Language Barriers
Alexei x Reader
Summary: Falling in love with a slurpee loving Russian is a lot easier than you think, especially given the circumstances.
⚠️All Russian is from Google translate and given an English translation where necessary. Apologies if any of the Russian or the English translations are inaccurate.⚠️
Fluff fluffy fluff fluff
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It had been a couple months since Starcourt Mall had exploded and Hopper was presumed dead.
Hop was your brother and your best friend. You just couldn't bring yourself to continue living in Hawkins after that night, so you packed up everything from your small apartment and moved in with Murray who was unusually happy for the company.
I think more than anything, he was grateful for another person to be a buffer between him and Alexei, who he had been hiding since he had gotten shot at the Hawkins fourth of July fair.
Getting settled in wasn't as difficult as you had thought, it was the job hunt that had you frustrated. Without a college degree or any special skills, the only places available for you to work were restaurants and retail stores.
You were sitting on the couch, filling out a job application and rubbing your temples with a sigh.
"все ли в порядке?" A familiar voice asked from beside you making you jump slightly. "Извините. Я не хотел вас напугать."
Confusion painted itself on your face as you looked up at him.
"I... sorry. I just, don't really know any Russian," you said with a small pout.
His eyes seemed to soften.
"Кажется, ты чем-то напряжён. Что случилось?" He spoke as he studied the application on the table.
You gave him another apologetic look and shrugged, still not able to understand what he was trying to say.
"He's worried about you. He wants to know if you're alright because you seemed stressed out and on edge," Murray explained as he poured himself a vodka on the rocks.
You looked at Murray then back at Alexei who still held that look of concern in his eyes.
"Oh... uhm. I'll be okay. Just worried about finding a job. Can't ride Murray's coat tails forever, y'know?" You said a bit frantically trying to reassure him.
Murray translated to Alexei before slumping into his chair and getting lost in the television.
Alexei grunted in understanding as he placed a comforting hand ontop of your sitting down beside you.
You found yourself getting lost in his facial expressions and thick tousled curls that hung slightly passed his forehead and framed his ears.
Your heart began to race and you swallowed hard as your skin burned from the feeling of his touch.
"Мне очень жаль. Не беспокойся о Мюррее. Я уже от него сижу. Ещё один не повредит. К тому же, ты красивая, так что всё в порядке," he responded with a cheeky grin and a hearty laugh.
"Hey!! Have you forgotten I can understand you?" Murray questioned loudly shaking his drink in Alexei's direction. "The only reason you're not working is because you're an enemy of the country still, remember? And please, I've seen prettier."
"Hey!" You protested.
Your cheeks heated up considerably as you looked away from Alexei who was looking at Murray confused at his yelling.
Murray sighed
"Right... Тебе повезло, что ты не можешь легально работать, иначе бы работал. И если ты действительно хочешь, чтобы она поняла твой комплимент, ты бы сказал: 'I think you're beautiful,' 'Я думаю, ты прекрасна.' Понимать?" (You're lucky you can't legally work, otherwise you'd be working. And if you really wanted her to understand your compliment, you'd say, 'I think you're beautiful.' Understand?)
Now it was Alexei's turn to blush.
More days passed and more applications were filled out, but you remained discouraged.
One night, as you were applying to work at a local supermarket, Alexei sat down on the couch beside you, watching an episode of Tom and Jerry.
Your heart lept when you heard him laugh softly at the antics of the cat and mouse on screen.
You didn't even notice yourself yawning as you tried your hardest not to cave into your own exhaustion.
But Alexei noticed, and before you knew it, he had pulled you close to his chest, taking the pen out of your hand and tossing it onto the coffee table.
"Отдохни. Ты всю неделю заполняешь эти чёртовы бумаги," he commanded gently as he wrapped his arms snuggly around you.
You were so comfortable that you didn't even know if you had the strength to fight back against his warmth.
"Alexei..." You mumbled softly.
"No. Rest. No paper. No. You, rest," he managed to say in very broken English.
"Mhm..." You breathed out before succumbing to a peaceful slumber against the Russian doctor's chest.
Alexei's heart melted as he looked down at your sleeping face. He gently stroked your cheek, moving a piece of hair from your face and tucking it behind your ear.
"Ты любишь ее, не так ли?" (You love her, don't you?) Murray asked as he walked out of the kitchen.
"Shh," Alexei hushed him harshly. "Ты её разбудишь. Ей нужно поспать." (You're going to wake her up. She needs to sleep.)
"Как вы вообще можете знать, что ни один из вас не говорит на языке другого?" (How do you even know when neither one of you speaks the other's language?)
You stirred softly with a small whimper as your hand clung to Alexei's shirt in an attempt to tuck yourself even closer into him.
He smiled down at you and pulled your slumbering form flush with his body, watching you bury your face into his shoulder.
"Она говорит с моим сердцем на языке, который я легко понимаю," (She speaks to my heart a language I can easily understand) he stated simply, placing a tender kiss on your temple.
The next morning, you had woken up on the couch with a blanket draped over you.
