Work Text:
Putting Down Roots
The day had arrived and the morning was beautiful. The sun shone brightly, dissipating the morning chill with comfortable ease. It was absolutely perfect.
Tracey had been looking forward to this day for weeks, but his boyfriend had thrown things off just a bit. Gary had gone to bed early the night before and, while Tracey had worried his plans were about to be thrown off, it turned out that Gary had simply decided to catch up on sleep. It happened from time to time – not often enough for Tracey’s liking, but that was okay. Growth was growth.
Gary had slept in just enough to make Tracey nervous but had ultimately come downstairs well-rested and in a good mood. Silly and playful, and constantly stealing food from Tracey’s plate, he’d earned himself a retaliatory tickle attack and they’d been goofing off like teenagers ever since.
They were getting carried away and didn’t exactly have time for this, but they were alone and Gary was laughing a bit too much to kiss him properly. Everything felt right and warm and perfect and, oh he couldn’t wait for the rest of the day to get here.
There was a plan. It wasn’t a complicated plan, but there were a lot of details that needed sharing, and there was a small amount of travel, plus the pokemon needed some wrangling. It would be fine, everything would be just fine. It was nothing to be concerned about.
There was a walk and a picnic planned, complete with some wine and chocolate… and a ring. The best part was, his boyfriend was entirely unsuspecting.
Gary finally stopped laughing and Tracey took advantage of it to kiss him properly. Calmed from his giggle fit, he melted into it, sighing softly as parted his lips and let Tracey take charge for the moment.
The kiss softened as it always did with Tracey leading and Gary slowed down to match his pace becoming pliant beneath his touch.
The moment was too perfect. “Marry me,” Tracey whispered against his lips.
Gary froze and the words registered in Tracey’s brain.
Shit.
He wasn’t supposed to ask that until later this afternoon. Tracey slowly opened his eyes to find Gary staring at him, eyes wide, expression torn between wary and hopeful, with a glimmer of something warmer in his eyes.
“Are you serious?”
Gary’s voice was soft, the same softness that always made his tone difficult to read. Tracey was starting to think it was specific to moments of uncertainty between them. The nerves started to creep in at that thought. Was Gary not ready? He'd thought they were on the same page this time. It had been a couple of years since that conversation in Gary’s room, cuddled together in a cozy nest of blankets and pillows. Gary had said he was ready…
But Gary had that look in his eye, the one that always put Tracey at ease. Even though he wasn't exactly smiling, his gaze held love and trust and no small amount of amusement.
Maybe Tracey was thinking about this all the wrong way, panicking over how he had blurted it out when Gary was merely caught by surprise. Tracey decided to roll with it and forced himself to relax, laughing a bit to ease his nerves.
“Sorry…” he backtracked. “I had a whole thing planned and… I kinda just accidentally threw it out the window.”
“What was the plan?” Gary asked curiously.
“Do you want me to tell you, or…?” He hoped he hadn’t messed this up too bad, but at least Gary was going with it.
“We can still do it, if you want. Do you want my answer now or should I wait until you ask the way you wanted to?” The latter was added teasingly, with that ever-familiar smirk along with it.
Tracey couldn’t help the relieved smile that curved his lips at that. His boyfriend – fiance soon, hopefully – was so sweet and patient with his impulsivity. It set his nerves at ease and made him all the more certain that this was the right move. With that soft look in his eyes, Gary’s answer could only be one thing after all.
He could hardly wait.
He just had to hold it together a little longer.
“Later,” he answered, grinning like a fool.
Gary grinned in reply and leaned in to press a quick peck to his lips. “Sounds good,” he murmured. His grin softened back into that gentle smile that always made Tracey’s heart warm.
Unable to resist, Tracey reached out to cup his cheek and pulled him back in for another, this one lazy and languid. His eyes slid shut and the rest of the world slipped away as he lost himself in the feel of soft lips on his and fingers tangling gently in his hair.
“I thought you had plans for today,” Gary murmured between kisses after a few moments passed with neither willing to move away from the other.
“Plans with you,” Tracey reminded him. “Why? Getting impatient?”
Gary pulled back, grin back in place. “More curious about these plans.”
“Mmm,” Tracey hummed, nodding. “Impatient.” He grinned at Gary’s eye roll – his boyfriend didn’t even try to deny it. Not that Tracey would have believed him if he did. He knew him too well for that. “C'mon, let's finish breakfast so we can wrap up in the lab early.”
Gary glanced at the mostly-empty plates on the table and reached for his coffee mug, draining the rest of his drink in one go. “Okay, we can go to the lab now.”
Tracey gave a laugh and caught his arm before he could leave. “Since I made breakfast, you get to clean up.” He laughed again at the groan that followed the reminder and grinned at his boyfriend. “See you in the lab!” he called over his shoulder, scurrying out of the room and towards the lab, chuckling all the while.
… … …
“Where are we going?” Gary asked, as they turned down a dirt road that led into the woods a little away from his grandfather’s lab.
