(Trigger Warning on this one. Implied SA. Fair warning. ♡)

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He had no clue how long he'd held onto you for; all Reed was aware of was by the time he finally helped you upright again, kiss breaking, it was reluctantly. "... fuck, can we do that again?" he asked, laughing as his face burned again.

His soft laughter died in an instant once you laid your head on his shoulder, eyes closing and trying to will your regulator to function at standard levels. Once your date's arms wrapped around your waist, you relaxed again-- making him pull you closer. "... Gavin?"

That was a hell of a chill...

"Yeah?"

"If your intentions were to show me things that could be considered magical... I-I..." The hand you'd set on his chest clung to the black fabric he wore. "... I think your kiss completely outdid these fireflies."

Gavin exhaled slowly, knowing his cheeks were on fire and not caring. "I had to make sure your first kiss was fuckin' perfect, cara mia."

And then you said the one thing he wasn't expecting: "It was from you, so it was perfect." After a beat or two his hold on you tightened, pulling you as closely as he was physically able with his face buried into your bare neck. "... please don't cry," you murmured, fingers running through his short hair.

"You don't fuckin' understand," came your partner's muffled wail, "I'm a goddamn monster trying to change. You're... y-you're not supposed to f-forgive me this fast... m-make me work for it, damn it... make me earn y--"

"Gavin." Taking his head, you'd pulled it from being pressed against the crook of your neck, forcing the male to look at you. "Stop," you demanded quietly. "I know you want to mend your ways. I know you want to make up for your behavior. But if I wish to forgive you so quickly, that is my choice. Do not beat yourself up over what's been done; I chose to stay."

Blinking slowly, he all but sank into your hands as his tears were wiped away. "... still having problems coming to terms with that one, too," came his mumbled reply.

"Do you know why I chose to stay?" Reaching, you took one of his hands and laid it flat on your chest in the center. Beneath his hand, the fuel pump regulator thumped hard. "My heart is mechanical but it beats nonetheless. I have seen your efforts to better yourself. Even when you fought against your mind, I saw the human that I am looking at now. The one that only wanted a chance." His face was threatening to break, but you went on. "My programming wanted to assist you no matter what, but my heart wanted to understand you. I may not have a mission that is programmed, but I have a selfish desire to make you happy, dolcezzo."

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By the time Reed had cried himself out, you'd sat him down on the base of the fountain, silently connecting to his Bluetooth speaker. "Do you feel better now, Gavin?"

The smile was lazy but attractive all the same. "Have I told you how that drives me fucking insane?" You shook your head of course, and the male chuckled as he reached into his pocket for his phone. "I got so used to being called sir and Detective Reed... shit, hearing my first name is gonna end up turning m-- Change of topic!" Panicked, your date jumped to his feet. "Right, so, anyways, moving on from my dumbass comments. There's people that set up and perform in this park all the time." Gavin's smile was twitchy and a bit sheepish. "I know I don't have to teach you publicly, but... this is more fun. Gets you out of the house. Plus you're a goddamn bombshell."

[PROBABILITY OF OVERHEATING: 78%]

"All right, cara mia, first things first: something easy. Classic. Just a real simple waltz, capice?" Pressing a few things on his phone, the device was pocketed as music began to softly play. "Okay, now, you... put this..." Your left hand was settled on his shoulder while he clasped your right, his free hand on your hip. "The waltz is just a square. There can be a ton of variations to it, but this is as easy as it gets." The two of you were situated away from the fountain for the sake of space. Following his lead, your date watched your footing for the first couple of steps before his hazel eyes lifted. "There we go, just follow me. You've got the idea, now we do the spinny part. That's the fun of it. Ready?"

In the short amount of time between your first step together and now, you'd researched through the basics of more than just the waltz. Gavin's hold on you tightened by a fraction, though his surprise peeked through when you almost seemed to predict his intentions, letting him lead you through a dance you'd never done yet knowing every motion already. When his eyebrows met in the middle, you smiled. "I did my homework, sir," you commented, throwing him a wink on top.

