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Aventurine is someone who will allow anyone to use him.
Say you want him to perform a job, he’ll do so at the right price. Torture him and he’ll get through it. As a master gambler, he’ll do anything to win what he wants, even if it means committing risky actions. Even if he roams free, he still belongs to the Interastral Peace Corporation. No matter what, he will be sentenced to die by the IPC.
But recently… His coworkers of the Strategic Investment Department started to notice something about their senior… Streets say that he got himself a somebody. A lover, rather than a hooker. Nobody really knows if Aventurine is that sort of person, but it’s clear that he’s experienced in sexual activities… But in a twisted way. He seems pretty happy nowadays, which led to his coworkers suspecting of him receiving a lover. However, there was a concern that lingered in each and every IPC worker’s minds.
How can Aventurine’s lover possibly love him? How can they when he acts a little strangely when it comes to sexual acts and love in general? In other words, they began to express concern for his lover. “This relationship can’t possibly last for longer.”
As for Aventurine himself, he had just come back from gambling his life away with some of the slot machines by Golden Hour. He is currently staying in Penacony for a mission that Diamond had assigned him to. Throughout his mission, he’s encountered a few ups and lows. One of the ups is, in fact, finding love. The rumors are true, but he does nothing to instigate it. Nobody needs to know who it is.
After all, they might find themselves surprised once they learn that it is none other than Dr. Veritas Ratio of the Intelligentsia Guild. He was originally collabing with Aventurine for a research fund. Someone like that is guaranteed to receive a few eyes from people. And together with one of the Ten Stonehearts, it would’ve certainly caused a weird reaction from the public.
“... Here… Over here, gambler.” Speak of the devil, the doctor himself is standing by his right side as he stumbles. He didn’t even see him. “You reek of liquor. Did you drink while stripping yourself of money today?”
Aventurine sounds slightly offended, “... Hey now, I didn’t strip… Just had a few to drink.. Nice lady handed some over to the people playing slots--”
“If your brain were functioning, you’d know that I meant that you had spent your money until you’d gone broke. Start moving before you begin using your IPC funds.”
“...”
With Ratio’s help, they both start walking out of Golden Hour together. Ratio happened to book a place nearby, since he also has other related business in Penacony. They were seen together by a few citizens and IPC members, much to Aventurine’s dismay. But to Ratio, he supposes that it doesn’t matter. After all, they’re lovers. Keeping each other a secret is insulting and too inconvenient.
After finally getting inside the hotel room, Ratio places his boyfriend down on his bed. It’s only one huge bed, of course. But no matter, he has to sober up Aventurine. He grabs a glass of water and places it by Aventurine’s side. Luckily for him, Aventurine is conscious enough to take the glass of water and drink it with slow sips. The latter can only sigh at the sight of his boyfriend.
“I thought you only took gambles you knew you’d win?” Ratio sighs.
“Hm… Was only having fun. Didn’t take the time to consider my win rates or whatever.” Aventurine also sighs, sipping the glass of water until half remains. He stares at his reflection on the glass for a long time. He has a few things being kept inside his head. “Earlier, I was talking to a local. Apparently, she was a fortune teller. She asked me if I had found myself a lover recently, to which she was right. I couldn’t possibly lie to the face of a maiden, so I affirmed.”
“What’s with the story?” Ratio can only look back. “Oh well. Do tell.”
Aventurine almost wants to laugh as he continues on. “She then proceeded to tell me these weird things. Perhaps she’s a prophet or a cultist, but… She told me that she couldn’t possibly imagine me having a lover. Because apparently, ‘I am too confident in what I do despite not knowing a thing at all…’ What could that mean?”
“... Your lack of self-awareness is beyond me.” Ratio says with a blunt tone.
“You’re plenty smart, aren’t you? Decipher it for me while I… go take a shower.”
Obviously, Ratio can tell that his boyfriend is out of it. Based on his behavior, Aventurine must’ve taken offense to the fortune teller’s sayings and musings. Whomever this must be probably already knows Aventurine by a mile. The scholar can take a few guesses on who it is, but anywho… Due to the strange statements, Aventurine probably subconsciously gambled his life away before taking precautions. Better yet, he even drank alcohol during the midst of it all. His mood must’ve swinged ever since. Out of politeness, Ratio can only prepare the bed so that his boyfriend can knock himself out on it to proceed to the next day.
Meanwhile, Aventurine is already in the shower. He’s at least sober enough to drench himself in hot water. It soothes himself for a bit as he lessens the unnoticed tension on his shoulders. He kind of finds it strange. What is he tensing up for? Was it still about the conversation he had with that fortune teller earlier? Or maybe it’s because he’s with his boyfriend inside a hotel room alone? Or perhaps it’s because Ratio likes bathtubs so much more, but for some reason, this bathroom only has a shower and no bathtub.
