context: taking a bath with bf Viktor (gender neutral reader) I’d also like to add that this is my first time writing for a disabled character. Personally I’m not disabled so I wouldn’t know how that feels like, and it is not my intention to offend anyone or make Viktor’s disability the main focus in my writing. If anything is offensive or you guys have any tips or criticisms, I am happy to learn and fix anything!
warnings: nudity, nothing explicit though
character: Viktor from Arcane
m.list
“Is it working?” you asked innocently from behind Viktor, hands on his shoulders as you gently massage his muscles. Maybe a bit too softly for Viktor, he knew why though, you were always scared to hurt him, ever since the surgery on his back you were always extra gentle during your massages. So he knew why your fingertips sometimes felt feather light against his muscles.
“Oh uhm, yes” he answers, having been lost in his own thoughts as he looked down at the floor. Thinking about hextech as usual, new ways to improve and understand it. Wishing he was at the lab with Jayce, he didn’t like when you and Jayce wanted him to rest. “I’m feeling fine, let’s go to the lab”
“Viktor no” a sigh slips past your lips as you hold him down by the shoulders, making sure Viktor didn’t get up from the bed. The room dimly lit by a few candles and the moon shining from between the curtains. “It’s late—”
“Jayce is probably there”
“So you’d rather spend time with Jayce than me?”
“No that’s not what I said, it’s the hextech”
Your eyebrows furrow and fingers stop working on his shoulders. “You’d rather spend time working on hextech then spend time with me then”
He could hear the hurt in your voice and regretted his words. This wasn’t the first time you two had discussed the lack of time you spent together as a couple. Yes you saw each other at the lab every day, but it wasn’t like you were spending time with your boyfriend, it was spending time with your co-worker. “That’s not what I meant, and you know that” Viktor looks over his shoulder at you, leaning his forehead against yours. “I just feel restless…”
You knew that, you always paid more attention to Viktor than anyone else. It wasn’t because of his condition or anything , your gaze often just naturally wandered over to the pretty man. It was hard to take your eyes off of him, so you always saw the change of body language, knowing when he feels restless. “I know a way you could relax…since this massage clearly isn’t helping”
★
“Are you…joining me?” Viktor asked softly, leaning on his cane as he looked down at the bathtub. A few bubbles covering the surface of the warm water.
You light the last candle, placing it by the sink before turning to him. “If you want”
“I want” was all he said, letting his cane lean against the counter as he started to undress. Feeling your soft hands graze his skin as you help him, not like he necessarily needed the help to undress, but it was much appreciated. Today was just one of those days where everything seemed dull and dark, his body and mind both tired and restless at the same time.
With a little more help, Viktor sunk into the warm water of the bathtub, eyes closing as his mind wanders back to hextech. “I should be at the lab…”
“I will drown you”
A small smile spreads to his lips as he cracks open his eye to watch you undress. His beautiful significant other, the person who had stuck with him through everything. Who puts up with him and his stubbornness every single day and turned it into something amusing instead. “You’re beautiful” he mumbles, the words said in his accent seemed to have an even bigger effect on you.
Clearing your throat to pretend like nothing, you slip into the water. Sitting on the opposite side of the tub, knees held to your chest due to the small space. “We need to get a bigger bathtub” you say after watching some of the water spill over the edge.
Viktor had closed his eyes again, the tips of his hairs also submerged in the water. He felt light, and warm. It helped soothe his aches and pains, even if it was only a little, it was enough to make him feel more laid back than usual.
Finding a wash cloth and some soap, you gently start to rub it against Viktor’s skin. Starting with his shoulders, you lift his arms slightly to make sure you get every part of his body. You knew Viktor liked when you did this, the smell of your body wash and the gentle touch against his skin was always comforting.
But it wasn’t enough, wasn’t intimate enough. Discarding the washcloth, you decided to use your hands only. Skin to skin contact, to feel his muscles and skin against your fingertips. The soap making little bubbles float to the surface of the water, covering up his bare body. Some of the bubbles getting stuck to his neck and chin, glistening in the flickering lights of the candles.
“You okay?” You ask, just in case. He hadn’t said anything and his eyes had been closed the entire time. The sound of his soft breathing and water droplets filling the room.
He opens his eyes slowly, golden brown eyes meeting yours. Eyelashes wet due to the steam. “Yes” he answered simply, lifting his arms out of the water and tracing his slender hands across your chest and stomach. Innocent and soft touches against your skin, he pulled you closer to him. Not satisfied until you laid down between his legs. “I want to stay like this…you must be tired too”
He was right, you were tired, you just didn’t seem to realize until you felt how comfortable it was to lay against your boyfriend. You settle between his thighs and get into a more comfortable position, back rested against his chest. Viktor’s arms circling around your waist, holding you close and making sure you don’t slip underneath the surface of the water. His chin resting on top of your head, your body felt so soft and warm against his.
When Viktor first moved to Piltover he never understood the pleasure in taking a bath. To simply sit and soak in the water when there was so much else to do. But his whole perspective changed when he started dating you. You changed him, made his life easier, made his life brighter. As much as he wants to work at the lab, to build hextech into something that can help people, you made him realize that’s not all his life is about. So he tries to soak up every moment he has with you, and baths became a frequent routine in your relationship.
“Vik, did you fall asleep?” You chuckle softly, hearing how his breath slowed and how his arms loosened around your body. “We are going to turn into raisins if we stay here any longer, come on mister scientist”
Viktor groans, mumbling something under his breath as you force him out of the tub. Though he had to admit the water was starting to get a little too cold for his liking. And even if he would have preferred to stay a little longer, he couldn’t fight his smile as you tease him about his grumpiness.
“Do you enjoy making fun of a burnt out scientist, hm?” He teases back, throwing his towel over your head before starting to make a move to the bedroom. Still butt-naked, taking only his cane with him, the door to the bathroom wide open as he walks out. “I can feel you staring”
“Shut up!” You yell, though he wasn’t wrong. Taking a few extra seconds to admire his back, the way some water droplets still slid down his skin from the tips of his hairs. It wasn’t a view you could get sick of seeing easily.
After getting ready for bed, you join Viktor in the bedroom, seeing him already lay on the bed. Covers pulled up to his chin and eyes closed, though you knew he wasn’t asleep, his little snores were hard to miss.
“Oh to be a pretty sleeper”
Viktor only smiles sleepily, feeling the bed dip underneath your weight. He didn’t have to open his eyes or do anything, you naturally moved between his arms, molding to his body like a puzzle piece.
“So the bath helped you relax?”
“It does every time”
“Mmm good” you nuzzle into his neck, breathing in the scent of your body wash. His skin still a little damp and warm, some of the wet strands of his hair sticking to your forehead. You could feel how Viktor’s body went limp in your embrace after a few seconds. The room filling with his soft snores. If he fell asleep so quickly you knew he wasn’t lying, the bath really did do wonders.
contents: Viktor x fem!reader, slice of life, domestic fluff, post-cannon Viktor lives au, Viktor and reader have long hair, reader is a germaphobe.
summary: The shower drain was blocked. Again. Great. A fic about not forgetting to appreciate what you have when mourning what you’ve lost. The little things Viktor never thought he would have, but will cherish no matter how much they annoy him.
word count: 2645
an: This can be read by itself of as a part two (with a big time skip) to Hair Ties. There will be descriptions of hair clogging shower drains and getting removed so I'm sorry in advance if that's yucky. This fic on AO3.
Viktor sighed as the hot water rushed over his body. He didn’t feel things the way he used to, not being half-man, half-metal. It had taken him quite some time to get used to just how different everything felt. He dealt more with vibrations now than anything, thinking about his ability to feel sensations as conduction instead. It was different, but it wasn’t bad. More intense if anything, except for his ability to feel softness. Plush? Smooth? Sure, he could feel that. And he knew that plush and smooth things were often also soft. He could see soft, smell it, hear it, but not feel it.
What he could feel was warm water pooling at his feet, becoming lukewarm and pulling him out of grieving what he’d lost in his transformation. He looked down at the thin layer of water across the bottom of the bathtub, soap suds floating atop. The shower drain was blocked. Again. Great.
He cursed under his breath at the sight. Yuck. He really needed to come up with some sort of contraption that stops hair going down the drain like this in the first place, he thought. Those flimsy silicon drain covers did just about nothing to help, the gaps between the suction cups that hold it down lifting just enough to let hair through and become an abominable matt in the plumbing. Viktor reached down, flinging that stupid silicon cover to the side to see what he was dealing with. He wouldn’t be able to pull it out with his fingers, he’d need to use that weird, barbed, plastic stick you kept under the sink for such occasions. This is not how Viktor wanted to be spending his shower.
A decent amount of prodding around later, and Viktor had dislodged the matt to blame. A tangled mess of hair and soap residue pulled from the drain, leaving strays behind that would inevitably start the next matt he’d have to deal with in a month’s time. Viktor was grateful that the same loss of sensation that prevented him from feeling softness also prevented him from feeling sliminess. This, he thought, had to be the worst part of domesticity.
At least he was doing this and not you. You’d probably be gagging as soon as the water begun pooling, anticipating whatever gunk was to come. You’d insist it was fine, of course, just part of adult life. You’d be lying through your teeth, stood there with a pair of disposable gloves on, washing your hands at least twice despite them, cleaning the entire bathtub in case drain contents somehow made their way up, convinced you’d somehow breathed in the germs or the cleaning chemicals, before taking another shower. He wondered how many times you’d had to do this in his absence, how many times he wasn’t there to at least reassure you that you hadn’t caught some illness from the drain or poisoned yourself with bleach. He’d rather not think about it, actually.
Viktor was glad that he was the one to do this, that way you didn’t have to know the drain had ever been clogged. That didn’t mean he liked doing it, he just didn’t hate it as much as you did. He remembers how annoyed he got with you the first few times he had to do it.
You were curled up in an armchair one evening, reading a book on runes and their uses as the sun set over Piltover. You could hear the shower turn on in the bathroom and smiled to yourself, almost reflexively, the same way you always did when life gave you little reminders that you didn’t live alone anymore. Viktor didn’t take long to establish his presence in your apartment, he was all over it. Rings in the wood of the coffee table, the constant smell of freshly brewed coffee, and notes everywhere. Your reverie was broken when you heard the shower shut off, followed by muffled cursing.
