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Ratio had been feeling sick for a while. His throat was itchy and sore, and no medicine seemed to stop his constant coughing. It disrupted his classes for a couple of days when he stayed home to ensure it wasn’t contagious, but he was soon able to go back to teaching, albeit with a cough interrupting his lecture every couple of minutes.
He honestly thought that it was just a bad cold that wouldn’t go away.
The purple petal that landed on Aventurine’s desk a month later proved that assumption incorrect.
Ratio and Aventurine stared at the petal, both sharing similar looks of surprise.
And then Aventurine started laughing.
“You- you’ve got han- ha ha!”
Aventurine held onto the edge of his desk for dear life, nearly falling off his chair as laughter overcame him. Ratio hated the sight. “Can you control yourself?” he bit out. “This isn’t funny!”
“Are you kidding me? This is the best day of my life!”
“I should reconsider our friendship if news of my impending death constitutes this being the best day of your life.”
The gambler immediately sobered up at those words. Straightening up, he sent Ratio a soft glare. “If you were actually going to die, then of course I wouldn’t be laughing. But you and I both know what you’re doing as soon as you leave this room.”
Ratio leaned back in his chair, sighing at the words. “Maybe I’m feeling extra dramatic and I’m planning to take these feelings to the grave.”
“And abandon all your goals in life? Come on Doc, you’re gonna make me start laughing again.”
Aventurine was right. There was only one option for Ratio to take. He had no desire to die any time soon, and while surgery to remove the flowers was an option, the idea of his feelings just…disappearing left a bad taste in the doctor’s mouth. To remove something that was, at this point, a core part of his being just felt wrong.
Ratio dropped his head into his hands. “This is going to be so embarrassing.”
“For you, maybe. Ooo, can I be there to record your first kiss?”
The doctor glared at the gambler through the gaps in his fingers. “This will only end in polite rejection.”
Now Aventurine really did laugh again. “Uh-huh. Sure. Tell me that again when I’m the best man at your wedding. Maybe I should start picking out my outfit now. Royal weddings are no joke.”
“I hate you.”
“No you don’t.”
Ratio groaned, and Aventurine’s cackle filled the room.
Ratio was honestly going to tell Screwllum about his feelings. He really, truly was. He arrived at Herta’s Space Station for their weekly meeting about the Divergent Universe, and he had an entire speech planned out by the time he set foot in the meeting room. But, unfortunately for him, things can never go according to plan when it comes to Screwllum I.
“Behind you!”
The doctor whipped around and threw his stylus at an approaching bug. With a screech, it exploded into nothingness. Ratio jumped back, grabbing his stylus as it flew back into his hand. He was now back-to-back with Screwllum, who had just finished disposing of a Lesser Sting with a swipe of his rapier. “I thought the Swarm in this area had been dealt with,” Ratio gritted out, readying to smack another bug with his codex. “Has Ruan Mei been experimenting with them again?”
“Negative. There-” A blast from one of Screwllum’s hands interrupted his words. The green beam struck another Lesser Sting that was just rounding the corner. “There has always been the occasional bug or two that has appeared here, even after Ruan Mei finished her tests. The Trailblazer usually deals with them when they come to visit the cat cakes, but, because of Amphoreus, they obviously haven’t been able to.”
“Just our luck.”
When it looked like the hallway they were standing in was free of the Swarm, the two slowly started making their way to another area. Both had their weapons of choice at the ready.
“I apologize for the interruption to our meeting, Mr. Ratio.” Ratio was surprised at the sound of genuine disappointment in Screwllum’s voice. “If I had known this many bugs were down here once more, I would have waited until after our discussion to check on the cat cakes for Ruan Mei.”
When Ratio had entered their usual meeting room, he had seen a note from Screwllum stating that he had to step away to help Ruan Mei with something. The note also invited Ratio to join him down in the labs if the doctor was so inclined. Ratio hadn’t seen any problem with it at the time, as (after going somewhere without the cat cakes, obviously) the change of meeting place didn’t change the absolute humiliation that was going to be The Feelings discussion. A different location didn’t mean the afternoon wouldn’t go exactly how Ratio expected. For the second time that day though, clearly Ratio’s assumption was wrong.
“No apologies are necessary, Mr. Screwllum. It’s not like you made all these bugs appear here. Someone really needs to figure out how to stop these things from spawning though.”
“I couldn’t agree more. I’ll talk to Ruan Mei once we make it to safety.”
Ratio saw the air blur about ten feet in front of him, and he threw his stylus at the phenomenon. A bug appeared, and another, and another, and then suddenly the hallway seemed to be packed with them.
“Shit.”
Screwllum hummed. “I’ll take the left side, and you deal with the ones on the right.”
“On it.”
They were off, the two weaving around each other as they fought off the small army of bugs. And things were going fine. The Swarm was going down easy enough, and it was looking as though they both were going to make it out of this mess entirely unharmed.
Ratio’s third wrong assumption. He felt an itch crawling up the back of his throat. Fuck.
