Work Text:
Robby wakes up feeling a strange pressure on his body, he slowly opens his eyes, confused, is he on the couch? The lightness of the room is seeping into his eyes, his bedroom is not this bright, definitely not in the bedroom, he thinks.
He looks down on himself looking for the source of pressure, Dennis. He looks so peaceful sleeping, splayed out on him like an octopus. His mouth is slightly open, Robby knows that only happens when he’s extremely exhausted. He lifts his hand to go through his small curls, careful not to wake him. He smiles to himself, he could wake up like this everyday.
He tries to remember how they ended up on the couch. He remembers coming home, they were making out right as they passed the door, Dennis pinned up against the door of Robby’s house, they stumbled through the hall right into the living room, dropping to the couch, kissing slower now. They were tired after their shift but still needed the comfort of each other, eventually sleep took over them. Robby smiles enjoying the memory, yeah explains the couch, he thinks.
Robby feels his legs starting to hurt but tries to ignore the starting pain,he shuts his eyes again, Dennis looks too peaceful, he needs the rest, he won't wake him up if he doesn't have to, he thinks. As his eyes are falling shut, hand in Dennis' hair he suddenly hears the faint vibrating sound of his phone
“WORK” Robby almost shouts. Robby usually wakes up out of habit, he only has one back up alarm, meaning if they don’t get up now they will absolutely be late. Even panicked, he tries to be careful with the man on his chest. Robby manoeuvres to slowly sit them both up, knowing the small man won’t wake up otherwise.
“Fuck fuck, Dennis, my lovely, sweetheart wake up. We have work”
Dennis groans “five more minutes” his head on Robby’s chest
Robby grabs Dennis’ face between his palms : ““Hi, my love, my one and only, I love you so so much but I Need you to wake up, come on let’s go get dressed”
Dennis finally opens his eyes “Hi” he smiles at the older man. Robby melts inside but he tries to snap out of it quickly, not before he pecks his lips, unable to resist.
“Denny if we don’t go like Now… we Are gonna be late”
Robby grabs his phone from the coffee table in front of them and shows the time to Dennis.
Dennis’ eyes bulge out “Oh fuck we Are gonna be late”
“Exactly what i said, come on” Robby replies sassily
They speed through their morning routine. Hastily putting on clothes in the bedroom.
Dennis looks down on himself as he’s grabbing random items of clothing “I think I’m wearing your underwear”
Robby, putting on his shirt looks at him quickly “Looks good, you should wear them more”
Dennis smirks back at him as Robby's handing him his pants awkwardly putting them on as they run to the bathroom. Dennis picks up both of their toothbrushes, squirts out the toothpaste and hands one to Robby. They’re brushing teeth attached at the hip, always craving the touch.
Robby spits out the toothpaste “We need to go now, we don’t have time to walk we have to take the car” He smacks Dennis’ ass, presses a quick kiss to Dennis’ cheek and runs out of the bathroom.
Dennis blushes, spits out the toothpaste and follows closely behind “Ay ay cap”
They made it a ritual to walk to the hospital if they were working the same shift. Short peaceful walk before all the chaos of the day. They were not granted their peaceful moment today as it seems, entirely their fault though.
They grab their bags, grabbing all the things they need, Dennis sees his backpack exactly where he tossed it yesterday in the hall, they didn’t even unpack.
“Phone?” Dennis starts looking around, not sure where to look he enters the bedroom
Robby screams from the living room “GOT IT”
Dennis shuffles out of the bedroom, Robby coming from the living room when they bump into each other in the hallway “Woah! slow down” Dennis smiles grabs the phone from the other man’s hand “No can do” and pecks Robby quickly shuffling to the door and to the car
Robby breathes out for a second, processing the small kiss. A peck, I am a grown man, he thinks and rushes after Dennis, locking the door behind them.
Robby gets behind the wheel and they finally get on the road.
