#robert x reader

Back when you first met it was a game: seeing him and having to lie that you didn't recognize those eyes, or his voice that carried a sarcastic tone. Pretending to be someone else on the job because, you were strangers at that moment, just two heroes doing your job.

It wasn't uncommon for you two to come across one another as your superhero personas. Sometimes, as you were crossing gazes with Robert you'd flash him a mischievous smile, one that you knew he would comment on when you layed together in bed late at night. Probably something along the lines of "I wouldn't be mad if we got caught" or just complain it was a pain in the ass to even pretend on the first place.

But things shifted once your hero career really set off and —after the incident with shroud— Robert got that offer for a job by a popular blonde hero. After everything that had happened to him, you became very overprotective towards the man that meant the world to you. Changing both of your lives drastically: not seeing him during patrol anymore, silence instead of his sarcastic remarks, and laying in a cold bed during his coma. It had been the death of you.

That's what got you here, despite him telling you not to come, not to pop into his new job and to stop disappearing from yours just to see if he is okay (maybe more for your own sake than his). You had flown into SDN, as an A-tier (B-tier?, you don't keep up) this turned some heads. Walking with your head high, confident strides, some people moved aside so as to make way for you. As soon as you spotted Roberts by the top of his messy hair you bee-lined to his cubicle. The brunet man was sitting on his office chair talking to his new team on the computer in font of them, wishing them a good break as he took his headphones off.The dispatcher rubbed the tension off his nose bridge in a weak attempt to get rid of the headache caused by the z-team. Just before the man you were looking for could stand from his spot and finally noticed the slight commotion around him, you were already standing next to him with a Tupperware secured by your side.

"Hello?" he said in a less than amused tone, as he swung around in his chair to face you. Fuck. Okay you hadn't thought this through. To anyone watching in he just looked like a poor dispatcher confused on why a hero from another SDN branch came to harass him, but to you it was your gentle boyfriend (who might be just a bit mad). You looked around, silently calling out on anyone still looking, making a few people that were not so subtly listening in 'go back to work'.

The reason this impromptu visit annoyed the man was also the real reason behind you really wanting to see him on his branch of SDN. Having already heard of the infamous Z-team, Robert telling you how they treated him, combined with how worried you get over him this days keeping in mind he doesn't have his suit anymore, yeah it wasn't a great mix for his anxious girlfriend. So, he didn't want you seeing his team UNTIL he earned their respect, didn't want you intimidating them and having them hate him more. You were going to respect that but as you stared at the man in-front of you still sitting in his chair, you could at least bring him decent food (that also wasn't Twinkies) to help him through the day.

"HELLO” You spoke suddenly as you realize how long you two had been staring at each other in silence.With a cough you followed up “I am one of SDN downtown superheroes, we—" "I know what SDN heroes do" The brunette interrupted. FUCK. Yea no shit he would know, he had been working here for a while, albeit a shorter time than you but still, it was habit to let people know who you were and what you were there for.

You cleared your throat, in an attempt to not make your embarrassment less noticeable "Yes of course, I'm sorry" you said more softly than your previous statement while looking slightly down "I'm a dispatcher, you know in case that you haven't noticed" He said as a matter of fact while he pointed at his desk, almost trying to remind you. As the dispatchers software was closing up he continued with a slightly annoyed tone "and if you don't mind, I'm on break and–" "Yes, I'm well aware that you're aware" You interrupted with a tightened tone before he could even try to get you to leave.

"We've received a call by a civilian, she has requested to have your lunch delivered to you since you have forgotten it, again" As you made this last remark with a drop in tone, you handed him the Tupperware that you had been carrying.

His face softened from the slight frown he wore to a gentle knowing look. "Worried that i would starve?.. the caller of course" he asked, looking up from the food towards the tall hero towering over him.

"Of course, this is not the first time and you can't keep eating Twinkies from the the vending machine" as the freckled man watched you ramble on about keeping good eating habits he couldn't help but chuckle, he always had a soft spot for you no matter how overbearing you got.

Robert reached his hands to yours, holding it tenderly while he lowered the food to rest un-top his desk with his right hand that quickly came back to yours "well.. you can tell my wife" Suddenly the dispatcher got up from his chair to stand in front of the woman whose heart had skipped a beat, as he looked up to the hero while holding her hands "That I'm going to be alright. She doesn't have to worry so much about me"

You looked around to see if anyone in the office was watching the both of you. Although no one seemed to be watching, you had already garnered enough attention coming in. In hopes of talking for a bit longer you made the decision of pushing both of you down, hiding yourself inside the walls of the dispatcher cubicle, sitting Robert back to the chair and kneeling in-front of him.