Viktor came out into the living room a little damp from his interrupted shower, towel wrapped around him. Ordinarily you would make some corny lewd comment, but he was obviously annoyed.
“Please, stop letting you hair go down the drain,” Viktor grumbled, pinching the bridge of his nose.
“I’m not doing it on purpose, some hairs just escape,” you explained calmly. You’d hoped that would be enough, but it wasn’t, not when Viktor was in a mood.
Viktor huffed. “Is there nothing you can do to prevent it?”
Viktor was a quiet but irritable man, on account of the chronic pain and constant sleep deprivation. Most of the time his grumpiness was endearing, except for when it was directed at you. Most of the time he didn’t mean to direct it at you, and you could redirect it with a well placed joke or gentle touch to the shoulder. When his irritation was directed at you, because of you, you found your laid-back demeanour did little to soothe him. You would just have to show him how those pesky hairs escaped you.
You placed your book open, face down over the arm of the chair so you wouldn’t lose your place, sighing. You took him by the hand towards the bathroom without another word.
“Wha-” he begun as you started to strip on the tiled floor.
“I am going to show you everything I do to stop my hair going down the drain,” you stated. You needed to wash your hair today anyway. You motioned to toilet, lid closed, “Sit.”
Viktor did as he was told, slightly peeved that his shower had been displaced by yours after he’d been the one to clear the drain, a problem you caused in the first place. He eyed you carefully as you began to brush through your hair methodically from the bottom up. By the time you’d finished, the brush was full of your hair. He was honestly surprised you still had any on your head with the size of the ball that formed when you pulled it out of the brush. Then again, he couldn’t be too shocked. Even before he moved in with you, he constantly found your hair on absolutely everything. In his bed, on his floor, in the clothes you borrowed and the ones you didn’t, even in freshly washed clothes.
You stepped into the shower, letting the water heat up before standing underneath it. Viktor’s sour expression is was fading and his arms weren’t so tightly crossed because well, because you were naked, but you didn’t push your luck by saying anything. You keep your little smirk to yourself by facing away from him as the water pours over you, running your hands through your hair.
Shampooing never resulted in an astounding amount of hairs falling down your back. Rather, it knocked a good amount more free from your scalp that would make their grand entrance when you conditioned. You used your hands like a comb, fingers gliding through as you de-tangled. And your hair clogged your fingers, slippery with conditioner so you were quick when you rolled it up into ball between your palms and placed it on the edge of the bathtub. No hair down the drain on your watch. You could feel Viktor’s eyes on you, widening at the fact that there’s somehow still hair being shed. One more pass through your locks for good measure, and you’re sticking the strays to the shower wall where they won’t get rinsed away. You took the opportunity while the conditioner worked its magic to pluck the hairs stuck to your arms and legs, the ones that tried to sneak away from you but despite their best efforts never succeeded, and placed them too on the hair wall of shame.
You shot a smug, eyebrows-raised look at Viktor, who had been watching intently with his nose involuntarily scrunched at your methods.
“I know the drain gets blocked, but it’s not for lack of trying,” you gestured to your spoils, the collection of hair displayed before you both. You went as far as to check your body again once the conditioner was rinsed out.
Viktor huffed. Obviously, this system you had was not entirely foolproof. But not for lack of trying. He was a man of science, and he had to concede in the face of facts.
“Fine,” he sighed, a little exasperated but with no real bite. “But we’re getting one of those drain covers, I don’t know why you don’t have one already.”
Grabbing a towel and gently scrunching the water out of your hair, you stepped out of the shower towards him.
“Fine,” you mimicked cheekily, finding it a little amusing how bothered he’d been about this in the first place. “You can have your shower now.”
Amongst the tangle Viktor had extracted wound a few long, white hairs. Ah, you weren’t entirely to blame it seems. You were right, all those years ago; long hair just has a way of ending up in the most inconvenient of places. He hadn’t believed you even after he’d started keeping his hair longer, even after he’d experienced the shedding when brushing, or when the odd hair snagged in a hair tie. The fact that your hair was such a similar shade of brown to his was simply plausible deniability, because Viktor actually ‘succeeded’ keeping his hair out of the drain. He considered telling you, letting you have the victory (though realistically you already knew you did), hearing you say something like ‘it only took until your hair turned white to believe me’. A smile crept its way onto his face, because while it might not have be a product of aging, how lucky was he to have been able to get white hairs. How lucky was he that you got to see it.
And not just that, you liked it. It was one of the first things you’d commented on after you’d processed the shock of having him back. Your fingers had tangled in his hair in a warm, desperate, disbelieving embrace of love and need. And you’d been positively beaming, peppering kisses all over his frail, tired face, telling him how much you’d missed him, how handsome he was regardless of how he’d changed.
Viktor tossed the matt into the small bin under the sink. He felt better now, softer, despite how gross that chore was. He felt a renewed sense of hope as it begun to sink in that he had not just been given a second chance at life, but a second chance with you.
Viktor’s showers in the following days included a significant portion of time spent studying the flow of water down the drain, the way the old hair trap lifted between the suction cups, and sneaking different versions of a new hair trap into the shower to see how well they worked. It did not escape you that he had been taking longer showers, but seeing how tentatively you dealt with every little change he’d been through you saw no reason to comment on it. Maybe he was finally taking some time for himself, a welcome thought.
It wasn’t clear to Viktor why he felt the need to keep making a new hair trap a secret from you. It was fairly insignificant, after all. Maybe he was worried you’d scold him for working when he should be resting (but this was hardly work). Maybe you’d think it was stupid, maybe you’d think he was trying too hard to get back to his old self. Maybe tinkering made him feel like his old self, and maybe that scared him. Maybe he really just wanted to surprise you, because this was the first thing he’d really done for you since being back, despite the fact that he knew you’d be more excited if you knew he was working on it. You’d be excited if you knew he was working on it. God, it was almost reason enough to let the cat out of the bag just to see your face. Simple, simple, simple. But you loved simple, and you loved him.
When the hair trap was ready, Viktor approached while you sat curled up in your armchair like a cat, reading a book. You were too engrossed to notice he’d snuck up behind you until he pulled the book upwards out of your hands. You tipped your head back onto the headrest to look at him while you playfully scold him for interrupting you, but before you could protest you felt a pair of warm lips lightly pressed to your forehead. You let your eyes flutter closed and let out an involuntary contented hum. He places the book face down, open on the page you’d been reading because he’d hate to be the reason you’d lose your place.
“I have something for you,” Viktor mumbled against your skin. “But I thought we might take a shower, you need to wash your hair, yes?”
You chuckled. “Have you memorised my hair-washing schedule or something?”
“There is nothing more worthwhile studying than you.” He moved around to the side of the armchair, holding his hand out for you to take.
Hair wash day had become its own little routine in the process of regaining a sense of normalcy. You brushed Viktor’s hair first, following the path of the brush with your fingers, massaging his scalp gently. Then you switched places, him doing the same for you. He hesitated when he came across a knot that the brush didn’t easily pass through, not wanting to tug on your hair and hurt you, so you eased the brush from his slightly-more-anxious-than-usual hand and teased them out yourself. He didn’t know why he was so nervous about showing you something as small as a hair trap he’d made. It was probably for all the same reasons he’d kept it a secret for the past week.
Diligently, you emptied the brush of all your shed hair and started the water so it would be plenty warm when you both stepped in. Reaching for the temperature dial, a shiny silver circle in the bathtub caught your eye. It was much wider than the drain, made of stainless steal to weigh it down, with a rubber rim to stop any hair getting under it. It had basket that sunk down into the drain where there were some ridges for the hair to get stuck in, and the whole thing was removable for easy cleaning.
“You made this?” you asked, looking at him over your shoulder as your smile grew by the second as you realised this is what had been holding him up in the bathroom recently.
Viktor looked back at you sheepishly, he replied “It’s nothing special.”
But it was. From the way you were looking at him he could tell for you, it was. Your eyes were full of pride, maybe, that he had started doing something again that used to make him happy. Appreciation, perhaps, that he had thought about how big of a problem the shower drain was for you and created an excellent solution. Giving way to something deeper, to gratitude that somehow he was still here.
You stepped away from the bathtub, reaching out to take his hands in yours.
“It is perfect. Thank you.” You kissed his hands, and for a moment Viktor swore he was able to feel softness again.
It didn’t matter to Viktor that he’d be the one who’d end up cleaning the hair trap more often than not. It mattered that he got to make something for you, that he got to see the way your eyes lit up at such a simple contraption, that he was alive to make the thing and give it to you. And when Viktor looked at you, he couldn’t possibly feel more blessed by the clogging of a drain.
imagine a professor!viktor grad school au where you’re a student of his at the academy this semester
its a sunday afternoon, you open your inbox clicking on an email, the subject reads “weekend seminar: the magic of physics and its applications”
it was this evening, a lecture being held by viktor himself
“open to all interested.”
your curiosity was piqued, you take a moment to consider it, always a bit shy when it came to your professor for some reason
maybe it was his accolades
maybe it was the way he could tease almost anyone out at a glance
maybe it was his striking looks coupled with something more enigmatic
or maybe it was the tension you both were forced to pretend didn’t exist
I can just slip in and out the back—he probably won’t even see me
you arrive, intentionally showing up a few minutes past the start time to slink in with the crowd. the sound of you pushing the door open echoes throughout the lecture hall
and its completely empty—save for viktor himself, shuffling through notes on the podium, now looking up at the sound of your entrance
“you are late, miss y/n” a small smirk tugs at the corners of his mouth, not missing the irony
“sorry, was I interrupting?” the teasing remark flies out before you can stop it. you pull your bottom lip between your teeth, a nervous habit
“no, not at all” he chuckles
his eyes flit over your expression—you always seem to catch him off guard
he found it refreshing
“in fact, you appear to be my only audience member this evening.”
so much for going unnoticed
despite the one-on-one setting, viktor doesn't miss a beat, delivering his material in the same manner as usual. his eyes settle momentarily on the front row where you sat, pen skittering across the page of your notebook
you loosen up a bit, falling into the smooth cadence of his voice—but your focus wanes every time his gaze finds yours, checking your comprehension
you start to feel warmer
you reach to your bag for a clip and begin pulling your hair up from your neck to cool off
and viktor’s flow catches in his throat for just a second
you think maybe you had imagined it
he continues
“then you find yourself at a standstill, this mechanism will eventually become too unstable for longterm use—so, how might one rectify the situation?”