You sat up and stretched before rubbing your eyes and standing up, wondering if you had dreamed last night as you wandered into the kitchen to grab some coffee.
As you rounded the corner you accidentally bumped into Alexei, who was already holding a mug full of coffee he had poured for you.
"Oh shit. I'm so sorry!" You apologized hastily, afraid you might have made him spill some.
You noticed his shirt remained dry causing you to sigh with relief.
He smiled and shook his head, handing the cup to you.
"You. Take," was all he said before turning his attention to the toaster.
"O-Oh... thank you. Uhm. I mean... Спасибо," you repeated in Russian hoping to god you got it right.
His smile grew wide as he turned to look at you while you sat down to read the paper.
"Я с радостью сделаю это для тебя, моя любовь," he said to you genuinely.
While you couldn't understand a word he just said, the tone of his voice held something very familiar to you. It made your chest feel warm.
You took a long sip of your coffee and were shocked. He had made it just the way you make it for yourself every morning.
"Доктор, вы собираетесь рассказать ей, что это значит?" (Are you going to tell her what that means, doctor?) Murray asked from the other side of the table between bites of his waffles.
Alexei blushed before grabbing his toast as it popped up from the toaster and sitting down to eat.
"Еще нет," (Not Yet) he stated simply.
You raised a quizzical eyebrow at the both of them. Murray shrugged, turning his attention back on his breakfast.
After your coffee, you showered and got dressed, then went into town to drop off your applications and pick up some groceries with the money Murray had given you.
You walked into the house and saw both Alexei and Murray on the couch while a commercial played on the TV.
They both welcomed you back in English and Russian.
You put away the food and proudly placed a cherry slurpee on the coffee table in front of Alexei.
His surprise smile beamed up at you before taking the cup full of sugary ice and sucking it down like he hadn't drank anything in ten years.
"Hey! That was not on the list I gave you!" Murray reprimanded.
You tossed the leftover change into his lap before slumping back onto the couch, tired from a long day of running around.
"Oh boohoo. You'll live. Besides, they're his favorite and he hasn't had one in weeks."
Alexei continued drinking down the cold beverage as he watched the two of you bicker like cats and dogs. He had to admit, it was rather amusing.
That night, you tossed and turned, unable to sleep. And when you did finally manage to fall asleep, it wasn't long before you were woken up by some anxiety induced nightmare.
You sat up in bed as frustrated tears poured down your face.
Not long after, there was a soft knock on your door.
You opened it seeing Alexei standing there.
"Oh. Hey Alexei. Sorry if I woke you. I'm having trouble sleeping it seems."
He immediately took notice of the wet streaks down your face and how red and puffy your eyes were and he gently placed his hands on either side of your face, wiping your tears away with his thumbs.
"Нет, моя дорогая. Пожалуйста, не плачь," (No, my darling. Please don't cry) he murmured softly. His voice like a velvet blanket.
You sniffled, pulling your face away and rubbing your eyes with the sleeve of your pajama shirt.
"Могу я войти?"
"Uhm..."
He chuckled before gesturing towards himself then the room.
"Oh... yes. Come in, please," you said more desperately than you meant to.
Alexei made quick work of slipping himself into your bed, pulling you along with him.
You gasped at first, surprised by his boldness, but after he slipped his arms around your waist and pulled you back into his warm embrace, your whole brain went foggy and your whole body relaxed in his arms.
"You, rest," he demanded, repeating the same words from last night.
You were about to give into him when you were reminded of that morning. The coffee and his words.
"Wait... Alexei. What did you say to me this morning after you handed me the coffee?" You asked as if he'd be able to understand you.
"Hmm?" He responded.
He could tell from the way you spoke that you were trying to ask him something, he just couldn't figure out what. He tried thinking back to the little bit of English Murray taught him that day while you were out.
"This morning... coffee..." You began acting out the words as you spoke them. "You said something... 'моя любовь.'"
Then it clicked for him.
"Ah. Uhm... means 'my love'" he replied as if it were obvious.
You turned beet red as you swallowed thickly and your limbs began to shake out nervousness.
Alexei gripped you tighter in response and plsced a hand on your face, tilting it upwards so he could look you in the eyes.
"Я тебя люблю... I love you," he whispered before capturing your lips in a breathtakingly passionate kiss.
You reached up, tangling your fingers in his thick curls as your knees went weak.
He pulled away after a few seconds and positioned himself so he was hovering over you and looking into your eyes as he recalled more of the English lesson Murray gave him.
"Do not forget this," he added, running his thumb over your bottom lip.
You ran you fingertips over his cheek, in awe at his beauty.
"I love you too," you confessed a bit sheepishly, shuddering at his touch.
"Хороший," (Good) was all he said while pulling you into another kiss.
The rest of the night was spent in a comfortable silence as you both snuggled underneath the warm covers.
He peaked over at the clock, taking note of how late it was and tucking the covers around you tighter.
"You, sleep now," he ordered, pressing your head against his chest firmly.
You nodded, inhaling his scent deeply before falling asleep in his arms without another word.
Alexei grinned happily as his eyes gazed upon you in you deep sleep.
He knew he was right. Love has no language barriers.
