Work Text:
It had taken them a long time to get to this point.
Adam swept his finger through a pile of bubbles floating on the surface of the bath water, rubbing them between his fingers until they had all popped. If you had told him a few years ago, even as recently as a year ago, that he would be taking baths semi-regularly he would have laughed - even the thought of it would have had him on edge. After the bathroom, the thought of being in a bathtub at all had been unthinkable, the feeling of water on his skin enough to have his heart doing double-time, his flight instincts kicking in.
Adam had learned to get used to surprising himself, though.
“Is the temperature alright?” Lawrence murmured against his ear, and he hummed as he relaxed back against the man’s chest, the water rising up to his mid chest as he did. The warmth of the water- as well as Lawrence’s body heat- was radiating through him, loosening and easing the usual ache in his shoulder into a mild discomfort.
“Mmhm.” He stirred the water again with a finger, and then picked up his husband’s hand with his own, lacing their fingers together.
Lawrence had pulled out all the stops when it came to their joint baths- candles, bath salts, the whole nine yards. Adam had thought he was insane, the first time that they had gone shopping for things- he hadn’t had a bath since he was a child, before Jigsaw got involved, and his showers had always been brief and purpose-driven, so watching Lawrence pile a basket high with various nice-smelling things had been surreal to say the least. Still though, Adam wasn’t above admitting that he had been wrong. Call him a convert- Lawrence was right, yada yada yada. He usually was, anyway.
The scent choice of the day had been some kind of citrus blend- it smelled fresh and clean, and Adam could feel himself relaxing more and more by the second. He turned their joined hands over, watching his wedding ring glint in the dim candlelight.
“I love you.”
He felt Lawrence’s lips against his hair, lingering there for a moment, the words muffled by his skull. “I love you too.”
Adam smiled softly to himself. Since the wedding, the ring had become a constant in his life, a plain, gold reminder that he was here, that he was alive . That Lawrence had chosen him, had kept choosing him and would keep choosing him. He could feel Lawrence’s own ring pressing into his palm, warmed by the bathwater.
He felt Lawrence shift, tilting his head back to rest his temple against Lawrence’s chin and look up at him. From this angle, he could see the curve of his lip, his eyelashes. He reached up, finger brushing against the man’s cheek.
“What are you thinking about?”
Lawrence turned his head to kiss Adam’s fingertip. “It’s not very romantic, I’m afraid.”
Adam grinned. “Lay it on me.”
“I think we forgot to take the trash out.”
Adam’s answering snort echoed against the walls of the bathroom, and he felt Lawrence’s hand steading him from slipping down into the water as he dissolved into a fit of giggles. He felt so full of affection for the man that he could burst from it, could feel it pressing against his ribs from the inside and robbing him of his breath as he struggled to control his laughter.
“I’ll take it out after this, don’t worry.”
Lawrence’s smile was ridiculously fond, and Adam closed his eyes as he felt the man kiss his forehead gently. The water was warm, and Adam could feel himself starting to drift a little, relaxed and content, Lawrence’s hand rubbing circled on his hip bone. He groaned softly.
“Stop, m’gonna fall asleep.”
He felt the man’s laugh, the sound of it droned out by his own yawn. “Well you didn’t get much sleep last night.”
“I’ll be like a raisin if I fall asleep here, man.”
“A cute raisin.”
Adam rolled his eyes, and forced himself to sit up, mourning the loss of Lawrence’s skin against his as he did. He didn’t have to mourn for long though, as he felt Lawrence sit up to wrap his arms around him again.
“Missed me too much?”
“Something like that.” Lawrence dropped a kiss on his shoulder, resting his chin there. “Do you want me to wash your hair?”
Adam thought about it, and then nodded. “Yeah, please.”
Lawrence nodded, scootching Adam forwards a little so that he could lean back again, smoothing the hair back off his forehead with gentle fingers, pressing another kiss to his forehead before reaching down to scoop up some water. Adam closed his eyes- this was familiar, Lawrence had been washing his hair in the bath for him sometimes since they had first moved in together after the trap, since Adam had admitted that his aversion to bathrooms had him going too long without showers, unable to even step into a bathtub. He exhaled slowly, feeling the trickle of water on his scalp as Lawrence started to wash his hair. He was methodical about it, and thorough- Adam almost felt like he was getting a scalp massage, which didn’t help matters when he was already so close to falling asleep.
