yourself and go talk to Twisted.”

“he made his
decision,” Cash said quietly. “that’s fine. i don’t care.”

“cash…” Stretch stroked
the back of his hand, meeting his eye with uncanny tenderness. “do you really
think twist doesn’t want you? after all he’s done for you?”

“what is this, good
cop, bad cop?”

Stretch gave Edge a
frustrated look, and Edge inhaled. “Your problem,” he said slowly, “is that
you’re both obstinate morons.”

Cash gave him a flat
look. “great. thanks. now that you’ve insulted me, do you want to get the fuck
out?”

Edge’s patience
seemed to be wavering, so Stretch stepped in. He cupped Cash’s jaw and turned
his face, looking at him with earnest unnatural of him. “twist cares about you,
idiot. it’s so fucking obvious. i think the problem is that you don’t want to
believe it. because you… don’t think you deserve it.” His eyes flickered to
Edge.

Cash clenched his
teeth. “he said.” He exhaled, his breath shaking. “he said he didn’t want me.”

“No, he didn’t,” Edge
said quietly. Cash looked at him and found a vulnerability he wasn’t used to in
the Edgelord. “He wants you. He doesn’t think he deserves you, but he wants
you.” Cash noticed Edge lacing his fingers with Stretch’s. He looked away. It
felt like he was intruding on something intimate.

“the guy’s an idiot,”
Stretch said. “you just need to talk some sense into him. slim’s given you a
headstart.”

Cash sighed, slumping
back against his pillows. “and i suppose you two are here to talk sense into
me.”

“precisely,” Stretch
said, smiling pleasantly.

Cash hummed his
disapproval, folding his arms. “you’re both idiots,” he mumbled, pushing
Stretch aside so he could climb off the bed. “i’m going for a walk. don’t fuck
in my bed while i’m gone.”

“no promises,”
Stretch called, looking far too smug for Cash’s liking. Even Edge betrayed a
certain degree of pride. He would have to fix that later. He had other shit to
get done right now.

He found Twist and
Slim sitting next to the lake in the grounds. He eyed the wet grass grimly
before sitting down next to Twist. Slim smiled at him, a knowing gleam in his
eyes. Cash gave him the finger and he rolled his eye-lights and got up. He crouched
to squeeze Cash’s hand before leaving.

It was a nice enough
day. The sun was warm, only a few clouds streaking across the sky. The air was
stirred by a light cool breeze, and it smelled like flowers and fresh grass. It
didn’t help ease Cash’s nerves much.

Now that he was here,
alone with Twist, he found he was having difficulty speaking. He plucked at the
grass and didn’t look up. Something needed to be said, but Cash wasn’t sure
what. He couldn’t think of the right words. Twist’s presence beside him felt
almost overbearing. Like a reminder that this silence had dragged on for far
too long, and it was only getting more and more uncomfortable—

“Patch—Cash, ‘re ya
happy?” Twist’s words rang through the silence. Cash couldn’t look at him, but
he nodded slowly. “With Slim—and Edge and Stretch. Yer happy with ‘em?”

“yes.”

“So then… why?”

“why, what?”

“You know what.”

Cash frowned, picking
at the grass more avidly. “because,” he said stubbornly.

“Is it fer sex?”
Twist asked. “Is that why ya want me?”

“yeah.” Cash
shrugged, digging his fingers deeper into the dirt. “and other things.”

“What other things?”

“i don’t fucking
know!” Cash snapped at last, looking up at Twist. He was watching him, with
unsettling focus. “you think i know how this shit works?”

“Ya think I do?”

Cash threw up his
arms, bewildered. “you’re the one who set this whole bloody thing up, aren’t
you? you tell me. what am i meant to do here?”

Twist looked away,
frowning. His cracked socket was glowing faintly. “Ya weren’ meant ta pick me,”
he whispered.

“well i did.”

“But, the others…”

“i picked them, too.”

“Patches…” Twist
sighed, but there was laughter in his eyes. Faint, but familiar, humour. He
touched Cash’s cheekbone with his fingertips, barely grazing the bone.

