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after another long—extremely exhausting—day at work, scaramouche didn’t expect to arrive home and immediately be met with a mouthwatering aroma as soon as he stepped into his flat.
shutting his front door behind him, he can hear faint humming from a distance. he quirked up an eyebrow as he took his coat off before replacing his shoes with a pair of slippers. he then sluggishly began to follow the sound of humming and that strong delicious smell.
when scaramouche reached his destination, which was the kitchen, he was immediately filled with warmth at the sight; his boyfriend, childe, was busy at the stove, humming carelessly—very obviously in his own little world. on the counter next to him, there’s a variety of ingredients messily spread about. scaramouche then looked to the kitchen table, where chopsticks and two bowls of miso soup have already been placed.
with a full heart, he leaned against the doorframe and watched childe’s back in awe for a few moments before he was finally noticed.
“‘mouche!” childe exclaimed after turning around, his eyes slightly widening. he then smiled warmly. “you’re just in time for dinner,” in his hands, he held a plate of inazuman dumplings with two small servings of dipping sauce. “i made gyoza and miso soup.” he told him.
childe placed the plate of gyoza on the centre of the table before approaching scaramouche and leaning down to kiss him softly.
“it smells amazing.” scaramouche said after their lips parted. “what’s the occasion?” he questioned as he sat down.
“there’s no occasion. i just wanted to surprise my very hardworking boyfriend with dinner.” childe answered simply as he took his seat from across scaramouche. “also, you mentioned that you were craving gyoza the other day.”
archons above, scaramouche thought as his face grew warm. i don’t deserve you.
“cheesy ass.” he murmured before glancing over at the plate of gyoza. he then leaned over to grab one of the small crescent-shaped delicacies with his chopsticks.
“considerate cheesy ass.” childe corrected him with a cheeky grin.
after dinner, scaramouche was a very satisfied man. his boyfriend did not disappoint, as the gyoza was next to perfect. he made a silent agreement with himself that childe was to be his own personal chef.
now sitting on his very comfy couch with childe by his side, and no longer in his work clothes, he cuddles into his boyfriend’s warmth as he watches him scroll through an array of movie titles on the tv screen.
“whaddya feel like watching, ‘mouche?”
“i don’t care as long as it doesn’t bore me.” scaramouche honestly answers. “i do like rom-coms and psychological thrillers though.”
“rom-coms? you’re telling me the zapolynary palace’s scariest diplomat likes romantic comedies?” childe teases.
scaramouche nudges his shoulder. “and psychological thrillers.” he adds with a pointed tone. “also, everyone likes romantic comedies, dummy.”
he feels childe shrug. “meh. i’m more of an action and horror guy.”
“wow, so surprising.”
ten minutes of bickering over what movie they should watch later…
of course, scaramouche won every argument.
when the movie starts, he’s smiling smugly while childe silently pouts beside him.
scaramouches finds himself very invested in the relationship between the movie’s main couple. both of them are almost complete opposites of the other, yet their chemistry is so good. he crosses his arms over his chest.
“i don’t get it.” he muses as a scene of the two leads having a disagreement plays. “i personally would never be able to date someone who is the complete opposite of me.”
“…but scara, aren’t we kind of opposites?”
scaramouche pauses. oh.
he’s never really thought about it. honestly, he didn’t reflect much on their relationship to begin with. he knows he likes childe enough to date him, isn’t that all that matters?
he lifts up his head to size-up childe, who is a little too invested in the dramatic scene that’s playing to notice his studious eyes.
on a surface level, he can admit that he and childe are pretty different. childe is warm and big-hearted. scaramouche is cold and stone-hearted. but it’s not like they’re complete opposites. for example, they are both very talkative, which is one of the many reasons why scaramouche likes being with childe. he can talk to him freely without sugar-coding words, and childe does the same with him. (and that’s just an example of many).
“we’re not that different.” scaramouche decides, gaze still glued onto childe.
“i think so too, actually.” childe agrees, eyes still focused on the tv. “but i like our little differences,” their gazes finally meet. childe smiles at him. “because of them, we never have any dull moments. a relationship like ours is very fitting for you and i as individuals, don’t you think?”
staring into those soft azure eyes, scaramouche realizes something, and an internal dread sets in.
he’s in love with childe.
he tears his eyes away from childe’s. his heartbeat quickening all of the sudden. “yeah.” he answers with a small nod of his head. “anyway, enough talking. i’m trying to watch.”
“hey, you’re the one who started talking first.” childe half-heartedly defends himself.
“and who replied?” scaramouche retaliates.
childe kind of laughs. “…you know, i think we’d make a very good rom-com couple.”
and so, an hour later, the movie comes to an end. scaramouche is pleased with the ending. as it turns out, the two leads had a lot more in common than they thought. they made their interesting dynamic work as a romantic relationship and lived happily ever after.
also, watching the movie allowed scaramouche to not acknowledge his sudden love epiphany. now that it’s over, he has no choice but to dwell on it, but he doesn’t want to, like, he really doesn’t want to.
for the record, childe is not the problem here. scaramouche, himself, is the problem, and he’s well aware of it. after all, he’s never been one for ooey-gooey feelings like romantic love—in general, feelings such as adoration, desire, and the like didn’t come easy to him. so, he’s not sure how to go about this type of thing. actually, he kind of finds it a bit embarrassing. he’s twenty-six years old and still so ignorant of such things. (oh, gods, he finds himself thinking with overwhelming dread. my twenty year old boyfriend probably knows more about relationships than i do.)
now if he were alone, scaramouche probably would have let out a very loud groan of frustration at his stupid brain for thinking too much, but seeing as he isn’t, he swallows it.
