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Stone never had to fake his placid smile he wore around the doctor. He loved his job. He loved the doctor. He sometimes even dreaded going home, where he would be cold and alone. Working with the doctor was always amazing.
Well. Almost always.
Stone had returned from his trip to the grocery store to stock their communal kitchen. They were currently taking up residence in a lesser-known lab of Robotnik’s, where the lab was connected to the living quarters. Stone secretly enjoyed this setup, he liked being near the doctor even after hours. After placing the last of the groceries in their designated spots, he made his way to the lab. As ordered.
The door swung open and he cleared his throat to get the doctor’s attention. The man was laying on a creeper and working on the underside of a large, sleek white machine. It was propped up by two sturdy claw mechanisms on either side of it. The doctor didn’t notice him when he cleared his throat, so Stone leaned down and saw he had his headphones on. He smiled. There was nothing he loved to see more than Robotnik immersed and enjoying his work. He figured he would stand in his usual place until the doctor came out of his zone and noticed him. But as he stepped towards his corner, his right foot was placed in front of his left, and the left snagged the right as he stepped forward.
He smashed face-first into the large metal base of the claw mechanism holding up the machine. He heard a sickening crack, and felt blood begin to pour from his nose. But he also heard a crash. The machine! He whirled around, ignoring the nausea his dizziness caused. The doctor was sitting up on the creeper, having rolled out from under the falling machine just in time. He looked shocked. He grabbed his headphones and tossed them away, before his wandering eyes settled on Stone. They narrowed.
The taller man stood up with all the grace of a lion, and with all the power to hold up to that statement he strode towards Stone. His eyes gleamed with a fire he had never seen before. This wasn’t irritation, or arrogance. This was rage. He subconsciously backed into the wall as the doctor approached. Once their noses were mere inches from each other, the doctor spoke.
“You almost killed me, Stone.” Tears welled up in the agent’s eyes. Oh god, he was right. He opened his mouth to apologize, to do anything. “Don’t speak. Let me explain to you what you’ve just done.” Stone gulped the blood flowing down his throat. “You broke the mechanisms holding that machine above my body. The only things keeping me safe at that moment in time. I haven’t assessed the damage, but that machine is at least damaged. At worst, ruined. It’s very delicate. Do you know who commissioned that for me? No, you wouldn’t. Because they’re so important, you would’ve never even heard of them. You understand that it is solely due to luck that I rolled out before the machine crashed down on me? You understand that I am standing here only because I made a decision on a whim?”
Stone nodded, eyes stinging. He would not cry. He would not cry in front of the doctor.
“Go, I don’t want to see you. Go to your quarters and stay there for the rest of the day. I’ll decide what to do with you tomorrow when i’ve calmed down.” The agent nodded again. He didn’t consider himself a cowardly man. But he nearly ran from the lab at that, slipping away from under the doctor. He fled to the bathroom that was attached to his bedroom in the secluded bunker, shutting the door behind him.
He scuttled to the toilet, where he choked up blood. Blood dripped from his nose and mouth into the toilet. He looked behind himself, to see he had left a trail of blood behind himself. Shit. He had probably bled all over the lab as well; he would have to clean that up tomorrow.
Tomorrow. The doctor had said he’d decide what to do with him. Would he even be going back tomorrow? He finally allowed himself to give in to his emotions and let his tears fall. He couldn’t believe that he had done that to his boss. How could he be so careless? What if the doctor hadn’t made it out in time? He sobbed out loud. He couldn’t stand to live without him. And to live with himself knowing he had caused it? He could never do it.
He straightened himself and looked into the mirror. Both of his eyes were blackened. Blood had stained his dark grey suit, and it had dried in some places around his face, except where it still flowed weakly over his lips. It clumped in his beard and the sight of it made him feel even more queasy. He felt dizzy, and had a pounding headache. Judging by the small knowledge of medicine he had gained in his training to become an agent, he probably had a minor concussion and a broken nose. It did look crooked, as the thought crossed his mind.
He would deal with that later. He had once before set his own broken nose, and god did it hurt. He wasn’t in the state to be doing it right now. He started sobbing again, softly this time. What was he going to do...
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Robotnik approached the side of the machine that had been dropped. The exoskeleton was badly cracked, but looking behind the cracks there seemed to be no internal damage beyond a few misplaced wires. He shouted and pulled at his hair. The audacity! How dare Stone come into his own lab and threaten his life like that. He ignored the pounding of his own heart and the shaking of his gloved fingers. The threat to his life hadn’t scared him. He didn’t get scared! He was in complete control of his emotions.
He had just screwed a panel back in when he heard the sickening crack of Stone’s nose being broken on the mechanical arm holding the machine up. He was using his legs to propel himself to slide out from under the machine before it even began to fall. He sat up and looked at his gloved hands. They were trembling. It was just adrenaline. A look at the agent confirmed his suspicion. Blood streamed from his nose and a terrified look adorned his face. It was just an accident.
