Archive of Our Own

The rattling of the ceramic crock pot alerted Viktor that his soup had come to a boil, the aromatic smell of the herbs and spices filling the small space of their apartment. Viktor hurried to the kitchen to lower the heat, or at least tried to. His leg had been aching all day, more than it usually did.

It was Jayce's favorite potato soup. He said it reminded him of their college years, when they barely had any money left for food most days, and didn't want to eat junk food for the eleventh time in a week. Jayce was usually the one in charge of the cooking. Back then,Viktor could barely fry an egg without making the smoke detectors go off.

He smiled, staring into the whirlpool of the soup as he stirred, breathing in the rich smell of the recipe he now knew like the back of his hand. They didn't even have half of the spices they do now, but the soup always tasted like the best thing they had ever tasted their entire life. Every single time.

"It's because I was making it with love." Jayce joked once when Viktor told him that, which earned him one of Viktor's sassy glares that were always followed by an endearing smile when it was Jayce on the receiving end.

Putting the lid back on and putting the stove on the lowest heat, Viktor made his way back to his spot on the couch where his favorite crochet blanket was pooled in the corner, holding his half-read book facing down. He grabbed the book, placing his finger between the pages so he wouldn't lose the page he was last reading, and threw himself back onto the couch.

A scream came from under the piled up blanket, and an angry ball of fur jumped out, hissing at Viktor.

"Vince!" Viktor gasped, his hand pressing flat against his heaving chest. "You stupid gremlin, what were you doing there? I could've crushed you..."

The cat meowed, almost apologetically, licking his paws and rubbing it on his face.

Viktor sighed, too weak to stay mad at his furry best friend, no matter how dumb he could be sometimes. "Come here, Vince."

The cat limped towards the couch until he was close enough for Viktor to pick him up in his arms, burying his face in his soft ashy fur. "I know I'm quite cunning, but I don't have kitty senses like you do, buddy."

Vincent meowed softly in reply. Sometimes, Viktor thought the cat truly understood them.

They had found him years ago, during their senior year of college. It was one of the most difficult years of their lives; their relationship was tested many times, but when one night Viktor heard meowing near the dorm's back door during a rainstorm, he couldn't ignore it.

The kitten was alone, stuck in the mud, screaming with his last breath for help as he shivered in the cold. Viktor picked him up and wrapped him in his scarf and ran to their room as fast his could. His leg always got worse during the cold, rainy days, but that day, he was a man on a mission. The fact that he made it back to their room in one piece was a miracle.

 It was while they were bathing him that they realized the kitten was born without a left back leg. That was probably the reason his mom abandoned him.

Viktor couldn't stop crying as he bathed and then fed the kitten some warm milk, and despite all the shit they had to deal with already, Jayce couldn't say no to keeping the kitten.

Vincent settled in Viktor's lap for a long nap, purring under Viktor's gentle fingers running through his fur while he resumed reading his book. He had barely read three pages before Vincent interrupted him, turning his small face towards Viktor and meowing. Maybe Viktor could speak cat too, because he was certain that Vincent was asking about Jayce.

"He said he would be late, but he should be home soon."

The cat let out a grumbling noise and started making lazy biscuits on Viktor's leg.
"Don't be mean, Vince. Dad just wants to help as many people as he can..."

The corners of Viktor's lips curved into a smile just thinking about his husband and how kind and generous he was. Viktor knew for a fact that Jayce's heart was made from something different than everyone else's. The man was incapable of being mean and holding a grudge. And he couldn't refuse to help when he knew he could do something about it.

After finishing school at the top of his class, Jayce got offers from major car manufacturing companies and started working right away, but it didn't last long. Nearly two years in, and he couldn't take it anymore. workers were mistreated and underpaid, higher ups didn't giving a damn about anything but making more money and sucking the living soul out of everyone working for them. So Jayce got out along with a few of the people working with him there and started his own car repair shop.

