Archive of Our Own ^beta

Strong Sad laid in his bed, staring up at the ceiling as the flashes of lightning illuminated his room. With each crack of thunder, the sound reverberated through his small body, making his heart jump. He pulled the covers over his head, trying to block out the relentless noise of raindrops hammering against the window. Shakingly clutching his quilt and his beloved stuffed elephant as tightly as he could, he hoped they might offer some comfort, but no luck.

Slowly, he sat up, his gaze drawn toward the slightly cracked open window. The wind outside howled through the trees, though the sound was barely audible over the pounding of his heart. The faint scent of rain wafted into his room—a scent that alerted him that dawn was approaching, and that might have been soothing on any other night, but tonight only served as a reminder of the storm's presence. He turned to look at his bedroom door, which stood slightly ajar, leading into the pitch-black hallway.

He swallowed his anxiety and slowly slid out of bed, his feet touching the cold wooden floor as he landed, the old floorboards creaking beneath him. He reached over to grab his pillow and his stuffed elephant before stumbling over to his door.

Strong Sad paused in the doorway, however, upon seeing that the darkness seemed to stretch endlessly before him, a vast, shadowy expanse that made his heart race even faster. He clung onto his pillow and elephant closer for support, feeling their warmth against his skin.

Taking a deep breath, Strong Sad cautiously stepped into the hallway. His lack of sight was almost overwhelming, with only a few faint slivers of moonlight slipping through the cracks of partially open doors, casting just enough light to guide him to his predetermined destination. Despite this, he moved slowly, careful to make as little noise as possible. The last thing he wanted was to wake up Strong Mad, since he wasn't sure his oldest brother would appreciate being disturbed at this hour.

The storm outside seemed to grow more intense with every passing second, the thunder booming louder and the rain pounding harder as if trying to force him back to his own room. But as much as Strong Sad wanted to succumb, he pressed on, though a bit quicker, driven by a need that outweighed his fear.

When he finally reached his older brother's room, Strong Sad hesitated, his hand hovering just in front of the door. This might be a bad idea. What if Strong Bad got mad at him for waking him up? What if he told him to grow up and go back to his room? What if... Just then, almost as if on cue, another crack of thunder, closer than before, sent a jolt of shock through him, and without thinking, Strong Sad pushed the door open a little wider.

Inside, the soft glow of moonlight from the window barely illuminated the room but it was enough to see. Strong Sad didn’t need to scan the room, it was familiar to him and he knew it well. He simply waddled up to the bed in front of him and stood on his tiptoes to peer at the figure lying on it. Strong Bad was sprawled across the covers, wrapped in quilts, with an eyemask resting over his face.

For a moment, Strong Sad felt a pang of guilt for disturbing him, but he gathered his courage and gently poked Strong Bad’s arm with the hand that wasn’t clutching his stuffed elephant. “Strong Bad…?” At first, there was no response. Strong Bad shifted slightly, mumbling something unintelligible, but didn’t wake up. Strong Sad poked him again, a bit more insistently this time. “Wake up, big brother...”

It took several tries, but eventually, Strong Bad began to stir, pushing the eyemask up and blinking groggily as he looked down to reveal Strong Sad standing beside him. The dark made it hard to see clearly, but Strong Bad recognized his little brother’s anxious face immediately.

“What do you want, Strong Sad?” he mumbled, a hint of annoyance creeping into his voice as he rubbed his eyes. “It’s the middle of the dang night.”

Strong Sad’s eyes suddenly filled with tears, his lower lip quivering as he struggled to speak. “I-I'm scared, Strong Bad, The storm… it’s too loud.”

Strong Bad blinked, still half-asleep, but his initial confusion quickly turned into a snarky smirk. “You’re scared of thunder? Seriously, man? It’s just noise. It’s not like the storm’s gonna come in here and eat you.”

Strong Sad sniffled, his gaze dropping to the floor. “I know, I’m sorry… I just… I thought maybe…”

“Don’t you have a nightlight or something? And your stuffie?” Strong Bad teased, gesturing to the stuffed elephant held in Strong Sad’s forearm.

“Mom said I was too old for a nightlight months ago…” Strong Sad replied quietly, his legs starting to tremble.

