#in all honesty i blame spark notes meme page

[coffeeinthelibrary]

i am a full grown adult and it is not until today at 1:24 am that i realised that the Cask of Amontillado and the Tell-Tale Heart are two different stories. I fully thought the Cask of Amontillado ended with the guy going insane after he buries his friend alive I didn’t realise that’s a separate story. i was so close to doing a degree in english literature why is this something i just didn’t know

[c9sneaksen-blog]

Snapshots

Word Count: 13,005

Rating: T (for language)

Summary: A series of loosely connected stories on the kinds of kisses Sneaky and Jensen share in their relationship.

tags: pre-established relationship, hurt/comfort, pda, fluff, lots of fluff, more fluff?, idk they just kiss tbh

A/N: well um this started out as a little writing exercise and since i can’t write anything short it grew into this long ass fic, sO. also, i started writing this before all the roster changes which is why impact and contractz are still in here :(. i hope you all enjoy some teeth rotting fluff bc there’s a lot of it in here :^)

1.

After a long, and hard-fought series, Team Dignitas defeat Cloud9 to secure their spot in the semi-finals!

Zach stared at the word plastered on his screen, and a frown tugged at his lips. Defeat, defeat, defeat. He never liked seeing that word, and it stung to have to see it before their playoffs run even had the chance to properly begin. Zach remained frozen in his chair, and did his best to drown out the thundering cheers of the crowd. Zach cleared his mind the best he could, and stiffly went through the motions of packing up. He closed the League client, gathered his gear, and wrapped the cords and wires into neat little bundles.

His team was silent the entire time, and Zach didn’t have it in him to break the silence. He was tired, exhausted even, and he knew his team was too. Besides, there was always time to talk later, and Zach had a feeling that Reapered would want to have a word, or several with the team. Zach tucked his keyboard and mouse under his arm, and spared Andy a brief glance. The support was visibly upset, though he offered Zach a faint smile when he caught his gaze. Zach returned Andy’s smile the best he could, aware that it likely came out looking a touch forced.

“Unlucky.” Andy joked lightly, shrugging his shoulders in an attempt to hide his disappointment. Zach merely nodded in response, and Andy understood that nothing more needed to be said. At least for now.

By the time Zach turned back around, he barely caught a glimpse of Nicolaj in the corner of his eye as he hurried off stage, wires haphazardly dragging behind him. A deep frown found its way onto Zach’s face, and he quickly followed Nicolaj. Zach knew it was pointless to try and talk to him at this stage, but fell into place beside the mid laner regardless. Perhaps he could comfort Nicolaj by holding his hand—Nicolaj always loved to complain about how touchy Zach was, but he knew the mid laner secretly enjoyed the physical intimacy.

“Hey, Nicolaj.” Zach said quietly. Zach reached out to Nicolaj with his free hand, and felt his heart twist when Nicolaj pulled his hand away. Zach glanced up, barely in time to see Nicolaj shake his head.

“Not now, Zach.” Nicolaj mumbled faintly, and took a step away from him. Zach could hear the hurt in his voice, and he wanted so, so badly to make it go away.

But he understood that Nicolaj needed space, and remained silent for the rest of the walk. By the time they made it to the breakroom, Reapered had surprisingly few words to say to them. Admittedly, Zach wasn’t listening too closely to what his coach had said, but caught enough of it to understand that he was saving his lecture for tomorrow. It never took him long to shake off losses, and even if this one lingered for a little longer than usual, he wasn’t going to let it get the best of him. In that moment, Zach felt the urge to make a joke bubble up, but bit his tongue before the words could slip out. He desperately wanted to break the tense atmosphere like he always did after a tough loss, but he didn’t have anyone to back him up this time.

Normally, Nicolaj would be right there next to him, making a sarcastic quip or toxic remark, but even he was silent. It didn’t help that this defeat was different than the others. This match had much, much higher stakes riding on it, and Zach got the feeling that no one was in the mood for jokes. It would pass eventually, but until then, Zach wasn’t sure what to do. He shifted uncomfortably in his spot until Reapered finished delivering his message, and motioned for the team to exit the room.

The walk to the team car felt like a blur, because the only thing Zach bothered to register was how upset Nicolaj looked. The rest of his teammates weren’t faring much better, Zach was sure of that, but he knew that they had ways to cope. Nicolaj had his methods too, but they were…unhealthy at best. Ever since their defeat at summer finals last year, Nicolaj had developed a nasty habit of obsessing over each and every mistake long after it had already passed. In front of the team, he’d take the mistakes in stride, and he even embraced a few of the memes. But once he was alone, he’d meticulously analyze every little detail, and shut out the rest of the world until he was finished.

Zach always had difficulty getting Nicolaj out of that state, but Nicolaj was learning to open up more often. Zach always made sure to stop Nicolaj before he lost himself, because there was nothing more he hated seeing than the empty look in Nicolaj’s eyes whenever he didn’t stop him in time. Even now, as Nicolaj climbed into the seat next to him, Zach could tell his mind was racing a mile a minute. Nicolaj’s icy blue eyes had a frantic, almost erratic look in them and on top of it, he was nervously chewing on his lower lip.

Zach’s shoulders dropped, he wished that Nicolaj would just talk to him, but it didn’t look like he was going to do that any time soon. Zach eyed Nicolaj’s expression closely, and noted how his brows were furrowed in concentration, and the way his lips were starting to turn raw. Instead of saying anything, Zach gently placed his hand over Nicolaj’s tight fist. Zach half expected Nicolaj to pull away again, and was pleasantly surprised when he didn’t.

Nicolaj jolted slightly, as if he was snapped out of a trance, and his frustrated expression faltered. He slowly relaxed his fingers, which sent a spark of hope through Zach’s mind. He might’ve been rejected by Nicolaj earlier, but not this time. Nicolaj laced their fingers together, and Zach gently squeezed the mid laner’s hand. Zach watched as Nicolaj took a deep breath, and the knot between his brows gradually became undone. Nicolaj briefly casted a blank look in Zach’s direction, before turning his attention back to the buildings that whizzed by the car window.

Zach merely frowned, and reasoned that it would be best to wait until they got home before attempting to…prod Nicolaj any further. For the remainder of the silent car ride, Zach quietly watched Nicolaj subtly bob his head along to whatever song he was listening to. On any other day, Nicolaj might’ve shared his earbuds with him, but today, Zach was stuck trying to guess the song just by looking at him. In all honesty, Zach had no clue what Nicolaj was listening to, but the little game was enough to keep him distracted until they made it back home.

The team briefly gathered in the living room, where Reapered told everyone on the team to get some rest. Their coach gently reminded them that they could still make it to Worlds, and that things weren’t over yet, but no one on the team except for Zach wanted to hear it. Zach saw his teammates give half hearted nods of acknowledgement at Reapered’s words, causing their coach to sigh deeply. With a shake of his head, he dismissed the team and sent everyone to their rooms. Nicolaj was the first to leave, then one by one, everyone else on the team slipped away from the living room. Zach stood by himself, unable to move his feet. He felt a twinge of disappointment for failing to lift the team’s spirits, and silently hoped that tomorrow would be better.

Zach pursed his lips, torn between following Nicolaj to his room or giving him space. Zach sighed, and eventually decided to wait a bit before going to see Nicolaj. He doubted he would get very far with him if he went right away. Still, a large part of Zach wanted to make things easier for Nicolaj, but he knew better than to hastily deal with something as delicate as a person’s feelings. Zach sulkily retreated to his room, and quietly hoped that Nicolaj would be okay.

—

Zach restlessly tapped his foot on the floor as he attempted to browse the front page of Reddit. The words were meaningless shapes on the page, and Zach failed to concentrate on them for long enough to properly grasp their meaning. Zach blearily rubbed at his eyes—he was far too distracted for this shit. It’d been half an hour since he entered his room, and Nicolaj hadn’t left his thoughts once. All Zach could think about was how Nicolaj was alone in his room scrutinizing each and every single one of his mistakes. Nicolaj always instinctively took the blame for their losses, even though Jack tried to convince him otherwise. They lost as a team, and rarely was a loss entirely the fault of one person, if at all.

Nicolaj was literally in the room right next to him—all he had to do was get up, and walk less than 10 steps if he wanted to check up on Nicolaj. Zach felt…restless. Unable to wait any longer, Zach swiveled his chair around, and abruptly got out of his seat. Zach slid his door open, and found himself in front of Nicolaj’s room in no time. Zach lifted his hand to knock on the door, but promptly froze. He would’ve liked to wait a little longer before doing this but he was worried, dammit.

“Nicolaj?” Zach gently rapped his knuckles against Nicolaj’s door. Zach shook his head, and tried again. “Nicolaj, it’s me. Can you open the door?”

