Work Text:
Stone, when pulling his motorcycle up to the curb next to the campus labs, let out a deep breath before kicking the stand out and dismounting. He took his helmet off and checked his watch, wanting to make sure he still was on time. 11:26 AM. Perfect. He wasn’t too late. They still had plenty of time to make it to their reservation. Robotnik had told him he would be in his labs during the morning, finishing up some last-minute grading before their outing. He didn’t have any classes on Fridays; Stone called in one of his employees to take care of the cafe while he was out. Brayden had wanted to earn a bit of overtime anyways, and Stone couldn’t begrudge him that. He appreciated the chance to get a day off.
His knee appreciated the break too; today was a bit of a rough day for him. The winter weather was making the joint stiff and uncomfortable. It wasn’t bad enough for him to need his cane (instead he wore his knee brace under his jeans, which helped his stability drastically), but working a shift at the Mean Bean would have been hell on the metal replacement. He stretched out the affected limb and massaged his kneecap, willing the pain to go away. Damn it, he needed to be able to walk unaffected and unassisted today. A small grunt of annoyance escaped him as he pulled out his phone and opened his messaging app, tapping the newest contact that he’d added a scant few days ago.
🤖Dr. Robot🤖
Hey, I just pulled up outside. Ready to go?
The reply came in seconds. Stone couldn’t help but feel like maybe the Doctor was anticipating his text, with how fast he responded.
On the way.
While waiting, Stone busied himself with digging through his saddlebag, grabbing the extra helmet he’d stashed specifically for this outing. He rubbed his sleeve over the visor, trying to make sure that it was clean and smudge free. The nerves were finally beginning to set in. He almost couldn’t believe that they were doing this. After months of serving the Doctor coffee, he’d finally worked up the courage to ask him out.
“You know, I’m beginning to think that you come here for more than just the coffee.” He’d said on that fateful day, writing Dr. R on the to-go cup as he waited for the milk to steam.
“Well you are the only capable barista in this godforsaken city as far as I’m aware. The pleasant conversation is just a bonus.” Robotnik had replied, tipping his thin sunglasses down his nose in order to playfully glare at Stone. He felt his heart flutter at the look the professor was giving him. “Not to mention the fact that you listen to me more than my actual students. I should start charging you tuition as well!”
“If you really think the conversation is pleasant, perhaps you’d like to continue it when I’m off the clock?” Stone shot back before he lost his nerve. While Dr. Robotnik had engaged with some flirtatious banter with him before, he’d never made a move further than that. Stone knew it had to be him to take that next step. The Doctor was likely nervous of overstepping a boundary; Stone was there to do a job, after all. He’d had to fend off overzealous admirers before, often in Robotnik’s presence. “I have some employees come in on the weekends to man the shop, if you’re free?”
Robotnik’s face slackened in shock, before a red flush steadily spread up his cheeks and colored the tips of his ears. He popped the collar to his coat in an attempt to hide it. Stone couldn’t help but find it adorable. He just kept smiling, showing off pearly white teeth and a twinkle in his eye as he began pouring the espresso for the Doctor’s latte. The older man cleared his throat and stuttered a bit, before finally finding his words:
“That sounds, like a lovely idea. Here.” From his pocket, Robotnik procured a small pad of sticky notes, scribbling something down on it. Stone made his way to the counter in order to hand off the beverage, suddenly getting a hand slapped to his chest. The Doctor snatched his latte while Stone still reeled from the unexpected contact; he stormed out of the cafe with a flair of his coat. The little bell above the door jingled as he fled.
Stone looked down at his chest, still stunned. He peeled the note off, small smirk quirking the corner of his mouth as he noted its bright red color. The border was framed by an intricate circuit-board pattern, detailed in black. He wondered if Robotnik had them custom made for him. It seemed like something he’d do. Scrawled in a messy hand was a series of ten digits, with a spiky letter R underlined below. Stone felt a small smile curve his lips as he gingerly held the small sticky note. A plan was already beginning to form in his head; a date idea worthy of the Doctor’s vast attention.
All he had to do was reach out.
~*~
Robotnik rubbed his eyes as he stared at the dim computer screen in front of him. His class of wretched little students had recently undertaken a new and complex assignment: coding their own programs and algorithms for their simple forays into robotics. They’d been paired off into groups for the semester and were told to build a robot that performed a specific function. Considering their fields of study and the fact that most of them were at this university specifically for the robotics programs headed by yours truly, the output of work was sad indeed. He’d spent the last decent chunk of time meticulously combing through every line of code and sending out feedback of varying levels of helpfulness. Most of it was all-caps and paragraphs long, dropped into the student’s school inbox as soon as he completed it. They’d wake up in the morning to an email sent in the dead of night, like always.
Why did he decide to go into teaching? His brilliance was wasted on these imbeciles. They couldn’t even code a walk cycle correctly, much less reach the level that he’d been at when he was half their age. Robotnik had created his first beautiful egg-drone when he was fifteen, and the design had undergone minimal changes since; you can’t improve on perf-egg-tion. That wasn’t even counting the hundreds of other designs he’d created since then, all serving specific purposes and being sold to the highest bidder. He needed to pay his bills somehow, and grants could only go so far.
Robotnik had been awake all night in the depths of the campus labs, performing maintenance on his own creations and doing check-ins on the pitiful creations of his students. When they returned come Monday to see their hard work verbally shredded, they’d all be sorely disappointed. Well. They knew what they were getting into when they signed up for his classes. Doctor Robotnik was not for the faint of heart nor the weak of will. At least last year he’d gotten some students with spines (Starline in particular showed promise, though he was insufferable); this academic year thus far had produced nothing but pathetic wastes of space with the equivalent of wet tissue paper where their vertebrae should be.
He glanced over blearily at his watch, face up on the table next to him. He’d taken it off earlier to perform maintenance on one of his cleaning drones and kept it off so as to not distract himself while he worked. How long has it been, anyway? It couldn’t be much later than two in the morning. Perhaps he could finish up some paperwork, then drop by his house for a quick nap and a refreshing shower. Change of clothes? Yes. That was a good idea. The screen was blank and black, empty. A quick tap to its face revealed the clock widget. 11:05. Hmm.
11:05.
WHAT?!
He tapped the screen again once it timed out, hoping against hope that he read the numbers wrong. Nope. The only thing that changed was that the clock read 11:06 now. A new text notification came in:
On my way!
That was Stone. Stone said that he would text him when he was on the way to campus. He was on the way now. Right now. Robotnik was running on twenty-six hours of no sleep, still in his clothes from yesterday, and folded over in his desk chair like a gargoyle. His spine straightened up so quickly that he felt nearly every vertebrae crack. His hunched posture wasn’t doing him any favors, especially now that he wasn’t as young as he used to be. Shit. Of all the harebrained and moronic things he could’ve done! Robotnik had lost an entire night to his horrific work ethic once again. He really needed to start setting alarms for himself, just to finally put a stop to these hours-long hyperfocus sessions. It was why he so often needed coffee to function. More than once had he been required to teach classes after pulling an all-nighter; he simply got lost in the wires and circuits of his creations. Well. This was no different, was it not?
