"Ugh! This stupid game!" Dan groaned, yanking his headphones down to rest around his neck before burying his face in his hands. His messy, electric-blue hair spilled over his cheeks as he rubbed his face roughly. "How many deaths is that now?"

He peeked at the chat — a chaotic flood of double-digit numbers, some probably exaggerated just to mess with him. He sighed, already regretting asking. "Yeah... okay. That's all I needed to know." He waved at the camera, half-laughing. "Y'all can cut it out."

Predictably, the teasing only ramped up.

He zoned out for a moment, eyes flicking toward the clock. His boyfriend should be home soon. He knew his schedule by heart — partly so he wouldn't accidentally dox him on stream, and partly because he just liked knowing when he'd be walking through that door. Plus, Diva and Waistband always lost their little minds when he got home.

"Oof. I gotta wrap up soon," Dan mumbled, standing and placing his headphones on the desk. He wandered over to the playpen, where Diva and Waistband were currently rolling around, play-fighting like their lives depended on it.

Dan leaned down, giving Diva a kiss on the top of her head before scooping up Waistband. "Sorry, sweetheart. Gonna borrow your adopted son for a minute."

He plopped back into his chair, holding the tiny dog up for the camera like a proud dad. The chat went nuts.

Waistband. God, the name still made him shake his head. Tally had nearly choked laughing when he told her. "Waistband? That poor dog! First, he's got you as an owner, and then your chat names him after part of a pair of pants?"

Dan just snorted at the memory.

Waistband wriggled a little, eyes big and curious as Dan set him down on the desk. He pressed a kiss to the puppy's soft fur. "Who's the cutest little guy ever? It's you, isn't it? Yes it is!" he mumbled into the dog's coat, grinning.

The chat instantly shifted — more Waistband, less you! — and honestly, he couldn't blame them. The little gremlin knew exactly how cute he was and milked it for all it was worth.

Dan scoffed, grinning at the flood of comments. "I'm starting to think y'all only tune in for the dogs. Evil. Evil fans." He leaned back, letting Waistband steal the spotlight. The puppy, as clueless as ever, spun in a slow circle before plopping down right in Dan's lap like it was his throne.

Dan laughed — and then froze when he heard the front door click open. His eyes lit up. "Hold on, chat! I'll... I'll be right back." He scrambled to mute the mic and cover the camera, scooping Waistband up like a little football. Finally, his favorite person was home.

He practically tripped over himself getting to the door of his "streaming room" — a glorified second bedroom that served as both studio and dog toy storage. Thankfully, he was never loud enough to get complaints. And hey, being a broke college student gave him some sympathy points with the landlords.

He cracked the door open, peeking out with messy blue hair and headphone dents still marking his roots. Waistband wiggled in his arm like he wanted to be part of the greeting committee.

"Hey, babe." Dan immediately tugged his boyfriend in for a kiss on the cheek, grinning wide. "I'm just about to end stream — then cuddles and a full play-by-play of your day, okay?" He stole one more kiss before gently closing the door again.

Dan jogged back to the computer, plopped Waistband back into the playpen, and slid into his chair. He uncovered the camera with a big, happy sigh.

"Alright, chat — my favorite person's home, so I'm calling it for tonight." He smiled, heart full. "You've all been chaotic gremlins as always. I will beat that level next time, I swear." He chuckled and added, "And shoutout to all the new subscribers! Welcome to the Pocket Squad — because you can never have too many pockets, same way I can never have too many of you weirdos." He winked and ended the stream with a wave.

The second the stream shut off, he shimmied out of his jeans, revealing his tight black shorts underneath, tugged on a hoodie, and dashed out of the room.

He found his boyfriend in the bedroom and threw himself onto the bed with all the drama of a Broadway actor. "Yoohooo!" he sang, whistling. "C'mere! Stream's done, and I plan on spending the rest of the night wrapped around my favorite man like a weighted blanket."

Dan grabbed a pillow, hugged it to his chest, tugged a beanie over his wild hair, and gave his boyfriend the biggest, most exaggerated puppy eyes he could manage. Total marshmallow mode: engaged.