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Aventurine couldn’t remember exactly when his little ‘arrangement’ with Ratio started. It must’ve been early on, introduced as a way to relieve tension when it seemed that every other day they had a new mission to complete together. What better way to force your disagreeable coworker into cooperation than by ‘working out your differences’ in the most carnal way possible?
That’s how it started, at least. Rough, quick arrangements in hotel rooms rented on the IPC’s dime, kisses with teeth and fingers that left scratches and bruises like a calling card – that was how they did things.
The shift to something else was gradual. The way they touched one another changed, more gentle and exploratory than rough and frenzied. Kisses became slower, warmer, and bereft of the aggressive hunger they once had. They still never stayed the night together, but they’d linger just a bit longer each time, sharing a bath or pillow talk with their legs intertwined, finding peace in their loosened tongues and released tension.
It all happened so slowly that Aventurine only realized how much things had changed when he woke up in his own bed, exhausted and sore, yet warm and refreshed. Milky morning light streamed in from the window, falling in golden patches across the messy bed. One of his cake-cats snoozed contentedly at his feet, mumbling something in the snacks’ gibberish language as she slept.
The night prior was… a blur. Jade hosted a banquet for IPC investors, and really, people like Aventurine and Ratio just had to make an appearance so she would look good for them. There was a lot of drinking, a lot of stumbling, and next thing he knew he had invited Ratio back to his suite.
They’ve never done that before. He thought it was an unspoken rule that neither of them went to each other’s homes, but not anymore.
Alas, staying the night was still a bit too far for them both. Checking his phone with blurry eyes, Aventurine could confirm it was late in the morning – Ratio probably had to go to work. He ignored the panging ache in his heart and sighed bitterly, crawling out of bed.
‘It’s not personal,’ he thought to himself, ‘and it’s not fair of me to expect more from him. We’ve just got an ‘arrangement’, that’s all.’
He felt a bit of warmth creep up his neck at the familiar soreness that struck him as he stood, pausing to laugh softly at himself. What reason did he have to be so embarrassed? He hasn’t had a reason to feel shame in quite a long time. Even as each sore spot brought back a hazy memory of Ratio’s hands against his skin, taking his body firmly yet so gently, murmuring words of adoration and praise into his ear –
“... ugh, enough ,” he muttered to himself, shaking his head to try and clear it. ‘It’s just sex. Can’t let myself get too attached.’
Bending down, he searched for a pair of pants to slip on, but realized he couldn’t find any. Sure enough, his clothes were all nearly folded and set atop his dresser. He smiled to himself with a little huff of amusement. Of course Ratio would clean up like that.
It was for the best, though. Now he had a reason to put on clothes that were far more comfortable than his dress pants from last night, considering he had to walk over to his dresser either way. He slipped on some clean pajama pants and stretched his arms over his head, content at the satisfying ‘pop’ of his shoulders and back as he did so.
He reached over to the sleeping cake-cat and gently roused her from her slumber. “Spades,” he quietly sing-songed at her, “wake up, it’s breakfast time.”
With a soft ‘ mrrow’, Spades woke up, blinking at him with round, golden eyes. Aventurine couldn’t help but chuckle under his breath. He had been skeptical, back when Ratio said he needed someone to take these surplus experiments from Herta Space Station, but now he’s glad he agreed. They’re great company.
“Where are your sisters, hm?” He continued to pet her on the head as she purred, but Clubs and Hearts were nowhere to be seen. Really, this wasn’t that strange, as the cats had free reign over his suite (they were too smart to be contained regardless), but usually when he slept in they’d be waiting patiently – or impatiently, depending on how hungry they were – for him to awaken and feed them.
“I guess you’re the only one who doesn’t mind stinky blankets,” Aventurine joked, gently scooping Spades up into his arms. “The others must be grossed out, seeing their dad get all mushy with some guy.”
As he approached the door with cat-cake in hand, he suddenly paused. He could hear movement from his kitchen, as well as the smell of something… warm. His heart leapt into his throat and he had to pause and force it back down. His cats were too smart for their own good – he’s seen them try and play with the kitchen appliances before. Maybe they got impatient waiting for him to wake up and decided to try cooking on their own.
With his hopes appropriately tempered, he nudged open the bedroom door with his hip, stepping cautiously out into the rest of the suite. The living room was empty, but sure enough, the light in the kitchen was on. The scent of home cooking filled the air, and Spades shook off her morning grogginess the moment she smelled it, wriggling out of his arms to hop joyfully towards the source, leaving her owner behind.