He hadn’t actually meant to stay up the entire night. His plan was to only look over the physical prototypes of his students’ projects before turning in early so that he could at least get some shut-eye before his date (could he call this a date?) with Stone. While he was at it, he figured that he might as well could perform some much needed routine maintenance on his own personal creations that resided in his lab. That could easily have accounted for a few hours. He was just finishing that up when his work computer pinged with an email from one of the aforementioned students, pitiful and sniveling. They wanted some feedback on their coding; something was wrong with it (of course there was) and they wanted his help to see where the error lie. Well. Never let it be said that Robotnik was an unresponsive instructor. The rest of the night passed by in a blur, with him tearing through that one student’s code and then ultimately deciding to just keep the momentum going. Some were passable and survived with only a colorfully worded email, but many were in sore need of rewrites. He took the liberty of deleting them and leaving ASCII art of himself wagging a finger from side to side, the words TRY AGAIN bold at the very top of the program. They’d be in for a sorry surprise come Monday morning.
Finishing his last thrashing with a flourish, making sure to make his email signature big enough to cause unnecessary bloat when one of his more inept students opened it, he flew out of his chair across the lab. He likely only had about fifteen minutes before Stone showed up outside, so he had to make the most of that scant time. Even though this wasn’t technically a chemistry lab, Robotnik still performed various other experiments outside of the realm of robotics. That meant an OSHA required safety shower as well as an eyewash station. He tore his clothes off and flung them haphazardly over a wheeled cart, drenching himself in tepid water and howling at the shock of temperature difference. This wasn’t the first time he’d had to use the emergency shower for a less than hazardous situation.
Luckily he kept a bar of unscented soap tucked underneath the eyewash station for specifically this purpose. Robotnik cleaned up with military precision, shutting the lever off and leaving wet footprints all over the lab as he scrambled to the linen closet. A quick towel dry, showing careful attention to his mustache. He thanked the immutable laws of the universe for the fact that he had a tin of mustache wax stashed in one of his desk drawers for quick maintenance. Facial hair: check. Change of clothes: check. Underwear, socks, a simple pair of black slacks, a dark red button up. Ugh. Basic. His dress shoes would suffice. Pair that with his signature trench coat, and he looked both stylish and not too stiff and formal. A quick spritz of cologne made sure he didn’t smell of stale coffee and a sleepless night. Hopefully. Damn. This was his one chance to to meet with Stone outside of working hours, and he was already mucking things up.
Stone ☕
Hey, I just pulled up outside. Ready to go?
It took him an embarrassingly short amount of time to respond. A quick reply that he’s on the way, and Robotnik bolted back to his desk, grabbing his coat. He flung it over his shoulders and set the lab into lockdown mode, a pair of cleaning badniks deploying from their ports near the entryway. They’d take care of his whirlwind through the room. Robotnik shook his head from side to side in order to clear his mind, checking his reflection in the tinted glass of the door before leaving. He didn’t look great, but he wasn’t a complete wretch. In fact, he looked quite put together for a man who just pulled an all-nighter.
Running a hand over his head and tweaking his mustache before he left, Robotnik took in a deep breath before opening the door. Here we go.
~*~
Stone had been waiting a scant few minutes when the double doors to the building slammed open with such a ferocity it could only mean one thing. His head shot up to pin the Doctor with his gaze as he strode down the sidewalk towards him. Oh, wow. He looked especially intimidating like that, long coat billowing in the slightly chill late morning air. Stone quickly scrambled up from his slouched position on his motorcycle, grinning good-naturedly at the professor and hoping it didn’t come across as too strained. His heart was in his throat and he could feel his breath coming in short staccato bursts, but he needed to keep his cool.
“Good morning, Doctor!” He greeted cheerily once the Doctor was in earshot. He came to a stop in front of Stone, eyeing his riding gear with an interested expression. Those analytical eyes sent a slight shiver down Stone’s spine, and he found himself standing up a little straighter under the scrutiny.
“Far too much work for anything to be good,” Robotnik grumbled, crossing his arms. Stone’s smile wavered; maybe this wasn’t such a brilliant idea after all. An awkward pause followed before the Doctor cleared his throat and scratched his chin absentmindedly. “Well. It is nice to see you, though. So. There.” His gaze darted away and the tips of his ears flashed red. Stone felt the confidence return to him. It wasn’t a disaster yet. Robotnik had always been abrasive and harsh; that was what endeared him to the other man in the first place. “What even is it that you have planned, you freak of nature? You are far too excited to be driving around during the lunch rush.”
“Doctor, I would normally be in the Mean Bean right about now, working that lunch rush you’re talking about. If anything, this is like a vacation from that.” Stone let out a small chuckle as he turned away and grabbed the spare helmet he brought with him. “Here. Put this on.” Robotnik took the outstretched helmet with a look of slight apprehension. His eyes roved once more over Stone’s body, and he couldn’t help but feel a little bit self conscious, running a hand through his slightly messy hair. Robotnik paused for a moment, making eye contact with Stone for a few obscenely long seconds before moving on to focus on the top of his head.
“You know, I don’t think I’ve ever seen you so disheveled, Stone.” Robotnik twirled the helmet in his nimble fingers. “Your hair is a complete rat’s nest. I suppose I always thought your style was just the result of some industrial strength gel, rock hard and perfectly coiffed. Looks like even you can’t resist the dreaded helmet-hair.” Stone let out a huff of air at that, knowing his hair wasn’t that affected by his little ride over. It wasn’t long enough to be severely mussed.
“At least you don’t have to worry about that particular detriment, Doctor.”
“Quite right!” Robotnik replied, grinning and throwing his head back as if shaking out an imaginary mane. “Best thing to have happened to me was that unintended chemical reaction. I’ve noticed a definite increase of cowering as I walk by.” Unintended chemical reaction. What an interesting way to refer to an explosion. Right in the Doctor’s face in the midst of an experiment. Luckily he’d been wearing a respirator and safety goggles at the time, so his mustache and vision had been spared from the resulting blast. His hair, sadly, was singed beyond repair. So he’d shaved it all off and continued on like it was nothing. Stone had nearly done a double take at the first time he’d seen the Doctor completely bald.
It wasn’t a bad look for him, though. He was right about the intimidation factor. Though Stone wasn’t exactly the best person to ask about that. He could argue that the older man looked even more fetching now.
“Not all of us have the privilege of looking good bald, sir.”
“Of course not. You’d look like a cue-ball.” The Doctor shuddered dramatically and pulled a face, undoubtedly imagining the sight. “Consider yourself lucky that you have such thick hair, Stone.”
“Thank you, Doctor.”
“So! Where exactly are you taking me?” Robotnik continued, plopping the helmet on his head without much fanfare. His voice was muffled slightly but no less intelligible. “You never actually told me what we’re doing.”
“Ah!” Stone replied, smiling down at his own helmet. At the reminder of what he was planning, he couldn't help but feel the slight anxiety return. There was a definite chance that this could go horribly wrong, but he was determined to do something nice for their first ever date. The Doctor liked learning new things; he devoured knowledge like a man starved. And Stone was pretty sure that he had no experience in this particular field of study. “Well, like I said. It’s a surprise.” He smoothed his hair out and put his own helmet on, flipping down the visor. “Just know that I picked something I hoped you’d enjoy.” He climbed onto the motorcycle, making sure to keep the majority of his weight off of his bad knee and holding out a hand as he started the vehicle. It purred and rumbled beneath him as he revved the gas in a quick show of dramatics. “Well? Let’s go!”
~*~
When Robotnik fixed Stone with his gaze, hand outstretched and dark visor hiding his expression (a slight wave of relief flooded the Doctor at that, he wouldn’t have been able to handle it if Stone’s face was visible—the man was wearing eyeliner for W. G. Walter’s sake!), he couldn’t help but feel a flutter of butterflies in his stomach. No one had ever held their hand out to him like that. Like he was someone worth touching. He took Stone’s hand before he could talk himself out of it, feeling the warmth of the other’s body through their gloves. Stone clutched his hand as Robotnik clambered on behind him, offering support and bringing his arms to rest around his waist. He patted the Doctor’s forearms in a gesture of comfort before knocking back the kickstand and peeling away from the parking lot.
