Chapter Text
When Simon woke up and got ready for work, Ralph was still asleep on the couch. He pondered waking him, but ended up just leaving a note welcoming him to get something to eat whenever he woke up, and make sure to lock the door on his way out. He saw Daniel on his way out.
“Markus just got there, he’s setting up.” Daniel gave him a tired glare. “Don’t fuck this up.”
“I won’t,” Simon assured him, then hesitated. “…I’ll try not to.”
“Well don’t come crying to me when you do,” Daniel mumbled, pushing past him. “…Ralph still here?”
“Yeah, I didn’t want to wake him up.”
“You know he’s been sleeping in the storeroom?”
“Yeah, I’m not blind. He’s a heavy sleeper. He have anywhere else to go?”
“No, I told him to sleep there.”
“We should at least get him a cot or something.”
Daniel smiled. “I’ve been looking around for one. Hey. Have a good day.”
“You too.” Simon smiled back, and walked out the door.
There was already a line forming when Simon arrived, and he slipped in with an apologetic smile.
“Hey!” Markus called. “We’re just about set up, looks like it’s gonna be a busy day.
As soon as they opened the door, customers rushed in. Some knew what they wanted, some took time to browse or ask questions. Some took their order and left, some sat down to eat and talk. A woman asked about catering her wedding next year, and Simon put together a price estimate and took some notes, agreeing to set up a tasting day in a few weeks. A man heard them talking, and came up afterwards to ask about his son’s lizard-themed birthday in a few weeks. They didn’t have a second of downtime until they closed at three, and finally when the doors were locked, the drawer counted, and everything clean, they both leaned on the counter and sighed.
“Um – I know it’s been crazy, but do you want to go out somewhere and talk?” Markus asked, rubbing his fingers distractedly.
They ended up in the corner of a little Chinese restaurant, splitting an order of sesame chicken with vegetables. As they ate, their eyes darted up to each other and back down to their food.
Finally Markus exhaled, wiping his mouth with a napkin. “I don’t want to make any decisions for you, or… make you uncomfortable.”
“I don’t either,” Simon said quickly. “I, um… I’ve been thinking about this a lot, and I’ve been really worried about… being in a relationship with someone when I’m also their boss, and I don’t want to put you or anyone else in a bad position.”
“No, I don’t think…” Markus paused, looking intently into Simon’s eyes. “Would you… want to? I mean, the relationship part, not the other part, obviously.”
Simon let out a breathy laugh, looking down. “I’m just… afraid of things going bad.”
“But would you want to?”
He just swallowed and nodded once, staring at his plate.
Markus reached out and put his hand on the table between them. “Okay,” he said softly. “So then assuming I would too… which… I do… what are you worried about? We can work things out.”
Simon’s eyes rose to his, and he just stared silently for a long moment. Then he let out a high, nervous laugh. “I – first of all it – I’m your boss, there’s that imbalance of power, it would look bad to…”
“To who?”
“Well… I talked to Daniel about it, he doesn’t mind. He was really supportive, actually.”
“…I was thinking you wouldn’t say anything that would surprise me, but I actually didn’t see that coming.”
“He’s… defensive, but he’s not really as much of a jerk as he acts like.”
“…And Ralph talked to me about it, so he’s okay with it too.”
“I guess so.” Simon was quiet for another moment, then laughed and shook his head. “I mean, I think we can both be professional on the job.”
“I would hope so,” Markus agreed, a grin spreading across his face. “…My dad likes you, if that helps at all.”
“It doesn’t hurt! …I mean, we’ll… just have to… you know, communicate, which is true of any relationship, so…” His smile was growing by the minute, and his hand darted out to rest tentatively over Markus’s. Markus rotated his wrist just enough to slip his thumb above Simon’s and rub the paler hand gently. Simon blushed, and ran his thumb over the base of Markus’s palm.
“…The table’s kind of sticky,” he finally whispered, blushing hard.
Markus chuckled. “…Yeah, I noticed but I didn’t want to move.”
Simon laughed too, reddening even further. “Do you, um… do you want to… do something next weekend? Like – I don’t even know, I haven’t gone on a date since high school… and we see each other every day, so if you’d rather not…”
Markus squeezed his hand. “I’d like that. …And so far, being around you five days a week has just made me want to see you more, so… I think we’re okay.”
Simon distantly wondered if it was possible to die from every drop of blood in his body rushing to his face. He nodded quickly. “I – yeah. Sorry, I… it’s been… a long time, like I said.”
“That’s okay. I never really… made time for dating before. Didn’t have anybody I thought was worth it, I guess.” Markus smiled.
They walked slowly back to Simon’s apartment together, holding hands at first, then arms loosely looped around each other’s waists. They stood talking as the sun set, then during a pause, Simon leaned in and kissed Markus, just lightly on the side of his mouth.
“Uh – I guess I should be going…”
“Wait.” Markus slid a hand up into his hair and pulled him back for a longer kiss. They were both a little breathless when they pulled away.
“Goodnight,” Markus whispered, a little smile tugging at his lips. “See you tomorrow.”
“See you,” Simon echoed. “I – I had… a great time. With you.”
“Me too.” Markus lingered, watching Simon go inside, then walked home feeling light.
“So?” Daniel asked when he woke up. “Happy?”
“Yes,” Simon sighed blissfully, flopping down on the couch.
“Good.” His brother yawned. “It’d be great if you’d quit mooning over him and get on with whatever the fuck you wanna do with him – and you don’t have to tell me that part. I really don’t want to know.”
“…He’s a good kisser,” Simon commented with a grin.
“Thanks for oversharing.” Daniel threw a pillow at him, and he laughed. “Just be careful.”
Simon sat up. “Daniel, you don’t have to tell me –“
“No, I know, and I’m not going to. I’ll leave it at that. I’ll still murder him if he doesn’t treat you right.”
“I think he’s well aware of that.”
“Good.” Daniel spread some peanut butter on a roll and took a bite. “…And we don’t need things to get awkward and weird, so if that’s gonna happen, try to get it over with as soon as possible.”
“I’m… not worried.” Simon smiled. “And I know you like him too. I don’t think you need to worry about it either.”
“We’ll see,” Daniel muttered.
Simon threw the pillow back at him. “Would you just go to work so I can daydream in peace?”
Daniel rolled his eyes. “…Only because somebody has to hold this business together.”
“I knew I could count on you.”
Daniel grumbled halfheartedly under his breath as he left, and Simon hauled himself up to brush his teeth and get changed, then flop down on his bed. He could still almost feel Markus’s lips on his, gentle and inviting. He could hear the shy laugh belying the confidence he exuded in every other situation. See the intense blue and green eyes. He fell asleep thinking of that soft smile that was just for him.
Not far away, Markus was lying in his own bed, thinking of the soft lips on his, the shy laugh belying the strength that lay beneath, the deepening blush and warm blue eyes. The smile just for him.
The promise of a future together, sweet and warm.