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thump, thump, thump, went the music being boosted by a thaumaturgic spell, vibrating the walls like it was trying to escape the ballroom. the occupants danced as though in a trance, a sea of sweat and hair and skimpy costumes almost as loud as the beat.
thump, thump, thump. rubin wanted to go home.
his stomach was a tight knot, pulsating with the beat of the music. this... scene was not made for him, the smell of sweat and drugs and alcohol giving him goosebumps. his brain was so filled with lights and sounds and touch he could barely think, his neurons screaming with every new partygoer knocking into him.
rubin was only able to think after he'd shimmied his way into a more subdued room, the candles enchanted to be a moody purple and couples strewn about the furniture. being the only single person in the room was awkward, but preferable to the sensory nightmare that was the main room. he took a breath (sex, lube, and dusty furniture invaded his nostrils) and tried to relax (thump, thump, thump, screamed the distant music, only overpowered by the heady sighs of pleasure). this... this was not the place for him to be.
back to the corridors littered with guests, then. maybe some fresh air would do him good. it should certainly be better than inside, even if it was freezing out there. he felt himself relax at the thought of some peace. he could have sworn vehk said he'd be here, but he hadn't seen him at all. with the size of the party it wasn't surprising, but he had hoped...
vehk probably lied about going anyway. he was infuriating at times. most of the time, actually, but rubin usually could see through the tiefling's deceit. almost wistfully, he wondered what his lab partner was doing instead. probably... probably doing something illegal, like stealing or vandalism. definitely not working on their assignment.
rubin hurried into the courtyard as fast as he could politely walk, nearly breaking into a jog when he spotted an empty pagoda far off into the garden. his eyes were laser-focused on the generous bench inside, only dimly lit by a single candle.
he trotted across the grass and into the pagoda, immediately sprawling out onto the wooden bench. he heaved a sigh of relief. finally, he had some space to himself. he closed his eyes, letting the sounds of the garden relax him. he could still hear the sounds of the party, drunken yells and smashed bottles echoing across the lawn, but it felt distant. like he was out on the ocean, looking at the shore. he listened to the sound of his own breathing.
rubin felt something touch his leg.
he jumped, pulling his leg away from whatever made contact, but it was still grabbing him and whatever it was had teeth or claws or something and it growled, long and deep and pulled itself out of the darkness. it had horns, long and purple and golden eyes and–
"vehk?" rubin gasped, his thrashing paused. then he actually looked at the other man. "...vehk. wow, um."
vehk blinked at him, eyes lidded. his slender frame was fully on display, his clothing skimpier than rubin imagined he's ever wear. not that he'd imagined vehk wearing anything like this. rubin stared at the floor, face reddening.
"hey! s'rubin!" vehk slurred. "you're fucking great, rubin. only guy to wear- to wear normal clothes to a hallow's eve party. did you know that you're in normal people clothes?"
oh, gods. was he drunk? he was drunk. he was drunk and- vehk's entire weight suddenly landed in his lap. rubin froze. he'd never had anyone on his lap, let alone his lab partner. he was lighter than he looked, too, though rubin could see the subtle ripple of muscles in his thighs. the tiefling played with the hem of rubin's collar.
god, vehk was devastating in that outfit. he was barely wearing anything, really, just a star-themed lingerie set and a choker, wrapped in a dainty sheer robe. he almost looked angelic, something that rubin knew vehk had picked for the irony. his manicured nails pressed into rubin's throat clumsily.
"so fucking- so smart and stuff. and you're so boring and normal," vehk sighed, "not like me."
"vehk," rubin tried. his hands hovered over vehk's hips, careful not to touch him. "you're very drunk right now."
"and? alcohol is cool, man. i'm having fun."
"vehk, you were under a bench."
"was having fun," vehk repeats. "having fun by myself. everyone in there fucking sucks."
the tiefling buries his face into rubin's shoulder, and very audibly sniffs him. rubin's face turns a nuclear shade of red.
"you smell nice," vehk says, uncharacteristically softly. he leans on rubin with his whole body weight, humming thoughtfully into his shoulder. "you look nice too."
"i thought my clothes were normal and boring."
a snort. "they are. it's cute. it's really cute how normal you are."
rubin pauses, unsure of what to say. vehk is a whirlwind of a man, but he'd be lying if he said he didn't like it.
"do you think i'm cute, rubin?" vehk continues, pulling away from his shoulder. loose strands od his jet black hair cover his face. the lamplight plays on his purple skin, making him look like an incubus. rubin, for his part, splutters and avoids eye contact.