It was afternoon and the plans had changed slightly. Tracey had finished helping out in the lab quite a bit earlier, but Gary had been on a roll with the write-up he had been working on. Sitting still and typing was something he usually struggled to focus on, so Tracey was perfectly happy to give him some time to come to a natural stopping place. It just meant they got to have lunch before heading out.
They had been walking for several minutes now, having crossed to the far side of the ranch and through an old, rusted gate to a path that led to this road.
Tracey smiled at the curiosity in his voice and gave his hand a little squeeze. He opted not to answer the question outright. “Do you know what’s on this road?”
“There’s a house back here somewhere,” Gary replied. “It was my parents’ place when they first got married.”
Tracey nodded. That was where they were heading indeed. He wasn’t entirely sure how many of the details Gary knew but, if the professor was correct, it was surprisingly little. “What else do you know about it?”
Gary hesitated for a moment, pausing in the middle of the dirt road. “I know Gramps owns it these days, and I imagine he’s probably kept it up, but I haven’t even been in it since I was three.”
“He had it taken care of,” Tracey confirmed. He tried not to think too hard about the fact that Gary would have lived in this house before coming to live with the professor, in a time before memories. It made it all a little more sad than sweet. Not that the reason the house had been uninhabited for over two decades wasn’t sad – he just didn’t want to dwell on it. And he knew Gary didn’t either. He waited for Gary to continue walking beside him before pushing on. “Do you know why he kept it up?” he asked.
“Probably because it’s family property and he didn’t want anything to happen to it.”
There was an inflection Tracey didn’t often hear in his voice, one that really only came up when they were discussing family topics – especially when the topic was Gary’s parents. It sounded like a casual sort of indifference, but Tracey knew otherwise. There was a complicated web of emotions behind the tone, and what people mistook for indifference was a long-held acceptance of something Gary’d had to live with for the vast majority of his life.
“Something like that,” Tracey said. He smiled when he saw Gary’s curious glance out of the corner of his eye.
“You know the reason?”
This time Tracey heard uncertainty, a touch of hesitation. He gave his partner a reassuring smile and nodded. “He told me.” Gary’s eyes narrowed slightly and Tracey pushed on quickly, eager to explain before Gary figured it out himself. “He wanted it to be maintained for you, so that whenever you were ready to settle down and get married – or whatever – there would be a place for you in Pallet.”
Gary’s eyes widened and Tracey couldn’t help but smile. Ah, there was that spark of realization. Perfect timing.
“Tracey…”
They came to a break in the trees, and in that break was a long drive that stopped before a quaint little house at the edge of the forest. The yard was overrun with wildflowers and the porch sat at an angle, but the house looked to be in good shape. It was in good shape, Tracey knew already. The appliances were outdated and likely needed replacing, but the only thing actually wrong with the house was the front porch, which had several broken boards and had been taken over by a family of rattata over the winter.
“He told me that when I told him I wanted to take the next step with you,” Tracey explained. He pulled a key from his pocket and pressed it into Gary’s hand. “It’s yours to decide, but…”
“Our own place in Pallet,” Gary murmured. “Right by the lab, nothing to worry about,” he mused, staring at the key in his hand, a small smile spreading across his face as realization dawned on him. They’d had the conversation enough times to know that they were on the exact same page.
“Nothing has to change,” Tracey confirmed. He would still work in the lab and Gary would still travel as he pleased. They would still spend time with the professor and Delia, and do everything they already did, just in a space that was truly theirs.
Gary looked up at him with what must have been the most radiant smile Tracey had ever seen from him. He pulled Tracey in for a kiss, a gentle brush of lips, far softer than he would have expected from his passionate boyfriend. “Sounds good to me,” he whispered against Tracey’s lips, drawing a broad grin from the artist.
“Let’s go inside,” Tracey whispered back. Gary nodded wordlessly and reached for one of Tracey’s hands, grasping it tightly. “We can do something with the yard if you want,” Tracey pointed out as they made their way up the drive.
“Why?” Gary asked, peering around. “It’s a meadow, the pokemon will love it.”
“Good call.” He had been hoping he would say something to that effect. “We have to use the kitchen door for now, because the porch needs to be repaired,” he explained, leading Gary around the side of the house to a little set of steps leading to a wooden door.
Long grass and tall wildflowers brushed against their calves as they walked. By the time summer came, it would be a waist high rainbow of blooms. There were a few stepping stones here and there as they walked but the path was faint and only there because Tracey had made over the course of his numerous trips out here. A few pidgeys took flight from a patch of grass nearby while a pair of nidoran peered curiously from near the edge of the trees. They could hear a few spearows squawking in the trees nearby, but it was as quiet and peaceful as the rest of Pallet.
“There’s a few little things that need fixing inside,” Tracey continued, “but you’re leaving for Sayda in a week anyway. It’ll give me something to do while you’re having fun with Aerodactyl.”
“The lab won't keep you busy enough?”
Tracey shook his head. “I think you underestimate just how much time we spend together. There's a lot of free time when you're gone.”
