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Stone didn’t have many skills or talents. Sure, he could kill people in seconds and knew multiple forms of self defence, but that sort of stuff isn’t really useful after you settle down to live a normal, suburban life.
The only ordinary skill he had was his incredible latte making abilities. In the few months he had been the owner of the Mean Bean, it was the most popular it had ever been.
He loved making the doctor lattes. It gave him purpose. It made him useful.
But, after his presumed death, he didn’t have anyone to make lattes for. When he started dating Wade, this fortunately changed. It was obvious that Wade didn’t drink nearly as much coffee as Robotnik used to, since he had no reason to. He had no strict deadlines, no important meetings, and needn’t pull any all-nighters.
Regardless, Stone was more than enthusiastic to provide his boyfriend with an endless supply of lattes. At first, it had taken him a few attempts to get good at drawing Wade’s face in the foam, but within a week, he had perfected it, much to Wade’s amazement.
Of course, Stone would’ve never told Wade that he had been making countless lattes to practise on when he wasn’t around.
Every day, it was the same routine. Wake up before Wade. Make him a latte. Wait for Wade to get home from work. Make him a latte. He used to make him a latte before bed, but it had begun making it harder for him to sleep, so they put a stop to that.
One evening, Stone had a latte ready, as per usual. He glanced at his watch. If he was correct, which he always was, Wade should walk in right about now.
Unsurprisingly, the front floor flew open, and in trudged Wade, carrying a bag full of what Stone presumed to be food. After placing the bag down and taking his coat off, Wade smiled, walking up to Stone.
He placed his hands on Stone’s waist, pulling him closer, and greeted him with a gentle kiss.
Stone hummed appreciatively, running an attentive hand through Wade’s surprisingly soft hair.
For whatever reason, Stone decided that the latte took priority over anything else, and turned away, picking up the cup.
Meanwhile, Wade was preoccupied emptying containers of food out of the bag. “I thought I’d pick up some food on the way home, to save us from having to cook. I hope you like risotto. It sounded fancy so I assumed you’d enjoy it-“
Wade turned around, bashing into the unassuming Stone, who had been standing a bit too close, far too eager to give his boyfriend his latte.
The sudden bump made Stone stumble back a bit, the latte slipping out of his hands.
Before he could even attempt to catch the cup, he heard it shattering against the hardwood floors. His hands were covered in boiling coffee, a fact he was barely able to acknowledge as his mind wandered elsewhere.
“Doctor, your latte.” Stone spoke mindlessly, entering the room with a vacant stare.
He wasn’t entirely sure of the reason why, but he hadn’t felt quite right that day. He had constantly been needing to sit down or lean against something to stay steady, and his hands just wouldn’t stop trembling. He tried his best to ignore it; his blood sugar was probably just low. Nothing a few coffees couldn’t fix.
The doctor gestured for him to bring it over. With only slight hesitance, Stone made his way over to the desk. When he was about to hand the cup to Robotnik, he paused, staring at it blankly.
What was he doing again?
Before he knew it, the paper cup had slipped out of his grasp, and there was coffee all over the floor, as well as on his trousers and hands.
It suddenly occurred to him what had just happened, and he looked over at his boss’s face, studying his expression. Anger. With a hint of dumbfoundedness. Stone prepared himself to be yelled at, screwing his eyes shut.
A minute passed, and when there was still no sign of a scolding, the agent hesitantly squinted. Robotnik seemingly hadn’t moved an inch, his awed expression still present.
“Doctor?” Agent Stone asked, concern evident in his tone.
This seemingly snapped Robotnik out of it, and he slowly stood up. “What the hell’s the matter with you?”
“Apologies, sir, I’m just tired.” Stone mumbled, taking a small step back.
To his surprise, the doctor grabbed his hands, staring down at them with a scowl, and wiping them with his sleeve. “Imbecile. I know I like my lattes hot, but Jesus. You’ve got burns all over you now.”
“Does anaemia run in your family, perchance? Or are you just incredibly unhealthy?” Robotnik asked, digging through his desk drawers and pulling out a medkit.
Stone watched with bated breath as his boss lathered a generous amount of vaseline on his hands. It was painful, but for whatever reason, he couldn’t quite focus on the pain. All he could do was stare at Robotnik in silent awe.
The doctor cautiously wrapped a bandage around his agent’s hand, before sitting back down. “Go and make me another latte. Don’t spill this one.”
Stone nodded, turning to leave, until he was promptly summoned back. “Stone?”
“Doctor?” The agent said, curious.
With a small sigh, Robotnik looked back at his computer screen. “Don’t harm yourself any more. I can hardly bear to watch it. You’re no use to me if you’re covered in injuries. And, for the record, get some iron supplements.”
It suddenly occurred to Stone that Wade was speaking to him. Blinking owlishly, Stone realised he was crying.
Why was he crying?
Before any more irrational thoughts could cloud his mind, Stone took a deep breath. A few months ago, had this happened, he would’ve been sobbing in his boyfriend’s arms.
But, Wade had taught him some self calming exercises, most of which he got from Maddie.
Stone went to wipe his eyes, but was stopped by Wade suddenly grabbing his wrists. “Babe, don’t touch your eyes! Your hands are covered in coffee.”
The next few minutes felt like a strange dream. Stone wasn’t quite with it.
He vaguely cooperated when Wade led him to the sink and held his hands under cold water, still in the process of trying to steady himself, as well as his emotions.
Before he knew it, Wade, after a quick Google search, had covered Stone’s hands in Vaseline and put plasters over the especially painful looking areas. He apologetically explained that he didn’t have any bandages, to which Stone responded with an absent minded hum.
The two of them stood there for a while, Wade patiently waiting for his boyfriend to ground himself.
Eventually, Stone hummed, giving a small nod, which was all the confirmation Wade needed.
They headed up to their bedroom, and after Wade changed out of his uniform, they cuddled up together in bed.
Wade found his hands absentmindedly running through his boyfriend’s hair, relishing in the delightful spikiness of it in its unstyled state.
They stayed like that for a long time, until Wade eventually spoke in a whisper. “How are you feeling?”
“I’m okay.” Stone answered, smiling reassuringly at his boyfriend. “I’m sorry for…whatever that was. It just gave me some fond memories that made me sad.”
“It’s okay.” Wade kissed Stone’s forehead, pulling him closer. “Are you hungry? The foods probably cold by now, but I could heat it up.”
Stone nodded, and Wade immediately jumped up and left the room, far too enthusiastic about risotto.