viktor turns to address the room, scanning the empty seats with a touch of humor before landing on you
something about it felt entirely too intimate
you pause, allowing the pulse thumping in your ears to steady
“…maybe start by pushing further? test the stabilizer to find its limits,” you suggest,
“see how far it can go before it breaks.”
viktor shrugs, considering your approach
“what about potential risk? you gain valuable information, of course, but could ruin the entire mechanism in the process, no?”
the gleam in his eye told you he didn’t disagree—just wanted to see if you’d take the challenge
you swallow
“well, I guess there’s no reward without some risk, right professor?”
your words hang in the air alongside something more charged, waiting to be acknowledged
viktor stares into you with a look you can’t quite decipher; examining, but with a hint of amusement at the center
“mm, speaking to my spirit, miss y/n?” he smiles, almost playful
you exhale a breath you didn’t realize you were holding
“I suppose it would be hypocritical of me to argue with that.” he adds
the tension subsides but is too stubborn to fully leave, you do your best to ignore it
the rest of the lecture goes by in a blur, you could only take so much one-on-one time with viktor before your focus shifted towards other things.
like how his hands carefully wrapped around the edge of his cane
or how his voice sounded both soothing and provoking at the same time
or how his posture always seemed to refuse to face anywhere but towards you
“I believe that would conclude our seminar for the evening” viktor clasps his hands together gently, breaking you from thought, “any questions?”
you shake your head politely, viktor nods back with a soft smile
“in that case, class is dismissed.”
you begin packing up your notes, viktor does the same
“thank you for joining me, miss y/n” you look up as he speaks, formal but sincere
“thank you for having me, professor”
“it was my pleasure,” he holds your stare, “and please—you may call me viktor”
you nod, turning away before he could notice the flush making its way up your neck
you stand from your seat, sliding your bag onto your shoulder as you reached the door
“have a good night, viktor”
truthfully, you don’t know what possessed you to practically purr his name like that as you left—but neither one of you seemed to mind
length of fic: LONG. it’s long. but lots of flash back scenes and building of the relationship.
genre: angst / romance / fluff at the end
pairing: jayce x reader x viktor
summary: fate never favored a trio. fates favorite was always a duo. and she knew who fate would favor. she hated being right.
note: not beta read. proof read so many times the words blurred together and i deleted an entire section that i couldn’t get back and had to rewrite. over all though, it should be good!
tag list: @night-fall-moon
there was once three. a trio. two partners and their assistant.
three friends.
three…
three……
three………
but one was always forgotten.
—————————
the silence as war died down left an eerie rattling inside the ears of those who had survived. as they looked around to see the wreckage, some who were still marked with the iridescent galaxy that the Machine Herald had left on them, others, not a physical reminder in sight on their bodies. they didn’t need one though, as piltover sat in ruins. the blood of those who died stained the marble steps. colorful dye still stained the air from jinx and the firelights entrance. but she, the third, the spare, the left behind, stood in the middle of it, unsure whether to cry, scream or run to the scene in front of her.
where the machine herald- no- where viktor and jayce were immortalized in a blinding brilliant metal, jayce knelt with his hammer in his grasp and viktor’s hand perched along jayce’s forehead.
the tears, she realized, fell on their own. leaked out of her eyes and fell past her face but she felt none of that. numb completely as she stared at the hollow husks of the two men in front of her.
her mind repeating…
three…
three……
three………
there was to be three of them.
three creators and inventors of hextech. three researchers. three friends…
they told her that…
three… lovers…
there were three… supposed to be three…
she supposed though that destiny had always lended its hand to favor the duo over the trio.
—————————
“you know…” jayce trailed off as he sat next to viktor and pulled her legs over his lap. “many times in books, the trio never makes it. fate always favors a duo.” he said it with that joking grin, tempting fate. daring it to try to make good on its word. viktor had the decency to look at jayce disbelieving.
“why would you say that? tempt anything that would ever want to pull us apart?” he questioned, looking between jayce and her. jayce shrugged, looking sheepish.
“because they never could. we’re tied together. you guys go, i go.” he shrugged again. she looked at both of them and then down at the ground.
“fate would favor you both.” she whispered. their eyes widened.
“never say that miláček.” viktor ground out turning to her, side eying jayce as a ‘look what you’ve done’.
“yeah, i wasn’t serious, darling.” jayce said, bring her closer to him and viktor. “we’re in this together and we’ll always be.”
—————————
“we’re in this together…”
“we’ll always be…”
together…
together……
together………
—————————
she should have known that was a warning flag. the conversation they had. and they weren’t together. not now. she was right. fate had favored them, in some twisted sense of humor, divine intervention or not, fate had carved out a spot where both jayce and viktor could be together leaving her behind.
she was the one to pick up the pieces… she always had been, why would this be any different?
—————————
“viktor, please! it’s dangerous! you can’t be serious!” she yelled, her anxious anger causing her voice to bellow. his eyes sliced her down as he looked her way, the glare he had for her held nothing but contempt as she tried to stop him.
“while you may have your life ahead of you, i am on borrowed time miláček.” he rose his chin looking down at her as she had put her self between him and the hexcore. “now move out of my way. i will only ask once.”
the tears were hot as they streamed down her face and shook her head. his eyes widening at her disobedience. he took a step forward but before anything could happen, jayce walked in.
“what is happening?” he asked, setting his supplies down and slowly walking over to both of them. before viktor could open his mouth she was quick to explain.
“he was trying to add more of his blood to the hexcore. he’s already done it a few times and i refuse to let him do it again. why can’t you see it’s changing you viktor? you’re not the same. please!” she begged him, no longer looking at jayce but pleading with viktor to see reason.
eyes widening, jayce moved to step in front of her. “viktor, you can’t do that. we don’t know how it will react.”
“we’ll never know if we don’t try.” viktor ground out.
“not on you.” jayce said softly. “you’re too precious for us to loose.” this stopped viktor as it was almost like flicking on a light behind his eyes. he blinked and looked at jayce and then her.
“i-i am so sorry. oh… miláček… i am so so sorry…” he started to come forward, and stopped when she took a step back reactively. his eyes widened.
“darling, please. i’m sorry.” he begged, and she could never refuse him. neither her nor jayce could…
that had been the third time that viktor had tried to add more of his biology with the hexcore.
—————————
three…
three……
three………
three times… three people…
—————————
her feet felt cemented on the marble, watching the sun play off the statues of her lovers, standing in the blood of who knew how many. her first step felt like she was chained by stones under water, attempting to walk. her second was easier, but felt like getting your foot out of quicksand. the third felt easiest and carried the most momentum as she stumbled to them, running, her body finally falling, kneeling between them and resting on jayce’s back. three shallow breaths was all she was allowed before her sobs came in full force as she clutched the hand viktor had by his side and her arm wrapped around jayce’s neck,sobbing into what would be his left shoulder.
“you-you-you
you promised…
you promised……
you promised……… me.”
her cries bellowed out around the square below, drawing disgusted glances and pitying onlookers as they saw the hextech geniuses assistant, the third partner, the sole survivor… cry out in anguish. despair. heartbreak.
“i always told you fate favored you.” she whispered, sitting there with them until their figures were carted away. with instructions from her for them to be put in the lab that they worked in, which was somehow still standing.
—————————
being in the very same lab that both… viktor and jayce had spent so much time in, herself included, felt sickening. the lack of their presence ate at her, leaving her hollow and mauled in the tide of grief. everything was as it was. nothing had moved. it was as if it was a museum. a museum of them. their chairs at the farthest point of the room. jayce’s rolling chair and viktor’s rolling stool he used often. for a moment, the lab seemed to be lighter, golden light filtering in as jayce and viktor were huddled around a notebook, talking about some equation. their heads both whip to her and smiles grow on their faces, and when she blinks, the lab is darker, filled with the blue light of the setting sun and they are no where to be found.
she walked to the couch across the lab, her fingers grazing the fabric, as she picked it up and wrapped it around herself. it smelled like them…
“guys, please, stop! it’s cold!” she pouted as jayce held the blanket too high for her to reach, viktor doing nothing but egging it on.
“just jump up and get it, my love! you can do it!” his laugh ringing through the lab.
she pulled the blanket tighter, it wasn’t cold in the lab but she was cold. no, it wasn’t cold. her body felt like it was missing an integral part to function, and now that it had been stripped away she couldn’t rebalance. walking over to viktor’s desk she looked over all the plans that were still in tact, his desk almost exactly how he left it. hot tears welling in her eyes again as she saw his favorite mug, the one jayce got for him, sitting off to the right, long cold and molded over with his favorite tea still inside. her fingers brushed against the handle.
viktor took a sip of his tea as she watched standing next to him.
“can i try that?” she asked.
“sure.” he waved his hand at her. she took a sip and almost spit out the drink. “why is there alcohol in that damned tea?”
he turned to her and smiled, holding up a small bottle.
“you spiked it before i drank it?” her tone incredulous.
“can’t hold your liquor.” he asked as she glared at him. he got up still chuckling and grabbed the cup from her hand. “come. i’ll show you how to make the tea and we can try this cup together.” he motioned for her to follow him and she did.
she always followed him. would have followed both of them to the ends of the earth if they had let her. her jaw clenching as she tried to hold back more tears as she picked up on of his many notebooks. seeing a not that was stuck in there. she pulled it out realizing it was a small note she had given to him. it was just a little something she would do is leave notes on their desks as both viktor and jayce would always light up reading them. she opened viktor’s journal realizing it was his personal one, not looking at the entries but seeing that he had kept every single one of her notes. even taking some of the doodles she would make on their schematics and taping them in. she clutched the book to her chest and walked over to jayce’s desk.
looking at the photo of him and his mom was overwhelming and she set the photo down so she didn’t have to see it. didn’t want to be faced with the reality that more people were mourning these two as it felt like that could sweep her under the current and she was barely treading water currently. looking through his notes as well she saw underneath a few sheets of equations, the pen she got him. she grabbed it, smiling as tears came back. she had gotten this pen for him for some holiday and he had used it so much that the first refill in the pen ran out. he had no idea there were other refills.
“noooooo…” jayce whined as the sound of manic scribbling was heard. “no. no. no no no no no. what the-“
“language.” viktor stopped him, not looking up. a heavy sigh heaved from jayce as his head hit the desk.
“what’s wrong?” her voice rang out from the couch.