What started as a small repair shop turned into one big family that kept growing every year. How could the customers not love him when he was probably the only mechanic in the town who was willing to fix their cars at a reasonable price when every other place either rejected them or asked for more than the car was worth to fix? How could they not love him when he always had snacks for the kids and let them play video games in their break room while their parents' car was being fixed, giving their folks a few minutes of peace with a hot cup of coffee and homemade cookies?

One time, He woke an hour early for a week straight to give a single mom with her three kids a ride to her job and drove her kids to school while her car was at the shop.

Jayce blushed so deep when Viktor called him Saint Jayce once, but it was true. Except for the times when they were locked away in their bedroom and fucking like animals. Jayce had the dirtiest mouth in the bedroom, and Viktor loved every word.

Vincent nuzzled his face back into Viktor's thigh, muffling his next soft meow.
Wake me up when he comes home.

"I will."

..

Viktor stirred with the gentle press of warm lips against his forehead. Something was tickling his cheeks too as he fought the sleep in his eyes, trying to open them.

"Hey sleepy heads," Jayce's deep voice rang in his ear, the final push to wake up him.

Viktor opened his eyes and was met with his husband's handsome face only inches away from his, smiling down at him with the same soft adoring look in his eyes he's had for him since they fell in love seven years ago. The only things that had really changed about Jayce were the permanent tan on his skin, the faint lines growing around his eyes, and the luxuriant beard he'd been growing for the past few months.  

Viktor was obsessed with Jayce's beard. The way it tickled his chin when they kissed, or the way it left red welting scratches against his thighs when Jayce went down on him.

"Jayce," he rasped, reaching up to wrap his arms around Jayce's neck and pull him closer.

Jayce let himself be pulled in and pressed his lips against Viktor's parted ones. Viktor's body melted against his, just like the first time Jayce kissed him all those years ago. The tight muscles in his shoulders loosened, and his arms grew heavier around Jayce's neck, almost as if he was surrendering himself fully.

An angry meow came from the small space left between their bodies sitting awkwardly on the couch.

Jayce pulled back just enough to let the cat out if he wanted to escape but instead Vincent pressed his head into Jayce's stomach.

"Hey grumpy," Jayce freed one hand from behind Viktor's head to pet their spoiled cat behind the ears. "I missed you too," he said to both his boys, leaning in to press a chaste kiss against Viktor's jaw.

They sat like that, cuddled up and wrapped around each other on the couch when Viktor suddenly jumped. "The soup!"

"– is fine," Jayce said, pressing his hand against Viktor's chest. "I served up the plates. We should go eat before it gets cold."

"What?" Viktor watched him in confusion, finally noticing the dampness in Jayce's hair and his comfy PJs. "Why didn't you wake me?"

"You were sleeping so peacefully with Vince curled up on your lap... I couldn't."

Viktor then noticed his book sitting neatly on the coffee table with a wrinkly receipt tucked between the pages as a bookmark. Vincent jumped down from his lap and sprinted towards his now full bowl. His disability never slowed him down.

Viktor's cane clicked against the wooden floors as he slowly made his way to the small dinner table, and true to his words, Jayce had set it up nicely. The soup was plated, and the bread was toasted with butter, just as Viktor liked. "Jayce... you've been working late. I should've–"

"Shh," his husband hushed him as he pulled his chair out for him like the gentleman he was. "You've been working too."

Viktor frowned. "At a library."

"At a library where you're on your feet all day," Jayce scolded. "Now, stop arguing with me and let's enjoy our meal together."

Viktor rolled his eyes, letting it go even though he wanted to argue further, telling Jayce fixing cars all day was much more straining than running a library. Instead, he grabbed his spoon and took a bite of the soup, humming at the perfect creamy texture and the taste of the spices complementing each other.

Watching Jayce eat across from him was always half of the pleasure of eating together at the table. His husband always ate his dinner like it was the first meal he'd had in a year, practically inhaling every bite and moaning every now and then.