Zach bit his lip, unsure of how Nicolaj was going to respond. In the past, Nicolaj wouldn’t even answer the door the first time around, and Zach would be forced to stare at the door, or come back later. No matter how many tries it took him, Zach would keep going to Nicolaj’s door until he finally let him in. Zach perked up when he heard movement from behind the door, and was thankful that Nicolaj was going to answer him this time. As Zach heard the door knob turn, he had a moment of panic. Zach had no clue what his plan of action was. Just roll with it, he told himself. By the time the door swung open, Zach was ready to greet Nicolaj with a warm smile on his face.

Nicolaj’s lips curled into a frown. The mid laner sighed tiredly, a hint of annoyance in his tone. “What do you want, Zach?

“To see you.” Zach replied simply, and took a step towards Nicolaj. The mid laner flinched ever so slightly at Zach’s answer, but didn’t move away. Zach could’ve sworn that Nicolaj’s cheeks were a touch more flushed than they were a few moments ago.

Nicolaj coughed dryly, “I doubt that’s the only thing you want.” “You’re right. Can I come in?” Zach asked carefully. This part was always the toughest for Nicolaj, and Zach could tell by the way Nicolaj pressed his lips into a thin line. Nicolaj directed his gaze to somewhere over Zach’s shoulders, his eyes cold and distant. Zach noticed the way Nicolaj’s eyes softened a few moments later, and felt his heart skip a beat.

Nicolaj hesitated briefly, before finally nodding his head. “…Yeah, sure." 

“So, uh. How are you feeling?” Zach asked once Nicolaj shut the door behind them. Zach winced internally at how awkwardly the question had come out, almost wishing he could take them back and get a redo. Zach cursed his lack of experience in giving emotional support beyond cracking shitty jokes to lighten up the mood. It was one thing to know what to do, and another to actually do it.

If Nicolaj was bothered by his awkwardness, he didn’t let it show. Instead, he kept his eyes pointed at everywhere except for Zach’s face. This time, Nicolaj was staring intently at the plain, white wall.

“I’m fine.” Nicolaj snapped, his voice as sharp and cut off as his answer. From the corner of his eyes, Nicolaj could see Zach frown at him, a faintly hurt look in his eyes. Nicolaj blinked then, momentarily taken aback by how harsh he was. For the first time since he answered the door, Nicolaj turned his gaze to meet Zach’s eyes. “Sorry. That was uncalled for.”

Nicolaj took a deep breath, and tried again, aware that Zach probably wasn’t satisfied with his last answer. “I’m just…trying to keep myself busy.”

“Reapered told us to take it easy, though.” Zach reminded Nicolaj lightly, and tried his best not to be too hurt by the way Nicolaj responded to him initially. The mid laner was stressed out, and Zach didn’t blame him. Zach’s eyes were drawn then, to Nicolaj’s computer screen. Zach had seen Summoner’s Rift enough times to recognize it at nearly any distance, and he was certain that Nicolaj had the Rift pulled up on his screen.

Nicolaj followed Zach’s gaze, and attempted to block his view. Not that it mattered anyways, because Zach could see over Nicolaj’s head with ease. It didn’t take long for Zach to put two and two together—Nicolaj was watching the VOD for their match against Dignitas.

“What’re you doing, Nicolaj?” Zach asked, despite already knowing the answer. Nicolaj looked surprised by the question, and the mid laner tore his eyes away from Zach’s perceptive gaze.

“Nothing. Just, looking a few things over, that’s all.” Nicolaj answered with a slight shrug. Nicolaj was trying his best to be nonchalant, but Zach saw right through his act.

“The VOD review is tomorrow, Nicolaj.” Zach reprimanded Nicolaj lightly. A look of disappointment briefly crossed Zach’s face, but it was quickly replaced with a forgiving expression. If anyone on the team could use a break right now, it was Nicolaj. “There’s no need to stress about it now.”

“I know, I know. I wasn’t going to stress over it for long.” Nicolaj replied quickly, and dismissively waved his hand at his desktop screen. “I promise.”

By the time he turned to face Zach again, Nicolaj looked a lot more sure in himself. He was lying to himself and to Zach, sure, but if he could believe his own lie enough, maybe, maybe—But Nicolaj lost faith in himself as quickly as he found it when Zach’s gaze lingered on the screen behind him. Zach wasn’t convinced, far from it, and they both knew it. Nicolaj sighed, and decided it was pointless to try and lie to his boyfriend, of all people. Nicolaj dropped the facade, and Zach was ready for it.

“It’s just—There’s so much I could’ve done. We could've won, Zach.” Nicolaj said frustratedly, and grabbed at his hair nervously, twisting and pulling—at least until Zach gently touched his arm, silently reminding him to stop. Nicolaj’s hand stilled in his hair, but he didn’t remove it. “Maybe if I played the teamfights a little differently or—”

“Nicolaj.” Zach interjected quietly, but Nicolaj didn’t even hear him.

Nicolaj’s thoughts were swirling around his mind like a storm, “Or maybe if I didn’t get greedy that one time—”

“Nicolaj. Look at me.” Zach interrupted once again, his voice more firm than the last time.

The words thankfully registered in Nicolaj’s mind, and he swallowed the rest of his sentence. Nicolaj nodded mutely, and did as Zach asked him to, lifting his gaze to meet Zach’s soft, soft expression. Zach’s eyes were nothing but kind and earnest, and Nicolaj was reminded of all the times he got lost in those gentle blue eyes.

“It’s one thing to be upset about a loss, and another to obsess over it.” Zach lifted his hand to tenderly cup Nicolaj’s cheek. Nicolaj understood what he was saying, and Zach knew because his brows had furrowed ever so slightly.

“It’s okay, Nicolaj.” With a sigh, Zach wrapped his free arm around Nicolaj’s waist, holding the mid laner close to his chest. Nicolaj was still tense as ever, and Zach just wanted him to relax.

“But—” Nicolaj spoke up, insistent on arguing with Zach, but the marksman was having none of it. Zach briefly pulled away so he could get a better look at Nicolaj’s face.

Zach pressed his index finger against Nicolaj’s lips, effectively shushing him. “No buts. Rest for now, and we’ll figure shit out tomorrow.”

Nicolaj pouted against Zach’s finger, and it took him less than a second to attempt to speak again. Nicolaj tried to open his mouth, but Zach pressed his finger against Nicolaj’s lips with more insistence.

“Tomorrow. Not today.” Zach stressed with a shake of his head. Once Zach was sure that Nicolaj wasn’t going to start rambling again, he removed his finger from Nicolaj’s lips. Instead, Zach fondly brushed Nicolaj’s cheek with his thumb, and the mid laner leaned into his touch like a small kitten.

Nicolaj dropped his gaze guiltily. “I just can’t stop thinking about it, you know?”

“I know.” Zach nodded his head. An idea slipped into his mind then, and Zach offered Nicolaj a comforting smile. “I can give you something else think about, if you’d like.”

“What are you suggesting?” Nicolaj asked with a faint grin. Nicolaj still had such tired eyes, but Zach knew he could deal with that later. For now, he was focused on how nice it was to see Nicolaj smile after seeing him frown for the entire afternoon.

“A distraction, of sorts.” Zach replied playfully, and leaned in close. Zach brushed his lips against Nicolaj’s, and whispered, “I happen to be very good at those.”

Zach heard Nicolaj’s breath hitch moments before he bridged the gap between them. Zach gently kissed Nicolaj, and slid his hand up from the mid laner’s waist to rest between his shoulder blades. Nicolaj’s palms were pressed against Zach’s chest, and Zach could feel the warmth of them radiate through his shirt. Zach kissed Nicolaj with more insistence, and the mid laner elicited a pleased sigh in response. Zach could never keep his hands away from Nicolaj’s hair for long, and tangled his fingers in them, lightly scratching the mid laner’s scalp as he did so.

Nicolaj melted into the kiss, and Zach could feel the tension bleed from his shoulders. Nicolaj relaxed in Zach’s embrace, and allowed him to deepen the kiss. It was rare that Nicolaj let Zach take control of their kisses, but Zach was determined to take care of Nicolaj, and seized the opportunity. Zach flicked his tongue out, humming quietly when he felt Nicolaj part his lips. He slipped his tongue into Nicolaj’s mouth, and used the tip of his tongue to trace the edges of Nicolaj’s teeth. Zach felt Nicolaj’s fingers dig into his chest at that, which did nothing but encourage the marksman further. Zach ran his tongue along the roof of Nicolaj’s mouth, knowing exactly how much the mid laner loved it when he did that.