The wind threatened to blow him away, and Robotnik found himself clinging tightly to Stone. He locked his arms around the younger man, breath stolen in a quick gasp as they sped off down the road. He’d never ridden a motorcycle before. The cityscape passed by in a blur as Stone piloted the vehicle with a kind of precision that Robotnik had come to expect from him. The owner of the cafe had been making his preferred brew of latte for the past few months now, and every time it came out perfect. He was a dedicated man, a man who valued detail in everything he did. So while he was a bit generous with the speed of his driving, he made sure that any maneuver he pulled was clearly telegraphed beforehand to give Robotnik ample time to prepare himself.
As they passed through the city and flew down the bridge over the canal, Robotnik looked out over the water. The sun hovered high in the sky, casting light down on the river. It was honestly beautiful. It had been a few years since he’d crossed the bridge during the day, instead preferring to take advantage of the clear night skies near the beaches for his (definitely legal) drone flight tests. As soon as they crossed the bridge, however, their journey came to a near standstill. Exactly why Robotnik never came here during the day. He couldn’t help but wonder why they were going out to the tourist trap, considering their matched disdain for tourists. He couldn’t be driving them to…? No. No, he knew how the Doctor felt about sand. There was absolutely no way they were going to the beach. Especially not at this time of day.
Delayed relatively frequently by traffic as they were, Stone often braced his feet on the ground for balance whenever they had to stop at a red light. Though he seemed to be leaning more on his left leg; his jeans were bulging out around the knee of his right, just barely noticeable. But the Doctor was very perceptive, and he had made it a habit to notice things about Stone. It must be a moderate pain day for him, then, if he was using the brace. They never really talked often about Stone’s injury, but it would take an absolute moron to not be able to tell he often favored his left. One day the Doctor had commented on it, and Stone waved off the concern with a dismissive snort. A knee replacement; an injury suffered during his previous employment. It must be old by now, considering Stone’s easy maneuvers to keep balance and nonchalant attitude about it. He’d probably been living with it for years now, at the very least.
A small part of Robotnik’s brain wanted him to ask Stone about it. Ask him if he could see it, just to gain more knowledge about something he was interested in. To pass judgment on the old surgery scars and composition of the materials.
Robotnik had many strong opinions about many different things. He’d told Stone as much, whenever he came into the Mean Bean for his regular coffee. The cafe wasn’t exactly located on campus, but it was close enough that many students opted to walk over to it in order to get their pick-me-ups. And after the Doctor had been, well, let’s just say ‘strongly encouraged’ to stay away from the on-campus coffee shops, he needed to get his caffeine from somewhere. A good portion of his own students would often come to class with to-go cups, emblazoned with the Mean Bean’s logo. Apparently they were the only cafe in the city that boasted non-standard ingredients and drink options. From Scandinavian egg coffee to cardamom and honey imported from Montenegro, the Mean Bean became one of the top spots in the city for unique tastes. Robotnik couldn’t say he wasn’t tempted. So one day, during what was supposed to be his office hours, he decided to take the walk down to the little cafe.
Stone was a surprise from the beginning. He’d introduced himself as the owner and the primary barista, offering a polite but friendly smile despite Robotnik’s caustic attitude. When the Doctor spat his order out, the man veritably lit up with a smile and said cheerily:
“Coming right up! That’s actually my personal favorite. It’s what inspired me to become a barista in the first place.”
Robotnik felt his jaw slacken with surprise, but he quickly covered it up with more bluster. He couldn’t hide the pleased smile that curled the ends of his mustache when he took the first sip of the latte, however. Steamed Austrian goat milk. Apparently the owner was a bit of a coffee snob; he claimed that he imported his goat milk ever since he took a work trip to the country and found that the quality of it was severely lacking in the States. Robotnik never got around to asking what work he was doing in Austria. But ever since then, he found himself coming back at least once a day for his desired latte. And as time passed, he often found himself striking up a (if not pleasant, then at least a teasingly playful) conversation with Stone. The owner seemed to work most days himself, taking the weekends off and only hiring about two other baristas to take over other shifts when needed. Robotnik had never even seen them once.
Stone was a bit of a control freak, the Doctor had noticed during the course of their interactions with one another. He could respect that. In fact, they would bond over the fact that involving others in their work only ever seemed to muddy everything up for them.
Robotnik realized he was zoning out as they flew down the back roads, bypassing the boardwalk. Their speed picked up substantially once they turned off of the main street, not many cars taking this particular route. It would have been an entirely different situation had they went through the center of the city. But as they made their way through the wooded path, Robotnik thought of just how fast they were driving. Where the hell was Stone taking them? He could only think of one place that required them to go so far south. He couldn’t say that he ever had much investment in going; his field of study was robotics, not marine biology.
But. He couldn’t say that he wasn’t at least a little bit interested now. Especially if it was with Stone.
His suspicions were proven correct as Stone took a hard right through a neighborhood, pivoting back onto the main road. He’d successfully dodged a lot of the traffic by going down lesser known paths, but this was the only way to go any further, so their speed drastically slowed down once again. A necessary setback. Robotnik felt the sun heating his shoulders through his coat, a stark contrast to the whipping wind around them. Stone flew along the main road, passing by aggravatingly cheerful beach-houses and picturesque driveways. The Doctor hadn’t been down here in a couple of years at least; it was never something he found much appeal in.
He wanted to gag at the nauseating display of pastel colors.
The neighborhood faded away as they made their way down the asphalt, gentle sloping curves in the route taken with a sharp tilt of the motorcycle. Robotnik felt his arms tighten around Stone’s waist in slight alarm, not prepared for the feeling of the vehicle tilting to the side. The other man’s shoulders shook in a slight chuckle, and Robotnik had a sudden strong urge to smack him upside the head. He just barely resisted, preferring to not end up a smear along the pavement. A small wave of relief washed over him as they passed by the beach accesses without stopping. A part of him that still wasn’t certain of the goal of their outing had kept the option of a beach date open. Robotnik was glad to see that wasn’t the case. Stone seemed to remember his lamentations of living by a coastal town. The trees around them thickened and thinned as they drove past, finally slowing down enough to turn onto the street that led to the state-sponsored aquarium. A tiny rush of satisfaction twisted Robotnik’s chest. Correct yet again! Perhaps this could actually be considered a useful expense of his time.
Stone pulled the motorcycle into a parking spot near the back of the lot, kicking the stand out and cutting the engine. He took his helmet off and beamed at the Doctor. “I got us both tickets for noon. It’s been a few years since I’ve had the chance to come here, so I thought it would be nice to share it with you.” A small swallow at the end of his statement; a sheepish blush colored his cheeks as he looked away, busying himself with pulling up the tickets on his phone.
Well. He very well couldn’t say no to that, could he? Especially when he’d been wanting to spend time with Stone outside of their respective jobs for quite a while now. Robotnik scrambled off the bike and felt his knees shake below him, locking them in order to hide his inexperience with riding. He took his own helmet off and handed it to Stone, who stashed it in his saddlebags.
“Aquariums are for small children and easily entertained imbeciles.” Robotnik snarked, before noticing the smile on Stone’s face faltering just the slightest. Shit. He needed to reel it in; they were supposed to be having a fun time together. “But… Well, I’m sure that there might be something redeeming about it.”
A warmth curled in the Doctor’s chest at seeing that full grin return. Perhaps he could do something right after all. He huffed and rolled his eyes at Stone’s antics, holding out his bent arm in invitation. Never let it be said that he couldn’t be a gentleman when he wanted to be.
