beautiful stranger, here you are

Eddie and Volt were certainly an odd pair. Volt’s magnetic and charismatic nature was the flipside of a coin to Eddie’s gruffness yet subtle charm. When they weren’t busy at the club, they each enjoyed spending a night off on the couch, eating takeout or something Mitchell Linn whipped up. 

Volt sat back on the couch and kicked off his shoes, getting comfortable in the pile of blankets you’d dragged down from your bedroom. Eddie sat in the chair adjacent to him and shot you his signature crooked grin when you entered the room with three mugs in hand, wrapped in a towel so you could carry them each without burning yourself. 

“Thanks, hon,” he said as you handed him the mug, giving the back of your hand a quick kiss. The action made your heart flutter, even just a little. It had only been a few weeks; you weren’t quite used to the attention from anyone in a romantic aspect, let alone two of the most handsome men you’d ever laid eyes on. 

Volt had hardly noticed your entrance. Typically, he was someone to pay attention to the little details, even unnecessary ones, but he looked distracted. A frown tugged at the corners of his mouth as he inspected his nails. 

You take a seat next to him, the mug out for him to take. “What’s wrong?” you ask, peering over his shoulder to see whatever it was he was looking at. 

He took the drink gratefully and took a sip before putting it on the coffee table. “My nail polish is chipped,” he said, his attention going back to his nails. 

You followed his gaze. Somehow, you’d never noticed Volt wore a brilliant white nail polish. Just like him, it was perfect—except for a small chip in the corner of his ring finger. The polish hung loosely off his nail, revealing that it had begun to peel off. 

“Oh no, your manicure is ruined. It’s the end of the world,” Eddie said dryly, hiding his smirk behind his cup. 

A small crackle of electricity sounds and a flash of light flies from Volt’s hand to Eddie’s shoulder. He makes an ‘oof’ sort of noise and grabs his shoulder in pain, shooting a glare towards Volt. Who turns away and whistles like he hadn’t a clue what Eddie was so mad about. 

You chuckle at the pair’s antics and take the hand with Volt’s chipped nail, inspecting it carefully. “I can fix it,” you say, thinking back to the small array of nail polishes on your bathroom counter upstairs. “I don’t think I have the same color white, though. I could do yellow? It glows in the dark, I think.”

Eddie scoffs. “That’s a great match. Something else about him that can glow when I’m trying to sleep.”

Volt waved off his comment, taking both of your hands in his. “If you want to, live wire, I would love that. Whatever color you have.”

So it was set. You made your way up to the bathroom where your beauty supplies and skin care was kept and snatched the bottle of nail polish you needed, said hello to Betty, grabbed an extra pillow so you could lay down later if you got sleepy, and made your way downstairs. 

“No one said we couldn’t do yours, too,” you heard Volt say as you reached the bottom few steps. “You’re acting all mopey, Eddie. I can tell you’re jealous.”

“I’m not jealous. I don’t even have any nails to paint,” Eddie said in a huff. It was true that his work left him with incredibly short nails that would be hard to work with, but you were willing to try if that’s what he wanted. “Besides. It would probably get ruined in a few days.”

You approached Eddie from the side, leaning against the arm of the chair he was sitting in. “Would you care for a manicure, too?” you ask, almost teasing, but the offer was real if he wanted it. 

He made a non-committal noise and wrapped his arms around you, tugging you into his lap. A sort of surprised squeal left your mouth as you settled in, back against one arm of the chair and your knees hooked over the other. His cold hands slid casually under your shirt, making you jump. Over your shoulder, you could hear Volt laughing at you. 

“What are you doing?” you ask Eddie, who had found his place with his face buried in your shoulder. In the weeks he’d been comfortable opening up to you, you’d learned he was quite clingy when he was tired. He muttered something entirely muffled by your neck and decided just to sit there for a moment with him, your hand carding through his hair. 

Volt flipped through movies on the TV for what felt like ages, and very well could have been as there was endless content on the latest streaming service you’d purchased, but never anything that looked good. Eventually, he settled on something to leave in the background and came to join the two of you, sliding the second armchair a bit closer. “Think you can work from there, live wire?” he asked. “I think someone fell asleep.”

You had felt Eddie’s breath even out a few minutes ago, though his grip around your waist remained tight. You shifted a little in his lap leaning forward a bit more so you could better reach his hands. 

Several episodes passed in the background of your idle chatter with Volt. He made another cup of tea in the meantime, had grabbed some snacks once his nails dried, and had covered you and Eddie with a blanket. When he started to yawn, though, he checked the time of night. 

“We’ve been up too late, even by my standards at the Breaker Box,” he said, covering his mouth to start to yawn again. He stood and offered his hand to you. Eddie, as if knowing you were about to move from his half-asleep state, squeezed you a little tighter. 

“Eddie,” you said softly, brushing hair back from his face and tilting his head back. “It’s bedtime. Come on, upstairs.”

He groaned, his eyes slowly fluttering open. “Why?” he practically whined. “Don’t wanna.”

“Come on, you sap.” Volt pressed a quick kiss to his temple before giving his arm a tug in an attempt to disconnect him from you. “You’ll be more comfortable in bed.”