Chapter Text
Viktor thought he had Jayce Talis figured out on the first day they met — in Jayce’s mess of a lab, with half of it blown up and the other half seized by the enforcers and taken away to be disposed of — when he reached out to him, rune bracelet in hand.
An offering of some sorts — pleading for Jayce to take a step away from the ledge, to not let his hopes and dreams disappear with him forever in such a wasteful act, but to stand by Viktor’s side instead and let him keep Jayce company for as long as he will be allowed.
And when Jayce reaches out to him in return, his hand gently taking the bracelet from Viktor, their fingers brushing together — Jayce lets his touch linger for one second longer, takes in the comfort of it, looks into Viktor’s golden eyes and promises himself he will try again.
Viktor thought he had Jayce Talis, his new partner and friend, figured out ever since they first met a month ago.
And yet, Jayce seems to find new ways to surprise Viktor, to throw him off balance in ways that make Viktor’s head spin and heart miss a few beats. He’s never met anyone as endearingly infuriating as Jayce ever before in his life.
Ever since their gamble with Hextech worked out and they successfully managed to win over the influential support of Mel Medarda, they’ve been spending all their time in their new lab together, working on equations and countless tests late into the night, sometimes even resorting to pulling an all-nighter — just to see if their newfound discoveries for the day have payed off. Which meant that, apart from the few hours they reserved for some well-needed rest, Viktor’s been spending all his time and days together with Jayce in the same room.
Sweet sweet Jayce — who offered him a kind smile whenever Viktor walked into the lab early in the morning, who came back with two cups of coffee just in case, held the door for him whenever they left the room together, and countless amount of other little things that made Viktor fond of Jayce more and more.
Kind, thoughtful Jayce, who brought a small sofa with comfortable cushions from his own apartment for their lab, after he noticed Viktor grimace in pain during one of their all-nighters when his leg ached more than usual.
Handsome Jayce who, as Viktor’s found out, couldn’t stop touching him whenever he got the chance. It started when they first met and the touch of Jayce’s calloused fingers lingered on Viktor’s slender ones for a second too long — and then again when Jayce’s big hand found Viktor’s back whenever he stood next to him in front of their lab board full of their notes and scribbles, and again a day later when Viktor almost jumped in surprise as Jayce’s warm hand patted his shoulder when they’ve made another successful breakthrough regarding their research.
And again and again and again…
And it intrigued Viktor — he wants to test it, push it — just to see how far things would go if they let them happen; if he let Jayce’s touch linger for one second more, squeezed his hand in return, leaned into his touch. But most importantly; Viktor wants, no needs, to see how Jayce would react — see if he even realizes how much he does it, if he’s aware how it makes Viktor feel.
Viktor’s always been more reserved about physical touch, therefore finding Jayce’s acts of physical affection, and the honesty with which he does it, fascinating — it came to Jayce so easily, as if he was made for loving others with no hesitation, no second thoughts, as if he was himself made of love. Being around Jayce made Viktor wish it was as easy for him too — to be so open and vulnerable without the worries of inevitable abandonment creeping into his mind. It also made Viktor wonder sometimes if Jayce had anyone who loved him this much in return. The possibility of Jayce returning from their lab to a cold empty apartment made Victor’s heart hurt for reasons he didn’t want to analyze any further for his own sake.
And so, suddenly their shared Hextech research turns into a different kind of research for Viktor alone — a research with Jayce as the main subject that he so desperately wishes to figure out and understand. And maybe, just maybe, the subject of his research should be him and his own feelings instead, but Viktor quickly decided to push that thought somewhere deep down and not entertain it for the time being.
And this private research of his is how Viktor finds himself in the lab on a particularly long night, Jayce sitting close to him — so close their thighs are practically slotted together, the both of them feeling tired after a long day spent inside their lab. It’s been a few months into their countless calculations and experiments, their Hextech dream coming closer to becoming reality yet again.
