Work Text:
Fighting Trash Beasts is dangerous, being a Cleaner, let alone being a Giver, is also dangerous. Then again, anything about the ground is dangerous. But that never stopped Enjin from genuinely falling in love. With a man nonetheless. He’d always suspected himself to be bisexual but with a woman preference. He just never actually thought he’d actually fall in love so he never gave it much thought, just hooking up with any one who caught his eye.
But then he went and fell for him. Something about Gris just made Enjin want to explode, in a good way. Although it was a bit rocky, here the two are, considered the “old men yaoi” of the Cleaners even though they both aren’t even that old. It’s sort of endearing to be supported in such a way though.
The younger Cleaners love teasing the two with that sworn title a lot. Unluckily for Enjin, even his biggest fan, Zanka, teases him with it as well. It’s not a bother though, Enjin gets a kick out of it besides being considered “old”.
It’s when Rudo enters the picture that things get interesting. Enjin and Gris only hid their relationship in their beginning stages, but now that they’ve been together for who knows how long? They don’t hide anything. But then Rudo goes and looks at them weirdly. Enjin can’t help but get amusement from that, is the kid homophobic? Definitely interesting coming from a spherite.
Gris, the cool headed of the two, simply suggests that maybe Rudo doesn’t know about certain things. So of course Enjin had to get to the bottom of it.
And here Enjin finds himself in his current situation, driving like a mad man in his jeep at speeds he definitely shouldn’t be going on ground as unstable as this. He’s enjoying himself a lot, sunglasses on with an arm draped out of the window. He was having one hell of a fun time.
Can’t say the same for his poor passenger. Rudo gets thrown around wildly as Enjin takes sharp turn after sharp turn. It’s not like he’s scared, but he sure isn’t enjoying this as much as his kidnapper is. Rudo didn’t even want to tag along but Zanka hit him over the head and forced him too. So all Rudo can do is sit there and suffer in silence, at least he has cool ass sunglasses on.
After another sharp turn, Enjin finally speaks for the first time since they entered the vehicle. “So! Rudo~”
It doesn’t take a genius to know that Enjin is about to ask Rudo something stupid. “What?”
“You’re always looking at Gris and I weirdly.” The smile on Enjin’s face stays there unwaveringly. “Why is that?”
“Cause you’re weird?” Rudo shrugs, bracing himself for the next turn. “Gris is… cool… though.” His tone drops a bit as he compliments the cooler and nicer blond man.
“Eh?” Enjin snorts, “Why am I weird? C’mon! Tell me~”
Rudo thinks about it for a moment, sure he finds Enjin weird. He finds a lot of things on the ground weird. “You’re really close to Gris.”
“And that’s weird?” The two bounce up for a moment as Enjin hits a bump. Enjin quickly takes his eyes off the “road” for a second, sending Rudo a cheeky grin. “Be honest with me.”
At that, the boy can’t help but fidget with his gloved fingers. “I don’t know, you’re kinda all… touchy? With him.” Rudo looks out the window, gazing at the buildings that seem so far away. “Reminds me of the couples up on the sphere.”
Enjin hums, getting an answer he can finally work with. It’d be boring to just say “Hey I’m gay, that’s my boyfriend, and oh yeah two guys can be together!” Besides, that could scare the kid! So the man settles on saying, “What, like men and women?”
Rudo looks at him dumb founded, "Obviously?”
Loud laughter fills the vehicle for a hot minute as Enjin lets it all out. Rudo only blinks at him blankly but with a bit of concern glinting in his red eyes. Upon calming, “You ever heard about being gay?” He says with a grin, fighting back his laughter.
There’s practically a question mark over Rudo’s head as he lightly cocks it to the side. “Huh?”
“Ya know. A guy and a guy. A gal and a gal.” Enjin shrugs, deciding to slow down a bit as they near narrower paths. “It’s not limited to that either.”
“That can happen?” Rudo’s eyes look like saucers, they're so wide. He puts a hand to his chin, “I didn’t know that.”
