The Fluffy Sheep Experiment [Sci-Fly, Plume]

Kevin wasn't sure how long he'd been in a daze. He'd greased the iron and he'd stared at it as the oil sizzled and spat.

"Huh?" He shot his head to turn at Luca's touch. He stared blankly at the man's face for a moment before smiling in reassurance, "I'm alright. Just zoned out. Let's get back to cooking."

Like hell he was going to approach him about that topic.

Luca happily patted his back and planted a swift kiss to his shoulder.

"Okay then! I'll just find some other stuff to eat."

He rushed back to the refrigerator, rummaging through all of the food. Cold cuts, milk, bananas... basically everything that the Italian's hands touched was transferred onto the table.

He was going to eat everything.

"Alright," Kevin enjoyed the short display of affection before sneaking a glance towards the kitchen entrance.

Why are you so on guard now? He sharply inhaled, the air uncomfortably thick with oil. Stop thinking.

He looked back at waffle iron and started to pour the batter in, smiling as he watched Luca practically empty out the fridge.

"Are you sure that's enough?" He teased.

Luca stuck his tongue at him before returning to snarf up his hoard of pancetta.

"Shut up, I haven't eaten at all. I deserve to be fed like a KING!"

He grabbed the carton of milk and since he was too lazy to stand up and get a glass, Luca raised the carton and 'fountained' the milk into his mouth. Setting it down after a few chugs, he moved on to bananas.

Mm, bananas.

Kevin was impressed, but equally as disturbed, as Luca wolfed down everything while he quietly plated up filling amounts of waffles for the two of them. (Although going by Luca's eating, Kevin hadn't a clue how he'd be able to eat these too.)

The hot waffles smelt beautiful, but of course they were nothing without some complementary fruit and cream.

Grabbing a chopping board, Kevin began to slice up some strawberries tossing them into a glass bowl of other mixed berries. After setting a can of cream on the table, he made his own plate for himself and started to battle away his own hunger.

Waking up with Luca by his side. Having waffles without the usual hullabaloo. This was a great day.

Leaving behind some fruits and berries for the waffles, Luca returned his leftovers back into the fridge. The Italian patted his stomach, letting out a small burp. Yup, he was still pretty hungry. He approached the other man, inhaling the sweet smell of waffle-y goodness Kevin was holding.

"That smells really good. Did you make any extras for me, tesoro?" He peeked behind the man's shoulder, searching around for another plate of waffles.

He would've made some for himself, but he was scared that he'd break the waffle machine. Last time he tried to make breakfast, appliances would either break or his meal would look like it went to Hell and back.

Which is why Luca leaves the food-making to Dax.

"Right in front of me." Kevin side-stepped over, allowing access to the large plate for him.

Even without the compliment, Kevin was relieved it turned out alright. (Hell, it wasn't his batch of waffle batter.) He wasn't great chef like some of the other members in the mansion; however, he pegged himself as decent. Whenever he was preoccupied with his work he'd lived life feeding himself microwave meals at the most. Nonetheless, he did try his hand at cooking when he had the time.

Long before Luca was going to be, he'd finished up his plate of waffles. (The cream and fruit made the meal, he thought.) He went to pour a glass of water for himself by the sink and stared at Luca downing his breakfast.

Butterflies were flying in his stomach as he admired the man's build, tanned skin shining under the sunlight.

"Man, I'm lucky."

Luca thanked him as he happily took the fresh plate of waffles. He squirted on some syrup and slapped on a big slab butter onto his waffles, chopping up some bananas. He set the plate down and gobbled up his food, popping a few blueberries in between bites. The Italian downed the remaining milk after he finished his last portion of breakfast. He smacked his lips, smiling at Kevin's comment.

"Why? I know it was lucky for me, not you, haha!"

Free food is the best.

"What? Oh."

It was a slip of the tongue. It could have somewhere nicer, but Luca, still feeding that seemingly bottomless pit of a stomach he had, didn't pick up on it.

Oh well.

Kevin laughed at the silliness of the conversation, before starting to clean up the kitchen space, loading his own empty plate and other used utensils into the dishwasher after a through removal of any excess food.

"Hey," he offhandedly spoke, believing the timing now seemed a lot safer now than before. (At least not-so-tense Kevin seemed in a better position to handle something like this.) "I know it's been two dates and all, but what do you think we are?"

Leaving the dishwasher open for Luca, he propped himself on top of the counter and looked at the other man with eyes searching for a serious answer despite the casual smile.

