Chapter Text
“Apeture Science...we do what we must, because, we can...hmm hmm hmmmm hm hmmm hm hmm…”
Horuss half-sung half-hummed to himself inaudibly under the sound of the handheld blowtorch he was using, drawing it in a composed, near-perfect straight line as he welded two metal cylinders together. He pulled the torch back and turned off the flame in one motion once he’d made his way all the way around the piece, setting the torch down on the metal workbench beside him once he was finished with it. He pulled the distressed copper steampunk goggles covering his face face up in order to to look over the piece, giving a tiny smile. “Hmm...I suppose that’ll do for today. I really should get my hands on some more rebar for the legs, but…” His glance drifted as he murmured to himself, when some movement out of the corner of his eye caught his attention. He glanced over to the ramp that lead up from the garage to the main office inside the building, where Rufioh was waving both arms trying to get his attention. “Oh! Hello Rufioh. Have you been waiting on me long?” Horuss gave a little amused huff out his nose as he shed his work gloves, making his way over to him.
Rufioh stopped waving once he was sure he had Horuss’ attention, giving a little chuckle as he opted to lean against the rail to the ramp instead. “Heh...not super long. No worries!” Rufioh gave a little smirk, cupping his hands to Horuss’ cheeks and kissing him on the forehead once Horuss was close enough to the ramp for him to do so, earning a little snicker from him. “Figured you were like, in the zone so I didn’t wanna get too close or nothin’. It’s looking pretty good by the way!” Rufioh peered over at what Horuss was working on, confusion evident in the subtle purse of his brows but a supporting smile on his face nonetheless. “What are you gonna do with it when it’s done?”
“Oh, perhaps put it out on display in front of the shop. If I open up commissions, it would be nice to have an example readily available.” Horuss gave a smile of his own at the kiss, fumbling around in his pocket for a set of round framed glasses and a rag. “If nothing else, we could always put it out in the yard as decoration.” He grinned at the concept.
Rufioh looked over to the metal structure, then back to Horuss as he cleaned his glasses, giving an awkward chuckle and a forced grin. “Yeah...sure. Or, maybe you could make a smaller one and we can put it on a shelf inside somewhere so nobody...steals it.” He muttered in response.
“Hmm. I suppose you’re right.” Horuss sighed, putting his glasses on and stuffing the rag back in his pocket. “Now then...what was it you needed exactly?”
“Oh. Yeah.” Rufioh quickly reached into his pocket for a crumpled up napkin with some scribbles of text on it. “That Thunderbrid guy called in for a walk-in. Says the car has been making weird noises ever since he drove back from vacation.” Rufioh read off the napkin. “Figured it was pretty much nothing. I feel kinda bad for how often you need to explain all this basic stuff to him. Dude needs flashcards or something.” Rufioh chuckled.
“Oh, I don’t mind. He really wasn’t given much time to learn how to care for the car, from what I heard. He inherited it from his grandfather and still doesn’t quite have a handle on caring for it without someone to teach him. I’m more than happy teaching him how to handle it, especially since he’s coming to me and not someone who’ll rob him blind.” Horuss chuckled, idly unbraiding his ponytail now that he was no longer welding and no longer needed it as tight as it was. “He really is nice.”
“Really? Huh.” Rufioh nodded. “It’s wild to have, like, a regular that isn’t some old dude.” He added. Living in a small town that was half an hour away from the main college city in their state, most people their age move out to live in the city the second they had a chance. Rufioh and Horuss had both made the decision to stay in their hometown instead of pursuing college, Rufioh to help take care of his family and Horuss to take over the family business. As such, neither really have much of a chance to meet new people their age, so having “Firebird Guy” hang around every once in a while was something of a pleasant change of pace, considering most of their regulars were on the older side.
“Mhm. From what I heard he’s in the process of moving into the old Makara house and fixing it up. Says he’s looking for some freedom from his family in the city.” Horuss went on, moving away to strip himself out of the apron he was wearing, looking in the mirror on the wall near the hook where he hung up his apron and wiping a black smudge from his cheek off on the back of his hand.
“Dang, you caught all that?” Rufioh vaulted over the side of the ramp instead of walking down it, watching Horuss fixate on his face. “Seems like a pretty interesting dude I guess. Like some Fallout NPC rolling through the wasteland in a sick ride or something, totally out of place but programmed to be there. Betcha if you asked him he has someone he wants killed for you, that’s why he’s getting wicked chummy.” Rufioh snickered, miming a gun with his fingers.
Horuss looked him up and down, then gave a little snort. “You’re adorable, you know that?”
Rufioh chuckled in response, rubbing the back of his neck like an anime character. “Heh...yeah. I try.” He grinned.
