#touch aversion

[galactic-glossolalia]

I want a character who is touch averse and everyone's cool about it. Everyone respects this boundary. Nobody thinks they're weird or rude, nobody tries to "fix" them with a hug, nobody even tries to talk them into getting hugged. They show love and care for other characters in nonphysical ways and the others do the same for them. Because love does not require physical contact.

[stochastiz]

there's something about the fact that Murderbot still says "don't touch (me)" when on the verge of system failure

it feels more like an organic reflex than a programmed response, and i doubt a secunit with an intact governor module would be able to say that to it's clients

but even when it's buffering and glitching and leaking fluids, Murderbot can still ask to not be touched

[reneesghostinthelivingroom]

Cherishing Her Touch

|| Sevika x fem!reader

|| Warnings; reader's upset, reasoning is altered for whatever you want, Sevika averting reader's touch which leads to her being upset, reader cries, Sevika tries to comfort, little dialogue, brief swearing, mentions of vulnerability

|| Summary; when avoiding another hug attempt from reader, Sevika doesn't realize what happens next before it's too late.

Requests closed!

Started; December 11th

Finished; December 11th

HurtCember2024; Day 10, Touch Aversion

Author Note; running a little behind on all my fics, this challenge, my series stuff and requests. hoping to at least get my request stuff done before christmas. thank you for being patient :)

~~~

Dating someone who always tried to be tough wasn't easy. Sevika was exactly that type of person. She wasn't one to show vulnerability often. To her, letting someone touch her was showing vulnerability. She didn't like it. In fact, at the start of your relationship with her you couldn't count the amount of times she completely averted your touch. Making the extra effort to dodge your attempts.

It only stopped when she realized how upset she was making you. You'd been having a rough day and went to her, seeking a hug. You'd snuck up behind Sevika when she was focused on her work. The hug caught her off guard and she moved you off her. Your lip trembled and the waterworks couldn't be stopped. Normally it wasn't something that made you cry, but you were already having a rough day as it was. That was your finale straw. Sevika didn't notice right away that you were crying. Until she heard your little sniffles. When she noticed she felt bad.

Really bad. Sevika turned to you with a frown. There was hesitation in her eyes for a moment before her hand cupped your cheek. Bringing you in close. She didn't know what else to do. She wasn't... well, she'd never done this before. She wasn't even sure she was doing it right. But then you hugged her. Tight, too. Damn you really had a strong grip. The doubt if she was doing this right faded into the background. Being replaced with thoughts of making you feel safe. Wondering who/what caused this. Obviously Sevika knew that she had been your finale straw, but she wondered what could have happened before that. You were tough.

One of the toughest people Sevika knew. But, you did have a softer side to you. You could balance the two in ways she never could. That was one of the many things she admired about you. You were never afraid to show vulnerability, unlike herself. Right now, Sevika was kind of just copying what she had seen you do for other people. Giving hugs. She added in an awkward head pat that you snuggled right into. Cherishing her touch. After all, it wasn't often you got it. So you soaked up the moment.

There was a long silence while Sevika waited for you to settle. Knowing it would be useless talking to you when you were crying. She wouldn't have been able to understand you through your sobs.

"What happened?" Sevika asked once she was sure you had calmed down. At least enough to talk. You explained your entire day to her. Sevika listened to every word. Frowning the more she listened. You'd really been sent through the ringer today, hadn't you?

Sevika kept you in her arms. Feeling no rush to move away from you. Like she normally would have. She... honestly, it felt kind of nice. Would she ever tell you that? Fuck no. But she did like it. And in that moment, she realized she really did really love you.

If it had been someone that hurt you, Sevika would make sure to make them regret it. And if it had just been a bunch of stuff that overwhelmed you, if it wasn't already done she'll take care of it for you. But she would hold off on that until later. Right now, you were her focus.

[whumpsday]

Changing Bandages

@medwhumpmay Day 20

Medwhump May Masterlist

content: recovery, caretaking, comfort, defiant whumpee, fugitive whumpee, touch aversion

-

“Don’t touch me, don’t touch me, don’t touch me,” Whumpee chanted, huddled up in the corner with a scathing glare on his face like a feral cat.