"Aah how heroic and not suspicious, ducking and holding me hostage in my desk. I want to take that break, you know?" He whispered teasingly, you softly put your head on his lap hiding your now fully red face "I thought the downtown branch did more important stuff, like i don't know fight crime instead of unhealthy eating habits and hiding in cubicles." he started joking as he begun to stroke your hair, as you lifted your gaze he asked in a whispery manner "you okay?"

"Wife?" was the only thing you asked (the only thing on your mind really), you had been high school sweethearts but remained only as his girlfriend to this day. He smirked "that's what your focusing on?.. well, might as well call you that with how much you worry about me, or you'd rather I called you mom?" You started chuckling trying to keep it down, you covered your mouth to accomplish this but Robert laughed unapologetically.

The sweet moment was interrupted by an old man who, during the whole conversation, was scooting over and over with his chair to see what the hell was happening with his friend and this random hero. Finally he had made it, still sitting, fully outside of his cubicle and basically into Roberts, with Beef in his lap desperately trying to say hi to the familiar scent In front of him but kept on the Albert Einstein looking mans arms "Don't tell me you have a thing for getting head in public"

You quickly lifted your head up from your boyfriends lap to stare, before you could respond the dispatcher responded "that would imply you have a voyeurism kink" He turned almost proudly to you to see your reaction. With an annoyed expression you stood up, still blushing.

Robert laughing tried to grab your hand again,standing up in the process, in an attempt to keep you there but it slipped as stepped towards the older dispatcher. As chase laughed his ass off, you petted beef and said "I'm glad I was able to reach you in time. make sure to call your wife" As you crossed the dispatchers cubicle you brushed hands with the tired man, an intimate yet quiet goodbye.

Wearing a smile as you made your way out and back to your territory, you still hadn't noticed a blacked hair woman near the printers that had witnessed the whole interaction with a frown.

Robert kept his head down and attention off of him when he walked back inside. He really really didn’t need any questions about why he had broken glass embedded in his chest. He grabbed a pair of tweezers from the first-aid kit inside the breakroom and slipped inside the bathroom. 

By the time Invisigal appeared behind him, his shirt was off and he was halfway through picking the shards from his skin. The sink water was tinged pink with the slight amount of blood that clung to the pieces. 

“Where's the shootout?” She asked, causing him to jump when she appeared. 

“Parking lot,” He responded bluntly, not having the energy to deal with any nonsense, “Didn't think taking a desk job would have me bleeding this often.” 

The former villain stepped beside him before turning to hop up onto the sink. She looked comfortable, swinging her legs and leaning back against one arm. Her dark eyes roamed over his shirtless form, making him a little more than uncomfortable.

“What are you doing here?” He asked, narrowing his eyes at her. 

“I had a dream last night that we were fucking.” She responded bluntly, “Usually I don't remember my dreams, but this one was pretty vivid…”

“Was my girlfriend involved?” He kept his eyes down, pulling the last of the glass from his chest. 

“No, just you.” She shrugged. 

“Then it’s a dream I don’t want to hear about.” He grabbed a paper towel from the dispenser and ran it under the sink water for a second before wiping down his chest, “So, this is why you've been acting so weird all day.”

“I'm doing that thing where I imagine being with someone, you know?” Invisigal looked at him with a casual smirk, “see how it feels, how it looks, you know, like trying on a dress.”

Robert let out a frustrated breath, “You were there.”

Did she…spy on Blonde Blazer and him?

“I could have been.” Her proud look was still on her lips when she stood. The former villain stepped closer to him, raising her face to be mere inches from his, “I could be anywhere.”

Robert’s gaze was cold. He didn’t like anyone flirting with him. Frankly, it made him uncomfortable. He was loyal to you. He loved you. And flirting with anyone else just felt…wrong.

Thankfully though, before he could speak, the splattering sound of very loud bowel movements echoed around the bathroom. Visi’s proud smirk melted into disgust and impatience. 

Once there was a moment of quiet from the unfortunate individual with diarrhea, the dispatcher deadpanned, “And you chose to be here.”

“Sorry!” Waterboy’s embarrassed voice sounded right before more bowel noises, “I…I tried not…to do that…”

“Don’t worry about it, Waterboy.” He called back before slipping his hand into his pant pocket, “Bathrooms are for shitting after your first coffee and picking shrapnel out of your chest. Not for whatever this is….” His voice was flat, entirely uninterested in the current conversation.

Visi let out a frustrated noise and stepped back. She turned sharply and snapped at Waterboy in one of the bathroom stalls, “You ruined this for me!” She stormed out of sight as the flustered kid kept apologizing. 

