Chapter Text
It’s Ned’s fourth week dating Paterson—not that he’s been counting or anything. They’ve been spending Paterson’s morning break together at the transit center each morning, having a dinner date on Fridays, and spending the night together here and there.
And more often than not, Paterson is waiting by the bike rack outside to go for a walk when Ned gets off work. Ned started bringing his bike with him on the bus and biking home so he doesn’t have to suffer through a bus ride without Paterson in the driver’s seat.
Tonight is their fourth dinner date, and Ned spent most of Paterson's break this morning practically sitting in his lap, their kisses bordering on a public makeout session.
Mare has grown used to Ned’s almost permanently flustered and giddy state these past few weeks but today he's even more flustered than usual when he walks into work.
“You wear your heart on your fucking face, Sampson,” she shakes her head but Ned can see her trying not to smile.
Before he can make it into his office, though, he's ambushed by Nicole insisting he needs to ‘play hard to get,’ then wait months to be ‘exclusive,’ then even longer to admit having feelings and ‘define the relationship,’ and she doesn't even get to her views on love before Mare pushes Ned into his office while she shushes Nicole.
Ned tries to get some proofreading done for tomorrow's paper but all he can think about is how Paterson's skin felt on his lips this morning and the way Paterson's hand gripped his leg, thumb gently stroking back and forth over the stubble burns on his inner thighs left over from last night.
He's rudely brought back to reality by Mare snapping in his face.
“I asked you if you wanted to grab lunch after the interview with that guy from the parks department.”
“Yes. That sounds good,” Ned says, hoping she leaves and he can continue daydreaming about how thoroughly Paterson ravaged him, keeping him infuriatingly close and on the edge of coming for what felt like hours, hence the stubble burn.
Mare glares at him. “We're actually interviewing the city treasurer. Did you know that?”
“...Yes,” Ned lies, his face burning.
Mare rolls her eyes and sighs, then Nicole pops up behind her and the situation devolves into another debate where Mare is convinced he's in love after a month and Nicole insists he needs to hide his true feelings for reasons he doesn't understand.
Paterson is already on his next break, because Ned's phone buzzes and he can't suppress the smile that grows on his lips when he looks at the notification. When he glances back up, Nicole and Mare look disgusted but not surprised and shut his office door behind them.
Ned opens the message.
Paterson (hot bus driver)
What do you want to do tonight?
Aren't we working out and getting pizza?
No like do you want to fuck me in the shower after?
Is that why you're taking me to the gym?
It was one of my motivations.
Thanks mainly to Mare's professionalism and actually doing her job in preparation for their meeting, the interview with the treasurer goes well, and by the time they get back to the office, Paterson's shift is over and Ned receives another text.
You're staying and baking muffins with me, right?
Somehow that sounds more sexual than your sexting.
But yes I'm staying and baking muffins
I wasn't sexting. I was planning.
Planning turns me on
8===D~~
Texting Paterson and his slide-out phone that's old enough to have its own driver's license always dredges up some repressed memories like typed out emojis. Or when Paterson told Ned a few days after their first date that he had to upgrade his phone plan to include unlimited texting.
But he loves that about Paterson; how he's not influenced by much, whether it's the constant new models of phones being released, new cars, clothing trends, or general consumerism. He's steadfast in his beliefs—the immovable object against the unstoppable force of society.
The rest of the work day crawls by unbearably slowly, and by the time 5 p.m. rolls around, Ned practically sprints out of the building to find Paterson waiting for him outside like always.
“I missed you,” Ned says, then kisses Paterson when they meet at the bottom of the steps.
Paterson laughs and nuzzles against Ned's hair. “You saw me this morning.”
“And then I had to go all day without seeing you,” Ned pouts, clinging to Paterson with both arms around his waist.
Paterson tries to take a step and start dragging Ned in the right direction. “If you let go of me you can see even more of me at the gym then all of me at home.”
That's more than enough motivation for Ned, who lets Paterson lead them toward the gym hand in hand.