They hadn't changed much. Not really.

Viktor still remembered those days, not long after becoming roommates, a mechanical engineering and a library science undergrad, eating instant noodles at the small counter in their kitchenette. Jayce had his books sprawled on the small space, barely leaving any space for their thrifted mismatched bowls. Sometimes he'd mistake his pen and spoon together, trying to scoop his soup with his pencil and write with his wet spoon.

Between classes, assignments, and part-time jobs, they barely got a full night's sleep every night, let alone ate full meals. But any chance they got, instead of going out to eat and drink with other guys, they preferred to stay in and eat together.

Viktor used to think it was pity, Jayce choosing to stay home rather than going out with his popular friends. It was weeks, maybe months later that Viktor realized Jayce didn't have a lot of friends either despite looking the way he did.

'I'm a nerd and a poor scholarship guy. No one's that eager to hang out with me. Plus, I'd rather spend time with you than destroy my liver and eardrums at some club.'

Viktor had looked at him like he grew a second head. 'why? I thought...'

'Vik, you know I like you better than everyone else in this entire university,' he had said it so casually, and almost matter-of-factly, that it took Viktor a full minute to register the words.

'y..you do?'

Viktor would never forget the kicked puppy look on Jayce's face that night. 'of course I do! Viktor, you're my best friend.'

It was after that night that Jayce made it his life's mission to show Viktor how much he liked him every chance he got. And somewhere along the way, Viktor realized he was falling in love with Jayce, who had been in love with him from the start.

It was in the way Jayce made Viktor feel seen, and heard, and safe at the same time. It was in the way Jayce would always make sure Viktor was comfortable even though his leg's condition wasn't as bad back then. Having dealt with chronic pain nearly all his life, Viktor had learned to endure and rarely be accommodated. But Jayce was different.

He never made Viktor feel less than for his disability, and he never treated him differently for it either. Instead, his brilliant engineering mind would always think ahead, coming up with ways to make Viktor more comfortable without him asking. Viktor knew that even if he wasn't disabled, Jayce was the kind of person who was always trying to find ways to make his loved ones' lives easier.

Kids these days would call it his 'love language', Viktor thought.

But what truly drove it home for Viktor was the way Jayce didn't have to find the beauty behind Viktor's flaws. Jayce saw him, all of him, imperfections or not, and found him beautiful. Just the way he was.

 To Jayce, Viktor simply was beautiful.

"How's your knee?" Jayce asked after swallowing the last piece of breath that he used to clean his plate with.

The urge to lie was always there, to downplay his pain and give his husband some peace of mind. But not with Jayce. He'd see right through him even if the heavy-duty braces Viktor had switched to after coming home from work weren't proof enough.

"It's worse than last week, but nothing I can't handle," Viktor replied truthfully. This wasn't the worst he'd ever felt.

"I wish you could take a few days off and rest," Jayce sighed, watching Viktor with those soft, hazel eyes.

"You know I can't. My surgery is next month, and I need all my sick days for the recovery."

"I know," Jayce smiled meekly, reaching across the table to intertwine their fingers. "Everything's gonna be okay," he reassured, even though Viktor thought he was hiding his nervousness pretty well.

It had finally come to it. He had to get a knee replacement after dealing with the pain for the better part of his life. It wasn't going to be a miraculous treatment, and he wasn't going to be completely pain-free after. He would still be disabled and need special care for the rest of his life. The doctor even warned that he will most likely need a hip replacement as well eventually, but it was the best approach at that point if Viktor wanted to keep his mobility.

"Come on, let's go to bed," Jayce announced, throwing his dirty napkin into his empty plate.

Viktor blinked, looking around in confusion. "but the dishes..."

"It's Friday. We'll clean up tomorrow. Come on, I miss my husband." He pulled Viktor's chair out and helped him stand up wordlessly.

