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The sun has barely risen when Piers’ dinky little alarm clock starts blaring.
Piers groans into his pillow, blindly reaching out to try and switch it off. After multiple failed attempts, he finally acquiesces and lifts his head off his pillow, pointedly jabbing at the tiny “off” button now that he has a good look at it. He shifts into a sitting position and rubs his eyes, trying to remember why the hell he would have set an alarm to go off at bloody 7 am when-
Oh. Right. Emmet’s going home today.
Piers glances over, and sure enough Emmet is sleeping right next to him, curled up on his side facing the wall, buried in Piers’ blankets. They’ve been doing the long distance thing for years now; calls and texts and short visits whenever both of their schedules worked out. Despite it happening plenty of times though, Piers never gets used to waking up to someone else in his bed.
Piers wistfully contemplates how nice it would be to just lay back down, wrap his arms around Emmet and drift back to sleep until noon, but he knows that missing Emmet’s flight would throw both of their schedules into complete disarray. They are busy adults with busy lives after all, as unfortunate as that is.
With a sigh, Piers gives Emmet’s shoulder a few good shakes until he begins to stir. Emmet quickly sits up, stretches his arms into the air with a grunt, and then looks at Piers with his signature, chipper smile. “Good morning.”
“Morning.” Piers mumbles. “ ‘ve no idea how you’ve got this much energy so early.”
Emmet quickly peeks over at the tiny digital clock on the nightstand. “Ah. It’s not that early. This is around when I’d usually wake up for work.” He scoots closer and wraps his arms around Piers’ skinny waist. “I’ve only been sleeping in the past few days since I am with you. Your laziness has infected me.”
Piers scoffs. “Oh, please.”
“Laaaaaazzzzzyyyyy.” Emmet puts extra effort into dragging out the word, nuzzling his face into the back of Piers’ shoulder. Piers leans back into him, and a quiet settles over the room. Nothing but the gentle sound of breathing and the warmth of togetherness.
Eventually, Emmet sighs. “Well. We do not want to be late.” He quickly hops out of bed and zooms towards the door. “I am showering first.”
Emmet is already out of the room before Piers has a chance to respond. Piers simply rolls his eyes and flops back down onto the bed. At least now he can get a couple extra minutes of sleep in.
-
Of course, it doesn’t last long. Soon enough Emmet comes back and shakes Piers awake (dripping plenty of water droplets on him in the process) and Piers is forced to get up and actually start getting ready for their short trip to the airport.
Quickly, both of them are clean and dressed, and every room has been thoroughly scoured for any of Emmet’s stray belongings. They stroll out of the apartment and onto the empty streets of Spikemuth right on schedule, Emmet pulling along his rolling suitcase, and his backpack lazily hanging off Piers’ shoulder (Along with Piers ignoring Emmet’s insistence that he can carry both bags.)
They always opt for walking to Hammerlocke rather than taking a taxi, and the trips are almost always silent, one last chance to simply savor each other’s presence before having to split off again. That’s why It surprises Piers when Emmet speaks up.
“I would like to be together more.”
Piers hums in agreement. “Me too.”
Emmet is quiet for a moment, expression focused like he’s trying to solve a puzzle. He opens and closes his mouth a few times before finally asking, “Have you thought of coming to Nimbasa?”
“For next time? Yeah, we can do that. I’d need to-“
“To stay.”
It takes a few moments for what Emmet’s said to sink in. Piers eventually turns to look at him. “To stay?”
Emmet meets his gaze, smiling reassuringly. “It’s only a thought.” As soon as he’s finished saying it, he’s back to looking straight ahead. “You should watch where you are going.”
Piers takes Emmet’s advice, turning his attention back to the road in front of them. A short swath of silence overtakes the conversation, the only sound being their steps underneath them.
A smirk finally finds its way to Piers’ face. “Have you ever thought of staying in Spikemuth?”
Emmet snorts. “No.”
Piers makes a similar noise. “Of course you haven’t. Can’t imagine you living anywhere except Nimbasa. Suits you too well.”
“I am Emmet. I am a subway boss. I cannot be away for too long.” He pauses, searching for the words. “It is my home. Where I belong.”