Zach savoured the taste of bitter coffee on Nicolaj’s tongue, and even though he hated drinking the stuff black like Nicolaj did, he learned to appreciate it the more and more he kissed Nicolaj. Something about tasting it on Nicolaj made it sweeter, more bearable, and it was really quite addicting to him. Nicolaj was soft and pliant in his arms, a welcome change to his stiff posture from just a few moments ago. Even as Zach tightened his grip on Nicolaj’s hair ever so slightly, the mid laner responded earnestly. Nicolaj made an appreciative sound, and tipped his head back to grant Zach better access.

Nicolaj slowly inched his hands up Zach’s chest, sending shivers down his spine as they moved. Nicolaj brushed his thumb against Zach’s collarbone, tracing a faint pattern up his neck. Nicolaj’s touch was warm and familiar, as was the weight of his hand against his bare neck. Zach finally pulled away to catch his breath, and pressed his forehead against Nicolaj’s. Once his breathing was back under control, Zach leaned back, unsurprised to see that Nicolaj’s face was flushed a pale pink. Zach smiled lightly, and swept his thumb across Nicolaj’s lower lip. His lips were slick with spit, and Zach felt Nicolaj’s breath come out in short pants against the pad of his thumb.

“Feeling better?” Zach asked softly, enjoying how hot Nicolaj’s cheek felt underneath the palm of his hand. Nicolaj looked better than before, but he still appeared to be distracted. Before Zach could frown and ask why, Nicolaj spoke up.

“One more.” Nicolaj said, a touch breathless. Nicolaj brought his face close to Zach’s, until their lips were barely touching and they shared the same breath. “One more kiss, and I’ll feel better.”

“As if I’d say no to that.” Zach rolled his eyes playfully, and gave Nicolaj what he wanted.

Nicolaj’s eyes fluttered shut, and the swirling storm of anxiety in his mind had finally started to settle down. A distraction was what Nicolaj needed, and Zach’s lips were exactly that. Nicolaj’s pent up frustrations seeped out of his mind, instead replaced by thoughts of Zach. Nicolaj focused on the way Zach’s lips felt against his own, how soft they were, and how he could never grow tired of kissing them.

Nicolaj tasted Zach’s shitty strawberry lip balm on his tongue, a sickeningly sweet taste that was so perfectly Zach that Nicolaj was left breathless by it. Zach’s hand was in Nicolaj’s hair again, ruining his hair without a doubt, but the mid laner didn't care. The lips pressed against his own, the hand in his hair and on his back, his boyfriend, those were the things Nicolaj cared about. Some way, some how, kissing Zach had made everything right again in Nicolaj’s mind.

Nicolaj was the one to break the kiss this time, and Zach couldn’t help but smile at how bright the mid laner’s eyes were. The glint in Nicolaj’s eyes was back, and Zach hoped it meant that his boyfriend was feeling better. Nicolaj grabbed Zach’s hand, lacing their fingers together in a familiar motion.

“…Thanks.” Nicolaj whispered softly, a bashful expression on his face. Nicolaj gave Zach a shy smile, and Zach’s heart swelled with affection.

“No problem. I’m glad you feel better.” Zach replied, and chuckled lightly. “I just wanted an excuse to kiss you, to be honest.”

“Of course.” Nicolaj laughed, and the gentle sound of it was like music to Zach’s ears. Nicolaj knew that Zach didn’t mean what he said, because underneath all the memes and immature humour was someone who really, truly cared for his boyfriend.

“Let’s go do something.” Zach absently noticed how messy Nicolaj’s hair was after what he’d done, and quietly went about fixing it. Zach smoothed Nicolaj’s bangs down, and tucked any stray strands of hair behind his ears.

Nicolaj furrowed his brows, pausing to think of what they could do. Moments later, an idea popped up in his head. “Dinner?”

“If you want, sure. Food would be nice.” Zach agreed, and briefly glanced at what they were wearing. Zach shrugged, and decided their outfits were acceptable to wear out in public. “I’ll pay for dinner. My treat.”

Nicolaj’s eyes twinkled mischievously, and he started to pull Zach out of his room. “I’m not about to say no to free food. Let’s go.���

“Lead the way.” Zach grinned, and followed closely behind Nicolaj, their fingers still intertwined.

2.

Nicolaj always woke up before Zach did. He didn’t have the heart to wake Zach up though, unless their alarm was ringing and the marksman was still asleep. Usually, Nicolaj would remain quiet and simply watch Zach sleep. It may have been a little creepy, but it was hard to not admire how cute Zach looked in his sleep. Zach always looked so peaceful when he was asleep, his features relaxed and his mind at ease. The sun had just started to rise, its brilliant rays slipping through the blinds of his room. The sunshine casted a warm glow on Zach’s hair, causing it to appear as if they were strands of shimmery gold. Nicolaj sighed happily, and felt so very lucky to have the chance to wake up next to Zach every morning. Their legs were tangled together, and Zach’s arm was draped comfortably across his waist.

Just as Nicolaj was about to doze off again, he felt Zach shift beside him. Nicolaj simply watched as Zach roused himself out of sleep. The marksman slowly opened his eyes, wincing at the bright rays of sunlight. Zach turned to look at Nicolaj with bleary eyes, and a sleepy smile. Zach squinted slightly, helping his eyes focus a little more. Things were still fuzzy around the edges to Zach like they always were when he didn’t have his glasses on, but he could make out Nicolaj’s small smile.

“Morning.” Zach mumbled tiredly, and rubbed at his eyes in a poor attempt to wake himself up.

“Morning.” Nicolaj echoed warmly, and waited for Zach to shake off his sleepiness.

Zach looked a little more focused once he was finished, and he turned to stare at Nicolaj. Zach’s voice was rough and scratchy, and the low timbre of it was a treat to hear. “You’re up early.”

“So are you, min elskede.” Nicolaj said teasingly, and gently poked Zach on the nose with his finger. The term of endearment slipped out of Nicolaj’s mouth before he could think about it, but Nicolaj figured it was appropriate enough, and went with it.

Zach’s face scrunched up instinctively when Nicolaj poked at his nose, causing the mid laner to start laughing. Zach simply glared at Nicolaj, but was still too tired to put any heat behind his eyes.

“What did you just call me?” Zach narrowed his eyes suspiciously at Nicolaj. This was far from the first time that Nicolaj called him something in Danish. The last time Nicolaj called him something Danish was when Zach had accidentally taken the mid laner’s penta. Nicolaj later revealed that din lille lort meant “you little piece of shit” and not “you are a good teammate”.

“Nothing.” Nicolaj replied teasingly, and drew out the o sound for emphasis. Zach pouted at Nicolaj’s response, and it was nothing short of adorable. Nicolaj loved teasing Zach for this exact reason—he always had the cutest reactions. Nicolaj would pinch Zach’s cheeks, but decided to spare his boyfriend the embarrassment.

“Tell me.” Zach whined childishly, which did nothing but cause Nicolaj to chuckle lightly. Zach made an annoyed sound, and rolled his eyes. He still felt sluggish, and his brain was probably running at half speed. “It’s too early for me to be dealing with your shit.”

Nicolaj’s lips curled into a smile, and he leaned in close to Zach’s ear. He paused, and heard Zach hold his breath in anticipation.

“Guess.” Nicolaj said at last, causing Zach to groan in frustration. Nicolaj couldn’t help but laugh, bright and loud, the rest of their sleeping teammates be damned. He was having a little too much fun teasing his half asleep boyfriend.

“Fuck you.” Zach pouted disappointingly, but Nicolaj could tell that the gears were already turning in Zach’s mind. As early as it was, Zach was always willing to indulge Nicolaj, despite what he said earlier.

The markman’s brows knit together in curious thought, as he tried to guess what min elskede could possibly mean. Zach reasoned that the words must’ve meant something nice, because they sounded far too fond to be an insult, unless Nicolaj had a hidden talent for acting that he didn’t know about. Nicolaj had taught him a few phrases in Danish, but they were only simple ones such as hello, and goodbye. Zach had also picked up on a handful of words after a few times of sitting next to Nicolaj while he spoke to his mother on the phone. The word elskede sounded oddly familiar to Zach, but he couldn’t remember what it meant for the life of him.

“Uh, if I had to guess, it means my…my something?” Zach guessed with a defeated sigh. The meaning was literally on the tip of his tongue, but his memory decided to fail him.

“You’re close.” Nicolaj said with a smile, and moved to climb on top of Zach. Zach remained still, though a look of curiosity flickered through his features. Nicolaj brushed Zach’s messy hair out of the way—he wanted to see Zach’s reaction clearly for what he was about to say next. Nicolaj’s eyes softened, and he whispered, “It means ‘my love’.”