Jayce leans into Viktor’s side, grabbing Viktor’s notes from his hands, and starts sorting through them. Another new discovery Viktor’s made while sharing a lab with Jayce is that Jayce runs hot.
Extremely hot, like a furnace.
And it’s very distracting this close, even more when there’s barely any distance between them left. Viktor can practically feel the heat from Jayce’s side seeping into his own body through his clothes, flowing through his limbs and veins right into his heart, setting it ablaze like the fire inside the forge Jayce brought him to once, and making him worried he might do something he would regret.
Like lean into Jayce’s touch even more, reach out and touch his face to find out if it’s as warm as the rest of his body, lean in and kiss hi—
“Vik? Are you even listening?” Jayce’s soft voice brings him out of his silly daydream, the borrowed heat moving up from his heart right into his cheeks and the tips of his ears.
Before he can say anything, try to gain control of the situation and make it less awkward for himself, Jayce puts the stack of papers back down onto the table, turning his body on the bench they’ve been sharing for the past hour to face Viktor fully, a concerned look on his face. And the amount of care and worry in Jayce’s eyes makes Viktor feel like he might just die.
“I think we should get some rest, V. We’ve pulled too many all-nighters in here lately and I’m not letting you fall asleep on the desk again.”
And to Viktor’s defence, he was trying to listen to what Jayce was saying, he swears he was, but he was also undeniably tired and Jayce looked so beautiful in the dim lamplight — his amber eyes shining all pretty, his cheeks slightly pink from the warmth of the lab, lips parted and—
Before Viktor could push all the thoughts away and clear his head enough to reply, Jayce suddenly scooted even closer on the bench, his strong fingers gently grabbing Viktor’s chin and tilting his head to the side — rendering Viktor completely still and pushing any remaining coherent thoughts out of his head.
“Viktor, are you okay? You feel hot and your face is all red.” Jayce asks, voice laced with apparent worry, as he studied Viktor’s face, oblivious to the main reason for the state of Viktor.
For fuck’s sake.
Viktor clears his throat and pulls away from Jayce’s distracting touch, just enough to put some distance between them, before he does something truly stupid that he won’t be able to ever take back, and shrugs.
“I feel alright, nothing is wrong, Jayce. There is no need to worry.”
But Jayce is still looking at him with uncertainty in his eyes, and Viktor notices Jayce’s hand is still kind of hovering near him after Viktor’s pulled away from his touch so suddenly.
And Viktor is tired. Therefore he can’t think as reasonably as he probably should, so instead of overthinking it he simply thinks ‘fuck it, why not try’ and wraps a tentative hand around Jayce’s wrist, fingers closing around it in a gentle but firm grip.
Viktor can feel Jayce’s quickening heartbeat pulsing under his fingertips. And it feels right — the risk of it so worth it, if only for the dusting of blush that rises across Jayce’s cheeks and continues down his neck under the collar of his shirt, the tips of his ears red as well. And Viktor can’t help but wonder how much further down Jayce’s body the blush would lead if he unbuttoned his vest and shirt.
Jayce smiles — a shy gentle smile that makes Viktor’s heart miss a beat yet again — and scoots closer on their shared chair, leaning back into Viktor‘s space as if he belongs there. Viktor can’t stop himself from smiling back in return and then he’s pulling Jayce’s hand close to him again and resting it right on his thigh.
“Did you want to see my notes, Jayce?” Viktor tries his best to make his voice sound as even as possible, so no nervousness from this close proximity shows itself on his face and betrays him.
Jayce’s voice is soft and content when he replies, using his other hand to shuffle through one of their theory books. “I looked through them a bit already, V. Maybe later we could go through my notes for a change, yeah?”
And Viktor — still holding Jayce’s warm hand in his own — isn’t sure what to do now that he took the metaphorical risky step forward, the first move, unsure how to proceed without messing up the mood and what they have in this moment. The air between them is undeniably charged with potential for something more, something Viktor so desperately craves and hopes Jayce craves in return too, and yet the moment also mostly feels calm and safe, comfortable even.