“you said i didn’t
have to play by the rules.”

Twist pulled a face.
“Yeah, ‘m really regrettin’ those words now.”

“can’t you just—can’t
you just let me have this?” Cash felt bitterly desperate. He could hear how
pathetic he sounded.

“Now yer jus’ bein’
greedy,” Twist said, grinning. Cash could have slapped him. Instead he held his
gaze, unwavering. Twist’s smile faded and he sighed. “Yer happy with the
others. Ya don’ need me.”

“i want to be happy
with you.”

Twist ran a hand over
his face, groaning. “Fuckin’ hell. Why’d ya have ta make everythin’ so
difficult, Patches?”

The temptation to
storm off again was almost irresistible. Cash’s confidence, and his patience
for this argument, were quickly crumbling. He sighed and pulled away from
Twist. “if you don’t feel the same way…”

“Woah, wait a minute.
Who told ya that?” Cash looked at him. “Alright, point taken. But ya know I
didn’ mean it.”

“no, i didn’t know
that! surprisingly enough.”

Twist hummed, looking
away for a moment. Then he turned back. “Fine. Fine. Okay.” He reached for Cash
and then drew back. Squeezed his sockets shut. Exhaled. “Fuck it.” He leaned in
and pressed their teeth together.

Cash held his breath.
His cheekbones burned when Twist caught his face with both hands, holding him
steady. He swiped his tongue over Cash’s teeth, seeking entrance. Cash froze,
inhaling, then slowly opened his mouth. He tasted Twist for the first time and
magic rushed into his mouth.

He quickly learned
that Twist wasn’t an idle kisser. He pulled Cash into his lap, wrapping his
arms around his waist and neck, cradling his skull and kissing him deeper. Cash
held onto him, mindless of how out in the open they were, or the damp grass
beneath them.

When at last Twist
broke the kiss, he was grinning. Cash swallowed, trying to ease himself out of
Twist’s lap, but Twist held onto him. Scowling, Cash stared at the ground over
Twist’s shoulder, avoiding his excited gaze. “so, is that a yes?” he muttered.

Twist leaned back,
lying down on the grass so that Cash was straddling him. Cash glared at him,
but Twist was beaming. He stroked Cash’s cheekbone and exhaled. “Sweetheart.
That’s a fuck yes.”

****

“… is this really
necessary?”

“Absolutely!” Twist
grinned proudly. “Ya picked all’ve us, so ya gotta sleep with all’ve us.”

Cash eyed the nest of
blankets and pillows spread across his living room floor. The furniture had
been pushed aside to make room for the makeshift bed. Edge and Stretch were
already tucked in comfortably in front of the fire, asleep, and Slim was
reading in his corner. “We’ll have ta invest in a bigger bed later,” Twist said
thoughtfully. “But this’ll do fer now.” He beamed at Cash. “Ya like?”

Grunting, Cash
shuffled beneath the covers beside Slim, who put his book down to kiss Cash’s
cheek. “just get in the bed, twisted,” Cash muttered.

Much to Cash’s
disgruntlement (and Slim’s amusement), Twist wedged himself between the two of
them, crushing them both in warm hugs. “‘Night, Patches,” he whispered, kissing
Cash deeply before shutting his eyes. Cash gave Slim a look, but Slim just
smiled, resting his head against Twist’s shoulder. He reached out and held
Cash’s hand on top of Twist’s chest, before closing his eyes.

Cash lay awake long
after the others had dozed off. He was tired, but his magic was alive, thrilled.
His gaze kept wandering over their little group, as if he had to savour this
moment. As if it might vanish in an instant. He glanced at Edge and Stretch.
Curled up in each other’s arms, peaceful, happy. Slim—comfortable, his fingers
still laced with Cash’s, his face kind, even in sleep.

And Twist. Cash
wondered if he was actually asleep this time. Even now, he was smiling. Cash
tucked his head against his chest. Twist stirred, and his arm slowly crept
around Cash’s shoulders. Closing his eyes, Cash went to sleep, contented.