Zach’s eyes widened with surprise, and his face flushed a deep red almost immediately. Zach looked like he had forgotten how to speak, and desperately hid his blush behind his hands. Adorable, was the first word that popped into Nicolaj’s mind, and Zach’s reaction was well worth the wait. Nicolaj grabbed at Zach’s wrists, and slowly tugged the marksman’s hands away from his face. Zach’s cheeks were impossibly red, and Nicolaj was fairly certain that he hadn’t seen his boyfriend be this embarrassed since the first time they exchanged I love you’s.

“Y-You are so gay.” Zach stuttered, and turned his face away from Nicolaj. He wrenched his eyes shut, and couldn’t stop replaying the words over and over in his mind. Of course that’s what it meant, Nicolaj was nothing but a sappy motherfucker and it was making him blush so hard he felt like his face was on fire.

Despite himself, Zach quite enjoyed hearing Nicolaj call him that. His voice was quiet and soft when he mumbled, “…Say it again.”

“If you say so, min elskede.” Nicolaj laughed lovingly at Zach’s embarrassment. The request was so innocent and sweet it was hard not to fulfill it. Especially when it caused Zach to get this dopey look of adoration on his face—the best part was the marksman likely didn’t even know he was doing it. Nicolaj chuckled quietly to himself, and turned Zach’s face back towards him.

Nicolaj simply…stared at Zach for a moment, his breath taken away by how cute Zach’s bed head was. Zach had a lazy smile on his face, and he watched Nicolaj attentively, as if he were waiting for something to happen. Zach’s hair was messily splayed all over his pillow. The sunlight fell on it just right, and it casted a faint halo shape around his head. Nicolaj snorted at how cheesy the thought was, and the sound caught Zach’s attention.

“What is it this time?” Zach asked curiously, his expression soft as ever. Nicolaj didn’t expect Zach to turn into absolute mush after using the Danish term of endearment on him, and found it mildly amusing.

“Nothing.” Nicolaj replied cryptically, and shook his head. Zach seemed prepared for the answer this time, and merely rolled his eyes.

“That’s totally not suspicious at all.” Zach said pointedly, and stared at Nicolaj until he gave him the answer he wanted. Nicolaj’s eye twitched—Zach was doing the damn puppy dog eyes again, and he could never ever resist them.

“I was just thinking about how cute you are.” Nicolaj conceded with a fond sigh, and lightly cupped Zach’s cheek.

Nicolaj felt heat flare up in Zach’s cheeks as he started to blush again. Zach’s eyes darted away, and he swallowed nervously. “Shut up.”

“Come here, let me kiss you.” Nicolaj said, and gently grabbed Zach’s chin. Nicolaj tipped the marksman’s chin up, and followed the curve of his lip with his eyes. Nicolaj brushed the corner of Zach’s lip with his thumb, absentmindedly admiring how soft they felt.

“No, your breath smells like shit.” Zach made a face at Nicolaj, and shook his head. Zach pushed Nicolaj away as politely as he could, and mumbled something about morning breath. It was Nicolaj’s turn to pout, and he was determined to get at least one kiss from Zach.

“So does yours.” Nicolaj stuck his tongue out, and despite Zach’s half hearted protests, leaned down to bring their face even closer together. Zach’s eyelashes were so very pretty up this close, and his eyes were even prettier. “Please? Just one kiss.”

“Fine.” Zach rolled his eyes playfully, and knew full well that it was pointless to argue with Nicolaj once he had his mind set on something. Zach shut his eyes, and pulled Nicolaj down to kiss him. Zach’s fingers brushed against the hairs at the nape of Nicolaj’s neck, and enjoyed the brief kiss despite their morning breath. “Happy?”

“No.” Nicolaj replied honestly, and grinned brightly at Zach.

Zach stared at Nicolaj incredulously. “No? What do you mean, no?”

“It means I lied and I want another kiss.” Nicolaj explained, and tilted Zach’s chin up once again. This time, Nicolaj was the one to lean down and press their lips together. Nicolaj briefly pulled away for long enough to catch Zach’s adoring smile, and his heart skipped a beat. “Maybe three. Or four.”

Nicolaj brought their lips together again, and Zach felt his heart flutter despite himself. The words min elskede echoed in Zach’s mind then, and he was reminded about how absolutely smitten he was with Nicolaj. Zach had a weakness for all things Nicolaj, and found it hard to deny the man anything. Nicolaj pecked the corners of Zach’s lips, and reached down to lace their hands together. Zach’s thumb traced mindless circles on the back of Nicolaj’s hand, causing the mid laner’s lips to curl into a faint smile.

Zach moved his free hand into Nicolaj’s hair, and guided the mid laner down to kiss him once more. Nicolaj took his time, and darted his tongue out to lick at Zach’s lips, slow and lazy. Zach tilted his head up, and half parted his lips for Nicolaj. Nicolaj hummed quietly, and took Zach’s invitation to leisurely explore the marksman’s mouth. Nicolaj’s palm rested on Zach’s chest, and he could feel his heartbeat speed up. Nicolaj swept his tongue against Zach’s teeth, causing the hand in his hair to tighten ever so slightly.

Zach wordlessly parted his lips even further, allowing Nicolaj to languidly curl his tongue against Zach’s. Zach elicited a pleased sigh, and found himself caring less, and less about their morning breath. Zach’s mind still felt sluggish, but he was awake enough to gasp and shiver at the way Nicolaj lazily licked at his mouth. Zach moaned quietly, and if Nicolaj kept this up, he could probably be convinced to take things a little further. Nicolaj eventually broke the kiss however, and panted quietly against Zach’s lips. Nicolaj gave Zach one last peck on the lips before he pulled away, and offered Zach a satisfied smile.

“Gross.” Zach mumbled, as he scrunched his face up. Nicolaj merely laughed, and soon enough, a smile broke out onto Zach’s face too. Zach didn’t have it in him to complain any further, especially not when the kiss was as nice as it was.

“Shut up.” Nicolaj said as he rolled his eyes, and reluctantly pulled away from the warmth that radiated from Zach and the bed. Nicolaj was tempted to fall back into Zach’s embrace, but pushed himself upright to a sitting position anyways. It was still a little early, but Nicolaj enjoyed having the extra time to do what he wanted in the morning. “C’mon, let’s get out of bed.”

“I don’t wanna.” Zach made grabby hands at Nicolaj’s shirt, tugging on it lightly as he whined. Zach knew he was being childish, but he didn’t want to get out of bed just yet. Their scrims were cancelled for the day, and it had been so long since he last had the chance to sleep in with his boyfriend. “Get back here. Let me cuddle you.”

“No, let's go, you lazy ass.” Nicolaj insisted, and tugged on Zach’s arm. The marksman refused to budge, leaving Nicolaj to uselessly shake his arm. Nicolaj gave up with a dramatic groan, and allowed himself to be dragged back into the bed. “Eugh, fine.”

Zach’s arms and legs were around Nicolaj almost immediately, trapping him underneath the blankets with him. It didn’t seem like Zach was going to let go of him any time soon, so Nicolaj draped his arm over Zach’s waist and pulled him in close. Zach made a happy noise, and nuzzled Nicolaj’s chest affectionately. Nicolaj’s resolve faltered—Zach was all warm and cuddly, and it was difficult to resist his pleas.

“I could be getting breakfast right about now.” Nicolaj grumbled half heartedly, far too distracted by Zach’s cuddling to put weight behind his complaints. Nicolaj sighed, and curled up against Zach. Nicolaj mumbled in Zach’s hair, “Instead I’m still in bed with you.

"I’m a bad influence.” Zach said with a shit eating grin, and tightened his hold around Nicolaj, as if to say I won’t let you leave me. If the team needed them, Zach was sure they would come and get them. But until then, Zach was more than happy to stay in bed with Nicolaj. “Deal with it.”

“Go back to sleep, min elskede.” Nicolaj sighed fondly, and tucked his head in the crook of Zach’s shoulder. He was already starting to feel tired again, and couldn’t keep his eyes open anymore.

“M'kay.” Nicolaj heard Zach mumble in response, and felt a pair of lips brush against his cheek just as he dozed off.

3.

Zach fought to keep his focus on Reapered who stood in the centre of the living room. The coach was discussing a play that happened on the top side of the map, during which he and Andy were minding their own business down bot side. As far as he was concerned, the play had nothing to do with him. A lot of the game was centred around the plays Eon Young and Juan made, giving Zach little reason to pay as close attention to the review as he normally would. This particular scrim set wasn’t as important as their other ones, and for the first time in a long while, Zach found himself feeling bored.

Zach glanced at his teammates, frowning petulantly when they were all paying close attention to their coach (as they should be). Andy silently nodded his head along to Reapered’s words, though Zach had no clue what the support was getting from the analysis. Zach’s eyes landed on Nicolaj, whose hair was still messy from when they took off their headsets. Zach felt urge to reach out and fix the mid laner’s hair, but decided against it with a sigh. Instead, Zach leaned close to his boyfriend and attempted to grab his attention.

