Work Text:
Kanmani is a damn good intern.
Really, she is. That statement might come off as a little arrogant– but she knows her worth. She’s a damn good intern, and she’s the only one who’s been able to work with Alhaitham, Scribe of the Akademiya. She had been the seventeenth appointed intern to him, sixteen of her predecessors being fired or quitting for one reason or another, and everyone expected her to fail. How could they not? She was easygoing, and despite her neat appearance, having her dark hair braided back and standard golden earrings dangling from her lobes to indicate her simplicity, she could always be seen present with a mischievous grin curling on her lips, and an exuberance that the other Akademiya scholars had long forgotten about. She in essence, seemed like everything that the cold Scribe would detest.
Tongues clicked and sighs were uttered. Some mourned her cheerfulness, saying that the poor girl would be a shell of herself after working a week with the difficult scribe. Others snickered, awaiting her humiliation and downfall.
Unfortunately for them, Kanmani isn’t really a quitter. And so, a week of being Alhaitham’s intern turned into weeks, then months.
(Admittedly, it had been a bit of a learning curve–and it had taken gentle advice from a blonde man and his talking suitcase in a tavern–but that’s a story for later.)
In the months that she’s worked with Alhaitham, she’s slowly seen him soften up to her. He doesn’t try and correct her to speak more formally anymore, and sometimes, she sees his lips twitch when she jokes. It’s progress, and she doesn’t really care, so long as she gets to keep working. She supposes it’s because she’s been able to handle all the challenges he’s thrown at her.
He’s like a formula, Kanmani quickly realized in her early days. She just had to plug in the right variables for him to be pleased with the output. Happy boss, happy life, or whatever the statement was.
Easy.
– [5] –
Alright, maybe she spoke a little too soon, because she’s not really sure what to do in this scenario.
Kanmani sees her boss from when she enters, and he’s sitting at his desk, as he usually does in the mornings. But, he’s not rifling through papers or reading, or doing…anything, really. He seems to be sitting, crossing his arms and staring intently. She follows his gaze, and sees nothing of real importance aside from a bookshelf, but she does wonder what the Tales of Yamuna have done to him to gather such an intense stare. She sighs, and bounds up to his desk.
“Hiya, boss.” She greets cheerfully, and sets down his coffee on his desk.
He doesn’t respond, as though he’s not realizing that she is there. In fact, his glare seems to be getting worse. The Tales of Yamuna should be on fire by now, with how crazily he’s glaring.
“Do we really, really hate that book for a reason?” She pipes up, after a few minutes of staring. Just to show allegiance, she glares at the book too.
That seems to shake him from whatever reverie he’s in, and he blinks at her for a minute, irritation coating his features. “What? No. Ah. You’re here. Go and file these. Orderly, please. Come straight back. Don’t go wandering off to pet a dog.” He orders, eyes staring straight into her soul.
Kanmani sighs, before sending him a salute and bounding off to file. There, her boss was back.
Unfortunately, her boss was not back.
He remains distracted for the entire day– the intern having to repeat her questions over and over to him. Kanmani is grouchy, exhausted, and has absolutely no mouth to brain filter at the end of the long day.
“Perhaps an early night in and a gentle round of verbal sparring with boss’ roommate would be good for tonight.” She suggests offhandedly, and expects her boss to hit her back with his usual retort of her being too casual around him.
Instead, to her surprise, he seems to melt, as though that’s the root of his problems.
He speaks. “Kaveh..is out.”
Ah.
“Oh? Where has Master Kaveh gone?” She hums. “Is he working on one of his projects?” Kanmani rather adores her boss’ roommate – the man has always been kind to her, and is always sympathetic to her trials and tribulations as Alhaitham’s intern.
Alhaitham nods. “Correct. To the desert. That fool, he has no reason being there. He’ll get eaten by foxes.” Her boss growls.
Oh.
Oh…
Kanmani understands.
Her stupid boss misses Kaveh. That’s why he’s been distant, distracted the entire day. Maybe if she was a more courageous woman, she’d smack him upside the head and tell him to stop being a stupid hilichurl and call his love. Maybe another day, but that’s not today.
“Uh!” She speaks, brushing strands of her hair out of her face. “I totally messed up one of the files. Be right back!” She would never, but she says it anyways, and sprints away, heading to hide between bookshelves, leaving her perplexed boss behind. When she’s out of sight, she pulls up her Terminal and shoots a quick message to Kaveh.
[Boss not feeling well. Might be sick.]
It’s a little underhanded, but desperate times call for desperate measures. Just as she sees the indicator that indicates him typing back, she turns off her Terminal, successfully avoiding and ignoring consequent texts and calls. It only takes a few minutes before she hears Alhaitham’s voice.
“Kaveh.” He says, and that’s her boss in a nutshell, no hi, or hello. There’s a moment of silence where she can practically hear Kaveh’s worried voice.
“What? No, I’m not sick. Sick of you, maybe.” Her boss responds, and Kanmani resists the urge to groan and bang her head against the bookshelf. It’s their foreplay, she has to remind herself.