Caretaker held up their hands, showing that the only things they were holding were a couple of washcloths, a roll of gauze, and medical tape. “I won’t,” they promised. “Not until you’re okay with it. Just try to calm down.”

“I’m never going to be okay with it!” Whumpee shrieked. He clapped his hands over his mouth, shaking. He looked absolutely on the verge of panic, standing over the yawning cavern of it.

“Then I won’t touch you.” Caretaker slowly dropped to the floor where they stood, trying to get on Whumpee’s eye level. “But please try and be quieter. It would be really bad if people found out you were here.”

Whumpee gave two quick nods of understanding. At least he was of sound enough mind for that.

“I won’t touch,” Caretaker repeated, painstakingly gentle. “Can you at least pull up your shirt a bit, so I can see how your dressings are holding up? I won’t come any closer. I just want to look, that’s all.”

For a long moment, Whumpee was still, and Caretaker was almost sure he wasn’t going to do it–then his arms moved, slowly but surely, and lifted up the side of his shirt.

Really, the bandages should have been changed two days ago. The only reason Caretaker had managed to get them on him in the first place had been the delirious state they found him in.

They sucked air in through their teeth. “That’s pretty bad, Whumpee. I’m not going to do it without your permission, but you really, really need to do it and change the bandages. If you don’t, it could get infected, and you really don’t want your choices to be hospital or no hospital, because those are both really bad for us right now.”

Really, Caretaker had already been brainstorming ways to illicitly obtain antibiotics. But it would be a lot easier if Whumpee didn’t get his wound infected in the first place.

“I don’t care, you don’t touch me, you promised,” Whumpee insisted tearily. “You promised.”

“I know. I know. Okay, then… you do it.” It wasn’t an idea Caretaker liked. Every movement Whumpee made tended to be rough and rash, and they didn’t want them to reopen the damn thing. He really needed a careful touch. But anything was better than letting it fester at this point.

They dropped their supplies, then stood and backed up, all the way to the far wall. “All yours. Go on.”

Whumpee blinked. “I… don’t know how.”

Of course he didn’t. He barely knew how to do anything to help himself. They’d gathered by now that the people searching for Whumpee had never let him learn, had kept him dependent.

“I’ll guide you through it. Verbally. Go on, now, I’ll help,” Caretaker encouraged.

Not taking his eyes off Caretaker the whole time, Whumpee crawled forward to grab the items, then scurried back to his corner. “What first?”

“Remove the old bandage. Gently,” they emphasized. “Go slow, bit by bit. Get it off there.”

Whumpee’s hands trembled, as they always did, unsticking the tape. He didn’t peel slowly like Caretaker instructed, ripping it off in a few short, jerky bursts.

The gash in his side was bleeding, though it was impossible to tell if Whumpee had finished bleeding through days ago and this was a new incident brought on by the pulling-off of the bandages, or if it had been consistently bleeding this whole time. Caretaker stifled a sigh. “Good job. Just remember to be gentle, okay? Take the wet washcloth and wash the wound. Don’t hurt yourself. Just do it nice and slow.”

Whumpee gave another quick nod, grabbing the wet washcloth and rubbing it over the wound. He hissed, and Caretaker could already see the washcloth getting bloody.

“Okay, stop, stop,” Caretaker warned, and Whumpee freezed, shaking hands still pressing the washcloth to his wound. “That’s–yeah, actually, just do that. Press, don’t rub.”

That was a little better. There was still a little rubbing, as Whumpee’s hands were never truly still, and maybe that would be just enough, if he wasn’t pressing it in with the force someone waiting to be executed might clench their teeth in fear.

“Good, good. Now the dry washcloth. Just pat it, remember, no rubbing. We just need it to be dry,” they instructed.

“Are you mad at me?” Whumpee asked, his hands unable to totally follow Caretaker’s instructions as the washcloth’s soft surface ground against the wound.

“No, Whumpee, I’m not mad. I’m just worried about you. I want you to be okay,” Caretaker assured him. “You can put the washcloth down. Take the gauze and wrap yourself up, okay? Give yourself a few layers and then tape it in place.”

The dressing was messy. Even after Whumpee went over it three times, Caretaker had to encourage him to go over it a fourth to cover the gaps he’d left. They weren’t sure the tape would hold. They weren’t sure about anything. They desperately wanted to just dress Whumpee’s wounds proper, hold his hand, give him a hug.

But it wasn’t what Whumpee wanted. And in the end, that was what was most important.