“Nicolaj.” Zach whispered, taking extra care to make sure that Reapered wouldn’t hear him. Nicolaj didn’t react, and either he was ignoring him, or he didn’t hear him. Zach tried again, a little louder this time. “Niiicolaaaaj.”

“Hmm?” Nicolaj turned to face Zach with an eyebrow raised. Zach found himself smiling for no apparent reason other than the fact that Nicolaj was giving him attention.

“I'm bored.” Zach sighed dramatically, and leaned against Nicolaj’s side. Zach propped his chin up on Nicolaj’s shoulder, and observed the mid laner’s face up close. Zach squinted his eyes, was that a bit of stubble around Nicolaj’s chin? Zach couldn’t remember if Nicolaj had shaved that morning or not. Regardless, he still thought Nicolaj was cute either way.

“Clearly. It’s written all over your face.” Nicolaj laughed, and returned Zach’s smile. He would indulge Zach for just a moment, but planned to turn his attention back to Reapered shortly.

“Well, aren’t you bored too?” Zach huffed, thankful that Nicolaj was willing to entertain him for a while. If he was forced to sit through another 20 minutes of Reapered lecturing Eon Young and Juan, Zach wasn’t sure if he would be awake at the end of it.

“Yeah, I am. But at least I’m trying to listen to him.” Nicolaj yawned, and stretched his arms out, forcing Zach to pull away. To make up for it, Nicolaj turned to face Zach.

Nicolaj frowned. Admittedly, Reapered was starting to lose him too. “Though it’s a lot harder to do now because Reapered literally just spent the past 15 or so minutes talking about top and jungle.”

“I legit did nothing but farm all game long.” Nicolaj adds, recalling what he did in their game. The match had very few kills, and was instead a macro focused game. The team rotated around the map like clockwork, save for the top heavy early game.

“What, like you always do?” Zach teased Nicolaj lightly, poking him in the side. Nicolaj jolted at Zach’s touch, and glared at the marksman. Zach smiled in response, knowing full well just how ticklish the mid laner was.

“Sure, but at least I usually win my lane too.” Nicolaj retorted with ease. Nicolaj tilted his head, and rubbed his chin as if he was trying to remember something.  Zach watched Nicolaj carefully, and braced himself for the toxic remark that was bound to come. “How does the meme go again? Oh, right, Sneaky in lane LUL.”

“Ouch.” Zach said in mock offense. This was far from the first time that he heard the meme thrown in his direction, and he was largely desensitized to it now. Zach was no stranger to memes, and could match Nicolaj without a problem. “Beats being a KDA player, though.”

Nicolaj half heartedly stuck his middle finger up at Zach, and tried to refocus his attention on their coach. Zach’s gaze followed not long after, but he only managed to tune in for a few minutes before he felt himself lose focus again. Reapered hadn’t even turned to address Nicolaj, Andy or himself once. In all fairness, Zach usually sat in the back of the living room with Nicolaj, whereas Eon Young and Juan sat at the front. Reapered had moved the conversation away from the game itself, and was now discussing the viability of certain picks with their top laner and jungler. Zach recalled having a similar conversation with Reapered a few days ago, and doubted this conversation in particular pertained to him.

“They’re not even paying attention to us, are they?” Zach spoke up once more, and turned his attention back to Nicolaj. The mid laner remained focused on the big projected screen, and Zach pouted slightly.

“No, doesn’t seem like it.” Nicolaj replied plainly, and didn’t bother to look at Zach this time. If he kept this up, Robin and or Reapered were bound to catch them slacking.

Zach didn’t care about that, however. The game was over so quickly that Zach was surprised Reapered was still talking. By the time anyone caught the fact that he wasn’t paying attention, Zach figured that the VOD review was going to be over. Zach huffed to himself, if Nicolaj wasn’t going to entertain him, fine. Zach could find other things to occupy himself…Zach glared at Nicolaj with childish anger. His eyes quickly softened though, because Zach could never look at Nicolaj for long without being distracted by all the little details he appreciated about his boyfriend.

The thing that always stuck out to him the most was Nicolaj’s eyes. Right now they were steeled with concentration on what their coach was saying, and Zach couldn’t help but admire how focused those icy blue eyes were. They were framed behind his wine coloured glasses, and Zach loved the way they made Nicolaj’s unfairly pretty eyes stand out. Nicolaj’s hair was even more disheveled than before as a result of running his hand through it one to many times, but Zach still found it to be oddly charming. In fact, he wished that he was the one who was messing up Nicolaj’s hair—Nicolaj always had the softest hair, and Zach could never grow tired of playing with it. Zach fondly remembered the time when he clipped pretty little ribbons into the mid laner’s hair, and the look on Nicolaj’s face was well worth the string of profane insults he got shortly after.

Damn, I have a cute boyfriend, Zach thought to himself. The longer Zach stared at Nicolaj, the less he could resist making a move on him. Zach wanted to just…kiss Nicolaj silly, and so God help him he was going to do it. Zach shuffled into Nicolaj’s space, and leaned against his side. Zach continued to happily stare at Nicolaj until his boyfriend finally turned to question him.

“What’re you looking at, bitch?” Nicolaj huffed, and half glared at Zach as he crossed his arms. Zach was far from phased by Nicolaj’s “aggression”, and instead found it to be rather amusing.

“You.” Zach answered simply, and gave Nicolaj a toothy smile. Nicolaj’s glare quickly dissipated, and a faint pink blush creeped onto his cheeks.

“I know that.” Nicolaj scoffed, and rolled his eyes. Nicolaj finally tore his focus away from Reapered to properly face his boyfriend. “But what about me is so interesting that you can’t pay attention to Reapered?”

“A lot of things.” Zach answered, and sat up straight. Zach inched even closer to Nicolaj, until their knees were touching. He reached up, and placed his hands on either side of Nicolaj’s neck. The mid laner narrowed his eyes at Zach then, but said nothing.

“Such as…?” Nicolaj prompted Zach to elaborate, even though he knew that he shouldn’t be doing this. Reapered was preoccupied with their other teammates, sure, but he was bound to notice them fooling around eventually. 

“Oh, I don’t know, your ears are pretty cute.” Zach said with a shrug. Zach leaned in close as he wrapped his arms around Nicolaj’s shoulders, and pressed feather light kisses to the shell of his right ear. Zach heard a quiet sigh escape from Nicolaj’s lips, and silently smiled to himself. Operation Distract Nicolaj was in full swing, and Zach had no plans to stop.

“Not to mention how perfectly biteable they are.” Zach continued, and kissed Nicolaj’s left ear just as gently as he did to the right.

Zach wasn’t done just yet, and lightly grazed his teeth against Nicolaj’s earlobe, before properly taking it between his teeth. Nicolaj gasped out, and quickly clapped his hand over his mouth to try and silence himself. The marksman nipped at Nicolaj’s ear, and though he couldn’t see it, Zach knew that Nicolaj’s face was red at the moment. Nicolaj bit down on his lip when Zach started to trace the shell of his ear with his tongue—if Zach dared to keep this up, Nicolaj was going to kill him.

“Stop that, you asshole.” Nicolaj quickly tried to push Zach away before he drew the attention of the others with the sounds he was making. Nicolaj’s attempt was pointless, however, as the marksman had his arms wrapped around his shoulders, effectively holding him in place. Before Nicolaj had the chance to try pushing him away again, Zach pulled away from the mid laner’s ear.

“I love kissing your little nose.” Zach said with a smile, and tenderly cupped Nicolaj’s face with both of his hands. Once again, Zach leaned in close enough to count the individual hairs of Nicolaj’s lashes, and gently nuzzled his boyfriend’s nose. It was a sickeningly sweet gesture that Zach only reserved for when he wanted to make Nicolaj incredibly flustered—and as far as Zach could tell, it was working.

Nicolaj felt like he was going to die of embarrassment, but any protest he had died on his lips when Zach followed the bridge of his nose with his lips. Zach quickly pecked the tip of his nose, and Nicolaj felt himself flush even further. Nicolaj coughed, and gave up on trying to ignore how hot his face felt. Nicolaj was torn between letting Zach shower him in kisses and compliments, and refocusing his attention on Reapered. No matter how hard Nicolaj tried, he couldn’t look at their coach because Zach moved to block his view every single time.

“You’re being incredibly difficult right now.” Nicolaj huffed, and crossed his arms. Zach merely laughed in response, causing Nicolaj to roll his eyes. He was in love with this man, and sometimes he couldn’t even believe it. But he was one hundred percent smitten, and finally conceded. He’d let Zach have his fun. Just for a moment.