He paused, his heart feeling too tight in his chest. Obviously, there wasn’t some kind of break-in, and the cats could only cause so much trouble, which meant the only possible culprit was…
Aventurine didn’t realize he was holding his breath until he crept into the kitchen and nearly choked on it at what he saw.
Hearts was covered in sugar, Clubs was licking a raw egg off of the floor, and Spades was in the process of trying to jump into a fresh pan of blueberry muffins, only just barely stopped by the chef himself holding the goods high above his head.
Dr. Veritas Ratio was in his kitchen, in the process of destroying the entire thing while attempting to make breakfast.
“You all are not helping!” Ratio scolded, apparently having not even noticed Aventurine had entered. “I will not hesitate to blame you when he sees the mess you’ve all made!”
Smiling with an unexpected lightness in his chest, Aventurine leaned on the door frame. “So, should I bill the repairs to the Guild or to Herta’s Space Station?”
Ratio startled, nearly dropping his muffins. “ – !? You – !” He forcibly composed himself, setting down the pan and stripping off his oven mitts. “You’re… awake sooner than I expected.”
“Aw, you wound me. Just how late do you think I sleep in, doc?” He strolled into the kitchen, pausing to brush some sugar off of Hearts’ head while she mewled in protest. “Usually, these lovely ladies take it upon themselves to ensure I’m never allowed to sleep in.”
“Yes, well, they’ve discovered a new victim.” Ratio pinched the bridge of his nose, before finally conceding to Spades’ begging and offering the batter-covered spoon for her to lick. “I… apologize for the mess,” he said stiffly, still clearly not good at the whole ‘apologizing’ thing, “I appear to have overestimated my ability to cook while being accosted on all sides.”
Aventurine let out a ‘pfft’ sound, not bothering to hide how entertaining he found this whole disaster to be. “Hah, you’re fine. It won’t be that hard to clean up.” He walked over to the kitchen table, peering at the muffins. “I’m more curious to know what the occasion is. What did I do to have the great Dr. Veritas Ratio making breakfast for me?”
Ratio swatted his hand away when he reached for a muffin. “Careful, they’re still extremely hot.” The man shook his head, disapproving in the same way he regarded his unruly students. “And you should not even need to ask such a question. Is it not standard procedure to provide food for one’s…” He paused to search for the right words. “... ‘companions’?”
“ ‘Companions’ ,” Aventurine repeated, amused. “Some people might, but it’s usually scrambled eggs or something easy, not a whole batch of muffins.”
With a scoff, Ratio rolled his eyes. “Oh? So are you implying you don’t want any muffins?”
“... I didn’t say that. ”
“That’s what I thought.” Ratio started wrapping up the various ingredients, placing them back in their respective cupboards. “Now, go take a seat at the table, I will clean up and bring the food out to you.
Aventurine’s eyes widened. “Eh? Wait, really? You’ll clean, too? Doc, you’re spoiling me – ”
“Nonsense,” Ratio cut him off. “I made the mess, so I will clean it.”
Clearly recognizing his ‘will-not-listen-to-any-debates’ tone of voice, Aventurine forfeited the subject without a fight. He just laughed as he watched Ratio return to his barely-contained disaster, still fighting against the cats to keep the situation from spiraling further out of hand. His seat at the table gave him a perfect view of the battle as Ratio managed to emerge victorious, containing and controlling the mess before their food could get cold.
He didn’t realize how hungry he was until Ratio approached with their plates, filled with eggs, toast, muffins, and a side of yogurt and fruits. The singed edges of each cooked item betrayed how the good doctor wasn’t the handiest chef, but Aventurine didn’t care. It still looked delicious.
“Wow, this is quite the spread.” Aventurine grabbed his fork, cutting into the over-easy egg and watching the bright orange yolk spill onto the plate. “Are you trying to fatten me up?”
Ratio huffed. “Hardly, though as a medical professional, I do believe you could certainly use a few extra pounds.”
“So you are trying to fatten me up,” he countered with a smirk.
“Think whatever you would like, gambler.” Ratio headed back towards the kitchen after setting down his own plate. “I made coffee for myself, and there’s enough for you as well. Do you prefer that, or orange juice?”