“Paterson!” The front desk employee exclaims when they enter the gym. “Is this why you haven't been around? We've been worried! You've never skipped days before!”
Paterson lets her scan a tag on his key ring, blushing and biting his lip.
“Yeah, this is Ned,” Paterson says, glancing over toward him and smiling shyly. “My boyfriend.”
Oh. That's new. Ned looks back and returns a smile of his own.
He feels all fluttery inside as he hands over his ID to register as a guest, and the employee makes an excited noise and claps her hands after handing it back, glancing between the two of them with a grin.
“I've never seen him so happy,” she stage-whispers to Ned and winks at Paterson.
“Okay, I think we're done here,” Paterson grumbles, but he's suppressing a smile when he takes Ned's hand to lead him to the locker room.
Despite Paterson patiently answering all of Ned’s questions about etiquette and giving him a play-by-play of what to expect, Ned is still hit with a wave of anxiety and panic as they walk in, clutching Paterson’s hand. Paterson gives him a comforting squeeze in return while Ned tries to repress the uncomfortable high school memories as he stands awkwardly to the side.
“The changing stalls are over there, or you can just, y’know—” Paterson gestures toward the main area surrounded by lockers.
Ned opts for the changing stall, so he reluctantly lets go of Paterson’s hand, sets his bag down, and locks the door behind him. He feels rather silly in his baggy shorts and t-shirt and practically unworn running shoes, even more so when he returns to find Paterson in his workout clothes.
Paterson looks like he belongs here, wearing a sleeveless top that hugs his body in all the right places and shorts that cut off at the thickest part of his thighs. But there's no judgement in Paterson's expression—he looks genuinely excited until he catches Ned staring and his gaze turns more heated.
“Do you like my outfit?” Paterson teases, taking Ned's hand again to lead them back out.
“You look amazing and you know it,” Ned grumbles.
Ned spent a solid two hours last night dissecting the leg day routine Paterson sent him, but no amount of YouTube videos could've prepared him for the moment he steps up to a bench next to Paterson and stares at the extensive rack of dumbbells, and especially not the massive ones Paterson carries effortlessly.
“This one’s pretty simple to start with—hold a weight in each hand and we’ll do some calf raises. Forty pounds per hand is probably a good starting point—” Paterson sets two weights down in front of Ned, who tries not to dwell on the eighty pound weights Paterson chose.
Ned panics as he tries to lift one of the dumbbells, there’s no way he’ll be able to—
“Maybe thirty is better to start with.” Paterson says, seeming to sense Ned’s discomfort.
Thirty is better, but Ned still feels like his legs are about to give out beneath him and his fingers will be permanently disfigured by the time they’re done. He’d lost count almost immediately and stopped whenever Paterson stopped. Last night when he’d practiced the lunges he seemed to have nailed it down, naively assuming it couldn’t be that much more difficult while simply holding a dumbbell in each hand.
Ned wants to shrivel up and disappear when he swaps his weights for twenty pounds and then gives up on them entirely. After a few more equally frustrating exercises, Paterson’s endless patience almost makes him feel worse, like Ned’s exploiting his kindness.
While they're cleaning up, Ned keeps glancing over at Paterson, trying to read his expression. He must be plotting a breakup strategy. He’d never continue dating someone who can’t do something as simple as go to the gym together.
Paterson gives his hand a reassuring squeeze as they grab their bags and head out, but Ned still feels his eyes start to sting. Fuck. He can't cry over this. That's more embarrassing than his embarrassment of a workout—
“I'm proud of you,” Paterson says, tugging Ned up against his chest with their intertwined hands.
“Oh, um—really?” Ned’s voice hitches, refusing to look up from Paterson's shoulder.
“Of course. You tried something new.” Paterson tucks a stray lock of Ned's hair back into place.
“I thought I ruined your workout,” Ned says quietly, his breath catching in his throat again.
Paterson pulls him close with a hand on his waist and kisses him. “Why would it be ruined? I got to spend it with you.”