"Isn't she so nice?" Jenny said.
Jenny was one of Carlos's scientists, one of the lower levels of lab assistants that had been with the team for quite some time.
Her statement of kindness would've been fine, if they weren't talking about the head scientist.
"Are...you still talking about Carlos?" He asked, puzzled.
"Oh, yes! He. Sorry. I forget. I knew him before….all of that, so…" she said smiling. "Anyway, I've got to get back to work. I'll tell him that you popped by." She said to Cecil.
This was truly a great mystery. Carlos was feminine, sure. But Carlos was male and he made that very clear. What was 'all of that'?
It made Cecil's under caffeinated brain hurt. He was stressed anyway, and this wasn't making it any better. He needed coffee, he needed to get to the station and get a nice big mug out and fill it with shitty break room coffee.
And that's what he did. He felt a little better by the time the show started, and he began thinking that maybe this morning was just a weird dream and it never happened.
At least he did, until Carlos texted him the following message-
"Hey Cecil, Jenny told me you were at the lab this morning! Sorry I missed you, dinner at my house tonight after the show?"
"Sure" he texted back during a pre recorded sponsor message.
And seemingly without any time going by, or perhaps a lot as time doesn't really work properly in Night Vale, the show was done.
And Carlos would be outside waiting for him, in his cute little lab coat, leaning on the hood of his hybrid car with the windows down so he could hear the last part of the show.
"Hey Cecil." He said with a smile, giving him a quick peck and getting into the driver's seat. Cecil climbed into the passenger seat, exchanging a few words with his boyfriend of a few months.
They talked about the day, and what they'd done. They talked about the weather and the week ahead.
And eventually they were back at Carlos's house, which was a small apartment above the lab. They climbed the outside stairwell and entered the living space. When Carlos turned on the lights, Cecil winced at the sudden brightness piercing his eyes. He didn't even realize he had a headache until then. He excused himself to the bathroom.
'It's probably the stress...god I hope it doesn't turn into a migraine…Carlos has to have some painkillers around here somewhere.' Cecil thought.
He closed and locked the bathroom door and began looking for where he kept his medicine. He opened a drawer and found….needles?
Well he was a scientist, so Cecil wasn't too surprised. He eventually discovered how to swing the mirror open to reveal the medicine cabinet.
Cecil opened it up, examining the various bottles of medications.
'Sertraline...melatonin….Allegra….ibuprofen!' He grabbed the bottle and took some water from the sink in his hand and used it to swallow the pill.
He went to replace the bottle and spotted something he hadn't seen before, a tiny glass bottle with the label turned around.
He spun the bottle and everything clicked into place.
Testosterone Cypionate.
"Cecil? You okay in there?" He heard his boyfriends lovely voice say from the other side of the door.
He unlocked it and opened it, pulling Carlos into a tight hug. And then, he noticed the binder lines he'd never really felt before, or the fact that Carlos never really showed him pictures of himself before a couple of years ago, or that his suit jacket never quite fit him in the correct places.
"Cece, what's up?" He said laughing.
"Carlos...I love you no matter what. I hope you know that."
"Awe, Cecil, you're sweet. Now let's go eat-" Carlos cut himself short when he saw his little bottle out on the counter.
"I...I'm sorry, I…" Carlos started, then sighed and ran a hand through his hair. Cecil's arms released the smaller man. "I was going to tell you...but I didn't want to ruin this."
"Oh Carlos, my sweet handsome Carlos, you could never ruin this. I don't care one bit if…." he stopped, unsure.
"You can say it, Cecil, it's not a curse word or a bad omen or anything. It's just a word."
"I don't care one bit if you're trans. You are perfect no matter what."
"But...I'm not...uh...surgically altered yet. And you're gay. Doesn't that make you uncomfortable?" Carlos said, looking up at Cecil with a worried expression.
"Not at all." He said with a smile, and this time, Carlos was the one who pulled him into a hug.
"I don't know what I did to deserve someone as wonderful as you, but I must've done something right." He said, tears stinging his eyes.
"You don't need to do anything special to deserve someone who loves you." Cecil presses a kiss to his forehead. "Now, let's go eat dinner."