A/N: Hello, dear readers! I hope you enjoy this short little Oneshot I wrote about my two favorite Night Vale residents- probably the first story of many, haha! Please let me know what you think at the end!
A Story About Him
Carlos rolled over underneath the warm sheets, turning to face the side of the bed not currently occupied by his own sleepy form.
"'Mornin'," he mumbled groggily, grasping at the spot next to him. Surprisingly, all he felt were the soft, plush covers that had been hastily thrown away to reveal an empty place on the bed. Confused, the scientist frowned and pushed himself up onto his elbows, blinking the sleep away from his dark eyes. "...Cecil?"
As if on cue, the smell of coffee that suddenly wafted underneath Carlos' nose alerted him to where his boyfriend must be. Slowly, stretching out his limbs and trying to rid his body of the remnants of sleep on this lazy Sunday morning, Carlos got out of bed, slid on his dark blue bedroom slippers, and shuffled towards the kitchen.
"And this, dear listeners, begins A Story About Him," a deep voice sounded as Carlos rounded the corner of the apartment and entered the kitchen. The scientist frowned, rubbing his eyes and looking for the source of the familiar voice. He quickly located his boyfriend, esteemed Night Vale Radio host Cecil Gershwin Palmer, sitting at the kitchen table and cradling a steaming cup of coffee in his favorite mug- a purple cup embellished with the logo of the aforementioned radio station along the side.
Carlos tilted his head curiously, a small smile tugging up the right corner of his mouth. "You're up early."
"He says this in a sleepy voice, wearing an equally sleepy smile- quite an adorable one, really, if I do say so myself," Cecil said, his bright eyes trained on Carlos. The scientist's smile slipped back into a tiny frown as he moved to get his own cup of coffee. The radio host followed his movements intently. "And now, just as He does every weekend morning, the beautiful Man goes to pour Himself a cup of coffee. This morning, it has already been prepared and has been lightly steaming in the carafe for exactly thirteen minutes and twenty-nine seconds. However, it will surely taste just as good as if it had been made not thirteen minutes and thirty seconds ago."
"...What are you talking about?" Carlos questioned, raising an eyebrow as he poured his coffee. Cecil spouting random, weird nonsense was certainly nothing new; in fact, it happened much more than Carlos liked to admit, but most of those times were due to some outside possession, being forced to bow down to an ostentatious Glow Cloud, or other such typical Night Vale events. Today, however, Cecil seemed transfixed on none other than Carlos himself.
"The Man questions the Radio Host who is currently narrating His actions." Cecil took another sip of his coffee and flashed Carlos a smile. "However, this is not a story about the Radio Host; this is a story about Him, the Scientist with the chocolate-colored hair, and so the focus shall remain as such."
"Come on, Cecil..." Carlos rolled his eyes, leaning against the counter. "Please tell me this isn't some new Sunday morning radio segment you're trying to start up..."
"Not that He would have a problem with this, of course," Cecil said in response. "The gorgeous Scientist would probably like some warning beforehand if that were about to happen- and He will get some warning if it ever does happen! But, for now, the narrating Radio Host simply wants to practice for a segment he is going to do later in the week. The Man holding the coffee in His soft palms surely understands this."
"Oh, so that's it." Carlos nodded to himself. Well, that was a relief. Practicing a future radio bit is all fine and good until the microphones start appearing in the home- well, ones that weren't already placed there by the Sherriff's Secret Police, that is. Thankfully, it hadn't yet come to that. The scientist yawned once and took a sip of coffee, humming in contentment. "Mm..."
"He hummed in contentment, enjoying the full-bodied flavor of a fresh cup of coffee." Cecil released his mug, only to place his elbows on the table and rest his chin on the back of his hands, letting out a small chuckle. "He is quite beautiful when He makes that face; oh, listeners, how I wish you could see how absolutely wonderful this Man is. Although, admittedly, I may be a tad biased."
A light blush dusted Carlos' cheeks. While he loved Cecil's compliments, of course, he still had yet to get used to just how much the radio host doted on him, especially on the air for everyone in Night Vale to hear.
"Ah, He seems embarrassed; perhaps I have said too much."
Carlos met Cecil's gaze and raised an eyebrow as if to say, you think? Still, he couldn't really hold it against the excitable radio host. The scientist had to admit that Cecil could be rather adorable, too.
"So, what would you like to do today?" Carlos asked, meeting Cecil's focused gaze. The partial-blonde shrugged.
"'I have no preference,' the Radio Host responds," Cecil said, earning another slight frown from his boyfriend. "It is up to the beautiful Man to decided where He and His boyfriend go on this lovely, warm, Sunday morning."
"Er... you're not going to narrate our entire day, are you?" Carlos raised a questioning eyebrow, to which Cecil responded with a smile.