They reached the door and Tracey fiddled with the key before giving the door a good shove to open. Gary raised his eyebrows at the loud creak the door gave when it opened but Tracey smiled, certain he had an idea of what Gary was thinking. “Your grandfather thinks the screws in the hinges need to be tightened, it should open more easily then.” He stepped into the room and held the door open for Gary to join him.
The kitchen was a little dusty but the table had been cleaned and on it sat a bottle of wine with two wine glasses and a bottle opener. In front of them was a small black box.
Gary paused in the doorway, his eyes sweeping over the set up. “Trace…” He stepped further into the room, stopping before the table. “Was this your plan?”
“This was my plan,” Tracey confirmed, coming to wrap his arms around Gary’s shoulders from behind. He smiled as he felt Gary automatically relax back against his chest.
“Hell of a plan, Tracey.”
“It was supposed to be more of a surprise.”
“Supposed to be?” Gary echoed, laughing a bit. “Still is, Trace. I didn't exactly wake up expecting you to propose.”
“Technically, I haven't done that yet.”
Gary turned in his arms, his smile turning amused. “Oh? What was that slip this morning then?”
“I just said ‘marry me,’” Tracey pointed out. “I didn't actually ask yet.”
“Semantics,” Gary replied airily, waving off the argument.
Tracey laughed and pressed a kiss to his cheek. He took a breath and smiled at his boyfriend. This was it. The main part of the plan. He had a script of sorts and it was time to put it into action. “So?” he asked. “What do you say?”
“You technically haven't asked me yet, remember?” Gary replied, shooting him a teasing grin.
Not what he meant, but he really should have expected that reply. That was just fine. Tracey smiled and closed the distance between them with a quick kiss. “Semantics,” he whispered against Gary’s lips.
“Should've known you would say that.”
“Mmhmm,” Tracey hummed. He leaned in to steal another quick kiss. “I actually meant the house.”
Gary’s smile softened but there was a touch of hesitancy in his eyes. Tracey had a feeling he knew what the cause was, but he waited patiently.
“I want to,” he said slowly. “But I leave for Sayda on Friday, Trace.”
That was what he thought. “I didn't mean for us to move in this weekend, Gary,” Tracey assured him. “That's not realistic, and it wouldn't be fair to put that stress on you right when you're about to leave for a month.”
Gary nodded, expression serious despite the softness in his eyes. “Three weeks between Sayda and Hoenn,” he mused.
Ah, he was getting hung up on the little details, already planning ahead. He wouldn’t be Gary if he didn’t. Tracey squeezed his hand in a gentle redirection. “Don’t worry about the timing, love. The house isn’t going anywhere, we can move whenever we want, but… is this what you want?”
“Yes.”
No hesitation, complete confidence. Perfect.
His heart fluttered in anticipation and he couldn’t force away the smile on his face if he tried.
For a moment, he wasn’t quite sure if his voice would come.
But when he raised his eyes to meet Gary’s gaze, he was met with an easy warmth. Calm and confident, Gary was just waiting for him to ask the question. The answer was already there in that expectant emerald gaze that he loved so dearly.
Tracey smiled and took a deep breath, taking some of that confidence for himself. “Well, if you’ll move in with me, will you marry me?”
He barely had a chance to register the way Gary’s eyes lit up before Gary had closed the space between them to pull Tracey in for a passionate kiss. It was all the answer he needed. Gary had always been more bold with actions than words after all. He melted into the kiss, the quiet answer soothing the few nerves that had been building throughout the day.
Gary pulled back just enough to whisper, “yes,” against Tracey’s lips before immediately dipping his head for another kiss, this time gentle and sweet, just like outside. Tracey’s heart soared and he felt a giddy excitement thrum through him.
Finally – after all of the nerves and anticipation, worrying over things that didn’t need to be worried about – finally he had his answer.
When they pulled away Gary grinned and Tracey knew he was about to say something. That mischief in his eye only ever meant one thing. “That was smoother than I expected. Nice job, babe.”
He sounded genuinely impressed and Tracey felt his cheeks heat with a fierce blush. “Thanks, I think?”
Gary laughed and leaned in to capture his lips again. “You’re welcome.”
Tracey shook his head at the pleased chirp and reached behind Gary to pick up the box from the table. “I didn’t get you a ring,” he admitted, “but don’t think you’ll be disappointed.” He opened the box and held it out for his partner.
Gary’s eyes lit up with curiosity as he took the box from Tracey. He lifted the round pendant from it, the chain draped over the back of his hand and glimmered in the sunlight shining through the windows.
“A new keystone?” His eyes flicked up to meet Tracey’s and a curious smile curved his lips.
“Your old one has seen better days,” he explained. After a decade of use the leather wristband it was affixed to would be lucky to make it through another year in the field. This pendant, with its solid metal backing, overlaid with braids of silver in the form of an oak tree, would last far longer. “Do you like it?”
Gary grinned. “It’s perfect,” he assured Tracey. He undid the clasp and made to put it on but Tracey caught his hands and took it from him, doing it for him.
Once it was in place, Tracey pressed one more quick kiss to his lips before pulling back to finally admire it on his future husband. It really was perfect.
It was the perfect start to a new beginning, even if it hadn’t gone quite as planned.