Work Text:
It was trivial and they both knew it.
They rarely had fights, so when they got mad at each other, it was usually warranted. Except for this time it wasn’t. Carlos swears it was an accident and that he didn’t mean to do it. Yet here they were, mad at each other. Mostly TK was mad at Carlos; Carlos just wanted to talk about it and be forgiven.
TK spent three hours just glaring at Carlos, not even speaking to him, which meant he was pissed about the whole situation. Feroz was upset about the whole situation, too. He also inevitably took Carlos’ side over TK’s, so TK was left to defend himself against his boyfriend and his boyfriend’s dog.
Feroz had defended Carlos from TK that night, preventing the man from snuggling up to Carlos as he typically did. That meant TK didn’t sleep properly because he never did when he didn't have Carlos.
He tossed and turned for hours, eventually getting up and laying on the couch. He had pulled the covers back into place so he wouldn’t have to bother Carlos much in the morning when he’d have to leave for work.
∆
TK left for work quietly in the morning, figuring Carlos would want to sleep in on his day off. They usually woke each other up, no matter who had work in the morning or evening or got to enjoy a day off. Carlos woke up to a vacant house, Feroz sprawled over TK’s side of the bed. Thankfully TK had at least been nice enough to straighten up before he left.
Carlos checked his phone, wondering if TK had sent him any texts while he was asleep. After seeing no recent messages from his boyfriend, Carlos double-checked his calendar to make sure he hadn’t set any appointments or anything for the day.
It was there that he had marked down the event: Feroz Playdate with Buttercup at 12.
“Hey buddy, do you still want to go see Buttercup?” Carlos asked, seeing Feroz perk up and give him a happy whine. Carlos sighed, he couldn’t merely bring up the playdate and then say they aren't going.
He looked at the time, seeing that it was only nine, so he still had time to complete some training with Feroz. He also had time to unwind and relax before going to the firehouse and possibly bothering his already upset boyfriend.
By the time it was half-past eleven, Carlos’ anxiety was through the roof. He felt like he was either making an excellent decision or an extremely regrettable decision by going to the firehouse.
He loaded Feroz into his car and drove down to the 126, spotting the crew all working on something right inside the garages. He couldn’t see TK or Buttercup, but he knew TK’s scent would be easy for Feroz to find.
“Feroz, find TK,” Carlos looked down at Feroz and unhooked his leash from his harness. He let Feroz run freely into the station. He had noticed Paul was waving him over, so he made his way over quickly, not wasting a moment.
“Hey, Carlos, what’s up with your boy? He’s been in a mood, today,” Judd spoke up before Paul could get a word in. Carlos sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose.
“We got into a silly argument last night and even after I apologised, he still didn’t want to accept it, so he’s being a brat about it,” Carlos explained. He paused for a moment, then before he could continue, Feroz barked from upstairs. “If you’ll excuse me…”
Carlos took the stairs two at a time, spotting Feroz still in his passive alert, eyes locked with TK who looked more sad than angry.
“We had a playdate set up for today, and I know you’re pissed at me, but Feroz was really excited to come to see Buttercup,” Carlos said, walking over and releasing Feroz from his down-stay.
“I’m pathetic, ’Los, I was being a dick about the whole thing. I was already in a bad mood, and I guess that was the final straw for me. I shouldn’t have behaved the way I did and am sorry. I let my temper get the best of me. I'm sorry,” TK said quietly. He had gone into a defensive position, his arms hugged over his stomach and his head bowed down, not making eye contact with Carlos.
They stood in silence for a moment or two, then Feroz stood up and walked over to TK. He sat down next to him and leaned his weight against TK’s leg. TK sniffed and ran the back of his hand across his eyes, wiping away any tears and then scratched behind Feroz’s ears.
After another moment, Carlos came over and winded his arms around TK, trying to promise the boy that he wasn’t upset. TK merely shook in his arms, unsure of how to respond or react. He couldn’t help the tears that sprung to his eyes and bled through Carlos’ shirt.
“I’m sorry,” TK whimpered, trying to pull away from Carlos so he wouldn’t cry on his boyfriend any more than he already had.
“Nothing for, love,” Carlos replied. He let TK go anyway, not wanting TK to feel trapped against him if he didn’t want to be. “You responded to how your brain was directing you to respond. Now, how about we find Buttercup, hm?”
TK nodded and led Carlos and Feroz to Owen’s office where Buttercup was laying. He frequently chose to lay next to Owen when Owen was working, wanting to be near him almost always.
“Hey dad we’re going to steal Buttercup now,” TK said, peering into his dad’s office and alerting Buttercup to his presence. “C’mon boy, you want to see your buddy, Feroz?”
Buttercup let out a small “woof” and quickly got up off the dog bed Owen had bought for the office. He trotted over to the door and sniffed the air, trying to find Feroz without being able to psychically inspect him.
Once the two dogs smelled each other, they were off, romping around the loft area. Ultimately, they made their way down the stairs and out towards the little fenced-in “dogs only” area behind the station.
“They need playdates more often,” TK smiled, winding an arm around Carlos, watching the two canines roughhouse with one another. “And maybe fewer arguments with each other, I didn’t get to tell you that I’m off work for the rest of today because of therapy.”