Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

It was over. The administrator was dead. It was all over. The whole team had started making its way out to the lobby base. Some of them were discussing what they were gonna do now. Scout had already planned on going back to Boston before he and Spy got arrested, so his mind was made up. Pyro had missed Engineer quite a lot, and it showed. The second they managed to get a hold of his hand, they did not let go, so everybody just assumed the two'd stick together. Engineer said he was going back to Texas. Demoman was planning on finding a place of his own near his mother. After Sniper finally got to find out where his bio parents were and who they were, he said that he wanted an early retirement, to travel the world in his campervan finding and documenting about all kinds of animals. With the money he had left from the gravel wars and fighting robots he could definitely afford it. The only one missing was Spy. Nobody saw him leave. It was like he just disappeared, which, funnily enough was probably exactly what he did. 

With Soldier being engaged to his sister, Heavy was a little curious. How was Mr Jane Doe planning on spending the rest of his life along with Zhanna? Soldier was eagerly telling Heavy about where he wanted to live with her, what their house would look like. How many children they wanted to have which was, heh, quite a lot. Heavy quietly listened as his future brother in law babbled on about all the things he and Zhanna wanted to do in the future with their kids. He cracked a little smile because, as much as it bothered him that out of all the people on earth his sister decided to choose Soldier for a spouse, it showed that he loved his sister and she loved him back. They made each other happy. Truly, that's the only thing you actually need in life. Someone or something that makes you happy. That was all Heavy wanted for his family. For them all to get to feel that joy. For just a moment, it made him think of the things that made him happy. All things weaponry made him happy. Especially guns. Being with his family made him happy. The people he loved. Speaking of… 

Medic was standing by the statue out in the lobby. He was dragging his hand across it, inspecting the textures. Heavy managed to talk his way out of his and Soldiers conversation and wandered over to Medic. 

“Hello doctor” 

“Oh, hello Heavy!” 

Medic was leaning forward, but he moved back a little and walked a little closer to the man in front of him. He put his hands behind his back. 

“So…What are you planning? Now that everything’s over?” 

“Soldier say that he and Zhanna want me to move in with them, somewhere near where he grew up” 

“That sounds nice” They smiled at each other. 

“Hm…Y’know, doctor…You are only one out of everybody who hasn’t said where you are going. I know what everybody wants to do with life now. But not you” 

“Yeah I suppose I haven't” Medic stopped smiling and looked away from Heavy. 

“Is something wrong?” 

“Oh, uh, no, not at all! Well, I guess…” He looked back up at him. 

“A few days ago I got a letter from my father. It’s my mother. She, uh, isn’t doing so well. It’s not that serious, but he wrote that he wants me to come back home” 

“Hm. That sounds like it could be nice, no? You get to go back to parents. Is that bad thing?” 

“Eh, no, it isn’t. It’s just…I’m a little worried is all” 

“Is understandable. I would also be worried for my mother if she was sick” He pointed to Medic. “Do not worry, doctor. If she is anything like you I am sure she will be alright” Medic smiled at Heavy balling up his fist as he made his statement. Heavy was always so good at cheering people up. He was gonna miss that. 

“Thank you, Heavy. Y’know, I’ll miss you” 

“Hm. I will miss you too, doctor” 

~—~—~—~

“Uncle Misha, uncle Misha! Come on, I wanna show you what I drew!” 

“Alright, alright, Georgia. I am coming, heh, calm down. 

Heavy was making his way down the stairs as his niece eagerly struggled getting her coat off. Her brother had already taken his off and was sitting on the floor, untying his shoes. Soldier, not having had any outerwear on, was already on his way to the downstairs bathroom. As he got to the bottom of the stairs Georgia had gotten her coat off and ran up to her uncle. She put up her arms. 

“Uppies, uppies!” Heavy picked her up by the armpits as he smiled at her. She held up a paper and lifted her helmet up so she could see him better. It was, what appeared to be, a car. 

“See look it's, ah, our car! I, um, drew this in, uh, daycare! D'ya like it?” 

“I love it, Georgia. Is almost as pretty as you” She giggled. 

“Hihi, stop it!” A big grin formed on her face as she wriggled a little. “Now let me down, I wanna show this to Grandma!” Heavy let the little girl down for her to stumble up the stairs. 

“Wait, Georgia” She turned around. “Knock on door first” 

“T-...I know that!” 

“I know that you know. Sometimes you just forget. You know, your mother was the same” 

“Really?” Georgia sat down. “Did she bother your grandma?” 

“No, but she did bother me” He chuckled. “So would your aunts. I remember all of the times that I had schoolwork and they would come knocking on my door wanting me to play with them” 

“Wow. Did you?” 

“Sometimes I did, sometimes I didn't.” 

“Huh. Ok, I’m gonna go show this to grandma now! Bye!” Georgia darted up the last step and made her way to her grandma's room. Just then, the front door closed. Heavy turned around to see Zhanna by the door, taking her coat off. 

“You liar. You never played with us” She took her shoes off and walked up to her brother. 

“Uh, yes, I did?” Heavy noticed she was going through a bunch of letters. She must’ve emptied the mailbox on her way in. 

“Well, barely. Especially when you started your studies. There was alw-...Oh” Zhanna stopped in her tracks and looked up at Heavy. “There’s something in here addressed to you” She held up a letter. 

“What?” He took the envelope and looked at it. On the stamp was a man with glasses on. There was some text on it. 10 deutsche. It was from Germany. At the opening of the envelope sat some gold colored sealing wax. Heavy looked at the text. The handwriting was very fancy looking. He saw his name and address on it. 

“Well? Who is it from? I only got to see your name” He looked where the name of the person who sent the letter was. Unbelievable…

“Herbert Ludwig…” 

“Uhm…Oh yeah! This is that doktor, right? I remember him” 

“Y-...yeah” He felt at a loss for words. In the five years the two had been apart, none of them had sent as much as a postcard. Heavy hadn't really had the time to sit down and actually write anything. Sure, he had thought about it. He'd just been busy. Heavy assumed it was the same for Medic. 