“the one you got me? it’s out of ink! and i can’t use it anymore!” jayce looked up, almost pouting.
“then get another one?” viktor said, turning to look at jayce like he lost his mind.
“no! this is the special pen. it was part of the gift you gave me last week! it’s special!” he says looking at her. her mouth trying to fight the smile and consequently the laugh that was threatening to bubble up. she quietly got up, went to her desk and pulled out a white box. holding it out to jayce at his desk she nodded at the box and he took it. viktor watching the whole interaction with an amused glint in his eyes.
“what is this?” jayce asked looking between them both.
“just open it, ya big baby.” she said, chuckling. he smiled at the comment and opened it, his eyes widening. thousands of refills were in the box for the pen. “i was going to give this to you later but i didn’t think you’d run that refill out of ink in a week.” she admitted. his eyes lit up as he quickly replaced the refill to the pen, without her even needing to demonstrate. he tested it on paper and when it started writing again, jayce looked at her like she hung the moon.
“thank you.” he whispered and pulled her to him, his head resting her stomach for a moment, inhaling and then lifting up and nodding to himself, trying to give the pen refill box back.
“just keep it.” she said as she fluffed his hair and walked by viktor doing the same, earning a disgruntled noise from viktor. “i fear that you’ll need them often.” jayce nodded and put them in the drawer on the right.
“when do i get a special pen that i can use?” viktor’s voice asked as he looked at her now settled back in on the couch.
“how about i get you one for your birthday?” she asked and he nodded, seemingly happy with that answer as he turned back again and got to work. her making a mental note to get another one of those pens the next day.
as she opened that same drawer, the refill box was there, open and had five left. she chuckled and held jayce’s pen in his hand. the realization hitting her, viktor wasn’t going to be here to celebrate his next birthday. she walked to her desk and took out the box, holding the complimentary pen. jayce’s was golden, similar to viktor’s eyes and also the gold in house talis colors. viktor’s pen was a deep emerald, similar to zaun’s colors, with the metal being a deeper golden color. holding their notebooks and pens in her hands felt haunting. neither would be here for their birthday’s… her birthday… the pain rose in the chest as she collapsed near her desk. her body shaking as she moved over to jayce and viktor’s side. near their desks. trying to be close to them. but how can you be close with a ghost?
———————
many whispers, glares and disgusted looks were weathered as she joined the crowd of those gathering to place names of loved ones written on parchment in the basket to be burned. she pulled her hood up further hoping to blend in as the feeling of everyone’s eyes on her was uncomfortable and magnified the hurt even more.
“i can’t believe you’re here.” a man said looking at her. she looked up at him, her eyes glazed over, darkness under her eyes from not sleeping.
“your fucking partners killed my wife… my son.” he yelled as he started towards her. enforcers restrained him.
one walks over to her, “do you know this man?” he asks her. she shakes her head. he gives her a second glance. “take the stairs up there, people are gathering there, smaller crowd.” he says before he leaves. the tears in her eyes threaten to fall as she looks up to the sky, silently thanking her partners, taking it as them intervening.
walking up the stairs feels similar to the day of the fighting. when she saw them. each step feels heavy. each step is a battle itself.
finally reaching the baskets she takes her slips of paper, jayce and viktors name written on three different slips of paper and places them together in three separate baskets. just in case someone saw them and decided to not let them be burned. a fourth stayed with her, in her pocket. she turns to leave and is stopped as ximena, jayce’s mother stands behind her. their eyes widen and ximena looks her over. the cloak she wears is black, with gold clasps. but that isn’t what draws jayce’s mother’s attention. it’s the pin on the cloak, a hammer, the talis house crest. jayce’s talis house crest.
“ximena, i-“ before anything else is said, she brings her into a hug, the feeling of loss settling in her chest like a weight at the acknowledgment of her presence from jayce’s mom.
“you have been so brave.” she whispers. at that her eyes fill with tears as she sobs into ximena’s shoulder. she smells like jayce did and it makes her sob harder.
“i miss him so much. so much. i miss them both, ximena.” she cries as ximena’s hands draw her head up and she looks at her, nodding.
“i know. i know you do. i do too.” she shows her paper she brought for the ceremony.
written in ximena’s handwriting is jayce and viktor’s name. the way she’s written them it reads viktor and jayce talis. which somehow makes her cry more at ximena’s paper, at the thought of marriage and a future that could no longer be a reality. until she sees her own name at the top. the note reads her name, viktor and jayce talis. looking up at ximena questioningly, ximena smiles knowingly.
“a part of you died that day too. i mourn that as well, my dear.” she nods, tears slipping from her eyes. the same eyes that used to look at her with love. jayce’s eyes. they always joked he had his momma’s eyes because he was a momma’s boy. now, it just hurt to see. to remember. she looked down at the ground. “and he was going to marry you both, i know he was.” ximena smiles sadly, as tears leak from her eyes, informing her thinking it a kindness. it only tears deeper at the hole they left in her. but that’s not ximena’s fault.
“i’m going up to the roof to watch everything.” announcing her leave.
“just be careful, mija.” ximena murmurs as she nods again and leaves.
—————————
watching the papers fly through the air like stars ascending to the sky was cathartic for some she imagined. that’s what jayce and viktor were, two stars, burning so bright and brilliant that she had no choice but to be attracted to their light. or maybe they were the sun and the moon, so opposite but complimentary and she was just one of the many stars in the sky that admired them. they being so magnetic that they brought her into their orbit, destroying her as they exploded, for celestial bodies that burn so bright only have so much time until they do explode and take everything with them.
a lighter in hand, she takes out the piece of paper she held onto, looking at how both her and ximena both put jayce and viktor talis. she grabs a pen from her pocket, her own pen, which became a force of habit to keep on her working with inventors and hesitated before writing her own name down and burning the slip. watching it rise with the rest. ximena was right. a part of her died that day too.
—————————
the issue when an inventor goes off on a ‘genocidal killing spree of the majority of humanity’ is it is very difficult to ensure that who they were before is not erased from memory. exactly what the piltover council moved to do, as its first order of business, once the halls were cleaned, the marble treated of the blood stains, the pillars resurrected and the dead buried. exactly why she walked to the council chambers with purpose and the speed of if hell hounds were on her ankles.
the erasure would happen over her dead body. she opened the door and was unnoticed as heard the council speaking.
“the council moves to strike viktor, hextech inventor and former academy’s dean’s assistant from any involvement with hextech. all credit will be solely to jayce talis of house talis. those in favor?” a voice floated through. she knew not who it was as she never paid much attention to the council. that was jayce and his doing. wanting to create a spectacle and make connections. one of the many things he was good at, even though deep down he hated it.
“i object.” her voice echoed as she walked into the room. the council turned towards her, many widening their eyes as they realized who she was. the room was empty except for the council members. intruding on a private meeting was something new.
“this is a closed council meeting. you should not be here.” the one at the head of the table threw out. her eye twitched, at his tone and his dismissal of her.
“and you should not be discussing mine and my partners project without me present councilor.” she said as she stepped up to where jayce’s seat was at the table and stood off the left. “there are members of the founding team for hextech still alive.”
“you were their assistant. you contributed nothing to the project.”
nothing…
nothing……
nothing……….
—————————
“you can’t let them get under your skin baby.” jayce murmured as she glared up at him.
“no, you never mention me and you hardly mention viktor when talking about hextech anymore. we have contributed as much as you have. how dare you try and erase us. what happened to partners?” she asked, thinly concealed venom in her voice.
“you know that’s not true. there are just times where-“ jayce didn’t finish his sentence.
“where councilor medarda has encouraged you to not say anything about us because viktor is from zaun and i am a poor piltoverian? i heard her talking to you three weeks ago jayce.” he had the decency to look ashamed.
“if you’re not going to include me, at the very least, ensure viktor is up there with your name. or will that ruin the “man of progress” image you’ve so carefully crafted?” snarling his title at him, she walked off, not letting him say anything else. she entered into the lab, sitting down and thankfully viktor was too absorbed in his notes to talk to her or observe she was upset. stewing was interrupted from a knock on the door hours later. expecting it to be jayce she opened the door not looking at who was there but when two finely dressed men came in and sat two very expensive looking boxes down and handed both her and viktor an envelope, then left, had you feeling dumbfounded.
“what is this?” viktor asked, his accent heavy with the lack of speaking for the past 4 hours.
“i don’t know.” was whispered from her as she walked toward the box and opened it. inside was the most gorgeous blue dress, looking as though it was made of the starry night sky itself. viktor, who had followed you gasped at seeing it. looking at her then the dress.
“that will be very beautiful on you. but where are you going?” he asked.
“where are we going?” she corrected pointing to his box, as his eyes widened. each of them slowly approaching his box like it would explode. he opened it, finding a suit and tie, matching her dress completely.
“what is going on?” viktor murmured as she looked down at the envelope in hand. she opened it, eyes scanning over the document.
“viktor, i think we’ve been invited to the inventors inaugural ball tonight.” her eyes not leaving the page.
“what?” his tone shocked and in disbelief until he saw his invitation as well. “jayce was to go to this tonight, why would we be invited?”
she shrugged, and flipped over the envelope. holding it up to viktor so he can see what was written on the back.
“NO CHOICE!” was written in all capitals and underlined three times, on both invitations. both knowing this must be important.
“we have an hour to get ready vik.” she looked at him and he sighed, resigned to his fate, knowing that there would not be a request of him if not absolutely important.
“best hop to it? don’t you always say?” pointing to the back where the washroom was. she smiled at his attempted imitation of her as they both started to get ready for the night.
——————///
a car picks both up, and thankfully both her and viktor are ready just in time for it do so. she fixes viktors tie in the car, admiring how the gold and blue in his suit compliments his eyes so well.
“you look so handsome.” whispered between the stillness that had settled into the back of the car. his hand reached up, cupping her cheek, his thumb trailing her lower lip.
“if i am handsome, then you are ethereal, miláček.” her responding smile was enough to convince him to kiss her. stopping outside the event plaza, both viktor and her exit the car, her helping viktor out, merely holding out a hand to ensure he was steady, which he reluctantly takes after side eyeing her. he never liked help, but she wasn’t taking the chance that he fall since the car parked so close to the sidewalk. then taking his left arm as you both slowly ascended inside. showing the invitations and then entering to the main ballroom, both looked around.