“That was awfully close” Dennis says, he continues
“I don't even remember falling asleep like that we must’ve been squeezed out”
“Did we even have dinner?” Robby wonders when suddenly Dennis’ tummy makes a rumbling noise. “I’ll take that as a no” says Robby in an amused tone.
Robby reaches to grab Dennis’ hand squeezing it.
“You okay?” Dennis asks, sounding uncertain, not even sure what he means by the question.
Robby turns his head to him squeezing Dennis’ hand again “Yeah yeah, just…sleepy and a bit hungry”
Dennis smiles at him squeezing his hand, thumb running across his hand for comfort and speaks up “I’ll go get us a sandwich from the cafeteria quickly while you catch up on central”
Robby smiles and brings their joined hands to his lips, leaving a peck.
They finally arrive to the hospital, Dana seeing them rush in “Well well well thank you for gracing us with your presence you two”
Dennis waves at Dana, looks at Robby awkwardly and runs to the lockers
Robby is looking at his back, smiling. His eyes drop lower and he smirks to himself.
Dana interrupts his train of thought “Wow Robby I can’t believe you’re smiling at this hour, love really does change you”
“Sorry for running late, we kind of fell asleep on the couch, I was so tired yesterday I barely even remember how we got there”
Dana pulls her glasses down to glance at him “Spare me the details but worry not, it happens to the best of us”
They catch up on work stuff, nothing major so far, minor injuries and bleeds mostly. The waiting room is always full though so there’s still a busy day ahead of everyone. His stomach rumbles interrupting the conversation with Dana, he puts his hand on his stomach
Dana cocks an eyebrow “Go eat something Robby, we got this so far, be quick though as usual, you never know what happens in here” He adjusts his backpack, thinking of his hunger but also remembering Dennis’ stomach rumbling in the car “Will do, gotta feed the little one too” he says as he leaves for the lockers.
He’s putting in his backpack when he feels a hand on his back. Dennis. He smiles at him automatically but Dennis speaks first “I got us a sandwich” Robby didn't even notice the sandwich Dennis had in his hands, too focused on his big sparkly eyes. He bent down to peck Dennis’ lips “Thanks, you beat me to it. Let’s go to the lounge quickly before something comes up” Dennis nodded silently as they started walking.
They sit in the lounge Dennis unpacking the sandwich “They didn't have your favourite today I took the next best option, but the lady from the cafeteria recognised me, asked why you’re not with me, she says hi”
Robby laughs watching Dennis taking a bite “They’re obsessed with us, cannot blame them though, I’m also pretty obsessed with you”
Dennis chokes a little at that “Well I’m also pretty obsessed with you, Michael, and keep this up and we will only get to the couch again”
Robby laughs at that “As much as I love having your whole weight on me, I think my back has an objection and this time I sustain”
Dennis giggles back at him and sighs “Old man” teasing him
Robby smirks at him “And you’re dating an old man”
Dennis leans in to peck the man’s lips “And I’m happy about it”
They move to get up as they finish eating, Dennis talking animatedly but Robby can barely hear him as he’s scanning Dennis’ body top to bottom “Hey, eyes up here sir” Dennis jokes.
Robby, in the mood to continue the teasing, smirks cheekily “Eyes up there and lips too” he says as he moves to kiss Dennis. They move like that, slow, languid as if energising each other for the day. Suddenly, they hear the door creaking so they quickly jump apart.
Robby reacting immediately “Santos, good to see you today, ehm- I’m gonna, go” He looks at Dennis, looks at Santos again “See you both out there, don’t take too long in here”
As the door shuts after Robby Dennis looks at Trinity and sighs deeply “I’m never gonna live this down am I”
Trinity replies barely stopping her laugh “Oh you bet, Whitaker. Look at you seducing the boss”
Dennis moves to throw out the paper from the sandwich, he rolls his eyes, it’s not as if Trinity doesn’t know about them, hell everybody knows, it’s been quite some time since they’ve been coming in together, leaving together and all the in between.
