His fingers fidgeted with each other, repeatedly trying to crack his knuckles but nothing. He was clearly nervous. Nervous about what? Well, anything going wrong really. Or maybe looking silly in the others eyes. Ashley had told him she liked the idea, that it was romantic and that he would like it. He continued to smooth over the fine material of his suit. A classic kind of suit, not the newer fashions that filled every store these days.
Rather than the typical tie, he got a bowtie. That one was Jokers idea. He still wasn’t sure about it but in a situation like this, he would gladly take others advice on this. As much as a romantic as James considered himself, he knew he had to do something really nice on Steves birthday.
He paced around the room several times, going over what he was going to say in his head. Every little noise outside alerted James then failed him as it wasn’t Steve. Until finally, catching him nearly by surprise, the hissing of the door sliding open, he came to attention and stiffed. A nervous smile, still however very genuine and warm, slipped over his lips,
" Feliz cumplanos, Esteban.
I um… wanted to take you out to dinner but… “
He made a vague motion to himself.
" I…didn’t think this out when I was putting this out and you know —
you just came back from work… ” There was a faint red on his cheeks.
There was a clink from his hands. A small box with a bow on it clutched in his rough hands. Inside was a memento. A kind of locket that when you opened it, a small holographic image would show on the doors of it. It could fit two pictures but there was only one before. A picture of James and his uncle before he left for the marines. It was given to him before he left as a way to remember him. The other spot was now occupied by a picture of James and Steve back when they worked on the Normandy.
James opened his mouth to say something but nothing. Instead, he just wordlessly held it out.
" I would’ve given you something a little more practical but…
I thought you might like it. It’s a bit old but it means a lot to me. “
Steve didn’t speak for a good amount of time after James approached him with his gift. First it was because he was caught off guard by finding the big marine standing there all dressed up. Before he could make a comment about it, however, Vega had started in on his little spiel.
It was cute. It was endearing. Most importantly, like the gift, it was heartfelt.
Steve was smiling hard as he closed the distance between them. He reached out and brought his arms around Vega’s torso and pulled him in close for a hug.
"Thank you," he muttered more quietly than he needed, considering they were alone, "I really appreciate it. I understand how much this means to you- and it means just as much to me, trust me."
He pulled back enough from the embrace to look at James. He wasn’t going to cry but he was definitely touched enough that he might’ve seen a bit misty-eyed.
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