Jayce continues listing through the book with his left hand, his right hand unintentionally turning over in Viktor’s grasp and sliding into Viktor’s own hand, fingers loosely intertwining. Viktor is holding his breath, staring at their hands in disbelief, because Jayce had to know what he was doing… right? And it frustrates Viktor, because he was good at reading people — it was a skill he’s needed and utilized all his life to survive and get to the place he was at now — but Jayce was like a metaphorical puzzle he couldn’t solve, because it felt like a single puzzle piece was missing, and Viktor couldn’t figure out what that last missing piece was.
As days turned into weeks, their research got more intense and demanding and the both of them started spending more and more nights inside the lab than in their own apartments — with the Distinguished Innovators Competition just around the corner, they couldn’t afford to lose time because of something as trivial as sleep, instead resorting to taking turns sleeping on the small sofa Jayce got them for the lab that usually left them feeling grumpy with an achy body.
And tonight is one of those nights — when they’ve spent so many hours in the lab already that time stopped feeling real and they’ve lost track of it, empty mugs with leftover coffee piling up on one end of their work table, stacks of papers full of incomprehensible notes balancing on the other side.
Viktor and Jayce are standing in front of the board, fingers dirty from all the chalk they’ve already used, legs aching from exhaustion. Jayce groans in frustration at one of their calculations he’s been trying to solve for the past few hours and smudges it with his hand, dejected.
“You should take a break, Jayce.” Viktor suggests calmly, stopping his own calculations on the board to turn and look at Jayce, a hint of concern, and something else he doesn’t dare analyze, present in his voice.
Jayce just shakes his head immediately, yawning. “I’m okay, Viktor, just need to finish this equation and it should finally work this time.”
“You said the exact same thing two hours ago already, Jayce.” Viktor counters, turning towards Jayce fully now and giving him a look, calculations on the board forgotten.
Jayce holds his gaze in silent defiance, but inevitably relents under Viktor’s stern but kind stare, putting his chalk down and sighing, hand carding though his messy hair.
“Fine, fine. Just one more hour, please, V? I almost have it. And then I promise to rest.”
Viktor looks at him again. And Jayce looks so pretty when he’s pleading like this — golden eyes big and shiny under their bright lab light, lip pushed out into a pout, eyebrows slightly raised and making him look like a kicked puppy —and Viktor could never say no to him, not when he’s looking at him like this.
With a sigh of defeat, Viktor puts down his chalk for good this time, taking a few steps towards their shared sofa, the pain in his leg impossible to ignore now that his mind isn’t occupied with their research.
“I will take my turn, then.” He rests his cane against the side of the sofa before sitting down, leaning back against the soft cushions and closing his eyes. “Only for an hour.” He mumbles softly, sleep washing over him and pulling him under its spell.
And on the other side of the room, Jayce can‘t seem to look away from him — watching the way his chest rises up and down slowly, the way his lips open slightly when he takes a breath through them, his hands resting softly in his lap. Suddenly every single calculation Jayce’s been working on for hours holds no importance to him now, begging to be left forgotten on the board, replaced in turn by watching Viktor sleep peacefully.
The ache in his chest overwhelms Jayce, the need to sit next to Viktor and hold his hand so sudden and strong, he almost takes a step towards the sofa. Viktor’s asleep and Jayce already misses him, misses his voice and the soft confident look in his eyes whenever he looks at him. Jayce can’t seem to recollect when exactly he started feeling like this towards his partner — finding everything he did so endearing, unable to look away from him whenever he spoke, eyes transfixed on his face and heart beating fast — but then he thinks that maybe— maybe he’s always felt that way, ever since they first met and Viktor’s voice saved him, ever since it became a lifeline for him in the hardest moment of his entire life.
Jayce shakes his head.