“Sooooo…What is letter about? Come on, open it!” Zhanna had her arms behind her back. Heavy was just about to open it when he realized. 

“Wait. It might be private. Maybe I should open it and read on my own” She sighed, looking disappointed. 

“Alright, alright. Whatever. You, brother, are boring” She chuckled a little and started making her way into the kitchen. 

“I'm going to go start making dinner. Tell Jane to come help me, okay?” 

*

Heavy was standing by the sink, hours later, doing the dishes. Zhanna and Soldier were upstairs, putting the kids to sleep. His mother was sitting by the table, sewing a patch onto General's shirt. He had ripped it up earlier in the week. The only noise to be heard was the sound of the water flowing and clean plates being put on the counter, one after the other. 

“Mikhail?” 

“Hm?” The dishes were done and everything was clean. Heavy turned off the water and dried his hands. 

“Why have you not opened this? It has your name on it” She was holding the envelope. 

“I…Um-ah…I…just got it. Yes. I just got it. I have not had time” 

“Misha. Your sister brought mail in several hours ago” Heavy took a seat as his mother put down the envelope. 

“In those hours, all I have seen you do is sit and read newspaper. After that you set table. Then you do dishes. Do not tell me you have not had time” 

“Okay, so I may have had time. I-...I-uh…I forgot?” She raised an eyebrow at him. 

“You? Forget? Sure…” 

“So why have you not opened it yet? Was Herbert Ludwig not that doktor man you got along with so great? He was basically your only friend, no?” 

“Uh…No, not really. Little Engineer was not so bad…” 

“Did you ever spend any time with him?” 

“No…” 

“Exactly. Now, as far as I know, you have not heard from this man in years, yes? Are you not curious over what he might have to say, after all this time?” Heavy sighed. 

“I suppose so. Could I open this in private?” 

“Of course. I can finish this tomorrow. Is getting late anyway” She got out of her seat and picked up her sewing stuff as she walked over to her son and gave him a little kiss on the head before walking upstairs. 

“Good night mama” 

“Good night Mikhail. I hope there's something nice for you in that letter” Heavy smiled up at his mother, halfway up the stairs by now. 

“Me too” And so she walked up the last steps, leaving Heavy in the kitchen. Staring down at the envelope sitting in front of him, he wondered why it made him feel this way. Why didn't he want to open it? Was he afraid of it? Of what it might contain? Really, it wasn't more than a little bit of folded paper with some more paper inside it. No, of course he wasn't. He sighed as he picked it up and finally opened it. Heavy pulled out the paper inside and unravelled it. The letter was long, with text filling up the front and back page. His look went to the first paragraph and he started reading. 

Dear Heavy…

My god it's been so long, hasn't it? I'm hoping you've had it nice so far. I certainly have! Y’know you were right. My mother did get better. She's actually in the other room as I'm writing this. Her and my father are visiting me and Frida, my fiancée. That's right. I'm getting married! Isn't it exciting? The wedding's in a few months, and I want you there 

That's as far as he could bring himself to read. In his left hand he had held the envelope, which he now put down. When he did, something stuck out. It was a picture of Medic and, what Heavy assumed, Frida. He flipped the picture to see some writing at the bottom. H & F. Yup. It was her. He flipped it back around. She had wavy brown hair going just past her shoulders. Heavy couldn't tell whether she was tall or it was just how the two were standing since she seemed just about Medic's height. They were holding each other and smiling. They looked like they were happy. 

All he could do was look at the picture. Just stare at it…Simply stare down at it as it crumpled in his shaky grip. Simply stare at it as his vision went blurry. Simply stare at it as the tears slowly, one after the other, dripped down on it. 

Chapter Text

Swoosh. There goes another plane. How many had he seen pass by now? 15? 16? He hadn't really counted them. Heavy leaned back in his seat. God, how long had he been sitting there? According to his watch, it was only 32 minutes, but it felt like 32 hours. In all honesty, it may have had something to do with that he hadn't been doing squat since his plane landed other than take a seat as he waited for his ride. Who knows. Heavy was aware that his plane landed a little early, but not that early! Rain poured down outside and the sky was grey. Uh oh. What if something happened to the person that was supposed to get him to Medic's place? Maybe that's why they were so late…He hoped not. How else was he supposed to get there? Heavy didn't know what Medic's hometown looked like. He'd get lost in the blink of an eye if he so much as stepped outside. Especially in this weather. The only way he'd be able to find his way around would be from Medics haphazardly written descriptions of things he liked and wanted to show Heavy. God, Medic 

What was he going to say to him when he arrived? Ugh. Why hadn't he thought about that? Oh god, what was he gonna say to his fiancée? What was he gonna say to any of Medics family and friends!? He felt a little anxious thinking about all the strangers he'd have to talk which, according to Medics letters, was quite a lot. Before Medic wrote so, Heavy had had no idea that Medics family was so big. Both his parents still alive, one older brother, then two more siblings, who were twins. A boy and a girl. Medic still had both his grandparents on his fathers side, which Heavy thought was astonishing. The two were both in their nineties and still feisty as ever, according to Medic. Also, because of how well off the whole family was, having children in your twenties seemed to be a bit of a trend. At this point, Heavy had lost track of all the nieces and nephews Medic currently had. Apparently, there were also one or two currently on the way. He couldn't remember the exact number. 

*

“Entschuldigung, sind sie Mikhail?” Heavy jumped in his seat. There was someone leaning over in front him. “Wenn ja, entschuldige ich mich für mein verspätetes Erscheinen…” Tiredly rubbing his eyes, he tried making sense of what was happening. Having dosed off, his eyes weren't used to the bright light of the airport. Ouch. Heavy looked up at the young woman standing in front of him. She had a chauffeur's uniform on, cap in hand. Her brown hair was held in a ponytail going all the way down to her waist. She resembled Miss Pauling a little, except younger. She looked like she could be in her teens. Even with him sitting down, they were at eye level. Maybe he was just tall...Suddenly, Heavy realized he had no idea what she just said. 

