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"M-m-mother f-f-fucker." Reno's teeth chattered as he jerked his raincoat tighter around himself like that would block out the chill of the oncoming storm. His hair was shoved into a beanie, but his nose and cheeks amply covered the missing pop of red from the man. Stationed on a barge to track where black market products were coming and going, Reno and Rude patrolled the deck once more to make sure everything was battened down and secure for the storm. "Is it-t-t a f-f-fuckin' bliz-z-zard out there?"
"I told you to bring fire materia." Rude mumbled, but pulled the scarf from his coat and neck to neatly wrap it around his partners. Then he fixed the hood of Reno's rain slicker, giving it a playful tug forward to draw the younger man away from the rail. "You don't have to be proficient for it to keep you warm."
Following Rude, Reno flinched as lightning cracked across the sky only about a mile off the port bow. The scarf helped the red head's teeth stop clacking together every other syllable. "I don' like getting too hot. It's easier to warm up than cool down- can we hurry it the fuck up? I ain't lookin' to get swept out to sea here."
"Go below and get warm, I can finish rounds."
"No."
Rude knew Reno wouldn't leave his side, but the reminder left a special warmth not even the best insulated gloves could reach. He smiled his half version of a smile and walked the main deck, hyper aware of the way Reno pressed closer when another bolt of lightning shot across the sky. It was definitely getting closer. "I thought you liked lightning."
"Yeah, sure, when I can control it. Ain't exactly lookin' to get zapped by nature, we do- fuck!" The barge lurched one way as the wind roused the waves. Rude's hand was out and around his partner's wrist in a second, lifting high to keep Reno from stumbling over. Once the boat groaned back to an almost level position, Rude released him. "Fuck this shit. Let's get under."
"Yeah."
Around them, the wind kicked the tails of their coats, Reno struggling with the door until Rude caught the edge and helped pry it open. He held it, feet firmly planted while his partner ducked inside to escape another threateningly close bolt of lightning and deafening clap of thunder. Reno lingered in the doorway like he half expected Rude to get carried off by the wind, but the taciturn Turk just stepped inside, door slamming shut the moment it was released. Staring at it, Reno whistled as shivering hands worked off his sea slicked raincoat. "Holy shit, that was intense."
"I've been through worse." Rude commented, brow tipped high as he watched the redhead haphazardly toss his jacket at the provided hooks. A careful hand caught the garment before it could slosh to the floor and Rude hung it properly while Reno yanked the beanie off. Bright red hair cascaded to his shoulders like fluid, Rude finding himself paused in his current task to watch as lithe porcelain fingers carded through the river of red to try and straighten it out. When Reno's fingers caught a nasty knot, the stream of curses that left the younger man's lips were enough to get Rude back on task.
"Mother fucker, this is going to take me fucking forever to brush out. I need a hot shower. Some fucking conditioner. I hate this fucking sailor life. I want to go home."
Once done hanging Reno's coat, Rude shrugged his own off and placed it on the assigned hook. Then he moved to remove the scarf out of habit but found it missing and still around Reno's neck. His partner didn't appear to have any intention of taking it off. "I'll help."
"You'll help what?"
"Brush your hair."
"What the fuck do you know about hair care, you don't have any."
Lips thinning, Rude rolled his eyes and sidestepped his partner to head deeper below deck to their shared barrack. "Fine. We'll just cut your hair off when we get off the damn boat."
"No we fucking will not." Reno snapped, pulling his ponytail over his shoulder so he could look at the damage his hat had done. That, coupled with the constant exposure to the salty air and no proper hair care products onboard made for a real mess. Groaning, he tossed the tail behind him and stomped after Rude, fingers tracing the curve of Rude's scarf that still warmed his neck. Certain Rude wouldn't look back, Reno hooked his thumb under a curl in the fabric to pull it up to his nose so he could inhale. It smelled of Rude's cologne and aftershave, mild but refined like every part of him. The scent was almost as warm as the scarf. As warm as Reno often imagined Rude's hands would feel on his--
"What the hell are you doing?"
