After that fateful night when Professor Heimerdinger had caught Jayce and Viktor breaking into his lab to test out the confiscated Hextech, the Professor had relented and given them lab space at the university. They worked tirelessly day and night, bouncing ideas off each other and carrying out experiments. It was the life they had both dreamed of, Jayce no longer had to carry out the research he was passionate about in secret, and Viktor was a principal investigator instead of an assistant.
Jayce stifled a yawn. "Hey Viktor, come take a look at this," he called, but there was no answer.
He looked up to see Viktor sitting in a chair by the blackboard. His head hung forward and his eyes were closed. A piece of chalk was slipping from his fingers, and fell to the floor. Jayce smiled and shook his head. He looked up at the clock, and as he suspected it was once again past midnight.
"I guess we should call it a night," Jayce said, walking over to his friend. He touched Viktor on the shoulder, but that didn't rouse him from his slumber. Jayce yawned again. It was so tempting to sit down in a chair himself and close his eyes. But he remembered last time they'd slept in the lab, he had woken up with a stiff neck and Viktor hadn't said anything but Jayce had seen him in serious discomfort with his back for several days.
"Viktor? Viktor, wake up," Jayce said. He tried shaking his shoulder gently, but Viktor only made an indistinct noise without opening his eyes. Jayce sighed. He supposed he could carry Viktor. Physically, it was not an issue. But would Viktor mind? Viktor was weaker and less physically able than him, and he didn't want to draw attention to that and make his friend feel inferior. It was in Jayce's nature to automatically help whenever he could, but he was aware that helping without being asked could be insulting, and he didn't like to make anyone feel bad.
But Jayce really wanted to go to bed, and just leaving Viktor there didn't seem right either. Viktor's room was only a short distance away. Jayce pictured the route in his head, at this hour he was sure he could carry Viktor there without him waking up or anyone seeing them. Then Viktor would figure he'd somehow made it back to his room himself, and Jayce could go to bed with a clear conscience. It was the perfect plan.
First, Jayce found Viktor's crutch, resting against the wall a short distance away, and tucked it under his arm. Then he crouched down put one arm under Viktor's knees, and the other around his shoulders. He held his breath as he lifted him up, suddenly afraid he might wake up. But Viktor's head lolled forwards again and Jayce could hear him breathing slowly and deeply.
He made it to the door of the lab without a problem, but then realised he would need to open the door with Viktor in his arms. After some manoeuvring, he managed to get the door open, both of them out of the door, and the door closed again.
Jayce's heart rate was up, and he was breathing heavier. This was more effort than he had anticipated. Making his way down the university corridors was easier. At one point he heard footsteps and what sounded like giggling. He paused, but then realised that this was over the other side of the building. In the quiet of the early hours, every tiny noise was amplified. Jayce let out a breath, and continued.
When he reached the door to Viktor's room, he realised he had made a grave error before he even put his hand on the door handle. The door was locked.
Jayce knew what he had to do, and he didn't want to do it. He knew he was a good person, how did he keep on getting himself into these ludicrous situations? He'd never put his hand in another person's pocket before. There was something deeply wrong and invasive about that. He was no pickpocket. But what else could he do? It was the only way he was going to get into Viktor's room.
He gritted his teeth and very carefully twisted his wrist around to slide his hand into the pocket he could more easily reach. His fingers touched some bolts, a screwdriver, and something that might have been a key but turned out to be a washer. The prospect of trying to reach the other pocket was starting to weigh on him, but then he found the key. Thankfully, despite all of this, Viktor was still sleeping.
Breathing a sigh of relief, he slotted the key into the door and turned it. He pushed the door open and made his way over to the bed. As gently as he could, he lowered Viktor onto the bed so his head was on the pillow. Viktor stirred and made a noise, and shifted slightly to get comfortable. Jayce slowly withdrew as not to wake him, but Viktor grabbed his arm. "Oh no, come back here, you," Viktor mumbled.
Jayce froze. For a moment he thought Viktor had woken up, but then he saw his eyelids flicker, he was dreaming. Viktor wrapped both his arms around Jayce's and held it to him. It was nice, Jayce thought, but how was he supposed to get out of here now? If he didn't escape before Viktor awoke, Viktor would know what he had done.
Jayce placed Viktor's crutch by his bed, that at least he could do. But now what? He tried to pull his arm back, but Viktor was holding it tightly. At least he'd got Viktor to bed. He'd have to awkwardly stand here until Viktor let go of him, he supposed.