“Very funny Trin, haven’t heard that one before” he rolls his eyes again for good measure
Trinity laughs with her Trinity special smirk “Why are you so late anyways, too busy suck-”
Dennis puts a hand over her mouth “Do not finish that sentence. We are not discussing that at work”
Trinity laughs “Damn okay yeah yeah, but in my defense you haven’t been home in days, so where are we supposed to discuss it”
Dennis rolls his eye “I know I know I’m sorry, I’ll come home to get some of my stuff, probably gonna stay at least a few nights”
Trinity scoffs at him “You said that last time and you stayed for a night and then disappeared for like a month again. Is Dr. Robby locking you in a room or something, should I be worried”
Dennis laugh at that but furrows his brows “What’s this about Trin, do you miss me, is it that”
It’s Trinity’s turn to roll her eyes now “Wha-, what, don’t be ridiculous, i-, i-, you know what yeah I miss having someone to debrief on hospital drama and with you it’s like having it right from the source”
Dennis sees through her right away “Right, because you going out with Dr. Ellis is very far from the source Trin, excellent logic” he says smiling at her in a grin
Trinity’s jaw drops a little “Fair, point proven, whatever okay so what If I miss my best friend, can’t believe you’re making me spell it out Whitaker” she hits his shoulder
Dennis goes in to hug her “I miss you too Trin.” he pulls back “ I can’t tomorrow, we have plans, but I’ll come home overmorrow I promise, we can do a movie marathon or rewatch Bottoms again whatever you want, I’ll make it up to you, trust”
Trinity relaxes at that “Okay, okay, yeah that sounds nice, just leave the boyfriend at home. Come on, let’s get to work or your husband comes looking for you”
Dennis rolls his eyes again, finding himself too tired to protest Trinity's antics as they move out to walk to central to grab patients.
Robby sees them walking towards central “Santos, can I get you to South 20, nothing major but they could use the help”
“Yeah, going right away” she replies, her eyes going to Dennis “See ya loser”
Dennis rolls his eyes once again “Yeah, see you”. He stops to look at the board when a hand touches his back and he hears a whisper near his ear “Forgot to say I love you before we start the shift” Robby’s beard touching his ear. He smiles at the sensation, turns his head to him and silently almost inaudibly says “I love you too”
It’s one of their rituals, saying I love you before they start working, as soft reassurance. When they walk to the hospital in the mornings they usually stop for a kiss before the entrance but today they were in too much of a hurry.
Robby smiles, eyes sparkling at the younger man, when his train of thought gets interrupted by a critical patient getting wheeled in.
And the chaos begins, he thinks.
“Come on, Whitaker, Langdon, trauma 1” Robby shouts going full work mode.
*hours later*
They finally start changing with the night shift, Robby sees Jack walking towards him from the lockers.
Jack initiates, tone calm as he nears Robby “Hey, we still up for sunday?” Robby looks up from the computer, logging out of the system finally “Ehm, yeah yeah, usual place?”
Jack continues, nodding “Is Dennis coming?” Robby takes a deep breath “Don’t think so, should be just the two of us, Santos mentioned that she gets Dennis on sunday.
Jack outright laughs “Wow, shared custody of your boyfriend, very grand”
Robby takes a deep breath “Something like that, and I-, I need to talk to you about something” his gestures with his head
Abbot catches the hint “Shit, okay, yeah we’ll talk on sunday then, nothing bad I hope”
Robby quickly defends “No, no, no, could be good,very good, potentially”
They end the topic there, leaving it for sunday.
Robby briefs Jack on the day, leftover patients that still need his attention. Dennis is walking to Robby “I’ll wait outside, yeah?” Robby takes a step towards him “I’ll be quick” smiles and continues talking to Jack.
