Chapter Text
It had been a bit over a month since season 3 of Inanimate Insanity wrapped up. Nickel and Balloon had patched things up and were now good pals. Balloon got invited back to stay at OJ’s hotel, and life was looking up. He finally shook off his past and earned the respect of everyone who once doubted him. It felt great. Balloon was relieved! He didn't want any more drama. Being with his friends, especially Nickel, made him happy. They did everything together—playing games, chatting, just hanging out. Their friendship grew stronger each day.
They wished Suitcase and Baseball could see them now! Nickel and Balloon missed their pals. As they geared up for the end of season 2. They realised they hadn't seen Suitcase and Baseball since that whole mess in season 2. A lot has changed since then, and they hope Suitcase and Baseball have moved on too. Balloon especially wants Nickel to keep liking him. He can't stand the thought of going back to when Nickel didn't trust or like him. This friendship feels right, and he wants to keep it safe.
Even though things are better now, and Nickel and Balloon are finally getting along, doubts still linger. Despite Nickel's promises to always be there and support him, Balloon can't shake the fear that things will regress, that Nickel and others will change their minds about him and abandon him again. The thought terrifies him. He's put so much effort into fixing these friendships, and he can't bear the idea of losing them. Going back isn't an option for him.
. . .
It was late at OJ's hotel, with the moon high and the air chilly. Most everyone was asleep in their rooms. Balloon shared a room with Nickel, who was fast asleep, snoring loudly. Balloon was asleep too, until a nightmare jolted him awake. He trembled all over, sweating, his face filled with dread. The dream was awful—it was about Nickel leaving him, saying he wasn't good enough and never really his friend. It felt like he couldn't breathe, gasping for air, trying to calm down with shaky breaths and a hand on his chest. Tears welled up as he looked at Nickel, still sleeping peacefully beside him. It was just a dream, but the pain lingered. If it wasn't real, then what was wrong?
Perhaps Balloon's fear of losing Nickel still lingered, the trauma of past events haunting him. Even though they'd made amends, the dread of losing his newfound best friend gnawed at him. He finally felt understood by someone, and strangely, it was Nickel, the rude and sarcastic Nickel. But what if Nickel realised Balloon wasn't a good enough friend? What if old grudges resurfaced, tearing their friendship apart again? Terrible thoughts flooded Balloon's mind, refusing to go away. He desperately wished they would vanish, but they persisted, overwhelming him. He buried his face in his hands, tears streaming down. Losing Nickel was something he couldn't bear to imagine.
As the sobs grew louder, Nickel stirred in his sleep, disturbed by the noise. He weakly opened his eyes, trying to make sense of the dark room. Sitting up slowly, he rubbed his eyes with one of his limbs and then noticed Balloon. Frowning immediately, panic surged within him.
"Balloon?" Nickel asked, turning his head to try to get a better look at Balloon's face in the dim light.
Balloon gasped, hastily sniffing and wiping his eyes. "I'm fine," he blurted out, which probably wasn’t the best thing to say because now Nickel knew he wasn’t fine.
Nickel shook his head, unconvinced. He leaned over to the bedside table and switched on the lamp, casting a warm glow that illuminated the room. In the light, Balloon's weak and tear-stained eyes were unmistakable. He definitely wasn't fine.
“Jeez… Balloon… you look terrible– and I mean that in the most respectful way.” Nickel commented.
Balloon sniffed and turned away, he didn’t want Nickel to see him like this.
“I’m fine, really, please go back to bed.”
“Oh yeah, I’ll just go back to bed… No! Balloon, No, You’re crying and you want me to just ignore that?” Nickel snapped. He didn’t mean to sound so rude… he just was really worried and didn’t understand what was going on.
“Yes! Yes please just ignore me, you need to sleep… it’s not important, I’m not important, I’m not worth this… besides, when you don’t sleep you get grumpy… so just sleep.” Balloon protested.
Nickel wasn't about to let it go. He got out of bed and walked over to Balloon's, hopping up to sit at the end. "Then I'll be grumpy, do you think I care?" he said firmly. "My best friend is crying. I can't just go back to bed and act like nothing happened!" His frown deepened, genuine concern showing.
Balloon felt his frustration mounting. Why couldn't Nickel just leave him alone? He didn't want sympathy or pity, he just wanted to wallow in his own misery. "Don't kid yourself... Baseball is your best friend," he grumbled, feeling defensive.
Nickel raised an eyebrow, confused by Balloon's sudden attitude. "I—what? Balloon, I can have two best friends," he insisted, scooting closer to Balloon. "What's going on with you? Talk to me."
Balloon was shaking, tears streaming down his face before Nickel could react. He covered his eyes in embarrassment, feeling weak for crying over a dream that wasn't real. "I'm sorry... I—I just don't want to lose you," he sobbed.
Nickel was taken aback by Balloon's outburst. "Lose me? Balloon... I'm not going anywhere," he reassured, his voice gentle. "Sure, we've had our ups and downs, but I promise I'm here to stay now. I really care about you, Balloon. These past weeks have been some of the best of my life, and part of me wishes I had given you a chance from the start." He frowned, sincere concern in his eyes. “Where is all of this coming from…?” Nickel asked.
Balloon sniffled, his gaze meeting Nickel's. Did Nickel really mean everything he said? How could Balloon be so sure? Maybe Nickel would say that now but then change his mind later.
