Chapter Text
Another long, restless night. Another night where counting sheep did nothing but force him to focus. Another night of sliding down his sleep mask as tired eyes watched the nightly silhouettes from outside dance across the ceiling.
“Yup. That's me right there. You're probably wondering how I got into this wacky situation.”
Is what he would say if he was the main character in a silly sitcom about co-workers that became neighbors.
A loud moan, followed by the faint thud of wood hitting drywall. “Fuck baby—you take me so damn good.”
Except this wasn’t an old low-budget sitcom about love found in the strangest yet endearing of ways; filmed in front of a live studio audience. No. This was his reality. A daily (or rather, nightly) experience he had to just—tolerate. He guessed.
See, his downstairs neighbor was—a lively person–so to speak. An incredibly nice girl. She was also his co-worker, which was pretty cool. Since her first day on the job, she treated him with nothing but respect and a hint of admiration, if he had to guess based on her insistence that they become partners. Not that he was against it in the first place. She was more than capable as a Hunter and she held her own pretty damn well for a rookie. It certainly helped that she wasn’t bad to look at either.
The actual problem comes from—well—
“FuckmefuckmefuckmeGod–!”
A huff and he was on his side with his pillow pressed tight against his ears, his throat clicked with a thick swallow. A futile attempt at blocking out the sounds that kept him up most nights.
Yeah. The real issue comes from the fact that his neighbor tends to— live a little — a bit more than him or anyone else he knew. Around the time they met last year, she seemed to have made a few more friends over time. Which was great: You do you girl. Sex is liberation and all that fun stuff.
Except, it would appear that the sound-proofing between his apartment and hers was practically non-existent. It was something he never noticed prior to meeting her. She was as quiet as a mouse most times. So much so that he sometimes wondered if she was even home.
Boy, did he misspeak.
Now he knew far more about his neighbor than he ever wanted to, same for the various men she brought around. Yet when morning came and they saw each other at work, she appeared as awake and happy as ever. He, however, felt groggy most days. More than he usually was, that is.
“Happy Valentine's Day, Xavier!” She waved excitedly and all but skipped over to him.
“Ah, right, that's today isn’t it?” He shared a smile of his own which fell ever-slightly when she shoved a small red bag into his chest. The confusion he had must’ve been obvious, if her giggling was anything to go by.
“It’s a gift! To a great co-weighbor!”
“Co-weighbor.” He repeated.
“Ceighbor? Coghbor? Eh, I'll come up with a name eventually. Either way, I wanted to share my appreciation!”
In it was a fresh, neatly wrapped muffin from the bakery down the road, a card and a variety of Knick knacks and snacks he assumed was meant for his desk.
“Thank you. You’re too kind.”
She waved it off with that contagious smile of hers. “It's the least I could do.” Then her eyes fell somewhere behind him and she was off again. “Oh, Tara! Tara wait, I have something for you! See ya later, ceighbor-rino!”
And that was the extent of most conversations. Which was fine, really. They had a busy day ahead, and it was sweet of her to think of him in the first place. So even though she was the reason he lost sleep, he couldn’t exactly bring it up to her—could he? ‘Hey good work today and thank you for the muffin, by the way did you know your soundproofing sucks? I'd love to let you fuck the entire town in peace if that's not too much trouble.’
Yeah, that won't work one bit. There's gotta be another way. Or maybe he's stuck with it until she either moves out, he moves out, or she gets bored of all the hanky panky. Given the unlikely chance of the first two options, he was really hoping the third option would come sooner rather than later.
–
Valentine's Day: A day for couples of all varieties to superficially show their love for each other through excessive spending on unnecessarily expensive trinkets, stuffed animals, jewelry and fancy dinners at restaurants that require advance reservations. A time where roses get their time to shine and florists all around town can finally make their sales goals for the winter season.
This was further proven when he hoisted his gym bag over his shoulder on his way to the lobby and saw a tall, stern looking man with glasses standing at the front desk with a giant bouquet of— not roses, surprisingly. Instead they looked like jasmines. An interesting choice to give one's partner on a day like today.
“Doctor Zayne!” Was the all too familiar glee of his neighbor. She was on the other side of the lobby dressed in a flowy pink dress and a matching hair bow; her jacket and purse hung from her right arm when she raced toward the tall man.