~*~
Stone nearly tripped over his feet when the Doctor held out his arm for him to take, stumbling to take it in his own and walk with the older man. Wow. He never would’ve thought Robotnik could be such a gentleman. Having their arms linked like this seemed to slow his stride a fair bit; he wasn’t rushing ahead nor tugging Stone across the parking lot like an overeager puppy. In fact, he matched Stone’s own meandering pace, staying by his left side and providing much needed support. When they walked up to the stairs to the main building of the aquarium, he didn’t even pull away. Instead, the older man kept his arm steady as Stone gritted his teeth in preparation for the ascent.
Right up until he pivoted to the side and led Stone over to the gentle sloping ramp. Stone felt the dread ebb away as they approached the building, the ache in his knee still there but bearable. In fact, he knew that just skipping that first bout of stairs was going to make this entire outing much easier. He couldn’t help but let his lips curve into a smile as they moved, knowing that Robotnik must have noticed his previous tension. The receptionist at the door smiled at them when they walked over, asking to see their tickets. Stone pulled out his phone and showed them the email receipt, letting them scan each barcode.
“And you’re all good to go! Have a wonderful visit.” Stone thanked the worker as they opened the electronic lock to the door, entering the building. Robotnik’s steely eyes roved over the large front desk that dominated the entryway; his gaze caught on some of the informational posters strewn about. The people behind the desk were busy with a few groups of other visitors. Even though they came during the winter (considered the off-season for tourism), the fact that it was a Friday meant that there was still a lot of families and even a school field trip or two. Nothing compared to what it would look like on a weekend day, though. Stone counted their blessings. There was no way he’d ever catch Robotnik dead in such a crowd; that was like asking for a disaster to happen.
But the older man seemed relatively calm thus far. He sneered at the few teenagers running past, but made no hostile moves outside of that. He even picked up an informational brochure near the entrance, not even unhooking his arm from Stone’s in the process. He flipped it open one-handed, scanning over its contents and tilting it so that Stone could get a look as well. While this wasn’t the biggest aquarium in the States, it certainly had some nice attractions and exhibits.
“Hmm. Otters. Interesting.” Robotnik commented, voice slightly interested. “I wasn’t aware that the breeding program was so successful.”
“You knew they had a breeding program?” Stone asked.
“What do you take me for, Stone? I don’t live under a rock. The university has an extensive marine biology program, and they partner with the aquarium often for the students to get hands-on experience. I sometimes hear things, even though it’s not my field of study.” Robotnik scoffed and refolded the brochure in a surprising display of dexterity. He shoved it down into his pocket as they approached the door. “Seems like there’s a few interesting attractions at the very least. Not a bad choice, I’m impressed.”
Stone felt his face flush at that. Compliments from the Doctor were rare, and he relished them. Usually it only extended to his coffee-making skills, but once in a while Robotnik would comment on his above-average intelligence. Even rarer than that: a “Looking decidedly put-together today, Stone. Going out after work?” or “Silk button-down, Stone? Who are you peacocking for?” and on one especially memorable occasion, mumbled into the collar of his coat “Your eyeliner is very fetching. You look handsome.” Complete with bright red cheeks and all. That compliment was held very close to Stone’s heart and he made sure to apply a subtle line of it today as well, knowing that the Doctor enjoyed it so. He’d even caught the older man staring once or twice, making extended eye contact (not often very common of him). He must’ve noticed.
“Let’s go, then. I’ve always wanted to see the otters!” Stone said, eager smile splitting his face. He tugged gently on Robotnik’s arm and the other man followed. The automated door opened for them as they entered the outdoor portion of the facility. Greenery sprouted everywhere, the sound of rushing waterfalls and trickling streams overpowering the space. Even louder than that was the chirping insects and excitable animals. The otters were front and center as soon as they crossed the threshold, a large crowd of schoolchildren already pressed up against the viewing glass. Luckily all of them were quite small, so both of the men could easily see over their heads into the enclosure.
The aquarium volunteer rattled off information about each otter, pointing out the subtle differences in coat, face, and personality. She named each one and talked extensively about the other aquariums who were also participating in the breeding program:
"Giant river otters are the longest member of the weasel family, and this particular species was declared endangered just before the turn of the century. Luckily, we were able to secure the funding in order to help try and bolster their population once more. This is why conservation efforts are important...” Most of the children weren’t paying attention to her, but a fair number of chaperones and teachers were. They were the ones asking questions. Robotnik and Stone were content to hang back, watching from a safe distance away from the crowd. The otters were indeed adorable, clicking and preening and chittering away as they played in their water features. Their coats glistened with natural oils, water repellent and slick. One of them swam around a small pool, diving down to pick up rocks spread around the bottom before stacking them up on the side. This was apparently one of his favorite things to do, according to the volunteer. His sister ran by and scattered the stones with her whipping tail, and he cried out in indignation before starting the cycle anew. Stone let out a soft giggle at the sight, and he could even catch the slightest glimpse of a smile on the Doctor’s face.
Once they had their fill of the otters, they meandered over to a large tank that held a few slowly swimming gar fish; their long spear-like snouts bouncing against the glass before they turned around and swam in the other direction. Despite the loud volume of the people around them, Robotnik seemed to focus on the attractions in front of him. He was primarily ignoring the rest of his surroundings. “Aren’t they beautiful creatures?” Stone asked as he tilted his head and leaned down to get a better look. One fish in particular was missing an eye, extensive scar tissue marring its scales and front of its head. Aquarium life for a fish seemed like paradise. No predators, plenty of food, enrichment in the form of volunteers and various patrons.
“They are quite striking.” Robotnik replied, but he wasn’t looking at the gar. His gaze was focused on the bottom of the tank, zeroing in on a fish that was rooting around in the substrate. “I don’t have much background in marine life, but their biology is quite fascinating.” The fish he was looking at flipped around and lost interest in what it was doing. It instead swam up the side of the tank, right in front of them. Its long whiskers trailed in the murky water. Stone watched in fascination, mind quickly going blankly relaxed as he stared. “Did you know that catfish have over one hundred thousand tastebuds, Stone? All over the entirety of their body. They can taste even the most minute differences in the balance of the water around them.” Stone continued to stare at the catfish, its flat head and wide mouth lending a sense of silly cuteness to its appearance. The Maxillary barbels at the edges of its face twitched in the water. Stone wondered just how everything tasted to it. Robotnik continued to rattle off fun facts about the catfish, sounding excited to be able to share his knowledge. His mustache twitched; Stone was hit with a sudden sense of familiarity.
He couldn’t keep the laugh in if he tried.
“What is it that you find so amusing, Stone?” The Doctor asked as they moved on to the next display; an enclosed tank of poison dart frogs. Feeding time had already passed, so they weren’t feeling very active at the moment. “Please share with the class!” Stone couldn’t help but feel like sharing was a bad idea, but it was just so cute that he couldn’t contain himself.
“I just noticed a certain familiar element with that catfish, is all. Reminded me of a certain dignified professor I know.” Stone kept his face turned away from Robotnik, knowing that if he looked over he’d see the man flush red with offense.
“I—you! What?” Immediate splutters left his lips, proving Stone right. “The barbels of the Siluriformes are completely different than human facial hair! For starters, they perform an extremely beneficial function for both sensory perception and navigation in the water—” Robotnik worked himself up into a full blown rant over it, grip tightening and loosening around Stone’s arm like he was about to let go in order to wildly gesticulate, but then thinking better of it and keeping everything in place.