Viktor let himself be pulled up to standing and didn't resist when Jayce wrapped his strong arms around his middle and pulled their hips flushed against each other. Even after all those years, being close to Jayce made Viktor's heart flutter. Jayce was taller than him by a few inches and much broader. His thick shoulders shaped from years of consistent exercise and heavy manual work every day were like mountains. Strong and reliable. Never wavering.

Being wrapped in Jayce's strong, muscular arms was Viktor's favorite place in the whole world.

Jayce leaned in for a kiss, hot and open-mouthed, and leaving no confusions about his intentions. A shiver went down Viktor's spine, making his knees grow weak. Viktor could feel Jayce's pleased smile against his lips, smug bastard. Strong, calloused hands slid down the curve of Viktor's back to grab at his ass, giving his cheeks a nice squeeze.

Viktor let out a gasp, muffled by Jayce's lips, his hands scrambling for purchase on Jayce's shirt and trying to get closer. Jayce's body was radiating heat like a furnace, somehow the man's body ran even hotter during the winter. His quickly-hardening cock was pressed shamelessly against Viktor's hip, making his own dick throb in anticipation as their lips continued their smooth, practiced dance against each other.

"Jayce...' Viktor breathed into his husband's eager lips as the younger man continued with his ministrations of using Viktor's ass as his personal stress-balls.

"Hm?"

"Stop teasing and take me to bed." Viktor wanted to bite off the smirk tugging at the corners of Jayce's lips.

"So bossy," Jayce purred against Viktor's lips before giving his swollen bottom lip a tug with his teeth. God... Viktor loved Jayce's teeth, especially the small gap between his upper front ones.

Jayce's arms loosened around Viktor's waist and let their lips part with a wet pop. Dark hazel eyes stared into Viktor's holding him with a gravity stronger than a black hole.

"Go lie down, I'll be right there." He was holding Viktor's cane out for him.

Viktor grinned, letting his palms linger on Jayce's pecs for a moment longer before dragging them down slowly and taking the his cane and making his way to their bedroom.

He didn't need to ask Jace why he was joining him later. Ever since moving into their new apartment, Vincent wouldn't let them have any privacy in their bedroom unless they kept him occupied some other way. The slow feeder they invested in last year had not let them down.

Viktor lowered himself down onto the bed with some difficulty, not bothering to strip. Jayce would give him sad puppy-eyes if he stripped himself.

He used to shy away and get frustrated before, in the early days of them dating. High school wasn't kind to someone like Viktor, so he had learned to hide. Hide his imperfections if he wanted to look desirable. Hide his pain if he wanted to be loved easily. Hide his interests and hobbies if he wanted to be 'normal'.

It took a while for Jayce to re-route the wires in his brain but Jayce was a genius and he was the most patient man Viktor had ever met. Day be day, kiss after kiss, Jayce taught him how to let himself be seen and loved.

Jayce would spend every second, every breath, to prove to him that he was safe with him. That being vulnerable wasn't the worst thing in the world. Not when he was with Jayce.

The sheets were soft and cool beneath Viktor's body and smelled distinctly like them. Like the hair mask Viktor had been obsessed with, and Jayce's aftershave that he continued using despite not shaving anymore. He turned his face to the side, breathing in the scent and feeling his heart grow fuller.

The door clicked shut, bringing Viktor's attention back to the present moment. Jayce climbed up and over Viktor's body until his arms were caging Viktor's head. "Hey."

"Hey you," Viktor said softly, his voice barely louder than a whisper. His hands reached up to cup Jayce's bearded jaws, tilting his head for a kiss. Jayce yielded easily, always going wherever Viktor took him.

The kiss was lazily and slow, their tongues in no rush to invade. They already knew every inch of each other inside and out. Every moment, every breath, and every touch was cherished.

Holding himself up on one arm, Jayce began undoing the buttons of Viktor's shirt with practiced ease. He'd done and undone every button of every shirt Viktor had a hundred times. With one less layer between their bodies, Viktor could feel the burning heat radiating from Jayce's body even more intensely.