“Are those my only options? What if I prefer something else, like a morning margarita?” Aventurine joked, grinning as he heard Ratio scoff in disapproval. “Fine, fine, I’ll settle for coffee and juice.”
“You’ll increase your chances of acid reflux if you drink both at once.”
Aventurine frowned. “What? Wait, are you serious? Aeons , I’ve been doing that almost every day for so long… which explains some things, unfortunately.”
Ratio shook his head disapprovingly. “I worry for your digestive system… as well as your dental health. Now – coffee or juice?”
“Coffee, definitely. I won’t last long without it.”
Ratio returned with his own mug as well as one for Aventurine, finally sitting down across from his companion. “I wasn’t certain of your breakfast preferences, so I went with some fairly generic and inoffensive options. I hope they are acceptable.”
“Oh, be quiet,” Aventurine teased. “It’s delicious, doc. Though, if you were just trying to whip up something quick to try and put some weight on me – ”
“That was not the intent.”
“ – then I’m still not sure why you went through all the effort making muffins. I assure you,” he pointed his fork at Ratio playfully, smiling lopsidedly, “it doesn’t take that much work to impress me, my dear doctor. I’m fairly easy to – Ah? ”
Bonk. With the same practiced hand he used to launch chalk at students and Antimatter abominations alike, Ratio tossed a muffin square at Aventurine’s forehead. It bounced right off of him and landed perfectly on his plate, stacked atop the one he already had.
He just blinked at Ratio silently for a few moments before he could even comprehend a response. “... Are you challenging me to a food fight? Because I will undo all of your efforts to clean up, doctor.”
“I am not. I simply could not stand to hear someone of your intellectual level utter something so foolish.” He sighed, grabbing himself another muffin from where he had stacked the entire batch on a plate. “I need no reason to put forth effort should I desire to do so. Besides, you had an entire container of Vonwacq Blueberries that were about to go bad. Considering how expensive and rare those are, I refused to allow them to go to waste.”
Aventurine picked up the muffin that had just been used as a projectile against him and took a bite. It certainly tasted fine, though was nowhere near the expensive pastries he occasionally treated himself to. Still, he decided he preferred a treat like this to any of those store-bought snacks.
“Mhm. Well, tastes good,” he mumbled with his mouth full, only swallowing once he saw Ratio’s lip curl with distaste. “But you know those blueberries aren’t actually from Vonwacq, right? It’s just a marketing ploy, inflating the value so people give them out as fancy gifts.”
Ratio scoffed. “Ah, really?” His voice oozed with sarcasm. “The fresh produce claiming to be from a famously inaccessible and uninhabited planet is not actually from said planet? I could have never guessed.”
“Well, I guess even you learn new things every day,” he replied with a smile, playing along. It earned him an eye-roll in response.
The two continued to eat their breakfast, trading familiar barbs and teasing remarks back and forth. Being obviously inexperienced, Ratio had selected recipes that were either idiot-proof (such as the eggs and toast) or common enough to have detailed instructions and variations. This… everything he made was genuinely tasty.
(Not that he would’ve really cared if Ratio made something unappetizing. Even after living in luxury for so long, Aventurine had an iron stomach. Growing up in a desert where your most reliable sources of food were insect larvae, sun-dried carrion, and abandoned rations from crashed ships tended to create people who weren’t picky eaters.)
The cake cats, having settled down from the kitchen excitement, were rewarded with extra muffins for their behavior. (Ratio did make an entire batch, after all.) The professor scolded him for feeding them muffins after they sabotaged the cooking process so blatantly, but Aventurine just laughed him off.
Idly chatting over empty plates, Aventurine ran his fingers through the fringe of his hair and winced. He couldn’t see it, but he just knew his bed-hair was awful. “Agh – Ratio, have I been sitting here with a rat’s nest on my head this entire time?”
Ratio hummed, the ghost of a smile on his lips. “Potentially.”
“ Bastard ,” Aventurine grumbled, fussing with his hair and scowling as it refused to cooperate. “You could’ve said something, you know.”
“Hm, I could have. But then breakfast would have gotten cold.”
Aventurine groaned. “How could you even hold a conversation with me and keep a straight face?” He pulled his phone out of his pocket, checking his reflection on the screen. Indeed, his hair was sticking up at every angle. “Ugh… did we shower last night? Or did you somehow manage to get every possible body fluid in my hair?”