Enjin sorta figured that out from the initial reaction the boy gave. “Guess it’s not a popular thing up on the sphere, huh?”
Rudo shakes his head, “I’ve never seen it before.” He shrugs, calming down from his surprise, “Then again I lived in the slums so love wasn’t something I saw much of.” Besides couples in back alleyways but Rudo doesn’t quite want to remember that sorta thing.
“Hmm I see.” He thinks about what he should say next as he taps on the steering wheel. He could just outright say he and Gris are together, or he could give some kind of talk. Then again, Enjin really isn’t up for shit like that.
But, Rudo also beats him to it. “So you and Gris… are uh… a couple?” His cheeks fluster a bit out of embarrassment.
Enjin smiles almost fondly, “Yeah, have been for a while too!”
“Cool.” The boy returns to looking out the window, unsure of what to really say. Sure, it’s a surprise to him that couples aren’t limited to just a man and a woman being together, but it’s not like it’s some big deal. Regto had “the talk” with him a bit ago and that made him want to crawl in on himself and die so this isn’t really his thing. Especially after Chiwa.
Feeling like he may have fucked up a bit, Enjin comes up with the only thing he knows to break the impending silence. “Want some ice cream?”
Ever since Enjin and Rudo’s little chat in the jeep, Rudo has suddenly been kidnapped a lot. Enjin needs to get something from a merchant or vendor? He takes Rudo. Enjin needs to scout something? Rudo gets snatched. Enjin goes on a date with Gris? Yup, Rudo goes with against his will. One recurring variable is the fact that Gris is always there too.
Now this instance Rudo has heard about, and seen first hand. He’s third wheeling. He’s really being forced, by Enjin, to third wheel this gay couple. Rude was told that being against gay people is called homophobia and now he’s deathly afraid of saying something wrong and being labeled “homophobe”. He doesn't know why it scares him, it just feels like something that he should be afraid of.
But at the current moment, he’s definitely thinking about saying something rude. He likes Gris, don’t get him wrong, but Enjin? He’s on thin ice at best. He goes around looking like Mary Poppins with Umbreaker and now he has a habit of kidnapping Rudo every chance he gets. So of course Rudo has that itch to be a bit hateful.
Until he gets sweets in return for going somewhere. It’s always Gris that buys it for him. Chocolate, cake, candy, ice cream. It didn’t matter, Gris would get him something after every kidnapping. Rudo looked forward to it at that, so he could no longer call it kidnapping.
Some of the time it was even fun, such as the moment Rudo currently finds himself in. A semi-long jeep ride into a trashed area for Rudo to go gathering whatever catches his eye. And the best part? Rudo gets sweets afterwards too!
As the boy digs through a pile of junk, he finds a few different trinkets that spark an idea. Gris is always treating him so kindly, he should repay that, right? It’s also to make up for ruining his amulet. Yeah, the man said it wasn’t a big deal or whatever but that doesn’t mean the boy is gonna accept that.
So Rudo, with new determination, moves from area to area grabbing whatever he thinks he can work with. Enjin and Gris watch him from a bit back, giving the kid space but also not being too far from him in case something happens.
“Whatcha think he’s doing this time?” Enjin asks with a fond tone of voice.
“If I had to guess,” Gris watches as Rudo moves from one pile of trash to another, “he’s found some cool stuff to repair.”
The younger man hums at that, it’s Rudo’s most typical recurrence. “You know, he’s kinda like our kid.” Enjin smirks at his partner, “You even made me stop smoking around him.”
“Of course.” Gris smiles happily, bumping Enjin lightly with his elbow. “Smoking around youngin’s is bad.” He hums out a small chuckle, aiming his gaze back to Rudo who’s moved to another spot yet again. “I guess he is our kid now, huh? Him and Riyo.”
“We have two~” Enjin practically purrs in contentment, watching Rudo do who knows what as he gets to lean against his lover. After a moment, Enjin sees the kid stand. “Welp, guess we’re going.”