He freed his arms from the sleeves with minimal difficulties before letting Jayce pull it from under him and throw it somewhere he didn't have to think about.

The shorts came off next, the loose elastic slipping down Viktor's small hips easily. Jayce was careful putting the shorts over the knee brace before freeing them from Viktor's long slender legs and throwing them to join his shirt. Viktor's thick fluffy sucks came off before Jayce moved to removing the brace from his knee. He pulled each strap free as gently as possible as not to put any more pressure on Viktor's knee.

The elastic of the brace had left red, painful looking marks on Viktor's pale skin. It looked worse than it felt, but Jayce didn't care as he leaned down and pressed light kisses over every inch of his marked skin. The contrast between the roughness of Jayce's palms against Viktor's sensitive inner thighs and the gentle press of his soft lips against his knee sent shivers down Viktor's spine.

"So beautiful..." He mumbles against the curve of Viktor's knee.

Viktor's dick twitched in his boxers, the soft cotton starting to feel like sandpaper against his oversensitive erection.

"Jayce..." Viktor called again, his voice nearly breaking in desperation.

He still sometimes struggled with vocalizing his thoughts when they were intimate. Luckily, Jayce knew him better than he knew himself. He knew the meaning of every gasp, every shiver, and every twitch. He could draw a map of all of the moles and scars and bruises on Viktor's body with his eyes closed. He knew every sensitive spot to tease and painful spots to avoid.

So when Viktor called his name, voice hushed and broken, Jayce knew exactly what his beloved needed.

Pressing one last kiss to the side of Viktor's knee, he pushed himself up, sitting back on his shins, and started to shed his clothes quickly and efficiently.

Viktor craned his neck to watch like it was the rerun of his favorite show. His breath quickened at the sight of his husband's ripped chest as buttons came undone one by one. He couldn't wait to run his hands against the soft hair that stretched between Jayce's pecks and down to his naval. Jayce used to shave them back when they were in college. Everyone in the college's gym was clean-shaven according to Jayce, and he didn't wanna stand out, not that Viktor ever set foot in there. Viktor was glad he stopped.

Jayce got rid of all his clothes before pulling Viktor's boxers down as well. He could tell Viktor was impatient that night.

He reached out into the nightstand's drawer and grabbed their unflavoured lube (they both agreed years ago that asses weren't meant to smell or taste like tropical fruits or coffee) and got to work.

Viktor pulled his good knee up closer to his body, spreading himself open for Jayce without a hint of shyness.

"No need," He said, the words almost punctuated.

Jayce's eyes snapped up to lock with his, arching a brow up. It didn't use to be so rare for Viktor to prep beforehand. He got bored a lot when Jayce was working longer hours and didn't want him to have to work so much before they could get to the fun parts. It didn't matter how many times Jayce assured him that he loved doing it all even when he was tired.

Jayce pressed two lubed fingers against his rims and watched as Viktor's ass swallowed them easily. Viktor had prepped thoroughly.

"Fuck, Vik..." Jayce cursed, rubbing his lubed fingers around Viktor's wall.

"J–just... do it, Jayce," Viktor stuttered, rolling his hips aimlessly and clenching around Jayce's thick fingers. He needed more.

"Shit... yeah, okay.' Jayce knew arguing with him was pointless. If Viktor said he was ready, then he was ready. "So eager tonight..." he couldn't help teasing as he pulled his fingers out to lube himself up as quickly as possible.

Viktor moaned with his lip caught between his teeth. He was already panting, and they hadn't even started.

"Missed you..."

Jayce's dark eyes softened as he looked up to face him. "I missed you too, Vik," he confessed as he fixed his position between Viktor's thighs. "I miss you all day."

He placed a small pillow under Viktor's right knee to make sure it stayed supported and wrapped the other around his waist. Viktor reached his arms up, grabbing at Jayce's shoulders, trying to pull him down on top of him.

