Work Text:
Accidents are bound to happen in a lab. That's the nature of experimentation: trial and error, with the reality being a lot more error than anything else.
Viktor is more accustomed than he'd ever admit to any of their sponsors, to the sound of small-scale explosions in the lab while Jayce is working.
His partner's tendency to build prototypes first and ask questions later, often has their shared workspace filled with little puffs of soot and errant piles of shrapnel on any given afternoon. Jayce Talis is a brilliant scientist but he is also, first and foremost, an inventor and a tradesman. He likes to work with his hands and he’s told Viktor on countless occasions that doing it his way is simply ‘more fun,’ and who is Viktor to deny him?
He’d never dream of it when Jayce lights up like the brightest ray of sunshine every time he creates something with his hands. Always excitedly displaying his newest ideas to Viktor for approval and Viktor always approves, even when he sees a potential flaw in the design. He’d never deny Jayce the pure, unrestrained happiness that spreads over his face each time Viktor pays him or his work a compliment.
"Viktor!" Jayce exclaims excitedly from across the room. "I think it's going to work this ti -" the words aren't even out of his mouth before he's cut off by a soft boom.
"What was that, my love?" Viktor asks, swivelling around on his stool to face Jayce with a grin.
Jayce grins back, his bright white teeth contrasting sharply with the black soot now covering the rest of his face.
"Oh well." Jayce shrugs good naturedly. "Guess we'll have to try that one again."
"Hm, yes, perhaps," Viktor concedes, an amused note to his voice. "Perhaps this time you could consult me on the calculations before assembly?"
"What?" Jayce gasps and places a hand over his chest in mock offence. "Are you insinuating that I didn't take the time to accurately plan out my own invention?"
"Yes." Viktor nods without hesitation. "That is exactly what I am insinuating."
"Fine." Jayce crosses his arms, a pout forming on his lips, though the extent of the adorableness of it is obscured by the soot covering his face. "Too bad I don't know any handsome scientists who would take pity on me and give me some help looking over my equations." He heaves a wistful little sigh.
"Well." Viktor tilts his head to the side, fixing Jayce with a raised eyebrow. "You never know what could happen if you ask nicely."
Jayce takes a step forward. "Viktor," he begins, voice low and pleading. "Baby." He bats his eyelashes deliberately and clasps his hands behind his back, pushing out his chest, as he takes another step closer.
Viktor can't help the way his breath falters and catches in his throat. "Well that's just not playing fair," he mutters accusingly.
"I'm asking nicely!" Jayce insists, still batting those long eyelashes.
"Uh huh." Viktor narrows his eyes. "Well, go on."
"Could you please look at my notes and tell me where I went wrong with my prototype?" Jayce implores, crossing the remaining distance between them so he's close enough to touch.
Viktor pulls the handkerchief out his breast pocket and reaches out to steady the side of Jayce's face with his other hand as he begins to brush the dust off.
"Hmmm," he pretends to consider for a moment. "What do I get out of it if I do? You're making me pause some very important research." He motions to the notebook open on his desk that very obviously shows a page full of sketches of Jayce and one very prominent doodle that says 'Viktor Talis' in fancy lettering (planning his new signature now that they're married is important research! He has to sign his name on a lot of documents!)
Jayce giggles. Honest to god giggles. He's probably blushing somewhere under all that soot too, so Viktor scrubs a bit harder at his cheek in the hopes of catching a glimpse.
"I'll give you a kiss, how's that?" Jayce's nose scrunches as Viktor redoubles his efforts to get his face clean.
"I think you would do that already," Viktor reasons.
Jayce frowns. "Good point."
Viktor tuts as a scrubs at a particularly stubborn spot of dirt at the tip of Jayce's nose. "You're a mess, brouček," he scolds.
Jayce looks down at him with wide, shining eyes. "But I'm your mess," he asserts confidently.
"Quite right," Viktor agrees, patting the side of his face.
"So," Jayce asks. "What'll it take? What kind of incentive could I give one of the famous inventors of hextech to look over my little science project?" He nods his head towards the scattered notes on his own desk that he'd been consulting all morning as he built his prototype.
Viktor looks at the clock on the wall above the door. "I think buying him lunch might be a good start," he suggests.
Jayce nearly unbalances Viktor off his seat in his enthusiasm to bound towards the door. "What do you want?" he asks eagerly as he grabs his wallet from beside the door.
Viktor shakes his head and gives a little laugh, reaching for his crutch and walking over to join Jayce by the door.
"Here." He holds out his hand. "Give me that." Jayce relinquishes his wallet without question. "Why don't you leave choosing lunch to me, while you stay here and get yourself cleaned up, hm?"
Jayce pouts. "You want me to stay here all by myself?"
"Instead of dragging you around covered in soot?" Viktor raises his eyebrows. "Yes"
"Ugh," Jayce groans. "Fine."
"I'll be back shortly," Viktor assures him, giving Jayce's arm a squeeze.
"Okay," Jayce agrees reluctantly. "Just let me give you a kiss before you go."
"No! You're covered in -" Viktor can't squirm out of reach quickly enough to avoid Jayce's hands coming up to cup his jaw and the sound smack of his lips against his cheek.
Viktor exits the lab shaking his head and muttering under his breath about ‘the lengths that man will go to kiss me,’ only to come face to face or, more accurately, knee to face, with professor Heimerdinger.
"Ah, Viktor my boy, just who I was looking for." He stops and clasps his little paws together. "I was just going to ask if - wait, what are those black smudges all over your face?"
Viktor grimaces and quickly pulls his handkerchief out to rub at his face, forgetting that it's already covered in soot, and only succeeds in exacerbating the problem. "Ah, nothing, just a little hiccup in an experiment."
The lab door opens behind him and Jayce pokes his head out. "Hey Vik, could you pick up ... oh, hello professor."
"Ah." Heimerdinger looks between Jayce's blackened face and hands, and the correlating smudges all over Viktor's face. "Well, I see you boys are busy, I'll leave you to it," he says, offering a little wave and diverting his gaze as he hurries off down the hall.
Viktor rounds on Jayce, who is leaning against the doorframe, shaking with silent laughter.
"Sorry," he says meekly as he’s pinned by Viktor's stern look.
Viktor sighs and rolls his eyes. "What were you going to ask me to pick up?"
Jayce clasps his hands in front of him and looks at Viktor through his eyelashes. "Dessert?"
"Yes, yes, of course." Viktor waves a dismissive hand. In what universe would he go out to get lunch and not pick up dessert for his husband who requires a little sweet treat at least once a day? Not one that Viktor would like to live in.
"Any requests?"
"Another kiss?" Jayce replies immediately, like he was anticipating the question.
"I meant about the dessert, Jayce."
"I know." Jayce gives him a sappy, lopsided smile.
And well, he's already covered in soot anyways, one more kiss can't hurt. Viktor would be willing to damage a lot more than his pride to kiss Jayce. And any strange looks he may receive in the shop when he orders their lunch a few minutes later, are more than worth it for the radiant smile that follows him down the hall.