Ratio made a face. “That very idea is disgusting, gambler.” He shook his head, reaching out to take their now-empty plates. “No, I dragged us into the shower. I have no idea how effectively we were able to clean up, considering we were in a half-conscious, drunken stupor, but it was enough to sleep hygienically.”
“That explains it…” He sighed dramatically, slumping back in his chair. “My hair sucks up moisture like a sponge. Probably some kind of emergency water supply in the desert, heh.” His joke earned a ‘tsk’, from Ratio, which was a victory. “If I sleep with my hair wet, it’s game over, I am dead to the outside world until I can tame it.”
“I see your penchant for overdramatics follows you in all aspects of life.” Ratio loaded their dishes into the washer. “Hm. Go take a seat on the couch. I’ll grab your things for you from the bathroom. Which products do you use?”
Aventurine stood and stretched with a yawn, keeping his movements casual to hide his surprise at how readily Ratio was offering to help him. ‘Is he always in such a good mood in the mornings, or am I lucky to have caught him on a good day?’
“Please, doc. I’m all natural,” he said teasingly, twirling a lock of his messy hair in his fingers.
Ratio crossed his arms. “I certainly hope you aren’t expecting me to actually believe that. I’ve seen the display of products in your bathroom, and it’s nearly enough to stock an entire luxury store.”
Aventurine snickered. “Fine, fine… I only really use the hair oil every day, though. All the other stuff is for when I really have to doll myself up for some kind of public appearance. Honest.”
“If you insist, but it will be entirely on you if that isn’t enough to tame your hair, as you so eloquently put it.” With the kitchen cleaned, Ratio headed to the bathroom to collect his tools.
Just as he was told, Aventurine sat himself down on the couch in the living room, lounging comfortably into the cushions. Now with a moment alone with his thoughts, he had to realize just how strange this all was. When had they become so… domestic? Aventurine didn’t have much experience in bringing his partners into his home (nor did he have experience with having consistent partners in general), so perhaps this was how those kinds of arrangements usually went.
Hearts and Spades chittered about, playing on the far side of the room with one of many cat toys. It felt a bit strange at first, treating them like ordinary cats, especially considering they were closer to human children in intelligence than animals… but he was probably just overthinking it. They were perfectly content to act like normal cats, as long as he didn’t attempt to feed them as such.
Meanwhile, Clubs crawled into his lap with a contented little ‘myaa’, purring as he gave her cake-shell a few strokes. Ratio said he brought the cats over purely because he owed Herta a favor and they were overrunning her space station lab, but Aventurine suspected otherwise. It seemed more likely they were a thoughtful gift, likely provided in the wake of his return from the Nihility. Pet therapy was often recommended by Aeonic medical professionals as part of treatment… Was this Ratio’s attempt at emulating that?
Aventurine’s heart felt a little funny in his chest.
Ratio re-entered the room then, cutting off further introspection. “It seems you’ve been trapped,” he mused as he approached the couch.
“That’s the risk you take sitting on any piece of furniture in my suite. The cats don’t hesitate when they see an open lap.” Aventurine continued to pet Clubs, who purred in her sleep. “Just leave the products on the table. I don’t want to disturb her by moving my arms around.”
“Nonsense,” Ratio countered. “I have two arms of my own that work perfectly fine.”
“... Eh?”
“That is why I directed you to the couch in the first place, gambler.” Ratio sat down next to him, placing the bottle of hair oil on the coffee table. “Hm. Can you shift your back towards me without disturbing the cat?”
Aventurine shimmied cautiously, keeping his eyes fixed on the sleeping creature as he moved into place. His luck came through once again, thankfully saving him from disturbing the poor sleeping beauty. “Like that?”
“Precisely.” Ratio took a portion of Aventurine’s hair into his hands, gently running the brush through it. It was a tangled mess, but he gently pushed through each knot without pulling on his scalp.
Aventurine forced himself not to shiver at the proximity and close contact. Something about the tenderness and domesticity of the act was making his ears feel warm. Ridiculous – this was a man he had sex with countless times, why was hair-brushing making him feel all bashful?
Even as his nerves bubbled under his skin and something stupid fluttered in his stomach, he wasn’t about to pull away or ask Ratio to stop. It felt… good. Really good. He had no specific, clear memories to this effect, but something about the soft touch running through his hair felt achingly familiar.
Surely, the last time someone did this for him must’ve been with his sister… Or maybe even his mother.
