The motel room was hotter than either of them would have liked. It's poorly insulated space allowed all of the outdoors' humid weather to seep through the cracks of the broken walls and weakened plaster. The pale yellow of the boxy room was all but sweating through the peels on its wallpaper as the ceiling fan droned on uselessly in a monotone hum. Kai had grown used to the weather in the southwest, their body almost preferring its intense heat t the chill of the Pacific Northwest or the unpredictable shakiness of the Midwest. Yet even this heat wave was proving unbearable in the utmost unpleasant of ways.
Their skin felt like it was sticking to their bones. Their sweat might as well have been rivers running through the dry cracks and ashy edges of their ashy body. Every breath felt like breathing down the barrel of a freshly fired gun, the heat overwhelming in their lungs as they exhaled a long, annoyed groan of pain in an effort to remove some of the pressure building in their bare chest. Their shirt had been foregone long ago in the presence of the ungodly heat, their body only clad in a pair of small gym shorts that barely hiked themselves around the meat of their thighs. Their short hair stuck to the back of their neck and - oh god - shaving their whole head sounded like the most ideal thing in the world at that moment.
As they contemplated the modification of their own body for the sake of cooling off, the motel door was pushed open, a familiar knocking warning them as to just who it was who was entering. Turning their head, they watched as Jesse McCree wiped his own sweat ridden forehead off with the hem of his button down shirt as it clung to his form with desperate, humid stickiness.
"Ice just about melted halfway to the damn room." He muttered as he threw a medium sized bag at the bed Kai was resting on. Kai scrambled to grab it, the immediate cool of the plastic a welcome change to their current temperature. Without thinking about it, they pulled open the bag of ice and plunged their hand into it, the immediate cooling sensation drawing a hefty and adoring sigh from their lips as their muscles relaxed in the pleasantness. They just barely registered the sound of the mini fridge door opening, the sound of clanking glass a distant echo compared to the euphoria of melting ice around their arm. They pulled a few of the cubes out and dropped them onto the back of their neck, shivering as the ice melted and dripped cold water down their bare back.
Another cold sensation pressed into their arm, making Kai startled and turn towards the offending object. A single beer caught their gaze as Jesse waited for them to accept his offering. The cap had been popped off already, the hissing sound of alcohol permeating the otherwise quiet white noise of the room around them. With a smile to their lips, Kai accepted the offering and pressed the cold glass to their lips, swinging their head back to take a much needed, refreshing gulp of the bitter tasting liquid. It burned their throat and left the taste of piss in the back of their palette, but fuck if it wasn't the best damn thing that they had tasted in the days that the two of them had been stuck in this dumbass heat wave.
Jesse took a seat at their side, his weight making the bed groan and bend in his direction as he took a chug of his own icy beer, a satisfied groan leaving his lips as he did so. Kai watched as he put the bottle to the side in favor of shrugging off the offending fabric of his shirt, its coiling threads far too conductive to the heat surrounding them. They pressed their bottle of beer to their forehead, rolling it in an effort to replace the sweat with condensation on their face as they offered over the bag of ice towards their lover with a smirk.
"I'm telling you," Kai teased, "Mei said that watchpoint down in the North Pole was still functioning if we ever wanted to head over and use it."
"Sounds like a dream, darlin'," Jesse chuckled in return, his human hand grabbing a fistful of ice to dump along his neck while his metal one held the bottle of beer firmly between its fingertips, "Just me, you, and a hundred miles of ice on either side of us."
"God, don't describe that," Kai groaned, "It's making me hotter."
"Ain't possible," Jesse declared, "You're already hot as can be."
Kai couldn't help the bubble of laughter that echoed through their mouth as they leaned on the other's side, their shoulders touching together. The sweat of their skin acted as a glue to keep them that way for a moment, sticky and unpleasant for a few seconds but manageable because - well - it was them that was doing it. Jesse could not stop his arm from going around Kai's shoulders and bringing them in closer, a sloppy kiss placed on the top of their head as he smiled. They touched their cold beer bottle to his chest in return, making his own laugh chortle through the edges of his kiss.
"How much longer are we staying here?" Kai wondered as they pulled away from Jesse enough to take another sip of their beer, "We already have enough evidence that the guy we've been tailing is working with Talon. Shouldn't we just report to 76 and be done with it? I miss our air conditioned base."