He didn’t have time for this right now. Ratio clamped his mouth shut, refusing to let out the cough. His body started shaking. He had to finish off the rest of the bugs in the area. Not doing so could mean injury at best, and death at worst. He refused to die.
Ratio refused to let Screwllum die.
(He’d be fine, another part of his mind whispered. He can be rebuilt. But the idea of Screwllum getting destroyed, the idea of him on the floor in pieces because Ratio couldn’t hold back a fucking cough, terrified the doctor. It most likely wouldn’t happen. Ratio knew there was little chance of Screwllum getting hurt. The intellitron was capable, one of the most capable beings Ratio knew. Even if Ratio had to stop fighting to clear out his lungs, Screwllum could handle the Swarm on his own. Fear very rarely listened to reason though, and Ratio was not willing to take any chances.)
Ratio’s throat constricted, and it became harder and harder to breathe as petals creeped out of his lungs and into his airway.
He threw his stylus. Another bug exploded.
Just one more minute. Just give me one more minute.
He couldn’t afford to get distracted right now. He needed to focus all his attention on getting through this battle. He could do it. He could do it. He could-
A fourth wrong assumption.
Petals exploded from his mouth in a hacking cough. Ratio stumbled to the side, one hand slapping onto a wall to steady himself, and the other gripping his knee as he bent over. His sight became fuzzy and his ears began to ring.
No no no no no no no no-
A voice barely made its way over the white noise.
“Veritas!”
There was a bright flash of green light, and Ratio stumbled forward and hissed as something sliced into his shoulder.
A few long seconds passed. Ratio continued to heave, trying to get enough air back into his lungs to continue fighting.
Then there was a hand on his back.
Ratio flinched and wildly swung an arm back on instinct. His arm was, somehow, caught gently.
That same voice spoke again, this time much, much closer. “Veritas, are you alright?”
Screwllum.
Ratio couldn’t respond. His mind was still trying to catch up. The hand on his back briefly disappeared, and there was a shriek from somewhere far away.
“Veritas, can you answer me? Are-”
The voice stopped, and the sudden silence caused Ratio to start panicking. “Screw-” He coughed, the words hurting his throat, but he forced himself to continue speaking. “Screwllum, what’s wrong?”
Ratio was about to attempt to turn around. He wanted his eyes on Screwllum. He wanted to make sure the man was unharmed. But then his arm was let go, and a familiar gloved hand came into view before he could move. It reached down and plucked a petal from the ground.
Fuck.
The ringing died down just enough for Ratio to hear Screwllum’s whisper. “Iris versicolor.”
Ratio wanted to speak. He had to speak.
There was another, less bright, beam of light, and the doctor heard the sound of another bug exploding. Then Ratio found himself being lifted up. The world spun.
“What are you-”
“I am getting you to the medical bay. Explanation: A Lesser Sting cut into your shoulder, and it needs to be inspected immediately.”
“But what-” Another cough. “What about the bugs? And do you really need to carry me?!” Ratio could feel his face heating up. Being held in a bridal carry by Screwllum was not how he expected this day to go.
“I can deal with any we may come across on my own. And this is the fastest way to get you out of here. Unless you’re suddenly feeling good enough to run?” He wasn’t. His body was still shaking. Ratio huffed and crossed his arms. He could hear the amusement in Screwllum’s next words. “Then let me take care of you.”
After bandaging up his shoulder and giving him some water and food, the doctor in the med bay gave Ratio the okay to leave. It was only a minor cut, and as long as he consistently applied ointment to the wound, it should be healed by the end of the week.
Ratio didn’t bring up the hanahaki, and it seemed neither did Screwllum, as the med bay’s doctor never asked about it. (And Ratio was certain Screwllum knew what hanahaki was. He had to. There was no way a man so obsessed with plants would be unaware of its existence and its symptoms.)
By the time Ratio stepped out of the medical bay, the shaking had stopped, his vision was clear, and he was back to simply having a sore throat. Still not ideal, but he felt better than he had an hour ago. He felt more like himself.
He turned his head and saw Screwllum sitting on a nearby bench. The aristocrat was staring at something in his hands.
“…Mr. Screwllum?”
Screwllum’s head jerked up. “Ver- Mr. Ratio. I am glad to see that you are alright. Were there any issues with the injury?”
Ratio debated whether or not to mention the slip up (Ratio wanted Screwllum to keep calling him by his first name), but decided not to mention it for now. “None at all. It was a simple cut. It should be healed by the end of the week.”
“That’s good to hear.”
Silence.
They both stared at each other.
And then Ratio remembered that he was still actively dying, and he had a confession he needed to make if he wanted to stop that.
Ah, yes. His feelings.
Ratio felt his face heat up. He was not going to do this in a public area.
“Mr. Screwllum, if you would be so kind as to follow me. I have something I’d like to discuss with you.”
Screwllum stared at Ratio a moment longer before nodding. The intellitron stood up, one hand curling into a fist at his side, and followed Ratio down the stairs and into a glass hallway beyond a nearby sliding door. The area was empty. Only visitors tended to use this hallway, so they shouldn’t be interrupted. Good.
