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Roman's Hoodie

Summary:

Dinah makes a comment about Zsasz's hoodie

Notes:

(See the end of the work for notes.)

Work Text:

There was a lot that could be said about the situation that surrounded Zsasz and his clothes and the fact that most of his clothes either weren't his or weren't ones that he had chosen for himself. In fact, Zsasz remained uncertain whether he still owned any clothes that he had chosen for himself, as those would have to be the few items he had before he came to work for Roman, and that had been well over a decade ago. Roman tended to toss out Zsasz's clothes whenever he saw a hole or a stain or even decided that he didn't like how the item fit him. It was kind of unbelievable sometimes, but that's how Roman was. He liked fashion, and most of the items that Zsasz wanted to wear would have Roman in another rant in an instant. Zsasz had run into that issue about a month into their relationship when Roman took him shopping and he dared to take a camo shirt off the rack. He had never seen Roman look so offended before. Zsasz didn't mind the issue as much, as he had over a decade to become used to this kind of treatment, but there were some items he refused to part with, and most of those had to be the ones that used to be Roman’s.

Zsasz could still recall the first shirt he had collected that used to be Roman's first and the circumstances in which he obtained it. This was back before he had moved in with Roman full time, which meant he had held onto this shirt for over a decade. Roman had tried to toss out the shirt numerous times, but each time Roman assumed he had rid Zsasz of it, it somehow returned to its hanger in the back of the closet. It was unbelievable, but due to the sentimental nature of it, Roman couldn't blame Zsasz too much over his desire to hold onto it even if the shirt was now covered in holes, semen stains, and food stains and had some natural discoloration from wear and tear. It was old but loved much like Zsasz himself was. Roman had let Zsasz borrow the shirt the first time he slept over. He didn't want Zsasz to sleep in the clothes that he had worn at the club, so he let him borrow one of his own. It was oversized and comfortable. Zsasz had once tried to return it, but Roman dismissed the idea with a comment that it looked better on him. Zsasz took that to heart and refused to let the shirt be thrown out even a decade later. It became a common event for Roman to let Zsasz wear his old clothes. Roman also bought Zsasz his own clothes to wear out in public, as none of his old clothes fit Zsasz, but he knew if Zsasz was able to, he wouldn't bother with clothes at all, so he could care less if Roman's shirts were a size or two up from what he needed. Zsasz had about three outfits when he came to live with Roman, all of which he had before him, and in the last decade, all three of those outfits had vanished, but Roman's shirt remained.

It should be noted that there was one item that Zsasz had become rather attached to in the last week, and that was a hoodie that Roman had passed down to him as the fall season approached. It was a hoodie that Roman had worn several times before he deemed it to be not his color, but he claimed that he liked how it looked on Zsasz. The hoodie was several sizes above what Zsasz tended to wear, but it smelled like Roman, and it was comfortable. Zsasz had started to wear the hoodie every chance he had. It was a fact most didn't notice or care about, or at least that was the case for the most part. It was when Zsasz wore the hoodie at the club that some attention was attracted. Roman had excellent taste, and for Zsasz to wear an item that was different from usual attracted some, as most knew it was Roman who chose the item for him. Roman never bothered to hide this fact, as he liked to both show off his taste in fashion and Zsasz himself. Zsasz didn't mind, as he knew Roman liked the attention he received. He knew that the compliments would put Roman in one of his better moods and where that would lead for him.

“Is that from the Versace fashion line?” Dinah asked as she took a break in-between performances, not missing the bored look the assassin handed her before he refocused his attention on his phone. “I didn't know that they had hoodies in black and bronze.”

“It's Gold.” Roman corrected as one of the waitresses served him another drink, not bothering to hide his irritation when he saw the other man on some kind of online casino site, which caused him to snatch the device from his hand. “I wanted the black and white combo, but the Gotham location doesn't have it, so I had Lex send me the one I wanted from Metropolis. I would much rather not deal with the time it takes to have one sent to me through the company.”

“Roman.” Victor complained as he watched the other man tuck the device into the interior part of his suit, unable to miss the look he was handed over the tone he dared to use. “I was about to win.”