"well– the outfit– and your makeup, it's–" rubin can't tell whether to laugh or scream. his face must be betraying him, because vehk laughs and boops his nose.
"take me to yours tonight."
the words hang in the air. rubin prays to any god listening for strength as he looks vehk in the eye.
"okay," rubin says. "okay."
———
the walk to his apartment is short and blissfully sweet. rubin has to help vehk over the cobblestone roads, and vehk's hands keep wandering downwards, but they manage to make it in one piece.
rubin bursts into his modest apartment, the drunken tiefling spilling from his hands onto the hardwood floor. with a jolt, vehk scrambles mostly upright. he blinks around the darkened apartment and lets out a huff of laughter.
"woah," he says, words still slurred. "your place is so tidy. it's so normal, pooby."
"what does that even mean?" rubin snaps. "you keep saying that! why do you keep calling me normal like that?"
vehk's head whips around, and for a moment rubin feels a pang of guilt. he looks... hurt, and he's already so vulnerable crumpled up on the floor in his barely-there outfit... rubin has to look away, lips thinning into an irritated line.
"m'sorry," vehk warbles. his voice is much softer now. "you're just, like, really safe, you know? you're just a normal and good person and you're hot and not fucking- fucking crazy like everyone else is."
rubin scoffs softly. "like you are," he says, his lips twitching into a smile.
"yeah," vehk says, and rubin can hear the smile in his voice. there's the noise of him clumsily getting up onto his feet, and then he's pressed against rubin's chest, pulling his head by the chin to look at him. "i'm crazy. i really like you, you know?"
"i think you really like everyone right now," rubin smiles at him politely and tries to pretend those words don't affect him in the slightest. "and i also think you need to go to sleep."
vehk pulls a face that makes rubin laugh out loud, and he holds vehk by the waist and pulls him towards his bedroom which makes vehk significantly happier. he practically purrs as he clings to the human, kicking off his heels as he walks.
rubin swings vehk around and down into bed, pulling the duvet over him. he doesn't let himself stare at the tiefling, his arms strewn over his head and yellow-gold eyes sparkling beautifully in the dim light, and instead busies himself with looking for pyjamas for the both of him. he doesn't let himself think about the strange posessive twist in his chest, about vehk's shoulders exposed by the loose-fitting sleep shirt. he throws vehk's pyjamas on the bed as he turns andchanges quickly.
a wolf-whistle painfully reminds him that vehk can see perfectly well in the dark. he tenses, and takes small mercy in the fact that vehk can't see how red his face is. he hears rustling, and then the soft thump of skimpy clothes on the floor.
"ready," vehk says, voice soft and muffled. rubin turns and finds his horns peeking up above the duvet and he huffs amusedly to himself.
"do you want me to stay in here?" rubin asks.
vehk flips the covers down and levels him with his best glare. "are you st- silly?"
rubin tips his head and laughs. "am i silly? are you being nice to me right now?"
"maybe," he says sullenly. he shuffles across the bed to make room for rubin, patting the space in invitation. "is it working?"
"maybe." rubin echoes. he slides into bed next to vehk, who wriggles happily and wraps his limbs around him.
"mmnh," vehk says intelligently. he squeezes. "warm."
it's not long before vehk falls asleep, drooling on rubin's shoulder. rubin is hyper-aware of every movement, every miniscule noise vehk makes. he can't stop his thoughts from running wildly- does vehk actually like him, or is he just drunk and horny? what's going to happen in the morning? should he cook vehk breakfast? most importantly, how will he look vehk in the eye after this?
he stares at the ceiling wide-awake for what feels like an age, his mind constantly going back to the feeling of vehk pressed against. eventually, sleep takes him, dreamless and peaceful.
---
vehk wakes in another man's bed with a pounding headache.
this is normal for a weekend. what isn't normal is and the fact that he's clothed and not sore in the slightest. his brain is alert despite the awful throb of a hangover. he reaches a hand out of the covers and claws himself upright, clutching his head with his free hand.
the smell of bacon reminds him that he's ravenous, and the sizzling of a pan draws him out of bed and through the apartment in search of the kitchen. it's a tidy place. everything is carefully organised and clean. would drunk him really want to bang someone who has a colour-coded calendar in their hallway?
when he sees last night's paramour his insides lurch.
"weeping gods." vehk croaks, eyes wide in horror.
rubin looks up from his stove and smiles at vehk. there's something smug in his expression that makes vehk want to eat his own hands. his face flushes a deep purple.