"My nose is fucking cold." The excuse fell from his lips as easy as any other lie, but the way Reno jumped was unmistakable. Like he had been caught doing something inappropriate. And it was, right? Smelling his partner's scarf and imagining his hands on him was very inappropriate. It wasn't really the scandal of it all that made him jump but rather someone caught him- Rude caught him- in a brief moment of vulnerable indulgence. And, like any other time Reno really indulged in a secret pleasure, he immediately felt guilty.
Like he didn't deserve it.
If Rude noticed the moment- and he did- he didn't say anything. Reno would have said thanks or something if they were addressing it. But they weren't. They didn't address a lot of things. After so long, neither of them were sure if that was a good thing. Like the more you try to ignore something, the more obvious and insistent it becomes. Clearing his throat, Reno fixed the scarf around his neck but still didn't take it off. "You wanna go get some food or…?"
"I don't want to deal with the crew right now." Rude shook his head, pausing in one of the narrow halls to wait for Reno to catch up. "I'll get something later."
"I can go get you something, ya know. You don't have to wait until midnight like some fucking gremlin."
The edges of Rude's lips twitched and Reno couldn't tell if it was a good sign or a bad sign right now. Maybe he was being overbearing, maybe it was Reno's shit upbringing that made him do his level best to never miss a meal. Maybe he just wanted to see Rude taken care of because Rude takes damn good care of him. Finally Rude nodded. "Fine. Get us something to eat, I'll go find something to help your hair."
"Wait, you were serious about that?" Just the thought of Rude's hands in his hair made his stomach flip and he had half a mind to blow him off again because there was only so much Reno could hide. When it was himself brushing his hair and yanking at the knots, he didn't react because, well, it was his own hair. It wasn't the same. Reno doubted he'd be able to keep his mouth shut if Rude happened to pull his hair...
Rude shrugged, and this time he smirked. "It's either that or we cut your hair off when we get back home because it'll be beyond recovery."
"Oh, man, fuck you. No one's cutting my hair off. Fine. You find some spray on conditioner, we'll talk about it." Then Reno was stalking away muttering to himself about it being impossible to find anything useful on this piece of shit ship and while they both knew it wasn't true, Rude liked seeing Reno so… pampered. It took a long while to get here. Reno used to be the guy who slept on the floor because the bed was too soft. Or who kept his apartment as bare bones as possible in case he had to run at the drop of a hat. Now he had a hair care routine, a skin care routine, and his shoes were actually nice. Like really nice, and he kept them nice.
He watched Reno go, thinking about all of that before he turned away to follow the path back to their barrack. They had their own rooms, which caused an issue with some of the lower paid crewmembers. But before anyone could start talking shit or causing problems, they knocked some heads together their first night to make sure the whole damn ship knew they weren't to be fucked with. They did their job, did the grunt work, did the real work, and when they made port, they'd have a whole series of arrests to make. Pretty cut and dry case.
A metallic groan rumbled through the ship as it lurched against the oncoming waves, Rude grunting as he hit one wall with his shoulder and had to hold his hand out to brace against the other wall as the ship swung back to correct itself. Even through the maze of machinery and the roar of the storm outside, he could hear Reno's sailor mouth complaining about the food that slopped all over his shirt and pants. "Bitch ass, mother cock-sucking fucker!"
Stifling a laugh, Rude unlocked his room and stepped inside with a mental note to find something for Reno to change into. He had everything he needed, often one to pack not only for himself but also for his partner in the generally high chance he forgot something. Clothes. Weapons. Tampons. Even travel sized bottles of color enhancing shampoo and conditioner. Reno hated long trips and missions, and did his level best to wrap everything up as quickly as he could, so he never really planned for anything longer than a few days. But Rude knew a barge based mission would run longer than either of them liked with issues neither of them would be briefed on. Like proper hair care. He set the hair product on his bed alongside the change of clothes and a comb before securing his belongings in place beneath the bed.