Several thoughts rushed through his mind in an instant as he lathered his hair. It gets soaked in more warm water. It feels nice, like your body turning into floating bubbles. As he dries his hair, Aventurine looks at himself in the mirror for yet another time. His skin, his face, his body…
For some reason, he feels his self-consciousness delving inside of the deep depths of his mind.
“I couldn’t have possibly imagined that you’d get yourself a lover.”
The memory replays again. His conversation with the fortune teller.
“... Sorry, miss. I’m afraid I do not know you. What makes you say that? The way you said it, you make it seem like I’m unsuited for such trivial things.”
“Everyone in the IPC thought you had it going for people. Perhaps they thought you were even well versed in the art of love. But… Hmm..”
“... What? Dear maiden, don’t tell me you think I’m too naive to be in a relationship?”
“Hmm, you’re not too off.”
“Seriously…?”
“How can I put it? You’re quite the provocative one. You know how deals work. You know when to repay favors… And you know when you should let people use you or not.”
“... Hahaha, really now?”
“And… Because of that, I worry for you.”
“... Huh?”
“You are too confident in what you do despite not knowing a thing at all…”
Aventurine takes a towel and starts drying his hair. His face is visibly narrowed and upset. That woman pitied him. Aventurine knows very well what she meant by that. And because of that, it pisses him off. She knows who he is and she sees an unavoidable future waiting for him and his next partnership.
An unavoidable future, she says. Hah, that kind of reminds him of another unavoidable future he also has to worry about. It’s like yet another execution. He feels anxious and a tad bit angry. He wants to prove her wrong, but he knows no better. He understands very well that this relationship with him and Ratio might not last long. For all he knows, he could just be an experiment for Ratio. He might just be like the rest of Aventurine’s previous customers, passing and tossing him away once they're done playing with him. As for Aventurine himself, he wants to keep him. He doesn’t want him to toss him away. His heart plays with his own feelings. It feels like a heatstroke hitting him from all sides.
He takes one last look at his naked body. He never realized it before, since he always avoids examining his body. He’s forgotten the reason why he never examines himself, but… He can see a scar by his left shoulder and a few bruises and hickies that never faded away. His eyes darted away afterwards.
“I’m done. You can have the shower now.” Aventurine announces as he rolls his eyes to the bed. He tosses the towel and slides into the covers like a caterpillar. Still naked, but he couldn’t care less. The latter doesn’t seem to be bothered at the amount of bruises he had on his bare body, or, perhaps he wishes to ignore them.
Ratio simply shakes his head as he holds his usual book, “I’ve already had one before I found you.”
“Prepared, huh? Haha…”
As if.
Are they dedicated lovers?
Perhaps Ratio is just looking for something in Aventurine?
Treating him like an experiment, just like how they treated him all those years ago?
Is Aventurine treating Ratio like he’s just a one-time thing?
Maybe they were just displaying their relationship status as a means to using each other. Maybe they don’t actually love each other at all, like how normal people do it.
… But it never felt that way to Aventurine.
“Doctor.” The blonde suddenly calls him, peeking from the covers. Ratio comes over and deliberately closes his book this time. Aventurine, pristine and unphased, speaks, “Do you want to make love with me?”
“...” Ratio is taken aback, but he does his best not to show it on his face.
Because Aventurine’s feelings have always been real. The way he always looks at Ratio and how he yearns for the man to look the same way back… They were never disingenuous. Even as they proceeded with their newly found relationship, Aventurine has always managed to create a false face. He looks and sounds like he knows everything about how relationships work. Even when he’s in front of Ratio, he wills the same snarky expression, never faltering. Ratio probably caught on too early, but never bothered to question it. Aventurine can tell.
So what if Aventurine’s true feelings crush into itty bitty pieces? Ratio might not feel the same way he secretly does. Maybe he doesn’t share the same passion and infatuation he has with him. Maybe they’re not on the same wavelength. Ever since that fortune teller told him all of that, it’s been eating at him.
If he wants his feelings to be expressed, he’d have to see how it is like to make love. With someone he genuinely loves.
“... Do you even know what you’re asking?” Ratio can only sigh. He sits by the edge of the bed, rolling his eyes.
Aventurine replies in an unusually softer tone. “I know. I just want to see what it’s like.” With you, specifically.
“You are not sober. I won’t allow this to happen if you are intoxicated.”
“I drank a lot of water and took a hot shower as a wake-up call. Do I look drunk to you?”
