Work Text:
It was a rainy Friday night when Dr. Kamishiro, a genius inventor who worked for the government, received a slow knock on his door.
The inventor frowned, he was in the middle of his work. Who could it possibly be at this hour? He glanced at the door before turning his attention back to his work at hand. Whoever it is, they can wait. Rui thought.
This is more important.
A few more seconds passed, before another knock was heard. Rui ignored it once more.
Then another. The inventor sighed.
" Fine... " He grumbled to himself, setting down his screwdriver and pushing himself off the cluttered table. " Coming! " He called out, not even trying to hide his mild annoyance.
Rui pulled down his goggles, " This better be worth my time... " he mumbled unhappily, approaching the door. It unlocked with a soft click and he placed his fingers on the knob.
A sigh escaped his lips as he turned the knob, pulling open his door and— " Tsukasa-kun? What are you doing here...? " Rui's expression changed in half a second.
Tired, amber eyes were staring back at him.Tsukasa.
" Rui... " The young soldier muttered the inventor's name, the fondness he had for that name was clear. " You really need to work on not hating people so much, " Tsukasa chuckled softly as he smiled softly. " I've been waiting here for a good while now, Mr. Genius Inventor, " He eyed Rui, who was still somewhat shocked at Tsukasa's presence.
" Ah... Tsukasa-kun… " Rui chuckled awkwardly as he quickly welcomed in the soldier, who seemed both battered and exhausted. " I wasn't expecting to see you today, " he closed the door shut behind them before he led the young soldier to his couch. " What... brings you here today? " he asks, still at a loss for words.
Tsukasa sat down, his body creaking unusually loud. " Can't I just come back home to visit my lover? " He smiles weakly, slowly raising one of his mechanical hands to cup Rui's cheek.
Rui's face flushed with red, " Of course you can Tsukasa, but— " Tsukasa places a soft kiss on his lips. Gentle, warm, loving.
" I've missed you, Rui, " Tsukasa whispers into the kiss, their foreheads now touching. His voice filled with a longing, and pure, unfiltered love. " I've missed you, so, so much, " His words sink in, and Rui is hit with the reality he's been running away from for what has been almost months now.
Tears form in the inventor's eyes, and he can't help but smile. " I've missed you too, Tsukasa-kun, " their lips meet again, and Tsukasa hums softly as he takes in the familiar warmth he's dreamt of for months now.
The two break into a soft kind of laughter once their lips part again, one thats only heard within these walls. The genius inventor and the army's greatest soldier.
" How long has it been now? " Rui takes off the tall cap the young soldier was wearing, " It seems like I've lost track of time," his fingers comb through the blond hair, and the tight braid begins to come undone.
Tsukasa sighs, smiling as he lets his metal fingers glide down to Rui's waist. " Of course you have, " He pulls Rui closer, desperate to soak in more of his lover's warmth. " 360 days now, since I last saw you, " Tsukasa's hot breath blows across Rui's skin.
" That's a long time huh? " Tsukasa lets himself fall into Rui's embrace, " Almost a year now, " Rui presses a kiss into the shell of Tsukasa's ear. He nods.
The hug lasts for a while, before Rui pulls away after what seems like years worth of making up for lost time. But it's simply not, it's still not enough.
But that's all they can have, for now.
Rui glances at Tsukasa, from head to toe. His clothes were worn out and his frame lighter than before. His partially mechanical body creaked with the sound of overuse, and Rui sighed, his heart ached.
No matter how many times he fixed and repaired Tsukasa's body, his beloved soldier would still come back to him battered and bruised.
" Take off your clothes, " Rui sighed as he ran his fingers through messy, purple hair. " I need to see your body, " He stepped back, allowing Tsukasa the space to remove his clothes.
Tsukasa simply blinked at Rui, a soft blush rising to his cheeks as he took in Rui's face, his hair and his frame.
" I knew you missed me, " Tsukasa's eyes met Rui's, " but not this much, " and the inventor sighs as he turns away from the soldier.