“Sorry I, uh, do not speak german” She straightened her posture and put her cap on. 

“Oh! I was informed you do?” 

“That is understandable. Is just, heh, I haven't uttered a word in german in years. Most of my german knowledge has been forgotten” 

“That's understandable” Heavy got out of his seat and grabbed his duffle bag, throwing his coat over his shoulder. 

“I am assuming you are my driver?” 

“Oh my, where are my manners? Yes, uh, I am. Sorry. I'm new…” 

“Is okay” They started making their way out. By now the rain had basically stopped, only being a light drizzle, even with the sky remaining the same grey as the pavement they walked on. Right outside the doors stood a short, black limousine. 

“Is this what you are going to drive me in?” 

“Yes siree!” She opened the door to the backseats, gesturing that he may step in. Heavy looked down at his suitcase. 

“What about my-?” He was interrupted by her taking it to the back of the car and opening the trunk, only to not be able to lift it. She grunted and groaned trying to get it up into the trunk, to no avail. After a few attempts, she sighed and looked over to Heavy who was still standing by the open door. 

“Sorry, could you, uh…Could you help me with this?” Heavy walked up to the girl, who frankly looked like she was gonna start bawling her eyes out. He lifted his suitcase into the trunk and let her close it. 

“Wow, that was unprofessional. I'm so sorry for that” Heavy crossed his arms. 

“Is okay. Is not your fault you are tiny. What you may lack in brawn I am sure you have in other skills” He balled his fist. “Skills that matter. To you at least. Are only ones that should make difference ” 

“Th-Thanks…Oh my god what time is it?” Heavy checked his watch. 

“17:16” She got a panicked look on her face. 

“Sheiße! We were supposed to leave, like, 15 minutes ago!” She ushered Heavy into the car and got into the driver's seat. She adjusted the rear view mirror and put on her seatbelt. 

“Put your seatbelt on!” He did just that and looked into her eyes through the rear view mirror. She started driving. 

“You know, I never got your name” She smiled at him. 

“It's Milo” 

*

“Sir? Wake up. We're here” Slightly startled, Heavy bumped his head on the car ceiling. 

“Ow…” 

“Whoop. Heh. Sorry” Heavy tiredly rubbed his eyes awake while Milo parked the car. His eyes being closed, he only heard the wheels of the car driving on what sounded like gravel. She stopped the car and got out. As Heavy grabbed his bag from the seat next to him, he heard as she walked up the door and opened it. When he stepped out of the car and stretched, he was met with quite the nice looking driveway. The whole property was surrounded by tall metal fencing. Not even Scout would be able to get over them. In the middle was a roundabout with some lovely topiary on it. Heavy couldn't really make out what he was looking at, but still, it was kinda pretty. He took a deep breath. The fresh air had been much needed with how he'd barely been outside in several hours. Heavy could hear Milo finally managing to get his suitcase out of the trunk.

“AAAAaaalright. Phew…” 

“I could have done that if you had asked me, y'know” Milo pulled out the handle. 

“I know that. Still, I gotta practise. I've got lots more suitcases I have to be able to lift” Heavy grabbed his suitcase and started walking to the front door, expecting her to come with him. When he only heard his own footsteps approaching the door, he turned around to see Milo being about to get behind the wheel. 

“Are you not coming?” 

“Feh, I wish. I've got a few more people and luggage to get here. Y'know you're one of the first to arrive, I think. Not sure though. You're the first one I drove here at least” 

“Huh? I am confused. If I am only one you have driven here so far, why did you say one of?” 

“There are several chauffeurs transporting several people here, obviously. Do you really think they'd trust me, and only me, to get all of their family and friends here. In one day?” 

“I…I suppose not. Do you know who else might be in there?” He pointed to the house. 

“Nope, no idea. Well, s'been nice talking to you but, uh, I'd prefer keeping my job, so I'm gonna get going now. Bye!” Milo sat down in the car and drove away, leaving Heavy all alone on the driveway. 

“...Bye?” 

While pondering over whether he was gonna stay put or not, he heard the front door open behind him. 

“Why, as I live and breathe! Heavy! How're ya pal?” He turned around. 

“Oh. Hello Engineer” 

Chapter Text

Engineer had stood by the door, but started walking towards Heavy to talk to him. He looked so different without the googles. 

“I’m good. How about you?” 

“I'm fine and dandy. Y'know, s'funny. Me and Pyro just arrived” Heavy noticed footsteps approaching them from inside the house. Rapidly. He looked over Engineer's head. Through the door jumped Pyro, landing on all fours. They got up and darted towards the two men, passed Engineer, and gleefully jumped up in Heavy's arms with enough enthusiastic force to nearly knock him over. Even with the impact having taken his breath away a little, he held onto Pyro like they were a little child. 

“Mhhph mhp!” 

“Hm. I missed you too Pyro” Engineer felt on his head just before scratching his chin as he looked up at the sky. 

“C'mon now, Pyro. Let go of him. I just felt it drizzle a little on my head. Reckon it might start raining again. Let's go back inside” 

*

The three had started making their way down the long halls of the large house. Since Engineer and Pyro had been instructed to just leave their suitcases out in the hallway, so did Heavy. When asked about the chauffeur they got, Engineer said that he had also told them to just walk in right before he drove off. Heavy just assumed Milo had simply forgotten to tell him to do the same. He didn't blame her. Ahead of the trio appeared a staircase. 

Click clack, click clack 

They stopped walking. What was that? 

Click clack, click clack 

It was the sound of shoes on hardwood floors. Someone was on their way down the stairs. 

Click clack, click clack

A woman appeared. She was wearing a fairly simple looking green dress going down to her ankles. With a gentle smile and brown wavy hair going just past her shoulders, it was pretty easy for the trio to figure out who she was. 

