Disclaimer: I do not own Ratchet and Clank or any of its characters. The prompt list I am following is "fluffuary 2020" by hannapogton on Twitter. Bax (spacelombax) picked the prompt for me to follow.

This one's gunna be super short, but I like having more fluff than angst.

Stuck on My Mind Like a Tattoo on My Skin

It took a while before he realized that he had fallen head over heels in love with her, but after that moment, Nefarious knew he was hosed.

Talwyn Apogee surprised him in so many ways, more ways than most other creatures did. He had expected her to hold him at arm's length for the rest of their natural lives, always arguing with anything he brought up and keeping a tight leash on him even after he did all he could to prove his newfound goodness.

He got a little suspicion, but after Talwyn talked with Ratchet about letting Nefarious join the Defense Force, she warmed up to his welcome.

She treated him like an equal for the most part. Whenever she needed something, she would look him in the eye and talk to him like she talked to her friends. It was one of the few refreshing moments he looked forward to when other creatures weren't treating him like he would turn on them at any moment.

Talwyn always smiled when she looked at him, and the thought that she did that every time without fail sparked warmth in his heart.

The Markazian opened up to him more after the first year he had worked to make himself better. They had joked and bantered with each other more, and Nefarious was always content when she visited his lab.

Wanting to be around her became something he sought out, doing it more often than he realized. It took almost ten hours of being with her and wanting more time until it finally hit him.

He was madly in love with her.

"Alright, everyone!"

Talwyn pulled up a powerpoint presentation, tapping on the clicker in her hand as she waved to get everyone's attention. "If I could get everyone to quiet down for just a sec, I can start the briefing before the mission starts!"

Ratchet and Clank fell silent, turning their attention from the other and over to Talwyn. Qwark kept talking until one of the other special forces soldiers tapped him on the shoulder and pointed to the Markazian at the front of the room. Nefarious stayed at the back of the room, arms crossed over his chest, and leaned against the wall trying to look like he was bored of the whole affair.

Talwyn turned, looking at the projector screen. "Right, now, new intel noted that the base station has a lot more turret guns since the attack on Hurundia. I don't want any squad touching down on Karacken until those guns have been taken down. Ratchet and Clank have already volunteered to go down first and take them out-"

He tuned out her words, centering his attention to her actions.

Talwyn looked so beautiful to him. Even when she didn't have a smile on her face, even when she was taking command of the situation and focused completely on the task at hand, she radiated a majesty Nefarious had seen only a few times before. Talwyn moved with purpose, loose and ready to answer any questions.

His heart stuttered, skipping beats as he mimicked a small sigh.

Something nudged his arm. The scientist tore his gaze away from Talwyn and looked beside him.

Qwark flashed him a puppy-like grin. "You keep lookin' at her all dreamy, doc…"

Nefarious' optics darted to Talwyn, making sure that she hadn't noticed. "Quiet, you moron," the robot whispered. "Last thing I need is Apogee knowing how I feel about her right in the middle of a mission briefing."

"You know, Nef, we can all tell that you like the little lady a lot." Qwark nudged him with his arm again. "Go on, tell her how you feel. The worst she can say is, 'No.'"

A frown marred his mouthpiece. "That's what I'm afraid of. That, and what relationship we have tearing to shreds."

Qwark shrugged his shoulders. "You may have to tell her at some point," he advised, a sincerity to his words. He nodded his head slightly in her direction. "You're kinda bad at hiding your lovey-dovey stuff around her, and it's only a matter of time 'til she figures it out."

Fear painted the robot's face. He mimicked a swallow, his optics flicking back to the Markazian handing Ratchet and Clank a new gadget to help with the mission. "I know, I know… I'll tell her… sometime… later…"

Qwark rolled his eyes and sighed. "Suit yourself," he said, stepping away to bug another soldier across the room.

Nefarious kept his eyes back on Talwyn, feeling his heart turn and skip in his chest.

He was going to have to tell her. The day when he would finally admit his feelings was a day he was dreading, but until that day came, he was more than happy to pretend like he wasn't so in love with the captain of the defense force.

By pretending he didn't have feelings for her, he would still be able to be in her company without scaring her away. By pretending he didn't have feelings, he would be able to bask in the warmth her smile gave him and admire the sharp wit she wielded with precision. By pretending he didn't have feelings, he could savor every second he had with her, right until the moment she told him she didn't feel the same way.

By pretending he didn't have feelings for her, he could delay the pain he would feel when she said, "No," and if he was doomed to spend the rest of his life pining for her, he would do just that.

After all, she would never feel the same way… Could she?

Song Inspo: "Tattoo" by Jordan Sparks.

Okay, this one was kinda angsty, but I didn't know how to write fluffy pining. Pining, from my experience, comes/pairs well with angst. Nonetheless, I had fun with this one, and I've written some floof and now some angst for this ship. I'm proud of what I'm making in such a short amount of time. :)

Again, thank you all so much for reading and supporting! :D