Ratio turned and faced Screwllum, taking a breath to steady himself. He recalled the speech he had made before arriving here. This was going to be embarrassing, but it had to be done.
(A small part of himself questioned this decision. What if Screwllum wanted nothing to do with him after this? Ratio knew that was ridiculous. They were both professionals, and Screwllum was a gentleman. Even when Screwllum rejected him, he highly doubted the aristocrat would just drop their partnership entirely.
But what if he leaves? Ratio desperately tried to stamp out that voice, but it refused to go away.)
Perhaps he had taken too long to speak, because before Ratio opened his mouth, Screwllum held up a hand. His palm was face up, and lying on it was a crumpled purple petal.
The doctor felt like all the blood was draining from his body.
“Iris versicolor. More commonly known as the purple iris.” Screwllum’s voice became softer. “In flower language, it typically represents intelligence and wisdom. However, it has also been known to represent royalty.”
He knew.
Ratio fought the urge to drop his head into his hands. Of course he knew. Ratio should have realized that Screwllum would have figured it out as soon as he saw the petals. And yet, for some reason, he thought his secret was still that: a secret.
A fifth wrong assumption.
It didn’t change anything. Not really. Ratio still ended up exactly where he would have been if he had just told Screwllum himself. But telling Screwllum himself would have given Ratio at least a modicum of control over the entire ordeal. Now? Now everything is out of Ratio’s hands, and he doesn’t know what to do.
He felt the petals slowly making their way back up his throat.
Ratio swallowed. “Well then, it seems my flowers have done all the talking for me.”
“Your so-called cold started exactly one month and three days ago. You have been suffering from this for over a month.”
“Yes.”
“And you didn’t tell me.”
The doctor frowned slightly. Screwllum sounded sad (don’t pity me, don’t pity me, don’t pity me), but also a bit…angry? “I coughed up the first petal this afternoon. I didn’t realize it was hanahaki until today. I was planning to speak with you about it, but we got a bit distracted before I could bring it up.”
“I see.” Silence for a moment. “Confession: After seeing the petals, I thought you were planning on letting yourself die without telling me.”
“What? No! Screwllum, I lo-” Ratio cut himself off before he could say the words out loud. Screwllum already knew, but the doctor refused to embarrass himself further. Screwllum’s hand twitched at his side. “I have so many things that I still wish to accomplish. I can’t die yet. Telling you was the only option I had.”
“There’s always the surgery.”
“No.” The word came out quick and harsh, and it honestly surprised Ratio. “They may not be reciprocated, but these feelings are still important to me. You’re important to me. I would not be the man I am today without them, so getting rid of them was never an option.”
Screwllum stared at Ratio. He stared, and stared, and stared.
Ratio sighed. “Mr. Screwllum, I understand that I am asking for a lot, but if our partnership has meant anything to you, could you please reject me quickly, and then pretend like this never happened. I promise that it won’t affect our work going forward. My feelings haven’t caused a problem in the past, and I refuse to let them cause any further issues after this day.”
And Screwllum stared, and stared, and stared.
Now Ratio was starting to get worried. “Mr. Screwllum?” What if this was the end of their partnership (their friendship, although Ratio has only dared to call it such in his head). If Screwllum wanted Ratio gone, then of course Ratio would honor those wishes and disappear from the aristocrat’s life. But Ratio wanted to stay by Screwllum’s side. He wanted it so badly that he developed hanahaki because of it. That small voice started begging again. Please don’t leave me. Please don’t leave me. Please don’t leave me. Please don’t-
“What have I ever done that made you think I didn’t love you back?”
One breath. Then two. “What?”
Screwllum took a step closer. “I said, Veritas, what have I ever done that made you think I didn’t love you back?”
Ratio felt his whole body go warm. He couldn’t be hearing this right. “Screwllum, you can’t possibly be suggesting that- This is not a joke, Mr. Screwllum. I’d appreciate it if you took this seriously.”
Another step. “I have never been more serious in my life.”
This wasn’t happening. “Screwllum, nothing you have done has ever indicated-”
“Correction: Everything I have ever done involving you has pointed to only one thing. The Divergent Universe. Late night meetings that turn into dinners. Access to my personal library. Access to my lepidoterarium. Did you know that, before you, no one but I ever had access to that place?”
Ratio’s voice was barely a whisper. “No.”
Another step. They were nearly touching now. “You know now. Question: Veritas, what do you think it all means?”
And this time, it was Ratio’s turn to stare, and stare, and stare.
The doctor cleared his throat, and for the first time all afternoon, he couldn’t feel any flower petals. He looked up at the aristocrat. “I think it means that I’m going to kiss you now.”
Screwllum’s eyes glowed. “Good answer. Five points,” he teased.
Ratio barked out a laugh, before diving in for the kiss he so desperately craved.
And for the first time all day, Ratio was glad that his assumption was proven wrong.