"I know, I know," Jayce cooed, loving the way his husband grew so clingy when they were making love. It only took him a few seconds to line himself up with Viktor's gaping entrance and press into the delicious heat of him. "I got you, love."

Thrusting in to the hilt, Jayce finally obliged to Viktor's needy demands and lowered himself on top of him, making sure his weight was distributed evenly so that he wouldn't crush Viktor.

"Ja–Jayce..." Viktor cried out from the blissful stretch of Jayce's dick inside him, his eyes nearly rolling back.

Planting his arms firmly on both sides of Viktor's head, Jayce pressed his face into the crook of his husband's neck, breathing in the scent of him. The scent of his home.

"I'm right here, V," Jayce reassured, peppering Viktor's neck in feathery kisses as he waited to give him time to adjust. "I got you."

Viktor circled his slim arms around Jayce's impossibly broad shoulders, barely reaching to hold his own wrists behind Jayce's back. His dick was throbbing almost painfully, trapped between their bodies, making a mess on Viktor's belly.

"Move, please." Viktor mentally patted himself in the back for managing to get the words out without stuttering. "I'm... ready."

Jayce pulled his face back just enough to see Viktor's face when he asked, "Are you sure?"

Half-lided molten gold eyes stared into Jayce's burning hazel ones.

"Yes," Viktor said without missing a beat. No hesitation.

Jayce wasted no time then, rolling his hips back a few inches before thrusting back in earnestly. Viktor hated when he held back, and Jayce always aimed to please.

Snaking a hand behind Jayce's neck, Viktor weaved his fingers through the overgrown hair in the back of Jayce's hair and used it to pull him closer until their foreheads were touching. He loved the long shaggy look on his husband even though he'd been teasing him about needing a haircut for the last two weeks.

Jayce grew his rhythm steadily. Precision was always his first priority, finding the best angle that ensured Viktor's comfort and hitting that spot that made Viktor loose all sense of coherency. He loved it when Viktor would go back to his 'factory settings' as Jayce liked to call it and would start mumbling in his mother tongue. His whimpers were the sweetest thing, making Jayce feel all warm and gooey inside.

It had been years since Viktor stopped feeling guilty for not 'doing enough' in the bedroom. Just another one of those things Jayce helped him unlearn. The fact that Jayce naturally liked and got off on servicing didn't hurt. Jayce never let their limitations in doing most positions hold him back from trying to make things more fun and exciting, but lately, with Viktor's knee getting worse and his surgery around the corner, they were being extra careful.

"Mhm... Just like that," Viktor moaned, his fingers tightening in Jayce's hair. "Feels... so good." Sometimes, he still couldn't believe that his body was capable of feeling so good. The same body that had been giving him so much shit for most of his life.

Jayce groaned, preening under the praise. His next thrust pushed them up a few inches. Viktor's praises worked like jet fuel for him.

"V... I..." he mumbled against Viktor's parted lips. He was close, and so was Viktor. They were both panting, their bodies damp with a sheen layer of sweat.

"I know, my love," Viktor purred, loving the way his husband was losing himself in his frail little body. Jayce had helpd him fall in love with his own body. If someone like Jayce could love him so unconditionally... If Jayce could worship every inch of him day by day without tiring, surely Viktor had no excuse not to do the same.

Viktor's left leg was trembling around Jayce's waist, his whole body writhing as pleasure kept building up. Jayce's arms closed around him, wrapping him in a safe cocoon of his embrace as they reached their climax together.

Toes curling and head throwing back, Viktor came undone, beating Jayce to it no more than a few moments. His cry of pleasure bounced off the walls, probably disturbing their next door neighbor, not that either of them cared.

