This is one of those āI thought about making this a WIP but I simply have Too Much⢠going on so Iām going to make it Gabeās problem insteadā š¤·
Human au, Hob and fem!Dream work together as professors. Hob is absolutely smitten, and Dream flirts back but seems hesitant to go any farther than that.
Then one day, Roderick Burgess shows up and sees Dream as sheās walking with Hob, and very loudly calls out for āMr. Endlessā.
Dream freezes, goes alarmingly pale, starts stammering about āitās Miss Endl- I mean, itās Dr. Endless, I-ā while Burgess talks over her about how he remembers āāāhimāāā from when āāāheāāā was a student in one of Burgessā classes and heās stunned they let someone like āāāhimāāā around students.
Hob will cheerfully admit to not being the brightest bulb in the box despite being a professor, but he understands immediately what is happening. Dream is trans, and this fucking asshole just outed her in front of a complete stranger.
Needless to say, Hob breaks his nose.
Itās a whole thing with security, but luckily every witness (Lucienne, Matthew, Jessamy, etc) is a full ally and they all insist that actually Burgess started it and Hob was merely acting in self-defense, so Hob is in the clear while Burgess gets banned from campus.
Dream ran off just before Hob laid Burgess out flat, and once everything gets cleared up he immediately goes to find her. Sheās barricaded in her office, and while Hob tries to check on her she starts talking through the door, clearly crying, explaining that she didnāt mean to āāādeceiveāāā Hob with her flirting, and please donāt be mad at her, sheāll just quit or transfer somewhere or-
Hob gently cuts her off, lets her know she has nothing to be afraid of. Heās so sorry she didnāt get to tell him herself, but it doesnāt change anything. Sheās still wildly out of his league and heās still head over heels. Dream hesitantly cracks the door open, tear streaked and sniffling, and asks if Hob means it. Hob continues reassuring her, filter fully gone as he admits to how heās been trying and failing to work up the courage to ask her out.
Dream giggles, and admits that she wanted to ask him out too, but was scared of telling him she was trans. Hob smiles, strokes her cheek, and asks if he can kiss her. Things progress⦠rapidly from there, lol.
Needles to say, they become official before the first date even happens. š
Crying over this, actually, Trans ally, bigot punching, best boyfriend ever Hob <3 He is, of course, the ultimate golden retriever boyfriend. But he is also very much Dreamās Scary Dog. He walks the corridors behind her, glaring at anyone who so much as glances at her in the wrong way. Any hint of nasty talk about Dream is immediately snuffed out - doesn't matter if it's students or fellow staff, Hob is immediately inserting himself into their personal space and asking exactly what they've been saying about his beautiful talented genius girlfriend?
Dream thinks it's all a bit unnecessary, she doesn't need protecting. But she also doesn't tell Hob to stop, because it is rather nice to have someone in her corner. It's also quite sexy to see him getting so protective. Dream has never had a partner like that before, and it definitely pleases her. Especially because Hob always comes to pick her up from her office at the end of the day with the sweetest smile on his face. He's nothing but a lovely, gentle, caring man...
...and he will break as many noses as he needs, for his beautiful, amazing Dream.