“There. All done!” Caretaker celebrated. “We can do this every day. You’ll get better at it. Good work.” Maybe this was better in the end, after all. Teaching Whumpee those skills.

He balled up the supplies and tossed them into the center of the room. “I didn’t expect you to actually keep your word.”

“Your feelings are important to me.” Caretaker hadn’t known him very long, but it seemed like Whumpee would be staying with them for the foreseeable future. And he needed to hear it.

Whumpee didn’t respond to that, but the glare had left his eyes, and that was more than enough.

-

Oneshots taglist:

@icyheart-and-friends

@kira-the-whump-enthusiast

@whuarri

@reborrowing

@paperprinxe

@what-if-i-just-did

Everything taglist:

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@whump-for-all-and-all-for-whump

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@scoundrelwithboba

[isthataraccoon]

sometimes it’s easy to forget just how strong Kaz is. When his leg broke, instead of giving up he used it to his advantage. “Sure, I’m crippled, but now everyone underestimates me and I get to bring a literal weapon (his cane) everywhere and no one bats an eye.” Or his touch aversion; a massive weakness, but instead of being hindered by it he makes the gloves part of his image, uses it to make people more afraid of him. He literally started rumors about his hands just so he would seem more intimidating. Kaz went through unspeakable things that should have been the end of him, but he still clawed to the top despite it all

[aventurineswife]

“Don't Touch Me”

Tags: @lixhizy, Aventurine x Reader, Ratio x Reader, Touch Aversion, Hurt/No Comfort, Emotional Distance, Rejection, Vulnerability, Angst, Psychological Struggles, Unresolved Tension, Hurtcember 2024.

Warnings: Emotional Harm, Hurtful Rejection, Mentions of Trauma (Aventurine's Backstory), No Comfort.

A/N: First time joining a challenge, um yeah... 🧍‍♀️I'm not sorry

You had always admired his intellect from afar—Ratio, a brilliant mind that thrived in the pursuit of knowledge. But today, as you stood before him, his typically confident demeanor seemed at odds with his frayed composure. His hair fell into his eyes, and there was a tense energy about him that you couldn’t ignore. You had grown used to his aloofness, but today felt different.

"Are you going to stand there staring at me?" he asked, his voice sharp, a slight edge to it that made you flinch inwardly.

"Sorry, I didn’t mean to… I just thought—"

"Don’t think," he cut you off quickly, his gaze unwavering but cold. "It only complicates matters."

His words stung more than you expected. You could feel the cold distance between you growing, and yet, your heart twisted as his posture remained stiff, his arms tucked close to his body. His usual bravado was masking something deeper, but you could only glimpse the faint cracks in his armor. His eyes darted away from yours when you tried to make eye contact, as if uncomfortable with the vulnerability of being seen.

Without realizing it, you took a step closer, an impulse to offer support, but the moment your hand approached, he recoiled sharply. His gaze hardened as he took a step back, his body language signaling clear aversion.

"I don’t need your sympathy," Ratio snapped, the words laced with an emotion you couldn’t quite read—anger, frustration, or perhaps something more fragile beneath the surface. "Touching me will not fix your problems."

You hesitated, understanding now that it wasn’t just physical contact he was rejecting, but any attempt to bridge the gap between you. His need for control, his refusal to be vulnerable, twisted your chest painfully. You stepped back, unsure how to navigate the sharp divide he had created.

"I’m not here to fix anything," you murmured, but the words seemed insignificant in the face of his retreat. He didn’t respond, only turned away from you, as if dismissing the matter altogether. The silence stretched, suffocating, and you couldn’t bring yourself to break it.

You had hoped for understanding, but all you had found was the harsh reality of how little you truly meant in his meticulously ordered world.

Aventurine’s smile was nothing short of enigmatic—charming, yet distant, as he leaned back in his seat, casually surveying the room. The flicker of his eyes was unsettling, as if he could see through your very soul. You couldn’t help but feel an unease in his presence. It wasn’t just his sharp mind or the way he manipulated every conversation—it was his very presence that made you feel exposed.

"You seem… distracted," he remarked, his voice smooth, like velvet over sharp edges. His gaze lingered on you with an intensity that made you shift uncomfortably.

"I’m fine," you replied quickly, not wanting to admit the growing discomfort.

Aventurine leaned forward, his gaze never wavering. "You don’t seem fine. What’s wrong?"