“Oh right, heheh.” Strong Bad snickered before retorting sarcastically. “Well, what do you want me to do about it?”

Strong Sad leaned against the edge of the bed, looking up at Strong Bad with his most pleading eyes. “I was hoping I could… sleep up here… with you tonight.”

Strong Bad’s teasing grin faded almost instantly. “What? No way!” He scoffed, crossing his arms.

“W-What? Why?” Strong Sad asked, his voice cracking.

“I’m not letting some wuss into my bed just because he’s scared of a little rain!”

“But Strong baaaad!” Strong Sad whined.

“Why don’t you go bother Strong Mad and ask if you can sleep in his bed?”

“Because I—” Another deafening crack of loud thunder shook the room, causing both Strong Bad and Strong Sad to flinch visibly. Strong Bad's eyes widened, quickly realizing how much he underestimated just how frightened his little brother was. And seeing his terrified reaction instinctively struck a sudden protective urge in him, an urge he hadn’t shown very often, and his expression softened.

Feeling a pang of guilt from his blunder, Strong Bad sighed, his irritation giving way to compassion. “Alright, alright. Fine! You can stay here. Just for tonight.”

Strong Sad’s eyes brightened, and a warm smile spread across his face. Carefully, he climbed onto the bed and placed his pillow next to Strong Bad’s. He was careful to keep his distance at first, not wanting to annoy his brother more than he already had. But when another rumble of thunder shook the house and Strong Bad saw Strong Sad clutching his elephant again as he pulled the quilt over both of them, he knew he had to act, whether he wanted to or not.

“Ugh, come here, you big baby,” he said, holding out both his arms. “If you’re gonna be here, at least make it worth waking me the dang up.”

Strong Sad stared in awe at Strong Bad, hesitant for a second. The invitation was too once-in-a-lifetime to resist, so he inched closer, allowing Strong Bad to wrap his arms around him and pull him close to his body, feeling the warmth of their awkward—yet oddly genuine—embrace.

“There, see? Nothing’s gonna get you,” Strong Bad grumbled, trying to brush off the gesture as if it were purely practical. “Not on my watch.” 

Strong Bad wasn’t exactly gentle, he rarely ever was, but right now there was a protective strength in the way he held Strong Sad, a silent promise that as long as he was there, nothing bad would happen. And for the first time that night, and the last time in a long time after this, Strong Sad knew he was gonna be okay.

Strong Sad’s heart swelled with warmth, a small smile forming on his face as he snuggled in closer, wrapping his arms around the back of Strong Bad’s neck. The storm outside was still raging, but with Strong Bad's presence, knowing that he'd be there to protect him, it didn’t seem so scary anymore. It was in these rare, quiet times that Strong Sad felt most truly connected to his brother, when the teasing and the tough exterior gave way to something softer, something that was only theirs.

“Thank you, Strong Bad,” Strong Sad whispered, his eyes fluttering shut as exhaustion finally began to take hold.

Strong Bad glanced down at him, a faint smile tugging at the corners of his mouth. “Yeah, yeah, don’t wear it out,” he replied with a gruff tenderness. “But, uh… if you ever need to stay here again, for whatever reason, that's cool with me. Just… just don’t tell anybody! Alright?”

"Okay," Strong Sad said, shifting his position slightly. "Goodnight, Strong Bad," he said with a yawn.

"Niiiight," Strong Bad replied.

They laid together in silence for several long minutes, the room filled only with the muffled sounds of the storm outside as they waited for sleep to claim them. And just as the quiet began to feel almost tangible, Strong Sad broke it one last time.

"I love you, big brother." His voice was weak and faint and muffled In the crook of Strong Bad's neck, but he heard him clear as day. 

Strong Bad froze, feeling a smile beginning to form again, and rested his chin gently atop Strong Sad’s head. "I... love you too, little brother." He said back to him, although it seemed he had already fallen asleep, and couldn't hear him. But Strong Bad didn’t mind that. In fact, he was sort of glad he didn’t. Cause that would’ve seriously taken away some of his cool-kid points. Regardless of that, it didn’t make what he said any less true.

If only they had held onto this mindset as they got older.