They bicker for a few minutes, before their voices turn soft. Kanmani can’t hear exactly, but she can hear the gentle tone Kaveh adopts after their usual arguing has paused.
“I know.” Alhaitham responds quietly. “I just.. Come home soon.”
Aww. Kanmani has to bite down her fist so she doesn’t coo. It seems as though Kaveh responds with a similar sentiment. They exchange a few more words of loving, and Kanmani waits a few moments, before reappearing, smile on her face.
Her boss seems contented, almost relaxed, though his eyes narrow when they see her. For a brief moment, she’s stressed that he’d know what she’s done, but when he opens his mouth, it’s different.
“Did you fix your filing mistake?” He asks.
Kanmani sighs.
(The thank you text she gets from Kaveh later that night is worth it.)
– [4] –
“Ah! Master Kaveh! It’s good to see you.” She greets warmly, a few weeks later. The other man smiles at the sight of her, and they hug briefly.
“How was your trip to the desert? When did you get back?” She asks.
“Ah! Just two weeks ago. I’ve been holed up ever since, trying to work on another set of blueprints. As for the desert, it was hot.” Kaveh laughs and she snickers, shaking her head.
“What brings you here? Boss is out on his lunch break, if you were dropping by to see him.” She says, and wiggles her eyebrows knowingly.
“Ah.” Kaveh flushes, and Kanmani is pleased, teasing expression clearly on her features. “Actually, I’m here for a book. Or a file.”
“Ah! Well, as a Scribe Intern, I can help you look for it!” She chirps excitedly, leaning up on her toes. Kaveh seems to be even more nervous at that, as though he was somewhat expecting her to offer.
“Well.. I’d appreciate the help, if you just promise to not tell Alhaitham that I was here or what I asked for.”
Oooh.. What on earth could Kaveh be wanting to request so much that he avoids seeing his lover at his place of work? Despite her curiosity, Kanmani crosses her heart, solemn. “I’ll be an excellent secret keeper. What can I help you find?”
Kaveh seems to color in embarrassment. “Well.. something to help teach me cooking. Something aimed towards beginners, maybe. Maybe even a recipe for ideal circumstance?” He asks, eyeing her.
Ah.
This is far too adorable.
Kaveh wants to learn how to cook her boss’ favorite dish.
She winks to soothe the other, and disappears behind some bookshelves, returning moments later with a book and a set of scrolls.
“Here’s the set of recipes, see which one you like better. I’ve written my own notes on the side, from what I remember boss telling me about this dish.” She hums, and hands it over. “Also..” She glances over at her watch, mentally calculating. “You’re sure to run into him if you leave through the regular way. Head through the side exit– you should be free to go. Just return these to me after you’re done. I’m wishing you the best, senior! Cook well!” She chirps, and Kaveh’s instantaneously grateful expression makes her happy. He thanks her over and over as he rushes out the side exit, and she sighs, wondering when her job became centered around learning the Akademiya’s filing and scroll system, to taking care of her boss’ relationship from behind the scenes.
– [3] –
Two days.
Two days she had been gone, a mandated vacation. She had gone back home, had her fill of home cooked food, and had endured through the hours of ‘when are you going to get married?’ from her overenthusiastic mother. She was simultaneously homesick and annoyed by the heckling when she returned to work, setting down the rasam her mother had made for her boss on his desk, alongside his coffee.
“Hiya, boss. Did you miss me?” She asks, albeit a little glum. Who wants to return to work after the taste of freedom?
Her boss looks up at her, fingers pinching the bridge of his nose as though to ward off an oncoming headache. (A part of her supposed that she herself was the headache, though she fought viciously with Kaveh for that title at times.)
“No.” He answers, but she’s learned not to take his answers to heart. “Are you married?”
Kanmani groans. “Why does everyone keep asking me that?! You sound like my mother. No, I’m not married. Have you seen me leave work early on a date? I leave the office the same time as you! When do I have time to go see other people, huh?” She grouses angrily, snatching back the coffee she set on his desk, and drinking it.
He blinks at her, clearly unamused. After a moment, he sighs. “Am I to assume that you have no ability to decipher things of a romantic intention, then?”
She slumps into a chair. “What? No. I can help. What happened? Did you and Kaveh have a fight again?” She groans.
His eyes narrow at her, and she’s well aware that she’s treading on thin ice right now, but it seems that his need for answers wins out over her disrespect.
“What does it mean when someone cooks, and it’s not good? Does it mean they were trying to poison you? Or be unkind to you?” Alhaitham asks, and for a minute, she’s reminded that Celestia is fair. For all the genius in him, social interaction and comfort couldn’t so be easily ascertained.
“Um… I don’t think anyone cooks with the intention of wanting it to taste bad. Why, what happened?” Kanmani says, perplexed.
“Kaveh has been cooking. His banging and puttering around in the kitchen has kept me awake and has kept the house noisy. He tried to make a dish for me, but I wasn’t sure what it was. It was so vile, I couldn’t eat it. I asked him to kindly focus on his other strengths, as it’s clear cooking is not one of them.” Alhaitham says, matter of fact.
“You… told him that?” Kanmani asks, mouth going dry.
