The gift of love - Pulse/Thermite

Traffic was a nightmare on Christmas' Eve. Thermite honked the car's horn, joining the cacophony of angry drivers clamoring to get their own cars moving out of the traffic jam. He should have known the airport was a dangerous trap these days.

"Can you please stop? Making noise will not magical get us out of here faster."

By the corner of his eye, he saw Pulse pinching the bridge of his nose. Pulse was probably tired and jet lagged; he always got cranky like an old man when he was tired. Thermite considered honking again, just because it made him feel better than staying put doing nothing. He refrained though.

"How was the family?" Thermite asked instead, turning his head to look at Pulse.

"Eyes on the road, Jordan."

"Are you kidding me? We ain't moving!" Thermite let go of the wheel to gesture at the kilometric congestion on the road. "At this rate we'll arrive after Christmas."

"Mom was upset you didn't come," Pulse told him. "She made me promise I'd bring you in for New Year's."

"Sure thing, I still dream of the pancakes she made the last time we went to visit." Thermite adored the small woman as much as she seemed to adore him. Pulse sometimes joked that his parents had adopted Thermite, but he knew Pulse was relieved they got along so well.

However, this year they were spending Christmas with Thermite's big family, since they had run a rather aggressive campaign for the last months to have them both here these days. It was good practice to alternate which holidays they spent with each other's family, although Thermite was an ambitious man and hoped to gather both the Estrada and the Trace families one of these days. Hopefully sooner rather than later if his plans worked out as intended.

"I know we agreed on no gifts this year, but I brought something for you." Pulse looked at him with an apologetic smile.

The no gift agreement came to be because they both had been separately deployed recently, had no time to go Christmas shopping, and in fact until a few days ago, didn't even know if they'd be free for Christmas. Thermite glanced at the rearview mirror, eyeing his jacket laying on the seat, and the lump beneath it. Since the traffic hadn't moved an inch in all that time, Thermite dragged Pulse into a quick kiss. The contact was brief, but it bolstered his mood immensely. Judging by Pulse's smile, he felt similarly.

"I got something for you too." Thermite accompanied his confession by an unrepentant grin, making Pulse laugh. Thermite had always adored that sound. "It's on the back seat, under my jacket."

"Do you want me to open it now?" Pulse's surprise was understandable, but Thermite just shrugged in response. It wasn't the ideal environment for it, definitely not what he'd envisioned when he made the purchase, but waiting had never been Thermite's forte. At least now in the car there was only the two of them, a small measure of privacy, and Thermite was curious to see if his family would notice or if Pulse would have to flaunt it until someone pointed it out.

Pulse unbuckled the seatbelt to grab the plain and unassuming box under Thermite's jacket. Once he had it, despite the car not having moved an inch yet, he buckled up again. "Seems it's a light package."

"Don't fish for information and just open it," Thermite chuckled, all his attention falling squarely on the other man. He drank in every movement and expression Pulse made while opening the box, only to find another slightly smaller box inside. And then another, and another one. Pulse's expression slowly clouded, his frown creasing as he plunged his hand in the latest box, which was full of shredded paper.

"Jordan, I swear to God, if this is…" Thermite didn't miss a detail of how Pulse's vaguely irritated expression shifted into surprise when his hand grabbed a small jewelry box. His boyfriend's gaze was briefly on him, wide eyed, before taking out the ring-sized box. With unsteady hands, Pulse opened the box to reveal a sleek white gold ring with what looked like a diamond encrusted on it.

Thermite cleared his throat, capturing Pulse's attention. "Had a whole speech prepared, but I can't go down on my knees here. I only want to say: Jack, I love you and I'd be the happiest man if you accept-"

"Of course I accept!" Despite being almost sure he'd say yes, hearing the words aloud and watching Pulse put on the ring reverently filled Thermite with relief.

"I didn't even finish my speech." Thermite was smiling so wide that his cheeks hurt, but he didn't care. Pulse said yes. They both leaned forward, lips meeting again and hands holding onto each other.

A discordant symphony of furious honking surrounded them, the drivers moored on the road impatient and angry. Not the best soundtrack for a proposal, but neither of them seemed to care or even notice, too wrapped up in each other and their bubbling happiness. They were stupidly in love and engaged. Nothing could ruin this moment.