Ah. Of course. Now he remembers this guy. The memory of their first impromptu meeting played and he felt his gut twist in knots. A battle with a wanderer ensued and the Doctor happened to be in the vicinity. He got injured and–well let's just say he was finally able to put a name with a face to one of the nightly visiting voices now.
The tips of his ears burned and he kept it moving, his head down and away from where the two lovebirds met in hopes she wouldn't say anything.
He couldn't have worse luck.
“Xavier!” She called out just as his hand was on the handle and dammit he was almost home free. Xavier took a moment to breathe, collect his thoughts, then turned to face her.
“Oh hey, what's up?” He avoided Zayne’s eyes as she spoke excitedly about their plans that day and how Zayne was amazing for putting it all together. Cool, great. He didn’t want to hear any of this but smiled and nodded along anyways.
Then Zayne cut in. “If I may be a little forward—” He pressed a firm hand over her shoulder and she looked up at him. “Xavier, are you feeling alright?”
The question took him by surprise and he stumbled over his words. “Uh–I’m okay I guess.”
Zayne nodded. “My apologies. You just looked a bit feverish is all.”
Then her eyes were back on Xavier and her lips mouthed an ‘Oh’. “You do look a little red, Xavier. And you’ve seemed daze-y today. Are you sure you’re okay?”
Before he could speak, her free hand clapped over his forehead and his words lodged back into his throat. She hummed as she flipped her hand so the back now pressed over his flushed skin and he felt the burn deepen and his stomach twisted up even more.
“Um.”
“That’s enough, dear.” Zayne said finally, he let his hand slide down her back in a gentle but firm pat. “If he’s not well, overwhelming him won’t do him any favors.”
Relief swept over him when she dropped her hand with a pout. “I suppose you’re right. Well, if you’re really not okay then you should go home, Xavier. We can’t have you calling off on us because you pushed yourself too hard.”
“I guess you’re right.” He conceded. Trust, he was just as happy to get out of their hair as Zayne probably was. “Well, I’ll get going then. You guys have a good Valentine's Day.”
He waved and left before anyone else could say anything to keep him there. God, that was so uncomfortable. Even hearing Zayne talk just—
No, he wasn’t going to think about it. Nope. He was gonna go home and take a nap while she was out and about and things were quiet back home. It didn’t happen as often as he’d like and he sure as hell was taking advantage. That was what he kept reminding himself as he got into his apartment, into his pajamas, slapped on his sleep mask and crawled into bed. And it worked. The moment his head hit the pillow, even dreams didn’t dare interrupt his rest and damn did it feel good. He had to thank that Doctor for keeping his neighbor distracted and out of the house for a few hours so he could—
Wait.
It was Valentine's Day .
Valentine’s day. The day known for love.
Love meant public displays of affection, cheesy pick-up lines and dating. It also meant—
“ Oh no.”
Like clockwork, the faint sound of giggling made him shoot up and look at his watch. It was 11. How the hell did so much time pass already? And why was she back so soon?
“Mmm, Zayne—”
Her dreamy sigh was all he needed to hear before he fell back in defeat. Of course. Why wouldn’t they go back to her place on fucking Valentine’s Day of all days. What an idiot he was .
“Someone’s eager.”
Zayne’s tease was clear as day and dammit. Fuck it, he’s not thanking him after all goddamn horny doctor. Weren't there rules against this kind of thing?
“Doctor—” She breathed out and he nearly keeled over at the sound.
“Say it again.”
“Doctor~!” She moaned this time and, Oh God , did they already start??
“Tell me, what are you feeling? How can I help my dear patient?”
“I feel hot, I’m burning up, Doctor. And this pain right Here –” It trailed into a gasp that sent shivers down his spine. “Please, I need you to check—I don’t know how much longer I can take it.”
Truly. He chose a bad time to understand English.
“Mmm, I see the issue. For a proper diagnosis however, this may require an oral examination.” There was a low chuckle trailed by another gasp and—
Yup. They’re doing exactly what he thought. He shoved his face into his pillow and felt his frustration bubble deep in his chest.
It was gonna be another long night.