“Hello, welcome! Oh, I apologize that we couldn't have anybody greet you at the door. The people we have employed to our aid are either preparing the rooms of our guests or are out getting said guests here” She stopped at the bottom of the stairs. Heavy and Engineer, having been caught off guard a little, stood still in their places not quite sure what to do. Pyro, on the other hand, joyfully ran up to her and childishly putting their arms around her. Not too hard obviously. 

“Pyro! What'd I tell you ‘bout doin’ that! Now you know damn well some folks don't like being touched” 

They let go before quickly sprinting back to Engineer. 

“Sorry ‘bout that ma'am” She smiled at the three. 

“Oh no worry, I don't mind in the slightest. I'm pretty used to it. Both my and Herbert's side of the family are very prone to physical touch” The woman turned to Heavy and her face lit up. 

“Oh my god, hi!” She started making her way towards him. “You're Heavy right? Oo, Herbert's told me so about you! Oh, what was your actual name again…Uh, Mikhail, right?” 

“Well yes. But, heh, few actually call me that. I usually go by Misha or Heavy” 

“Oh? Oo, y'know what? Why don't you three follow me into the kitchen and I'll make us all a pot of tea?” 

*

And there they sat. Engineer, Heavy and Frida sat and talked while Pyro observed them. It also turned out that Pyro didn't like tea, so they got some orange juice along with a bendy straw Frida found. They discussed all sorts of stuff. Frida was very curious about what the gravel wars were like from the perspective of someone other than her partner. 

When Engineer asked her where Medic was and if they were going to be seeing him anytime soon, she said that he was at work. When Heavy asked her what he did, she said he was a surgeon. The two men shared a look remembering all of Medics little experiments back in their fighting days. They both wondered whether or not he was still like that. With how he hadn't been arrested yet; maybe he had changed? 

“Y’know, you three are just like how I'd think you'd be. Herbert talks about you all so much. Especially you, Mikhail, all the time” She sipped a little on her tea. 

“Really?” He felt a little flustered. Was his doctor really still talking about him? After five whole years? 

“Y’know, I'm not surprised ‘bout that. My, you should've seen the two, always hanging around each other. Like two peas in a pod” 

Heavy took notice that Engineer neglected to mention how close he and Medic actually were. It wasn't really ever discussed or acknowledged, but they were together. Everybody knew it. Even Scout managed to figure that out. All though he, obviously, was the last to do so. Even Pyro got it before him. Infact, they were one of the first to do so. Heavy figured it was probably best to leave the fact out anyway. He doubted Frida needed to know he used to date the man she shared a bed with. 

*

As time went by and the hours passed, more and more people arrived at the mansion. Parents, grandparents, siblings along with their children flooded the common room and eventually the whole house. Family and friends to both Medic and Frida pulled up to the house, most commonly group by group. 

By now, Heavy, Engineer and Pyro had all moved into the common room along with the commotion. The room they were in was fairly large, capable of holding a few dozen people. On the walls hung pictures along with a few objects mounted up here and there. Engineer and Pyro were socialising while Heavy sat by the bay window, observing the people within his surroundings. He was so intrigued by Medics' closest family. They all looked so alike. Well, basically. There were a few differences, albeit pretty miniscule. 

His father Augustus, looked much older than him, obviously, and sported a big bushy mustache while walking around with a cane. His dark, greying hair thinning, showing about half of his scalp. He was a man of pride, clearly proud of his children and all they had accomplished. Having all come from a family of people working within medicine, it wasn't surprising that they were all doctors. Now Medics mother Adelaide didn't really look like her children, other than having a resemblance to her daughter. That was at least what met the eye. Verbally and through the way she acted, however, she was just like the four. It really showed that she played a part in raising them. If anything, in that sense; she was exactly like them. 

Medic was the youngest of three siblings. From oldest to youngest was his brother, Ezekiel, then the twins, Sebastian and Charlotte. Frankly, Heavy would have thought Medic and the twins were triplets if he didn’t know they weren’t with how similar the three were. It was the same when they were young adults, teenagers even. At least according to the pictures on the walls. One funny thing Heavy also noticed pretty quickly that separated Medic from his family was that he had blue eyes while they all had brown. Very dark one’s at that. Engineer had also seen and mentioned it. Apparently, Medics grandmother on his mothers side had blue eyes. 

The noise was starting to die down a little, with the people around still staying pretty chatty. Suddenly, someone sat down next to Heavy. Tried to at least. It was a little girl, barely a meter tall. In one hand she held a piece of paper and in the other was a purple crayon. Both were thrown up on the seat. The girl didn't seem to be able to lift herself up onto the cushions in the bay window. With the material of her little dress seeming fairly strong, by the looks of it, Heavy gently lifted her up by the fabric on her back. It reminded him of all the times he did the same with Scout. Only difference was that he hadn't usually cared enough to be careful with him. Not that he ever purposely hurt him, of course. 

“Thanks” She grinned at the large man in front of her “Hello. Who are you?” Heavy was taken aback a little. He was surprised that a girl that young could speak english. 

“Hello. I am, uh, friend of do-...I am old work friend of Herbert”. Man...He was gonna have to get used to calling Medic by his birth name. 

“Really? Are you asso a thurgen?” 

“Wuh…Oh, surgeon! Ah, no. We used to work together. Back when he was in America” 

“Woah…Oh you're dat big guy! I've theen pictures of you” She had grabbed one of her crayons and pointed it at him. “Unca Herbert talks about you a whole lot too” Jeez…He was gonna have to get used to that eventually. It's all he'd heard all evening. 

“Y’know Herb talks about you so much!” 

“It’s funny, he doesn't ever tell a story from when he was in America without you in it” 

“We can really tell he missed you, ya know” 

He missed you. He missed him. Heavy was still surprised at that. Not that he hadn't ever missed Medic in the years they'd been apart. Then again, when he did miss Medic he'd simply repress that. In all honesty, he'd ball up whatever emotions he had for the man. That way made it easier to be apart. 

