"So you really aren't going to ride a motorbike with me again?"
"No. And not one of those god-awful wave runner things either!"

During a car ride back from paying Rebecca a visit, Shaun and Desmond had started discussing a past trip they had taken after the whole Abstergo mess. This quickly turned into a friendly argument about Desmond's driving skills that lasted upwards of ten minutes. Currently, the dark-skinned assassin laughed at his passenger and nudged him with his elbow.

"Oh, c'mon, you loved it!"
This got him a bitter glare from Shaun. "My screams of terror beg to differ!" He crossed his arms and sunk back into his seat, to which Desmond just rolled his eyes.

"Big baby. You saying you don't trust me 'r something?" He glanced over at him to try and catch a reaction. Sure enough, Shaun's shoulders dropped a bit and he looked out the window, a common habit when he wanted to think of how to soften what he wanted to say.

"I just don't trust you around those screaming metal deathtraps. Safe vehicles like cars are just fine."

"Why do you think we're in one now?" Interjected Desmond. Shaun groaned lightly and prepared to speak again. He words were quickly cut off and became a yelp as Desmond turned fast and tight around one of the curves on the back road they were riding. He clung to the handles on the door for dear life, seething indignantly over at the driver.

"….Scratch that; cars are just as bad if you're the one driving!" Desmond just laughed again, screaming around another corner.
"Aww, wassamatter? Too much for ya~?"
"Just slow down already!" snapped Shaun. "We're heading into town!" He relaxed as he felt the vehicle decelerate.

"Fine, fine…At least you don't have to worry about doing this on a motorbike, right?" He glanced over again. Seeing that his lovely little techie was still fuming, he decided to change the subject to something more sedating. "You know, I had to sell my bike to get you that…"
Shaun looked down to his ring finger, the familiar gold band shining back up at him, the small diamond giving a wink in the light. Sometimes he almost forgot it was there; the trinket just seemed to fit so naturally since Desmond had slipped it onto the digit. He felt his frustration quickly melted away into a much warmer feeling that he still had trouble identifying. Shaun fiddled with the thing, closing his eyes so they would not betray him to his true feelings.

"Well, no one asked you to."

Desmond smirked in approval, knowing he'd said the right thing. "Yeah, but I still did…And I think it was definitely worth it."

"Is that so?" Shaun asked with the slightest of blushes.

"Yup." Came the reply. "I don't miss it."
Shaun raised an eyebrow at him. "Really? You don't miss your motorbike a bit in the slightest?"

There was a long pause before Desmond finally gave in with a chuckle.
"Okay, ya got me; I miss that bike A LOT." Shaun snorted and rolled his eyes in a gesture of 'I knew it', going back to looking out the window. "But…" ventured Desmond, taking Shaun's hand gently in his, "it was definitely worth it. I got something so much better out of it."

Shaun highly doubted that. A machine couldn't talk back, or insult you, or make you sleep on the couch like he did. "Maybe…"

"Not maybe." Desmond corrected firmly, "You don't give yourself nearly enough credit."

They rode along like that, in silence, a bit longer. By now, the conversation had completely distracted Shaun from where they were. He worried that, if he was lost, the big gorilla in the driver's seat would be even worse off. Coming up on a red light, Desmond suddenly swerved over into the left turn lane. This was a common habit of the speed demon's, if he knew a better route, but Shaun could swear that they were supposed to be going straight still. The turn lane light flashed red once they approached, and the thru lane next to them flashed green. Without really thinking, Shaun jumped right into a snide remark.

"Aw, too bad! And right when you were ready to speed away."
"Oh, ha ha. Just trust me, okay? I got this."
"Trust your driving? I bet you don't have the foggiest idea where you're—" As soon as they turned, he finally recognized the main street. They were supposed to go left the entire time. Shaun had no idea how he had forgotten, but he was, to say the least, embarrassed about it.

"Like I said: trust me." Shaun growled and crossed his arms in a pout.
"And why would I do a foolish thing like that?"

" Oh, I dunno, maybe because that's part of what makes a relationship work?" His voice was dripping with sarcasm. "Ya know, trust? It's just a tiny, unimportant part of all this."
"Miniscule, really." Shaun agreed sharply.

Another long silence fell between them, giving Shaun a few moments to recollect himself. "…you know I was just teasing, right?" Desmond smiled over at him.
"Yeah, I know. Know how?" He stole a look over to the man sitting beside him. "Because no matter how much you tease, or insult, or yell, you still stuck by me through it all." His hand drifted back down and took hold of Shaun's, running a thumb tenderly across the band. "And you still said yes."

Slowly, Shaun leaned over and let his head rest on his love's shoulder. "Yeah….Yeah, I guess I did."
And, though his pride would probably never let him say it, that would always be his answer.