Archive of Our Own ^beta

There were days when Green was sure he was going to get a good amount of work done. He always had a pile of it on his desk, but maybe if he did enough then he wouldn’t have as much to do over the weekend. But he should’ve known when Red dragged him from the lab to his house that he was not going to be getting work done.

“C’mon, Green, please stay? It’s tradition!”

Green sighed through his nose, rubbing his temples. They knew how busy he was, really. “I have work to do. Some of us do more than travel all the time.”

“Yeah, and some of us with jobs still take the time off of extra work to have one game night,” Yellow pointed out, her arms crossed. It slipped his mind that she had a job at the Viridian trainer’s school. “It’s a Friday night, how much work can you really have?”

“Enough that if I manage to get it done tonight, I can actually be in the gym this weekend.” He couldn’t remember the last time he was in the gym for an entire weekend.

“Will one night really make much of a difference?” Blue asked, putting on her you’re doing this whether you like it or not face. “How about I promise not to call you while you’re working for an entire week?”

...He wanted to refuse, but that offer was too good. He couldn’t count the papers he nearly messed up because she insisted on calling him at all hours of the day. “Fine. One game night.”

Red clapped his shoulder with a grin. “Glad to hear it! What are we starting with?”

“MarioKart!” Yellow and Blue shouted at the same time. Of course. It was always MarioKart. The two of them dissolved into childlike giggles. Game nights always brought the children out in them. He rolled his eyes at their antics, glad there wasn’t any sugar nearby. They’d be up all night otherwise, and he wasn’t sure he could handle that.

He settled on the couch between Red and the arm of it, picking up a controller while the game was being set up. He never got the appeal to MarioKart, but he supposed it could be fun when he blue-shelled Blue and cruised into first place. Blue had a conniption after that round.

“See, isn’t this nice,” Yellow said while they were on the character selection screen. He kept a close eye on her usual selection of Bowser. “Just the four of us, like old times.”

“It really hasn’t been that long,” Green pointed out as they chose their karts. “You three insist on doing this once a month.”

Red nudged him with his shoulder. “That’s to make sure we keep in touch. We probably would’ve lost contact years ago otherwise. Besides, it’s fun! Blue, your choice first.”

An evil glint came to her eye. “Rainbow Road.” The three of them groaned collectively as she snickered. “Oh, come on, it’s not that bad!”

“Maybe for you.” Yellow blew out a puff of air as she sank further into the couch. “I keep falling off of this one.”

Green didn’t care much about which course they raced on. He knew the outcome would be one of two things: Red or Blue coming in first and then bickering over which one of them cheated, or Green coming in first at the last second. Yellow almost never won, but she seemed to be alright with that. She just played to have fun. Green couldn’t relate.

He set his controller down after the first race was over. Just as he expected, Red and Blue started arguing about who pushed who’s arm, causing both of them to end up at the back of the pack. Good time to take a break and get a drink.

He knew his way around Red’s house like it was his own. When he wasn’t at the lab or the gym, he was usually here at Red’s insistence. He wandered into the kitchen, filling a glass with water. “Taking a break already?” Yellow teased from the doorway.

“Just be glad I’m not going on a coffee run.” He sipped his water calmly. It was only the one time, while Red and Blue were in the middle of an argument. He’d come back to find a flaming bag of popcorn, Yellow asleep in the corner of the room, and Red and Blue trying to push each other over while playing Just Dance. And that was when they were eighteen.

Yellow watched him for a moment before smirking. She really grew into her confidence. “You really don’t have to act like you hate game night. We all know you love it.”

“I have no idea what you’re talking about.” She rolled her eyes, obviously not believing him. “They almost done arguing?”

She threw a glance over her shoulder. “Probably, but this is only round one. You and I both know the peace won’t last.”

He sighed and followed her back into the living room. He settled back into the couch as Yellow took Red’s controller and made the next course selection. Starting the next race was the easiest way to get them to stop arguing.

His mind wandered somewhere between the first and second laps. This game didn’t require much of his focus, and it didn’t matter if he won, anyway. He allowed himself to glance over at the others, all laughing and enjoying themselves. He wasn’t a sentimental person, but he couldn’t help but wonder where the time went. It felt like yesterday he was eleven and competing in the Pokemon League with Red and Blue, or thirteen and training with Yellow. Now they were adults and having fun, free of the burden of saving the world.

“Someone’s off their game tonight!” Blue trilled, knocking Green into the water as she passed him. Well, that’s what he got for leaving his guard down.

The night lasted like all of their game nights did: calls for one more race, one more game of cards, one more round of truth or dare even though they already knew everything about each other. Calls that eventually died as they grew tired and put on a movie Green knew they wouldn’t be awake to finish. They curled up on the couch, even though they’d long since outgrown being able to comfortably share it without being on top of each other.

That was how their game nights always ended. Green, as Yellow pointed out, enjoyed it. Being able to be a kid again for a night had its perks.