“i thought jayce would be here.” viktor said as he took two flutes of champagne off a tray passing by. handing one to her as she sipped it, humming.
“so did i…” her eyes squinting as she looked around, waiting for what felt like the other shoe to drop. it didn’t take long as mel medarda took the stage, introducing jayce. viktor looked and politely clapped, confusion evident on his face to his partner standing next to him. silence coming from her as she glared daggers straight at jayce. connecting the dots that this was an apology event. rolling her eyes, she downed the champagne and grabbed another one as they walked by. viktor glanced at her.
“what’s wrong?” he asked, as she sighed sipping her new flute.
“i’ll tell you later. we need to listen to the man of progress speak. i’m sure it’s important.” her smart ass getting the best of her as viktor side eyed her and then directed his eyes toward jayce.
jayce scanned the crowd, somewhat relaxing when he saw both his partners there.
“tonight, is a night of celebration, innovation and looking forward to progress!” he exclaimed, people cheering at that.
“we have been able to pave the way for faster travel, ease of trading leading to increased commerce opportunities for businesses in piltover all with the first hextech invention, the hexgates.” more cheers accompanied this as well as clapping. gripping onto viktors arm, she sighed.
“i have been honored to be referred to as the man of progress, but i do feel that it is not accurate.” there were now murmurs in the crowd at jayce’s words.
“as you see, there is not just one man of progress, there are two men of progress and one woman of progress.” gasps across the crowd flow. viktor looks at her and she up at him, confusion swimming in both your eyes.
“none of this would be possible with out my partners in hextech.” his hand reaching out as he read off both her and viktors names. claps and cheers coming from the crowd, slightly reserved as it was known in the inner circles who you both were. where you both came from. “we look forward to working harder than ever to bring you our next great invention, hextech travel. revolutionizing the way we can travel to different places, not just in piltover but in all of runeterra!” cheers erupt again. jayce waves and smiles as he gets off the stage and shakes a few hands, heading towards both his partners. both her and viktor look at him as he approaches you both, a bit sheepishly.
“mind if we talk outside?” jayce asks before either of them can speak, both she and viktor nodding and following him out.
“you were right.” his words directed at her.
“i mean, she normally is, but what is going on jayce?” viktor asks, as jayce sighs.
“we talked earlier today and i realized that i had been selfish. it is not just me working in hextech, it is both of you as well. you both should be credited with these inventions just as much as i am.” viktor frowned.
“i do not want to be in the spotlight.”
“you don’t have to be. i’ll keep making the speeches, talking to people, making deals from time to time. but from now on, people will know there are three founders of hextech.” jayce looked at both of his partners and she smiled up at him.
“you’ve not been selfish. i don’t think that’s the word. maybe, egotistical, inflated, big headed…” she trailed off a teasing smile on her face as viktor chuckled.
“thank you, jayce. i assume that you were the ones who got us these fancy outfits too?” viktor asked, after handing his cane to her to hold while fixing the lapel on jayce’s coat.
“had to make sure my partners matched with me.” jayce said like it was the most obvious thing in the world.
the smile on her face threatened to split it. not happy for her own cause but ensuring viktor would forever be memorialized in connection with hextech.
“thank you, jayce.” she said, reaching up and kissing his cheek.
“thank you. i don’t know what i would do without you. without either of you.” jayce says looking at viktor as well.
—————————
“as jayce talis had stated, hextech was founded by three people, myself, jayce and viktor. erasing anyone from these works does a great disservice to their memory, legacy and the accuracy of our history.” she explained.
“‘a great disservice to their memory?’” one council member asks, disbelieving. “viktor, became a crazed man, creating himself into the machine herald and almost killed us all. people are scared. there must be something done!” this was met with a murmur of agreement.
“he almost killed us all!” another exclaims, upset and angry.
“you misunderstand me. i’m not asking for his flags to be flown around or even have a banner created of him for hextech. what i am saying is that on the schematics, the trademarks, the history of how the hexgates opened piltover, changed the trajectory of our city for good and created many new forms of technology infusing magic and science, that his name is not stricken from that. that his name is mentioned. he is explained. and at the end of the day our history explains why a child who had been part of chemical warfare between zaun and piltover, who came to piltover attempting to have a better life, eventually fell victim to the very disease he had contracted due to the chemicals piltover put in the air in zaun, but still tried to save others from his same fate.” the councils eyes widened. i turn to my left, seeing sevika present as the new council member for the undercity, recognizing her from a few run ins in the past when traveling down to the undercity for parts.
“this disease plagued zaun for years, is that not right?” you asked her.
“the gray? yeah. made people sick, making them dependent on shimmer, causing an endless loop of addiction. not to mention the limbs you can loose from it all too.” her gruff voice rang through the chamber.
council members looked at others across the table, next to them…
“i vote in favor of keeping all three names for the hextech founders accurate, for history, tradmarks and any correspondence. any marketing will just be focused on hextech itself. all those in favor?” sevika spoke, looking at her i slightly nod my head in thanks, my shoulders tight as i see across the table, one by one the council votes yes to the proposed idea, except three. majority rule though.
“you got what you want…. happy now?” a gruff voice of a new council member asked above all the chatter.
“very much so.” she said, ensuring everything was taken care i are of, before leaving.
—————————
the metal statues… if you could even call them that, are set up in a garden near the lab. making sure it had lilies, roses and poppy’s in there. three flowers and so much fauna, for the founders of hextech. at the center was jayce and viktor. she sat in the garden for hours on end, working on different things, talking to them or even just sleeping. finding that if she was sleeping and touching at least one of them, the nightmares weren’t so unbearable. she still wore the sleep deprived eye bags around like they were the new latest fashion.
after readjusting the plans for hextech, placing in safeguards and ensuring that the plans could be executed, she began to build a larger team. a team of great academy scientists, in engineering, biology, medicine…
with a collaborative foundation, the scientists with her at the helm drove forth 15 years of unprecedented and revolutionary progress. creating safe water ways for zaun and air with no pollution. creating hextech travel for all of runeterra. medical devices to help those needing mobility aides, in addition to cures to diseases that were listed as incurable.
she visited the garden the day they had found the cure to the disease the gray had created in the zaunite residents of the undercity.
“i’ve been working on hextech so much i’ve forgotten to visit. i’m sorry.” she whispers, setting down sunflowers for both men. “reminds me of you both.” her laugh is humorless and flat sounding.
“but i have some news. our team was able to do it. we found a cure for your disease viktor. those who are still afflicted with it will be able to be treated for it. they won’t have to suffer anymore.” she smiled and then looked up at viktors face, the machine heralds face. her hand reached up, caressing his cheek. “i’m just so sorry i couldn’t find it while you were alive. i wish i had. how our lives could have been different…”
“it’s so sad, because it’s been so long, vik.” she looked from his face and then back up to what his face was when he died. “it’s so hard to remember what you looked like. this wasn’t who you were. and you hated photos. thank god jayce sketched you. but it’s still not enough. and i fight so hard to make sure you are remembered.”
sitting down at his feet next to jayce, she sighed. “that both of you are.” she slumped over, looking at the ground. “i went to a wedding the other day. one of our scientists got married to their partners. one’s an architect, the other owns the bakery down the street. they remind me so much of us. it was so hard to be there, if i’m honest, because my mind wouldn’t quiet the ‘what ifs’.” the tears felt foreign to her as they slipped silently down her cheeks. she hadn’t cried since that day. the very day she-
“we would have worn house talis colors don’t worry. viktor would have looked dashing in them. gold always complimented your eyes so well vik. and the colors always seemed to just fit you jayce.” her hands fiddled with her own garment… crafted with house talis colors and zaunite colors, representing the partners who still laid claim to her life. she sighed again.
“i got back from the doctor the other day. my test results came back. i have three months to wrap everything up before the reaper catches up to me. ironic that it’s three months. the irony is not lost on me.” she chuckled humorously.
“i’ll be appointing leads for the research, people who can develop hextech since i’ll be six feet under. i think they can handle it though. they’ve made incredible strides.” she looked over at jayce, then up at viktor.
“i hope you’re both not so lost that i can’t find you or see you in the after life. i curse you both to be tied to me forever.” she jokingly laughed and got up, dusting off her pants.
“bye for now, my loves.”
—————————
fate was listening. it always is listening. will always listen.
—————————
“please… just take me to the garden.” she begged. looking up at the scientist who led the medical team and became a friend to her as she battled her illness. the hesitancy written on their face.
“damn it, i am dying. there’s no way around it. but at least let me be with them.” she whispers, their medical scientist’s eyes shine with understanding as they pick up her frail body and rush her to the garden. once there, they set her down gently at viktor’s feet.
“hi.” she whispers as her lungs seize. blood coating her hand as she just wipes it on her pant. the medical scientist tries to hand her water but she waves it away. “i think it’s time.” she holds viktors hand, a little cold but the same fingers she remembered nonetheless, and wrap her arm around jayce’s neck. “i hope i’ve made you proud. “ breathing heavy and labored. “i can’t wait to see you again.” her body relaxes more into her position, as she slumps over a bit, taking her final breath. her limbs turn to jello with her muscles relaxed and some how her arm stays around jayce and her hand in viktors, some how not falling, like they were holding her up.
____________. epilogue
the bright white of the fluorescent lights blinded her as she opened the shop up for the holidays. the darkness of 5 AM still cast the street in an eerie glow and made the shop light up like a honing beacon. she quickly turned on her holiday decorations and fairy lights. she blinked a few times and opened the front door so customers could start pouring in. filling the bakery case, then making herself a coffee she had already served 5 people. the day was a busy one, with so many customers blurring together and now thankfully almost ending.
“that’ll be $11.82.” she stated as her barista began making the order. closing the till she began helping the next customers, “welcome to hex and brew, what could we tempt you into?” she spews the greeting like she does every day. hearing two men talking doesn’t throw her off but it’s the accent of the one man. czech almost, soft but confident.
“you always get that damned gingerbread drink. why can’t you get something like crème brûlée?”
“well, because i like cinnamon and the sweet.” a sigh is heaved.
“we’ll get one gingerbread latte monstrosity and a black drip coffee. both large.” the voice now directed at her as she nodded.
“name for the order?” she asked, her throat dry for some reason and her body anxious, still writing the description of the drinks on the cups, not having looked up yet. writing off the feelings as her anxiety peaking during a rush.