“Seems he’s found all he needs.” The older man can’t help the fond smile that adorns his face as Rudo runs up to him.
“What’s your favorite color?” The boy asks the Supporter.
“Hmm.” He gives it a quick thought as Enjin gets in the jeep behind him. “Either blue or gray.”
“Okay.” Rudo hums in what sounds like victory, stepping past the man and entering the vehicle. Gris finds himself smiling yet again. Random for sure, but Gris finds anything Rudo does to be endearing in a parental way.
Upon returning back to headquarters, Rudo gets out in a hurry, practically running inside the building and vanishing into his room. He has some work to do and he must do it right at this very moment while his idea is fresh in his head. Gris and Enjin share confusion, but Enjin being Enjin laughs it off as the kid being excited about his trash.
::
“Rudo!” Zanka shouts, banging on the room’s door. “Ya’ve been in here for way too long! Get out and train or somethin’!” Anger makes its way around his body, he’s utterly pissed. He’s meant to be this trash loving creature’s trainer and yet he hasn’t even seen Rudo in five days. After a few more loud knocks, the door finally opens.
“What?” Rudo glares at the blue eyed, completely mad at the interruption. “Can’t you wait? I’m almost done.”
“Eh?” Zanka swears he’s about to lose his damn mind. “What the hell are ya doin’?”
“Wouldn’t you like to know.” The red eyed scoffs, about to shut the door in his trainer’s face until said teen stops it. “Hey! Leave me alone, turdface.”
“Enjin told me to get you outta this room. Get out!”
“No! I’m not done yet!”
“I don’t care! You’ve cooped yourself in here for too long, get out and socialize!" Zanka huffs, pounding on the door frame. Apparently he’s a whole lot angrier than he thought, then again Rudo seems to also get under his skin like this.
“Ugh! Fine. Just give me five minutes.” Rudo crosses his arms tightly over his chest, not budging unless he gets to finish what he was doing.
“Oh my god.” The noble swears he’s going to strangle this brat. “Fine. But I’m staying.”
“What? No way! I don’t want a turdface to be around me!” The younger barks out all defensive. “Go away, shoo.” Rudo tries to shut the door again but sadly Zanka is strong enough to keep it open.
“Either I stay, or I drag ya out.” He speaks sternly. Sure, he’s mainly following Enjin’s words of “go get Rudo” but a big part of him wants to see what the other is hiding. He’ll never admit that out loud though.
“Ugh. Fine.” The red eyed scoffs once more, louder than before to show his annoyance before turning around and heading straight back to his desk. “Don’t touch anything.”
Zanka doesn’t respond, simply entering the room and shutting the door behind him. He looks around at all the junk littered everywhere, though it’s organized. Sure, there’s shit everywhere but it’s in such an organized fashion that Zanka can’t help but actually be a bit impressed. He decides to settle himself on Rudo’s bed, sitting close enough to be able to watch what he’s doing.
“What is that?” The blue eyed asks with a bit too much interest in his tone then he would’ve liked.
“Do I have to tell you?” Rudo side eyes him, since when has he gotten so sassy? Probably hanging around Enjin all the time, at least that's what Zanka thinks.
“Just tell me! Jeez, I’m not gonna scold ya or anythin’.” He sighs, doing his utmost to not get anymore aggressive then he already was.
The younger went silent for a moment before holding up the thing he’s been working so hard on in front of Zanka’s face. “There, you seen it, okay?” Rudo goes to move it but Zanka grabs his wrist, keeping his arm right where it is.
“An amulet?” Zanka looks closer at it, it looks exactly like the tattoos on Enjin’s neck. Instead of being black, the design is gray that fades to a blue instead.
Rudo pries himself out of Zanka’s grip, giving the teen a glare in turn. “It’s for Gris.”
Now that’s a surprise and kind of random. Zanka knows the brat is always with those two old gay men but he didn’t think the brat would start making shit for them. “Why?”
“You got a problem?” Rudo snarls, Zanka came off a bit too harsh.
“I’m curious.” He shrugs.