Telling you about today was going to be interesting…

Once he got a new shirt, Robert grabbed a cup of coffee and a sandwich before returning to his desk. Though, he wasn’t hungry anymore. His confusion over the events of the day was too distracting. Truthfully, he was about to throw his lunch away until he heard a pathetic whine at his feet. 

Beef was looking up at him, crying for a snack.

The former hero never could tell the fat chihuahua no. 

He took a slice of ham from his sandwich and leaned down so his dog could happily take the treat.

“You're a menace.” He laughed before sitting back up to turn on his computer. 

Now, the shift. 

The team was already prepped and ready to go. 

“It’s weird that Coop’s gone.” Sonar spoke up immediately.

“Glad you made the cut though, dude.” Malevola sounded relieved, even happy in her words, “Imagine if it was Coop and Visi together.”

“I imagine Coop and Visi all the time…”

Robert rolled his eyes and got to work.

The calls seemed…normal. Standard.

Some shithead college kids needed help moving. A driver randomly swerved off a bridge. A fight at a football game needed to be broken up. 

There was something about a Cult of Chad?

At some point Blonde Blazer offered to train someone in the gym at the SDN office. 

The calls were…nonstop. Halfway through, Flambae finally spoke up about it, “We need you to send somebody else. This is too much.”

Shit. That bad huh?

“We're out of somebody's,” The dispatcher responded, “You're going to have to make do.”

His hands were tied. At least for the time being. 

Prism scoffed over the headset, “You sound like my first manager. I fired his ass.”

“Really didn't think this one through, did you, Robert?” Malevola also chimed in.

Golem laughed but didn’t say anything else. 

Sonar didn’t hold back either, “Malevola is right. If you hadn't cut Coop, this would be a breeze.”

“I can't believe I'm saying this, but Sonar has a point.” Visi was the final nail in the coffin. 

Everyone was tired and overworked.

Robert tried to reassure them, “Noted. Can you…just hang in there a little longer? I'll see what I can do.” He didn’t sound entirely convincing but he could help them get through this shift. 

“And I'd be right quick about it if I was you.” Punch Up finally spoke up about the entire situation. 

Thankfully, the Z-team managed to keep going until the end of the shift. Nobody died. Nobody got hurt. While the members were exhausted from the high number of calls, they all managed to make it back to SDN without any major losses. 

It was a good enough shift, but they needed backup. 

He’d need to think about who to accept into the Phoenix program…

Robert stood from his desk and checked his phone as he walked to the breakroom. He had texted you earlier about Phenomaman and you had just gotten back to him, which was one question. 

-Are you ok?

Was he ok? A kiss without consent was technically assault. But at the same time, Phenomaman was an alien. Social cues aren’t exactly his strong suit. Benefiting from the doubt, he probably didn’t mean to make Robert uncomfortable. 

-A little weirded out but I’m pretty sure he didn’t mean to be rude. I’ll talk to him about consent and boundaries later.

-Your always so patient <3

IMG Attached

You sent a picture of Beef. But it was edited to be covered with hearts and flowers. Next to the sleeping dog was him, asleep and also covered in the cutesy stickers from some photo editing app. 

Ok, that's cute.

You must’ve taken the picture this morning before you left for your photoshoot. 

He couldn’t help but smile to himself. Then, you texted again.

-I’m feeling burger and fries tonight. Wanna go to the Varsity after work?

-Hell yes.

Robert got a chocolate bar from the vending machine and sat down to mentally go over what to do with the Z-Team. 

Waterboy would be a rookie but he has a lot of potential to learn and grow. Plus, he was already an employee for this specific SDN branch.

Phenomaman was an emotional mess from his breakup, but was the poster boy for the words ‘Super Hero’. Even if he was an alien who needed to learn boundaries…

What number was the HR violation at again?

“S-Still working on that?”

“Hm?” Robert looked up, he hadn’t even realized he zoned out. 

Waterboy was standing over him. The young guy pointed to the fruit arrangement at the center of the table, “Aren't these the best? I-...I love the green ones. The…the green dew.”

Oh. This must be one of the edible arrangements that Blazer mentioned…

“All yours. Take the whole thing if you want.” The dispatcher shrugged. The blonde hero didn’t want them, and since they were all melon, he wasn’t so sure anyone else would either.

“A-awesome. My lucky day!” The janitor leaned down and wrapped his hands around the basket, “I...I know what's for lunch or dinner, probably…oh. Uh…sorry for interrupting your…um…meeting with Invisa-”

As he talked, Flambae had strolled into the breakroom and knelt in front of the fridge. When he didn’t find what he was looking for he snapped, “Oh, god damn it. You threw my noodles away. My initials were literally on the box and everything! Fuck!” The former villain stood and threw his hands up. 