Just as he spoke, he caught the car in question pulling up to the open garage out of his peripheral vision. Rufioh hadn’t had much interaction with Thunderbird Guy beyond speaking to him over the phone, he hardly remembered his name, just the car that he drove. Granted, he remembered most people by their cars and not their names. It was just easier in his line of work.
Getting a glimpse of Thunderbird Guy was something else. The car seemed very befitting of his style, as Rufioh turned his attention to his slicked back hair and the way he rest his arm against the door of the car for lack of a wall to lean on like a cool dude. Rufioh just stared as Horuss ushered him into the garage. He didn’t know why he felt inclined to stare, but Thunderbird Guy had a very loud aura and Rufioh was taken aback by it. He was conventionally attractive, but in a way that made one inherently suspicious of his personality. Rufioh, in turn, was suspicious about what exactly the car was compensating for with a face like that.
“Cronus! Welcome back. How was your trip?” Horuss immediately beamed, walking over as Thunderbird Guy, whose name Rufioh was just now remembering as Horuss said it, stepped out of the car with a little smirk on his face. He was tall, Rufioh noted. Not obscenely tall, but a few inches taller than himself. He was muscular as well, but in an aesthetic sense. He didn’t seem like the type to go out and chop firewood, per se, but he definitely looked like the kind of guy who took 15 minutes out of his workout routine to take pictures of himself. What an asshole, Rufioh confirmed, despite knowing nothing about the guy.
“Ayy, not bad, not bad. Actually managed to get out to the beach for a few seconds when I wasn’t trapped with my family. Exactly what I needed. I still can’t believe you’ve never been.” Cronus smirked, offering Horuss a quick little side hug as a greeting. He had an almost cartoonish New Jersey-Italian accent, Rufioh noted, more so in person than on the phone. It took a lot for him not to snort when the “ayyy” came out of his mouth. There was really no way this man was real, Rufioh thought. He glanced to Horuss, who had a massive smile on his face as Cronus spoke. He had this polite smile that he put on most of the time, but Rufioh was usually able to differentiate the fake smile from his real one. Horuss was genuinely happy to see this guy.
“Can’t say I have.” Horuss chuckled. “It’s hard for me to venture out of town too often. Rufioh and I did manage to head out to this convention a few months back, but we didn’t factor in the time to head to the beach what with all the events and the driving back and forth.” He went on, gesturing to Rufioh. When the attention shifted to him, Rufioh threw on a little smile, awkwardly stuffing his hands in his pockets.
“Ohhh, so this is Rufioh!” Cronus grinned, giving Rufioh a polite little nod, who in turn nodded back. “Seen ya around but didn’t realize you were the Rufioh.”
“Heh, yeah…” Rufioh’s posture shrunk as he removed one hand from his pocket to awkwardly push his hair back. “We talked on the phone, actually. Nice to meet you in person my dude!” He just smiled.
“He really is a treat. You should show Cronus your cosplay pictures!” Horuss glanced to the car. “Now then, where’s the sound coming from?”
“Oh yeah uhh...in the back.” Cronus gave a vague gesture. “Cosplay pictures ya say?” He gave a little eyebrow waggle.
“Oh, jeez, uh…” Rufioh awkwardly fumbled for his phone, uncomfortable with being put on the spot. “Yeah it’s...nothing. You know...anime?” He spoke, immediately mentally scolding himself for saying something stupid.
“Do I know anime?” Cronus slowly repeated the phrase, smirking. “Uhh...yeah? Ain’t watched none beyond uhh...a few short one-off series I found while lookin’ for something else, I guess.” He gave a single shoulder shrug, scratching the side of his neck.
“Uhhh...hang on…” Rufioh awkwardly swiped through pictures, before pulling up a picture of him holding a plush of Teddiursa from Pokemon. “This is my original Pokemon trainer design. I also do, like...uhh a neko dude, and...this original...demon type dude with wings and horns...it’s lame.” Rufioh scratched the back of his neck with his free hand.
“Hey, that’s pretty cool! I mean, it’s neat you got the confidence to do stuff like that.” Cronus nodded. Rufioh, who had no confidence whatsoever, just nodded and laughed in response. “Guess you really gotta have a hobby around here to pass the time, huh?” Cronus added.
“Yeah...it’s not so bad.” Rufioh stated, putting his phone away. “We mostly play video games, Horuss has been getting into metalworking recently, we do like...trivia night at the bar and stuff.” He shrugged.
“Found your problem!” Horuss shouted from behind the car, holding up a small box covered in bubble wrap. “I can only assume that this is the source of your clunking, yes?”
“Oh...did I forget that back there? Damn, silly me.” Cronus dramatically hit himself on the side of the head, walking over to Horuss. “I was gonna give that to a pal, but he stood me up so...why don’t you keep it?”