Yawning, Jayce entertained the thought of laying down beside Viktor. Now he was no longer focused on his escapade, he realised how very tired he was. They were friends, he told himself. And it was no more of a violation than anything else he had done. Viktor would understand. He would explain himself in the morning and everything would be okay.
As he climbed onto the bed, he was very conscious of how much his weight disturbed the mattress, and he ended up uncomfortably close to Viktor. He tried to move away but Viktor's grip on his arm forced him to keep his arm around him and restricted his movements. A wave of physical fatigue washed over Jayce, but his mind kept him awake. He recalled a professor once talking about how someone once studied sleeping people and found that they had an awareness of what was going on around them. Viktor had mumbled in his sleep and refused to let go of him. Jayce had immediately assumed Viktor thought he was someone else, or perhaps a toy animal. But what if he knew it was Jayce and didn't want to let him go? Viktor wasn't the most tactile person, in fact Jayce struggled to think of a time Viktor had touched him when it wasn't necessary. So this was significant. And Jayce found himself wondering if it could be possible that Viktor had a secret crush on him.
Jayce lay there for a while, noticing the sensations of Viktor clutching his arm, the warmth from his body, the gentle movement of his breathing. He felt a pleasant feeling of anticipation and anxiety in his chest, and it occurred to him that if he was wrong and Viktor didn't have a crush on him, he'd be disappointed. If he moved a little closer, he could bury his face in Viktor's hair, and even the thought of that filled Jayce with excitement. But he mustn't, first he had to find out if it was true. He forgot all about waiting for Viktor to loosen his grip on his arm, and sleep finally claimed him.
Viktor felt disorientated when he awoke. He was very warm, and he could smell Jayce's expensive cologne. His first thought was that they had both fallen asleep in the lab again, but when he opened his eyes, he found himself in bed, or on top of the covers at least, still fully dressed. That was not so unusual. Sometimes he was so tired he could only make it to his room and lay down. But what was unusual was Jayce's arm resting over him. And he realised he was warm because the rest of Jayce's body was curled around his.
He felt overwhelmed, unbearably so, and he felt a pain in his chest from the pent-up emotions. He had dreamt of this so many times, yes, but now it was really happening he didn't know how to feel.
Viktor turned his mind to something he could handle. The circumstances that had led up to this. They hadn't even been drinking. There was no time for such things while they still had so much work to do. The last thing he remembered was being in the lab, working on some equations on the blackboard. He knew Jayce was elsewhere in the lab, working on something else. And that was it. His memory held no explanation as to how they had both ended up here.
Whatever had happened had happened, and now they were here. Viktor berated himself for not even being able to enjoy this moment. This was likely to be an outlier, not a new standard, so he told himself he should appreciate it. He could so easily turn around and cuddle Jayce, like he had so often daydreamed. But as he always found, the person he was in his daydreams was far from the person he was in reality.
So Viktor lay there, mentally beating himself up, until at last Jayce stirred from his sleep. He waited for Jayce to say something, to offer some explanation, or reassurance. Viktor lay still with his eyes shut, giving Jayce the opportunity to leave without a conversation, if he wanted to. He felt movement beside him, the warmth disappeared, and the door clicked shut behind Jayce.
The pain in Viktor's chest grew until it felt like someone had their hand clenched around his heart. He hadn't wanted Jayce to leave, and he could have stopped him, but he had not.
When Viktor got up, he concentrated on what he needed to do: take a bath, run a comb through his hair, put on a new set of clothes. He found his crutch was in a different place from where he usually kept it, and that made him wonder if Jayce had brought him back to his room, and then fell asleep. The thought of being carried horrified him, it made him feel useless and feeble. He especially didn't want Jayce to see him that way. It took all of his might to even hold a candle to Jayce's brilliance. But even despite Viktor's weakness, Jayce had never deliberately made him feel inferior. That was one of the things Viktor really liked about him, Jayce was kind and thoughtful. If Jayce had carried him, it would have been an act of kindness, not a show of strength and superiority. He allowed himself a moment to indulge in thinking about Jayce carrying him, but only a moment.
Jayce was first to get to the lab in the morning. When Viktor walked in, he found himself beaming. He was always happy to see Viktor, but now, it felt different. It felt like the first rays of sunlight after a storm, or the high after a good workout. Viktor briefly met his eyes and nodded to acknowledge him, then looked away.
Jayce had thought of at least five or six suitable things to say to Viktor when he saw him again, but now that he was here his mind went blank. Besides, Viktor was one to see straight through niceties and platitudes to the uncomfortable truth hidden between them, so there was no point sugar coating things. Jayce had rarely ever found himself at a loss for words before, and so it was very strange to have such a silence in the lab.