You wanted to say something, anything to end the tension, but your words faltered. There was a distance between you, an invisible wall that neither of you seemed willing to breach. You tried to break the silence by stepping forward, but the moment your hand neared him, he flinched—just enough for you to notice, like a spark of fire quickly extinguished.

"Don’t," he said softly, his tone carrying a warning. "Touching me won’t make it better. It never does."

His words cut through the air like a blade. You froze, suddenly aware of the weight of the rejection in his voice. You had never seen this side of him before—the cracks in his facade, the vulnerability that he was so determined to hide. He quickly masked his discomfort with a strained smile, but it did nothing to soften the sting.

"You think you understand me," he continued, his voice taking on an edge. "But you don’t. Nothing ever does."

You could feel the hurt in his words, but you couldn’t bring yourself to say anything that might alleviate it. The space between you was so vast now, so suffocating. The man who thrived on calculated risk and manipulation was now someone you couldn’t reach.

You backed away, knowing that any attempt to draw closer would only deepen the divide. The silent rejection felt heavier than any words could express, and all you were left with was the hollow space between you, where the possibility of connection was buried beneath his armor.

[thief-of-eggs]

Thinking about Lucifer using his shapeshifing ability to help overcome the barrier that is Alastor’s touch aversion between them.

Because- it’s different with an animal. It’s not the same to have a snake winding around your arm as it is to have fingers circling your wrist, not the same to have a bird perch on your shoulder as it is to have a hand clasp you back.

It’s different. Somehow, with these touches, Alastor doesn’t shrink in on himself. He doesn’t remember things he’d rather forget. He doesn’t feel any prickling in his skin, doesn’t feel a pit in his gut.

So Lucifer makes it work. When he needs cuddles- he turns himself into a cat, stretching and purring as Alastor pets him, as he carries him in his arms.

When he needs to be clingy, when he needs constant companionship- then he becomes a snake, wrapped possessively around Alastor’s arm, loosely around his neck-

He becomes a bird. A fox. A lizard. Whatever the day and the mood requires.

It works, for them. Because nothing about their relationship is conventional anyways.

They see each other across the chasm and find a way to build the bridge

[glimblshanks]

It's so crazy the way all fanfic takes place in an alternate universe where kissing is good and fun and not just incredibly gross

[go-whump-in-the-night]

I love the combination of touch starvation and touch aversion, it's such a beautiful vicious cycle. something so terrible has happened to whumpee that they recoil instinctively from even the softest brush of fingers, and yet they've spent so long without that gentle contact that they crave it now more than anything. every time someone starts to get close, their mind and body are at war with each other.

[bunnelbaby]

ღ Touch Starved, Touch Averse and Touch Starved + Touch Averse Regressor flags (please reblog if you save)!

A huge thank you to @littlemeow for assisting me with these flags as kit provided their personal input on them!

[kenzidaydreams]

The Space Between

Jayvik x female!reader

Content: Touch Aversion, Trauma, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Use of Y/N, Mutual Pining, Slow Burn (kinda), Polyamory

Summary: Y/N, a scientist working alongside Jayce and Viktor, struggles with her crush on the two men and her aversion to touch.

Word Count: under 600

Author’s Note: this is the first time I’m posting my writing anywhere except on Wattpad when I was twelve (and before you ask, it’s been deleted). I know it’s super short but… hope you enjoy!

Part 2 Part 3

———

The clang of glass on steel echoed softly through the lab. Another late night, another series of calibrations, another moment where her hand brushed Viktor’s by accident—just barely—and he pulled away with a polite nod while her own hand recoiled as if stung.

She hated that about herself.

It was ridiculous, really. She’d worked alongside Jayce and Viktor for almost a year now, filled with long hours and sleepless nights spent side-by-side. Jayce with his loud laughs and charming grins. Viktor with his quiet intensity that made her heart flutter.

And her heart did flutter. Often. When Jayce leaned in too close to explain a theorem. When Viktor adjusted a valve and his hand brushed her shoulder. When either of them laughed and looked at her like she was part of the warmth between them.

But every time—every time—touch came near, her body betrayed her.