"I did call him," Jesse's voice bordered on annoyed as he spoke, "and he told me that Talon's doubled air patrol guard in this area in suspicion of Overwatch activity so, until they get us new landing coordinates to haul our asses to, we're stuck in Dallas."
"Fuck that!" Kai declared with an angry huff, "We're so using the company card to order takeout tonight."
"Who do you think paid for the ice and these beers?"
Kai grinned at the other with a fond expression. Jesse could only admire just how handsome they were like this; even with their hair stuck in tendrils around their forehead with sweat and their bare chest softened with glittering perspiration, they were by far the most amazing thing he had laid eyes on. From the day that they met to the years that followed afterwards, Jesse couldn't recall a time where he didn't enjoy their company. He didn't want to recall a time where he did not have them at his side.
Those were dark days without them. They had their dark days too, but then they had found each other hadn't they?
Yeah...
Jesse blinked down at Kai, as if realizing something for the first time. The look did not go unnoticed by the other's observant and empathetic gazes. Kai's brow furrowed in return, their body shifting slightly to face the cowboy better as they tilted their head. They asked their question only after grabbing another handful of ice and pressing it to the back of their bare neck, the edges of water streaming down their shoulder and making wet spots on the hotel room sheets as they did so:
"What's up, Cowboy?"
Jesse took his time in responding, taking another drink of his beer and leaning back on one arm against the bed as he swirled the liquid in the glass before him. He watched as it danced on the sides of the amber glass, glimmering in the light that dared peek through the drawn blackout curtains.
"I was just thinkin..."
"About?"
"...Hey, would you wanna get married?"
Kai - who had been in mid sip of their beer - spit across the room in shock. The spray of their alcohol decorated the carpet on the floor in front of them as they choked in surprise, leaning forward to push the liquid from their lungs as their mind rushed to formulate a response somehow. Jesse watched them struggle to regain their composure, his hand reaching up to gently pat at their back in an effort to help them expel the beer from their esophagus. Kai's hand came up in a gesture of 'one second' as they finally cleared the burning in their throat. Tears had formulated in their eyes as they whipped their head around with a gaze of complete disbelief.
"I'm sorry, would I what now!?"
"Get married," Jesse repeated, "To... Me."
His hand rose up and rubbed at the back of his neck, the lackadaisical confidence he had in asking suddenly dissipating at the look they had given him.
"Never mind. It was a stupid idea. I don't know why I-"
"No! No you don't, hey," Kai reached out and grabbed at Jesse's leg with a raise of their brow, "I wasn't saying 'no', I was asking what... brought it on is all. I... Marriage? You wanted to get married."
"Well, yeah."
"To me?"
"Who else?"
"Plenty of other people," Kai laughed incredulously, "I... Jesse... would you be ready for something like that?"
"Would you?"
Kai shot him a pointed look, making the other sigh and throw his hand up as he assured them he understood.
"Look, I know what we got ain't the most 'normal' of relationships. We ain't ever gonna be the type to settle down or stay in one place for too long... But... I love you, Kai, and if there's any chance I can make that love last for as long as damn possible then - shoot- I want to do it. 'Sides, maybe one day we will get out of all of this Overwatch business... and we could settle down somewhere nice, ya know? If you ever want to."
Jesse paused and reached out, finding their hand in his own and giving it a solid squeeze as he licked his lips.
"I just know that there ain't ever gonna be another person as perfect for me as you."
Kai felt the redness of their blush creep up into their cheeks. It warmed the back of their neck and the tips of their ears as Jesse's confession fell with little filter through to their ears. To hear him think so much of them made their heart swell with a love they couldn't possibly begin to describe. It just made them... happy. Happier than anything had made them in their life and - God - it was all they could do not to start crying amongst the heat that was already pooling around them from the day's temperature. So instead they smiled, bright and excited and happy as they gave a tentative nod in his direction.
"...Alright, Jesse McCree... I'll marry you."
Jesse's grin grew wider than they had ever seen it. His face turned bright with blush and happiness as he leaned forward with a hoot of delight, wrapping Kai up in his arms and pulling them into his lap. Kai yelped as they tried to steady their beer glass in one of their hands, only to be interrupted when McCree's lips came crashing down on theirs with eager neediness. They grinned into the kiss as they returned it, the both of them tasting of alcohol and sweat as they sealed their proposal together with it like a letter.
