Work Text:
Mick finds Nate sitting in the library, arms crossed over his torso and his head tilted down. At first Mick just assumes Nate’s deep in thought. Nate’s mind is always running, but usually the library is Nate’s time to stare at the map of anachronisms and put his smarts to good use.
But something is different. Nate’s shoulders are set in a way that screams defeat , and his chin is tilted down so far that it touches his chest. Something about Nate’s posture is off so Mick hesitantly steps inside.
Nate doesn’t hear him push the door open gently, or maybe he does and is simply ignoring Mick. He doesn’t even move when he hears Mick’s booted footsteps moving closer and closer. He doesn’t budge when Mick stops in front of him; his boots are definitely in Nate’s line of sight.
“Pretty,” Mick grunts out, his chin jutting out in greeting.
Nate doesn’t respond. His arms just shift up his torso, and Mick knows that that body language well. Nate’s closing himself off, feeling unsure and… Mick’s not sure. He just feels how Nate is. He can’t exactly put it into words.
Nate doesn’t say anything, but then Mick hears the small sniffle and his heart plummets. Wordlessly, he steps forward and wraps his arms around Nate’s shoulders.
He feels relieved, more for Nate than himself, when he feels Nate accept the embrace. Nate’s arms slide around Mick’s waist and he presses his face into Mick’s sternum. A broken sob escapes him, and then he sniffles, but Mick’s here so…
Mick guesses it’s better that he’s here than Nate being alone.
He doesn’t do soothing. Or, at least, he didn’t. But a lot of things have changed since he joined the Legends. Mainly, he has changed.
His gloved hand rubs circles against Nate’s shoulder blade while the other pats the back of Nate’s head consolingly.
Sure, Mick’s changed, but like he said earlier; he’s not good at words. Because of that, he doesn’t say anything. He just keeps trying his best to be there how Nate needs him.
Ten minutes pass and finally Nate’s pulling back from Mick’s chest. His nose is red and wet, just like his eyes. He looks exactly like how someone would after having their face pushed into a pillow and letting out their frustrations. Mick guesses he was Nate’s pillow.
The corner of Nate’s mouth quirks up and he lets out a dry laugh as he wipes his nose off with the back of his hand.
“Sorry,” Nate says, and it sounds so broken that Mick just wants to wrap him into another tight hug.
“You have nothing to be sorry about,” Mick responds. His hand slides down from the back of Nate’s head. He moves slightly, taking a seat beside Nate so he can continue rubbing circles into his shoulder.
Nate sniffles again, his hands gripping onto the edge of the desk he and Mick are sitting on. His shoulders hike up and he’s tense for another five minutes before he allows himself to relax with a sigh.
“Want to talk about it?” Mick finally presses. He could tell Nate was still embarrassed at having been caught crying so he wasn’t planning on making it worse.
Nate tips his head back, breathing in through his mouth since his nose is clogged. “There’s nothing… in particular. I’m just sad.” Nate admits, dropping his gaze to look at his hands. “I just… get sad sometimes.”
Mick nods, his hand trailing down Nate’s back until it falls to rest on the oak desk. “That happens.” He says.
“Sometimes I can go months and things are okay, but then…” Nate trails off, shrugging his shoulders and waving his hands in an I just don’t know fashion.
“I get it.” Mick tells him, turning his head just the slightest so he can look at Nate. Nate doesn’t look up, not yet. He keeps his eyes on his hands, but Mick admires his profile. His eyes are splotchy and his lips are red from biting on them, but Mick feels nothing but fondless. He reaches out, his hand gingerly gliding against Nate’s face and through his hair.
Nate leans into the touch, breathing.
“I also get wanting to be alone,” Mick continues, his voice gruff, “but you don’t have to be.”
Nate looks up now, his lips turned up. There’s a smile, but there’s still that sadness behind his green-blue eyes. He gives a small nod, saying the words that Mick didn’t. “Because I’ve got you.”
Mick nods, his thumb stroking the height of Nate’s cheekbone for a brief moment.
Nate’s smile softens, becoming more genuine as his eyes flit momentarily to Mick’s lips. He turns his thoughts into action, leaning forward to press a chaste kiss to Mick’s lips.
“I love you, you know,” Mick nearly whispers as Nate pulls back. His eyes remain closed, lips still parted from the wonderful feeling of having Nate kiss him.
“I know,” Nate’s smiling despite his shining eyes. He’s got his hands cupping Mick’s face, staring at him like he’s the most important thing in the world. “I love you too.”
This time Mick’s the one who cracks a smile, lifting his hands to grip onto Nate’s elbows. He pulls him in, giving a kiss to Nate’s cheek before pulling him in for a long embrace. Nate clings back, his face buried in Mick’s shoulder.
Not everything is going to be alright. But they’ve got each other. Cheesiness be damned. Mick loves Nate in a way he’s never loved anything else.