The little girl, having started drawing on the paper she brought over, stopped to look outside. Suddenly, she pressed her face and hands to the window, seemingly excited about something outside. Heavy also looked. There was a car pulling up into the driveway. It stopped, turned off,  and someone stepped out. The girl turned to face the whole room before practically jumping from where she was sitting, half jogging towards the door. 

“Uncle Herbert's home!” 

*

The day was over. Dinner had been served and eaten. Children had been put to bed. The adults had sat and talked for a while as they all drank champagne. Eventually, one after the other, they all went upstairs to go to bed. Heavy ended up being one of the first ones to do so. Waking up at the crack of dawn to catch a flight, stepping on a plane, flying to a different continent, and then going to bed at midnight can be pretty tiring. Heavy assumed it was somewhat like that for Engineer and Pyro since they had gone to bed even earlier. 

At first, Heavy was surprised that he ended up getting his very own room to sleep in, before remembering where he was staying. He had just brushed his teeth and was in the middle of taking his shirt off to go to bed. 

“Lookin' good!” 

“Ah!” 

Heavy flinched, almost jumping a little. Who was that? He put his shirt back on. Oh. 

“Hello doctor…Herbert?” Medic was standing in the doorway, leaning on the frame with his hands in his pockets. 

“Heh. You call me whatever you want” 

“You could have knocked” Heavy walked up to him, crossing his arms. 

“Well, your door was unlocked. I figured there wasn't anything you could possibly be doing that I haven't already seen” He chuckled. “So, I let myself in” 

“Rude” Heavy teased. He didn't actually mind. Especially not if it was his doctor. 

“So how are you Heavy? I didn't really get to actually talk to you in all the ruckus down there” 

“I am fine. You?” 

“Fantastic. I couldn't be better” Then it went silent for a second. 

“Oh, yeah. My brothers and some of my friends want to take me out for drinks the next time I have a day or two off work. Y’know, to celebrate and stuff. You wanna come along?”

“Sure. What about Engineer?” 

“He and Pyro want to go sightseeing, and they wanna see everything...so I think you might be on your own. Kind of…That okay?” 

“I suppose so. Is not like they are complete strangers” 

“Well alright then!” Medic took his hand out of his pockets and smiled up at his friend, also crossing his arms. 

“Y’know, I’m really glad you came. I wouldn’t wanna get married without you” 

“Is no problem. I would not miss doctors wedding for the world” 

“Thank you. That means a lot. You know, I’ll leave you alone now. Hope you sleep well tonight” 

“You too, doctor. Goodnight” 

“Goodnight Heavy” 

*

Laying in bed, lights off and everything, Heavy thought about what to expect the next day. What he might enjoy. What he not. He’d get to spend time with Medic. He would also have to spend time with a bunch of people he didn’t know. He’d be the odd one out. Heavy decided to focus on Medic. It was all he’d done throughout the whole evening anyway. As soon as he saw him step out of his car, Medic was all he’d seen. When they were all at the dinner table, Medic was all he saw. When everybody sat and spent time with each other, Medic was all he saw. Even when Heavy went upstairs to go to bed, Medic was all he thought about. While brushing his teeth. While talking to the man himself. While getting into bed. He just couldn’t get him out of his head. Hm…

Perhaps Medic wasn’t the only one who’d missed the other? Heavy thought about it. Maybe he’d missed Medic more than he thought? It couldn’t be. He’d fully, 100% gotten over Medic. Whatever non-platonic feelings he had had for him were all gone. Since long ago. Yeah, of course he was over him. He just had to be. 

He had to. 

Chapter Text

A little more than a week had passed. All the wedding planning had been going smoothly so far. It was the only thing Medic and Frida had been talking about which apparently, at least according to the people around them, had been the way it'd been since he proposed. The two could have definitely used a break from it all. Luckily, that's what they were gonna get. Frida wanted to stay at home with her girl friends while Medic wanted to go out. Well, really, his friends and brothers wanted to take him out. He just didn't protest. Why should he? It sounded like a fantastic idea to him. He also thought himself deserving of a break from work. Lucky him, so did his bosses. Medic managed to sweet talk himself into a whole week off. He even managed to score a similar deal with the work-friends he wanted to bring with him to the bar. 

*

They were all sitting in the back of a local bar, within walking distance. Nobody wanted to drive there and by the end of the night none of them would be allowed to drive from there anyway. 

The dozen or so men had been sitting there for a few hours, drunkenly laughing at whatever stupid jokes or stories someone managed to come up with. Usually, Medic was the butt of said jokes and stories, what with him being the reason they were out there in the first place. Him being younger than his brothers who were both sitting there, wasted, might have also played a part in the grand scheme of things. Medic also being much more sober than everybody else, having promised Frida he wouldn't get too drunk, obviously made things ten times funnier than they actually were. 

“AND-AND THEN HE DROPPED HIS PANTS CAUSE HE-...HE'D PUT MY PANTS ON! THEY GOT MIXED UP IN THE WASH!” The entire group broke out in laughter. Loud enough to earn them a glance from most of the other patrons of the bar. 

“Yes, haha, very funny I was a little kid, Ezekiel!” 

“Shut up, you were eleven!” 

“Sebastian, you and Charlotte weren't even there! Y-” 

“Thank god for that!” They all laughed again, stomping their feet on the ground, slamming their arms and fists on the table. This time shaking Medic by the shoulders, knocking him into Heavy who was sitting next to him staying just as sober as him. Heavy never was much of a drinker anyway. Even if he was, it'd take a lot of alcohol to get him intoxicated. Heavy leaned down to whisper in Medics ear. 

"Doctors brothers really like to make fun, eh?” Medic took a chug out of his bottle. 

“Eh, you know how siblings are” 

“Indeed I do” Heavy sipped a little on the beer he had in his hand thinking about how much his sisters used to laugh at him. Calling him a nerd whenever he was nose-deep in schoolwork. How they'd make fun of him when he eventually started balding. Hm. He wondered how they were doing. Good, hopefully. 