Reno shouldered through the door, coated in chili and cursing up a storm far more violent than the one outside. "Fucking chili in a fucking storm and you can't use a fucking shower during a storm because of fucking protocol."
"Hm. Are you going to stand there complaining and smelling like cumin or are you going to change your clothes?"
"Oh, fuck off. I brought you your fucking chili and your fucking cornbread. Say thank you and give me a goddamn shirt."
Fighting a smile, Rude lifted the extra shirt he already had put aside and traded his partner for the bowl. "Thank you."
He ate while Reno undressed, thankful for a distraction as his partner pulled the t-shirt over his head and he stood with his body elongated in a way that highlighted every dip of toned muscle. Reno thought very little of exposing himself in front of Rude. Both of them had their fair share of medical emergencies in the field that required a certain lack of shame and embarrassment. This wasn't stitching up a gunshot, though, this was Reno being comfortable enough- trusting him enough- to change in front of him, and Rude felt like any indecent thought would break that trust.
Another hard shudder of thunder and the boat was knocked off kilter. Fortunately Rude palmed the bowl in one hand and was able to hold up his other to catch Reno's chest as his partner stumbled forward with his head and arms still caught in his shirt. If he wasn't blushing before, Rude certainly was now. His eyes widened as his thumb graced the edge of surgical scars. And Reno? Reno shivered.
His hand slid around Reno's waist to splay across his back and keep him up as the ship swayed back to the closest it could to upright. After a minor struggle, Reno twisted his head and arms free of the cloth. Rude only caught a glimpse of the chili smeared across his face before his partner balled his shirt into a ball and wiped it away. Neither of them spoke, Rude's hand still warm on Reno's hip, unsure of what to say. Should he apologize? Should they ignore it?
Another second of charged silence before Reno began cursing again, tossing the shirt into a corner or the room. "I'm never getting on another fucking ship. Or eating chili again."
Dropping his hand, Rude focused on eating instead while Reno toed his shoes off so he could change his pants. So they were ignoring it. The moment of connection, the spark that made Rude's fingertips burn and Reno's skin shiver. It wasn't the first similar moment they ignored, what was one more? "I found detangler."
"Where the fuck did you find detangler?" The redhead didn't miss a beat, hands fastening the button of his jeans.
"I brought it."
"Why?"
"Because you'd need it. I always carry it on long trips."
Silence, Reno pulling back as he processed that. How had he never noticed that? Not that he looked through Rude's shit, or took much note of anything besides the cologne Rude might leave on the bathroom counter sometimes. A beat, and Reno looked down at his jeans, then at the shirt Rude already had waiting for him. "And these?"
"I also pack extra clothes for you, too. And other essentials you don't think about."
"Okay, that was, like, one time I forgot to pack tampons-"
"It was three."
"Huh." Reno wasn't sure how to feel about all of this. Part of him felt embarrassed, like he should be on top of all this shit. Another part of him thought it was actually pretty sweet that Rude planned for him, and did so without making a huge deal of it. Well, until Reno asked. "You know you don't gotta pack a fuckin' bag for me, I can handle-"
"Just say thank you and take a goddamn seat." Rude returned, but he smiled in a way that had Reno's stomach turning. Setting his empty bowl in a drawer so it wouldn't slide off a table and shatter, Rude settled back into his bed and gave Reno a place to sit between his legs.
"Thanks…" He managed as he knelt on the bed and slowly turned so his back was to Rude, ponytail a vicious knot against the nape of his neck. "You're gonna use a comb?"
"I didn't have a hair brush."
"Hah! So you're not Mr. Perfect."
"I never said I was."