“I…I don't read things. Sometimes it's different, like a logo…” Waterboy began to dig through the trash to try and find the agitated hero's noodles. Once he got the box, he lifted it up, “but it's probably still good.”

Flamebae reacted by hitting the food from his hands, covering the janitor in his noodles, “I-I don't want the fuckin’ trash noodles, Wet Fart Boy.” He taunted the younger guys stuttering too, adding insult to injury. 

Robert stood, calling out the older man's asshole behavior, “Whoa. What are you doing?”

“Whatever. It was an accident,” Flamebae rolled his eyes, “Just aim your dick up and water piss it off.” He turned and now began to rummage through the freezer. 

Waterboy looked dejected, “That's not…You…I'm going to go rinse off…” He spoke softly as he quickly fled from the breakroom to get to the showers.

Once he was out, Robert approached Flambae, “How would you like to have to walk around work the rest of the day with shit all over you!?”

“I don't know. I don't think about that because it won't happen.” The fiery hero whirled on him for a moment before turning back, “Cuz I'm not a fuckin’ idiot food thrower awayer.” He punctuated his point by knocking an abandoned box of chinese food into the trashcan. 

“It was an accident. You don't have to be a bully about it,” Robert retorted before pullinmg rank on him, “You want this in your report?”

It was a weak move but Flamebae needed to calm the fuck down.

At least it worked, because he turned back and smirked, exposing his missing tooth, “What’re you going to do? snitch on me?” He practically taunted, “This motherfucker…” He began to walk away, words fading off into a language Robert couldn’t understand. 

Without thinking, The former Mecha Man grabbed a nearly full plastic cup Waterboy had fished from the trash. He turned and threw it with surprising accuracy. The timing was perfect, just as the cup made contact, Flambae had turned, dosing his entire front in the protein shake.

Robert laughed. The former villain did not. 

He seethed, “If it's in my hair, I'm going to fuckin’ kill you.” He threatened. 

“Well, I got bad news for you.” The dispatcher smirked. 

Fire burst from his skin in his rage. Only Blonde Blazer walking into the room quelled the flames.

“Hey, Robert, could you…Oh, you have stuff on your face,” The blonde pointed out to the pissed former villain before her eyes roamed over the rest of his food-stained form “What happened here?”

“I don't want to be a snitch, but Flambae accidentally made a mess,” Robert sassed with a grin. 

“Really?” She asked, purely confused. 

Flambae seethed, but relented to his boss, “Yes…”

“Well, you should probably go get cleaned up, then, you know, accident or not, wipe up this mess you made.” Blazer suggested, sounding serious as she motioned to the messy floor. 

“Yes…” He stepped out of his fight-ready stance and turned to storm off. He disengaged entirely, avoiding burning the entire building down.

Blazer let out a sigh, “Okay, whatever that was. Listen, Robert-!” She nearly slipped as she stepped more into the breakroom but caught herself before she fell, “Anyway, you talked to Chase. Who's it going to be? Phenomaman or Waterboy?”

Robert had already walked over to the sink and began to wash his hands, “And these two are my only options?”

Both options didn’t seem…the most ideal.

“For now. Yeah, obviously we can revisit it.” Blonde Blazer got beside him and leaned against the breakroom counter, “But Waterboy is already a trainee, sort of. And you already know Phenomaman got cut by DTLA. Thanks for getting him out of the parking lot, by the way.” She nodded as she went over the perks and downsides of both options. 

Her thinking was the same line as his. 

Well…

“Phenomaman, I guess.” He turned off the sink and dried his hands as he explained his choice, “I mean, I'm worried he has too much time to think right now.”

The golden haired hero perked up, “That's…Yeah, I feel the same way. He could use a distraction.” She agreed very quickly, rather too quickly…

“So, it won't be weird with your ex-boyfriend hanging around?”

“I mean, he's already hanging around, so he may as well be doing some good.” She shrugged, “Instead of moping around the parking lot, crushing cars.”

“You make a good point.” Robert put his hands on his hips. He was still curious about that weird insurance claim. Hopefully he’d find out who the owner of the crushed car was. 

“I'll let him know. You'll see him in the roster for your next dispatch.” Blazer turned to go back to her office.

The former hero still had some time before his next shift. For some odd reason he felt…dirty. Sticky. 

Ugh.

He went to the showers and gave himself a quick rinse. Just something to get the grimy feeling off his skin. It didn’t take him long to finish up. Once he wrapped a towel around his waist, he went to the locker room to get dressed. Only to have his heart hit his throat when he noticed Phenomaman right beside him.