It was the sound of Viktor's breathless moans and the curses pouring out of his kiss-swollen lips and the sight of his face, flushed with pleasure and glowing with sweat, that sent Jayce over the edge. Hips stuttering with the last few thrusts, Jayce cried out Viktor's name as he finished inside him. Viktor held him through it, his smaller hands rubbing circles on his shoulder blades, whispering sweet nothings in his ear as he rode his orgasm and came down from his high.

"Good boy... that's my good boy, Jayce." Viktor cooed, running his fingers through Jayce's damp hair.

Jayce pressed his face closer, almost hiding into the crook of Viktor's neck, letting the scent of his husband's hair ground him.

"I love you so much..." he mumbled into Viktor's neck before pressing an open-mouthed kiss where a red teeth mark used to be just a few days ago.

Viktor let out a sigh, feigning disappointment. "I knew it. You only wanted me for my body."

Jayce's head snapped up, brows knitted into a frown and lips pouting. There was the kicked-puppy face again.

Viktor cracked up, pulling his lip between his teeth trying to stifle his laughter, but he couldn't, not when his husband looked so adorable.

He cupped Jayce's face and pulled him in for a kiss, barely able to contain his smile. "I love you... idiot."

"Your idiot," Jayce grumbled into the kiss. Always having the last word.

"My idiot."

..

Thirty minutes later, they were cleaned up and dressed back up for bed, Vincent already dosing in the corner on Viktor's side of them. It took a few extra treats to make it up to him for locking him out of the bedroom for longer than usual. They got carried away when Jayce suggested giving Viktor's leg a quick massage to make sure it didn't cramp the next day.

They lay curled up against each other, Viktor's body feeling looser and more relaxed than he'd felt in weeks. But something was off with Jayce. He was restless and wouldn't stop moving.

Viktor knew him too well.

"What is it?"

"What?" Jayce feigned ignorance, earning himself a sharp glare from his husband.

"Spill it. I know when you're hiding something," Viktor let out a defeated sigh. "Are you planning another surprise birthday party for me, because if so, I'll—"

"No, no, don't worry. I'm never doing that again." He laughed nervously.

"So? what is it then?"

Jayce propped himself up on his elbow, facing Viktor. Must be serious, Viktor thought, but refused to panic.

"I wanted to tell you tomorrow in the morning, but I guess now is as good as ever," he began, his eyes barely meeting Viktor, which was starting to make him nervous.

"So... you remember Mel?"

Viktor blinked, trying to put a face to the familiar name. "The... girl with the old Honda?"

"Yup. That's her." Jayce confirmed.

Viktor remembered her. She was a regular at the shop. A broke uni student just like them a few years back who drove a car that was broken more times than it wasn't. She was beautiful, from what Viktor remembered.

"Did her car break again? Did you finally decide to buy her a new car?" Viktor joked. It probably would cost them less in the long run. That car was truly not worth all the repair cost, but it was all she could afford, and Viktor couldn't blame her.

"No, her car is fine for now, knock on wood." Jayce was stalling.

"Are you going to tell me or do I have to pry it out of you myself?"

"Okay, just... I didn't want you to freak out. I know it's not great timing with your surgery coming up soon, and I didn't want to spring it on you like this but..."

"What?"

"She's pregnant."

Viktor's brain short circuited. "What–"

"She's only a sophomore and wants to finish school, but she's too far into the pregnancy and doesn't want to risk more complications by getting a late-term abortion."

"Wait what?" Viktor waved his hands in the air in confusion.

"I know we talked about adopting when the right time came, but we never really discussed when that would be, and I thought..."

"O..oh..." Viktor's face went red, ashamed of himself for thinking even for a second.

"Hey, hey, it's okay if you're not ready." Jayce reached for his hands, holding them tightly in reassurance. "There's no pressure. I didn't even tell her anything to not give her any false hope in case you weren't up for it. You can think about it for a few days if you want."

Viktor rolled over, curling around himself, and began laughing hysterically.

"Fuck... did I break you?" Jayce peaked over his shoulder. "I'm sorry, this is why I wanted to wait to tell you in the morning... Why are you laughing?"