With a pensive moment, “He’s always doing nice things for me.” Rudo bashfully looks away. “I wanted to do something in return. I’m good at fixing things.”
Honestly, seeing Rudo like this was actually kinda cute, sure he’s mad as hell since Zanka is in the room and disturbing him but he’s not clawing at his throat for once. “Hm. Okay.” If he didn’t have such a stick up his ass, he’d compliment it. It’s amazingly made after all, it looks completely identical to Enjin’s neck tat and there’s no doubt in the noble’s mind, Gris will definitely like it.
“Now let me finish it. So shut up.” Rudo gives a quick ‘hmph’ before turning back to his desk.
Zanka sighs, quicker the brat gets it done, the quicker he can get back to eating. To pass time, he looks around the room some more, taking in more detail this time. He notices the cork board with all sorts of different papers pinned to it, notices the different piles of items that seem to be used for repairs. But then something on a shelf catches Zanka’s eye.
“What’s that?” He nods his head in the direction even though Rudo isn’t looking at him.
“What’s what?” Rudo is clearly pissed off more at being interrupted yet again. He looks at Zanka, then at where Zanka is looking. “Oh.” He gulps, “It’s nothing.”
“Ha? It’s obviously not nothin’.” Zanka stands, heading for the item.
“Hey! It’s nothing, okay!? Leave it!!” Rudo’s face is a bit red out of embarrassment.
The teen bends over a bit, taking a good look at the item and sure enough it’s a small version of his Lovely Assistaff. He doesn’t touch it, sure he’s an asshole but he’s not a big enough asshole to mess with something Rudo clearly cares about. “Why?”
Rudo looks anywhere but at Zanka. “I uh… I just found the perfect item okay? How was I not meant to recreate it when it looked just like your dumb stick!” He’s mad but more embarrassed at being caught than anything else. He doesn’t know what made him make the thing but he’s been very attached to it.
“Hmm.” Zanka takes one more good look at it. “It really does look exactly like it.” He puts a hand to his chin, noticing just how much detail was put into the miniature staff. “Do you stare at my Lovely Assistaff so much that you can replicate it?”
“S-shut up! You’re so annoying, turdface!” Rudo practically squeaks, face only getting redder. In a hurry, he grabs the amulet and charges for his door. “Whatever, let’s go I guess.” He doesn’t wait for Zanka, leaving the room in a flash.
It’s the moment Rudo is out of sight does Zanka smile lightly at the small sculpture.
::
When Rudo enters the room, he sees Enjin and Gris at their typical table with Riyo accompanying them. Putting two and two together, he can assume Zanka was probably sitting with them before Enjin had the teen come get Rudo. Taking a deep breath, Rudo approaches. Now is his chance to give the man the gift he’s been working hard on. Nerves settle under his skin, slight worry that Gris won’t like it since it’s just junk welded, glued and painted.
Rudo sits right across from Gris, the seat he assumes Zanka was at prior, first come first serve. Zanka will have to sit somewhere else.
“Hey kiddo.” Gris smiles at the boy, sliding a plate with four cookies on it towards him. “Want ‘em?”
He doesn’t even respond, grabbing two of them and inhaling the delectable goods. He barely even chewed, just swallowed them like they were sacred and about to be snatched away. “Thanks.”
Gris can only smile fondly at the boy. “Have you been alright? Haven’t seen you in a bit.”
“I’ve been okay.” Rudo looks up, ignoring the fact Enjin and Riyo watch him with amused eyes. “I uh, was doing something special.” The red eyed is pensive about giving it to him, but he already showed Zanka so now he has to give it to the man. Speaking of Zanka, Rudo doesn’t even notice the teen’s angry presence behind him.
“Oh?” Enjin grins, leaning his head on the palm of his hand, arm propped up on the table with grace. “Have to be something really special since you’ve been MIA for five days.” The man teases.
Rudo fidgets with his gloved hands, it’s now or never. He grabs the amulet from his pocket and sets it on the table in front of Gris without saying a word. The man looks down at it in awe, examining it before picking it up gently.