“jayce is fine.” the other man responds and her hand freezes mid word, right in the middle of the words “black drip” on the second cup and finally looks up at them. her eyes meeting with the tallest-jayce- first. she shouldn’t have known who was who. she did though, as confusion, then shock and wonder settle. turning she looks at his partner.
his partner…
his partner……
her partner………
partners…
golden eyes meeting hers as the same emotions span across them as they did jayce’s. tears welling as his hands reached for hers, almost dropping everything he was holding. his hands were soft and warm, so unlike before. unlike the statue in her garden seemingly a lifetime ago. jayce’s hand reached up to cup her cheek. another lifetime of memories and love fill each of your thoughts.
“is it really you?” jayce asked
“miláček?” viktor questioned.
she breaks their connection, as their eyes widen and she quickly walks around the counter to them. “i couldn’t bare for anything else to separate us any longer.” she explained with a sad smile and a shrug, grabbing both their hands and pulling them into the back of the cafe where she had a cozy lounge break room for her and her team. “man the register?” she asked her friend behind the counter who nodded confused and started taking the next orders. once inside the break room, she shut the door, standing near it and not crossing over to the men on the other side. she closed her eyes as their presence agitated and reopened the gnarled wound that was in her chest from their absence. she always wondered why she felt this longing for someone, for people who were just like them. why none of the dates she went on never worked out. she had been waiting for them. the tears fell, ugly and fast. “of course it’s me…” her inhale is shuddering. “is it really you?” she asks, finally looking up at them, her eyes widening as both viktor and jayce’s faces are wet with tears. jayce makes the first move to her, he always made the first move, wrapping her in his abnormally large body. his warmth enveloping her, with the slight spiced scent that was just him. she cried harder.
“it’s me. it’s us. i promise.” jayce whispered. viktor came over, slithering his arm between jayce’s middle and hers. his other arm wrapping around her shoulder, pulling her against him too. clean musk fills the air as she turns a bit and takes her right arm wrapping it around viktors still small body.
“it’s us. it’s me. i-i am so sorry.” viktor whispers. she had never seen him cry before, but one time, in what felt like a lifetime ago talking about rio.
“viktor…” she trails off as his head is buried in her neck and they stay there, time holding no meaning to any of them. there would be a lot to talk about later, but for now, right now, they found each other again. that was enough.
this time, fate didn’t forget. this time, fate was forgiving. this time… fate favored the trio.
"A Scientist and The Ballet of Hextech" - Viktor x Male Danseur Reader.
𖤐 ִֶָ 𓂃 🧷
The grand hall is alive with the hum of conversation, the clinking of glasses, and the soft rustle of silk and satin. Viktor stands near the back, leaning on his cane, his sharp eyes scanning the room with mild disinterest. Jayce had insisted he attend, claiming it would be “good for networking,” but Viktor would much rather be in his lab, tinkering with his latest project.
The lights dim, and the audience falls silent. The curtains part, and the performance begins. Viktor’s gaze is drawn to the figure at the center of the stage—the danseur. His movements are precise, fluid, and filled with an intensity that makes it impossible to look away. Viktor finds himself leaning forward slightly, his analytical mind momentarily silenced by the raw emotion on display.
But then it happens—a tiny misstep, so small that no one else seems to notice. Viktor’s sharp eyes catch the flash of rage in the danseur’s eyes, the way his jaw tightens for the briefest moment before he continues as if nothing happened. The performance ends, and the danseur strides offstage before the applause can even begin. Viktor watches him go, intrigued.
'Such passion… such fury.' He thinks as he mulls over the performance the remainder of the night 'It’s almost...' though he doesn't finish the thought.
A month later, Jayce bursts into Viktor’s study, his usual energy filling the room. “Viktor! I’ve got an idea—no, a vision! We need to make Hextech more accessible, more personal. And what better way to do that than through art?” he grins, waving a familiar flyer in his friend's face.
Viktor raises an eyebrow, setting down the tool he’d been using as he eyes the paper. “Art, Jayce? You want to combine Hextech with… ballet?”
“Exactly!” Jayce grins, clearly pleased with himself. “I’ve commissioned the danseur from the grand hall performance—you remember him, right?—to create a modern ballet piece inspired by Hextech. We hope to have people grasp it better with the pull of art and view it as a powerful and personal experience to unify Piltover to new changes rather than see it as the..." he thinks for a moment,"the apparent danger Heimerdinger describes.”
Viktor hesitates, his mind flashing back to the danseur’s performance, the fire in his eyes. “I’m not sure I’m the right person for this, Jayce. I’m a scientist, not an artist.”
“But that’s the point!” Jayce insists. “You’re the perfect person to bridge the gap between technology and art. Besides, I think you’ll find the experience… fascinating.”
Viktor sighs, but there’s a flicker of curiosity in his chest. He mulls it over for a moment, his thoughts drifting back to the danseur’s raw passion and fury. It might be worth it just to see him perform again.
“Very well,” Viktor says finally. “I’ll meet with him.”
“Trust me, Viktor. This is going to be incredible! You’ll see!”
The grand hall is quiet on later night, the only sound the soft echo of music and the rhythmic tapping of the danseur’s feet as he practices late into the night. Viktor hears the music as he passes by, his curiosity piqued. He follows the sound, his cane tapping softly against the floor.
He finds the danseur onstage, completely absorbed in his art. Viktor watches from the shadows, mesmerized by the precision and emotion of the performance. When the music stops, the danseur finally notices him.
“Who’s there?” He snaps, his voice sharp with irritation.
Viktor steps into the light, raising a hand in a placating gesture. “It is just I, my apologies. I didn’t mean to intrude. I was… captivated.”
The danseur raises a brow, his expression guarded as he sarcastically asks “Captivated? By what? My mistakes?”
“No,” Viktor says, his voice calm and sincere. “By your passion. Your dedication. It’s… remarkable. I can see why you lead as one of the well known in your profession. Well earned.”
The danseur studies him for a moment, his sharp eyes narrowing. “You’re the scientist Jayce mentioned. Viktor, right?”
“Yes,” Viktor replies, his amber eyes meeting the danseur’s gaze. “And I already know who you are. There’s no need for introductions.”
The danseur hesitates, then gives a curt nod. “Goodnight, then.” He turns on his heel and strides offstage, leaving Viktor standing there, watching him go.
'He’s like a storm—beautiful and dangerous.' Viktor can't help but want to understand what swims behind those fire eyes.
The tension in the room is palpable as you rehearse with the other choreographers. Viktor and Jayce watch from the sidelines, Viktor’s sharp eyes noting every detail. You push yourself too hard, your frustration evident in every movement. And then it happens—a misstep, a stumble, and a sharp cry of pain.
Viktor is on his feet in an instant, his hand gripping his cane tightly as he rushes to your side. “Are you alright?”
You glare up at him, your pride wounded more than your body. “I’m fine. It’s nothing.”
But Viktor isn’t convinced. He helps you to a guest room to recover, his mind already working on a solution. Once you are settled, Viktor returns with a temporary brace he’s designed using his knowledge of biomechanics.
“Let me help you,” Viktor respons in a calming tone, tentatively taking a seat on the end bed, his cane resting on the wall near before holding out the device. “This should aid your recovery.”
You hesitate, then reluctantly agree. As Viktor works, slowly slipping your foot from under the silk sheets and placing it on his lap to tend to, you watch him with a mix of suspicion and curiosity. “Why are you doing this?”
Viktor looks up, meeting your gaze. “Because I admire your dedication. And because… I want to see you dance again. I want to see you feel how you make your audience feel. I, being one among them.”
As you take a week off to recover, you find yourself fascinated by the precision and grace of Viktor’s machines. Viktor, in turn after a weeks recovery, is captivated by your ability to translate complex emotions into movement.
You spend more time together, Viktor’s quiet admiration for your talent growing into something deeper. You, who's usually closed off and short-tempered, find yourself softening around Viktor, who seems to understand your need for perfection in a way no one else does.
The day of the performance arrives, and the grand hall is packed. The air is electric with anticipation, the chandeliers casting a warm glow over the audience. Viktor sits in the front row, his eyes fixed on the stage. Your performance is breathtaking, a perfect blend of art and technology. The music swells, the lights dance, and you move with a grace and vulnerability that wasn’t there before. That you hadn't felt in a long time.
As the final notes fade away, the audience erupts into applause. Though you stay onstage, your eyes search the crowd until they land on Viktor.
For the first time, you don’t feel the need to run. You performed, strangely, not to establish dominance and meet your extreme standards but for the man sitting front row. The man who watches you with proudly adorned confidence and unhidden fascination in your performance. The man who has calmed the never-ending blaze within you, not by extinguishing it, but by giving it a new purpose—a new flame to guide you forward.
The man who watched his muse.
𖤐 ִֶָ 𓂃 🧷
The end!! Had a dream about this and had to write it asap! Also, apologies if there is a sentence that sounds silly. I struggle to explain exactly what i want to convey sometimes since English isn't my first language, but that's the point of writing. Learning!
Oh my gosh, (if it's available for the event) please please please Viktor from Arcane with 100 from the expired medicine list
☼ blood run red (Viktor) ☼
warnings; swearing, blood mention, ehh gore, wound, mention of self-harm but not in the way you're thinking.
wc; 2k
prompt; 100. "I should have left you bleeding to your death."
--
“Hey, Sky,” Your eyebrows twitch. “I’m surprised you’re here so late.” You glance over your shoulder to see the dark hallway you’ve just come down. “Or this far into the building.” When you look back at her, you tilt your head curiously. “Isn’t your study down the hall?”
Sky doesn’t speak right away, lips slightly parted as her feet shuffle to a stop. She has one of her books held loosely against her chest with one hand. “It is, but I was paying a visit to Viktor.”
“Of course.” You wave your hand. “That should’ve been obvious. Is Jayce with him?”
“No.” She shakes her head. “I wouldn’t go in there, though. Viktor doesn’t want guests.” She readjusts the glasses on her face.
“That’s not anything unusual.” You tell her. “I’m sure he’ll make an exception for me. I’ll get him out of that room one way or another.”
“He says he’s going to sleep there again.” Her tone is almost defensive.
Your eyes narrow, speaking slowly, “He says that pretty often, but he always ends up with me, anyway.” You take a step to pass her. “I can pass along a message, if there is one.” You raise your eyebrows.