She recoiled. Flinched. Tensed like a stray waiting to be kicked.

She didn’t do it out of fear. Not really. It was some tight, reflexive instinct that came from years of learning that touch wasn’t safe, wasn’t given without cost, wasn’t something she could trust. Even now, when she wanted it desperately, her body wouldn’t let her take it.

The final straw came late one evening.

Jayce, bleary-eyed, offered her a cup of tea. He’d gone out of his way to brew it just how she liked. She reached for it, their fingers nearly touching—

She flinched again.

Jayce didn’t pull away. He just set the cup down slowly, watching her with a careful look. “You always do that,” he said quietly.

Y/N froze. Viktor, across the room, had stopped his work. The silence in the room was thick.

Jayce stepped back, his eyebrows furrowed. “I’m not mad. I just—are we doing something wrong?”

“No!” she said far too fast. “You’re not. I—It’s me. I just…” Her voice faltered. “I don’t know how to want something and be afraid of it at the same time.”

Viktor moved toward her then, slow, like approaching a wounded creature. “Touch frightens you?”

“Not the idea of it,” she admitted, barely above a whisper. “Just the reality. I want it, but when it’s real, my body—my instincts—don’t trust it. Don’t trust me to deserve it.”

Jayce’s eyes softened. “Y/N…”

“I know it’s stupid,” she laughed bitterly, hugging her arms. “I’m a scientist. I’m supposed to be logical. But there’s no formula for—”

She broke off as Viktor extended a hand—not to touch, but to offer.

“May I?” he asked, voice calm.

Y/N’s breath caught. Her fingers trembled as she reached out, slow as molasses, until her palm touched his. He didn’t squeeze. Just held it there—warm, steady, real.

“Maybe,” he said, “you just need to be the one in control.”

She hesitated, looking at her hand in his, then nodded.

“Okay. Then how about this—no touch unless you ask for it or give permission for it,” Jayce said.

Viktor gave a soft smile. “A contract of sorts.”

She looked at Jayce, then Viktor. Slowly she lifted her other hand and offered it forward, palm-up.

Jayce reached out—not to grasp or pull, but simply to hover his hand near hers. “May I?”

She nodded.

His fingers closed gently over hers, warm and calloused. She didn’t flinch. She almost cried.

“There,” Viktor said, a small smile on his lips. “Now we begin.”

[brainbleach6]

shout out to all the ace peeps who fluctuate between sex ok or positive to sex negative randomly and are tired of hearing "But you were okay with it yesterday!"

Also, shout out to my fellow autistics who fluctuate between touch-starved and touch-aversion and have to hear the same thing if we say something.

[atlas-the-idiot-2]

Being both constantly touch starved and touch averse and afraid of commitment and having avoident issues is a weird combo

Fym i want to hug and kiss and cuddle but on the other hand that's scary and i would rather jump off a river then do that because that means I'm trapped

I want to be known and i want to devote myself to someone- it's my purpose- but what if they leave? What if they get tired or angry at me for being so clingy? I should just push them and my feelings away so that never happens. genius. /sarc

Like- HUH????

[whump-galaxy]

The team huddles for warmth. The touch averse whumpee can only get so close, but the team tries to convince them to come closer for their safety. In the end, they can only offer a jacket and blanket to the whumpee, and hope it’ll be enough.

[keyboardsmashorsomething]

Really need to hear this right now so I guess I’m saying it to myself. And posting it in case others also want to hear it. Because I’m kind of on the verge of breaking down.

To the asensual/touch-averse/touch-repulsed age regressors with fictional cgs, your cg would never…

-Hug you, cuddle you, or even hold your hand without explicit permission

-Expect hugs or cuddles from you in return

-Try to guilt trip you into agreeing to hug them because “they deserve a hug after helping you”

-Shame you for a reflexive reaction to physical contact (ex. nearly punching someone who puts their hand on your shoulder)

-Otherwise break your boundaries around touch and physical contact

I wanted to write this because when I go looking for caregiver headcanons for certain characters, I stumble across so much “they love giving you cuddles” and it just makes my skin crawl as someone who can’t be touched without feeling distress. I just want to know that they care about my reactions and don’t think I’m broken because I act like a lunatic at the prospect of being hugged.

Here’s hoping this helped at least one other person.

[whumpupthejam]

when whumpee is super weak, whether it’s because they’re drugged or they’ve been beaten or they’re over exhausted etc., and whumper keeps touching/grabbing their face and they’re trying to jerk away but they’re just too weak to escape the touch 🥺🥺🥺🥺🥺