Work Text:
remy had been working secretly at the restaurant for about a year now. he quite enjoyed it, and although it was difficult at time to not get his only job and love shut down because of "rat infestations'', he loved working every day with linguini and living in his giant mansion. however, they had recently hired another employee. he was very nervous to talk to them, to the point where on the first three days they had started working he didnt show up. it wasnt good for him to do this, he knew, but what if they didnt like him? what if they asked about his family? worst of all…what if they knew he was trans? remy was always nervous meeting new people, especially ones he'd have to work with for the rest of his sad rat life.
linguini must have picked up on this, because when he got home he told remy about how nice the new employee was and how he thought remy would enjoy working with them. he would never force the rat to do anything he didnt want to do, but it wasnt healthy for him to avoid his issues like this. finally, remy prepared himself to meet with the new employee. he put on his favourite button up shirt covered with sharks, and trimmed his whiskers. he thought about what he should say to the new employee, and went through all the possible outcomes and what he would do if something went terrible wrong. but nothing will go terribly wrong, right?
he took a deep breath as he walked through the doors and looked for the new employee. his eyes landed on the most beautiful mouse in the entire world. (or so he thought. there were probably hotter mice out there) he could feel his face getting hot and red, and he quickly darted into the storage room, hoping the mouse didnt see him. out of all the things that couldve happened, he did not expect his new employee to be so hot. how was he supposed to work with them every day? maybe he would be lucky and something they said would make him completely disinterested in them. or maybe theyd quit. anything. please. god.
he took a couple more deep breaths and opened the door. what would he say to them? *start with your name.* he thought. thats good. all he had to do was be nice to them.
"hey! you're remy, right?" the mouse asked. they smiled at him with the sweetest smile remy had ever seen out of someone. they were by far the prettiest mouse remy had ever met.
"yeah! the one and only." they both laughed. "and you are?"
"stuart. its an honor to be working here, sir." that was new. remy had never been called sir, and it felt awkward. it was nice, yeah, but it felt too formal.
"oh, you don't have to call me sir! its an honor to have you here." they both smiled at each other and remys mind was racing about what stuart thought of him, how cute they were, if he had made a first good impression, if the mouse thought remy was cute too, how he would get through working with them without spilling it out that he was madly in love with them and things of the sort.
remy went over to see what the orders were and started working. he ran into stuart a couple times, awkwardly apologizing before continuing on cooking. he would glance over at the mouse often, wondering if he would ever get a chance with them. this went on for a year as they became best friends, hanging out often after work together. staurt lived in a small little apartment next to an alleyway that was covered in colorful graffiti and fairy lights. they had hung the lights up themself, and they occasionally hung up little plants from the nails in the wall. remy thought this was absolutely adorable, the way they made a terrifying at first alleyway into a nice little spot where they could hang out, unbothered by the rest of the world.
to celebrate start working at the restaurant for a year, remy invited them to come to his house for dinner. stuart had been there before a couple times, but the two of them preferred sitting in the alleyway for less formal events. remy set up a nice little table in front of the window, with his finest plates and bowls and silverware. he had made his famous soup, which stuart had always said they liked the most. he got out his finest wine, and put on his shark shirt, the one he had worn when he first met the mouse. finally, he heard the doorbell ring. he rushed over to the door, giving stuart a hug before letting them come inside.
"wow, you made all this just for tonight?"
"of course! you're my best friend you know, and i couldnt be happier that you decide to work at my restaurant." remys heart pounded as stuart sat down. did stuart like remy as more then a friend, or is remy just going to have to remain heartbroken for all his sad rat life?
"you're my best friend too, remy." his heart pounded harder, as the mouse smiled at him with the warmest smile. "you remembered this is my favourite soup!"
*i remember everything about you*, he almost blurt out, but he didnt want to seem creepy or weird. remy knew everything about stuart, from their favourite color to the little scars on their legs they had gotten as a kid from climbing (and falling out of) trees.
so instead he just laughed. "yea! its one of my favourites too. im really glad you like it." staurt and remy began to eat, making small talk inbetween sips. remy wanted desperately to tell staurt how much he loved them, with every time he opened his mouth he worried that he would let all of his feelings out to them. but he couldnt. what if they hated him afterwards? plus, it wasnt good for the restaurant. stuart was a great help around, and even if they did start dating they might break up and then he'd have to fire them.
despite all this, remy yearned for something more. to be able to kiss them, just once. to be able to hold their hand as they walked down the street. he wanted stuart to know how he felt, even if it meant losing our their trust. even if it meant never seeing them again.
"you have really pretty eyes, has anyone ever told you that?"
"maybe a couple times. you're really pretty, you know that remy?" his entire face was bright red (or would've been, if he wasnt a rat.) and his heart was pounding harder then ever. should he tell them how he felt? should he shoot his shot? fuck it, what's the worst that could happen?
"no one will ever be prettier then you, stuart. you're probably the most beautiful rat alive. i-"
"im in love with you remy. i have been ever since we met."stuart mumbled the last part under their breath. remy was shocked. they liked him back? "..but we cant. the restaurant." remy sighed, knowing that this would happen. his heart hurt, like he had been stabbed repeatedly.
"cant we at least try? whats the meaning of any of it if we don't take risks? if we dont do what we want?"
"because, remy, if we all did what we wanted we'd be poor on the side of the road with no job. like i said, i love you more then anything, but its just not good for business." remy was determined. he had to convince stuart that they could do it. that it was possible for them to work together and date.
"we already hide the fact that we're goddamn rodents, whats another secret going to do?" remy looked across the table at them with love in his eyes. all he'd ever wanted was right in front of him, his future, and he wasnt going to throw it away because stuart was nervous. he was going to do everything he could to convince them to date them.
"okay. i guess it cant hurt?" remy got up from the table and walked over to staurt. and then they kissed or something idk how romance works im fuckin aromantic anyways
uhh they adopted 4 little mice and rats and lived happily ever after the end 💏💏💏🏳️🌈🏳️🌈🏳️🌈🏳️🌈🏳️🌈🏳️🌈👬👬👬👬👬👬