" Just do it will you? " Rui walked over to his work station, and set the prototype he was working on aside. " Your body sounds damaged, I need to check it out, " His ears begin to turn slightly red as he hears a soft chuckling from behind him alongside the shuffling of clothes.
" It's my job. "
A few moments quickly passed and Tsukasa had completely discarded everything he wore except for his pants.
" Done, " His voice comes from behind Rui, who turns around to face the soldier. His entire top body seemed to be made up of mechanical parts, with only a few patches of skin showing through the brass parts.
Rui sighed as he stepped closer to Tsukasa, gently placing his hands on the hard, cold metal. " At least your chest plate seems like it's doing well, " He exhaled, relief washing through his body as he placed his hand right above Tsukasa's heart. " Your heart's still beating. That's good, " Rui gently presses his palm into the metal, the faint beat of the heart vibrating against Rui's hand.
Tsukasa chuckled, his laughter light. " Of course it's still beating, you were the one that made it, " His arms move to wrap around Rui's neck, but the inventor stops and grabs his wrist.
" That doesn't mean it's invincible, Tsukasa. " Rui scolds, a frown on his face as he places Tsukasa's arms down to his side. " And, I only made the mechanism that helps it to continue beating, the heart itself is still yours, " the inventor sighs, before he leans in to take a closer look at Tsukasa's arms.
" Your arms, what happened? " Rui's frown tightened as he gently lifted and dropped the prosthetic. " It sounds like someone ripped it off and sloppily reattached it, " Tsukasa chuckles nervously as he eyes trail Rui’s hand.
Rui's eyes glanced back up at Tsukasa, the inventor raising an eyebrow as he looked at the soldier. Rui dropped the prosthetic arm and sighed, tired.
" Tsukasa-kun, what happened? "
"Ah... " The blond averted his eyes and pursed his lips. " So... someone may have cut off my arm... " Tsukasa mumbled softly, his hands moving to grasp Rui's; whose face paled slightly, " And I had to end up scavenging for parts to screw it back on... " Tsukasa's eyes can't help but to take a quick glance at Rui.
The purple-haired inventor sighs after a moment of silence, the exasperation evident on his face despite him trying to hide it. " I... they... " Rui walked over to his desk, picking up a screwdriver. " They should've sent you back right after it happened... " His voice was laced with disappointment. " This is going to take a while to fix... " He frowned, gently unscrewing the bolts that kept the prosthetic securely onto the blond.
“ How bad is it? ” Tsukasa asks, his eyes trailing behind Rui's hand as he ever so gently removes the metal arm, revealing the soft skin beneath.
Rui quickly takes a glance at the prosthetic as he sets it down on his desk. " It's fixable... " He puts on his goggles and hums, sitting down on his chair. " I have a spare arm for you in the cabinet, you can use it while I fix this one, " Rui gestures towards a metal cabinet towards the corner of the room.
Tsukasa hums, " You really do have everything, huh? ' The soldier looks around the messy studio, metal scraps and abandoned projects strewn about the inventor's room. " Just when was the last time you even tidied this place up? " Tsukasa sighs fondly, carefully stepping as he makes his way to the cabinet.
Rui hummed, dismissing Tsukasa's question with a simple shrug, hoping that it'd get the soldier off his case. But alas, Rui himself knows it has never worked and therefore had no reason to work this time.
" You... " Tsukasa shakes his head as he opens the cabinet, " How do you even live like this man...? " The spare Rui was talking about tucked safely behind all the other replacements the inventor needed.
Rui shrugs once more, and Tsukasa sighs as he carefully walks back over to sit down at Rui's bed— which was really just a couch that had pillows and a blanket.
" Rui, " Tsukasa called out to the inventor, picking up and hugging the pillow on the couch. " Have you been sleeping in your lab again? When was the last time you actually went to bed? " The blond soldier buried his nose into the pillow, taking in the scent as his eyes remained fixed on his lover.
Rui didn't reply. Tsukasa sighs.