Dennis is in front of the entrance, pulling out his cheap cigarettes, he needs it after today, and he says that everyday. Trinity comes out stands next to him “So what are your big plans for tomorrow”
Dennis lights up at talking about their plans seemingly excited. “Michael’s taking me to the big farmer's market that’s in town this week” he’s smiling now “I think we’re meeting Jake for dinner later too. Not much but it’s nice to finally have a free saturday, it’s been so long”
Trinity takes the cigarette from his hands and takes a puff “Wow, you guys really are married, meaning boring.” Secretly she’s happy for them “Is Jake doing better?”
Dennis sighs “Yes and no, he’s okay with Robby now, but still getting help to process it all. I can’t imagine going through something like that” melancholy hits him, he doesn’t want to imagine not having Michael.
“Hey, don’t let it get to your head, especially in this line of work, and Robby is just inside so don’t sweat too much”
Dennis nods knowing she’s right.
The entrance doors suddenly open and Robby walks out, he looks around spotting Dennis talking to Santos. Dennis sees him, and they start walking towards each other, Trinity in tow.
Trinity speaks out first “Okay, before this turns weird, I’m gonna go. See ya on sunday Whitaker, bye Dr. Robby” and leaves
They move to the car, Dennis reaching for Michael’s hand.
“How does pizza for dinner sound?” Robby asks.
Dennis sighs “Like heaven”
Once in the car they call their favourite pizza place, so they can pick it up on the way home.
They pick up the pizza, now driving home, Robby’s hand on Dennis’ thigh as Dennis animatedly talks about each patient he had today.
Robby responds to every comment Dennis makes, smiling and laughing because no matter how busy and hard the day was, he’s with Dennis now and that alone is something to smile about.
They enter the house dragging themselves in. Robby stops in the hallway, thinking where to drop off the pizza
“Don’t you dare Michael” Dennis’ tone is serious
“Couch it is then” Robby laughs and moves to drop the pizza on the living room coffee table.
Dennis hates food in bed, he has two rules for the bed. No outside clothes and no food. Sometimes he can forgive the outside clothes but never the food part. And since Dennis is at Robby’s place more than not, that means no food on the bed for Robby either.
Dennis is already undressing when Robby walks in to the bedroom “I thought we’d shower first before eating, not sure if I’m gonna be able to move much after”
“Good thinking” Robby points out and watches Dennis slip into the bathroom. Dennis knows Robby is joining him in the shower, since they mostly shower together but he still turns around to tease the older man “We should shower together, you know, to save water and all”
Robby taking his shirt off teases back “Only if you promise no funny business this time”
Dennis smiles while rolling his eyes and disappears into the bathroom. Robby’s sorting their clothes into the laundry basket when he hears a loud voice
“Michael hurry uuuuup, it’s cold in here without you”
And who is Robby to deny Dennis anything, he walks to the shower, “My love,you're literally under a hot shower stream”
Dennis pouts “But it’s better when you’re here” he puts his hands on the older man’s shoulders and goes in to kiss him. They move slowly but hungry, like they haven’t seen each other all day but still soft.
They pull apart, foreheads still pressed together.
Robby sighs into the smaller man’s face “Better?”
Dennis smiles wide, accomplished “Much”
They wash each other, hands wandering but not crossing the line, not today. Soon enough they’re turning off the shower, patting themselves dry and moving to the closet to find their pyjamas.
Dennis rummages through the closet but fails to find a pyjama he could wear “Ugh, I ran out of pyjamas, we have to do laundry tomorrow”
Robby, putting on a scruffy band shirt and old pyjama pants, reaches into his part of the closet and hands one of his pyjamas to Dennis “Just wear mine” he pecks the younger man‘s cheek and leaves for the living room.
Dennis puts on the pyjamas, thinking how he wears Michael’s clothes more than his own, and blushes at the thought. Dennis didn’t think he would ever have a domestic life like this, and now that he tasted it, he never wants anything else.
They sprawl out on the couch, pressed together and eat the pizza. Robby put on Hitchcock’s Rope, his go to movie to play in the background while they do literally anything. They’ve seen it so many times they don’t even have to pay attention to know what is going to happen next.
Robby puts down his plate, exhaling “That might just be it for me” Dennis looks at how much of the pizza is left, too much.