"How do you want to do this?" Kai wondered as they separated. Jesse shrugged and leaned forward to kiss their neck instead, humming into their skin as his arms kept themselves firmly around them.
"Don't care. We should get it done quick, though. If that's what ya want, at least."
"Yeah, that's fine," Kai agreed with a tinge of thought to their words, "I don't want a big ceremony or anything like that... Hey, we could probably just find one of those elopement chapels here right? We'd have to do the paperwork for it all when we get back to Overwatch since we can't exactly give people our names and addresses 'round here but-"
"Fine by me," Jesse mumbled, nipping their skin gently, "So long as we get to celebrate the Honeymoon sooner than later~."
Kai rolled their eyes with a laugh, hitting his shoulder as he grinned up at them. They couldn't help the softness in their gaze as they ran their hands through Jesse's hair, pushing the locks back and watching them reappear in front of his face messily as they did so. Jesse smiled bright up at them, all blushes and puppy dog eyes of adoration as the held them on his lap close. Kai sighed with contentment as they leaned forward, kissing him one last, long and good time for good measure.
"I love you, Jesse McCree."
Jesse's grip grew tighter as they spoke, his nose nuzzling their own as he hummed.
"I love you too, honeysuckle. I always will."
Marriage or not, Kai thought, that answer was really all that they needed.
this is me rambling about my favorite scenario aka when my f/os meet my 3 dogs fghghhgg
For Dog Reference:
Cairo - pit bull mix
Pyrrha - standard poodle
Joaquin - shepherd mix
---
McCree: GREAT WITH THEM. LOVES THEM. Cairo and Pyrrha meet him first and they are all over him, greeting him and licking them. He just gets right on his ass in the yard and lets them, ruffling their fur and grinning like an idiot as they make his acquaintance. Joaquin is shy with anyone at first, and kind of huffs at him because he doesn’t fully trust him.
Jesse is patient with him though and gives him treats and lets him take him in at his own pace .Eventually Joaquin starts learning to like him too and they become best friends! Jesse is willing to take Joaquin out to fields and on trips to burn his energy off, and sometimes we take all 3 of them to parks and let them run it out while we chase them and play ball with them!
At the end of the day McCree is asleep on the couch and Cairo, Pyrrha, and Joaquin are all curled up with him resting comfortably over his body, and he can’t bring himself to care one bit. 10/10 would be an amazing dog dad to my babies.
Daryl: Similar to Jesse in that he likes dogs. He’ll bend over and let Cairo and Pyrrha greet him with licks and sniffs. Joaquin warms up to him more easily and finds himself attracted to Daryl’s energy. The two become a strange pair of friends that I can’t help but comment on because - wow- Joaquin doesn’t like ANYONE that quickly.
He thinks Pyrrha can be a bit of a handful at times - especially with her groominc schedule - but thinks Cairo is the most fun of them all. He’ll take her out and the two of them will track things and run through mud together in the forest and just have one hell of a time.
He comes home and willingly helps groom them. Cue Daryl shirtless with my dogs making sure they’re clean and cursing when one of them shakes their water off on him and it’s an incredibly hot sight *w* 9/10 very good with them also.
Markus: Hesitant with them all at first! He’s never sure how living things will react to him, and admittedly the dogs kind of take their time with him as opposed to my other f/os. Still they warm up to him and appreciate him a lot! Markus works with them more on tricks and fun light hearted walks!
He plays ball with them and they have a blast because he doesn’t really get tired when he throws it or runs with them! If he plays tug of war with Joaquin he can’t help but laugh as he pulls him along and Joaquin tries his best to pull back. He gets their energy out in a more methodical, all day sort of way rather than in spurts. He even bakes them dog treats with me at home!
He thinks their loyalty is amazing and loves the look of adoration I get when I talk about them or am with them, and that’s the thing he truly cherishes. 7/10 not the worst but defs more into them because they make me happy rather than himself, but he still treats them so well for me!
BONUS PAPA EMERITUS III:
Defs more of a cat person and defs TERRIFIED of meeting them. His nerves kind of shine through, but Cairo and Pyrrha don’t really mind. They still come up to him and let him pet them and it helps him to calm down over the sight of them. The only real ‘dogs’ he’s ever been around are probably depictions of Hellhounds and such, so he’s ready for terrifying beasts rather than big ol’ gentle balls of fur.