Curious, Horuss opened the heavily padded box, pulling out what seemed to be a snowglobe of a lighthouse on a beach, with “New Jersey” written along the side. “Oh my, what a nifty little souvenir this is. Thank you!” Horuss gave a little smile, giving it a little shake.
“Yeah...I figured since you can’t make it out to the beach...I’d bring it to you, in a sense.” Cronus shrugged. “Of course...I’ll gladly bring you next time, if you’d like. I’d love to take you for a ride in general, riding along in this baby really is an experience.” He grinned, waggling his eyebrows. Rufioh looked at him in disbelief, then looked over to Horuss, who was visibly flustered.
“Oh...you don’t have to do that for me, really.” Horuss sighed, idly twisting his finger in his hair. “I rarely have the time to breathe these days, but...maybe on a slow day I’ll take you up on that offer for a ride.” He added.
Cronus just shot him a wink, hopping back into the car. “You think about that and shoot me a call. I gotta skedaddle, gotta unpack and shit while I still got the energy. Catch ya around?”
“Mhm. Nice seeing you, Cronus! Have fun unpacking!” Horuss gave him a little wave, stepping out of his way and letting Cronus pull out of the garage. With that, he set the little snowglobe on one of the less crowded shelves, smiling to himself.
Rufioh looked to Horuss, then over to the entrance to the garage, waiting for Cronus to fully pull away before approaching Horuss. “You know that dude was like...seriously hitting on you, right?”
“He was?” Horuss quirked a brow. “Hmm...no, I don’t think so. He’s just a nice person. He must be so lonely out here without anyone in the area to spend time with.”
“No, he was like...seriously hitting on you, dude.” Rufioh reiterated, furrowing his brow. “You heard him ask to go for a “ride” with him, right?”
“He’s a fellow car aficionado, it’s a nice vehicle, I’d enjoy spending some time in it.” Horuss idly organized the shelf he set the snowglobe on. “If anything, he was hitting on you.” He added, giving Rufioh a little smile.
“What? No. He was being polite, we were like...making awkward small talk. That’s totally different!” He raised his voice emphatically, not with anger but with disbelief. “He brought you a gift and everything, he was totally hitting on you!”
“Oh?” Horuss stopped what he was doing, bringing his hand to his chin to rub it. “Hmm. I suppose he was. Interesting.” He shrugged, making his way up the ramp into the office.
“...Interesting?” Rufioh hopped up the rail to the ramp to follow him inside. “So...what?”
"So what?” Horuss just shrugged, perfectly calm and collected. “I can tell him I’m not interested in him that way.”
“But…you were like, totally hitting on him too.” Rufioh gave a vague little hand gesture.
“I was?” Horuss blinked. “Of course not. I’m a taken man. If I was enamored by his advances, it was strictly because he was being nice to me.” Horuss sat down on the desk in the office, idly kicking his legs.
“Well, yeah, but…” Rufioh sighed. “I mean…” He awkwardly fumbled over his words.
“Yes? What do you mean?” Horuss quirked his head in confusion.
“We could...y’know, talk about that.” Rufioh awkwardly fumbled over his words, making vague hand gestures. “Instead of...not...talking about that.”
Horuss tilted his head to the other side, giving a worried furrow of his brow. “Rufioh, I would never cheat on you or leave you, the moment we leave this town I am absolutely making you mine.” He gave a small, comforting smile.
“No I...I mean...that’s...really comforting, thanks dude.” Rufioh sighed, stepping closer to take Horuss’ hands and kiss him on the forehead. “I’m saying I’m not like...opposed to you getting with this dude or whatever, I’m just like...if you really are into this dude, you can tell me, y’know? Totally cool with it.”
“Of course.” Horuss sighed, nuzzling into Rufioh’s chest for a moment. “I hadn’t really considered bringing up the thought of pursuing him, but...” He wrapped his arms around Rufioh’s waist, leaning into him. “Are you really not opposed, or are you just saying that?”
“No I’m...really not. I’m just...surprised? Anxiety’s kinda messing me up a little, sorry for like...ruining the mood or whatever.” Rufioh muttered. “If you chill with this dude and find out he’s a totally nice guy then I’m down. But, y’know, if he actually ends up asking you to kill a guy, I got some problems with that.” Rufioh gave a little huff of a chuckle.
“Should we have a “no murder” policy then? I second the motion.” Horuss hummed. “Maybe we should head home, talk this out a little more in bed. I desperately need a shower if we’re going to maintain this level of closeness through the whole discussion.” He gave a tired chuckle.
“Yeah. Sounds good.” Rufioh nodded, stepping back to give Horuss room to stand. Horuss sleepily took Rufioh’s hand, and Rufioh smiled, following him out the front door.