“Mm.” Piers hums. He glances around at the buildings on either side of them. They look so different in the early morning without the gaudy neon lights illuminating the streets. Ever since Marnie took over the gym leader title, traction in Spikemuth had been steadily growing, leading to the town getting some much needed TLC. Even though Piers can still tell the buildings are old and ugly and run down, they look leagues better than they ever did when he was gym leader; and he feels he can look at the town with new pride, even if it’s mostly directed towards Marnie for making it happen.
“Things have been getting better around here, but it’s not where it needs to be yet. I can’t just leave.” Piers shrugs. “Also, I couldn’t ever live so far from Marn. I’d waste every day bein’ worried sick about her.”
Emmet nods. “I understand. I wouldn’t want to be far from my family.”
“And, yknow.” Piers smirks. “It’s my home too. Where I belong.”
“Copycat.” Emmet giggles. “I understand, though. You will not leave Spikemuth. I will not leave Nimbasa. You will not leave Marnie. I will not leave Ingo.”
Piers clicks his tongue. “Seems like these little visits are really our only option, then. For now, at least.”
Emmet sighs. “Yes. We will keep doing this.” He sharply raises a finger in the air, as if to make an important point. “It’s not as if I don’t enjoy coming here, though. I like to travel!”
“You’d rather be doing it by train.”
“Yes.” Emmet’s voice is suddenly filled with intense conviction, and it makes Piers chuckle.
The rest of the journey is spent in a comfortable silence. They move forward, hard soled shoes click-clacking against the brick lined street in an out of sync song.
-
“You got it all?” Piers slips Emmet’s bag off his shoulder and holds it out for him by the strap. They’re standing at the mouth of a long hallway in the airport, the one that leads towards the ticket counter and eventually Emmet’s flight home. It was tradition for them to split off here, no point in Piers going any further when he’d just have to walk back.
“I do. Yes. Thank you.” Emmet takes the backpack and quickly throws it on. He already looked nerdy in his button up shirt and cargo shorts, but with the backpack on and suitcase at his side, he’s practically the spitting image of a tacky tourist. What a dork. Piers smiles at him.
Emmet looks out to the rest of the room, scanning left and right before confidently nodding. His smile widens, and he leans down slightly towards Piers in a silent request.
Piers’ eyebrows jump. It was rare for Emmet to ask for something like that out in public. “You sure?”
Emmet nods again. “I am Emmet. I am sure. There are not many people around and they are not paying attention.”
Piers glances around. Sure enough, there’s only a handful of people around, and they’re all moving to and fro or impatiently tapping at their phones, caught up in their own business. He huffs out a small laugh. “Alright, Alright. Fine.” He steps forward, and kisses him.
Piers can feel Emmet’s smile grow against his lips, and he wants to cringe at the way it makes his heart flutter like some lovesick teenager. Emmet gently snakes his arms around Piers’ waist, pulling him close, and Piers finds himself returning the favor. After a few seconds, the kiss breaks and Emmet buries his face in Piers’ shoulder.
They stand there embracing, both hesitant to let go. Piers sighs, and lifts his head to whisper in Emmet's ear.
“I love ya, Em.”
At that, Emmet’s hold around Piers tightens, so much it almost hurts. Something somber washes over them as they hold onto each other, a bittersweet desire bubbling just under the surface that neither of them choose to voice.
“I love you too.” He speaks so quietly that Piers nearly misses it.
Emmet gives him one last squeeze before pulling away, any hesitance in his expression completely disappearing by the time Piers can see his face again, replaced by his familiar wide smile. “Well. It is time to return to my station.”
They say their last goodbyes, and Emmet turns and walks off down the long white hallway. Piers silently watches his back, listening to the sound of his shoes clicking against the hard tile, getting quieter and quieter until it’s gone and Emmet has disappeared from view. Piers’ can’t help but linger in place, just for a moment, before stuffing his hands in his pockets and turning back towards the entrance.
He moves forward, tilts his head up toward the ceiling, and mumbles under his breath.
“We’ll figure it out. Eventually.”