Heeding the old adage that deeds speak louder than words, Jayce prepared coffee, and made himself and Viktor a cup.
"Thank you," Viktor said without looking up from what he was working on.
"You're welcome."
Viktor picked up the coffee cup and glanced at Jayce. "By the way, thank you for saving me from another three days of back pain," he said.
Jayce found himself waving his hands about. "Well, I couldn't just leave you there," he said. "Look, I'm sorry. About everything."
"About everything? What did you do?" Viktor asked, raising his eyebrows. Jayce could see he was trying to look indifferent, but he could see that he was rattled.
Jayce sighed, and felt himself flushing with embarrassment. "I carried you back to your room. I went in your pocket to get the key. I fell asleep on your bed."
"That is all? You made it sound as if you had done something truly awful."
"I know I probably shouldn't have, but…"
Viktor looked up at him. "Your intentions were good, yes I know."
Jayce sipped his coffee, which did nothing to quell the heat of embarrassment. So, he was off the hook. As he'd thought, Viktor understood. Now that just left the other thing. Could he really just bring that up now? It was still early. They had a lot of work to do. No matter which way it went, it might ruin their productivity. Yes, it was too early. They would talk about it later.
For the rest of the day, Jayce paid more attention to Viktor than usual. When he was working, he was in his element. He was more confident and self-assured, even in the way he moved, although Jayce would never draw attention to that. Every so often, Viktor would steal glances at Jayce, when he thought he wasn't looking. But Jayce noticed, and wondered what that was about. He had to know the answer to his question. Whether or not he would ask had never been up for debate, but his desire to know rose as the day wore on.
When Viktor sat down to take a break, Jayce saw his chance. "Viktor, I wanted to ask you something," he said as he strode over.
"Hmm?" Viktor said. When Jayce didn't immediately ask, he added, "I am listening."
"Well, I- that is, I wondered if you have put any thought into us being more than work partners?" Jayce said, trying to ignore the weird fluttering feeling in his chest.
Viktor's eyes widened slightly. After a moment, he smirked and said, "Surely you forget that we are already also partners in crime."
Jayce laughed. "Oh yeah, of course we are, how could I forget?" he said. He sat down in a chair opposite Viktor. He clasped and unclasped his hands, then took a breath. "But I actually meant romantic partners."
There was an expression on Viktor's face that clearly wasn't joy or surprise, and Jayce felt like that told him everything. The bottom fell out of his world of hope that he had been nurturing since yesterday.
Viktor narrowed his eyes. "But surely you have your choice of almost anyone in that respect," he said.
"Well I don't know, I've never tested that hypothesis."
"Perhaps you should. I expect you will have good results. Some of us would be only too glad to be in that position."
Jayce was taken aback. He hadn't expected Viktor to react with such contempt. "It's not as much fun as it looks, really. Getting stared at by everyone might sound flattering but-"
"I should be so lucky if someone looks at me by accident. Then quickly looks away," Viktor said, turning his head away. "The looks of pity are the worst."
Jayce found himself frowning. "I don't understand why people would do that."
"You wouldn't."
"You deserve better than that."
Viktor frowned. "Yes well, we don't always get what we deserve, do we?"
Jayce pressed his lips together. He couldn't bear that there was such injustice in this world. Fate had been cruel to Viktor, and it seemed it kept on being cruel. "They don't know you like I do. I wish those people could see what I see when I look at you. A trusted friend, a respected colleague, an utterly brilliant scientist. One of the smartest people I have ever met. And more than that. You don't just think up great ideas, anyone can do that, no, you put your ideas into action. Even if people don't believe in you, you've got the strength to stand up and prove them wrong. And not only that, you believed in me when no-one else did. If it wasn't for you, I'd be still sitting in my childhood bedroom, believing I was a failure."
While Jayce spoke, Viktor looked down at his feet, turning progressively more red. He glanced up at him and said, "If it wasn't for you, I'd still be trotting after Professor Heimerdinger, carrying out what passes for experiments in his mind."
They both laughed.
"So, I guess we both did each other a favour," Jayce said, reaching out to put a hand on Viktor's arm. A smile formed on Viktor's lips, and he looked down at Jayce's hand. "I guess, sometimes when it seems like fate is screwing us over, it's actually doing us a kindness. If it wasn't for the break-in, we would never have met. This alliance has been good for us. I feel like we have become more than just colleagues."