He shook away the memory. A growl rose up from his throat as he flopped into his rolling chair. He was so goddamn angry at his agent. But there was another feeling there. A heavy feeling low in his gut, like he had swallowed a pack of ball bearings and they were making their way through his body. Was it guilt? If he thought hard about it… maybe he shouldn't have been so harsh on Stone. But he had damaged his machine! Not to mention, he could’ve killed him. He couldn’t have careless mistakes like that in his lab, it could result in him or others being killed. All of his logic pointed towards the fact that he should get rid of Stone. It would be for the best.
But he would never bring himself to do it. He loathed to admit it, but he cared for the agent. Nobody could make lattes like him. Nobody could placate the doctor when he was angry like him. Nobody could understand the doctor so well. He sighed. There was no way he was going to fire him. He couldn’t bring himself to do it, no matter how dangerous his silly mistake was.
He looked towards the wall he had Stone cornered to previously, and grew concerned. A small puddle of blood lay where the agent had stood, and thick droplets trailed towards the door of the lab. That was a lot of blood. Maybe he should check on him. He stood from his chair and strode purposefully to Stone’s quarters.
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Stone had become woozy. In the back of his head, he told himself it was blood loss and that he should seek help. But he simply curled up in the corner of the bathroom on the floor. He was still snuffling and sobbing softly, but it had died down considerably. His vision spun, which made him nauseous so he closed his eyes. He didn’t respond to the first knock on the bathroom door. The second time he heard the knocking, it was louder and more insistent. His head jerked up, which made him groan.
“C-Come in.” He looked away with a hot flush on his cheeks when the doctor opened the door. He didn’t want him to see him like this. Not to mention the shame he felt from the actions that put him in this position.
The doctor’s eyes grew big as he witnessed the sight in front of him. Stone’s eyes were blackened and puffy, and tears shone on his face. Blood covered most of his lips and chin, clumping in his facial hair and staining his suit and tie. He was curled in the corner of the bathroom, smaller than he’d ever looked before. His eyes were cast away sadly. The doctor jumped when a soft sob left the agent’s mouth, who raised his hand to his mouth and flushed.
“Your nose is broken, agent Stone.” The man in question nodded. “Let’s get that set.” A surprised look came across the man’s dirtied face as Robotnik reached under the sink for the first aid kit.
“Wh- But why? I almost killed you, I should be caring for you.” The doctor shook his head.
“I’m perfectly fine. Maybe a little… shaken up. But you’re obviously not in good shape so we need to get you taken care of.” He knelt down in front of Stone and gently grasped the sides of his head. Turning his head side to side to see how bad it was, he hissed through his teeth. He would need to set it and apply a dressing. “I’m going to dress this, but I need to set it first. Here, bite down on this.” He thoughtlessly took off one of his gloves and handed it to Stone. The man hesitated but folded it over and inserted it into his mouth with a grimace. He knew this was going to hurt.
He couldn’t stop himself from crying out around the glove as the doctor set his nose in place. More tears flooded down his face, this time from pain. He watched blearily as the doctor applied some sort of plaster to his nose, and squeaked when he gently pushed gauze up into his nose holes. They were secured in place by a piece of medical tape. He began to cry harder. The doctor grabbed a wet wipe and carefully wiped the blood from his lips and chin.
“Now that that’s done with, I want you to tell me why you were crying.” Stone’s puffy eyes widened, before glancing nervously away from the doctor. He might as well tell him. He very well could be out of a job as of tomorrow anyway.
“Honestly, doctor? I was crying because I was thinking about what would have happened if you died. I can’t live without you. I… I love you.” His face crumpled at the words he spoke. “Please know that I won’t be upset if or when you fire me. This is very unprofessional of me and you deserve better.”
The doctor’s face was unreadable. But it slowly softened, and a smile graced his face.
“Oh, Stone. I could never fire you. You mean the world to me. I daresay I love you too.” The taller man looked to Stone with something he hadn’t seen before. It wasn’t anger, this time. Was it love? “Agent Stone, now that I know we share the same feelings for each other, there’s no point in forcing a platonic relationship. Would you like to be my boyfriend?” Stone grinned.
“Yes, I would love that, doctor.”
“Well, with that said, please call me Ivo. May I call you Aban?” Stone nodded, smile never fading.
Aban hesitantly reached out his arms to embrace the other man, who carefully entangled his own arms in the embrace.
“Let’s get you to bed, it’s been a long day. May I sleep with you tonight?” Ivo murmured in his ear. After nodding in response, Aban yelped as he was picked up bridal style and brought to his room.
Ivo quickly found the pair of pajamas on the floor and handed them to the agent. He himself stripped down to his boxers and gracefully tidied the bed as Aban changed his bloodied clothes. He turned off the light when he had changed his clothes. Aban crawled onto his side of the bed, curling up on his side. He smiled as he felt Ivo come up behind him and wrap his arms around him. He whispered into his ear
“Goodnight sweetheart.” He felt the darkness take him.