“I thought you said that you didn’t know much about the study of marine life? You seem to have a lot of knowledge about catfish in particular.” Stone needled him further, wiggling his arm back and forth in a playful gesture. Robotnik scoffed and turned away, focusing instead on the tiny frogs in front of them.
“I just find them fascinating is all. They’re one of the types of fish that evolved without scales, no doubt to house their extensive taste buds. Incredibly perceptive creatures.” Robotnik quieted down once he realized that Stone wasn’t seriously ribbing him; a slight flush of embarrassment covered his face at the display.
“I like hearing you talk about the things that interest you, Doctor.” Stone patted his arm with his free hand, making sure to project gentleness with his tone of voice. He considered if it was a good idea to add on more to the compliment, worrying about coming on too strong or laying it on too thick. It took only a split second for him to decide; this was a date, after all. He was supposed to be bold! “You’re very handsome when you’re passionate.”
~*~
Robotnik felt like he was slowly burning away with each passing minute. Lit up with incandescent fire, his energy was through the roof and they’d barely even started. He wondered if he’d survive this date of theirs. Because this was definitely a date. He could call it that in his mind, now. He was on a date. With Stone. Robotnik hadn’t been on a date in at least thirty years, and all of those fumblings through his college days were tinged with a distinct sense of embarrassment and shame. He’d sworn off romanticism after that, instead dedicating himself to his studies. It worked for a time; he had never been much interested in human companionship anyways.
But then he walked into the Mean Bean cafe and found himself hopelessly smitten with the handsome owner. He was capable, dexterous, clever. Kept up with the Doctor’s acerbic wit and dished out retorts of a similar caliber. He was the first challenging person Robotnik had encountered in a very long time. He never would have thought he’d find himself interested in learning more about a person, and on top of that: having that interest reciprocated. Unless Stone was pulling the long con, building everything up until denouncing him in a very public place with a very large crowd of people around them. That was part of why Robotnik had been so hesitant for so long in asking for more. He couldn’t tell if Stone was genuinely interested or if he was just doing his job of providing exemplary customer service. The Doctor didn’t want to come across as a desperate creep, hitting on the younger barista who undoubtedly could do much better.
Stone had proved him wrong when he asked him out, effortlessly performing that first move and making Robotnik feel like he was reeling headfirst into a whirlpool of emotions. He honestly didn’t know what to make of it; Stone seemed quite genuine in his efforts to get to know the older professor. And Robotnik would be damned if he didn’t leap on the opportunity.
Even now, Stone was complimenting him and leaving no room for any other interpretations. Calling Robotnik handsome, keeping his arm wrapped up in his own, falling into step next to him and bumping shoulders occasionally. It was more physical contact than the professor had in decades, if ever. He couldn’t recall any other situation that involved this much touching. It was almost overwhelming, even through the layers of clothing that both men wore. But he found himself unwilling to pull away.
They meandered through the large open room that marked the start of the aquarium, looking at various enclosures and signs detailing basic information on the inhabitants. All kinds of animals, both amphibious and aquatic, basked in the sun or swam leisurely through the water. There was even an enormous tank, taking up the entire back wall, that housed a pair of albino alligators. They looked to be the other main attraction here, besides the otters. Children crowded up against the glass in order to get a better look at the slow beasts, lounging about in their enclosure. Robotnik was very interested in getting a bit more up close and personal with these particular animals, as he hadn’t had many chances to observe albinism in person. They’d get the occasional rat in the biomedical department, but nothing very substantial. He found it fascinating; the lack of melanin or chlorophyll causing the characteristic white color. Even though his field of study didn’t have anything to do with genetics, he couldn’t help but be a bit interested in it. Albinism: a physical marker of difference from other members of one’s species. Outsider. Outcast. Animals and plants with albinism often had other hurdles to overcome in life. Robotnik found a sense of kinship with them, ever since he was a small child learning about the condition for the first time.
Stone was silent as they approached the glass, finding a small corner that wasn’t overtaken by screaming children. Robotnik was not a fan of how crowded the facility was, but so far they hadn’t encountered anyone troublesome. He’d make an effort to not be a nuisance as well, if only for Stone’s sake. Their goal was to have a nice time. The Doctor was loathe to be the cause of any kind of difficulty, even though he was feeling more irritable and antsy with every minute that passed. Missing out on a whole night of sleep, and not even having a coffee to make up for it, was really starting to get to him. He could only hope that the rest of the date would run smoothly once they made it inside of the building proper.
“I’m astonished they have a pair,” Robotnik commented, tilting his head closer to Stone as he talked. “Albinism is exceptionally rare in alligators, after all. One would think that they’d separate these two in order to give one of the other state-sponsored aquariums a shiny new thing to look at.”
“According to the information board, these two showed increased aggression and possessiveness when they were removed from each other’s presence. Another rarity!” Stone replied, pointing at the board in question. Robotnik read along with him, noting that ‘Opal’ and ‘Quartz’ had been living at this particular aquarium for well over twenty years now. Any attempt to separate them was met with heightened hostility, which was extremely rare from the generally solitary creatures. “Look at them, Doctor. Aren’t they kind of cute?”
Robotnik looked. They were easy to tell apart: Opal was missing almost the entirety of her tail. According to the board, she’d been found injured like that as a juvenile, with Quartz very close by in a defensive position. The local fisherman who found them and subsequently tried to catch them ended up losing several fingers in the effort. Eventually, they’d been turned over to the local aquarium and became the star attraction; at least until the giant river otter breeding program took off. Considering the rarity of albino alligators in the first place, finding two of them who were completely unrelated was almost unheard of.
Opal was resting under the heat lamp, stubby tail now fully healed over and giving her a slightly humorous appearance. It looked like she was missing about half of her total body length. Quartz was in the water below, only her head poking out above the surface. She was turned to face her tankmate; Robotnik couldn’t help but feel some sort of warmth in his chest while looking at the two animals. Two oddities who found each other and survived when the world was against them. His eyes prickled uncomfortably, and he pressed his fingers to the bridge of his nose.
He felt Stone’s arm tighten around his; a comforting squeeze.
They moved on from the two alligators, following the flow of passerby towards the main doors into the building proper. This was what really interested Robotnik; the main event. There were a few volunteers taking group photos in the large entryway, but a gentle tug to Stone’s arm directed them both behind the hubbub and onward. The Doctor abhorred the very idea of standing unnaturally in place, only to get an overpriced tchotchke for it. His eidectic memory was enough for him, and he didn’t doubt that Stone felt the same. Even if the other man did want a silly picture, he followed along without argument. As soon as they passed the lines of visitors and crossed the threshold, they were plunged into a pleasant darkness.
The inside of the aquarium was dim, tanks lit up by their own lighting setups. They were their own bright spotlights of attraction, with various groups of people flocking to them like moths. Robotnik supposed he and Stone were not so different from them, as they fell into pace and were drawn to the very same enclosures. Keeping a wide berth of the low touch-pool (far too many children for Robotnik’s liking), they made their way around the open room. Schools of silver fish swam quickly from one end of a tank to the other; a group of look-downs followed leisurely at their own pace; little hermit crabs fought over shells and territory in their own little naturalistic habitat. One crab in particular had dragged a sizable shell into the corner of the tank, inspecting it and turning it over in its strong claws.
The volunteer overlooking the tank pointed out the little crab’s behavior, explaining that it was time for that particular crab to change shells. Hermit crabs were incredibly discerning when it came to moving shells. They needed to inspect it thoroughly before making the switch, as any time spent outside of their shell made them vulnerable. Robotnik was rooted to the spot; unwilling to look away while the small creature maneuvered the shell around. Stone leaned into his arm, resting his head on his shoulder as they stared. It was mesmerizing. The other people around them soon lost interest in what the crab was doing, too impatient to wait and see. It took the little thing almost ten full minutes to determine that the shell was worthy for the switch; in a blink the transfer occurred. Stone let out a small cheer, grip on Robotnik’s arm tightening in excitement.