“Ah!”

”Hello, Robert. A moment of your time.” The alien was slouching as he spoke quietly.

“How do you move so quiet?” He looked up at his solemn face.

“I float.” Phenomaman answered bluntly. It was true, he was hovering a few inches from the beige tile floor,  “If it would make you more comfortable, I could remove my clothes as well.” He offered innocently.

Robert sighed, “It would not.” He raised a hand to punctuate the point that he didn't want the larger hero to strip down, “Look, if this is about picking you for Z Team, it wasn't even a hard decis-!” His words were cut off by his shoulders, getting grabbed. 

Phenomaman wrapped his muscled arms around him, squeezing him into his chest. “Thank you…” He whispered.

Ok he needs to learn boundaries…

The dispatcher tried to breathe, though it was hard with how much the alien had a grip on him, “No need. You're a legend.” He hissed, ribs rattling as he spoke, “But you…need to learn not to…touch people…without permission.” He felt the towel around his hips slip, fully exposing him. 

Phenomaman, thankfully, put him back down. After a stretch of silence, he spoke up, “My hug of gratitude seems to have reopened your chest wounds.”

Robert sighed again. 

After addressing his reopened wounds and getting his clothes back on, he returned to his desk. Once his headset was on, the computer screen came to life. 

The roster came into view, with Phenomaman attached at the end.

Blonde Blazer sounded through his headphones, indicating she was speaking to the rest of the team, “Hey team, we appreciate you doing your best last shift under the circumstances, but we are here to help. More specifically, Phenomaman is here to help.” She sounded cheerful enough, letting the Z-team know her ex-boyfriend was now working with them.

The muscular hero chimed in, “I am here to help.”

Malevola was the first one to ‘greet’ the new addition, “This is a joke, right?”

Flambae spoke up next, confusion dripping from his tone, “Really? This guy?”

Punch Up brought up a good point, “Didn't he also get fired?”

To her credit, Blazer took their negative attitudes in stride, “Yeah…Listen, I know things have been…difficult for him lately, but Robert and I believe he will make a great addition to the team.”

“difficult because you dumped him?” Visi sassed. 

“Visi-”

Flambae snorted before clearing his throat, “Don’t mind me.”

“Damn.” Prism laughed softly.

“The mean child is correct,” Phenomaman’s sad voice silenced them, “It has indeed been difficult since the ending of my relationship with Blonde Blazer, but any opportunity to see her again will make every day easier.”

Ill advised…

“I think you got it backwards, bro.” Golem weakly tried to argue some sense. 

“Yeah, it don't work that way, boy,” Prism followed up, agreeing with the massive construct, “Trust me.”

There wasn’t much else to discuss about the heroes motivations. The first call came in and Robert snapped to work. The shift has officially started.

The first one was from Vandco and it was to stop a potential assassination. 

Another call was a reporter asking about the Phoenix Program. 

The next was someone needing to stage a fight, so they wanted SDN to send a ‘loser’. 

The shift ran on rather quickly. The calls were easier with Phenomaman helping out the team. Robert was happy with how everything was going. At least…until…

“How meaningless…” The alien mumbled through the headset. He sounded depressed all of a sudden and his icon on the screen stopped moving. 

Robert tried to pair him with Punch Up on a call but nothing changed.

The short Irishman snapped, “I thought we were supposed to be getting help.”

What the fuck is going on…?

Later in the shift, Phenomaman spoke up again, “This may be a mistake. Robert, I am sensing dissatisfaction amongst my new companions.” 

Malevola wasted no time to be sarcastic, “Is one of his powers stating the super obvious?”

“The team’s exacerbated sighs were a great indicator.” He responded, entirely missing her sass and sarcasm.

“No wonder Blazer dumped you.” Visi grumbled. 

“All right, that's enough,” Robert shut down the attitude, “You said you wanted help and I got you one of the best heroes at SDN.” 

That apparently opened the doors for the rest to start insulting the poor alien hero.

“The best at pissing everyone off.”

“The best at crying in the locker room.”

“The best at leaving a giant crater whenever he takes to the skies.”

God damnit…

“Get it out of your systems. He's not going anywhere.” The dispatcher responded, not minding their jabbing anymore. Let them complain. Nothing would change.

Thankfully, they seemed to accept that. The rest of the shift went on without any more complaints or grumbling. By the end the Z-team found some sort of functional synergy with their new addition. It was dark outside when he pulled off his headset and rubbed the bridge of his nose. 

“Not only did you cut one of their dumb shit criminal buddies,” Chase popped his head up from his side of the divider, to lean against it, “You're also forcing them to work with…”

“One of the greatest heroes of all time?”