By the time Lawrence had rinsed his hair he was almost dead to the world, and it felt like seconds had passed before Lawrence was gently shaking him awake, pressing kisses into his wet hair.
He yawned again, and then let Lawrence sit him up. The water had cooled a little, but wasn’t cold yet- warmth bloomed in his chest at the thought of Lawrence letting him sleep as long as he could, without letting Adam wake up in cold water. Always so thoughtful and considerate, Adam could barely stand it sometimes.
“How long was I out?”
Lawrence hummed softly. “Fifteen, maybe twenty minutes?”
“And you were what, watching me sleep? Creepy old man.” He grinned as he said it though, and turned to kiss the man soundly. “You’re sweet.”
He got up on his knees to reach for a towel, drying his hair a little to stop the water from running down his neck, before starting to get out. He still hated the feeling of the water draining around him, and Lawrence would need help getting out anyway, so it worked better this way. Well- Lawrence didn’t need any help, there were handrails installed for that very reason, but Adam wanted to help. He liked making things easier for him, where he could.
He pulled the plug, watching as the water swirled down the drain for a moment before turning his attention to his husband, who was watching him with a soft expression.
“What?” Lawrence’s eyes scanned his face, and Adam felt himself flush a little. “What are you looking at?”
“Nothing, just…” Lawrence took his hand, tugging Adam forward until he could press a kiss to his knuckles, his lips warm and dry against Adam’s skin. “I’m really proud of you.”
“It’s just a bath.” Adam could feel his ears reddening- he always buckled under the weight of Lawrence’s more earnest moments. He couldn’t help the knee-jerk reaction that the man was giving him too much credit.
“We both know that’s not true.”
Adam rolled his eyes, but conceded the point. It was true, after all.
“What were you thinking for dinner?” He helped Lawrence up, slinging an arm over his shoulder and helping him to balance as he stood up, sitting on the side of the tub. “I can’t remember if we left anything out.”
Lawrence swung his legs over, grabbing a towel and starting to dry himself off as Adam did the same. This was almost Adam’s favourite part- the simple domesticity of it, the ease of movement in his shoulder for a small while. He watched as Lawrence bent over to dry his legs, his hair falling down in wet curls from where he had seemingly washed his own hair. He looked gorgeous like this, and it was easy to lose track of time looking at him. Adam almost startled when he looked up at him, breaking him out of his stare and giving him a look.
He winked at him, and then finished drying himself, wiggling into some boxers before going to grab Lawrence’s prosthetic. “Want me to put it on for you?”
Lawrence hummed, and Adam knelt to the floor, pulling it on easily and then starting to secure it. He could see Lawrence’s hands out of the corner of his eye, could see him fiddling with his wedding ring as he waited for Adam to finish. He smiled, and then pressed a kiss to his knee before standing again.
“I think there’s chicken out, if you want that.” Lawrence wrinkled his nose, making Adam laugh softly. “Yeah, me neither.”
“We could try that new Indian restaurant you wanted to go to? I think they do delivery.”
Adam groaned appreciatively. “I’m so glad I married you.”
Lawrence pulled on his underwear, leaning down to start blowing out the various candles he had lit. “Will you call, then?”
Adam went to get his phone, pulling up the number he had saved- they had made a habit of finding new places to go together, trying new things. Lawrence said it would keep them young, and Adam had rolled his eyes at him, but there was something endearing about the purposefulness of it, the intentionality of seeking out new restaurants, hotels, movies to see, art galleries. Adam loved it.
“Do you want a menu, or will I get your usual order?”
Lawrence’s look was withering. “You make me sound boring.”
“I didn’t say anything! I mean hey, if it ain’t broke.”
He grinned when Lawrence’s expression softened, his face flushing. “Same as usual, then.”
Adam nodded, dialling the number and pressing it to his ear. Lawrence grabbed his cane and tossed the towels into the tub, to be wiped down later, and rested his hand against the small of Adam’s back as he passed, kissing the top of his head and then going out to their kitchen. Adam could hear him opening cupboards, the clatter of plates and glasses. It was incredible, the amount of happiness the sound heard him- teenage him would have thought he was a total fucking loser. Still though, he smiled as the call connected.
“Hello, I’d like to place an order-”