“want to watch another?” he asks childe, who is typing away on his phone, probably writing a review of the movie they just watched on letterboxd or something.
putting his phone away, childe sends scaramouche an apologetic smile. “sorry, ‘mouche, i’ve got an exam tomorrow so i have to go back to my place and study.”
scaramouche checks his watch, and then looks back at childe, his eyes narrowing. “gods, childe, it’s one in the morning. doesn’t your class start at six? you’ve been here for hours when you should have been studying…”
childe impishly chuckles, scratching his head. “well, i had planned to go after dinner but then we started cuddling… and it just completely slipped my mind.” he explains indifferently. “plus, i’d much rather spend my precious time with you than to use it to study.”
scaramouche feels the tips of his ears begin to burn. he sighs. “a uni student shouldn’t be prioritizing their relationship over their education.” he scolds childe.
“i don’t prioritize our relationship, i prioritize you.” childe corrects him. “don’t think i haven’t noticed that your work has been taking a toll on you these days.” he says tightly, voice raising. “you’re noticeably skinnier and paler, you’re always exhausted when we talk on the phone, oh and you’re much crabbier than normal. so, yeah, i’ll gladly prioritize you and your wellbeing over my education because i care about you!” he finishes, almost out of breath.
scaramouche stares at him blankly, unable to respond because he’s much too busy thinking that his heart may have just grew three sizes from only hearing childe say he cares about him.
at scaramouche’s lack of reaction, childe averts his eyes. “i’m—sorry, i don’t know why that set me off. i’m a little tired myself.” he says, his voice is calm again. “but i meant what i said. you mean a lot to me, ‘mouche, so it sucks seeing you so exhausted all the time. i know i probably just sound like an overbearing boyfriend at this point but—“
“thank you.” scaramouche says. “thank you for going out of your way to make me dinner today, for keeping me company at your own expense, and for… caring about me that much.” he tells him softly, his left hand lifting to cup the other’s freckled cheek. “i really don’t deserve you, ajax.”
while scaramouche was calm on the outside, the reality was that his brain was currently on the brink of a meltdown. he couldn’t believe what he was hearing himself say, and that he genuinely meant every word. he was sorry for unknowingly burdening childe. he really did think he was undeserving of childe’s kindness. and yes, he did just call him by his real name!
from the looks of it, childe is also taken aback by scaramouche’s sudden softness. he blinks a couple of times, staring back at him, speechless.
and then he goes tomato red.
“you just called me ajax—you’ve never said my name before.” he states the obvious, like he’s still processing it.
oh, stars. scaramouche wants to kiss him so badly in that moment. i really do love this idiot.
instead, he retracts his hand back, clearing his throat quietly. “i was just caught up in the moment, that’s all.” he tries to speak as collectedly as he can. “now stop making it a big deal or i’ll never say it again.”
childe seemingly takes his threat very seriously because in seconds he’s back to his normal demeanour, grinning a very pleased grin.
“okay, okay. then i should get going.” he says. “however, i do have one small request…”
“you want to hear me say it again, don’t you?”
“yes, please.”
for a moment that feels like an hour, they just stare at each other silence.
“fine.” scaramouche sits up straight, and that’s when it hits him—he can tell childe how he feels.
does he truly want to though? what if childe doesn’t even feel same way—not that he needs to, it’s just that if scaramouche confesses and doesn’t get an “i love you too” in response, he’ll likely disintegrate into thin air right then and there out of pure embarrassment.
…well, he’s already embarrassed himself a lot tonight. what’s he got to lose?
as he clears his throat, childe watches him with expectant eyes.
“ajax,” he says slowly, and when childe breaks out into a grin, he feels like his heart almost bursts at the sight. “…i love you.” he manages out.
childe stills in his spot, his bright smile dimming. he looks confused. “wh—scar’, are you teasing me?”
starting to feel faintly dizzy, scaramouche shakes his head. “no, i’m not.” he denies quickly. “i love you, childe—ajax—whatever you want me to call you right now.”
childe practically jumps scaramouche after he finishes speaking, planting a gigantic, totally unsexy wet kiss onto his lips.
he parts away to rest his forehead against scaramouche’s. “i love you too, scaramouche.” he says with a gentle smile. “you don’t know how long i’ve been wanting to tell you that.”
scaramouche feels like he’s on cloud 9. he’s so happy that it unnerves him—he’s never been this elated before.
maybe he can do this whole love thing…
“oh, wait!” childe pulls back, separating their foreheads. “‘mouche, what’s your real name?” when scaramouche tilts his head, childe rolls his eyes. “come on, you don’t really expect me to believe your birth name is actually scaramouche, do you?”
“…kunikuzushi.” scaramouche answers him plainly, looking a little bit embarrassed as he spoke. “it’s a mouthful, i know.”
“then…” childe looks prideful for a brief moment. “i love you, kunikuzushi.”
scaramouche clicks his tongue, feigning an unimpressed look. “you butchered the pronunciation. very unromantic.”
“you’re the unromantic one!”