Work Text:
All scheduled patients have been checked in for tonight.
The hospital was full, or at least as full as hospitals could be while still having space in case of an emergency. The night was quiet though, and it seemed no new surprises would be happening anytime soon.
Secretary sat and laid his head down on the counter, tired after the many hours he'd been working. He'd dragged over a chair from the camera area and moved it to the front, legs tired after hours of standing. Usually he'd get up and assist with the patients that still were awaiting treatment, but…
"We need to see how it handles stress."
No one else was on duty except for Intern and Secret Agent. Head Nurse and Nurse were given a rare chance to head home early tonight, even though they were understaffed. Everyone knew the reason though, the Doctor wanted to see how well Intern performed under stress. No one was allowed to lend an extra hand.
The door creaked open and Secretary turned his head to the side, already knowing who he'd see.
There stood Secret Agent in all their glory. Their eyes were furrowed, the only thing betraying their annoyance. Secretary was hit with the urge to smoothen it out and frowned at himself for his thoughts.
Agent's eyes found their way to where secretary was still slumped over the counter and their posture visibly softened, the way it only did when they were alone. Secretary hated the way the soft look on their face warmed their heart so easily.
"Why are you here?" He grumbled finally sitting up with a frown.
Agent's shrugged, eyes flicking to the coffee machine for a second before they seemed to make a decision and walked over to stand beside Secretary, looming over him.
Secretary frowned harder at that but it only seemed to amuse Secret Agent, whatever previous thought bothering them seemingly forgotten in preference of annoying Secretary.
"I'm not allowed to help them, you know this. Is it really a surprise I'd come here if there's nothing to do out there?"
Secretary raised an eyebrow at that, "That didn't seem to bother you earlier, when you were busy trailing after it like a stray dog."
Agent's ears flicked, maybe in annoyance, although their face didn't changed from its amused expression. Secretary knows how much it annoys them when he uses pronouns like that to refer to Intern, even if Intern themself doesn't mind. Still, Agent doesn't comment on it, seemingly wanting to keep the peace.
Annoying…Secretary thinks to himself, rolling his eyes at Agents lack of response and going back to using his arms as a pillow, closing his eyes and choosing to ignore Secret Agent. "If you're just here to be annoying, then leave."
There was silence, then something settled next to their head, and a shadow blocked the lights from above him. Still he didn't open his eyes, pretending like he didn't notice himself being caged in.
"C'mon…at least look at me," Agents voice whispered, it would be called pleading if it weren't for how amused they sounded, like they were trying to coax a stubborn child and not asking for attention.
It irritated Secretary enough for him to open his eyes to glare fully at them, but he paused at how close Agent was. Glaring, he pushed their face away.
"Why the hell are you so close?"
Agent let themselves be pushed away, a small smile playing on their lips as they held Secretary's hand before it could retract, looking down at him.
Secretary tried to tug his arm back, but Secret Agent's grip only tightened, so he gave up.
"If you want to know something why not ask outright instead of throwing a tantrum?" Secretary Agent asked tugging on his arm until Secretary had no choice but to stand up to avoid the awkward position. They waited no second before pressing Secretary against the counter, letting go of his arm in favor of using both their arms to cage him in, looking down at him.
Secretary leaned back and looked to the side, still trying to avoid as much contact as possible even though they were practically nose to nose . "Someone could walk in right now…half of the walls in here are windows you shouldn't—"
He cut off with a yelp when Secret Agent leaned down and nuzzled into his neck. Secretary tried to push them away but Agent refused to budge.
They tilted their face to look him straight in the eye, "Answer my question."
Secretary looked away from the contact, hands falling to help him brace against the counter. "I don't know what you're talking about."
Agent let out a breath, a mix or amusement and irritation that Secretary felt directly against their neck, "No? You're not wondering why I'm here right now?"
He was. Secretary knew that Agent loathed to be away from Intern during work hours, hiding whatever real feelings they felt under the pretense of "worrying about anomaly attacks". It was rare for them to willingly leave Intern alone, even if there was nothing they could do. Rarer, still, for him to show such a sappy display publicly at work when anyone could walk in.