“I was going to say sad sack son of a bitch but yeah, let's go with yours.”

Robert leaned back in his chair and sighed, “Yea…lets go with mine.”

“Hey, kid,” Chase stepped behind him and put a hand on his hip, “Love yea.”

“Love you too, Unc.” The dispatcher responded, focusing on shutting off his computer. 

“Don’t fuck this up,” The former hero Trackstar bid him farewell for the night. 

He picked up some pens and moved to put them away before he stopped. His brown eyes settled on the photo of you he kept pinned at his desk. The picture was taken during a picnic date years ago. Your eyes were almost closed as he took the photo when you were laughing. 

You looked so happy. So relaxed. A far cry from how exhausted and worn you’ve become since his…

Since his explosive fuck-up. 

Christ…you deserved better than him. 

He sighed and rubbed his face in his hands. Somewhere else in the office he heard a mother and child meet up to go home together. All it did was make him feel worse.

Did he deprive you of a family?

Before his thoughts could spiral much more, Beef whined below the desk. The fat chihuahua looked up at him and tilted his head. 

“Alright boy…” Robert mumbled, picking up a ball he kept at his desk and standing. Beef followed him loyally as the duo walked through SDN’s building to an inner courtyard. After some unsuccessful tries of ‘fetch’, the dispatcher gave up and walked with his dog back inside. 

They passed the open door to the records room, noticing a blaring light from within. When the former hero stepped inside, he saw the source.

Phenomaman was sitting at the desk, resting his head on the tabletop. His sad eyes were trained on the screen of the computer that was playing a video of him and Blonde Blazer fighting a group of thugs. She looked strong and proud, and so did he. 

“Earlier that day, Blazer and I had breakfast at the rim of an active volcano.” The alien mumbled as Robert approached, “Then, we made love.”

“I don't need to hear your sex stories,” The dispatcher responded bluntly. 

“We never had intercourse. My alien genitals were not compatible with hers.” He responded, turning to look at the man beside him.

….Good to know…?

“That's...cool?” 

“Why is that cool?” 

“It's uh it's not…” Robert stumbled over his words, “What were you saying?” he hopped up to sit on the desk as he watched him carefully. 

Phenomaman turned and looked back at the screen, “Even without that ‘spark’ in our relationship…she was the only thing I was passionate about…” He mumbled, raising a hand to graze it over Blonde Blazer’s face, “Her voice…her eyes…her disposition…her whole of her remarkable corporeal form…” His dark eyes filled with unshed tears. 

“I don't think that's healthy….” The former Mecha Man responded carefully, “You should have more loves in the world.”

He needed hobbies. Desperately.

“So, more girlfriends?”

“No. Well…maybe? That's not my point,” Robert shook his head, “All I'm saying is what you need to do is find the next thing for you to be passionate about…cuz it's out there.” It was all he could think of that could help the emotionally distraught alien. 

Phenomaman looked up at him before standing, “Thank you. I wish to make love to you again.” He plopped his heavy hands on the dispatcher's shoulders.

“Boundaries, remember?” 

He nodded in understanding, though his hands remained on his shoulder, “Can I make love to you? This time I will avoid squeezing the blood out of you.”

…Eh fuck it.

“Sure, though it’s called a hug-” 

The muscular hero yanked him forward and wrapped his arms around him tightly. He squeezed all the air from his lungs. It took a good few seconds before Mecha Man was released to breathe again. 

After some polite ‘good nights.’ Robert returned to his desk with Beef by his feet. The computer screen flashed an alert with Invisigal’s face beside it. 

HERO OUTSIDE COVERAGE AREA. LOCATE. CLOSE. 

The hell was she doing?

He clicked ‘locate’ and a window popped up displaying the required body-cams all the SDN heroes had. It looked like Visi was in a movie theater. Her feet were resting on the back of a seat and the large screen in front of her was playing a clip from an advertisement. 

Robert rolled his eyes and put on his headset, “Whatcha watching?”

“Typecast 2.” She responded quietly, “You spying on me?”

“Technically you're still on the clock,” He corrected her while he started putting his things in his bag, “Didn’t peg you as a rom-com fan.”

“If I'm on the clock, you shouldn't be pegging me with anything, Robert. That's extremely inappropriate,” The dark haired woman joked, tone still hushed, “especially since I’m the peg-er, not the peg-ee.”

He rolled his eyes as he met her crude jokes in stride, “Great, my girlfriend and you can relate.” He zipped up his backpack, “Well, tell me how it is. I wanted to see that one.”

“There's still at least 20 minutes of trailers. I always forget what I'm watching by the time the movie starts.”

