Work Text:
New York City, 1992
Mobius loved people. There was no denying that. Maybe it was because he got to see all different types of characters while working at the TVA, or maybe it was just his extroverted nature. Whatever the case, he was fascinated by them. The city held a lot of opportunities and was a good transition space from the TVA. It had many interesting characters to fascinate the old man and was a safe space to blend in and finally be...normal. It was real and unique and bold and brash, all the things the TVA was not (aside from the latter). It felt like the perfect place to settle down for a while now that you were finally free from the chokehold of your previous job. It was surprisingly quiet and peaceful, with the exception of a few honks and sirens here and there. But it was perfect, it was home.
Mobius lugged himself tiredly up the stairs, he was somehow still not used to the way time worked on earth although he had live on it for almost two months. The apartment building wasn't too shabby (at least to Mobius and you), it was a nice old-fashion space. It had a classic 1920s exterior, though the inside had been more modernized and now donned a burnt orange/dusty red color (same as the one on the inside of your shared apartment). To most people, it was a confusing and somewhat ugly mix, but to Mobius, it was full of character and personality, something he was not used to.
"Dammit" the silver fox cursed under his breath. He had forgotten his keys, again. Thankfully, he wasn't in any real dilemma, considering that you were home to let him in, but he really needed to start remembering them. He stood for a moment before he knocked, and if he listened close enough, he could hear the smooth vocals of Ella Fitzgerald and you and your not smooth vocals. He scoffed humorously to himself before raising his fist and thumping on the wood door.
The knock echoed lowly through the still quite vacant apartment. The two of you were supposed to go shopping for some more decor this weekend. Of course, you had the necessities: a couch, bed, table, appliances, etc. but it was still lacking quite a bit of character and charm. You had a whole wall picked out for where the two of you would place pictures of your life together; A space sectioned off for a large wooden bookshelf, ready to be filled with interesting and life-changing books you would read.
"One second!" you bellowed, tapping off the tomato sauce-covered spoon and turning down the ambiance music that filled the kitchen. Looking through the little peephole, you saw that it was only Mobius, and opened up the door.
"You forget your keys again, old man?" you snicker.
"Yeah, yeah." he dismisses, raising his hand and throwing it down again in an unenthusiastic manner. You couldn't help but tease him.
Mobius sets his stuff down and takes a minute to observe you as you go back over to the stove to stir the bubbling tomato sauce.
"So, do you always answer the door in your panties now?"
You couldn't help but scoff, of course he would say something about your outfit (as if he didn't enjoy the ensemble). It consisted of a pair of light pink see-through panties and one of those t-shirts that would always ride up around your midsection no matter how much you would pull at it.
"Yeah, yeah." you mock him and he shakes his head, chuckling slightly as he walks over to you and puts a hand on your hardly-clothed hip.
"I thought you'd like it, actually." you speak before lifting the spoon full of sauce to your lips and trying some of it. "Oh I do," he kisses your neck, hand still resting on your hip. "I just don't want anyone else to." He kisses your cheek before landing a small smack to your bottom.
”Mobius!" you gasp with a humorous tone as he walks to take off his shoes and suit jacket.
"Wait-" you call out. "Try this." you say, holding up the spoon containing a bite full of sauce. He sighs slightly before turning around and allowing you to place the spoon in his mouth.
"Whaddya think?"
"Mm!" he hums, smacking his lips in a bit of a comical manner and you can't help but smile. "That's really good, honey." he says, giving you a quick peck right before he goes back to taking off his shoes and coat.
”Oh, how was work by the way?"
"Good, actually." he nodded, loosening his tie and rolling up his sleeves.
“Yeah?"
"Yeah."
"That's good to hear." you smile and head over to the fridge.
"But I don't really want to talk about work. My whole life, or at least the bit I can remember, has been all about work. I think I would be happy never talking about work again."
You nod, knowing how he was feeling. The TVA was gone, but the effects of it will never be. All you could ever really do was be grateful that you now get to spend the rest of your life doing whatever the hell you want to do with the man you love.
You give him a soft smile, quickly changing the subject. "I was gonna make cocktails tonight, but then I decided to make the red sauce and pasta-" you bend over to pull the bottle of red out of the fridge. "-and so I settled on this bottle of wine instead." you say, grabbing the multifaceted corkscrew out of the drawer. "It's a red. I was talking to the lady at the store about it and she said that it was really good, which explains it's-" your voice is slightly wavering due to the amount of strength it took to open the bottle. With a grunt and a pop, the cork was finally free, and you finish your sentence. "-extravagant price."
"How much was it?" he asks lightly, grabbing two wine glasses from out of one of the kitchen cabinets.
"Like $65! Isn't that insane? I mean I'm no cheapskate, but that's a little much for wine, don't y'think?" your tone being a bit more explosive and contrasty to his.
You carefully pour the expensive wine into the glasses and you both take your first sip in unison.
"Holy shit that's good." you speak first.
Mobius laughs then nods, looking down at his drink and smelling it. "Said very eloquently."
"Fuck off."
He laughs again.
"I think it would be better with the food, though." he takes another sip.
The wine glasses are quickly refilled as you continued to work away in the kitchen, perfecting the pasta and sauce. Grabbing the pasta plates from one of the cabinets and setting them on the little table next to the big glass window of your apartment.
"What are you smirking at?" You inquired as you bent over the table to set a plate down in its designated spot.
"I'm just-" he waves the wine glass around as if he was using it to circle the sight in front of him "-enjoying the view."
You roll your eyes as you walk past him, grabbing some forks. "Do you think you could maybe enjoy the view while you help me set the table?" the question is rhetorical (obviously), but he answers like it's not.
The sauce simmers quietly as the kitchen fills with jazz music, flirtatious talk, and cigarette smoke. Soon the two of you find yourselves swaying around the yellowy-window lit kitchen. You Make Me Feel So Young by Frank Sinatra setting the perfect dream-like, movie-like scene.
Mobius admires you lovingly before speaking “YOU make me feel young." a sincere and slightly bashful smile graces his handsome features.
"I think that might just be the wine talking--" the bottle was almost empty before you both even sat down to eat.
"No--no, I'm serious! Let's..." he trails off trying to think of something, his hand giving yours a small squeeze. You giggled fondly, he just made you so happy.
"Let's get married." he says, finally finding the words.
“I think we’ve had too much wine.“ says you, still smiling but avoiding eye contact with the man whose hand was still gripping your waist.
"C'mon sweetheart! Can you imagine that: the two of us saying 'I do'. Maybe eventually moving out of the city to a nice little beach house, having a baby, getting a dog?"
These were all things the two of you had discussed before, mostly in pillow talk, and mostly when you were trapped for all eternity working and they only ever seemed like little glimmers of a dream that would never come true.
"Say yes." he whispers.
You bite your lip, your eyes burning slightly as tears start to prick them. Imagining the life you could now share with your man in vivid detail.
"Yes."
No longer a dream, but a reality that the two of you were making together.