“And this is the reason I have parental controls installed.” Roman muttered with that same level of irritation he carried when he took the other man's device from him, shaking his head as he felt the other man rest his head on him in an affectionate kind of manner. “We'll talk about this later.”

There were small details about Roman's correction that made Dinah hesitate, and that's when it clicked that Zsasz had Roman's clothes on. Zsasz didn't seem bothered with this fact either. He treated it as if it were normal. He seemed comfortable in the clothes. Zsasz's face was even half hidden inside the hoodie due to how he was positioned in the booth next to Roman. Dinah had seen the two of them act domestic before, but to see Zsasz seated on the outside of the booth with Roman's clothes on and his head resting on Roman was on another level. Roman even had an arm around Zsasz to make sure he didn't leave him. It almost made Dinah nauseous as she was forced to witness the two men act in such a manner towards one another, and then Roman made it worse because, of course, he did. He wanted to show off what was his. He wanted to hear how nice Zsasz looked.

“It looks nice on him, don’t you think?” Roman questioned with a sense of amusement, unable to hide his smile as he looked at the other man who remained next to him. “He looks so small when he wears my clothes.”

“Roman.” Victor responded with a much harsher tone than what was needed, not bothering to hide how much he disliked what was said about him nor the fact that such was said about him in front of others. “I'm not small.”

“It's adorable.” Roman reasoned as he remained firm on his comment, looking towards the woman as he waited for a response to the question he had asked. “Dinah?”

“He looks..” Dinah started to respond as she looked at the smaller man before she hesitated, unable to bring herself to say one kind word about him. “You have excellent taste.”

“I feel so loved.” Zsasz remarked with a sense of disdain as he continued to take what affection he could from the other man, not missing when he started to trace over a part of the fabric that had been stained on the hoodie. “You're not washing it.”

“It hasn't been washed once since you received it.” Roman acknowledged with mild irritation, taking notice of the look he received over this comment. “It smells like smoke.”

“It also smells like you.” Victor retorted as he remained firm on his refusal, taking notice when the look the other man carried started to soften. “It's mine.”

“You can borrow mine. I'll wear it around the apartment, and then you can have this one back, but it needs to be washed.” Roman reasoned as he tried to meet the other man in the middle, not missing the half smile this remark earned him in silent agreement. “Adorable.”

One could consider Dinah to be heartless, but when Roman started to become almost too affectionate towards Zsasz, she decided to leave. It was a rare event to see the two behave in such a manner, but with the winter season on the horizon, business was slow, and Zsasz was much more relaxed. Roman had made a comment about seasonal depression, but Dinah didn't want to think of the man in that much of a human sense. Roman let Zsasz have his phone back once the site had been blocked, and Zsasz went about his business until it was time for the club to close. Zsasz continued to wear the hoodie for the rest of the week until Roman made a move to take it from him, and based on what Dinah heard, that had been hell for him. Roman had scratches on his wrist from the event, and Zsasz seemed much more tired from what Dinah assumed to be a sedative. Roman took care of Zsasz, and the man didn't care what he had to do in order to ensure the other man's needs were met. It was kind of sweet to think about until one remembered who it was that Roman had decided to care for. Zsasz didn't deserve to receive such kindness.

Zsasz was in one of Roman's other hoodies when he returned to the club. Dinah was rather thankful for the deadness in the club, as she was able to have a front-row seat to the scene Zsasz caused when someone spilled a drink on the hoodie Roman put on him while his other one was cleaned. It was an accident, and Zsasz didn't even seem to mind at first until Roman tried to make him take it off, and that's when all hell broke loose. Dinah did receive confirmation about the sedatives and the fact that Roman even had a doctor on staff to administer them when Zsasz was on this kind of level. Roman seemed almost relieved when Zsasz relaxed into his arms as he held him down. Zsasz had issues, but Dinah and Roman both knew he was worse.

“Much better.” Roman muttered as he held the other man as he settled himself back into his booth, unable to miss the blank look he received from the other man and the concerned look he received from his other employee. “He didn't bite me this time, and believe me, once he latches on, it's hell to remove him.”

Notes:

[Whumptober Prompt: Alt 4. Hoodie Weather] 5

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