Sky’s face falls, realizing what you’re implying. Her eyes find the floor while she shakes her head. “No, no message.”
“Well, I hope you have a good night, then.” You smile, continuing down the hallway.
It isn’t out of the norm for Viktor to push people away, especially when it’s this late at night. He was likely trying to let her down easy, so that he wouldn’t be caught up with her when you got there. People have a hard time catching the hint when he’s trying to be nice about it, taking his words as a suggestion rather than law.
Interesting how she felt the need to ward you off. Maybe he’s given her the speech on how important it is for him to get the last few precious minutes in before giving his projects a rest for the night. You can’t recall the exact amount of lectures you’ve received for showing up a few minutes earlier than expected and ruining his plans.
No matter how many times you tell him that you’ll patiently wait while he finishes, he tells you that it’d be rude to make you sit there and watch him. Even if you find it interesting or entertaining, he insists for the two of you to walk home. You have a running joke with Jayce that he gets performance anxiety. Viktor doesn’t think it’s nearly as funny.
Honestly, you’d be more worried if Viktor suddenly wanted people around him while in the study. Besides Jayce, they’re partners, Viktor’s supposed to want to work with him.
It takes you another minute to make it to the door, which is closed. You raise your knuckles to the wood. Knocking a few times before you reach for the doorknob. You don’t care for his permission to enter, at least you’re announcing your arrival. You wouldn’t want to startle him while he’s working with the Hexcore.
You push the door open with your hip with how heavy the wood is. “Viktor, I’ve come to keep you company, against your wishes. Or we can go home, it’s up to you.” You muse.
The door opens with a long creak, the hinges are so worn down from the weight that it slides to a stop. The space is just wide enough for you to slip inside, not bothering to open it any further. You stroll in, eyes sweeping across the dimly lit room. You’ve told him that he needs to be careful with reading in the dark, it’ll ruin his eyesight.
You sound exactly like your parents, don’t you?
Viktor doesn’t respond to your joke, you turn your head, expecting to see him sitting on the stool at the desk, but here’s not there. The stool has rolled several feet away, out of his reach. There are a few used papers scattered on the floor, surrounding your boyfriend, who has collapsed in the middle of it.
“Viktor!” You cry, rushing forward.
You nearly trip over his cane in your haste to reach him. You hold his face with both hands, running your thumbs beneath his eyes. His eyebrows twitch, responding to your touch. And while his chest is rising and falling, there’s blood coating his lips, as if he coughed it up.
“Viktor, honey?” You can hear his ragged breathing, liquid stuck in this throat. You twist on your knees to face the door. “Sky!” You shout. “I need help!”
There’s a brief panic that fills your body when silence ensues. Then, the sound of heavy footsteps echo through the corridor as the person draws closer. It can’t be Sky, she’s got to be long gone by now.
A hand pushes the door open further, it belongs to Jayce. He’s breathing heavily, head whipping in your direction to see what the emergency is. You don’t think you’ve ever been so happy to see him in your life.
“I came in and he was like this.” You tell him.
In a few long strides, Jayce comes over to scoop Viktor into his arms, unaffected by his weight. You have enough of a mind to grab the cane before you follow after him.
–
Viktor has been absent and obsessive—two traits that wouldn’t normally stand out, if it weren’t for the fact that you haven’t seen him for nearly a week. You don’t know how he’s been successfully missing you each time you come to the study, but it’s beginning to wear on your patience.
You understand his need for progress, and that his work is a priority. What you don’t get is him not communicating this to you. He’s had no issue doing it in the past, why the present is such a difference is an absolute mystery.
Not only that, but you’ve taken up a project of your own with Sky in the meantime, and she’s somehow disappeared from the city completely. If she didn’t have your combined notes, you’d wait for her to reappear. The fact that she’s taken it with her, despite the many times you’ve requested having them for yourself, is an irritation.
“Viktor, you better be in here.” You mumble to yourself, pushing open the large wooden doors. They’re already unlocked, telling you that he must be in here. “Viktor, I’ve been looking for Sky everywhere, and I can’t seem to find her or our notes.” You begin to ramble, “Do you…”
As you step into the room, you can feel the whole atmosphere shift into a darker energy. You can feel your stomach fly into your mouth, uneasiness halting your movements. You can’t get a muscle to move until your eyes adjust to the extreme darkness. The only source of light is coming from the glowing Hexcore on the table, that seems to have morphed into something different. The runes are gone.
A wave of deja vu makes you feel sick. You take in the mess on the floor, the discarded cane, the sheets of white paper, the pair of familiar glasses. And Viketor, sprawled on his stomach.
You stare down at him for half of a second, too shocked to move, confused at what you’re seeing. Viktor has stripped himself to his underwear and brace, revealing his damaged skin to the air. The wounds that cover his chest and upper arms… the dark purple tint of his right hand and leg.
When he looks up at you, you jerk forward, as if realizing that you should be caring for him. You fall to your knees to help him into an upright position. “What happened? Are you okay?”
You can see the wounds better up close, and they look like puncture marks. You can’t help running your fingers over one of them, listening to Viktor hiss before he seizes your hand.
“Please, don’t.”
“You’re bleeding.” You remark, shaking your head. “And your clothes are missing.”
“I was conducting an experiment.” He says, trying to shut you out.
You won’t let him. “That resulted in this?” You ask, looking him over again, eyes locked on the discoloration.
That looks like…
“(Y/n).” Viktor warns.
Your face falls. “What have you done?”
Your tone is a dead giveaway of your realization. Viktor pushes your hand away. “Nothing that I hadn’t meant to do.”
The curling of your lip is involuntary. “I’m not stupid, Viktor. I know this is from shimmer. Where did you get it?”
“I don’t have to tell you.”
“I’m tired of the secrets.” You tell him. “You were using shimmer for the experiment, why?”
You get to your feet, leaving him on the cold tile, no longer worried about him. You go to step around him, curious about the Hexcore, which has clearly evolved. Viktor reaches out with one arm, hand wrapping around your skin.
“Don’t get close. It’s not stable.” His voice is pleading.
“It didn’t look like this earlier today when I was trying to find you.” Your eyes shift to him. “Is this your blood on the desk?”
He doesn’t speak, sleep-deprived eyes boring into yours.
“Viktor, I’m reaching the breaking point. What happened here, and where is Sky?”
“Sky wasn’t here.” He lies.
You point at the glasses on the floor, lenses shattered. “Those belong to her.”
There’s a few beats of tense silence, and then his shoulders hunch, arm falling from your leg. “It was an accident. I think… I think Sky is gone.”
“What do you mean by gone?”
“Dead.”
“Dead?” You almost choke on your spit.
“Yes.”
Your breathing picks up in pace as you roll this information around in your head, unsure on how to approach this. Should you be worried about him killing people? He’s never shown the urge for it before. If he’s trying to cover it up, it can’t be good. Yet, he did say it was an accident… isn’t that what they all say?
“I need you to tell me what happened here.” You tell him.
Viktor’s face twists, lips turning down. “The Hexcore responds to natural elements. I figured it out when I got my diagnosis. You know this.”
You nod slightly.
“I visited an old friend from the Undercity.”
“That’s where you got the shimmer. That’s why you were on that bridge.” Your eyes drift away.
“How do you know that?”
“I talked to Jayce, because you wouldn’t talk to me.” You look back at him. “Keep going.”
“I was trying to inject my body with shimmer to alter the nature element for the Hexcore. I got too close, it sucked me in, and Sky saw. She tried to help.”
You shake your head, not following.
“She… disintegrated.”
You still, staring at him intently. “You’ve been harming yourself for this? And now Sky is gone?”
“It was never my goal—”
“Viktor, you’re already sick. You should not be doing this.”
“I have no choice. Jayce and I made a commitment, he needs my help.”
“Your safety doesn’t come first?” You challenge, watching as his face twists. “You’re killing yourself, Viktor. This is hurting you—changing you. You need to stop.”
“I will decide when to stop.” He snaps at you.
You press your lips together, beginning to back away from him. “I don’t want anything to do with this.”
“(Y/n).” Viktor reaches for you, hand landing on the tip of your shoe before it’s pulled from his fingers. “Wait.”
Synopsis: It was your first Christmas without your family and you were spending it alone, holed up in the lab, distracting yourself with excessive decorating of the lab and your newest creation. That is until your fellow Hextech scientist shows up.
Word Count: 2k
A/N: This request hit a little too close to home this year so I felt like I needed to write it to get the feels out, hope everyone had a good holiday <3
Tip Jar
The lab was quieter than it had ever been before. Your two partners had gone home for the weekend, likely to spend the holidays with their families. As much as you had wished to join them in celebrating with your own family, it wasn’t in the cards for you this year.
Ever since your move from Zaun to Piltover to pursue your studies, it had gotten harder and harder to stay in contact with your family. This year, you hadn’t even received a letter back when you wrote to your parents, asking whether you should come home or have them visit you for the holidays. It hurt you a little more than you were willing to admit to yourself.
No matter how many decorations you’d strung up in the lab and how hard you had thrown yourself into your most recent project, you couldn’t shake the ache of loneliness from your heart. Two neatly wrapped gifts sat under the small Christmas tree you’d decorated earlier once Jayce and Viktor had left, one for each of them to open once they’d returned from their holiday celebrations.
You tinker quietly at your workstation, notes scattered across the desk and a pen tucked behind your ear as you make adjustments to the gadget in front of you. You flick it on, a hopeful grin on your face that soon disappears when nothing happens.
You let out a frustrated sigh, slumping back in your chair as you pout dejectedly at your currently failing invention. Your gaze drifts to the large windows, watching the snow swirl through the air. The falling snow draws your attention and you stand up, making your way over to the window. Below you, families wander the streets laughing happily with one another and kids play in the snow, building snowmen and having snowball fights. Your eyebrows draw together and a few tears slip down your cheeks, longing for the days where you were those people.
The sound of the lab doors opening snaps you out of your thoughts, wiping your tears away as you turn around. Viktor? Your fellow scientist makes his way into the lab, surprise evident on his face when he sees you standing in the lab. He had been anticipating it to be empty, the rest of the Academy building empty because of the holiday.
“Y/N? What are you doing here? I would’ve expected you to be out celebrating?” He steps a little further into the lab, setting his bag down on the nearest table. You give him a tight smile, hoping it’s dark enough that he can’t see the remnants of tears on your face.