"A bit of advice from your favorite Radio Host, dear listeners: one can never have enough practice, especially when trying something new! Surely, the Scientist understands?"
Carlos let out a small sigh, placing his coffee cup on the counter in favor of folding his arms in front of his chest. "Cecil, I love you, but that's going to wear very thin, very fast... Today is supposed to be our day off, remember? No working allowed; that was our deal."
"Ah, but what the Beautiful Man fails to understand is that this narration of His life is not actual work," the radio host said, sitting up straight and holding up his forefinger in a gesture he often used when presenting a new idea for his show. "It is merely practice for the work to come!"
"Cece, come on..." Carlos' tone sounded a bit strained. He was usually all for the love of his life using him as a sounding board for new radio segment ideas, but they had made a deal that Sunday was the day that both of them would put work on the backburner in favor of spending time together. If Carlos had to give up precious time spent in his lab researching science, then Cecil could at least not use the entire day to prepare for future broadcasts.
The two men stared at each other across the kitchen, Carlos wearing a mildly annoyed expression and Cecil wearing an expression of undisguised excitement. Slowly, though the radio host's smile began to slip as Carlos rolled his eyes and turned away to stare in the opposite direction, taking another swig of coffee as he did so. After a few more seconds of watching this stand-offish behavior, Cecil stood up and walked over to his boyfriend.
"I am sorry... You are not mad, are you?" Cecil intoned softly, draping himself over Carlos' shoulders. He gazed at the scientist with pouted lips and eyes- all three of them- drooped in a puppy-like expression of atonement. Carlos merely stared over his shoulder, grasping the warm coffee cup tightly in his hands, his own eyes narrowed ever-so-slightly. Then, with a light sigh, he gave Cecil a quick kiss on the nose, causing the radio host to blink in surprise.
"No, darling, I'm not mad," Carlos relented. Cecil let out a small squeal of happiness and tightened his grip in a brief hug, the tattoos on his exposed forearms seeming to wriggle of their own accord. Carlos unsuccessfully tried to suppress a grimace.
He'd gotten used to Cecil's strange fascination with the floating Night Vale version of a cat living in the radio station's bathroom. He'd gotten used to Cecil's third eye. Heck, he'd even gotten used to Night Vale itself, and the fact that no matter how many times he tried to make sense of everything happening in this strange little town, he just... couldn't.
But those iridescent, semi-sentient tattoos that snaked around his beloved's body and seemed to watch him even when Cecil himself was thoroughly distracted... those never ceased to unnerve the wary scientist, if only just a little bit. He was sure that he'd be used to them someday, but that day was far off yet.
Cecil let out a small chuckle and gently plucked the coffee cup out of Carlos' hands, placing it on the counter. Then, with no prior warning, the radio host whirled the scientist around so that he was sandwiched between him and the edge of the countertop. Carlos' eyes widened in surprise as he gazed down at his boyfriend, whose height stopped just a few inches short of his own.
"What are-"
"And now, listeners, A Story About Him is being put on hold in favor of another tale that it is my duty to tell," Cecil said, cutting off Carlos' inquiry. The scientist opened his mouth again in protest, but the radio host gently pressed a finger to his lips. "Unfortunately, this new story is a rather personal one, and I am therefore hesitant to recount it to all of you. So, dear listeners, forgive me for putting you on hold as I take a break to live out this new story in its intended format: live and unfiltered." At this, he flashed Carlos a dazzling smile, and the scientist understood, grinning underneath Cecil's fingertips as the radio host continued.
"This story is, in fact, A Story About Us, the Scientist and the Radio Host. Before I sign off, dear listeners, I must let you in on just one piece of the Radio Host's thoughts: there is no happier prospect than spending the rest of my life with this beautiful, beautiful Scientist standing before me."
Another surge of happy embarrassment flushed Carlos' face with a deep red glow. Smiling even wider, he leaned down and pressed Cecil's lips against his own, earning a little squeak of surprise from the excitable radio host. Cecil's bright eyes closed in contentment, though the third one remained open ever-so-slightly to gaze at his darling scientist.
Approximately twenty-two seconds later, the pair broke the kiss in favor of resting their foreheads against one another's.
"I love you, my beautiful Carlos," the radio host said, running his fingers through his beloved's curly hair. Carlos chuckled lightly.
He did not fully know how or why he had gotten to Night Vale in the first place, but he was sure of one thing: this strangely mysterious town and, even more importantly, the strangely mysterious radio host that resided within it were, to him, the very definition of "home."
"I love you, too-" the scientist replied, giving his boyfriend another peck on the lips, "-my beautiful Cecil."
"And so begins the next chapter in A Story About Us," Cecil mumbled, nuzzling the side of his face against Carlos' chest. The scientist smiled.
"Yes, it does." He rested his chin on top of Cecil's head, letting out a contented sigh. "And I have a feeling that this will be the best one yet."