Reed shook his head, not missing a step; it was as though his brain had disconnected from his body, and the dance was on auto-pilot. "Okay, well, homework only goes so far, cara mia. You can research all you want, but if you can't hear the music and feel it, it's not the same. A waltz is easy to learn. It's when you decide to do shit off the books that sets you apart."

The smile on your expression was gentle, watching and listening to his explanation. "Elijah was right," you spoke after he'd gone quiet. "You are very passionate about music."

"And what about you, then? Hmm? Can you hear what's playing, or is your system just giving you error messages?" Reed's grin turned sheepish. "... he explained it to me earlier."

"I can hear it," came the reassurance. "But I am curious as to what else you can teach me."

Your date chuckled, slowly coming to a stop at last, but holding you by the waist with both hands instead. "Let me put it this way, cara mia: I've been moving my ass all my life. On the ice or off, I like rhythm. Give me any damn song that has a dance, and I'm confident I know it."

"Any song?" Your eyes glittered in a way that made his grin fall flat, suddenly regretting his words. "Then perhaps you can teach me things from other cultures."

Oh. "Now that I can do," your partner replied. He cautiously pulled you close, forehead against your own. "...... You wanna know why I have this fuckin' scar across my face?"

Even against his forehead, your head tilted, making your date grin a bit. "Was I incorrect about it being a hockey injury?"

Reed shrugged. "Yes and no. I played hockey, yeah. But... I didn't just do that on the ice." Now he paused, hazel eyes cast to the pavement and off to the side. "...... this is gonna sound really fuckin' stupid..."

"I do not believe there is anything you will say that I might find stupid."

The exhale through his nose was heavy, internally trying to gather his nerves. "... No one except Eli knows this, okay? No one." More hesitation. Your hands cupped his face, a kiss left on the tip of his nose; it got a smile out of him, at least. "I played hockey, but I also did a lot of figure skating. I liked it better, that's for damn sure. And I was damn good, too. I, uh..." Gavin's chuckle was audibly nervous. "I was about to try out for the '22 Winter Olympics. Was super excited, but... the guys on my hockey team had no idea. I kept it from them for years, but... They found out that I was gonna be away for awhile, and they were curious. They wheedled it outta me, that I was trying out to be on the US Olympic team." Now his smile was strained. "At first they got pissed off cause they thought it was for ice hockey. And I figured if I told 'em the truth, it would calm everything down."

When your partner fell silent, your concern ramped up at least 30%. "... did they not take it well?"

Trying to laugh, it came out broken as he shook his head and grimaced. "They were... stereotypical cocksuckers. You know how guys are. I told them I did figure skating, and... I've never been called so many nasty homophobic names in my fucking life." Eyes closing, Reed tried to draw comfort from your touch, your presence. "Started out verbal. Lots of shitty words thrown at me. So... you know me. I... t-tried to fight back..."

Another chunk of hesitation, but his vitals did not match the casual tone he was trying to use. "...... Gavin? What did they do?"

"They did enough," he managed, after three solid minutes of silence. His jaw shook as he tried to explain. "Trust me, the scar is... it doesn't f-fucking matter. I didn't go to those tryouts. I quit hockey, I quit figure skating... Ch-changed my fuckin' name and moved to Detroit so I could put the whole g-goddamn thing behind me..."

[Changed his name so he wouldn't be found again...]

There were still more tears pouring down his face, so you dutifully wiped them away. "... may I ask what your birth name was?"

"... is that really what you wanna know? All the shit I dumped on you, and you..."

"The past is in the past. I, for one, am honored that you told me. And I will take it to the scrapyard."

"You're not going to any damn scrapyard, not as long as I'm alive," Gavin hissed softly, clinging to you again. Face buried in the crook of your neck, his answer was muffled against your skin. "It was Micah. No fucking way was Mom giving one kid a Biblical name and not the other. So when I left, I picked something easy and random. Probably didn't have to, but..."

"I like Gavin Reed, though. And I am willing to wager that everyone else does, too." When he sank into your hold, you realized: you were like home to him. Someplace he could be comfortable and accepted.

So, perhaps, you accomplished your directive after all.