"I... I thought, for a moment..." Viktor managed to reply between his wheezing breaths.

"What...?" Jayce sat up, the gears in his head turning for a few moments before it clicked. "You thought I was the—" he gasped, not being able to finish the sentence.

Viktor finally managed to pull himself together and pushed himself up to seated facing his dumbfounded husband.

"She's like a little sister to me!" Jayce still couldn't believe it. But he was hardly offended.

"I know... I'm sorry. You must've fucked my brains out real good," Viktor apologized, rubbing his hands on Jayce's biceps soothingly.

Jayce's shoulders sagged. He knew he couldn't stay mad at Viktor for long. Or get mad at him, period.

"Come here," Viktor lay back down, spreading his arms, waiting for Jayce to join him.

He pulled the blanket over their shoulders when Jayce settled comfortably in his arms. His golden retriever little spoon.

"So... kids, huh?" Viktor said after a few moments of comfortable silence.

"Uh... 'kid' singular. As far as I'm aware." Jayce corrected.

"You seem pretty certain. Not about the number. I mean about adopting Mel's baby," Viktor said, not posing a question, knowing Jayce would understand what he meant.

"I don't know how to explain it, but when she came by with red puffy eyes and one hand on her swollen belly, I just... knew. It felt right."

Viktor blinked, staring at the white ceiling. This was sudden. And Jayce was right. With his surgery coming up...

"Do you think I'll be a good dad?" Viktor asked, which sounded like the silliest question in that moment.

Jayce tightened the arm he had thrown over Viktor's middle. "I know you will be the best dad in the whole world."

A hot tear slips the corner of Viktor's eye, catching him off guard. He didn't even realize he was tearing up.

"If we decide to do this, V, I want to assure you that I'll make arrangements to split the responsibilities more evenly. I'm not expecting you to become a stay-at-home dad," Jayce promised confidently, and Viktor knew that he was a man of his words.

"But what about the shop? you can't just leave them and hope for the best..."

"Of course not!" Jayce chuckled. "Vi has been doing really well lately. I can train her in the next few months so she can run the shop in my absence."

"You would do that?" Viktor asked, his voice shaking, more tears threatening to spill from his eyes. "You'd..."

"Of course I would! I'd do anything for you. For our family." He paused, tilting his head to face Viktor. "you're my husband. My partner for life. None of the work I do matters if I can't be there to take care of my family... to take care of you and our baby."

"Our baby..." Viktor tested the words in his mouth.

"Our baby."

"Is she going to be a part of the baby's life?" Viktor asked, suddenly scared that someone would want to take their baby away. (It was scary enough that he was already thinking of it as their baby)

"I doubt it. She doesn't live here and plans to go back to her country after finishing school. But even if she does, I don't think it would be such a bad thing."

Jayce was right. It wouldn't be a bad thing. Plus, worrying about something like that was pointless at that point.

"God... this is crazy..." Viktor rand a hand through his hair.

"I know... I haven't felt so nervous since the week before I kissed you for the first time," Jayce said, trying to lighten the mood.

Viktor pinched his arm. "We should sleep. We have an important meeting to arrange tomorrow."

Jayce lets out a breath he didn't even know he was holding and nodded. He closed his eyes, trying to calm his fast-beating heart.

"Jayce?" Viktor called softly a few minutes later. He knew Jayce was still awake from his erratic breathing pattern.

"Yeah?"

"No matter what happens with Mel, whether she decides to give us her baby or not, I want you to know that... I–" Viktor's voice broke a little, but he managed to continue despite it. "...I could've never done this without you. Finishing school with a disability with no friends or a social life, finding a stable job, buying an apartment, raising a cat... only you could show me the life I could have if I didn't give up on myself."

"Vik..." Jayce sniffled, tightening his arms around Viktor's smaller frame.

"I'm just saying that I love you, Jayce, no matter what."

"I love you too, Viktor."