“Heh, they get like that when they're drunk” 

“Hmmm…Y’know, they remind Heavy of someone. I wonder who~” 

“Shut up” Medic teased. Just then one of Medics work friends got out of his seat, muttering something about going to the bathroom. He left. 

A few minutes later, another got up. He stumbled away towards a woman sitting by the bar. Two more, probably his closest friends, also got up. They quickly went after him looking like they were trying to prevent him from getting arrested. 

After that, more and more of them started taking their drunken business to some other place in the bar. Some said they also needed to go to the bathroom. Some just got up and went to a different part of the bar. One or two straight up getting out of there. And then there were two. It also happened to be the only ones not having gotten absolutely wasted. Sittingin silence in the back of the bar. All alone. 

“Are you not happy for me? That I'm getting married?” Heavy coughed as he choked a little on his drink. He looked at Medic who was looking back up at him. “You heard me. Are you not happy for me?” 

“D-...Of course I am!” 

“You don't seem like it” 

“Well I am! Where is this coming from?” 

“It’s coming from the fact that; in the last week, whenever I've talked to you about the wedding, you've responded as minimally as you could. I ask you about your opinion on something and give me a single worded answer. We can be having a nicely flowing conversation about anything and as soon as I bring up the wedding you go practically silent” 

“Have I really?” 

“Yes, you have. What gives?” 

“Nothing!” 

“Well, there's clearly something about it you seem to disapprove of” 

“There isn't! I swear!” 

“...Is it Frida? Do you not like her? ‘Cause I swear to god if you don't” 

“Hey, I adore Frida. You could not have found yourself a better woman” 

“Then what is it!?” 

“I told you, nothing!” 

Medic tiredly sighed. He took out his wallet and got up while he took out a few bills. He put them down on the table in front of Heavy. 

“Well figure it out” Medic started making his way to the door before turning around after only a few steps. “Y'know, you don't have to come to the wedding if you don't want to” 

Medic turned his heel and left the bar, leaving Heavy at the table. In silence. Sitting in the back of the bar. All alone. 

*

As he walked home, he pondered over his fight with Heavy. How dare he!?* He treats this man with nothing but kindness and then all he gets back is the utmost of rudeness. The absolute audacity! Medic felt as the anger filled him. He finds joy in life and Heavy isn't even able to pretend that he's happy for him? How could he? Was he jealous? Was he jealous because he hadn't found someone? It couldn't be, right? Heavy never seemed like the type to seek love. But if not that, could it possibly be that Heavy disapproved of? 

“You think you know everything” 

Startled, Medic stopped dead in his tracks. It was a little while after midnight, so the streets were empty. Not a car or person in sight. Except for two. He turned around. There stood Heavy, a few meters or so away, his shaking fists being tightly clenched. He was standing just away from the shine of a street light, so Medic couldn't really see him. 

“You think you have it all figured out, don't you?” 

“Huh?” 

“Why do you just never seem to be able to get it?” Heavy walked into the light and it shined down on his face. Even though it was still pretty dark, you could see that he had been crying. His eyes were red and his cheeks drenched in tears. 

“Wh-” 

“Shut up” He took a step closer to the shorter man. 

“You think I have not figured it out, huh? Well you're wrong. I figured out exactly what it was the second I looked out that window and saw you stepping out of your car. You, and only you have been in my head since. You just will.not.leave” 

“Wuh…I don't…” 

“Yes, I know. You do not. You never do. You think you understand emotions. Well, it's painstakingly obvious that you do not. How about I help you? The reason I don't want to talk about the wedding is because it hurts. Seeing you and Frida together? It makes me feel physically ill. The mere thought of you two as a couple makes me want to hurl. You want to know why? Because I am jealous. Whenever you two show any form of intimacy I get jealous because that is not me holding, or kissing you. I do not enjoy partaking in discussing wedding plans because it is not me and you talking about it. What we want to wear, who we want to invite. I know that, legally, that may never be us. But we could still talk about it. I do not enjoy discussing wedding plans because for every word spoken about it makes me fear that I will not have that with you. Ever. And that terrifies me” He took another step forward, now only being a few centimeters apart from the other man. Heavy poked his finger at Medic and looked him dead in the eyes. The tears were absolutely flowing at this point. 

“I am still in love with you. I do not want to be apart from you. Ever. I want to take hold of you and then never let you go. I know that that is selfish but I do not care. You are the only person I've ever wanted to be with this bad. You are the only person I want to be with. If you were taken from me, I would live through a thousand eternitys and die a thousand deaths if it meant getting you back” 

The two stood there for what felt like a lifetime. Until Medic leaned forward. Slowly his and Heavy's faces got closer and closer to each other, their lips near meeting. Until Medic moved to the left and kissed Heavy on the cheek. He put his hand on his head and caressed it before pulling away. He crossed his arms. 

“Heavy…I’m-...This wedding has to happen whether any of us like it or not. I'm sorry” 

“What do you mean by that? Do you not want to get married?” 

“Of course I do!” 

“I'm not so sure you do…” Medic sighed. 

“...How do you think I feel knowing I'm one of the few, few people in my entire family that isn’t married? I stick out like a sore thumb! At work I'm the oldest one not yet married. Y'know, before I proposed to Frida there were rumors spreading that I was-...” 

“That you were?” 

“That…” 

“Wh-...That you're gay!? You are gay!” 

“What if I’d rather people not know?” 

“Maybe so, but you’re not attracted to women yet you are getting married to one” 

“Well, what if I’d rather pretend I did like women?” 

“I do not think you would be happy living that life” 

“Well…That’s life. Life sucks” 

“But it doesn't have to!” 

“Yes! It-…For me it does…” 

It fell silent. All that could be heard throughout the silent night were cars in the far, far distance and the crickets in the not-so-far-away bushes. That accompanied by the quiet sniffles of two longing souls standing face to face. Heavy sighed and slowly started walking the same way they all originally came from, back to the house. Just as he walked past Medic, he stopped and leaned down. 