Viktor dropped his head a slight blush appearing on his cheeks. He gave Jayce a sideways look. "Have you been reading my diary?" he asked.
"Your diary?" Jayce said, and thought of the ruffled notebook Viktor kept in the lab, and had to admit, "Well, yes. But there was nothing about me in there. Apart from a few mentions of Jayce was wrong about this thing, and that thing."
Viktor smirked. "No, no, I don't mean that diary," he said. "I am afraid I must disappoint you. I was never among the ones who stared at you."
Jayce snorted and shook his head.
"I didn't need to stare to know you were good looking. A single glance was enough to tell me that. But that didn't impress me. We moved in different circles, but I followed your work since you joined the university. Your ingenuity and your boldness, now that did impress me."
"I can't believe you knew who I was from the start, yet I didn't know you."
Viktor shrugged. "Why would you? I was nobody," he said.
"I wish I'd gotten to know you sooner."
"Why?"
"So, we could have started our work together sooner. We could be living in the future right now, instead of still trying to create it."
"Everything happens in its own time, Jayce. It is best not to rush things."
"But also because I really like spending time with you."
Viktor dropped his gaze. Jayce thought he saw a slight smile.
They lapsed into silence. Jayce could think of nothing else to say. At first he thought he had gotten his answer, but now he was not so sure. He could ask again, but no matter how he turned the phrase in his mind, it sounded childish and silly.
They sat for some time, and then Viktor picked up his notebook and started leafing through it.
"Ah, the sun is setting," Viktor said, getting up and opening the balcony doors. He stepped out onto the balcony and Jayce followed him. The warm orange-yellow light of the sunset highlighted the golden tints in Jayce's eyes. Viktor felt Jayce move closer and curl his arm around his shoulders, and Viktor leaned his weight against the taller man. The smell of Jayce's cologne seemed to wrap around him as they looked over the view of the city bathed in golden light.
"So what do you think, about being partners in every sense of the word?" Jayce asked him suddenly.
Viktor's heart pounded in his chest. Of course, that was what he wanted. But it was complicated. He considered his response for some time. "I don't know if it is a good idea. It is risky."
Jayce took his arm from Viktor's shoulders and moved to face him, and put his hands on his shoulders. "Viktor, everything we do is risky."
"True," Viktor admitted.
"So I need you to believe in me, like you've always believed in me," Jayce said, his voice soft. "This is worth the risk." Jayce leaned towards him, and Viktor felt his stubble brush against him, then his lips press softly to his cheek. Viktor inhaled sharply, the touch sending a thrill through his whole body.
Jayce withdrew and locked eyes with him, his expression soft and his eyes sparkling. Jayce had one arm around Viktor, and he reached out with the other hand to stroke his head. "May I kiss you?" he whispered.
Viktor's heart leapt, and he had to brush off his first instinct to give some sarcastic response. But Jayce was being genuine. "Yes," he breathed, tilting his chin upwards with the gentle guidance of Jayce's hand. Jayce's lips were soft and warm, and tasted faintly of coffee. Viktor wrapped his arms around Jayce's waist and felt his body melt as they continued to kiss.
When they finally parted, flushed and breathless, the sun had sunk almost all the way beneath the horizon. Viktor moved in for another kiss, and Jayce met his lips, then smiled warmly at him. Viktor smiled back, and let out a sigh. None of Viktor's fantasies measured up to the real thing. Jayce Talis, the man worked with him only by circumstance, now held him in his arms out of choice. His heart fluttered.
"After all these long days, I think we deserve an early night for once," Jayce said.
"Indeed, we do," Viktor said. Jayce withdrew his arms from around him, stroking Viktor's back on the way, and they closed the balcony doors and left the lab.
Viktor felt so elated by the whole situation that the nervousness only hit him when they reached the door to his room. Viktor stood facing Jayce with his back to the door. Did Jayce expect to be invited in? Was he supposed to invite him inside? Was he not? He didn't want to go and mess this up so soon by making a wrong move. Jayce had stopped too, but otherwise gave no indication as to what he wanted Viktor to do.
"Well then, good night, Viktor," Jayce said, drawing him into his arms once more.
"Good night, Jayce," Viktor said, returning the embrace. Jayce brushed his lips against Viktor's, and trailed his hand along his arm as they disentangled themselves, squeezing his hand before he finally let go. Jayce once again gave him that warm smile, and then he was walking down the corridor towards his own room. Viktor sighed happily. The future seemed brighter than ever.