“Enjin’s neck tattoo?” Gris can’t help but feel the utmost happiness one can feel as he looks at the gift intently. He takes in all the different components that went into making the thing, bolts, screws, random chunks of metal, it’s so intricate with all the small details that can’t be seen from far away. He lets out a small amused chuckle, “No wonder you asked me my favorite color.” He fondly gazes at the trinket, noticing the hard work that went into the perfect gray to blue gradient.
“You’re always…” Rudo voices betrays him, nervousness and bashfulness causing him to speak a bit too low. “Treating me well… and getting me sweets…”
“Eh!?” Enjin perks up, “Where’s my gift then?” He pouts like the man-child he is. “I drive you everywhere!!"
Once again, Rudo ignores him. Zanka wants to hit him for it but he writes it off, best not to ruin the moment.
“I love it.” Gris humbly speaks, never taking his eyes off of his new possession. “Though you didn’t have to give me anything in return, Rudo.”
“I kinda ruined your last amulet so…” He still feels bad for that.
Gris can’t help the small laughter that escapes him. “Well, I appreciate it, thank you. I’ll make sure to take good care of it.”
“Maybe if you take good enough care of it, it’ll turn into a vital instrument!” Riyo finally says her first words since Rudo has joined the table.
“It’s not impossible.” Enjin hums in delight, seeing his boyfriend so happy with the gift makes him happy. The urge to kiss him right then and there is prominent, but Gris would a thousand percent dislike him if he did.
“Okay, I’m leaving!” Rudo gulps, head held low as his bashfulness never truly leaves. He gets stopped right away with Zanka shoving him back down onto the seat. “Hey!”
“He said thank you, what do you say?” Zanka glares down, might as well use this as some sort of teaching lesson since he hasn’t been able to train the brat.
“Your… welcome…” Rudo huffs out.
Gris grins all toothy, reaching over the table to ruffle the kids' hair lightly. He truly does love this boy like the son the kid has become. He never seen himself as a father figure of sorts but here he is with a little feral wolf-like son. Gris is incredibly happy.
-
EXTRA
“Can you two stop making out?” Rudo looks out the window, avoiding the two up front the best he can. Yet again, he finds himself going somewhere with the old man yaoi dudes. He’s seen them kiss a lot more than he’d like to. He tries not to bring it up and pretends he didn’t see… but it gets hard when they’re kissing in the jeep.
“Oh shit.” Enjin gulps as Gris turns his head away with embarrassment. “Didn’t know ya got in the car… aha…”
Rudo sighs, “Must be deaf then.”
“Hey! I am not deaf!” Enjin huffs, sassily waving a hand in the air. “I was preoccupied.”
“Yeah, preoccupied with eating the hell out of Gris’ mouth. Gross.” This kid sure is getting sassy being around Enjin so much, get him out of there.
Gris’ face can only get so red. The one thing he tries his best is to not traumatize the poor boy by seeing him and Enjin kissing. Sure, he knows Rudo isn’t a kid kid, but he’s still young and in his mind he doesn’t want Rudo too exposed to it. Also, it’s embarrassing.
“Keep being sassy with me and you aren’t getting ice cream!” Enjin grins wickedly to himself as he starts the vehicle.
“What! You aren’t even the one buying it!”
“Yeah but I’m driving~”
“You’re such a turdface!!” Rudo looks like he could growl out of anger. “Gris, tell him he can’t do that!”
With a shake of his head to compose himself, “We’re getting ice cream, don’t worry.”
“Don’t let him walk over you, darling!” Enjin adds fuel to the fire.
“If you want to be allowed to kiss me more, you’ll get our kid ice cream.” Gris smirks lazily, knowing he’s already won this one.
“Fuck.” The younger man taps on the steering wheel, “Fine we’re getting ice cream first.”
“Ha. Gris likes me better.” Rudo feels accomplished. He may not smile, but he feels happy at winning.
“Nuh uh!” “Rudo’s right.” “WHAT?”