“I think doctor has some figuring out to do himself” 

Medic opened his mouth to say something before Heavy interrupted him. 

“Don't” He put his hands in his pockets and started walking again. “I am going back to America. I do not have to put keep putting myself through this” 

He walked off, leaving Medic in silence. On the sidewalk. Feeling more alone than he'd ever felt in his entire life. 

Chapter Text

‘Pitter patter’, went the rain. The weather had started acting up again. It had been absolutely pouring for the last few days. The streets were flooded and fewer and fewer people were going outside. Luckily, Herbert didn't have work until next week, so he and the rest of the people residing in his house could simply stay at home until the rain had passed. 

Herbert had been sitting on the side of his bed for who knows how long. For the latest few days he'd been quite conflicted over something, or rather someone. Heavy. He'd left to stay in a nearby hotel after their fight. Herbert knew he was going to be leaving the country tomorrow. He'd asked Heavy about it when he came back to get something he'd forgotten. 

Herbert was perplexed thinking back to their argument, things said, how they left off. He felt strange thinking about all the nice things Heavy had said to him. “Live through a thousand eternitys and die a thousand deaths if it meant getting him back…God, how could he have been so obnoxious? Not that Herbert had ever been any good with emotions before anyway, but this was big! To be fair, he thought Heavy had gotten over him. He'd gotten over Heavy. Well…He wanted to. He needed to. That's the way it was supposed to be. 

Still loved him… 

Love? Herbert didn't think it had ever been about love. Sure, they were very close back when they worked together. Heck, they were partners. They'd hold hands, kiss. Sure they'd make love to each other…Truthfully; it was better than anything he'd ever done with Frida, by a mile. But that had always been like. They liked each other. But…Love? No way. He couldn't be in love with a man. That wasn't how it was supposed to go and Herbert knew that. At least…now he did. The only times he'd ever laid his hands on any man had been during his years in America and all of the things that happened in America, stayed in America. Be it not-so-legal experiments or, for a few years, not-so-legal relationships. 

He had changed though. He was a different man now, period. If he wasn't, he'd just have to suck it up and convince himself he was. 

“Herbert? What are you doing awake at this hour?” Frida sat up and moved some hair out of her face.

Damn it... 

“N-nothing. You go back to sleep” 

“How am I supposed to sleep well knowing you can't?” She crawled over to him and put her arms over his shoulders.She held them together right over his chest and gave him a little kiss on the neck. They both stayed silent for a while. 

“Come on Herbert. I know there's something on your mind…Is it about your friend?” 

“N-...No!” 

“Yeah, I don't believe that for a second. Y'know you still haven't explained why he left” 

“I told you, th-” 

“Yes, yes, I know. It’s really private. Herbert, we have shared a bed for about a half decade and we're getting married in a little less than a month. Don't you think we're at a point where we should share…well, everything?” 

“Not this…I just-...I can't” 

“How could that possibly be? I mean, I already know everything about you. At least I hope I do” 

“This is different” 

“Different how? Different than how you used to gladly experiment on live people, sewing whatever organs you pleased into them? Different than how you managed to make a man give birth to a monkey? Sure” 

“I mean…Yes, it kinda is. Truthfully, I don't think I can tell anybody. That includes you” 

“Well, whatever it is, I can tell it's been bothering you like crazy since your friend left. I want to at least try and ease the burden, I really do. But I can't do that if I don't know what it is. Please, Herbert? 

“No, Frida, I can't. You wou-...you wouldn’t deserve that” 

“Was it something he said? Did he say something bad about me? To you? Cause if he did, I'd wanna know” 

“No, he didn't. He has said nothing but good things about you. The man's a goddamn saint” 

“But then why is he leaving? Y'know, I'm not sure you noticed it, but during the entirety of the time he was packing up his bag and as he got in the taxi to his hotel? You had the saddest look on your face. You were heartbroken. It's pretty clear you wanted him to be there. To be honest, I suspect you still do” Frida tapped him on his chest. All though, when she did so, she felt something dripping on her hand. Tears…He sniffled. 

“Herbert…” She sat down next to him and took his hand. "Please? I hate it when you're hurting” With tears collecting in the corners of his eyes, he looked up at her and opened his mouth. He hesitated. 

“I...Back when we were mercenaries…Me and Heavy were, uh, very close, so to speak” 

“I know that” 

“Frida…We were together. In the six years I knew that man, I dated him for four. When we stopped working together, we stopped dating. Earlier this week, when the guys took me out for drinks, he said that he still loved me” 

Frida remained silent. She looked surprisingly unfazed. A little too unfazed. 

“Frida?” 

“Did you love him?” 

“Wuh?” 

“Back when you were together. Did you love him?” 

“I…I don't know…I didn't even know he ever loved me. I just kinda liked him, I suppose” He shrugged. 

“I'm not sure about that. When he left, you may not think it was showing, but you made it seem like you wanted him here for the wedding more than me” 

“Did I?” 

“You did. Y'know, Herbert, I think you did love him. Maybe you still do?” 

“No, no, no, there's no way. I-I'm different from who I was back in America. I'm not like that anymore. I can't, I shouldn't” 

“Can't, shouldn't, what? Be gay? Herbert, do you think I haven't noticed the way you look at me?” 

“What do you mean by that?” 

“In all of the years we've been together, it's been made clear that you look at me like I'm a really close friend of yours. You can tell yourself that you find me romantically or sexuelly attractive all you want, but you'd be lying. That sort of stuff tends to show” 

Herbert looked away from her. 

“How are you so calm about this? If this got out, you'd be humiliated” 

“I don't know. Deep down, maybe I've always known. I suppose I didn't say anything because I've been in the same mindset as you. ‘If I pretend it isn't there, then it isn't’. I'm, heh, pretty sure we can both see that that method isn't really effective” 

“Then why are you only saying anything first now?” 

“Well, originally, I was only preeetty sure you weren’t attracted to women. I didn’t know about your situation with Mikhail. Now? After the conversation we’ve just had? I'm near certain you still love him. Personally, I think you should tell him” 

“And what difference would that make?” 