"Boyfriends? No? Don't know?"

Kevin himself was a bit up in the air about it. He felt a bit clouded by the perfect body: the face, that waist, his voice, the smile. The personality was amazingly charming too, but he was well aware that they weren't that close.

Of course was the whole point of dating.

But the real question was whether it enough to walk around calling him his boyfriend unabashedly. The sound of the very word rolling off his tongue was beyond enticing.

Because, damn, he really wanted for Luca to be his.

Luca joined the other man by the sink, storing his plate and utensils into the dishwasher. He was about to get himself a cookie when Kevin's question stopped his tracks.

"Oh. Um."

He was so caught up with all of the kissing and the flirting that he totally forgot to stop and think:

What were they?

Luca kept quiet for a while. He had to say the right things, now. He definitely doesn't want to ruin the things that he's already got.

"Maybe the term boyfriend isn't really the best, for now," he reassured Kevin, gently taking his hand. Luca ran his thumb across the knuckles before continuing,

"I really like you, Kevin, and this is actually pretty new to me."

All he had were quick flings and one-night-stands. Luca never had the time to actually fall in love, or any of that mushy stuff, no matter how much he wanted it.

"So, yeah. I don't know. I do want to know more about you, and vice versa about me. I don't want either of us backing out because of misunderstandings and other things." His grip on Kevin's hand tightened.

"But I really want this to work. I really do," a desperate laugh trailing after. Wow, he wasn't prepared to talk about that, but maybe he could. For Kevin.

A pang of guilt hit him, and the smile was wiped from Kevin's face with one look of the other man's immediate reaction. The Italian's discomfort was obvious and in return he cupped Luca's hand with both hands.

"Sorry I asked." Kevin started, his face fallen and his shoulders sunken. "This is just a bit... strangely fast? Good! But... confusing."

He hardly had time for relationships in his life. While he'd swam the waters for love, for the most part he'd always come back empty handed. It was no surprise -- science was his love and life. His prior relationships never held a candle to that passion; and they, like waves, just ebbed and flowed. Slowly and hardly affecting. As of late, he'd thought it'd be just him and his lab for a long time.

Clearly it wasn't the case. He couldn't tell where the line was when he thought he had to take these things slowly -- and then yesterday, threw away any self-restraint at the sight of Luca's mutual interest.

It was strangely relieving to see Luca like this. I could do that, he thought, wait it out. He would have also stepped back had the Italian seen this purely as a fling. It was all self-reassurance on his part to ask... and a strange disillusioned eagerness he couldn't pin. The man struck a chord he never realised he had, and it shook him.

"Hey, cheer up," he said, partly to himself, playing nonchalance. He let go of Luca's hand, slipping from the counter to turn on the dishwasher. "I just wanted to know if we were on the same page."

Luca rubbed at his arms, a faint smile on his face. Shit, now that they've talked about it, he felt kind of.. awkward. Now what?

"Yeah, sorry."

He reached out to fiddle with Kevin's shirt, feeling the soft of the fabric with his fingers. These shirts must be quite expensive, giving the quality.

"Can I still kiss you, though, whenever?" His head was tilted downwards, his eyes sparing a few glances towards the other man's face from his shirt.

Merde. Why is he getting so embarrassed now?

He listened to the dishwasher beep and begin to run, before he felt Luca timidly reach for him again. Kevin smiled coyly, before wrapping him tightly into his arms.

"Sorry, yeah," he apologised again, and would do so until the guilt washed away. "Kisses, hugs and whatever. Whenever."

Sorry.

Okay. This started as a good morning, and Luca wanted to end it that way. Not the both of them feeling guilty or uncomfortable with the other.

Determined, Luca cradled Kevin's jaw with his hands and peppered his face with light kisses. He saved that delicious mouth for last, pressing their lips together for a soft, yet firm kiss.

The Italian rested his forehead against the other's, a small smile spreading across his face.

"I want another date soon, okay? I want to get this over with as soon as possible."

Kevin needed that pick-me-up, enjoying Luca's lips affectionately press against on his. His small smile grew wider into a silly grin as he gazed into Luca's eyes.

He brought himself in for one more kiss before laughing off the strained moment they had.

"Of course. Anytime."

Luca slid one hand to the back of Kevin's nape, brushing his thumb against the short hair and skin. His other hand wound around the other man's waist, closing the gap between them. He rubbed their noses together, smiling bigger now.

"Good."

