Work Text:
"I can hold still myself," Toren complained as his face rested in Guzma's hand while one of his eyes stayed closed. Soft brush bristles moved under his eye, leaving a trail of purple behind. Though the makeup brush was soft, the grip on his face was far from it.
"No, you don't stay still enough," Guzma huffed as he leaned in closer to get a better look at his work. The plan was to give Toren a little makeover, make him look a part of Team Skull. He was their honorary researcher after all. Plus, it'd be fun to see the normally meek man in more of a darker look.
Green locks of hair covered Toren's face as his head was directed downwards. He attempted to move it with a soft blow, but to no avail. An awkward smile crossed his face as Guzma rolled his eyes, holding back a smirk of his own. "You have too much damn hair, I don't know how you even see," he snickered, letting go of Toren's face.
He leaned back on the bed they were sitting on, taking a look at all he had to work with. It was a nice sight for sure. Guzma let his hands dig into the bedsheets, keeping him grounded. Toren could only meet him with that stupid, wry smile. But that was beside the point, he was missing something, but what? That's when he spotted his jacket on the bed next to Toren, an idea popped into his head.
"Why don't we try this," Guzma moved to grab the black and white oversized jacket. It was one he wore nearly every day, something you'd most likely never see him without. He held it in front of Toren.
Toren looked at Guzma, then at the article of clothing in front of him. "I guess," Toren chuckled. His lab coat had been long discarded so it would not get dirty. He grabbed the jacket gingerly, slipping his arms into the sleeves. It was big and surprisingly soft. The fabric reminded him of the hoodies he would wear as an insecure teen. Toren adjusted it so, zipping it only halfway before throwing Guzma an unsure look.
Guzma held his breath. He wasn't expecting to have such a reaction to the shy man in his hoodie. He quickly snapped out of it though, throwing a hand on Toren's hair to ruffle it. Strands fell out of his already loose ponytail. He closed his eyes before letting out a shocked *"Ack!"*
"What was that for," Toren huffed. "You look dumb, good, but dumb," Guzma shrugged with a half smile. Toren's face burned in embarrassment as he hid in the big hood of his jacket.
"This was your idea in the first place."
"I know, I just can't really imagine you as one of us."
"What do you mean?" Toren looked at him confused.
Guzma looked down, then back at Toren. "Your too nervous all the time," he replied back. He wasn't wrong. Toren was a bundle of nerves, someone could trip him, and he would apologize. Sometimes thought it wasn't all that bad. His nervousness could be seen as endearing in a way, like a little swadloon.
"I know, but if you saw me back in Fula City, I was so much worse." Toren looked at Guzma with his sky-blue eyes.
Guzma never thought about how Toren was before he came to Alola. He just assumed Toren was always.....Toren. It never crossed his mind how his home city differed from here. In Alola, most people were nice, and people rarely packed in a crowd even in the more urban areas.
"What was it like," Guzma paused, "in Fula City?" His attention was now fully on Toren, patiently waiting for a response. Toren blinked at him.
"Oh, well um," he began, searching for words. "Its very lively you could say. Most people are nice, but some are very headstrong. It's mostly locals, except during the holidays. The Wind Festival is when it gets bad though," he chuckles.
"Many strange people show up to see all the hot air balloons and to participate in the catch race. But when Lugia brings the wind,, its all worth it," Toren smiles softly. He covered his mouth with his hand as he say Guzma staring quietly. "Sorry if I rambled."
"Nah, I asked," Guzma assured the other man. "Do you ever miss it?"
Toren thought for a moment before tilting his head. "I guess I mean I lived there for as long as I can remember. I'm not hurrying to go back or anything, its pretty nice here," Toren responded.
Guzma nodded. Personally, if he were an ocean away from Alola, from his friends, he'd be sick. Toren was surprisingly calm and well adjusted to his situation.
The next few seconds passed with an awkward silence. The tangent was quite random, both not knowing how to pick it back up from there. Toren fidgeted with the hem of the jacket before trying to mouth something. Yet nothing came out.
"Guzma!" a yell came from beyond the door as rapid knocks followed.
"Shit, it's Plumes," Guzma winced. "Why is she mad?" Toren looked between Guzma and the door, a little worried.
"I know you took my makeup brushes, what are you even doing in there?" Well, that answered that question. The knocking stopped as Guzma got up from the bed, making his way over to the door to crack it open.
"I'm busy-" Guzma hardly uttered the words before the door was opened and he was shoved past. Plumeria's eyes landed on a disgruntled Toren. His face was covered in makeup, and wearing none other than the boss' jacket. She looked at him and couldn't help to let out a small chuckle, though she cut it out pretty quickly. Guzma looked at her with a fake offended stare.
"What? My work is perfectly fine," Guzma retaliated before going back to where Toren was sitting, holding his face with his hand. Plumeria shook her head in disapproval.
"It's terrible, he looks just like you," she sighed, and before he could find a comeback to that one, she snatched up her makeup brushes.
Plumeria walked back to the door before turning her head. "Please don't do anything weird. A lot of the guys are going to be playing board games, and the walls are thin." With that the door shut tenderly behind her.
Toren's face flashed bright red as Guzma just stared at the door in disbelief. Toren groaned, his hands covering his face before breaking out into laughter. Guzma looked at him before a smile tore across his face.
"You think that's funny huh," He jokingly shoved Toren onto the bed.
"I don't!" Toren lied through his teeth before he felt a pair of lips on his cheek. The other side of his face was held in Guzma's hand. The kiss was short and playful.
"Lets get this gunk off your face," Guzma said, pulling away from the boy as he simply nodded.