Chapter Text
The next morning Ray woke up with a splitting headache and a mouthful of cotton. He tried to raise his head up off the pillow, only to be hit with a lightning bolt of pain up and down his neck. Wincing, he reached over to the side table and gulped down the glass of water Nate had left on his bedside table. He took a moment to stare at the glass uncomprehendingly before being struck by the events of the night before.
“Shit.” he whispered. He crawled agonizingly out of bed and fumbled through his nightstand drawer for the bottle of painkillers he kept in there. He swallowed a few with the last few drops of water in the glass and tugged on a pair of sweatpants.
When he got to the kitchen he got a pot of coffee going and grabbed the plate of scrambled eggs from what he’d dubbed the replicator with a quiet, mumbled thanks. They were gone in a matter of minutes and Ray had just gotten up to take care of his plate when he noticed Nate standing in the doorway to the mess hall.
“Good morning,” Ray said blankly. “Um… I made coffee…?” He pointed awkwardly towards the now-full pot on the counter. Nate paused for a moment, then walked in and poured himself a cup. He sat down next to where Ray had just vacated. The taller man sat back down, setting the plate on the counter next to the sink. “I… guess you want to talk about… last night?”
“I-I-I don’t know how much you remember, I mean… you were--”
“I was pretty drunk, yeah, but yeah, I… remember most of it. I mean, I don’t want to pressure you into anything, I mean, it doesn’t have to mean anything… cause I am all about consent--”
“Ray,” Nate interrupted. “I-it’s okay, it’s fine. Um…” he set down his mug and smiled. “I think I would… like it to mean something.” Ray’s eyes bugged out as he choked on his mouthful of coffee and grabbed a napkin to clean himself off.
“You would?” he squeaked. “I mean--”
“Yeah,” Nate said, leaning in. “I do,” After a second, Ray closed the gap and very gently pressed his lips to Nate’s own. They broke apart after what seemed like an eternity. “I’m not breakable.” Nate said, smiling.
“I know,” Ray said. “I just…” He gulped nervously. “My last few relationships… didn’t end well. I had a fiance who… who died in the, um… the attempted takeover a few years ago, two girlfriends that… that left me for someone else, and Len…” Nate wrapped a comforting arm around Ray.
“I know,” Nate said. “Then I guess you should know that I haven’t… had a lot of luck in the relationship department either. I’ve had… a couple of boyfriends cheat on me, some… pretty toxic relationships.” Ray nodded and gave the smaller man a peck on the cheek.
“We’ll make this work. Somehow.” Nate smiled and leaned in closer.
“I know, but first, I think maybe we should get rid of our audience first.” Ray’s eyes got wider and he poked his head up to look over Nate’s head. He saw a flash of leather and the slightest glimmer of blonde hair as Sara and Amaya dashed out into the hallway, trailing conspiratorial giggles after them. Nate laughed and leaned in to kiss Ray again, more deeply than the last.
They were going to be alright, Ray thought. As long as they had each other.