Work Text:
“You didn’t.”
“I did.”
“You haven’t.”
“I have.”
“It looks like one of your old boots.”
You know, if that’s all you can come up with… Lister bit her tongue. No. Not today. She’d worked too hard on this to let Rimmer ruin it, even if (or especially since) it had all been for Rimmer. “Tastes better, though. And before you start lecturing me on my dead taste buds, the boys agree with me.”
“What about Dog?”
“He’s a dog,” Lister sighed. “Dogs and chocolate don’t mix. How do you not know this by now?”
“Oh, right,” Rimmer said briskly, a hint of shame creeping up her cheeks. “Is this it, then? No singing, no silly hats?”
“I thought you said you didn’t want any of that?”
“I…well.”
Lister felt her last bit of patience slipping out of her grip and crashing somewhere out of sight. She threw up her hands. “But look, it’s your birthday. If you want the song and hats and fuss, I’ll smegging well go and get the others.” She began to walk towards the door. If Rimmer wanted a proper party with the twins and Kryta in attendance (Dog would have to be locked out of the room lest he poison himself), despite all her protestations to the contrary in the preceding weeks -
“Hang on.”
Lister spun around and found herself facing a chastened Rimmer.
“You see, I…”
“What?”
“I know it was what you wanted to do,” Rimmer admitted. “The singing and everything.”
Lister let out a soft sound of comprehension. “Oh, that’s not - I mean, I did, but there’s always my own birthday for that, and the boys’ as well.”
“I don’t exactly want a loud reminder. Turning fifty-five — where’s the fun in getting greyer and creakier with each passing year?”
“What are you talking about? You’re a hologram!”
“And aging at a normal pace, thanks to the directive to keep you sane. Sometimes I don’t know why I bother, honestly.”
Lister snorted. “Yeah, yeah. Are we having some cake, or what?”
She knew very well that the answer was or what. Nonetheless, she was still surprised enough to laugh when Rimmer put a rather clumsy arm around her and smushed their lips together.
“Thanks,” Rimmer whispered when they paused to catch their breaths.
“Took you long enough.”