Work Text:
Ted lay down on his couch, staring blankly at the ceiling. It had been weeks after he had been stuck in Melissa's house, forced to be her dog, and he had nearly died, it was no surprise he had been traumatised.
Paul would be coming over in a few minutes. Five o’clock had already passed and usually Paul would be able to visit at half past. It was currently twenty seven minutes past five.
Paul had visited every day since the two got out of the hospital. It would seem the traumatic experience brought them closer together.
Ted sat up eagerly as he listened to the familiar sound of the extra set of keys Paul had been given in the front door.
“Hey! I'm back!” Paul announced his arrival despite not really needing to.
“Hi, Paul.”
Paul sat down next to his coworker.
“Have you been okay today?”
“Oh, yeah, totally.” When did a little white lie ever hurt anyone?
Paul sighed. He could tell immediately that Ted wasn't telling the truth. There was no point in trying to get him to share how he was actually feeling, though.
“What did you do today while I was at work?” Paul asked, trying to let go of the question about Ted's mental state.
“Well, I took a walk to calm myself down but other than that I just stayed at home.”
Paul covered his eyes with an exasperated hand. “Ted. You can't keep doing this.”
Ted scoffed as if he didn't know what Paul was referring to. “Doing what?”
“You can't keep staying home. I think you should come back to work. Hell, even Bill's starting to miss you.”
Oh, yeah. Ted still technically had a job.
“Who's Mr Davidson’s new secretary?”
“Are you not gonna acknowledge what I just said?” Paul was starting to get annoyed at Ted's tendency to not listen.
“Just tell me.”
“He hasn't found a new one yet. For now, Charlotte's doing the job until Mr Davidson gets a new hire.”
Ted nodded, too scared to say what he wanted to say next.
Now, Ted and Paul were stuck listening to the dreadful noise of the clock ticking and the hum of the fridge and the faucet dripping every five seconds or so.
“I'm gonna go,” Paul said, standing up, ready to head over to the door.
“No. Stay. Please.”
Paul sat back down letting out a noise akin to the sound a confused cat would make.
“Do you think Melissa partially convinced you you were actually a cat?” Ted asked Paul, who was eager to listen.
“Maybe? I don't know. Why?”
Ted stared at the floor, worried about looking at Paul when he continued. “I guess I think that may have happened to me. My brain feels more dog-like now. That's why I go on walks now. They make me feel better whenever I feel like I'm terrible at being a human. By embracing the dog part of me, it makes it somehow acceptable that I don't feel human sometimes.”
Paul sat, pondering for a minute before nodding. “I get what you mean now. I guess it's probably a trauma response. The dehumanisation just got to our heads.”
Ted laughed at Paul's use of words. “And I guess we've got a nerd on our hands.”
“Shut up.” But Paul didn't sound mean-spirited. He even ended up laughing at himself a few seconds later.
“I think I might go back to work next week,” Ted stated, out of the blue. “What do you think?”
“Yeah. All of us at the office would appreciate it.”
“You sure it wouldn't just be you?” Ted grinned, knowing what he said would get on Paul's nerves.
Paul shook his head in slight annoyance, but smiled, and if Ted listened carefully, it sounded like Paul was purring.
“Hey. How can you purr?”
Paul clearly hadn't noticed the noise he was making but still answered accordingly. “Oh, I taught myself how to for Melissa. It's not a true purr, of course, but it's a good impression, I think.”
“It is,” Ted agreed. Then, he muttered, “it's kinda cute.”
“Mm?”
“Nothing!” Ted refused to repeat his opinion just to save himself from the embarrassment. “How about you come to the park with me?”
“But you already did that today?”
“But I didn't do it with you. Plus it might be nicer when it's darker.”
Paul stood up, dragging Ted up with him by the wrist.
The two men, cat and dog, smiled at each other before setting off, out of the house Ted had trapped himself in.