[there were piles of treasure in the deep stores of alvida's ship -- gems and gold and silver, the gleam of rubies and diamonds and emeralds, sapphire studded in crowns and necklaces and bracelets and rings. oh, piles of rings, boxes and chests and strings of them, stacked on alvida's every finger and toe, tumbling off the piles of bounty that koby was never, never allowed more. he knew the shape of her rings, knew the shape of them when she grabbed his arm, when she shoved him towards the mop, when she backhanded him across the face. she thought they were beautiful, that they enhanced her beauty somehow, and of course koby had never said otherwise. of course her treasures were beautiful, that was objectively true.
but he wakes up, sleepy and bleary-eyed, reaches out and nudges his pink aura affectionately against the blue glint of quentin somewhere down in the dining room, then brushes his fingers against the crinkle of an envelope, like that first day, in the sweetness of summer. koby reads the letter while cuddled in the blankets, still, smiles and glows with warmth, then turns the envelope upside-down, slips the small sphere of metal into his palm and he understands.
because it's the most beautiful thing he's ever seen. it slips onto his hand, settles there like it was made for him, and koby just stares and stares for so long that he can feel quentin returning, feel his presence getting closer and closer, so he fumbles for his phone, hasty:]
it's beautiful it's so you where did you get it? where are you almost here come here please i want to kiss you a thousand times
No need to worry about where I got it. I'm on my way back with breakfast - it is your birthday, after all. I'm glad you like it. Today is for you, whatever you want.
[ it takes a few minutes before quentin is back in the room with a little tray full of koby's favorite foods and an assortment of breads and jams, reminiscent of their first breakfast together. if koby looks closely, there's a ring on a chain around his neck. ]
Good morning.
[ he sets the tray at the end of the bed and climbs over to his love, leaning in and kissing him hard and wanting, followed up with a few soft little butterfly kisses. ] If you truly want me to kiss you a thousand times, we'll be here all day.
Oh, then don't hurry, you might trip. I could come help you. If you wanted.
[but quentin's back before koby can convince himself to stop admiring the ring, stop trying it on and off different fingers, trying to figure out what looks best. it's on his left middle one when quentin returns, when he sets down a tray and climbs onto the bed and koby's beaming, crawling to meet him, hands coming up to cradle his face, sleepy-eyed and fond.]
Good morning. I think we could do it. That was four right there, just like that. [another kiss, lingering, fond.] Five. We just need to do that...one hundred and ninety-nine more times.
[ quentin leans down into the kiss, letting it linger, drag on, letting him taste koby on his tongue and memorize it all over again. he reaches for koby's left hand after, drawing it up to his lips, kissing each finger tip, each knuckle, pausing when he gets to the ring. ]
Is this okay? [ giving him something like this. promising to be at his side whenever he needs it, to be a home he can come home to. quentin never imagined himself here before, and yet - ]
[koby huffs out a laugh, sinks back into the pillows, watches quentin kiss along his knuckles, squeezes his hand gently.] It's beautiful. It's the most beautiful thing I've ever seen and -- thank you. I --
[he notices the ring around quentin's neck then, breath catching at the matching glint of gold, sitting up straighter to reach out and cradle it in one hand, gazing at it with those wide, bright eyes. then, lifting them to meet quentin's, smiling heplessly, adoringly:] I love you. I -- it's perfect.
[ quentin's face flushes at the affection, at koby's approval and he laughs, dipping his head to kiss koby's wrist then leaning to kiss him again, warm and sweet. ]
I love you. Wherever you go, you will always find me. You'll never be alone on the deck of a ship, in a mansion, anywhere so long as I'm here.
[ he can't help but kiss him again, long and languid, like taking greedy sips from koby's mouth. ]
[sometimes koby lies awake at night, fists clenched over his stomach, thinking about – after, about when all this ends, when saltburnt finally releases them back to their homes. he thinks about what wally had said, about universes and magic and haki and the overlap of science and impossibility, and he tries so, so hard to believe that there’s a chance he won’t just wake up one morning in the marine barracks and not even know what he’s missing.
and then sometimes quentin kisses him, touches him, smiles against his mouth, and believing it is effortless.
koby’s hands are in quentin’s hair, tugging him down for longer, deeper kisses, hungry the way he usually is first thing in the morning – usually they spend a bit longer tangled up together, especially lately, now that koby’s various part-time responsibilities have him sleeping in a bit longer. it’s a good thing that most of koby’s favorite things at breakfast will keep, because at the moment – well. he’s hungry for something else.]