“...” Ratio falls silent. He thinks for a while before ultimately inching closer. It seems that he might actually be interested in Aventurine’s proposal. Before he could come any closer, he asked him a question which felt like an atomic bomb dropping . “Are you sure about this?”
Wow. That’s a question Aventurine has never heard from the people who usually commit the following heinous actions towards him. Is he seriously asking if he wants it right now? It should be obvious that he does.
But nonetheless, Aventurine gives the man a sly smile. He slowly drags the covers down and reveals half of his bare body. “Yes. I want you to make love with me. ”
“... Sigh.” Ratio, understanding the blonde’s wants, begins to undress. It excites Aventurine. He’s wanted this for a long time, but never found the right time to approach it. But as he watches the man undress, Ratio suddenly inches himself even closer, startling the man. “You are asking me to have sex with you.”
“... What else would I be implying?”
Aventurine almost wants to laugh at his face. What else could Ratio be saying? How on Penacony was Aventurine able to fall in love with this man, even after a rocky start of just collaborating?
“Am I allowed to inquire as to what position you’d feel more comfortable with?” The doctor asks him nonchalantly. Wow.
“... Pfft--” The blonde can only laugh. He chuckles before getting his bare side hit with a single chop by Ratio. He ceases his laughing and smiles. “I’m glad you’re so considerate, doctor. But…”
Slowly but surely, Aventurine presses his hand onto Ratio’s lower abdomen. He lowers the man down on the bed and caulessly topples on him. Ratio seems a little flustered, but still regains composure. The blonde lowers himself down and casually whispers in the latter’s right ear.
“I can tell you’re very knowledgeable when it comes to sex, but… As for experience? I might be your first.” The blonde lowers his tone into something more soft. “I can teach you how to handle me. Give me your hands…”
Aventurine’s hands are as soft as a pillow, but as callous as those of a fighter. Ratio can feel his hands in his. It feels warm. Even as Aventurine seductively grinds up against him, he can’t even focus on the fact that his boyfriend’s hands are so small and soft compared to his own. It was so nice…
But something felt off.
His hands were in Aventurine’s. It feels like it's full of love, but… Aventurine places Ratio’s hands around his neck . His thumb is adjusted to the blonde’s serial number branded on his neck. Immediately, the atmosphere becomes dark.
“Right here…” A wide smile from the blonde. He massages Ratio’s hands as he forces him to squeeze lightly. “Feel free to tighten the grip however you want… I know very well not to kiss either… I’ll do anything for you. Now give me a second and let me prep myself--”
SLAP!
Ratio smacks his hands away from Aventurine’s neck. It caused a slap to echo across the room. Aventurine looks down at his boyfriend in shock, his own hands lightly grasping onto nothing but thin air. Ratio slightly sits himself up, then slamming the blonde back onto the bed. Aventurine lets out a noise and looks up. It was attractive, but his expression suddenly grew cold. The doctor gets up and raises his hand, causing the blonde to flinch. But then… he gently caresses him instead.
“Sigh… It’s as I thought.” Ratio looks down at him with disappointment. Huh? What did he do wrong? Aventurine doesn’t seem to get it. “You truly don’t know how love works, don’t you?”
“... Wha-- wait. Huh? What are you on about? I was just about to get to the sex part!”
“Tsk. I’m afraid that fortune teller was right.”
Aventurine’s heart sinks for a second. That sentence can affirm a few things alone, but… Ratio can only pout. How cute. Ratio slicks back Aventurine’s hair to reveal his forehead. With a surprising ease and swiftness, he kisses it. The blonde blinks in surprise, locking eyes with his boyfriend.
“That was much better. Do you want another example?” Cockily, Ratio smirks. Confusion swirls around Aventurine’s brain and eyes. He can’t seem to comprehend. As he tries, Ratio, again, kisses around his jaw. A few squirms and quiet gasps come out of Aventurine’s mouth. “ These are better forms of love.”
“H-huh-- ah.. ” The blonde gasps again as another kiss to his neck smears.
Ratio’s tone lowers into a soft tone as well. “At first… Well, I thought you might’ve just had a kink. But I can clearly see that’s not the case.” Then, he separates his mouth from Aventurine’s skin and locks eyes with him. They’re beautiful and enchanting eyes. “ That is how you’ve always seen love, correct? Something that comes and goes. Something that benefits both parties like blackmail. Something that must come with pain and agony.”
“... Haha, I don’t-- ah, quite… understand…”
“...”
Their bodies suddenly get a whole lot closer, flustering the blonde. Then, a huge and comforting hug initiates. Aventurine doesn’t seem to understand. This gesture… It’s just a hug. He’s seen and experienced it before, so why is it that his heart is racing ten times more than usual? He blinks, grasping onto Ratio’s two arms lightly.
