Every day was the same routine; every day was different. Slender, supple fingers checked the headset and microphone to make sure all the right buttons were pushed and the correct knobs were turned moments before a sign reading "on air" glowed red.
"The air is hot as it bears down on our humble little town on this fine, summer evening. Welcome to Night Vale." An involuntary smile crossed Cecil's lips as he gazed at his notes for the evening's broadcast. He would never get tired of welcoming the citizens of Night Vale to listen to his voice.
"Our top story today concerns your very own Night Vale community radio. Quite recently, we lost yet another one of our interns. Unfortunately, this one was not around long enough for me to even get to know his name before he tragically stepped through a massive black hole that was hovering by the north entrance of the dog park. An eyewitness, that is, John Peters-you know, the farmer-reports that he saw the intern inspecting the hole as it sparked with lightning and hummed with the sound of a million voices screaming, trapped in captivity of blackest night. The intern then inspected the mysterious hole and subsequently disappeared. He hasn't been seen since. Our greatest condolences go out to the family of that nameless intern, and here's to hoping he was simply sucked into a place where he could live peacefully for the rest of his days in a quaint little town. Perhaps the country. He was the quiet, homely type after all. Good news though, listeners. That means a position for intern has opened up at the station to any Night Vale citizen to apply for. More details on the job description and ideal candidates later on. Let's move right along to the traffic."
The radio host stretched a long, lanky arm across to a screen to switch it on and allowed himself to cock his head at the image he saw there, though he quickly reminded himself that this was Night Vale and nothing should surprise him anymore. He took a drink of steaming, dark coffee from a chipped community radio cup before turning back to his microphone.
"If you want to go anywhere fast today, listeners, I would avoid the main highway as the angels have linked hands and are standing in a line across the road, barricading drivers from going any farther. Listeners, do not, I repeat, do not attempt to drive through the barricade. A driver just tried this, and the car ended up a twisted piece of metal smoking on the side of the roadway. There has been no sign of movement from the driver of the vehicle. Be aware of an angel blockade if you take a drive because they could always relocate to a street near you. We will try to contact old woman Josie to find out why they are doing this as she has not made a statement about it yet. This has been traffic."
Cecil looked up when a noise towards the door caught his attention. It had sounded like the latch of a door when it is closed quietly, but not quietly enough like when your parents hear you close the door as you sneak out after midnight. His eyes roved over all of the empty spaces in the room. Nothing seemed out of place, but he felt a presence near him that hadn't been there moments before.
"If you would be so kind as to give me a moment, listeners...I think someone is in here with me, but I'm not sure where they went. I'll keep you updated," he added in a hushed voice to the microphone. He leaned to one side to peer around his desk then to the other side, but neither investigation yielded any results. Straightening, his jaw tensed and brows furrowed. He knew there were many invisible things in Night Vale, but they typically didn't make their way into the station. Hooded figures had visited a few times, but this was just weird. "Listeners, I'm not sure what is going on. I don't see anyone, but the presence in the room is heavy, and I know for a fact that the door opened and closed. If anything happens to me, please, please let Carlos know. He is due back from a two week long research expedition in a few days so please, tell him what happened." He gasped when he felt a pressure on his face, and his whole world went black.
There were many things Cecil was sure of, but the thing that he knew the most was who the scent of sharp chemicals mixed with cologne belonged to. It was a scent he could detect in a roomful of people. A scent so familiar and so comforting yet so exhilarating at the same time. How he was able to pull this little prank on him, he wasn't sure, but he definitely didn't mind.
"And what was it that you want the listeners to tell me about you?" Carlos's voice crooned in his ear, his hand still pressed over the radio host's eyes.
"Listeners, there has been a change in the current situation. All is well, and I am safe and sound. And now, the weather," Cecil spoke into the microphone, attempting to control the breathlessness in his voice and the pounding of his heart. Once the weather had been switched over, Carlos stepped back and allowed Cecil to spin his chair around to face him. "You're home! I wasn't expecting you home for a few days!"
"I know, and I'm sorry to bother you at work. I know you only have a few minutes for the weather, but the project finished up early so I could come home. I had to see you before I went to the house. I missed you..." "I don't mind at all. I missed you so much, you don't even know." Unable to control his excitement any longer, Cecil threw himself from his chair and into Carlos's open arms. He pressed his lips against his roughly and desperately, then slowed to a kiss full of love and passion, twining his fingers in Carlos's hair as his love's hands came to rest on his waist. When he drew away, Carlos's face was as flushed as his felt.
"I am so glad to be home with you again. I brought you something."
"What did you bring me?" Cecil watched with a content and curious smile as Carlos dug in the pocket of his lab coat and pulled out a rock the size of his palm. It wasn't until he turned it over in his hand that Cecil saw the deep amethyst colored crystals inside, fading out to a pale lavender the closer the color got to the edge.
"It's called a geode. Have you ever seen one?" Carlos asked as he tipped the treasure into Cecil's upturned hand. "They aren't native to the area and we were investigating why they were there. If they were there by coincidence or if something more unusual."
"It's beautiful, Carlos...I love it. Thank you." He turned his attention from the rich colors to his love's eyes, only to find him gazing at him with an affectionate smile.
"I'm so glad I came to Night Vale and met you." The scientist glanced over at the clock and frowned, lacing his fingers through Cecil's. "Although, I took up the whole weather time. You should be back on in just a moment. But it's going to be awhile until I see you..."
Cecil's eyes drifted over to the clock, and he bit his lip as he attempted to control a smile that was forcing its way onto his lips. "Stay here with me. I don't have an extra chair but you can go grab one from another room if you'd like."
Carlos looked around, grinned, and instead of retrieving a chair from another room, hopped up onto Cecil's desk beside his microphone. He cast Cecil a hopeful smile as if asking if his choice of seating arrangement was acceptable, and Cecil could only nod. How could he possibly say no to Carlos when he looked that perfect and adorable? Perfect, thoughtful, romantic Carlos.
Cecil perched himself in his chair and drew it closer to the desk, one hand turning his gift over and over and the other clutching Carlos's tightly. Moments later, he was cued to take over. "Forget the new position and the blockade of angels, listeners. Carlos returned early from his trip and came to surprise me here at the station! He even brought be back this beautiful gift called a geode, which I will have him explain later on because he is still here with me! So let me tell you all about how he surprised me by sneaking into the station..."S