"Do you even mean that...? I am nothing special," Balloon frowned, feeling unsure of himself. "You don't have to be friends with me because you pity me, Nickel," he added, his voice wavering.
"Balloon... I'm not your friend because I pity you. I'm your friend because I like you," Nickel responded earnestly, his expression softening. "I enjoy being around you, and I feel happier when I'm with you. I know I'm not the nicest of people, but you bring out the best in me. To me, you are special. I don't know why you think I just pity you, but none of this is true. Did someone get inside your head?" He frowned, concerned.
Balloon thought for a moment, twiddling his thumbs nervously. "Well... I did earlier make Silver really mad, and he said some really mean stuff," he admitted hesitantly.
Nickel's face darkened into an angry frown. "What did he say?" he demanded to know, his tone sharp.
"He... He said that basically... one day you will leave me, because you will realise what a waste of space I am to be around," Balloon sniffed, feeling hurt.
Nickel's eye twitched, his anger evident. "I'm gonna kill him!" he snapped violently.
"Nickel, no! Please... it's not worth it... Besides, I know he was just mad," Balloon pleaded, reaching out to calm Nickel down. "I was teasing him about liking Candle, and that wasn't fair on him. And I mean, it wasn't all his fault. I've been having nightmares about you leaving me since the end of season 3... It's a constant fear that you'll realise I'm not good enough and that you'll leave me forever. I just can't help but think you're too good for me," Balloon confessed, his voice filled with vulnerability.
Nickel's expression softened as he listened to Balloon's confession. He shook his head, frowning as he moved closer to Balloon.
"Balloon... I'm not going to leave you," he began, his voice gentle. "I know we haven't exactly had the most perfect relationship in the past, but things are better now. I..." He paused, swallowing anxiously. "I really enjoy your company. I'm glad to have you in my life. You make every cloudy day feel like a sunny day. I've really come to like you, and I wouldn't want to lose you either. You mean a lot to me." He weakly smiled, a rare display of vulnerability. "And you have to know this is true, because when do I ever talk about my feelings?" Nickel had a point; he usually avoided talking about his emotions. So, Balloon must mean a lot to him if he was willing to open up like this.
Balloon sighed, realising he might have been overreacting. It's impossible to predict the future, and maybe it's best to focus on the present, especially when it's a good one. Nickel really does care, and doesn't want to lose him either. It's comforting to know they're on the same page. Balloon weakly smiled at Nickel, placing a hand on his head.
"You didn't have to stay awake and help me... but I'm glad you did," Balloon expressed his gratitude.
Nickel returned the smile. "Maybe I didn't have to... but I wanted to. You don't deserve to go through this alone, and as long as I'm your friend, I'm not letting you face it alone."
Balloon smiled, his cheeks flushing a dark shade of red. "So... did you really mean what you said... about enjoying my company and being glad to have me in your life, and all that?" he teased Nickel, enjoying seeing him get nervous due to emotions.
Nickel's cheeks turned a bright shade of bluish grey. "Shut up," he grumbled, feeling slightly embarrassed now.
“Aww someones embarrassed~!” Balloon giggled, he poked at Nicke’s cheek.
Nickel squinted his eyes and grumbled. He hated to be teased… especially by Balloon…
“I am not.” He protested.
“Are too!” Balloon giggled.
“Psh…” Nickel was avoiding eye contact now, he wasn’t getting into this debate.
"You like me~" Balloon teased playfully, poking fun at Nickel's discomfort.
Nickel turned his head away, internally cursing Balloon. "You wish," he grumbled defensively. He was trying everything in his power to keep his cool.
Balloon smiled widely, He found Nickel’s reactions really cute… but he knew he couldn’t keep tormenting him forever, instead he reached out to pull Nickel close in a gentle hug. "It meant a lot to me, I hope you know that," he said sincerely, his smile bright and genuine.
Nickel’s face grew darker with blush by the second. He tried to maintain his facade and not melt into the hug. "Yeah, whatever... Come on, we should get some sleep," he said, squeezing out of Balloon's grip and about to hop back to his own bed.
Something saddened Balloon about Nickel wanting to go to bed… he didn’t want this moment between them to end, he wanted to stay close to his friend.
"Hey, Nickel... can you lay with me?" Balloon asked sweetly.
He hoped he hadn’t overstepped with this, the last thing he wanted to do was make Nickel uncomfortable.
Nickel felt himself becoming increasingly flustered, he wasn’t sure if this was the level of friendship he would consider them at… but he didn't turn down the request.
"Sure, I guess... whatever," he grumbled quickly.
To Balloon’s genuine surprise… Nickel said yes! His smile stretched from cheek to cheek as he grabbed Nickel and tucked him in beside him.
Balloon wrapped his arms around the metal sphere, holding Nickel close. Nickel stayed silent, unable to believe he agreed to this, but he had to admit, it felt kind of nice. It wasn't often people willingly gave him affection like this, and maybe it was long overdue for the coin. Nickel allowed his eyes to rest shut, sighing softly as he eased into the affection.
"Goodnight, Nickel, thank you for tonight…" Balloon murmured tiredly, allowing his eyes to fall shut.
"Night, Balloon," Nickel sighed, a smile creeping to his lips.
He was glad he and Balloon had made up. He liked their relationship like this.
He liked Balloon.