“You have a chance at spending the rest of your life with someone you actually, truly love” 

“But…We'd have to cancel the wedding. Again, your life could be absolutely destroyed. I couldn't possibly do that to you. Not after all you've done for me” 

“How about I disappear? Not literally, of course. No bride, no wedding. I ‘disappear’ and you tell Mikhail you love him! I wanna see the world anyway. If I go away for a while, leave a note or something, I can do that. Maybe I got a bad case of cold feet, eh?” 

“Why-...Why would you do that for me?” 

“Because; for the past four years, you have been the bestest friend I've ever had, and I love you for that. Infinitely. I want you to be happy. If that means living your life with a man you used to work with and simultaneously date, so be it. Do that” 

“But…what if that's not what he wants?” 

“Herbert. If, after five years, neither of you are over each other? How corny it might sound, that's true love. There isn't really much else to it” 

Their eyes locked. 

“He's leaving tomorrow. Well today, it is a while after midnight. I'd only have one shot” 

“I think you should pay him a little visit, so to speak” 

“You sure?” 

“More sure than when you proposed and I said yes”

Chapter Text

Life sucks. You fall in love with it and then get your heart broken into thousands and thousands of little teeny tiny little pieces. That was the way it'd always been. Leading a wonderful life living with your loving family in your lovely house where everybody fits and are all happy? Your father gets his head blown off in front of your entire family for you all to end up having to stay in hiding for years from people that want to hurt you for no good reason. In love and in a relationship with the man of your dreams? Nevermind, years later he's getting married to a woman he doesn't even want to get married too, simply just to escape from how he truly feels about himself. 

And however much you want to, you can't do squat about it…Life sucks. Life sucks and then you die. 

God, when was his taxi coming? Heavy checked his watch. Okay, maybe he'd checked out of his hotel room a little early. It was scheduled to come in twenty minutes. With how the weather was at the moment, it was probably gonna be delayed. 

He heard something. What was that? It sounded like someone calling out. 

“Heavy!” 

There he was, dressed up in an outfit clearly not made for rain. His brown coat and sneakers opposing Heavy's thick coat and waterproof boots. Missing any form of headwear, it surprised Heavy that he could seemingly see anything through the water covering his glasses. 

He looked away from him, not really wanting to pay him any attention. 

It hurt less that way… 

Medic, out of breath, stopped right next to him. He put his hands on his knees panting like a dog. He must’ve ran there. 

“Wh-...What are you doing here?” 

“I, pfhh, I need to talk to you” 

“But why go by foot? You have a car” 

“Out of fuel. I am aware I could have borrowed another one of the several cars standing in my driveway, but I’d probably crash that with how fast I’d be driving. Especially in this weather” 

“Still, you could have dressed a little better. Coat and shoes like that are not made for rain. Doctor is drenched. You will freeze to death ” 

Even after these years the man still didn't know how to care for himself. Heavy remembered all the times the team had fought in either rain or snow and Medic hadn't dressed right. Perhaps he thought the regular outfit he usually wore would be enough? It never was. Heavy would always have to help warm him up. He thought about all the times he'd held his freezing doctor in his arms. 

“I know that. I dressed to walk to my car and then drive here. When I saw that my car was out of gas I didn't want to waste any time on going back inside and changing into something more suitable for walking, or running I suppose, in the rain. I-...I needed to know that I'd have enough time to say what I wanted to get said” 

“What could you possibly have to say to me?” 

“I'm sorry. I'm sorry for leaving you in America. I'm sorry for trying to forget you. To move on from you. In my little over five decades on this earth, that is my one.biggest.regret” His voice shaky, he sniffled. 

“Was that not what doctor wanted?” 

“Only because that's what I'd been telling myself. That doesn't make it true. I was actively lying to myself, and by that, lying to you” 

“Yes, I figured” 

“I'm sorry, okay?” 

“I understand that. You have said sorry several times. 

“I know. I could say it a million more times and it still wouldn't come near to how sorry I actually am. If I could go back to when we said goodbye in America I would have grabbed hold of you and never let go. I can't go back. But…I can go forward. I want to do that. I want to move on and go forward. With you. That I can do. Which I do, I really do. Badly.” 

“What about Frida? Does she know?” 

“She's the only one who knows”

“And?” 

“She convinced me to come here. We're not getting married. The whole thing's off” 

“What about not wanting to stick out? Doctor seemed pretty terrified of that” 

“I thought about it while I ran here. As I got closer and closer I realized that I don't care. At all. Not anymore at least. I want to stick out…with you. I want to walk down the street holding your hand, I want to sit down at a bench in some park in the middle of the day and kiss you just because I can. I want to have a life with you” 

“You figured that out on the way here?” 

“I figured it out the day we started working together and I first laid my eyes on you. I think I’ve just been repressing it. I-” 

He was cut off by Heavy dropping his umbrella before taking a big step towards him. Caught off guard, Medic didn't move a muscle as the other man grabbed him by the back of his head. Especially not when he pulled him into a kiss. Medic embraced him back, holding onto the other man, putting his arms around him the best he could. The two pulled away from each other's faces and, while still holding onto each other, just stayed like that, holding one another. Even if it was simply just for a minute, it felt like an eternity. Just the two. In that moment, to each other, they were the only ones who mattered in the slightest. None of them heard as the crazed winds whipped the trees left to right and blew around whatever scraps or trash had been dropped on the street. None of them felt as the rain drenched the two to the point where there was water down to their undergarments. Nothing. Nothing other than one holding the other with a grip strong enough to crush coal into diamond. Nothing other than the one being held burying his face into the other so deep he couldn't breath. Not that he cared. Not that either of the men cared. 

They'd finally gotten hold of each, and neither of them were ever planning on letting go. Heck, if it meant that they'd never ever have to, they would both have gladly stayed there in silence by the hotel entrance as it rained cats and dogs on them. All alone. 

Together