“Same.” Robert responded, “You goin’ solo?” 

“I'm a loner, Robbie, a rebel,” He watched as she shifted her position slightly to get more comfortable, “That and I feel bad asking people to pay when I'm just going to sneak in. The only lame thing is I can't get snacks.”

“Floating buckets of popcorn do tend to draw a lot of attention.” He nodded, though she couldn’t see. 

“Ah, but I miss it. I miss popcorn.”

Robert was about to respond when his phone vibrated. It was a text from Blonde Blazer. 

-Still at the office? Up for a late dinner?

He smiled. It was a nice offer. But he already knew what he was doing tonight and it was with you. He typed his polite response. 

-Sorry, can’t tonight. Rain check?

She answered rather quickly.

-Yeah, no worries!

Finally, he spoke to Visi again, “See you tomorrow. No spoilers.” He pulled his headset off and slung his bag over his shoulder to leave the office. Beef was following loyally.

Despite how dark out it was, it was easy to spot your car in the parking lot. You were standing in front of it, leaning against the hood looking at something on your phone. When you noticed Beef and him walking outside, you perked up and beamed. 

“My baby!” You called, kneeling down for the fat chihuahua to run into your arms. Once he was in your grasp, his tongue was all over your cheek. Even when you stood to greet Robert with a kiss, the dog continued to try and get your affection, “How was work?” You asked, petting Beef between the ears to get him to calm down. 

Where do I even start…?

“Well you know I was kissed by an alien.” 

“How was he?” you adjusted Beef in your arms to give him your full attention.

Robert stepped forward, put a hand to your cheek and kissed you. After pulling away, he couldn’t help the small smile on his face, “Not as good as a kiss from you.” 

You laughed softly, “Smooth talker… might as well kiss me again to really make sure.”

This hallway was so different from the ones you were used to standing in. Instead of the roaring screams of fans at the end, it was the shouts of your friends and families, joining together for your vow renewal.

When you’d first gotten married to the love of your life, you were both at the heights of your careers - Robert breaking records in football and you closing big-name contracts. You didn’t have time for the fairy tale dream wedding you’d envisioned as a child.

You wanted the yards. The flowers were picked in that one very specific shade, which grew only in certain regions at certain times of the year. You’d dreamed of what you would wear along with your friends and family who stood by your side. You’d meticulously planned the colour scheme to be bold yet subtle, clean yet sophisticated, different yet simple.

You’d imagined every last detail.

Then you met the love of your life. Life got busy. A courthouse and a quick background ceremony, between one of the biggest transfers of his career. It was nothing like what you thought it would be, but it was perfect for you both. Nothing could top it.

Until you mentioned to Robert about retiring and staying home with the kids. While preparing for the World Cup, he decided to surprise you in a vow renewal ceremony, but it was your meticulously planned wedding.

You leaned against the wall, taking in a moment of peace. You’d just wrapped up the ceremony and taken some pictures, so you and Robert were alone while your friends and families, despite knowing each other very well at this point, were mingling in a cocktail hour in the ballroom. Robert disappeared for a second before returning with two flutes of champagne (or sparkling cider), holding one out to you.

“Are you ready?” He asked, pulling out his written vows. One thing you’d been adamant about was to read your vows privately. You knew you’d cry, and you did not need an audience for that.

“Can I go first? I’d rather get through this without crying,” You chuckled, pulling out your own vow book from your pocket.

He stepped back, pulling you with him, so you were standing in the middle of the hallway. He knew your photographer was down the hall, allowing for this to be a private moment, but knew you still wanted pictures of the exchange.

“Okay, I grew up thinking love was something dramatic, but with you, it’s always been different. Not the loud and obvious love I was used to with my parents, but quiet and somehow deeper and more meaningful than I ever thought love could be. I felt that pull the first time I saw you during the club fitting. I pretended to be focused on my work while you stood there like it was nothing. I couldn’t think in full sentences, and you probably don’t remember what you said, but I do,” You paused as he carefully wipes a tear off of your cheek.

“You looked in my eyes and said I had a beautiful mind because there was no way anyone else could have designed your suit better than me,” You let out a watery laugh as you watched the recognition flash through his eyes. “As a lowly intern, that meant everything to me, and between the fittings and flights, you became my constant. Even when you were halfway across the world, I felt you here, in my heart and in the little notes you left on my mirror. You might not know this, but I’ve kept every single one.”

“There have to be hundreds at this point,” He laughed incredulously.

“734 to be exact,” You replied before, “Wait, 735, you left one in my suite this morning. My point is, I love this quiet life we’ve built. The way you reach for my hand without thinking. The way you pretend you don’t like matching with me, but never complain anyway, especially when it’s my favorite colour.