“Hush, I know.” Zach quietly hushed Nicolaj, and brushed aside any stray hairs that covered the mid laner’s face. Zach took the opportunity to fix Nicolaj’s hair, and combed his fingers through the mess on his boyfriend’s head. Once Zach was satisfied, he smoothed Nicolaj’s hair down one last time, and smiled at the mid laner. “Let me appreciate you for a moment.”

“Now, where was I?” Zach’s gaze swept across Nicolaj’s features, and he took a moment piece his thoughts together. He was oh so distracted by Nicolaj’s eyes—then, he remembered what he was going to say next.

“Have I ever told you that I love your eyes? Because I do, a lot.” Zach grinned at Nicolaj, and leaned in close to press their foreheads together. Zach sighed quietly as the icy blue colour of Nicolaj’s eyes washed over him. He could stare at them for hours and never get tired of it. Zach eventually pulled away, and lightly pecked the corners of Nicolaj’s eyes. “They’re my favourite colour.”

“…Gay.” Nicolaj mumbled, and was quietly thankful for the fact that Zach couldn’t feel how fast his heart was racing. Zach’s lips spread warmth to the skin they touched, and Nicolaj was tempted to just pull Zach in for a kiss. Nicolaj decided against it, however, as he was fairly certain his heart would explode if he kissed Zach now. He needed to calm down first.

“And your cheeks are so squishy and pinchable.” Zach gushed, and took Nicolaj’s cheeks between his palms of his hands. Zach pushed his hands together, and squished his boyfriend’s cheeks. Zach giggled at the way Nicolaj’s expression quickly morphed into one of utter annoyance. To make things even better, Nicolaj’s lips were comically puckered as a result of his cheeks being smushed together.

“They also turn the prettiest shade of pink when you blush.” Zach added, and finally decided to release Nicolaj’s cheeks. Zach leaned in, and pressed a quick kiss to both of Nicolaj’s cheeks, which, were currently that lovely shade of pink that he mentioned.

“Don’t even get me started on your lips.” Zach smirked playfully, and tried to lean in close enough to plant a kiss on Nicolaj’s lips. Unfortunately for Zach, the mid laner’s hands quickly shot up to press against his chest, and prevented him from getting any closer. Zach pouted when he was denied by Nicolaj, but kept trying to press forward anyways. “I will admit though, I think they look amazing when they’re wrapped around my—”

“Okay, that’s enough.” Nicolaj chuckled quietly, and cut Zach off before he had the chance to ramble on about what he looked like with Zach’s dick in his mouth. Zach seemed to be twice as insistent on wanting to kiss him, and Nicolaj tried to squirm away from Zach’s puckered lips. “Stop that, we’re supposed to be paying attention, asshole.”

“I am paying attention.” Zach lied through his teeth, and didn’t bother even trying to be honest. He didn’t care about what was currently going on at the front, he just wanted to kiss his boyfriend. Reapered and Robin would allow him that much, right?

“No, you’re not.” Nicolaj fired back, and quickly glanced at the front. Andy had joined the conversation (when did that happen?), and was currently sharing his opinion the support meta. Nicolaj wasn’t able to listen in for long, because Zach started to trail kisses along his jaw. Nicolaj swallowed, half acknowledging the butterflies in his stomach, and half trying to deny that they were there—stupid Zach and his stupid honeyed words always put butterflies in his stomach.

“Well, you aren’t paying attention either.” Zach retorted, and continued to kiss his way down Nicolaj’s neck. He brushed his lips against Nicolaj’s collar bones, causing the ticklish mid laner to giggle quietly. Nicolaj lightly swatted at his back, but that didn’t stop Zach from littering kisses along his collarbones anyways.

“Yeah, because someone is so insistent on distracting me.” Nicolaj replied playfully, and tilted his head back, allowing Zach to kiss him as he pleased. Nicolaj tightly gripped the back of Zach’s shirt, shuddering lightly when the marksman let out a hot breath of air against the crook of his neck. Nicolaj allowed his eyes to flutter shut, and surrendered to the feeling of Zach’s lips against his skin.

The pair was trapped in their own little bubble, unaware that everyone in the room was currently staring at them. Robin loudly cleared his throat to grab the pair’s attention. Nicolaj’s eyes snapped open, and quickly pulled away from Zach. The marksman coughed lightly, and laughed nervously as he shuffled away from Nicolaj’s side. Nicolaj knew his face was flushed, and did his best to avoid the stares of his teammates.

“Do you two need a minute or are you going to start paying attention again?” Robin asked with mild annoyance, and crossed his arms. Robin’s lips were curled into a mild frown, and Reapered soon mirrored his expression. Nicolaj could hear Juan snickering off to the side, and knew that the rest of the team was trying to hold in their laughter too.

“Don’t look at me, blame Zach.” Nicolaj pointed his finger at the marksman, and glared at his grinning face. Zach didn’t even look the slightest bit guilty. In fact, he looked rather proud of himself—Nicolaj couldn’t believe it.

“Sorry for kissing my boyfriend.” Zach apologized sarcastically, snickering to himself as he did so. Zach casted a loving glance at Nicolaj, then turned his attention back to Robin. “Not my fault he’s so cute.”

“Shut the fuck up, I’m not cute.” Nicolaj huffed childishly, which caused Reapered to suppress a chuckle at his reaction. Nicolaj glared daggers at his teammates and coach, and felt a swear word bubble up in his throat. Nicolaj closed his mouth as quick as he opened it, and instead opted to silently fume in embarrassment.

“Young love.” Robin merely rolled his eyes at the two lovebirds, and couldn’t help but smile at their immaturity.

Zach stared at Nicolaj, whose face was red as ever, and laughed heartily. “Mhm, yeah. Still cute.”

“Do it later, guys.” Robin reprimanded lightly, and dropped the smile from his face. Robin was serious now, and the two took it as their cue to shut up as well. “You need to focus now. Don’t make me separate you two like kindergarteners.”

“Right, sorry.” Zach and Nicolaj apologized in unison. Robin seemed satisfied enough with their apology, and motioned for Reapered to continue his review.

Zach gave Nicolaj one last smile, before finally tuning into what their coach had to say.

4.

Zach drummed his fingers against his desk, and waited (not so) patiently for his queue to pop. He had just finished reading the resub messages, and now found himself with nothing to do. As great as Korean SoloQ was, the queue times were equally as long as they were back in NA. Zach turned his gaze to Twitch chat, and did his best to keep up with the constant flood of messages. His eyes were caught by one message in particular, which read “we want Jensen cam FeelsRageMan”.

Zach chuckled quietly at the message, and subtly nodded his head. Zach threw a quick glance in Nicolaj’s direction, and took note of how the mid laner was currently preoccupied with his phone. Zach decided that Nicolaj was distracted enough for him to reposition the camera without him noticing. Ever so slowly, Zach nudged his camera to the side, shifting the angle slightly closer to Nicolaj each time. In the corner of his eyes he could see his chat spamming PogChamps, and Nicolaj was none the wiser to what was going on. Nicolaj suddenly set his phone down, and Zach froze in place, silently praying that he wouldn’t notice.

When Nicolaj paid Zach no mind, the marksman let out a hushed sigh of relief. With the Jensen cam set up and ready to go, Zach leaned back in his chair as Nicolaj’s face was broadcasted for thousands to see. His League queue was still ticking, but at least his stream had a new face to stare at. Zach heard his donation sound chime in his headphones then, and listened closely for the message that came afterwards.

“Feed Jensen, he’s hungry BibleThump.”

Zach raised his brow at the message, “Is he really, though? Thanks for the five dollars, Biblethump.”

Zach turned to face his boyfriend, who was still entirely clueless to what was happening on his stream. Zach pondered whether or not he should actually feed Nicolaj something, and rummaged around his messy desk to see if he could find anything. Zach realized moments later that he only kept junk food on his desk. He had a bag of half eaten chocolates, an empty can of Redbull, and some shitty Airheads he stole from Juan. Zach concluded that nothing was worth feeding to his “starving” boyfriend. Less than a minute later, Zach heard the donation sound go off again. Zach listened for the familiar robotic voice of the text-to-speech narrator, and smiled when he heard what it had to say.

“Kiss Jensen, he’s crying.”

“Okay, say no more.” The marksman chuckled lightly, and whispered into his headset’s microphone. Kiss Nicolaj? Now that was something he could do. Zach knew better than to say no to an opportunity to kiss his boyfriend. Besides, it had been a while since he last gave his Twitch chat a bit of fan service.

Already, Zach could see the explosion of KappaPrides and sneakyPrides in the chat. Zach inched ever so slightly closer to where Nicolaj was sitting, but he abruptly stopped himself. Zach’s face lit up as an idea crossed his mind—there was a way for him to satisfy both donation requests at once. Zach reached for the half eaten package of Hershey’s Kisses on his desk, and retrieved one neatly wrapped chocolate from the bag. Zach tore the silver foil off, and popped it into his mouth.