I love you. I’m – thank you. [pausing, breathless, rosy-cheeked, eyes bright and hopeful.] You aren’t – how hungry are you? Because if you want to eat first that’s. We can, I just. I want to thank you, um. A different way. For my birthday.
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text > action eventually
but he wakes up, sleepy and bleary-eyed, reaches out and nudges his pink aura affectionately against the blue glint of quentin somewhere down in the dining room, then brushes his fingers against the crinkle of an envelope, like that first day, in the sweetness of summer. koby reads the letter while cuddled in the blankets, still, smiles and glows with warmth, then turns the envelope upside-down, slips the small sphere of metal into his palm and he understands.
because it's the most beautiful thing he's ever seen. it slips onto his hand, settles there like it was made for him, and koby just stares and stares for so long that he can feel quentin returning, feel his presence getting closer and closer, so he fumbles for his phone, hasty:]
it's beautiful
it's so
you
where did you get it?
where
are you almost here
come here please i want to kiss you a thousand times
no subject
I'm on my way back with breakfast - it is your birthday, after all.
I'm glad you like it. Today is for you, whatever you want.
[ it takes a few minutes before quentin is back in the room with a little tray full of koby's favorite foods and an assortment of breads and jams, reminiscent of their first breakfast together. if koby looks closely, there's a ring on a chain around his neck. ]
Good morning.
[ he sets the tray at the end of the bed and climbs over to his love, leaning in and kissing him hard and wanting, followed up with a few soft little butterfly kisses. ] If you truly want me to kiss you a thousand times, we'll be here all day.
no subject
[but quentin's back before koby can convince himself to stop admiring the ring, stop trying it on and off different fingers, trying to figure out what looks best. it's on his left middle one when quentin returns, when he sets down a tray and climbs onto the bed and koby's beaming, crawling to meet him, hands coming up to cradle his face, sleepy-eyed and fond.]
Good morning. I think we could do it. That was four right there, just like that. [another kiss, lingering, fond.] Five. We just need to do that...one hundred and ninety-nine more times.
no subject
[ quentin leans down into the kiss, letting it linger, drag on, letting him taste koby on his tongue and memorize it all over again. he reaches for koby's left hand after, drawing it up to his lips, kissing each finger tip, each knuckle, pausing when he gets to the ring. ]
Is this okay? [ giving him something like this. promising to be at his side whenever he needs it, to be a home he can come home to. quentin never imagined himself here before, and yet - ]
It made me think of you.
no subject
[he notices the ring around quentin's neck then, breath catching at the matching glint of gold, sitting up straighter to reach out and cradle it in one hand, gazing at it with those wide, bright eyes. then, lifting them to meet quentin's, smiling heplessly, adoringly:] I love you. I -- it's perfect.
no subject
I love you. Wherever you go, you will always find me. You'll never be alone on the deck of a ship, in a mansion, anywhere so long as I'm here.
[ he can't help but kiss him again, long and languid, like taking greedy sips from koby's mouth. ]
no subject
and then sometimes quentin kisses him, touches him, smiles against his mouth, and believing it is effortless.
koby’s hands are in quentin’s hair, tugging him down for longer, deeper kisses, hungry the way he usually is first thing in the morning – usually they spend a bit longer tangled up together, especially lately, now that koby’s various part-time responsibilities have him sleeping in a bit longer. it’s a good thing that most of koby’s favorite things at breakfast will keep, because at the moment – well. he’s hungry for something else.]
I love you. I’m – thank you. [pausing, breathless, rosy-cheeked, eyes bright and hopeful.] You aren’t – how hungry are you? Because if you want to eat first that’s. We can, I just. I want to thank you, um. A different way. For my birthday.