Kevin stayed as he was for a while, heart beating steadily in the pleasure of the hug. However it was cut short with Fely suddenly appearing with a giggle.

"Sorry Kevin, but you have a research-related message received. It has been marked as urgent."

Oh shit!

He released his arms around Luca, and began to rummage in the back pocket of his jeans to pull out his room key.

"Sorry, Luca, I've got to deal with this," he pecked at his cheek, "Let me know when you're free alright?"

Hurriedly, Kevin dashed out of the kitchen to his bedroom, eager to contact his fellow science friends about his experiences here.

Luca blinked, motionless, only registering that Kevin was out of his arms once the other man left the kitchen.

What the fuck was that for?!

His face twisted into a scowl, his arms folding against his chest as he leaned on the counter. Well. That moment he just made was totally ruined.

"Fucking asshole."

Even during after 'work hours', Kevin was still conducting research. Albeit absolutely personal.

Namely, in the comfort of his bed, he was screening through paparazzi photos and fanart of Luca in his holo-galley, tickled pink at the personal acknowledgement that he had an intimate relationship with the handsome lad.

After meeting the air manipulator from day one, he'd returned to his room to quickly profile the unfamiliar hero. At a certain point, it'd become a regular thing. He had to know and admire every little thing.

You're an obsessive creep.

The thought crept in, and he quickly logged off the Luca Donati fanbase he'd recently registered out of sheer curiosity. They had the best updates about him, he justified, It would be a great resource for my paper.

Yeah right. Sliding the holo-galley out of sight, Kevin flopped over his back, grasping for a pillow before lobbing it into his face.

Shameful you are, Howland. Disgustingly shameful.

Not that he was going to stop any time soon.

"Do you know how expensive these MeChip updates are?!"

Luca growled at the shopping cart list that Thurlow made, shaking his head.

"B-But it's almost my birthday!" Thurlow ran around the holographic list, his tail almost swatting the prices out of the list.

"What bullshit are you spilling out now? Birthday? I already spent 10,000 units on that hyper storage-chip last month. Get your own money, pezza di merde!"

Before the MeChip could say another word, Luca swatted a hand at the air and the dog disappeared.

Spoiled little shit.

The Italian flopped onto his bed facedown, groaning. He was so bored.

Deciding that he had nothing better to do, Luca shrugged to himself and called Kevin.

"Tesorooooo, what're you doing right now?"

"Kevin~! Call from Luca."

Without an answer, the call was sent through and Kevin shot up from his bed.

"Fely!! U-Uhh Hi Luca."

His MeChip winked at Kevin's disapproval before vanishing out of sight.

"I'm alright."

Shit what do I say?

Kevin glanced over at his shut off holo-galley. There was no way he'd tell him right?

"I'm just doing some research. Did you need anything?"

Well not everything.

Luca sat up and stretched out his arms, smiling at Holo-Kevin. Even Holo-Kevin was cute.

"I'm slugging bored. You mind if I come over? Promise I won't disturb you or anything." He just wanted some company, Thurlow not included.

Not even waiting for a reply, he started to get up from the bed to find his slippers.

Kevin watched Luca start leaving for his room. While he didn't mind the company, he didn't want Luca finding out about his browsing habits.

Slugger.

"Uh yeah, sure," Kevin touched his holo-galley as he signed off quickly. "I'll see you soon!"

As the call ended, he looked at the machine and quickly focused his powers. The holo-galley booted up and symbols sped in a blur down the screen as he directly accessed his browser history, deleting all the... suspicious browser history in relation to Luca.

As a consequence of the burst of stress and the energy exerted, he sighed in relief. Slumping back into his bed, and he quietly waited for Luca to arrive.

The Italian checked his reflection, running a hand through his hair a few times until he was satisfied. He tied his hair back, nodded to himself in the mirror and left for Kevin's room.

Luca almost got himself lost again, but he managed to find the room after the 5th route. Hopefully that'll change soon. He lightly knocked on the door and rocked his feet.

"Keviiiiin, I'm here! ♥"

Kevin glanced down towards his wriggling toes, before scanning over his attire. Were the pair of grey flannel pants and white singlet appropriate for Luca to be graced with? Maybe not, but he probably saw them during the call. Why bother changing?

Kevin looked at door at the sound of a familiar but sickly sweet tone from outside.  He lightly scrunched his face but nonetheless, carried himself to the door to allow for the goof to come in.

This is the guy you spent two hours looking up.

He sighed softly as he turned the door handle before beaming upon sighting his face.

"Welcome, stranger."