" Fine. " Tsukasa says curtly, gently placing the pillow back down onto the couch. " Don't answer me then, " He pulls the pillow closer to him, " I'll just leave. " Tsukasa gets ready to stand up before—
" A few months, at least, " Rui replies in a soft voice, Tsukasa grins to himself as he allows his body to sink back down into the plush couch. Finally, he's admitting it, he thinks to himself.
He sighs and hugs the pillow once more.
" Rui, how many times have I told you to go to bed to sleep? " Tsukasa tells his lover off, his brows furrowing as he glared at the inventor's back. " This is why your back keeps hurting, you keep sleeping in your lab, " The soldier shakes his head and sighs, contemplating if he should walk over to tell the inventor off even more.
A few moments pass in silence before Rui breaks it.
" Our bed doesn't feel like our bed if you're not in it with me, " Rui says— almost monotone— as he attempts to hide the loneliness in his voice. " I can't stand waking up everyday and realizing that I'm sleeping next to a ghost, " He sets his screwdriver down and tugs on his goggles.
Tsukasa's eyes trail down, his near mechanical heart cracking at the words coming out of Rui's mouth.
A pause.
" I'm— "
Rui sighs, annoyed. " I can't fix this today, " he pushes himself away from his desk and groans. " I don't have enough parts, " He shakes his head and looks at Tsukasa, eyes still downcast.
His expression softens tremendously, and the inventor walks over to the soldier, his heart hammering in his chest.
" Don't say sorry Tsukasa-kun, please. I-I... " words fail Rui as he slowly pulls Tsukasa into another hug. " It's not your fault, I just... I just miss you, " Rui feels a cold metal press against his skin as he pulls Tsukasa into the hug, a painful reminder of what the blond had already lost and all the pain he's already gone through.
Ahh... and here I am thinking about being lonely... How selfish could I possibly be...?
Rui purses his lips as he pulls away from the hug, his hands still lingering on Tsukasa's body.
" Don't... say sorry... " Rui mumbled again, quieter this time as he looked at Tsukasa. His hand trails down to his chest once more, and it presses itself gently agaisnt the cold metal.
A heartbeat. A steady, clear, heartbeat. Tsukasa's heartbeat; strong, alive, yet tired. But it was a heartbeat nonetheless. And as long as that heart kept beating, Tsukasa would be alive.
And that was all Rui needed.
Not for Tsukasa to be with him every night, and not for Tsukasa to hug him to sleep every night. Not for Tsukasa to be with Rui when he wakes up in the morning, or for Tsukasa to sit and chat with him as Rui worked.
All he needed was for Tsukasa to stay alive.
That would be enough.
" Just promise me that no matter what, you'll always come back home to me, okay? " Rui blinked away the tears in his eyes as he lifted his head up to meet Tsukasa's eyes.
Tsukasa's amber eyes are glossy, just like Rui's. His lips are flat, and his breathing light. And for a moment, Rui thinks Tsukasa might just decline, telling him that he would try his best but nothing is certain on the battlefield.
But Tsukasa smiles softly the next moment, a smile that's somehow able to sweep away all of Rui's worries.
The soldier picks up Rui's hand and brings his palm up to his lips. " I will always come back to you Rui, " Tsukasa mumbles before pressing the softest, most gentle kiss onto it.
" Always. "
Rui's heart skips a beat at the action, and his blood begins to rush to his face. He hesitantly retracts his hand and turns away from Tsukasa.
" Anyways... lets go to bed for now... " Rui sighs, letting out a breath of air he didn't even know he was holding. " If that bed remains empty for any longer, I fear that it might start collecting dust, "
And its when he's about to turn and leave does he feel a cold, metal hand grab his. Yet the words that leave Tsukasa's lips are the warmest, most comforting words on the planet.
" I love you, Rui, " Tsukasa says, his voice soft, tender, and warm.
Rui smiles, and his warm fingers slot between the cold ones perfectly, just like they did back when they were still warm like his.
He turns back, and a priceless smile is on Rui's face.
" I love you too, Tsukasa, "