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Jabber sat down on the large, pristine couch in front of him, stretching his legs out and almost hitting the coffee table in front of him as he watched Zanka dig through his bookbag to fish out his laptop. Even though the two were on winter break, Zanka still had an extensive essay due in the next few days, much to the ashen blonde’s dismay.
Before Zanka could take his seat next to the brunette, he felt strong arms wrap around his waist and yank him back.
Letting out a yelp, Zanka fell back onto Jabber’s lap, his legs splayed across the rest of the couch with his back hitting the armrest, Jabber sat under him, a cheshire like grin etched into his face.
Zanka rolled his eyes and opened his laptop, not having the energy to try and wiggle out of Jabber’s hold, if the other man’s legs started to hurt later that was on him.
Thrilled that he had gotten away with his plan, the dreadhead squeezed Zanka’s waist affectionately before pulling out his phone and scrolling around, content to just bask in the domestic moment they were sharing.
The two were currently residing at Zanka’s parent’s house. The ashen blonde’s mom having begged Zanka to come stay for his winter break.
He was extremely hesitant at first. Zanka wasn’t on the best terms with his family and loathed the idea of just spending his break getting yelled at by his siblings.
Jabber had chimed in, saying he’d come with him and ‘Kick their snobby asses if they yelled at his boyfriend!’. The declaration left Zanka sputtering and telling Jabber that he could not beat up his relatives. It did make the other man’s heart flutter though, the thought of someone caring for him enough to defend him in front of his family.
The two sat in near silence for a while, the quiet taps of Zanka’s keyboard filled the room as Jabber rubbed circles on the other man’s hip with his free hand, humming contently and occasionally giggling at whatever stupid video he was watching on his phone.
Out of the corner of his eye, Jabber spotted another man walking down the hallway, then stopping to stare at the two on the couch.
It was Goka, Zanka’s older brother.
Jabber internally groaned, he wasn’t a huge fan of Zanka’s family in general, but he had a special hatred for Goka.
He had heard all about the man’s impossibly large superiority complex against Zanka, his snide remarks about Zanka not dating a woman and ‘continuing the Nijiku legacy’ and so, so much more.
The temptation to spring up and immediately start a fight with the older man was so tempting to the brunette, but he paused and glanced at Zanka, who was apparently too caught up in his essay to notice his older brother’s presence.
A grin sketched itself onto Jabber’s face, a plan forming in his head that would piss off Goka without the use of physical violence.
Setting his phone down, Jabber wrapped his other hand around Zanka’s waist, squeezing him lightly.
Zanka hummed affectionately as he continued to type, a small smile played its way onto his lips.
Giddy with excitement, Jabber kissed the other man’s neck softly, quickly glancing at his boyfriend to see if his action disturbed him.
When the other made no move to shrug him off, the dreadhead continued to press kisses along Zanka’s neck, cheek and shoulder, his smile stretching even further when he heard a giggle escape his partner after kissing a particularly ticklish part of his shoulder.
Jabber had almost entirely forgotten about Goka, until he heard a cough just a few feet from the couch.
Just as he was about to start mouthing off to the older man, Zanka spoke.
“What.”
Goka seemed a little put off by his younger brother’s hostility but glared at them before speaking.
“I haven’t even said anything.” He huffed, already furious at his younger brother’s defiance.
“Ya haven’t but yer starin’ at me like ‘m doin’ somethin’ wrong, so what is it.” Zanka didn’t even spare the other man a glance, still typing away on his keyboard, this seemed to infuriate the other man more.
“Should the two of ya really be doing all of that here?” He looked at the two on the couch like they had single-handedly ruined his entire day.
Those words finally earned Goka a look from Zanka, one full of incredulousness and confusion.
“Should I be cuddlin’ my boyfriend on the couch in my own home?” Jabber’s heart fluttered at the use of the word ‘boyfriend’, he loved when Zanka said it like that, like he was something to be protected and cherished. The brunette grinned as he side-eyed Goka, pressing another kiss to Zanka’s neck just to piss the other off further.
Piss him off it did, a vein bulged from the older man’s neck as he continued to stare down Zanka.
“Ya know that’s not what I’m talking about. You two don’t have to be all over each other in the common area.” Goka seethed, causing Zanka to roll his eyes.
“And ya don’t have to be such a dickhead but here ya are.”
That seemed to be the final straw as Goka made a step towards Zanka, seemingly ready to start yelling at him.
Jabber was faster though, quickly sliding Zanka off of himself to stand directly in front of the other man, eye to eye and grinning.
Their staring contest lasted a few moments, neither man moving.
Goka glanced at Zanka, who in return, raised his dotted eyebrow, as if asking ‘Are ya really gonna start a fight over this?’.
Glaring at both of them one more time, the older Nijiku seethed and turned on his heel, marching out of the room without another word.
The room was silent for a moment, Jabber took his spot back underneath Zanka and rubbed his back soothingly.
Suddenly, Zanka wheezed and his wide eyes stared at Jabber.
“That was fuckin’ terrifyin’, I’ve never talked back t’ him like that. Oh my god, what the fuck.” Zanka grinned shakily, his smile a mix of fear, excitement, and pride.
Jabber sported a similar smile, giving Zanka a quick but firm kiss on his lips while removing his hands from the other’s back in favor of lacing their fingers together.
“I’m proud of you! Maybe he’ll get the hint and fuck off.” The brunette responded, truth be told, he had been trying to help Zanka grow a backbone when it came to his family.
The ashen blonde was no non-sense with every other person he encountered, so it shocked Jabber to his core when he overheard a conversation between Zanka and his brother for the first time.
Goka was hurling insults at Zanka for not calling their father the previous week, even though that particular week had been extremely rough on the younger Nijiku as he juggled his four classes mid-terms.
Jabber had expected to hear Zanka scream at the other man, to berate him for being so uncaring about his current situation.
Instead, he heard his boyfriend mutter apologizes and promises to call more often, it broke Jabber’s heart, hearing his loved one treated like trash. At the time, he had half a mind to yank the phone from Zanka and scream into it, spewing all the hatred he felt at the moment into the ears of the man on the other end.
He opted to wait though, not knowing Zanka’s family situation and not wanting to make it worse.
In the end, he held Zanka and soothed him as the ashen blonde ranted angrily about his family, about him wanting to finally stand up to them and their nonsense.
That’s when Jabber suggested they start working on Zanka’s confidence towards his family, to which the other agreed.
It started out small, ignoring their calls when he was busy and hanging up the phone when his family’s tone turned aggressive.
It then turned into Zanka denying their ridiculous requests, like his older sister demanding to see his most recent grades. That sparked a week long silence from both parties, which Zanka reveled in, only spurring on his want to defy them more.
Now here they were, Zanka having finally gathered the courage to talk back to his brother.
Jabber’s heart swelled with pride; his boyfriend had come so far in such a short amount of time.
“Were ya actually gonna fight him?” Zanka’s question broke him out of his reminiscing.
“Mm, if he had started yellin’ at you, yeah.” Jabber smirked; a light blush painted its way across Zanka’s face.
“Don’t be an idiot.” He muttered, releasing his fingers from the dreadhead’s grasp in order to keep working on his essay.
Jabber made note of the small, content smile on his lips.