“You barely ate anything, do you feel okay? Does anything hurt?” Dennis asks as if Robby’s a patient.
Robby puts his hand on the man’s thigh to calm him down and laughs “I promise I’m good, just full” Dennis nods once, twice, finishes chewing and also drops his plate down.
He cuddles up to the older man’s side, head resting on his chest, Robby immediately starts running his hands down the length of Dennis’ arm.
Dennis’ eyes lift up too tired to move his whole head “Oh I forgot to tell you, but Jake texted me, confirmed he’s still free and up for dinner tomorrow.
Robby hums in agreement, then he realizes what the man just said, his hand stops the movement “Wait, since when does Jake text you”
Dennis turns to him from where he’s positioned on his chest “Since forever, well more so since you guys started talking again”
Robby hums again “You really are too lovable” and it’s true, everyone loves Dennis. “Thank you, for caring for him” he gets sentimental because he means it.
Dennis reaches up pecks the older man’s lips “Of course, he’s a part of you”
Dennis doesn’t waste the silence “I’m gonna go home on sunday, gotta get some more stuff, do chores, and hang out with Trin, I miss her“ he sighs
Robby wails “Nooo, what about me, I’ll miss you too much” he crushes the younger man to his chest, locking him in his embrace, not wanting him to leave his arms ever again.
Dennis starts laughing almost maniacally “I’m here all the time Michael, you’d think I live here” he giggles “I don’t remember the last time I was home”
Robby spits out “So do” he realizes he’s not making sense
“Live here, with me.” He positions Dennis so they’re eye to eye
“This is home, Denny. We wake up together, we go to sleep together, we have a joined closet, hell you wear my underwear”
Robby’s speaking too quickly, Dennis not saying anything just looking into his eyes
“What I mean is that, with you here, it feels like a home, our home, and not just a house I stay in”
Dennis’ face doesn’t show emotion, clearly flustered by the invitation turning into a confession, but then he smiles the biggest smile. He leans in to Michael, hands coming to his cheeks and caressing his face. Dennis smiles ever wider and starts nodding, pressing a kiss to the man’s face “Yeah, let’s do that, let’s make it a home” He can barely register what’s happening when suddenly he’s pinned down on the couch Robby on top of him, kissing him feverishly.
Dennis giggles, laughs, Robby moves to his neck, Dennis’ hands going into his hair.
Robby lifts his head from roaming over the younger man’s body, hovers above him “I love you” and Dennis can see the sincerity in the words “I love you more” Robby giggles at him, he’s floating right now. They kiss, hungry, full of energy now, excitement.
They eventually run out of breath and go back to cuddling, Dennis’ head back on the older man’s chest “This just saved me an awkward conversation with Jack” says Robby, voice low
“Oh?” Dennis makes a surprise noise. Robby elaborates “I wanted to ask him, how to ask you to move in, but I guess no need now”
“Why would it be awkward though” Dennis wonders out loud
Robby sighs “Because you know Jack and how he likes to tease us, me especially”
And yeah Dennis knows so he nods “Okay yeah I get what you mean”
They watch the tv for a bit, Rupert just fired the shots out of the window so they know it's coming to an end.
Robby drops a kiss on the head of the younger man on his chest “We should go to bed, busy day tomorrow”
Dennis nods, slowly lifting himself off the older man. He grabs the remote to turn off the telly, closes the pizza box on the table and they move towards the bedroom.
They settle into the bed. Robby turning the small light on the night stand off.
“Hold me?” Dennis says into the air
Robby going in to hold him “Needy” he murmurs, but he loves it, and loves him, he burrows his nose into Dennis’ hair, finding his scent comforting. Their legs are intertwined, one wouldn’t be able to say where one begins and other ends.
“I love you” says Dennis in a small voice already falling asleep
Robby squeezes him, holds him even tighter “I love you too” he says pressing a small kiss to his hair..
And just like that the day is over and they’re asleep.