“Wow!”
He looked over to see the younger man’s eyes were sparkling with mirth. A wide smile split his face, showing off white teeth. Robotnik felt a smile of his own cross his lips, unable to keep the joy contained. There was something about the area around them. This sense of wonder and excitement while watching the various animals perform a wide range of behaviors close to how they would act in the wild. It was… Fun. It was really fun. Stone had chosen a wonderful activity to do together. Even with the crowd of people around him, screaming children and exasperated parents, Robotnik found himself calm and at ease with the man on his arm.
In fact…
The dim lighting was really doing wonders for him. His usual tightly wound tension was loosening now, a pleasant sleepiness beginning to overtake him. The lack of sleep was finally beginning to catch up, but instead of feeling the start of a migraine building up behind his eyes, Robotnik instead found himself willing to be led around by Stone. The other man had an infectious energy about him, and the Doctor let himself be awash in it. He had to stifle a yawn more than once as they made the rounds, looking at every tank and spending more than a few minutes at each. Once they stood in front of each aquarium, something grabbed their attention and refused to let it go until they had gotten their fill, examined every inch of the tiny environment. The miniature recreations of coral reefs fascinated Stone in particular; he was loathe to leave even when Robotnik tugged at his arm to move them out of the way of other patrons. He was mesmerized, face calm in the muted glow of the display lights. Even though he was still interested in looking at the fish and coral in front of him, Robotnik still caught himself sneaking glances at Stone. Memorizing the peaceful expression, holding the sight in a spot close to his heart.
If the Doctor thought Stone loved the coral reefs, with their schools of brightly colored tropical fish, then he was unprepared for the man’s reaction to the jellyfish. As soon as Stone caught sight of the tank, a circular thing able to be viewed from all sides, he was off like a bullet. Nearly wrenching his arm away from Robotnik in the process. In a matter of seconds he was plastered to the side of it, eyes wide in wonder as he gazed at the moon jellies. Their translucent bodies drifted in the water effortlessly, tiny tentacles waving as they propelled themselves forwards. The Doctor had an appreciation for the creatures, finding the structure of their nerve ring vaguely interesting. But clearly his mild fascination was nothing compared to Stone’s. The man was practically glued to the tank.
He let him have a few minutes before his impatience finally got the best of him. He wanted to move on.
“Come along, Stone. There’s more to be seen than these bland pancakes.” He pulled at Stone’s sleeve, pointing over at the next enclosure; a tank recessed into the wall. A plaque read ‘Newly Renovated!’ above it, and a small school of clown-fish swam in and out of an obscenely large sea anemone. Stone followed reluctantly, replacing his arm in Robotnik’s as they went.
“But Doctor, aren’t they just the most beautiful creatures you’ve ever seen? They float so effortlessly. I almost can’t even believe we live on the same planet as them.”
“They’re simple creatures, Stone. They don’t even have brains. Completely pointless, if you ask me.” Robotnik scoffed, leaning down in order to get a better look at the clown-fish currently suffusing itself in the tentacles of the sea anemone.
“But isn’t that what’s so fascinating about them? They don’t have a central nervous system, yet they can still perceive the water around them and maneuver in search of food. It must be such a peaceful existence. Well, right up until they get eaten by a sea turtle.” Stone winced at that last statement, casting one more forlorn glance back to the tank full of moon jellyfish. “They look like how I’d imagine aliens would, but right here on Earth. Ethereal.”
“Hmmm.” Robotnik put a hand to his chin in thought. He looked back towards the tank filled with jellies, raising an eyebrow before focusing back on Stone. “Feel some sort of kinship with them, do we now?” He wiggled his brow playfully before reaching up and flicking the younger man’s nose with his free hand. “Since you seemed so keen on assigning my illustrious self a fish, based solely on the fact that the creature had facial protuberances of a similar vein to my own glorious facial hair… Yes. I think it’s only fair to say that your intellectual capacity matches that of the humble Aurelia aurita.” It was merely a tease; they both knew it. Robotnik still couldn’t help but cast a searching glance over to the man next to him. He wanted to be sure that it wasn’t taken as a genuine insult. Stone was truly a brilliant man; that was part of why Robotnik enjoyed his company so much. The twinkle in the younger’s eyes confirmed it.
“I’ll choose to take that as a compliment, Doctor.”
~*~
Stone couldn’t recall ever having such a good time while on a date. Robotnik had begun opening up the longer they were out together, commenting here and there about the various sea creatures behind the glass of the different enclosures. The icy walls he built around himself slowly fell away, revealing a passionate man beneath his sharp exterior. Even though his area of expertise was the farthest from organic as one could get, the Doctor’s eyes lit up with pleasure at the thought of gaining and sharing knowledge. He even diverted his attention occasionally towards the other patrons, pulling on Stone’s arm and pointing them out: “Look at those buffoons. This educational opportunity is wasted on the airhead parents. At least it seems like the children are absorbing a modicum of information.”
“If you look closely, you can see that the woman keeps rubbing at her wedding band. I’d bet that the marriage is on the rocks, perhaps a last-ditch effort to save it and the kids?” Stone whispered, leaning in. “They’d be doing the children a favor by just splitting up and shuttling them back and forth every week. The husband’s eyes keep straying as well, especially towards the volunteer running the photo desk. If he walks over there, it won’t be for buying pictures. I’m telling you.” Robotnik quieted at Stone’s verbal takedown, mouth agape.
“Observant.” He attempted to look unaffected. “Was sizing up marks part of your ‘advanced barista training’?” Stone let out a short laugh, turning away from the family and focusing on the seahorses floating gently in the water in front of him.
“No. Just something I picked up back when I was younger. Had to be good at reading people in my line of work.”
“You never mentioned what exactly it was you did before opening that coffee shop. Just that you traveled a lot?” Robotnik’s voice pitched up in interest. Stone knew the older man was absolutely dying to know; he couldn’t handle not knowing something. This wasn’t the first time they did this dance, and he knew the moves by heart.
“Sales. International company.” Stone didn’t miss a beat, shrugging his shoulders. “Had to know if I could cinch the target or not. Know if they even had the money for the deal. I dealt with the tough cases,” he continued, eyes following a seahorse as it swam from one plant frond to another. “I was let go after my injury. Years of physical therapy and walking aides don’t lend much to projecting a unified front, as it were.” A small note of bitterness crept into his tone. He didn’t miss those days one bit, though sometimes he felt wistful for the thrill of the hunt. Nowadays, the most exciting part of his day was the lunch rush at the Mean Bean. Or, as of a few months ago, seeing the Doctor and engaging in banter with him. Robotnik would have made a good operative, in another life perhaps. It reminded him of the old days; the clever words and quick thinking in attempts to trip each other up. The physical aspect was definitely what he missed the least, especially considering that was how he ended up with a busted knee and a decade’s worth of chronic pain because of it.
At least the discharge was an honorable one, and the knee replacement and subsequent treatment plan was fully paid for. That was honestly all he could ask for.
Robotnik hummed lowly under his breath, clearly latching onto something that Stone had said. Let him figure it out eventually, he told himself. It was fun to see that brilliant mind work. Stone wondered how much longer it would take. Probably not long, especially if they continued on their outings after this. He could only hope they would. This was fun. Really fun.
He’d give anything if it meant he’d get to do this again.
“How is the knee, by the way?”