Joaquin DOES NOT TRUST HIM AT ALL AT FIRST but that’s nothing new for him, he usually doesn’t trust anyone, and Terzo thinks its a sign of something bad so he gets overdramatic about it alongside a sudden determination to get Joaquin to like him somehow. This is, of course, achieved by him spoiling the boy with treats and coaxing him into pets with bones. It’s a lot of work and I admire his dedication to trying to get Joaquin to like him.
In the end, it works and Terzo is surrounded by three happy dogs that like his presence. At some point one tries to lick his face and both of us are like ‘NO-’ because of his face paint. They settle for licking his neck or hands instead, which makes him laugh. He isnt the biggest fan of canines, he finds, but he now has a special place in his heart for my 3 kids as he lets them all lay across him and nap on him while he cuddles me as well. He thinks its sweet in a strange way. Priceless out of 10.
I’M LOSING MY WHOLE ASS MIND OVER THIS PIECE I GOT FROM @cowboyologist!!! He drew my insert so well and so gorgeous I love his art so much!! Please consider commissioning him LOOK AT THIS-
I DID THE SELF INSERT ANIMATION MEME THING AHHHH! Originally by @too-many-boyfriends, I saw their post of it and was SO HYPED TO TRY IT MYSELF and I had a lot of fun doing it! I only have my movie maker that my computer came with to do stuff so it was a bit hard but I still had fun!
*throwing money* I will pay you to gush more about your ship with Jesse! God that’s so soft! I can totally see “you’re my home” being an even better way to convey love for Jesse because it has so much meaning behind it. I can tell you without a doubt he feels like the luckiest man in the world to have you as his partner (in both life and adventure)! (via @me-myself-and-my-fos)
okay okay I’ll leave you alone now hehe
WEEPS LOUDLY BC I LOVE ONE COWBOY
YEAH YEAH THO!!! WE ARE HUGE ON ‘YOU ARE MY HOME’ our literal theme for our ship is Homeless Heart by Jenette McCurdy fghgh ;w;
i just think he’s neat and sweet and fun to be around and I wanna spend my life traveling and being together with him....and then maybe one day if we can settle down enough together we can get a big ol’ ranch and raise horses and have a lil kid -blushes-
What’s your favorite part about your ship with McCree? It can be anything! And if you ever wanna talk about our Overwatch bfs, you’re always welcome in my dms! (via @me-myself-and-my-fos)
@me-myself-and-my-fos
-slams hands down on table-
I FUCKING LOVE MCCREE SO MUCH every part of my ship with him is my favorite is the cheesy answer, but if I had to pick a few things its like!
Our shenanigans together is a big one. We travel together a lot in my ship so going to new places, running around and causing chaos in the town, and being able to just see new places with him at my side is amazing imo! There’s also just something so romantic to me in like. late nights in a new town sharing a motel room together. the feeling of living in there and drinking cheap beers from a corner store, the room being dark except for the slivers of light through the blackout curtains. laying in bed together with no real hurry to get up, but being unable to sleep so we trace patterns on one another’s skin in the night, admiring each other’s faces where we can and just memorizin gone another’s presence because we aren’t sure if its the last quiet moment we’ll get together or not.
Just being one another’s home in a world where we don’t have one is something so important to me and it’s the biggest thing I have with him ;w;
I see you ship with McCree and you’re very valid. But also I hope you’re living your best life with all the content of him from Blizz/con last night in regards to Over/watch 2 because you deserve it!! (via @me-myself-and-my-fos)
@me-myself-and-my-fos
TY FRIEND AHHH I’m having a blast honestly, all things considered. Seeing his new content just like SPARKED ALL OF THE LOVE IN MY HEART FOR MCCREE LIKE AT ONCE AND I’M JUST SITTING HERE BEING EMOTIONAL OVER ONE HANDSOME COWBOY SOBS.
I guess I have the unpopular opinion that I actually like his new look (minus his hair bc I was rooting for long haired McCree so bad but they didn’t GIVE IT TO ME) so I’m just eating up all of this news so happily i’m so happy he’s in the second game i just
MMMM me throwing myself in front of a civilian to save them and getting shot in the process. McCree finding me wounded from it and helping the civilians hurry off to safety and having to drag my ass back to the med bay to make sure I get healed up and recover, and later he tells me how worried he was and to never scare him like that agian and i 🥺🥺🥺