Doing his best to make sure it didn’t melt too much, Zach leaned against the armrest of his chair, and poked the mid laner’s arm. “Nicolaj.”

“What?” Nicolaj asked in response, and raised his brow at the grinning marksman. Nicolaj didn’t even bother to take off his headset, but Zach didn’t let that stop him.

“Come here.” Zach grabbed onto the sleeve of Nicolaj’s shirt, and tugged on it lightly. Zach silently cheered to himself when Nicolaj did as he asked of him, and leaned in closer. There was still a look of confusion plastered all over his boyfriend’s face, but Zach didn’t care—he intended to keep this a surprise, after all.

Zach poked his head into the view of the camera then, and pulled Nicolaj towards himself by the collar of his shirt. Zach pressed their lips together, and ignored it when Nicolaj’s eyes widened with surprise. The mid laner quickly realized what was happening however, and allowed his eyes to slide shut. Zach darted his tongue out, and lightly traced Nicolaj’s lower lip with the tip of his tongue. Nicolaj, who was now fully aware of the fact that there was a camera filming their every move, parted his lips for Zach despite himself.

Instead of feeling Zach’s tongue against his own, Nicolaj was taken by surprise when he felt something solid slip into his mouth. Nicolaj barely had time to process what just happened before Zach pulled away. Zach wore a playful smile, and Nicolaj stared at his boyfriend as the taste of chocolate coated his tongue. He anticipated the kiss, but he definitely didn’t expect there to be a piece of candy hidden in Zach’s mouth.

“What the fuck is this supposed to be?” Nicolaj asked confusedly, and slowly started to chew into the piece of chocolate. It was sweet, very sweet, and Nicolaj could tell that it was milk chocolate.

Zach quickly retrieved the bag of Hershey’s Kisses from his desk, and lifted it up for Nicolaj to see. Nicolaj groaned, and rolled his eyes as he connected the dots together. “Oh, I see what you did. Very clever.”

“I don’t even like chocolate.” Nicolaj scoffed, and turned his face away from both the camera and Zach. Nicolaj could feel the blush on his face, and it only grew hotter as the chocolate continued to melt in his mouth. Nicolaj wasn’t sure how anyone could enjoy something that was so unbearably sweet, but the fact that Zach gave it to him made it more…palatable, somehow.

“You like me though, right?” Zach teased, and rolled his chair closer to Nicolaj’s. He leaned into Nicolaj’s view again, and batted his eyelashes at the mid laner.

“…No.” Nicolaj hesitated, and pursed his lips. Zach continued to push his stupidly adorable face into his view, and no matter how hard Nicolaj tried to escape him, he couldn’t do it. Nicolaj frowned, and eventually conceded with a long, drawn out sigh. “Okay, fine. I might like you. Just a little.”

“Oh my God. Did you hear that, chat? Jensen likes me!” Zach gasped, and excitedly broke the “news” to his viewers. Nicolaj playfully rolled his eyes at Zach’s mock surprise, which only caused Zach’s smile to grow even larger.

The news was nothing but old at this point, but Zach liked to bring it up every now and then for shits and giggles. As often as Zach enjoyed joking about it, the sentiment was still genuine. Despite having been dating for several months now, Zach still had a hard time believing the fact that he was actually in a relationship with Nicolaj. Watching Nicolaj blush innocently as he savoured the candy kiss reminded Zach of just how lucky he felt to be with his dork of a boyfriend.

“Yeah, what are you gonna do about it?” Nicolaj retorted, and finally turned to face Zach. He stuck his chin out defiantly, and waited to see what Zach would do next.

“Come here, and I’ll show you.” Zach tenderly cupped Nicolaj’s cheek, and leaned in for another kiss. This time, Zach brushed his lips against the tip of Nicolaj’s nose before finally bringing their lips together.

Zach gently brushed his thumb against Nicolaj’s chin, and kissed Nicolaj with slightly more insistence despite hearing the sound of his League queue pop. Just a few more seconds, Zach reasoned with himself as he lightly nipped at Nicolaj’s lips. Zach could taste the chocolate on Nicolaj’s breath, and quietly whispered I love you against those sweet, sweet lips before reluctantly breaking the kiss. Zach softly smiled at Nicolaj, then quickly rushed to accept his queue with barely a second to spare.

“There, I gave him not one, but two kisses.” Zach said as he rolled his chair back over to his desk. Zach re-adjusted his headset to rest more comfortably on his head, and selected his runes before finally settling back down. Zach took a quick glance at his chat, and found it flooded with hearts, pride emotes and more. He figured his chat would spam that for a while, at least until they found something else to shit post.

Zach’s camera remained on Nicolaj for just long enough to capture the way his eyes softened. There was a small smile on Nicolaj’s face, and though he hadn’t said anything, everything about the way he looked at Zach oozed with affection. Nicolaj’s gaze lingered on Zach for several moments, before he finally turned to face his screen again. Zach’s hand came into view then as he moved the camera back onto its spot atop his monitor. Zach briefly smiled at the camera, then refocused his attention on his game of League.

Win or lose, Zach didn’t care because his little moment with Nicolaj had his head in the clouds.

—

Nicolaj stood in front of his closet with his hands on his hips. He’d dug through the hangers countless times already, but he could not for the life of him find his goddamn hoodie. Nicolaj was certain that he packed it, because he threw every hoodie he owned into his luggage. Sure, his clothes were mixed in with Zach’s, but they stuck to their respective side of the closet to avoid confusing their wardrobes. And yet, there Nicolaj stood, unable to find what he wanted. The hoodie in question was dark grey, but most importantly, it was warm. Considering the fact that he was about to enter the chilly night of Seoul to grab dinner with Reapered and Andy, that hoodie was the only thing that would keep him warm enough.

Nicolaj searched the messy closet one last time, before finally giving up with a hefty sigh. Nicolaj considered just going out with what he already had on, but decided against it once he realized how thin his sweatshirt was. Nicolaj’s gaze was slowly drawn to Zach’s side of the closet as an idea popped up into his mind. Zach had plenty of cozy hoodies, and Nicolaj knew that from experience. Surely he could just…borrow a hoodie, right? Nicolaj had done it countless times in the past, and it never bothered Zach then, which meant he should be fine with it now too.

With a half hearted shrug, Nicolaj pulled out one of Zach’s pullover hoodies, and slipped into it. Nicolaj made a content sound once the hoodie was on properly. He immediately started to warm up, and the plush fleece lining made the hoodie extremely comfortable to wear. Despite this being the hundredth time he borrowed one of Zach’s hoodies, Nicolaj still couldn’t quite get over just how cozy they were. The hoodie had Zach’s familiar scent on it, and the warmth of it reminded Nicolaj of the way Zach would drape his arms on his shoulders, and pull him in close. The thought of snuggling against Zach’s chest made Nicolaj smile quietly to himself, and he felt butterflies start to dance in his stomach. Nicolaj’s favourite pass time was cuddling with Zach because of how nice he was to hold—Not that he would ever tell anyone that, but still.

Nicolaj suddenly realized how sappy the thought was, and his face started to heat up. Nicolaj clapped his hands over his cheeks embarrassedly, thankful that there was no one around to catch him blushing at the thought of cuddling with his boyfriend. Nicolaj’s face grew even hotter, because now he couldn’t wipe Zach’s stupidly charming smile out of his mind. The mid laner groaned loudly, and covered his eyes with the back of his palms. Minutes later, Nicolaj was finally able to cool off enough to avoid having Zach tease him for being so mushy. Nicolaj patted his cheeks one last time, then stepped out of the shared bedroom. He wanted to say goodbye to his boyfriend before he left, and turned into the scrim room.

Zach was in the middle of a League game, just like Nicolaj expected him to be, and Nicolaj chuckled lightly when he heard his boyfriend yell out at something in the game. Nicolaj tiptoed up behind Zach, and held his finger up against his lips, hopefully signalling Zach’s Twitch chat to not call him out. Nicolaj caught glimpses of several monkaS emotes being spammed, and struggled to keep his laughter in.

“Why the fuck are you guys spamming monkaS?” Nicolaj heard Zach ask, and he could hear the confusion in his voice. The marksman shook it off, and returned his focus to the game.

Once Nicolaj was close enough, he suddenly clapped his hands on the marksman’s shoulders. “Hey, babe.”

“Holy shit!” Zach yelped out, and glared at Nicolaj over his shoulder. His expression quickly morphed into one of confusion. “You scared the shit out of—wait is that my hoodie?”

Zach glanced at Nicolaj for long enough to miss the siege minion. The marksman cursed quietly. “Fuck.”

