Work Text:
“Ok, ok. You have about a 25 to 30 minute break between that last meeting, and the one with that new Don. You got that?” Aabha asked the man beside her, checking off various boxes on the papers on her clipboard. Abigor nodded absently, his mind focused on his phone and the various notifications that keep his day to day routine in order.
Swiping away a few meaningless banners on his phone, Abigor looked up at Aabha who had paused in the middle of the bustling hallway to write something quickly. She finished up her scribbling and looked up at her boss. “Alright, I’ll see you on the upper floor. Go get you something to eat, would ya? This next meeting is probably going to stretch over into lunch time,” Aabha advised.
“Noted.” He acknowledged, glancing around and noting the floor number on a nearby wall. “Oh, Alex should be holding class up here today. I’ll grab us something from his mini-fridge in there. He usually leaves something actually edible in there for me.” Aabha nodded and waved Abigor off before turning on her heels with her head buried in the stack of papers she was carrying. Abigor made his way to his husbands classroom towards the end of the hall, uttering gentle ‘excuse me’s as he bumped into his other lower officers on the way. As he approached the door, he readied his keycard for the scanner.
A soft ‘beep’ and ‘whoosh’ sounded as the scanner granted him access, and the metal door slid open. Entering the room, he caught the attention of many of the new recruits and his husband, who was sitting behind his desk. Alexander glared at them, making the recruits quickly snap back to their work. Abigor shot Alex a sweet smile as he walked over to him only to be met with a half-attempted, tight-lipped smile. He barely saw Alex’s face, as his hair was strangely down out of its usual bun. Abigor was immediately on alert as he felt his husband’s energy was entirely off, but he didn’t have time to take him out of class.
“What are you doing here, Abigor?” Alex finally greeted in a hushed voice as he adjusted himself in his seat, that same smile present on his face.
“Aabha worked in a break for us both today, even if it is small. Just stopped by to grab something out of your fridge for an early lunch, if you don’t mind love?” Abigor asked in a matched tone, absentmindedly making a move to push Alexander’s long hair out of his face. Alexander slightly leaned away before catching himself. Abigor’s face fell slightly at his husband’s actions, worried he had done something to warrant the reaction.
“Um,” Alexander cleared his throat, “Yeah, dear, feel free to grab whatever you want. Give Aabha that protein shake in the back. I think she likes those.” Abigor stared a bit before nodding slowly and kneeling down to rummage through the fridge under the desk. After quickly grabbing a few things to snack on and drink, Abigor stood up. He stared down at his husband who couldn’t quite meet his gaze and nodded in thanks.
“I’ll see you later tonight, ok my love?”
“Yea. Of course. Enjoy your meeting, Abi.”
With that, Abigor walked out of the classroom, the metal door closing behind him, and hastily made his way to the elevator, pressing the button to the meeting floor. The nagging feeling at the back of his mind about Alexander had to be put aside until he was finished for the day. But he knew something was wrong and couldn’t quite shake the feeling he had something to do with it.
~
Anxiously, Abigor hurriedly rushed through the debriefing part of his day with Aabha to get back to his bedroom, knowing Alexander had been there long before he’d even gotten out of his final conference for the day. Abigor rushed down the multiple flights of stairs instead of taking the elevator in hopes of getting to their room faster. He briskly walked past Alexanders pool, only pausing to quickly glance in the deep end to make sure his husband was, indeed, in their shared bedroom. The familiar beep of the access panel to their room only worsened Abigor’s nerves as he stepped into the dimly lit entrance hallway to his room.
“Alex?” He called out. He heard the shuffling of bedsheets and a soft, muffled acknowledgment from Alexander deeper into the room. Walking further in, Abigor looked over at the bed to see a big mound with small tufts of his husbands hair poking out of the top of the sheets. A frown settle on his face as he walked over and sat on Alexander’s side, careful to not crush any of his tail under the covers. “Alex, my love, are you ok?” Abigor asked. Slowly, Alexander poked his head out from the blankets but kept his hair over the majority of his face.
