Work Text:
"Keep up the good work, Matsubusa." The words were praising, but the tone was detached, uncaring. The Executive did a final scan of the room before meeting eyes with the scientist in question. Maxie's old, tired eyes didn't match the rest of his youthful, fresh out of college face.
"Thank you, Executive Archer," Maxie replied with a brief nod of his head, but his voice lacked the enthusiasm of someone who just received a compliment. It was toneless. It was tired. Not a single colorful test tube was out of place. The Pokeballs on the wall length shelf didn't have so much as a speck of dust on it. The papers were orderly and reports were filed appropriately. Archer grabbed a manila folder off of the corner of Maxie's work bench and tucked it under his arm.
"Now carry on. You aren't the only grunt under inspection today."
Scientist. He was a scientist. "Understood, Executive."
Maxie didn't dare move from his stationary spot as Archer's footsteps beat against the tiled floor. The door closed behind him and Maxie waited a long second before finally exhaling and letting his shoulders slump. He hated inspection day. This inspection day was even more nerve rattling. Only half of the Pokeballs on the shelf had Pokemon in them. The rest have been released in the dead of night over the course of weeks. The other half were going to find their escape soon. Some of the reports remained unfinished. Random words filled the pages to make it look as though progress had been made to a glancing, non-careful eye. The folder Archer had taken was one of the few completed projects Maxie had in his presence.
The sneeze from the closet made Maxie jump. He rushed to the main door of the room to lock it before turning his attention to the closet door. He threw it open, revealing a large grunt wiping his nose on the inside of his black shirt. Such a large guy was cramped in the tiny closet space, so as soon as the door flung open he shuffled his way back out into the open.
"You are going to get both of us killed, Archie!" Maxie scolded in a stern whisper, just in case Archer was still in the hallway. "I told you Archer was going to be around today."
"And I booked it to the closet before we got caught," Archie replied with a sly smirk. He reached out to place his hands around Maxie's waist, only to have his hands swatted away by the sour scientist.
"You're lucky that I turned his attention to the reports before he could even take a passing glance at the door." Maxie crossed his arms over his chest.
"Aye, I gotta say you know how to talk the talk. I also know that I'm one lucky sonuvabitch to have a brainiac as a boyfriend." Archie leaned in closer to Maxie, hoping that his tactics of complimenting his way out of the hot seat would work. They kind of were.
"Keep this up and you won't have that brainiac boyfriend of yours. If I'm not killed first, I'm going to break up with your ass."
"They ain't gonna kill ya, babe," Archie tried to reassure him. He wrapped his large arms around Maxie's shoulders whether the man wanted them or not. Maxie put up some protest at first, but knew he was wasting his energy. Giving up the fight, he melted into his boyfriend's warm, secure embrace.
"I'm not entirely convinced of that," he murmured, burying his face in the crook of Archie's neck. "Grunts go missing every other day, and I don't believe that they're successfully running away either. I should have read the warning signs when I still had the chance."
Archie's hands were rough, but they were gentle as they rubbed Maxie's back to comfort him. Maxie really loved the fact that Archie knew all of the right things to do to make him smile and feel a little more secure.
"We're gonna be alright," Archie said before planting a kiss on the top of Maxie's head. Maxie still wasn't convinced. It was hard to pay attention to Archie when his eyes were too focused on the door. They were going to get caught and that was going to be the end of that.
"Hey, hey, look at me," Archie stated. Maxie had to pry his eyes away from the door to look up at those deep blue eyes. "We're gonna be alright." Before Maxie could make any words of protest, Archie leaned down and pressed a gentle kiss against his somewhat chapped lips. Archie didn't seem too bothered by it. He never did. Maxie wanted to protest. He wanted to shove Archie away and figure out a way to burn this place to the ground, but he couldn't. His tired eyes fluttered shut as he finally started to kiss back. His hands trailed up Archie's broad chest before wrapping themselves around the back of his neck.
Archie didn't even try to hide his eagerness. He leaned in further and further into Maxie, his hands now resting against the base of his waist. Maxie broke the kiss and stumbled back, afraid this was going to turn into him falling on his ass, but Archie wasn't satisfied. His lips found Maxie's again as his hip bumped into the side of the table. The colorful liquid in the test tubes were tossed around from one side of the glass to the next.
"Sorry."
"Mhm." Maxie didn't waste any time scolding him. He could do that later when Archie didn't have him pinned against a desk. His lithe fingers snuck their way into Archie's thick, dark locks.The worries of the world were lost as he felt Archie's body press up against his. Archie tried to push Maxie down onto the table, but Maxie was putting up a fight. It took him all day to get everything organized and tidy! He wasn't about to let Archie come in and ruin his hard work, especially if Archer is still roaming the halls. They shouldn't be doing this anyway. They shouldn't be so far away from the closet. They needed to wait until the coast was as clear as a river untouched by humanity. And yet, Maxie couldn't get enough of Archie.
He pushed back, causing Archie to stumble back in surprise. He grinned against Maxie's lips and even Maxie found himself giggling at their trip. Archie was more than willing to let himself be pushed back. Maxie wasn't even for sure where they were going, only stopping when a wall stopped them. Some of the Pokeballs shifted with the force as Archie's back hit the wall.
Both of their chests heaved as they caught their breath. Maxie's green eyes radiated with life as they looked up at Archie's blue.
"You're a good stress relief, I'll give you that," Maxie murmured, prompting Archie to laugh.
"I try to be. Maybe we should, y'know..."
Maxie shook his head, knowing the excitement that Archie was implying. "Not right now. But...perhaps you could ask me again later and see if that answer changes," he mused, stealing another sweet kiss from Archie's lips.
"So that means ya ain't breaking up with me?" Archie snickered.
"Not right now, no. You've convinced me otherwise for the time being, but don't push your luck." Maxie moved his hands down, allowing them to rest on Archie's chest while Archie's rested against the middle of the scientist's back. Maxie's right hand could feel the rhythmic patterns of Archie's heart.
"Awww, love you too, Max."
Archie squeezed him a little tighter, but such a soft, warm embrace turned into a death grip as a click echoed through the room. Maxie felt his heart pounding against his chest, desperate for escape as the door slowly creaked open.