Stone gave it a quick jig, testing the weight and finding the discomfort still relatively mild. Their avoidance of various stairs (luckily the building was up-to-date on their accessibility efforts and had ramps installed long ago) kept the strain well below his substantial pain threshold. They had even taken the elevator instead, Robotnik steering them towards it when it came time to descend to the lower level of the building. It was then that Stone’s suspicions were confirmed; the Doctor had been watching him closely and noticed him favoring his left leg. His heart made a valiant effort to escape his chest at that, the simple gestures doing so much more than he would have ever thought. No one else had really paid any mind to his leg before, not unless he was using his cane that day. To know Robotnik had not only noticed, but was putting in effort to mitigate the pain when he could… Stone was having a hard time not swooning over the older gentleman.
“Fine, thank you. The final stretch is on a glidepath, so we won’t have much more walking to do.” They maneuvered over to the exit, bypassing the gift shop on the way there. Far too many children for Stone’s taste; he wasn’t in the mood to be bowled over. He had more than enough memories to last, not needing a physical reminder at all. They stepped onto the moving walkway, letting it slowly glide forward as they entered the final attraction of the aquarium. A long glass tunnel, below the water and absolutely teeming with life. Tiger sharks and bonnet-heads swam leisurely above them, casting dark shadows over the path. Stone couldn’t help but let out an awed breath.
It was absolutely beautiful.
The bright colors all around them were mesmerizing. Most people exiting the aquarium stayed in their own little bubbles of space, and the walkway moved at a slow enough pace. It was perfect to view an entire underwater world from the inside. Even Robotnik was stunned into silence, gently gripping Stone’s arm and eyes darting around quickly in order to catalogue everything. The reef around them felt like another planet entirely. Fish of all sizes swam through the coral, gracefully swaying around each other in a stunning display. Stingrays and skates butted right up against the glass in search of food, their flat bodies pressing up against the walls as they glided over the tunnel. Stone saw a shy moray hiding away in a small cave, and he excitedly pointed it out to Robotnik.
“Doctor, look!”
“I’m surprised we can even see the creature out at all. Morays are extremely secretive. Consider yourself lucky, Stone!” The Doctor replied.
“I already do.” It just slipped out. He hadn’t meant to say it, much less like that. All fond and lovesick around the edges. He could feel his face heating up as Robotnik glanced over at him out of the corner of his eye. He looked dumbstruck, if the slant of his brow was any indicator. Ah, well. They were already out on a date together. They were arm in arm! It didn’t seem like Robotnik had been scared away yet, so Stone decided to just bite the bullet and double down. “This has been really nice. Your company is even more engaging outside of work. I’d love to go out again, maybe for dinner next time?”
If Robotnik was surprised by the offer, he hid it well. The Doctor simply cleared his throat and replied in a gentler tone than Stone had ever heard from the other man: “I’d love to.” Stone felt his heart soar, floating away in the water around them. He’d surely be lost at sea forevermore at this rate. “You know, there’s only one decent restaurant in this entire excuse for a town. How about I take you? It’s the only authentic Mongolian place around here, and I remember you saying you’ve never tried the food before. Absolutely shameful, considering your track record for your coffee tastes. But I’ll allow it, you’re only human after all—” His final statement was punctuated by a long yawn that he tried and failed to stifle. Even his eyes watered at it. Stone couldn’t help but laugh. It should be illegal to be that adorable at his age.
“That sounds wonderful.” Stone replied, soft smile overtaking him. They rode the glidepath in silence for another minute before Robotnik yawned yet again. He’d been doing that a lot, ever since they stepped foot inside the aquarium in fact. Stone couldn’t help but notice the odd behavior, but he was unwilling to bring attention to it until now. “How much sleep did you get last night, anyway? It’s far too early to be so tired.” At that, Robotnik flushed a shade of pink and looked away. Stone couldn’t work out exactly what it was he said that flustered the older man so much, but he saw the opportunity to tease and took it. He was having so much fun on their date, and was still riding high on the offer from the Doctor to get dinner that he couldn’t even stop himself. He didn’t even think about the fact that this might be overstepping a boundary. “Aw, come on. Oh, I know what it is: you haven’t had one of my lattes yet! I should’ve made you one before coming to get you. Well… You could always just come over after this and I’d be happy to make you a coffee. On the house! My house, actually.” He let out a little giggle at that, tilting his head to the side. Robotnik, if possible, got even redder at that.
“Oh, I—” he coughed out. “That’s unnecessary. Maybe some other time.” Quickly, before Stone could even feel embarrassed for offering in the first place, Robotnik muttered out under his breath, “Confound it. I really shouldn’t have stayed up all night.”
“What?” Now it was Stone’s turn to cough. He’d not slept the night before? Why? What happened? Was he so nervous about their date that he couldn’t sleep? “You didn’t sleep? At all?” At Stone’s question, Robotnik winced.
“It wasn’t on purpose, mind you!” He spluttered. “I was supposed to just do a bit of maintenance on some of my creations, then go home. But then one of my blasted students had to bombard me with inane questions about their work in my class, and I was completely consumed with leaving feedback for most of the night. I didn’t even realize how much time had passed until you texted me that you were on the way.” It all came out of him in one fast, breathless rush. The last sentence of his explanation was thrown out the side of his mouth sheepishly. Robotnik. Sheepish. Shy. Stone could barely believe his eyes, or his ears. This was actually happening. He was embarrassed! That explained why the Doctor had been yawning so much while inside. He must be absolutely exhausted.
Stone wasn’t going to be party to this anymore.
“When we leave, I’m taking you home. You need to sleep. No excuses. You know you could have just told me and I would have gladly rescheduled, right? You didn’t have to come!” Stone couldn’t help but feel a little pang of hurt in his chest at the idea of Robotnik forcing himself to go out while running on empty fumes. Sure, he would have been disappointed at the short notice. But he was serious. The man needed to care for himself; neither of them were young enough to regularly pull all-nighters like that without consequence.
“I’m not a baby bird, Stone. I can take care of myself.” Robotnik groused, mustache twitching with his frown. “If I didn’t feel up to it, you would have known long before now. Stop trying to retroactively ruin everything. I had… Fun.” The last word was spat out like it personally offended him. “Your company was exquisite, and I’d like to do this again. Preferably when I’m caffeinated.” He squeezed his arm around Stone’s at that, rolling his eyes and turning back away to look at an impressively large tiger shark swimming along the side of the glidepath. He said nothing else, content to stand in silence. Stone swallowed and admitted to himself that the Doctor was right. They did have a nice time. And he would have definitely said something if he didn’t want to come along.
Robotnik was not a man to put himself through unpleasant situations for another person’s sake. He would rather beat them over the head with their audacity and idiocy than bend to the whim of anyone that he saw as inferior. Which just so happened to include the entire human race. Even Stone. Robotnik had made no secret his disdain for people pleasers and bootlickers, and on more than one occasion reminded Stone of that fact whenever he thought he was being too accommodating to rowdy customers at the Mean Bean (he was simply doing his job to deescalate; there would be no hesitation if he thought a customer to be more than just a slight nuisance). It was just another reason to add on to the ever growing list of things that appealed him to the professor. He knew his worth, and exactly what he wanted out of the world around him. Everything. He bent the world to his will or left it shattered on the ground before him. How that man ended up teaching at the college level was beyond anyone’s comprehension. He was meant for much greater things, surely.
“You’re right.” Stone acquiesced as they stepped off the final leg of the journey and made their way to the exit. “I’m still taking you home after this, though. You do need sleep, just like the rest of us humans.”