Lovesick fool, he thinks, and the ache in his chest morphs from hopeful to sad, akin to heartbreak perhaps, the sudden feelings of foolishness and inevitable loneliness flooding Jayce’s body. Having feelings for his research partner, who was becoming more than just a partner and rather a close friend, wasn’t smart. At all. And the possibility of his feelings suddenly getting in the way of their growing friendship and partnership scared Jayce more than anything. He couldn’t lose this, not when Viktor and his company became such an important part of his life already. And with Caitlyn busy most of the time nowadays, Jayce didn’t have anyone else to spend time with, share his excitement with. Someone who could help him push the impending heavy feelings of loneliness aways just for a bit longer, make him feel like maybe he wasn’t alone and life could feel hopeful again, even if just for a minute.
Borrowed time.
The past few weeks of working with Viktor have been the happiest weeks of Jayce’s life. He’s never felt so seen and understood by someone before. He found himself waking up happy and excited for what the day would bring — looking forward to walking into the lab and seeing Viktor in there already, writing in his notes deep in thought before Jayce sits next to him and hands him his coffee, and then Viktor always looks at him, golden eyes meeting amber, and smiles softly. And Jayce always decides waking up and getting through the day is so worth it, if only to see this smile and hear Viktor say his name in warm greeting. It took only a week of them working together daily for Jayce to quickly realize that Viktor made him feel alive again.
When Viktor wakes up five hours later to a completely dark lab, only the moonlight illuminating the room through a single window, he feels disoriented and more tired than before. He yawns, blinking a few times, waiting for his eyes to adjust to the darkness, when he suddenly realizes there’s something warm holding him and pinning him down into the soft cushions, making it almost impossible for him to move properly.
What the—
Oh.
Jayce.
And suddenly it all makes sense.
This wouldn’t be the first time Jayce’s fallen asleep on the lab sofa after assuring Viktor he wasn’t that tired. Only this was the first time he’s fallen asleep in there along with Viktor.
Viktor sighs, trying to decide what to do in such an unexpected scenario. Jayce’s body is warm against his back, his strong arms wrapped gently around Viktor’s chest and one of his hands tangled into Viktor’s cold one. It’s way too intimate, almost… domestic. And Viktor’s heart aches for this — begs for this to become a daily routine, their routine. It feels so right, like it was meant to be, as if his place has always been in Jayce’s arms.
Viktor shakes his head and sighs, he was getting ahead of himself.
Maybe someday… hopefully. But not now.
For now Viktor will have to stay content with just his own research — the lingering touches, hands patting on shoulders, sitting close to each other — at least until he manages to figure Jayce out, until he makes sure making a move wouldn’t end their friendship forever.
Viktor gently pats Jayce’s arm, untangling their hands, immediately missing the close contact, and tries to pull away from Jayce’s hold.
“Jayce. Jayce, wake up.” Viktor sits up, cornered by Jayce on the small sofa, back pushed into cushions.
“Four more minutes, please.” Jayce mumbles sleepily, turning around on the sofa, and before Viktor realizes what’s happening, Jayce is falling down from the sofa, landing on the cold floor with a loud thud.
“What the— Viktor did you push me?!” Jayce sits up quickly, rubbing his head where it banged against the ground painfully, groaning.
And Viktor — still sitting in the comfort of the sofa — can’t help it, he really can’t. He starts laughing. Cackling, even. Uncontrollably.
He hasn’t laughed this hard in years.
And Jayce can’t bring himself to be mad, a fond smile taking over his face almost instantly, a warm feeling blooming in his chest at the sight of Viktor so happy. He decides he would gladly fall like this a million times over and over, just to see Viktor this happy again.
Viktor shakes his head in disbelief, a content smile on his face as he stands up and props himself up on his cane, his other hand reaching out to Jayce in silent offering.
“Come on, Jayce. Time to get back to work.”
Jayce smiles and takes Viktor’s hand.