“It might be.” Nicolaj shrugged, and might as well have said yes for how unconvincing his answer was. Zach was far from bothered by it, and has expressed how much he liked seeing Nicolaj in his clothes several times. “Is it that obvious?”

Nicolaj playfully poked the marksman’s cheek when Zach nodded in response. In his defence, the hoodie wasn't too big on him. The sleeves barely extended past his finger tips, and the shoulders were only a little too wide for him. Nicolaj reached up and gently pet Zach’s bangs, snickering lightly when the marksman’s cheeks flushed. Nicolaj removed Zach’s headset so it rested around his neck instead, allowing him to freely play with the marksman’s hair. Zach not-so-subtly leaned into Nicolaj’s touch, and sighed happily despite himself.

“I swear, you wear my hoodies more often than you wear your own.” Zach said, and squirmed in his chair when Nicolaj leaned down to gently kiss the top of his head. Zach was a sucker for PDA, and Nicolaj could tell. Nicolaj threaded his fingers in Zach’s silky smooth hair, combing out what few knots were there.

“What? They're comfy.” Nicolaj said next to Zach’s ear, knowing full well how sensitive his boyfriend’s ears were. Zach giggled quietly, and Nicolaj turned to watch Zach’s game of League. He was playing Kog’Maw into Blitzcrank and Draven, and Nicolaj had the feeling that Zach was going to get hooked soon, but chose not to comment on it. “Not to mention they smell like you, which is nice.”

“You think I smell nice? Gross.” Zach teased Nicolaj, and the marksman refused to admit that his heart skipped a beat when Nicolaj said that. Sure, he missed another creep, but it was fine so long as he got the EXP from it.

“Whatever, fuck you.” Nicolaj retorted jokingly, and stuck his tongue out at his (adorable) shit of a boyfriend. Zach laughed at Nicolaj’s childish reaction, and Nicolaj merely glared at his boyfriend. “I’m going out to grab dinner with Reapered and Andy.”

“Aw, you’re leaving without me?” Zach joked lightly, causing the mid laner to pout slightly. Zach’s eye twitched—Nicolaj was too cute for his own good sometimes, it was unbelievable. Zach would’ve kissed Nicolaj silly right then and there, but he was too busy trying to win his lane. “I’m kidding, relax. I’m too tired to go out, anyways. Bring me back something to drink, okay?”

“Sure.” Nicolaj nodded, and gently grabbed Zach by the chin. Nicolaj brought their faces together, and smiled against Zach’s lips. “Give me a kiss before I go?”

“Yeah, okay.” Zach breathed out, tilted his head up, bringing their lips even closer together. Nicolaj’s other hand had migrated to Zach’s shoulder, and the marksman reached up with his free hand hold onto it.

With Nicolaj’s lips this close to his face, Zach found it difficult to resist indulging the mid laner. Zach relaxed his grip on his mouse, inhaling sharply when he finally felt Nicolaj’s lips press against his own. Nicolaj lightly pecked at Zach’s lips, and the hand on the back of his neck didn’t allow him to pull away. Nicolaj’s lips were so soft…Zach could sit here and kiss Nicolaj all day long if he wanted to, but something stopped him. There was a nagging feeling in the back of Zach’s mind that wouldn’t go away. He just wanted to kiss Nicolaj, damnit. Was he in the middle of doing something? Zach couldn’t remember…not with Nicolaj’s lips on him.

Zach tried his hardest to figure it out, and the muffled sound effects from his headset finally clued him in on what he was being distracted from. League! He was in the middle of a League game! The marksman’s eyes suddenly shot open at the realization, and abruptly broke off the kiss. Zach quickly pushed Nicolaj away before he could kiss him again. Nicolaj and his distracting face and lips and everything made Zach forget what he was doing. Zach watched with wide eyes as his champion was hooked into three different people, and was subsequently killed.

“Nicolaj! You piece of shit, I died because of you.” Zach gasped, and stared at his screen with disbelief. When Zach heard the first signs of laughter of Nicolaj, the marksman was quick to flip him off with both hands. “Eat. My. Ass.”

Nicolaj burst into laughter, and leaned on the back of Zach’s chair for support. He laughed so hard that he was crying, and if he kept it up his stomach would likely start hurting too. Nicolaj took a moment to wipe the tears from his eyes, and grabbed Zach’s chair by the arms to pull it towards him. Nicolaj spun Zach’s chair so he was facing him, and smiled gleefully at the pouting marksman. Nicolaj bent down, and rested his forehead against Zach’s. Nicolaj reached up to cup his boyfriend’s cheeks, and his smile only grew larger when he felt how warm they were. How was it possible for one person to be so perfect? Nicolaj couldn’t resist poking Zach’s precious little nose, and brightly whispered “boop” for added effect.

“Well, since you’re dead…I can sneak in a few more kisses, can’t I?” Nicolaj proposed with a tilt of his head. Zach was still pouting like an adorable child, and Nicolaj was determined to turn it into a smile. Nicolaj continued to maintain eye contact with Zach, and he could already see a small smile start to peek through the marksman’s pout.

“I guess…” Zach huffed, and the longer he stared at Nicolaj’s little grin, Zach soon found that he was smiling too. Zach reached up to rest his hand against the nape of Nicolaj’s neck, and gradually started to pull the mid laner down to his level. “So, are you going to kiss me or what, bitch?”

“Right, sorry I got distracted.” Nicolaj snickered, and quickly pecked both of Zach’s cheeks, which caused the marksman to giggle embarrassedly.

“By what?” Zach raised his eyebrow at Nicolaj, and pointed at his lips with his index finger. Cheek kisses were fine, but it wasn’t what Zach was looking for.

“You, duh.” Nicolaj replied, with a roll of his eyes. Nicolaj lightly nudged Zach’s fingers out of the way, and kissed Zach right on the lips. Nicolaj sighed quietly, and tenderly brushed his thumb against Zach’s cheek.

Nicolaj found Zach’s lips to be irresistible, and this time was no exception. The taste of Zach’s strawberry lip balm only served to sweeten the deal, and Nicolaj made sure to lick as much of it off as he could. Zach hated whenever Nicolaj did that, because it meant he had to constantly reapply his lip balm—Not that Nicolaj cared, anyways. The strawberry lip balm just wasn’t the same when he used it, so Nicolaj opted to get his fix through Zach. Nicolaj hummed quietly, and nibbled on Zach’s lower lip, not giving a shit that the kiss was being captured on stream for all to see. Nicolaj heard Zach’s breath hitch, and the marksman’s hands tightened on his shirt.

“Nicolaj, not that I don’t like where this is going right now but...” Zach whispered. “There’s like, twenty thousand people watching you make out with me right now.”

“Alright, alright fine.” Nicolaj finally pulled away, but not before he took the time to admire his work. Nicolaj ran his thumb along Zach’s lower lip, and suddenly stopped when he felt Zach’s tongue dart out to wet the tip of his thumb. Nicolaj raised an eyebrow at his smirking boyfriend. “Are you trying to tempt me?”

“Just a little payback for getting me killed earlier, that’s all.” Zach winked flirtatiously at the mid laner, and rolled away before Nicolaj had the chance to do anything to him.

Nicolaj merely stared at Zach’s blatantly obvious bedroom eyes, and tried to muster as much self control as he could. That didn’t stop Nicolaj from thinking about dragging Zach away from his stream and into the bedroom so he could wipe that smug smirk off of his face. Zach could be one hell of a cock tease if he wanted to, and Nicolaj fell for his tricks every single time. Although it was difficult to resist, Nicolaj eventually decided to not go through with his plan. Reapered and Andy would never stop giving him shit if he skipped dinner to sleep with his boyfriend, and that meant the rest of the team would endlessly tease them too. Besides, he could always just do that when he came back.

“Okay, they’re probably waiting for me downstairs.” Nicolaj said, and quickly checked his phone. Sure enough, he received a text from Reapered a few moments ago, asking where the fuck he was. Nicolaj chuckled, and slipped his phone back into his pocket. “Bye, I love you.”

“You think?” Zach rolled his eyes at the mid laner. The marksman smiled at Nicolaj warmly. Zach watched as Nicolaj exited the room, and only turned away when he heard his champion spawn. Zach called out to his boyfriend. “Love you too, asshole!”

Although the office was now empty, it didn’t matter to Zach because his heart felt as full as ever thanks to Nicolaj.

And as Nicolaj stepped out into the cool autumn air, Nicolaj found that he still felt warm. Maybe it was the hoodie, or perhaps it was the mere thought of Zach’s lips against his own that shielded him from the cold breeze. Deep down, Nicolaj had a feeling it was the latter.

Andy greeted Nicolaj with a friendly smile. “Ready to head out?”

“Yeah.”