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After months of asking politely, a little bit of bribery, and maybe more than a handful of not-so-correct sciencey reasons, Roland was granted the chance to try out hardlight tech. And It was no surprise to the Infinity’s Captain, as he already had the whole science crew coming to him asking for permissions and why it was needed.
On the day of finally getting his new body, Roland of course did nothing but show off. Lasky lost count of how many spartans the AI decided to arm wrestle after his 10th round against Palmer. He even went as far to lift up Miller, while in full gear, just to show off how strong he was.
If Thomas was honest, he knew Roland would be showing off all of his new skills. What he wasn’t prepared for though was how daily duties would go.
The AI did nothing but touch.
A pat on the back here, hands touching as he passes over a datapad there. It felt maddening to Lasky and made him feel like a schoolboy fussing over his first crush. The two had already been something akin to a couple for a while now, that fact did nothing but make him feel even more embarrassed for his reactions.
The touches only finally stopped when they were both pulled to their own busy meetings and it wasn’t until Thomas was settled in his own quarters, already changed out of his uniform into a more comfortable UNSC sweater, idling going through last-minute reports, that he saw Roland again.
“Wanted to show off one more time tonight eh?” Lasky asks with a chuckle, leaving the datapad he was scrolling through behind and standing from the bed.
“Of course!” Roland says putting his hands on his hips “Not a moment of privacy today so I never really got to do what I’ve waited ages to do.”
Lasky face reddens as thinks Roland is implying a dirtier use of the hardlight. That is until Roland reaches forward, taking both of the Captain's hands into his. He gives them a light squeeze before looking up at Lasky, absolutely beaming.
All the touches throughout the day and the adorable AI wanted nothing more than to just hold his hands.
Thomas was sure his heart would burst from the scene in front of him. Roland was already a glowing figure, both literally and figuratively, and that smile somehow made him even brighter.
“Honestly still can’t believe I’m able to do this now!” He exclaims as he looks down at their hands, lovingly rubbing his thumb in calming circles.
“Though it's still kinda odd to touch but not exactly feel I mean all I can really feel is the weight, no texture. Going from your hands to your shirt,” Roland moves his hand exactly the way he describes and Lasky’s breath hitches “It all feels the same to me. Maybe if I pester the docs enough they could-” From there Lasky stops listening and just continues to stare, lovestruck as Roland explains the science behind it all.
He was really cute when he got to explain things freely. Different from when he was directly asked about battle info or a spartan profile, he got bored explaining those things so professionally, but with the hardlight tech that he had painstakingly researched, he was more than happy to explain it all.
Roland finally looks up from where his golden hands held Lasky's pale hands, just to be met with that dumbfounded, awestruck look.
“What?” Roland tilts his head as he asks, a smile still shining on his face.
“Nothing, just… it's nice seeing you so excited for once.” Lasky says as he bravely leans in to lay a kiss on the AI's forehead.
Roland swears all his systems rebooted in that split second. When Lasky moves back to look Roland in the eyes, he’s met with a look of shock as the AI stands almost statue-still. Thomas gives his golden counterpart's hands a big, almost reassuring, squeeze to bring him out of the shocked state. When Roland finally settles and his eyes focus back on the Captain's face, he can only smile widely again and bring him into a tight hug, laughing as he does so. Lasky laughs too.
They stayed like that for a while, simply swaying as they held each other close, to anyone who could possibly see them it would almost look like they were slow dancing.
The pair think about how good of an investment the hardlight was.
One thing no one ever talks about hardlight is just how warm it can be, and heavens did Roland truly prove how warm it could be. It was the kind of warmth you felt when you drank something hot, the kind of warmth that settled in your stomach and made you feel safe.
He was safe with Roland, he knew that even before he could physically hold him.
That kind of warmth also tended to make you sleepy, and god was Lasky tired. As he reluctantly pulls away from his warm companion, he swears he can hear Roland whine in disappointment, he chuckles at the noise as he moves his hands to cup that golden face.
“I’ve got to sleep Roland and you,” another kiss to the forehead “have a whole ship to run.” His thumbs rub soothingly at Roland's cheeks, almost like he was trying to rub away the sad expression he currently wore.
The AI knew it was true, and he almost made an argument that he could run the ship from the comfort of the captain's quarters, but decided against it. On a different night, he’ll make that argument when the ship was just a little more quiet and a lot more boring. His own hands moved to rest atop Toms as he closes his eyes and leans into the touch. He turned his head just enough to leave a soft kiss on Lasky's wrist, turning his head back and opening his eyes to see a bashful Captain, a look that matched his elevated heart rate.
He moves forward to land another soft kiss right on the mole that sat beneath Thomas’s eye, causing the affected man's breath to catch in his throat. He finally slowly untangled himself from the other's grasp, but making sure to hold onto his hands again, giving him that same squeeze.
“Well…goodnight sir. Sleep well.” The AI said with one more squeeze, before finally letting go and with a smile, walking out of the captain's room.
Thomas stared at the door, almost silently hoping Roland would ignore orders and walk back through, but alas he never came.
Of course the one time Roland listens to orders is when Lasky means them the least.