“Couldn’t make it home this year, so I decided to celebrate… by myself,” you trail off, wincing at how lame you probably sounded.
He frowns a little bit, “I will be right back, my dear,” and with that, he’s gone again. You make your way back to your desk, taking a seat to wait for the man to return.
It takes him around 20 minutes to get back to the lab, this time with a delicately wrapped parcel tucked under his arm and a small tray with two drink cups balanced in his unoccupied hand. You can’t help the grin that takes over your face as he sets down the cups on the surface in front of you, the present following soon after.
“For you, Y/N, a cup of sweet milk and your present.” A fluttery feeling arises in your stomach and your eyes water for the second time today, this time for an entirely different reason than before.
You blink away your tears and spin around, “I got you a present too, let me grab it.”
He watches you as you practically bounce to the Christmas tree, bending down to pick it, turning around with it held gently in your outstretched hands, a huge grin on your face.
His eyes scan the room full of decorations you had put up earlier. “I love what you’ve done with the place, very festive.” He chuckles, taking the present from you once you’re back at his side, setting it down on the table he's currently leaned against, his own cup of sweetmilk in his hands.
You pick up your cup, taking a small sip and letting out a hum of happiness. “You sure know how to charm a girl, presents and sweetmilk, Vik? That's a one way ticket to my heart.” His blush is hidden by the darkness of the room and he pushes the gift towards you, hoping to draw your attention away from him before you take notice of his flustered state.
“Open it.” You pick the present, instinctively giving it a little shake and giggling at your silly antics. Your fingers untie the perfectly tied bow of twine holding the parcel together and once it's undone, the paper concealing it falls away.
You can’t keep the grin overtaking your features at bay and you look up at Viktor, barely able to contain your excitement.
“You remembered?”
It was a book you had offhandedly expressed interest in months ago on a trip to the bookstore you made with the man currently in front of you. You had only mentioned wanting it that one time and you definitely hadn’t expected him to remember it.
“I, uh, I actually went back later that night to buy it for you. Christmas was just the nearest reason I had to give it to you. I know it’s not much but-” You cut him off with a tight hug, wrapping your arms tightly around him and burying your face into his neck. He freezes for a moment before his arms settle around your form, pulling you tighter against him.
“I love it, Vik, thank you.” The thoughtfulness of the gift was almost overwhelming. You were genuinely surprised Viktor had remembered something like that, he’d always been the type to remember little details about people, but you were honored that he remembered something so miniscule and unimportant about you. You reluctantly pull away from him, wanting him to open the present you got him.
“Your turn.” You nearly shove the present into his chest, looking up at him expectantly with a sweet smile on your lips. He takes it from you gently, following suit in unwrapping it to reveal what's inside.
He lifts up the deep red scarf you had made for him, knitted with soft yarn you’d found at the market a while ago, the deep red reminding you of the color Viktor typically adorned the minute you saw it.
“I made it myself,” You state proudly, “D’ya like it?” You question hopefully, his silent demeanor making you nervous.
“I love it, it’s perfect.” His voice is quiet and his eyes are locked on the scarf, fingers brushing against the soft material.
“Would you like to do the honors?”
He holds the scarf up to you and you gladly take it. By this time, Viktor had moved into a more comfortable position and was seated on the table you had been working on earlier, any attempt of work long discarded. You step between his legs, heart rate picking up at the close proximity of you and your fellow scientist. His hands reach out, settling on your waist to steady himself. Your cheeks flush at the touch but you try not to let it show, taking the scarf from him.
You gently wrap the scarf around his neck, making minor adjustments to make it fit more comfortably. You smile at your handiwork, eyes darting up from his neck to his eyes. His gaze had been locked on you since you stepped closer to him, your body heat radiating from you and warming the skin of his thighs where your hips rested. He never wants you to move. His golden eyes meet yours when you look up, gaze darting down to your lips for a brief, but noticeable, moment.
“You look amazing.” Your voice is barely above a whisper now and you can’t seem to tear your eyes away from him. His presence is intoxicating and you can’t help but lean in, his eyes drawing you in like a moth to a flame. His hand grip at your waist a little tighter the closer you get. Your noses brush, your lips mere centimeters apart, so close yet so far away and-
A loud crash from the hallway has you jumping back a step, the noise snapping you out of the trance you had found yourself in a moment ago.
You clear your throat, now avoiding eye contact with the man you were just about to kiss and potentially ruin the professional relationship you had formed over the past few years, one that you had thought had become a close friendship at this point. A chime from the clock in the corner draws your attention and you take another step back.
“We should probably get some sleep, Viktor. We’ll have a long day ahead of us once the weekend is over.” He nods in response, saying nothing back. You reach out a hand, helping him keep his balance as he makes his way down from the table. Once his two feet are safely planted on the ground you drop his hand, missing the warmth instantly. You move to gather your things, hearing Viktor do the same behind your turned back.
The two of you head for the doors of the lab, side by side, attempting to ignore any potential awkwardness the situation just a few minutes ago might have caused.
Viktor reaches for the door, opening it and gesturing for you to walk through first. You give him a tight smile and step out, stopping to wait for him to lock up before seeing him off for the night.
He slips his keys back into his pocket, finally meeting your eyes again.
“Goodnight Viktor, I’ll see you tomorrow, Merry Christmas.”
You turn to walk yourself to your dorm, likely to throw yourself into the book Viktor had bought you, but you're stopped by a hand wrapping around your elbow and spinning you back around. You look up at Viktor with concern, raising an eyebrow in silent questioning. He has a smirk on his face and his only response is pointing his finger in the air.
You look up, cheeks flushing at what hangs above your head. Mistletoe. Your blush deepens and your eyes dart back to his face.
Viktor lets go of your elbow, reaching up and tucking a strand of hair behind your ear. You find yourself trapped under his gaze again and when his hand settles on your cheek, you can't help but lean into it.
“It is tradition after all.” And his lips are on yours.
It doesn’t take more than a second for you to respond to the kiss, all earlier caution thrown to the wind. It’s everything you’ve ever imagined, his lips are soft against yours and you nearly get lost in the addictive feeling of the kiss. His hand stays put on your cheek holding you to him but your hands reach out, tangling in his hair and pulling him deeper into the kiss. He lets out a soft groan and it lights a fire in your belly you’ve never felt before. If you had the chance you would stay like this forever.
Like all good things, it must come to an end eventually, unfortunately ending way sooner than you’d hoped and leaving you craving more. Viktor’s the one who pulls away first, cheeks flushed and practically panting when he steps back.
A smile adorns his face and his hand drops from your face, “Merry Christmas Y/N.” And with that, he turns and walks away, leaving you love struck and frozen where you stand. Once he turns the corner at the end of the hall, you manage to shake yourself out of his trance.
Your fingers lightly brush against your tingling lips, reveling in the kiss Viktor had just left you with. You smile and turn away, walking in the opposite direction Viktor had left to turn in for the night.
Maybe Christmas without your family this year wasn’t that bad after all.
send me a made-up fic title and i'll tell you what i would write to go with it
Viktor was never a social butterfly. Often excluded from the activities of his peers, he found comfort in his own company, his own thoughts, his own concepts. His office was frequently empty, save for the rare occasion when another admin came to tell him something, or a student needed to get ahold of Heimerdinger. He preferred it that way -- whether by an acclimation to the solitude, or because in the quiet he could think clearer, he could never be certain.
The only thing he knew with certainty was that he was what others called a 'Wallflower': a person who listened, who watched, but who never or rarely participated.
It had been three weeks since he reconnected with Anya. He had already treated her to coffee, to lunch, and a tour of the Ecology department's green house. Anya loved flowers, he came to learn. It was rare to see any greenery in Zaun, thus despite growing up together, he had no way of knowing her fascination with flora. But he remembered her smile, and how it seemed to light up everything around her.
When she asked him his favorite flower, he found he could give no answer. He admitted he had never given it much thought. He'd had no need.
He wasn't used to being asked personal preference.
Neither was he used to being accessible.
Anya arrived at his office, quiet and unhurried -- she didn't want to disturb him. He was hunched over his desk, working on something in a journal; handwritten notes scrawled with fervor on every inch of the page. She smiled to herself as she tempted the threshold, giving the door a soft knock.
He didn't look up. He was completely engrossed in whatever it was he was doing.
She almost debated turning around and leaving. But she wanted to invite him to lunch -- Academy's dime or not. Viktor had always been thin, but she had assumed that in childhood it had been due to their impoverished surroundings, food insecurity, and lost appetites. She was now putting together that as an adult he often forgot to eat.
She worried about him. So she stepped inside his office.
"Viktor?" she called.
She saw a twitch in his face, as he supposedly heard her. But he still didn't answer.
She looked over his shoulder and saw a calculation for a powerful beam of light -- a laser. She pointed to an equation in front of him. "This could be inverted."
He jumped.
"I'm sorry -- I didn't mean to scare you. I thought you heard me," she chuckled.
He leaned back in his chair and ran his hands over his face. "No, no. It's -- It's fine," he let a breath, and began to laugh. He tossed the pencil on desk and combed his fingers through his hair. "Sometimes -- I get too focused," he confessed.
She smiled, observing him. He was lightly pink, as if he were blushing -- or flushed with surprise, or both. She found it endearing. "If you're not too busy, I was hoping we could have lunch together."
"What time is it?" he looked at a clock on the wall. "Yes, lunch. What was it you wanted to discuss about the Academy?"
She shook her head. "Nothing. I simply wanted to talk to you. In a personal sense. If that is okay with you."
His hands gripping the armrests of his chair, he found himself looking at her blankly before his brows rose and his mind was finally able to piece together that she wanted nothing from him. "Oh. Yes, yes -- that is, that is fine," he said and began to clear his desk.
Her smile grew and she suppressed a chuckle. "My driver is waiting outside. Will you escort me?"
"Of course." Viktor stood and locked his journal in a drawer. "It would be my pleasure."
It was an odd feeling to be seen, even in his rawest state. An observer being observed. If what others said about him was true, if he were a wallflower -- someone who grew on a vine, coiled ever on the outside of recognition and praise -- he found himself neither plucked, nor planted elsewhere, for all others to see and watch and gawk.
Instead, he thought, as he held out his arm for Anya to take, he considered that another vine had found its way beside him. That the blooms and blossoms of another flower had coiled next to this place. Someone else who observed, someone else who listened and understood.