"good morning vehk," rubin croons, voice dripping with honey. "how are you?"
vehk meets the question with stunned silence.
"you're not too hungover, right?" rubin asks. his eyes are squinting in glee. vehk never knew the man was capable of that. "i take it you don't remember last night, then."
"tell me we didn't." vehk says, tone deadly serious. rubin falters a little, face turning red. he couldn't tell if it was shame or embarrassment.
"oh. um, no. no. sorry, i should have said. we didn't do anything." rubin's eyes turn downward, suddenly focused on breakfast. "i know you don't... you know. that you wouldn't want to."
was he... upset that vehk didn't want to sleep with him? some unidentified feeling writhed in vehk's stomach. he folded his arms over his chest, squeezing himself.
"um. cool, i guess. not that i would have minded- i mean-" vehk huffed out a defensive sigh. "I wasn't, uh, mad at you."
"oh?" rubin looked up. his irises were a very pretty colour. flecks of greenish-brown danced with something vehk was afraid to examine.
"it's fine. it's cool. i'll-” he half-turns to leave, but his stomach gurgles loudly.
"hey, no, it's cool. nothing happened. you didn't say anything embarrassing. you wanted to come home with me and i was worried so i um, i helped you get here. we- we cuddled but you fell asleep like immediately."
it was like rubin could read his mind before he was even aware of it. vehk shot rubin a grateful look, and sidled closer. he leaned over the pan and inhaled, shoulder bumping the human.
"bacon and eggs on toast okay?" rubin's voice hovered somewhere above his ear.
"ugh, i could kiss you."
there was a silent pause.
"uh. i meant- i didn't-” vehk blurted, but a hand on his shoulder quietened him.
"i got it, it's okay. help me serve breakfast?"
the pair busied themselves with helping themselves to rubin's cooking. they plated it in comfortable silence, making their way to the modest dining table and sitting opposite each other. rubin was smiling when he tucked in, eyes twinkling as he watched vehk follow his lead.
vehk realised with a flush of embarrassment that rubin was just easy to be around. he liked him. his embarrassment only intensified when he caught himself staring at rubin sucking grease off his fingers, eyes closed as he savoured the taste. a strange agitation bubbled up in vehk's throat.
he distracted himself by eating his meal as fast as possible. it seemed to help when he didn't look at the other man and ignored his pleased noises at his own cooking. vehk was shifting in his seat uncomfortably, brow furrowing deeper as the... irritation? swelled up. why was he annoyed? was it the eggs? the sound of rubin eating?
"vehk?"
the tiefling jumped a mile. his fork clattered on his plate. his eyes snapped up to rubin, who was now staring with a mild concern.
"you okay?" rubin asked. "you just look a little lost."
"uh," vehk said intelligently. anxiety wrung his stomach. "yeah. no. i'm okay."
"are you sure?" the human frowned, his gentle brown eyes catching the light beautifully. vehk felt the urge to run overtake his sympathetic nervous system.
"i'm cool. um, i just-" vehk's mind raced for a suitable lie. "i'm thinking about class."
"oh!" rubin visibly relaxed. "well, you can always... you can always come over, if you want. we can help each other with our assignments."
gods, why was this man so nice? vehk's face felt like it was about to combust. his voice came out sightly strangled, "come over. right."
there was a beat before rubin spoke. "uh... yes? is that too much?"
"no! no, no, it's just, uh, i thought you thought i was an asshole, to be honest. i thought you didn't like me but that's probably just been, like, projection, i guess?" vehk's hands gesticulated nervously as he talked, avoiding catching rubin's eye like the plague. "i dunno, you've always been- i mean, i don't know why i even talked to you last night, you're way too- ugh. ugh, nevermind. i need to leave."
the longer rubin stayed silent, the morehis agitation raged in his body like a hurricane. vehk wrenched his gaze to the human's face.
rubin's eyebrows had nearly disappeared into his hairline. his mouth was open slightly, and behind his eyes danced something that vehk didn't want to understand. the silence felt like a glass on the edge of a table; so close to tipping into disaster.
rubin broke the silence with a soft wheeze, and the tension in vehk snapped.
he bolted for the door, pure animalistic instinct scrabbled at the doorknob as he fled the suddenly too-small apartment.
it wasn't until he found himself standing outside his dorm, in rubin's pyjamas, that his brain caught up to his idiot body.
what the actual fuck?
he would never be able to speak to rubin again after this.