“A disgusting fact I’m reminded of every day that I’m alive.”
~*~
At Robotnik’s claim that he could in fact drive himself back home from campus, the cafe owner simply crossed his arms and narrowed his eyes. There was no arguing with that face; the man was immovable.
“I’ll pick you up tomorrow to get your car. You’re practically falling asleep standing up at this rate. I insist.”
The Doctor decided this was a fight he was alright with losing, for once.
The motorcycle ride back to Robotnik’s home was thankfully short. He didn’t know if he could handle much more physical contact for the day. Having his arm locked in Stone’s for the entirety of their date, though wonderful it was, had been on a level of overload he hadn’t experienced in a very long time. The Doctor had been loath to pull away; it was simply intoxicating to be so close to another. Especially Stone.
Doctor Robotnik’s house was modestly sized, in a respectable midtown neighborhood. He’d much rather have chosen a more remote location, considering how irritable he found neighbors to be, but the commute was not something he was willing to make longer than half an hour at most. Back in his early post-grad days, he’d had a job at the local power plant that required him to drive over an hour and a half both ways every day for several years. Never again would he subject himself to that. He could just ignore the general populace in the neighborhood, and that suited him just fine. As long as they left him alone in return; let him decorate how he wished and stay out of his business. His creations were important to his livelihood, and he would never compromise when it came to them. His abode was undoubtedly an eyesore with its various additions, but it was home. And every add-on was useful for his work. Large solar panels affixed to the roof, an enormous garage he transformed into a workstation for his days away from campus, various docks for his drones to interface with. There was even an obscenely large telescope that he'd customized and placed in his own little observatory room. The building was horrifically out of place for the cul-de-sac; a fact his neighbors loved to remind him of. They never got much father than the driveway with their useless paperwork and unhappy complaints. Robotnik was just as much of a terror to the local HOA as he was to his students.
Stone pulled up the driveway, letting his good leg support the weight of their bodies on the motorcycle before he got the kickstand into position. Robotnik dismounted and handed the extra helmet over. He was still, admittedly, flying a little high from the success of the date. It didn’t matter that he was exhausted and grumpy and generally unpleasant. Stone liked that, apparently. He really did.
Robotnik couldn’t figure out why. He wasn’t keen on over-examining it.
“Well. That was a very informative experience. Who knew you had a knack for social interactions outside of that slog you call a job?”
“I’m glad you enjoyed it, Doctor.” Stone replied with a small smile, packing away the extra helmet as he stood from his vehicle. “I’ll walk you to your door.” Robotnik spluttered in indignation:
“I’m not an invalid, Stone! My door is less than twenty feet away! I can walk by myself.”
“I know. It’s the romantic thing to do after a date, and I’m feeling quite romantic.” A bright red flush encompassed the entirety of the Doctor’s face; he could even feel it creeping up the back of his neck. The blasted man was decidedly more forward now than he had ever been before. Unearned confidence. Robotnik would have to keep him on his toes, insult him more, maybe even add a small touch of physical violence to the mix. Stone tilted his eyebrow at him, grin growing lopsided. He was completely open for a blow to the chest right now, stance inviting and off-guard.
Next time. He’d get him next time.
Definitely.
Robotnik huffed and twirled his ring of keys around his finger in what he hoped was a nonchalant acceptance of the offer.
“Fine. Only because I’m in a good mood.”
“Oh? A good mood? I take it that you’d like a repeat, then?” Stone joked as they approached the door.
“Don’t push your luck.” The Doctor sneered as he inserted the key and turned the lock. “Well. Look at that. I made it to the door and didn’t have a spontaneous heart attack and die. You can go now. I expect you here bright and early tomorrow so I can retrieve my car—” He was cut off by the feeling of a hand encircling his wrist. Whirling around, he was face-to-face with the slightly shorter man. Stone simply smiled at him with a sparkle in his eyes. Like looking at Robotnik lit up his entire universe. It wasn’t unlike the look of wonder he fixed those Aurelia auritas with.
“I’ll bring you a latte, sir.” Stone murmured, leaning down and planting a kiss to the back of the Doctor’s hand. His lips were so soft. Gentle. Like rose petals, or something else poetic like that. “Sleep well.”
Never in his life had Robotnik felt the sensation of his brain melting out of his ears. He was certainly feeling it now. Surely this phenomenon, whatever it was, was insanely dangerous. He could feel himself shutting down, becoming stupider, every moment he spent with Stone. This spelled disaster for his work, for his mental capacity. There was absolutely no way he could ever allow this to stand at this rate. The gall. The audacity. To look like that and talk like that and make Robotnik feel so—
So—
FUCK IT!
Was the last thought his brain fired off before completely shutting down. In response to the unexpected motion from Stone, Robotnik wrenched his hand away. Before the other man could even recognize what was happening, the Doctor had already grabbed the sides of his face and pulled him up. Without taking a second to breathe, he pressed his lips to Stone’s in a frantic kiss. If it could even be called that. The angle was all wrong, their noses digging uncomfortably into each other’s cheeks, the insides of their lips bruised from their teeth clacking on impact. It was chaste, closed-mouth and anxious. Robotnik had never kissed anyone before, not like this. He didn’t even know why he did it. Some kind of disgustingly squishy compulsion; he’d begin analysis on that just as soon as his mind re-calibrated. He’d get around to that once he no longer felt static was pouring out of his ears and suffusing his senses. Blinding, deafening. Were kisses supposed to be like this? So all-consuming and overwhelming?
His heart felt full to bursting all the same. It was worth it. Every bit of it. Stone was worth it. He couldn’t recall ever feeling like this for another human being in his life, and he was loathe to waste any second of it.
It took a few seconds for his brain to reboot. Once it did, clicking on and wailing like an old dial-up, he realized the position they were in. Stone’s own hands had lifted up and grasped the edges of the Doctor’s wrists, holding him there in a deceptively delicate grip. Robotnik gasped and pulled away, shoving Stone back and bringing a fist to his chest. He’d never been so impulsive in his life; what was he thinking? He nearly broke the other man’s nose with his aggression!
Stone, for his part, stood open-mouthed and wide-eyed. It took a scant moment for the blush to rise to his own cheeks as well, darkening the soft brown color of his skin and giving him a healthy glow. Robotnik cleared his throat and licked his lips in an attempt to relieve the sudden dryness.
“See you tomorrow morning. Stone.” And with that, he fled. Barreling into the house and slamming the door shut behind him. The Doctor fell back against the closed door, burying his head in his hands. Did he seriously just do that? What was he, some teenager? What kind of man just grabs someone’s face and kisses them without asking? And then running away like that, like a coward! How embarrassing. Surely Stone would realize that he was a pathetic old man now, unable to connect with the people around him. This was why he preferred his robots. They were so much easier to handle, to deal with. He’d be unbelievably lucky if Stone even wanted to talk to him at all after that, much less pick him up again or even serve him coffee. Robotnik sighed and dragged his hands down his face, feeling just as exhausted and frazzled as he probably looked. His mustache was undoubtedly a mess now from all that friction.
He was so caught up in his own thoughts that he almost missed the little ping from his watch, notifying him of a new text message:
Stone ☕
See you tomorrow, Doctor.
Maybe he didn’t completely bungle this entire thing up after all. He wouldn’t have texted that if he never wanted to see the Doctor again. It didn’t take long for another message to come in, this time leaving absolutely no room for interpretation:
I’ll bring you that latte if you give me a repeat performance 😘
Damn that man. He was going to be Robotnik’s ruin. He could hear the roar of the motorcycle outside as Stone started it and revved the gas. Damn him.
He still replied anyway:
I look forward to it.