"I don't care about your business. I was resting fine until you walked in," Secretary lied, flinching when he felt something soft and wet touch his neck for a second.
"What the hell—" he pulled Secret Agent away from his neck, holding their head away and glaring up at them. "What is wrong with you!?"
Secret agent blinked lazily down at him, their tail flicking slowly.
"I didn't do anything." They lied calmly, lips twitching at whatever expression graced Secretary's face.
"Intern said my hovering was stressing them out," Agent said suddenly, changing topics before Secretary could find the words to yell at them. "Yelled at me and said if I wasn't gonna help, I should leave." They continue, ears flicking back in sadness at the memory. "They're probably gonna feel so guilty later…you should add that to your report; They lash out when stressed."
That answered Secretary's unasked question, but ruined his mood in return.
"I'm not here because I want to be." is basically what Secret Agent just told him.
He should've already guessed it anyway, why would he be here by choice? It's not like…before.
"Well, you're bothering me now," Secretary said coldly, arm falling away from Secret Agent's head to wrap around himself.
Agents eyes refocused, mind leaving the memory and coming back to the present, filling with mirth when they looked down at Secretary.
"Why are you angry right now?"
Idiot.
"Didn't you hear me? You're bothering me."
Agent leans down, forcing Secretary to lean back, trying to keep the distance.
"Mm…" Secret Agent inspects Secretary's face, "Are you jealous again?"
It's the way they say it, amusement lining every inch of their body, like Secretary's emotions are just for their own entertainment.
Secretary tries shoving them back again, arms pushing at their shoulders and managing to make them shift backwards a bit so he can have some space.
"Be quiet." He mumbles, cheeks heating up in embarrassment at the way Secretary continues to stare at them, gleeful.
Before anything else can be said, the sound of hurried footsteps echo from down the hall.
The effect is immediate; Secret Agent backs up quickly, guard going back up and whatever lingering softness that was there gets hidden again. Secretary stands straighter, still reeling from the sudden change in emotions when the door creeks open and Intern walks in looking hurried.
They truly look like they're at their wits end, heading straight for the coffee machine, filling the cup, and gulping the scalding liquid down. Secretary wonders, a bit meanly, what their reaction would have been if the coffee was still brewing.
He takes the time to analyze Intern, the way its body shakes silently and how defeated their posture is. There's a tired look when it turns around and faces them, looking between them but not seeming to actually take anything in. Any pity Secretary would've felt for it is dimmed after the recent revelations, so he just offers an empty gaze at it, already typing up the behavior report in his mind.
"How's it going?" He asks, prodding for more information under the guise of checking in.
Intern's ears keep twitching, definitely unintentional. Secretary adds that to the report he's making in his head.
"T-tired…" Intern answers honestly, sounding as worn down as they look.
"A-Are you both r-really busy? I could use s-some help," They continue, looking up pleadingly at both of them.
The stuttering is new too, making them sound fragile in a way Secretary isn't used to.
This way, Secretary can see what endears Secret Agent to it. The pleading, desperate, and naive look makes Secretary want to coddle it, give it one of the head pats it's so fond of. The guilty look it keeps shooting at Agent can be endearing too, if he ignores how irritated the cause of it makes him.
Secret Agent's earlier irritation is back, clearly wanting to assure Intern he can help but not wanting to go against direct orders.
Secretary checks the time. 3 in the morning. That should be long enough for the experiment. The lie about paperwork dies on his tongue and he offers a brief smile. "Sure I can help, I'm basically done here."
The relief is palpable on Intern's face. Secretary sees the way Secret Agent perks up in his periphery and continues before they can speak, "Agent can stay here incase someone else comes to check in or we have an emergency."
Intern is too caught up in their relief to see the way Agent's head turns glare at Secretary. Of course, all his previous attempts at angering them didn't do anything, but stopping them from hanging around Intern for a few minutes earned him all of Agent's scorn. He scoffs to himself as he follows Intern out the door, not bothering to turn and enjoy the anger on Secret Agent's face.