Chapter Text
When you first stumbled upon the Breaker Box, you had no idea it would become your favorite spot in the house. You certainly did not anticipate befriending its brooding bartender, saving his life and managing to score a relationship with both him and the host!
Not that you were complaining: you only recently discovered you fared way better in non-monogamous settings, and this was the perfect way to stay close with Eddie while not breaking him up with his boyfriend -that’s how you saw them, anyway, and you were perfectly content even just watching the two of them interact; they would clearly move heaven and earth for each other-.
Still, you couldn’t help ruminating on the impression Volt gave you on your first meeting. You were never one for insta-love, whether real or fictional, and the man’s immediate attentions towards you fell decidedly in that category. It was far too easy to call him “just a pretty face with nothing underneath” and move on, but seeing him worried sick over Eddie’s wellbeing, constantly checking on him and even offering to sacrifice his very existence for his partner made you re-evaluate every little gesture towards you.
Sure, maybe he was just naturally flirtatious, you had no trouble picturing him with a variety of dalliances after all, but knowing that a huge part of that was just to keep Eddie safe…
The kiss you shared after that dance felt like the most real interaction you’d had.
That very memory was at the forefront of your mind when you approached the bar, opening the door with an unsteady hand.
“Live wire!”
Here we go.
You hoped your voice would come out steadier than what you heard in your ears.
“Hey! Just the man I wanted to see.” You flashed your winning smile at Volt, and spotted Eddie at the bar like always, greeting you silently with sparkling eyes.
“Oh, I’m honored to hear that. It’s great to see you too!” He extended a hand towards you, a familiar gesture by now.
You still needed him to take you seriously, though.
“No, actually, I need to talk to you. In private”
He seemed to falter at that, but you assumed he wouldn’t crack so easily.
“I-it’s nothing bad!” Hoping he wouldn’t take it badly. “It’s about, um, you and me?”
Eddie was clearly eavesdropping on the whole thing; he had stopped whatever he was doing and stared at you tumbling over your words. His expression was unreadable.
Volt lowered his arm, but still looked like his dazzling self. “I would love nothing more, live wire”
Got him.
“Okay, yeah! Um…lead the way?”
“With pleasure.” Volt drawled, turning around and speedwalking towards the tables at the other end of the room. As you struggled to keep up, you glanced at Eddie again, who reciprocated with a slight head tilt and almost invisible furrowed brow. You raised a shaky thumbs up, hoping it would suffice.
You and Volt got situated, sitting across each other at one of the smaller tables. His fingers were interlaced and resting on his crossed legs.
“So, what’s the matter?” His tone was polite, as always, and he had the same friendly smile you were now used to. You kept wondering how much of his mannerisms was rehearsed.
You took a deep breath.
“Well, um…”
Shit. Why was it always so much easier in your head? You always feared saying the wrong thing would set people off, and when it came to him that dial went straight to 100. He felt extremely easy to piss off; at the same time, you never rubbed him the wrong way so far, right? The uncertainty would be the end of you, if you didn’t get on with it. Maybe looking somewhere else would help get the words out. You focused on the edge of the table.
“Okay, the thing is, we might have gotten off on the wrong foot.”
You dared raise your eyes, just a little, enough to catch Volt wide-eyed, his costumer service smirk gone.
“Whatever do you mean with that?”
He looks more confused than angry, the thought lessened some of the tightness in your chest.
“See, I…I’m not comfortable when people are immediately…um, seductive, with me.”
Volt said nothing.
“I honestly didn’t think much of you when we first spoke” You fidgeted with the hair on the back of your neck “I usually can’t take these interactions seriously, especially when they don’t last long; at best, I think the person is just being friendly, and at worst I feel…objectified? Like they don’t really care about me, and I’m just another potential notch on their belt?”
The man looked horrified by now, and you rushed to get to the point “Not that you would think that! I mean, I know that now. Seeing you doting over Eddie made me realise how poorly I judged the situation, but I still couldn’t be sure…”
You were gesticulating wildly, positively rambling at this point. “I barely ever feel attracted to other people most of the time, and on those rare occasions I have to know them quite a bit beforehand, and I’m absolutely fine with that, I’ve made my peace with it, it took me a while to make peace with it, but I still agonize over the fact that most of the people I meet aren’t willing to wait that long, they look for a one-and-done thing and there’s nothing wrong with that but I can’t give it to them and I’m terrified of leading people on and that they’ll hate me forever and-”
You were startled by Volt’s fingers rushing to your face. You didn’t even register how emotional you were getting before they drew damp streaks across your cheeks.
You finally managed to look him in the eyes. He furrowed his brows, absolutely heartbroken.
“Ah, look, I made it all about me” you chuckled softly, trying to relieve the tension and wiping the corner of your eyes. “What I’m trying to say is, I’ve judged you too harshly, and I am so, so happy to be with you and Eddie, but I feel like I’m doing both of us a disservice by not getting to know you better.”
Finally, a genuine smile spread across your face. Volt looked at you, transfixed and still silent.
“So, basically, I would love to spend more time with you. I want to feel genuine butterflies, because you deserve nothing less.”
A fierce glow bloomed across his face, not unlike the one you saw after that fateful kiss. Did it work?
In an instant he rose to his feet, knocking over his chair, closed the distance between you and pulled you up into the tightest hug you never imagined him capable of, your legs dangling off the floor and causing you to giggle.
He was silent for a few more seconds, but you could feel his breath getting ragged, and was he trembling ever so slightly? You’d never seen him like this.
He said your name quietly, reverently.
“Do you really mean it?”
You wanted to cry again at how small he sounded.
“I do, Volt, really. If you’ll have me.”
He placed a kiss on your forehead, and now he was smiling too. “Are you kidding me? After all of that?”
“Hey, can’t blame me for asking.”
“You two, get that chair when you’re done!”
You both glanced at Eddie, whose own grin belied the annoyed tone he was going for. Of course he was listening. You both giggled like a pair of lovestruck teenagers.
“So sorry, dear, I’ll take care of it” Volt released you after a final little squeeze, and you insisted on helping him. The hard part was out of the way, and you truly could not have hoped for a better outcome.