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Snow blanketed over Piltover like frosting on a cake. Thick, glistening, and undeniably inconvenient. Snow clung to the window panes in thick swirls, and the city beyond was a blur of white and glowing street lights.
Viktor stood by the door, one hand on his cane, the other fiddling with his scarf. “I really should go,” he mumbled, glancing at the icy sidewalk outside. His breath fogged the glass. “The snow is only going to get worse.”
Behind him, Jayce sat on the couch with a blanket thrown over his lap and a suspicious glint in his eye. He stirred a mug of hot cocoa (which wasn’t in his hand not a moment earlier) with exaggerated slowness. “Mmm. Yeah. Terrible idea to go out there. Definitely. Good thing there’s another option like, say, staying here and not dying of frostbite .”
Viktor shot him a flat look. “I have survived worse conditions.”
Jayce tilted his head, mock-thoughtful. “Have you survived blankets this soft, though?”
“I have a blanket at home.”
Jayce gasped. “Wow. Betrayal. I offer you sanctuary and you reject it!”
Viktor rolled his eyes, but he didn’t move, a smile tugging at his lips. “You’re ridiculous.”
“And yet,” Jayce grinned, “You’re still here.”
Viktor hesitated, his fingers tightening on his scarf. His cheeks were already pink from the chill, or maybe not just from the chill. “I don’t wish to impose.”
“You’re staying,” Jayce said firmly. He pressed the warm mug into Viktor’s hand and gestured him back towards the couch. “Vik. Come on. You’re not imposing. You’re always welcome here.”
And suddenly the cold outside was nothing compared to the warmth in Jayce’s gaze.
“Unless…” Jayce’s eyes twinkled, “You want me to start singing ‘Baby, It’s Cold Outside’ to convince you. I will. I think I know every verse. Even the creepy ones.”
Viktor squinted at him. “You don’t play fair.”
Jayce grinned. “Correct.”
Viktor smiled faintly, but his grip on the mug tightened. “I didn’t want to overstay. I know you didn’t plan for me to be here this long.”
Jayce rolled his eyes and flopped onto the couch, kicking a blanket aside to make room. “I literally invited you over for dinner. You think I didn’t expect you to stay late?”
“I also didn’t want to assume…”
Jayce raised an eyebrow. “Viktor. You’ve slept over before. Multiple times, in fact.”
Viktor opened his mouth like he was about to argue, then promptly shut it again. He set the mug down on the coffee table and started unwrapping his scarf slowly, still unsure.
Jayce watched him fumble for a moment before hopping up and grabbing something from the arm of the couch. He threw it at Viktor without warning.
“Here,” he said with a grin. “If you’re staying, you need to be dressed for the occasion.”
Viktor caught it, Jayce’s hoodie. Big, warm, and smelling like cinnamon, soap, and whatever cologne Jayce had started wearing that made Viktor’s neurons misfire.
“…This is your hoodie,” Viktor said slowly.
“Obviously. It’s cold. And you can’t stay in the coat. Also you look stupid cute in oversized things,” Jayce stated like a fact.
Viktor’s lips twitched. “You’re shameless.”
“You like that I’m shameless,” Jayce said smugly.
Viktor looked at the hoodie again, then at the storm outside. A gust of wind rattled the window. The scarf came off with a resigned sigh. “Fine. Just for a little while.”
“Victory!” Jayce cheered. “You won't regret it.”
Viktor took off his coat and pulled the hoodie on. It practically swallowed him, sleeves falling past his hands, the hem hitting mid-thigh. “I look ridiculous.”
“You look like my boyfriend,” Jayce said so casually that Viktor nearly tripped on his own cane.
“Your… what…?” Viktor stuttered
Jayce blinked at him, half-smiling, half-terrified. “…Too much?”
Viktor’s lips parted, but no words came out. They hadn’t had that conversation yet. They were… something. They went on dates. They kissed. They held hands sometimes. But they hadn’t labeled it. Jayce always danced close to the edge like this… teasing, testing. And Viktor never knew whether to lean in or hold back.
Jayce rubbed the back of his neck. “Sorry. I didn’t mean… like, you don’t have to…”
“No,” Viktor said quickly. Then, quieter, “Don’t apologize.”
Jayce looked away, disappointed, “I’ll uh… I’ll… c-clean the kitchen.”
Viktor could not let him slip away. He caught hold of Jayce’s hand before he could flee.
“Jayce.”
Jayce looked nervous, “Yeah?”
“Do you… actually think of me that way?”
Jayce blinked. “What way?”
“As your boyfriend.”
Jayce’s voice went quiet. “Yeah. I think I do.”
The silence settled, thick and electric.
“You don’t have to call it that,” Jayce said quickly. “We don’t have to label anything if you’re not ready. I just… think about it. When you’re not here. And when you are. It kind of already feels like we’re-”
“I think about it too,” Viktor said, cutting him off.
Jayce froze.
Viktor looked down, fiddling with the end of the hoodie sleeve. “I just… didn’t know if we were both in that place.”
Jayce turned a little so he was facing him. “I am. If you are.”
Viktor met his eyes. Something unspoken passed between them. Not a declaration. Not quite yet. But a bridge.
“I… find that I am…” Viktor said softly, “I think we have been ready for a while. And I don’t want to walk away tonight wondering if I missed the chance.”
Jayce’s hand found Viktor’s, fingers brushing warm, “You didn’t. You’re right here.”
Viktor smiled, soft and slow, and leaned in just enough for Jayce to meet him halfway. The kiss was gentle, uncertain, but real. Not the first, and not dramatic. Just true.
They broke apart with twin exhales.
Viktor was still a little nervous. He stared at Jayce’s chest, not meeting his eye.
“You can still leave if you want. I’m only worried about you out there in the literal snowstorm,” Jayce kissed his forehead gently, “I have no expectations or anything… now that we’re official. I would love for you to stay. But you are not bound to. This isn’t a trap…”
Viktor arched his brow, a small smile on his lips, “Sounds like something someone setting up a trap would say.”
Jayce laughed, tipping his head back, “Okay, maybe it’s a little bit of a trap. But like… a soft trap. A cozy trap. A ‘let me hold your hand and let you wear my hoodie because I’ve been in love with you for a year’ trap.”
Viktor blushed a bright red, “Subtle.”
Jayce gave him a sheepish smile, “I’ve never been good at being subtle.”
Viktor smiled, cupping Jayce’s cheek, “For your information… I’m in love with you too… have been for a while now,” he said shyly.
Jayce’s eyes widened. He looked stunned. Viktor chuckled and closed the gap with a kiss. Soft, questioning, warm like the cocoa, like the hoodie enveloping him, like everything unsaid finally finding a voice in the space between their lips.
When they parted, Jayce rested his forehead against Viktor’s, grinning.
“So…” Jayce said slowly, teasing, “This means you’re staying, right?”
Viktor rolled his eyes but there was a grin on his lips too, “Only because it’s cold outside.”
~~~
fin