“Yes. And then afterwards, he got all angry and he hasn’t spoken to me. I do not see why he is angry. He is clearly talented in other aspects. Perhaps cooking is not for him.” Alhaitham asks, and almost tilts his head in confusion.
She sighs. Her boss was the densest blockhead she’s ever met. “Cooking may not be for him, that’s true, but, maybe he was trying to do something nice for you, and your reaction made him upset. No one likes to be told that they should give up when they’ve tried so hard.”
“Do I eat the meal? There were lumps of flour.” Alhaitham asks, almost incredulous.
She winces. How badly did Kaveh screw up the recipe? “Maybe as best as you can, just to be polite. Or you could ask to help him in the kitchen next time. I guess…you should at least appreciate his efforts, right?” Kanmani sighs.
“Ah.” Alhaitham says, nodding, and stands up. “That is true. With me in the kitchen, there will be no mistakes.”
“Wait!” She says, calling out after him. “I didn’t mean it like that–!”
It turns out that it doesn’t really matter, because the next day, her boss arrives, looking a little smug and sated. He does push a bento box over to her for lunch that day, Kanmani feasting on the meal cooked. It seems that all is well between Kaveh and Alhaitham once again, and for that, she’s willing to look the other way when it comes to the marks on her boss’ neck.
– [2] –
She’s forgetting something.
Something important.
It keeps nagging at her for the entire day, as she files, and skims through texts. She sits through her lunch break, tapping at her lips with a finger, trying to figure out what exactly she’s missing.
And then it hits her. With a gasp, her head snaps towards her boss, and her eyes widen.
“Your anniversary!” she gasps. “It’s yours and Master Kaveh’s anniversary! Did you forget?”
Alhaitham looks at her, eyes piercing. “Don’t be ridiculous.” He mutters. “I didn’t forget.”
“Oh.” Kanmani sighs in relief, deflating. “Happy anniversary, then. What do you two have planned?”
“Nothing.” Alhaitham grumbles. “We both have work to do. We’re far too busy to take time off for a day.” He says, as though he didn’t once take time off to take Kaveh to see a festival in a nearby village.
Over the months that she’s worked with her boss, she’s come to realize that sometimes, he has a tendency to obscure his true feelings towards a situation– and she can only gain an understanding that Kaveh himself was busy today, making it so they couldn’t celebrate their anniversary.
It’s really none of her business, really, but she does appreciate both of them. They, in an odd way, feel like protective older siblings sometimes. Like last week, when she got wasted in the Tavern, Alhaitham made sure she returned home (and consequently, she couldn’t stop apologizing when she saw her boss for the next few days). And how Kaveh always sends a bento box for her to eat as well when he does pack his lover lunch – she’s come to delight in his culinary creations. He’s gotten quite good.
So, it’s none of her business, but a little pang in her heart prevents her from letting the scenario go. She quietly takes the rest of the day off, and heads to her boss’ home. Using the key he gave her for emergencies is a little odd and slightly feels like a breach of trust, but she sighs. He could berate her later.
–
When Kaveh turns the key and pushes their door open, he gasps slightly. Cooked meal on the table, soft little string lights lit, quiet music playing.
“Did you do this?” Kaveh asks, surprised.
Alhaitham himself seems a bit surprised. “No, I–ah. Kanmani.” he sighs, understanding his meddling intern’s intentions. “That girl..”
“Is wonderful. Maybe a little too mischievous sometimes. But.. I can’t find myself to be mad.” Kaveh turns and twists, winding his arms around Alhaitham’s neck, wiggling up to gently brush a soft kiss to his lips. The stony face softens, and Alhaitham gently kisses him back, hands settling on his waist. “I’m sorry, darling. I know I had to work today. But we still have time celebrate our anniversary, don’t we?”
“We do.” Alhaitham murmurs in the dulcet tone that’s reserved only for him. With a smile, Kaveh takes his hand and tugs him towards their dining table.
– [1] –
Kaveh pants, sprawling out on his lover’s chest, glowing and sated. Alhaitham buries his face in Kaveh’s hair, hands swirling slow circles on Kaveh’s back.
“My.” Kaveh says, catching his breath. “Anniversary sex is damn good. Everyone was right.”
Alhaitham rumbles, a quiet laugh in his chest, and kisses his forehead. “Happy Anniversary.”
“And to you too.” Kaveh murmurs warmly. “Though I’m going to have a hard time walking tomorrow.” He shifts, as though getting ready to untangle himself from Alhaitham and get up.
“Where are you going?” His lover demands as he wraps his arms around him tightly, clingy and possessive, a side that no one but him gets to see. His face melts, and he gently cards Alhaitham’s hair back.
“I want water, and we never have it near us when we–” Kaveh blinks, catching sight of the two water bottles on the nightstand. He reaches for it, and sighs when he sees the winky face drawn on the bottle cap.
“Christ. If you ever fire your intern, I’m hiring her.” Kaveh mutters. He makes a mental note to ask Alhaitham to raise her salary, but all thoughts of her drain away as Alhaitham tugs him back for a soft kiss.
– fin .–