“I already know of your background, so please do not take my actions as scorning you with pity.” Ratio says as he takes the blonde’s two wrists into his callous hand. “I’m going to teach you how sex works between real lovers, alright?”
“...” All of a sudden, it comes crashing down. Aventurine’s face flushes red. “Okay.”
I trust you.
“... Hm. Okay.” Ratio smiles. “Now as for your comment earlier… I can’t believe what my poor ears had to hear. No kissing, you say…? I mean not to offend, but did you really think that in any real relationship, there was never going to be kissing involved?”
“Hah, you’re already on my case? I thought you examined my background!” Aventurine talks back, dropping the whole ‘maiden falling in love’ expression. “I thought we were just nothing.”
“... And you’ve hurt my feelings.” Ratio sighs, giving the blonde another kiss on the neck. “Because I’ve always felt that we were real.”
“... It’s funny you say that.” Aventurine giggles quietly. “I hoped for that too.”
Ratio takes both his index and thumb and tilts Aventurine’s head to face him head on. His eyes are like beautiful marines. His face inches closer, but Aventurine hesitates to lean forward. His head turns unconsciously, emitting concern from his boyfriend. Ratio continues to grasp onto Aventurine’s wrists, causing the latter to gasp.
“I’m not going to hold onto your wrists for longer, nor am I going to bind them or tie them to the headboard.” He gently places his hands above to reach a soft and fluffy pillow. “Although I’d much rather hear your adorable little noises, feel free to use the pillow as you wish. Technically speaking, it is your ‘first time’ or however you’d call it.”
“... Mocking me, eh?”
“Not at all. I love you.”
The blonde’s face flushes again. As always, Ratio is just a ball of randomness and surprises. It almost ticks him off, but he finds it loveable. He can’t bring himself to hate him no matter how much teasing and bickering they do to each other.
“Open your mouth.” Ratio cups his boyfriend’s cheeks with his right hand. “Do you trust me?”
“... That depends on you.”
Ratio’s face inches closer as Aventurine attempts to welcome him. It takes some time until he finally lets go of the pressure. With that, their lips meet. The kiss starts off gently, then deeper… and deeper. So this is how it’s like, Aventurine thinks inside his mind. It feels warm. It feels like love.
Ratio lifts his boyfriend’s leg up and holds it until his knee reaches all the way back. And for the first time, Aventurine is nervous. His heart can barely take it as it continues to rapidly beat. He doesn’t know where to look. It either has to be below or right directly into Ratio’s eyes. He holds the pillow tightly, almost wanting to tear it apart. But Ratio caresses his cheek once more and whispers into his ear with a deep voice.
“It’s alright, ---------. I’ll be gentle.”
“...!” He called him by his real name. Even the genius knows his real name. “V-Veritas-- ahhh..! ”
Right on his neck, where the serial number is tatted, Ratio bites onto it. Square in the middle, it causes the blonde to yell. He moans as they proceed to the main course, where Aventurine would have to learn more on how different this type of sex is. It’s sex between two lovers. Nothing to lose, nothing to gain. Just emotional closeness.
.
.
.
The sun is out.
The bright, yellow rays hit against Aventurine’s eyes and face like a flashbang. Apparently, they forgot to close the curtains last night. Oh bother. Whoever saw them in the distance must’ve been mortified, but then again, it’s Penacony of all places. No one is probably going to care.
“... Mmmgh..” The blonde groans, attempting to get up from the bed. Drool hangs from his mouth to the pillow. The best he can do is to become a seal. His back hurts like hell, but he doesn’t mind. He’s used to it, but… This is one of the first times he’s ever been happy to have a strained back.
After all, his lover is right next to him.
Ratio sleeps in peace, the side of his face sinking into the white, fluffy pillow. It’s cute. After all of that princess treatment he willingly gave to Aventurine, he might as well get the same pampering treatment back. Smiling, the blonde lays back down again and tussles with Ratio’s hair. How soft and luscious it feels in his hand. Is this the dreamscape? It's too good to be real.
“... Hehehe..” The blonde snickers as he plays with his boyfriend’s hair. “Adorable, aren’t you?”
GRAB!
“... Same to you.”
Ratio had grabbed Aventurine’s hand, even as he had his eyes closed. Surprised, Aventurine stutters for a bit before Ratio could kiss his wrist. He smirks, feeling proud of himself. Well, he should be. He’d have to be someone beyond Aventurine’s comprehension to be thirteen steps ahead of him.
Aventurine hates being looked down upon. He’s the type who never likes to look up. But… For today, he can allow himself to enjoy it once in a while.