“You know my palette, what can I say?”

“We complement each other well, and if we find ourselves here again, years from now, saying these words again,” You paused, collecting yourself, “I will still be completely, undeniably, head over heels in love with you.”

“How do I follow that up?” He signed, but still planted a kiss firmly on your lips before pulling back and taking a deep breath. “I’m not the best with words, so bear with me.”

“That’s a lie, and you know it.”

“When we met, you walked into the locker room as if you belonged there. Confident, focused, not to mention beautiful, and you were the only thing I could pay attention to. I remember Arjen telling me you were out of my league-”

“Me out of your league?” You gasped, “I need to have a word with him.”

“Yeah, and he bet I wouldn’t say anything. I stuttered my way through the compliment, but it made you blush then. Now, we've been married for 12 years, and you still blush so easily. Not much has changed. You still look at me like that sometimes, and I still feel like it’s the first time I see you every day,” he said, running his fingers along the back of your knuckles. “My life has always been loud. Stadiums, fans, travel, expectations, but you…you’ve always been the calm in the storm. You’ve always been the part of my life that makes sense, the part that feels steady. No matter where I go, you are always the place I come back to.”

“You’re going to make me ugly cry,” You whispered, fanning at your eyes with the book.

“You could never,” He smiled, wiping your tears again. “You're absolutely beautiful no matter what you do.”

“Oh my, for a man who doesn’t have the right words, you sure know how to say the right ones to me.”

“Because it’s you,” He said simply. “You have always made things easy. You’ve given me a life I didn’t even know I was missing. A home, a companion, a family. I promise to keep showing up for you, for them, but most importantly, for us. I promise to stand beside you, to support you, and to keep building this life we started together.”

“You're a sap,” You muttered as you leaned your foreheads together. “I love you.”

“And just so you hear it clearly,” He whispered, “After everything, after all this time, I am still completely, hopelessly, head over heels in love with you.”

You breathed him in before your lips connected in a sweet but fiery kiss. The moment was just you and Robert. Him and you. Unfortunately, you knew the moment could only last so long.

“Now, I believe we have a first dance to get to,” He murmured against your lips before slowly and reluctantly pulling away to lead you through the doors.

~~~

Main MASTERLIST // FCB // HITLIST

~~~~~

It shouldn’t have been a surprise when you saw the comments under the latest post. Having done some recent promotion for the new season of dispatch with the rest of the crew. You had seen these kinds of things before, but mostly sparingly thankfully, other than today. You knew better, you knew to ignore these kinds of things but your thumb scrolls and your eyes feel stuck to the comments. You don’t even seem to realize you’re crying until you hear Robert enter the house, having come back from some simple errand run. You quickly wiped away your tears, not wanting to look upset. Your phone sits abandoned on the table in the living room as you go and greet Robert, as you always do. A soft kiss on the lips. You two had met on set after being casted as a background actor. You had accidentally bumped into him leaving the studio lot, dropping your bag and script papers. A real meet cute. “There she is,” He says, smiling as he greets you with a gentle kiss. The two of you had been dating privately for the past few months, but you were always worried. He was constantly surrounded by gorgeous women like Courtney, Mandy and Mal that it always did make you wonder why he picked you of all people. You helped put away the few groceries he brought back while he sorted the mail, ranting about whatever got in the way of his travels this time. You try to focus, truly, but the nagging, almost overwhelming part of your brain tugs at your worst parts. You had gained some weight, not a ton, but it seemed everyone else noticed immediately. The comments were slow at first, but now it appeared like it was the one thing anyone ever said about you.

“And then Beef decided he wanted to try and play fetch with the other dogs twelve times his size,” Robert laughed a bit as he gave the little fat roll a few pets. When you didn’t respond he paused before coming over, wrapping an arm around your waist and resting his hand on your tummy. “You ok?” He asked softly before you pulled his hands away from your stomach area

Robert realizes what is going on and frowns softly, “Hey,” He said, turning you to face him, even when you don’t meet his gaze, trying not to tear up. Robert gently grasps your chin, turning your face to look at him. “I love you, all of you,” He said, kissing you gently, showing you just how much he did with a softness and passion that only someone who truly truly loved someone could show.The kiss ends after a moment as he wipes away some of your now freefalling tears. “Come here,” Robert said softly, guiding you to the couch and then his lap, not letting go even when you do try to weakly pull away or move his hands off. “Talk to me,” He says, making it clear it’s not really a request as he does so. You pause before breaking down, admitting your insecurities and how you don’t feel like you deserve him.