Nervous hands played with the ratted red hair, feeling the severity of the tangle before Reno sighed and dropped his hand into his lap. "Well, no, it just feels like you are sometimes."
Rude considered those words for a beat, before he started applying conditioner to his partner's hair. "You think I'm Mr. Perfect?"
"Mm, with hands like that, you might be." Reno rumbled as his eyes closed. Rude was always so careful with his hands- he had to be since he was working with explosives and machines half the time. But it was a whole other thing to feel those hands made for mass destruction working in his hair, trying to brush loose as much of the knotted mess he could. The conditioner paired almost perfectly with Rude's cologne, and Reno unconsciously lifted his hand to pull Rude's scarf close again, only to find it missing. "Oh shit."
"What?" All touch stopped, Rude probably worried he had pulled too hard or hurt his partner. But Reno looked more irritated than pained.
"I think I stained your scarf. It musta come off when I changed shirts and now it definitely has chili on it."
"Were you even going to give it back?"
"That's not the point."
Behind him, Rude huffed hard enough that Reno could feel the breath spread against his neck and leave goosebumps all over his skin. Reno rubbed his arm, hoping he could cover the reaction with a complaint about the cold again. Not that Rude would notice, too fascinated with the ribbons of red between his fingers. The moment was intimate, charged and silent as they both held their breath, acutely aware of their partner's presence and proximity. With measured breath, Reno forced himself to keep steady as Rude soothed the knot enough for his ponytail to reach the middle of his back.
"I'm going to use the comb now." Rude spoke first, voice heavy. Husky.
Fucking hell, Reno was having a hard time thinking straight, his hands restlessly folding and unfolding in his lap. "Do I need a safe word or something?"
A shared inhale, like those were somehow both the right and the wrong words. How long could they go without addressing the obvious? Was it obvious or were they looking too into this? Rude offered no response, hand sliding along Reno's scalp to curl his thumb around the ponytail. The intent was to keep the majority of the pressure off Reno's scalp while he combed the knot, but the moment his fingers curled into the mess of red, something snapped into place.
They wanted this. Bad.
His lip felt swollen, teeth digging in to keep himself from moaning every time Reno felt Rude's grip tighten in hair when he met a particularly difficult tangle. It was the longest Reno had been silent, and that really should have been the biggest tip off. But Reno knew, he knew, if he made the mistake of opening his mouth, there was no telling what would come out. Rude was characteristically silent, but uncharacteristically gentle, even with an iron grip in his partner's hair and Reno's hips settled firmly between his legs. He was laser focused on the task at hand; brushing Reno's hair until it was straight and perfect. If he looked too far down and saw the minute distance between Reno's ass and his crotch, or focused too long on the way Reno's hair fit so neatly into one palm, he'd lose all control. This was it's own special torture for both of them.
Beneath them, the boat rocked violently, throwing the carefully constructed balance completely off the scales. Reno slammed back against Rude's chest. Rude's arms immediately closed around his partner's torso to hold him still as the boat tipped one way, then the other. A pale hand laid over the expanse of Rude's forearm, clinging to him until the ship returned to its steady rhythm. Or as steady as it could be in a storm. Their bodies pressed together, breath heavy but matched like every other piece of their lengthy partnership. In tandem, in sync. Two halves of a whole that simply couldn't function without the other.
Making no move to pull away, Reno slowly tipped his head back until it rested against Rude's shoulder, and Rude seemed to relax around the smaller man, but didn't release him. They fit perfectly.
"Reno?"
Blue eyes turned up to meet Rude's. "Yeah?"
"Stay with me."
"Only if you promise to keep pulling my hair." Reno teased, turning his head so Rude could feel his partner's smirk against his jaw.
"Well, I have to finish brushing your hair," And he gave a warning tug, the comb still part way through the tangle of crimson. "So."
This time, Reno didn't bite back the moan. "You sure you wanna waste time brushing it now when you're just gonna mess it up again?"
"... Point taken."