- Chapter 125 - Getting Through Rough Days w/ Boots and Red.-
Warnings: Overstimulation, crying
Modern AU
Third Person POV

A/N, this was requested by berrythenewsie , bright_raes , and iwantaferret_ back when I was asking what I should write for 30k reads lol.
Here it is! Enjoy! (Btw, my Spotify called me out ^)

Boots was having a rough day.

Red could see it from the moment he walked into the restaurant where the Newsies were gathering.

Boots was scratching at his skin, his eyes were darting around nervously.

Everyone, if they looked hard enough, could tell that he was struggling.

Red went over to him after about ten minutes of watching him struggle.

Boots looked up at Red when he came over. "Hi," he mumbled, looking back at the boys.

Red watched him. "Hi, love," he whispered. "Can I touch you?"

Boots hesitated. He nodded.

"I can see your hesitation," Red stated, "you don't need to let me touch you to show that you love me," he reminded him. "I already know you love me. It's okay."

Boots swallowed hard and shook his head.

Red smiled slightly. "Why don't we go to my place and just lay down?" he suggested, his voice quiet so only Boots and someone who was next to them could hear. "Maybe watch a movie, if you're up for it."

Boots shook his head. "I can't leave yet."

Specs looked over at him. He smiled warmly. "It's okay. We all understand. We'll see you soon," he assured him.

Boots bit his lip, before sighing. He nodded and got up.

Red watched him cringe slightly at the noise level, causing him to frown.

After, Boots said goodbye to Specs quietly, Red lead him out to his car.

"I'm sorry," Boots whispered, scratching at his arms.

"Don't do that," Red told him.

Boots quickly stopped.

"You don't have to be sorry," Red assured Boots, opening the car door for him. "We all understand. You seem like you're having a tough day today," he said, a slight frown on his face.

Boots nodded a bit.

Red closed his door and went around to the other side of the car. He opened his door and climbed in, before closing it and starting the car.

Boots cringed a bit when the car started and music started playing.

Red quickly turned the music off.

Boots relaxed a little bit, but he was still a bit tense.

Red tried to make it home as quickly as possible.

Boots seemed to be on edge as they drove; picking at his nails, biting his lip, and even scratching at his forearms, until Red stopped him.

It took them ten minutes to get home.

Red turned the keys and pulled them out. He smiled at Boots. "Here."

Boots nodded.

Red lead him up to his apartment. He set his keys down carefully, placing them down on a cloth so they didn't make a scratching noise.

He had helped Boots through enough tough days to know what made the overstimulation worse and what he could do to help.

Red turned around to face Boots. "Why don't you go take a shower?" he suggested.

Boots nodded hesitantly.

"I'll grab you a towel and some soft clothes." Red smiled warmly. "We can cuddle or get food after," he promised him.

Boots smiled weakly. "I really appreciate you," he whispered.

Red smiled. "Me too."

Boots turned around and walked to the bathroom.

Red grabbed his phone and opened the messages app.

Red to Spot

Red: What do you do about food and movies on days when Race is overstimulated?
And certain other things?

Red looked up when he heard a crash. His eyes immediately widened. He quickly set his phone down and ran to the bathroom.

Boots sat on the floor, his knees pulled to his chest as tears stream down his face.

Red instantly realized what happened. "Oh, no, baby," he whispered, bending down and grabbing the towel.

Boots was shaking violently. "It- it hurts," he choked out.

Red looked at the towel in his hand. Realization suddenly hit him; the towel had a really rough texture. He quickly got up. "Let me quickly go grab a blanket, okay?" he asked.

Boots didn't respond.

Red quickly left the room. He grabbed the blanket, when he heard his phone going on. He looked at it quickly, seeing he had a few texts from Spot.

Spot: give him control of the clicker and the volume.
If it's a really bad day, scrap the movie. Maybe read fo him, if he's up for it. Al does that sometimes with Race.
*to

Red nodded to himself, processing this. He quickly went back to the bathroom, figuring he could respond later. He bent down in front of Boots. "Can I hold you in this, or do you want it?" he asked softly.

Boots's eyes were filled with tears as he looked at the blanket. He swallowed and held up one finger, his hand clearly trembling almost violently.

Red understood what that mean. He sat down on the ground and gently wrapped the blanket around Boots, pulling him into his arms.

This was Boots's favorite blanket, one of Red's maroon-colored one. It was soft, which was why he liked it.

After a few minutes of gently rocking Boots, Red heard his voice. It was shaky, but it was there.

"I still feel gross," Boots whispered, clinging to the blanket.

Red frowned. He looked around the room. He had no towels that were soft. "We can use one of the ends of my blankets or a softer shirt, get it wet and you can gently clean yourself until you're okay enough to take a shower," Red offered, his voice quiet and cautious.

Boots frowned. "I feel bad," he mumbled.

Boots was still shaking, but Red couldn't tell if it was him shivering because he was could or if he was still trembling.

Red smiles just slightly. "You don't have to."

Boots thought for a moment, before nodding slightly.

Red carefully helped Boots up. He left the blanket wrapped around Boots and grabbed one of his softer shirts, getting it wet. He made sure the water wasn't too hot, but wasn't too cold either. He held the cloth out for Boots.

Boots slowly took the shirt and hesitantly started wiping himself off. He quickly gave it back to Red when he was done.

Red smiled and threw the shirt in the pile of laundry. "Better?" he asked softly.

Boots nodded, keeping the blanket wrapped tightly around him.

Red watched him with fond eyes. He really loved this boy. "Do you want me to grab you some super soft clothes and to lay down, maybe read a book?" he asked him.

Boots bit his lip. "I want cuddles... I want to ignore my body and have cuddles," he mumbled.

Red nodded understandingly. "Would it help if my arms were loosely around you and you still had this blanket around you too?" he asked him, gesturing to the blanket wrapped around him. "You could choose when you felt comfortable enough to move closer to me," he suggested.

Boots nodded slowly.

"Okay, I'm gonna go grab some clothes, okay?" Red asked.

Boots nodded again.

Red left the room quickly and went to his closet. He had clothes he knew were good for when Boots was having a tough day.

He grabbed the softest and lightest undershirt and pants he had. There were no sleeves on the undershirt, but it was enough to keep him warm and still not bother him too much.

Red quickly went back to the bathroom and gave Boots the clothes. He let him get dressed on his own and just waited in the bedroom.

Boots came out a few minutes later, the blanket wrapped around him again, but the clothes Red had given him now on his body.

Red smiled. He laid down on the bed.

Boots laid in front of him, slowly scotching a bit back so he could be a bit closer to Red.

Red gently laid one arm over him, so he didn't hurt him.

After a few minutes, he felt Boots take his hand and pull it under the blanket, just holding onto it tightly.

Red smiled and closed his eyes. "I love you," he whispered.

"I love you too," came the quiet and mumbled response from his boyfriend.

1434 Words
I hope you all liked that. Thank you to VaquitaLibra for checking over the chapter before I posted it. Good news is that I've improved and there was nothing wrong with this chapter, so they told me lol