“Yeah, yeah, I’m ok. I’m just… a little tired, Abi. That’s all,” Alexander mumbled unconvincingly, his eyes everywhere but on his husband.
Abigor’s eyes narrowed as he tried to make the other man make eye contact with him. “I don’t believe you. You won’t even look at me, Alex. What’s wrong?” Abigor prodded. Alexander shook his head and turned his back to his husband. Abigor felt his eyes prickle slightly as he got more frustrated. “Did I-,” His voice cracked slightly, “Did I do something, my love? Please tell me, so I can make it right.” Alexander quickly rolled back over and sat up, a worried look in his eyes as he grabbed the other’s hand gently.
“No, no, no. Oh goodness, no. You haven’t done anything, Abigor, I promise!” Alexander said in a reassuring voice. He let out a sigh and looked down at his lap. “It’s just… I’m feeling insecure. About my face. My scars really.” Abigor sat there in shock, looking at Alexander’s lip quiver slightly as he spoke. “A recruit had said something earlier in the day- I know it’s stupid, but… I just kind of broke.” Abigor sat as Alex replayed the events of his day, including the terrible comment one of his students had made towards his appearance. Abigor had shifted his position to sitting beside Alexander and holding him flush to his chest as he spoke.
“So I- um, let my hair down during my break,” Alex said, voice wavering, “To cover my ugly scars.” Alexander broke. He sniffed softly a few times before he began to sob silently against his husband’s chest. Abigor’s heart shattered immediately. He immediately wanted to leave and make a lesson out of that student, but he couldn’t leave Alexander alone in such a vulnerable state. He cooed at and cradled his crying husband, rubbing circles into his back with one hand and holding the back of Alexander’s head with the other.
After a while, Alexander’s shoulders stopped shaking, keeping his head firmly on his husband’s broad chest. Abigor slowly and gently pulled Alex’s face into both of his hands, lifting his head to be even with his eyesight. Alexander stared at the other, his eyes puffy and face red from his crying. He felt almost embarrassed for how silly this must have been to his husband. Finally, Abigor eyes softened as he gave Alexander the most gentle smile he could muster. His thumbs softly traced over the etched skin of Alexander’s face, pausing occasionally to readjust his grip.
“Alex, I love every single inch of this face. You are the most stunning man I have laid eyes on,” Abigor said quietly. He pressed a kiss to the corner of Alexander’s mouth where the most noticeable scar was. “I get the privilege of falling asleep and waking up to this lovely face every single day.” He pressed his lips to another set of scars underneath the lip of his eyepatch. Abigor went on and on about every characteristic, every small detail on his husband face and why it was so important to him, punctuating each point with a soft but firm kiss.
Alexander’s eyes began to well up again at his husbands actions. He felt so loved and cared for as Abigor took his time giving him the sweetest attention he had ever received. He brought his own hands up to rest on top of the other’s and finally allowed himself to smile genuinely for the first time that day. Abigor leaned back enough to only be resting his forehead on Alexander’s, placing a small peck on his nose before putting his forehead back.
“I love your scars as much as I love you. Because they *are* you, and I wouldn’t change a thing about them, my love. They show how strong you are.” With a soft whimper, Alexander began to cry again and threw his arms over Abigor’s shoulders, burying his face into the crook of his neck. Any doubts he had in his mind were swiftly kissed away. He knew Abigor, of all people, wouldn’t lie to him. About anything.
After holding each other for a while, Alexander pulled back and looked at Abigor with all the love in the world, smiling when he returned the look.
“Now,” Abigor started, “Can I please see my gorgeous husband again?” Glancing down at the ponytail holder on his wrist, Alexander sat up slightly and pulled his hair back into it’s usual bun. Abigor smiled and kissed the top of his head. “There he is. I missed that beautiful face of yours.” Alexander laughed softly and pressed a few kisses of his own all over Abigor’s face, stopping only to share a small tickled laugh with him. They sat in silence, aside from the swishing of Alexander’s wagging tail, for a moment just enjoying each other’s presence before they both caught eye contact.
“I love you. So much, Abigor.”
“I love you so much more, Alexander.”