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Addax thought the stars on Kesh were beautiful, but even more beautiful was the way Jace’s face lit up in the moonlight. Jace’s smile was bright as he gazed up at each individual constellation, Addax doing his best to point them out. It was hard to look at the stars, though, when Jace next to him shown so much more brightly, making Addax feel warmer than he had in a long while. Addax wanted to keep that beautiful awe on Jace’s face forever or maybe…
“Hey Jace, how would you like to live here?”
Jace looked away from the night sky for the first time and beamed at Addax.
“Yeah, I think I’d like that.”
Addax and Jace filed their retirement from the Rapid Evening a month later, and Jamil threw them a party that was much more extravagant than necessary. Addax and Jace were slightly uncomfortable, but gave in, knowing it was for Jamil more than them, and they were both still harboring a bit of regret for leaving her there on her own. So, they said goodbyes to their coworkers with smiles, ate pieces of the fancy cake Jamil had ordered, danced in the neon lights of the club Jamil had rented out.
Addax doesn’t remember much from that night, but he does remember kissing Jace in the middle of that small Centralia club, as people cheered from all sides.
Jace watched as Addax slathered another coat of paint to the outside of the shabby but cozy home. Their home. Jace offered to help with improvements but Addax had insisted, with a small kiss to Jace’s lips, that Jace let him do the heavy lifting and instead focus on writing his book. So Jace sat on a small blanket in the grass, typing about the inner workings of a stratus brain, while trying not to be distracted by his shirtless boyfriend, covered in sweat and smears of paint.
Addax eventually turned around to see Jace’s obvious stares, and put down his paintbrush to walk over and press messy kisses to Jace’s lips.
“Stop! You’re going to get paint all over me!” Jace halfheartedly protested.
Addax laughed as he brought a paint covered hand up to Jace’s face as Jace shifted to straddle his lap. “I think the color suits you, babe.”
“Jackass,” Jace whispered against Addax’s lips before bringing him into a kiss, one decisively more heated than the last.
The first draft of the book Jace had agonized over for a year was presented to Addax with a smile, 6 months after they had moved into their little house on Kesh. Addax flipped past the cover page to see the dedication:
To my Fiancé, Addax Dawn
Addax started to protest “Jace we’re not-” only to look over at Jace bent down on one knee holding a small ring box in his hands. Addax choked out the word “ Yes ” before Jace could even open his mouth.
Jace jumped to his feet to slip the thin band on to Addax’s finger and pressed teary eyed kisses to his lips, and cheeks, and eyes.
“I had a whole speech planned, you know,” Jace whispered between kisses.
“Save it for your vows, love.”
“Yeah, I guess it’s only fair I have a little extra material to draw from, since you have 10 years of journal entries waxing poetic about my beauty.” Jace says with a smile.
Addax smiles back as he pushes Jace softly onto the bed behind them.
“Yeah, you’re really fucking beautiful,” Addax says as he kisses down Jace’s neck.
That night as Addax holds Jace in his arms, he notices the small band on his fingers glows with the image of Kesh’s night sky, and he laughs softly as he presses a kiss to the top of his ridiculous and incredible fiancé’s head.