Ratio hummed to himself as he started combing the oil through his hair. “Am I using the right amount?”
“It’d be a bit too late to stop you if you were, wouldn’t it?” Aventurine smirked, looking upside down up at Ratio. “Luckily, you’re fine. Makes my hair a little more cooperative, doesn’t it? And shinier, too.”
“Indeed.” Ratio’s fingers came to rest on a patch of his scalp, near his hairline, where Aventurine could feel a tuft of hair still sticking up. “Hm. This part doesn’t seem cooperative. Should I use more oil?”
“No, no, it’ll look greasy. Just leave it, I’ll find a way to fix it later.”
Ratio clearly wasn’t satisfied with that answer. He played with the errant tuft for a few seconds before stopping. “Wait, I believe I have an idea.”
Aventurine frowned. “You aren’t gonna try and slick it down with spit, right? That’s gross.”
“Obviously not, ” he grumbled. “Although, I’m surprised to hear you voicing a concern about hygiene, considering we’ve exchanged far more saliva than is medically advisable.”
“Ugh, it sounds dirtier when you say it like that…”
He could practically feel Ratio’s disapproving scowl. “Never mind that. Let’s see if this…” From behind him, Aventurine could hear some shuffling and a ‘click’. Before he could ask or crane his neck to see where the sound had come from –
The weight of a pin snapped into place, trapping the stray hairs in place.
“There we are. Perfectly held in place.” Ratio sounded pleased with himself.
Aventurine reached into his pocket to grab his phone. “Uh oh, what did you put in my…” He trailed off. His reflection stared back at him, with neatly-styled hair pinned in place by a familiar golden laurel ornament. Over his shoulder, he could see Ratio gazing at him with an expression of unmistakable softness.
Ratio was very… touchy about his things. Aventurine had borrowed his electronic chalk once, and the doctor had basically hovered over him until he gave it back. A mishap at work had once scuffed the synthetic material that made up his faux-marble mask, and he had been bent out of shape about it for the entire day. That didn’t even begin to mention how protective he was over his codex and his bookshelves…
And yet, here he was, happily pinning another one of his prized possessions to Aventurine’s head and smiling like a lovesick fool about it.
That’s when it clicked, and Aventurine realized he might be an idiot.
“Hey, doc?” He turned to look over his shoulder at the other man, who seemed a bit surprised at the sudden topic shift. “Er…”
“Is something wrong? I thought it suited your complexion nicely.” Ratio complimented him as if it were a fact he would recite in a lecture.
Whenever Aventurine was uncertain about a decision, his usual solution was to simply barrel forward and make it anyway and let fate decide how it played out. True to that, the next words out of his mouth were:
“Are we dating?”
Ratio’s mouth snapped shut and he simply stared at him for a few long moments, his wide eyes blinking with surprise. “... Are we… not?”
Ah.
Laughter bubbled sharply from within Aventurine’s chest, spilling over as he slumped back onto Ratio’s chest. Clubs stirred and chirped at him angrily, but he didn’t care. He had to have this moment, cackling at the expense of his own denseness. To think, he was the one to miss the signs all along, while Ratio had been the one to pick up on them.
The doctor sighed. “I thought I made it fairly clear that our relationship had changed,” he muttered, though Aventurine could hear the relief in his voice from where it hid behind his annoyance. “Did it truly take you until now to notice?”
“Maybe,” Aventurine replied with a smile – a real smile. Yes, he was embarrassed to have only realized this now, but his joy far outweighed that. “Better late than never?”
Ratio laughed, low and sweet. “Well, at least now I can make up for one of my regrets.”
“Oh? And that is?”
“Due to the… nature of our relationship,” he explained a bit stiffly, “I fear you and I have not gone on a proper ‘first date’. However, if we are to consider today a fresh start, then…”
Aventurine couldn’t help but chuckle. “Are you saying this isn’t a date?”
Ratio’s mouth opened and closed mutely for a few moments, before he just sighed, his brows pinching together. “…twice, then. I missed the chance for a proper first date twice .”
“Aw, don’t be sad.” Aventurine lifted up his hand, poking a finger playfully into Ratio’s cheek. “This is the best first date I’ve ever been on.”
“Hm, is it now?”
“Mhm. Sure is.” He turned over to face ratio properly, planting a kiss on his lips. “The other guys didn’t even bother to make muffins .”