---

---

---

---

Nero wiggles, scrunching their neck into Caden, start to have that ticklish feeling on their neck. “I told them I didn’t want to see them set foot in here until after the sun sets.” They whisper back. Part of them really wants to show Caden the goodies they’ve gathered to take back to his place now, but the other part really missed him and wanted this moment to last longer.

“So if they show their faces, they know they’re dead meat.” Nero practically growls with a smirk.

---

---

---

---

The next couple of hours goes by in a blur. It’s typical for everything to pick up when the night begins to take over the sky. Nic goes through the charts with the night shift attending to let her know the basics. Half of the people in the accident were able to be discharged within a hour of arrival, but the victims who took the brunt of it are waiting for rooms to open so they can be admitted to the hospital.

Nic doesn’t notice that his shift has ended yet as he checks on some of the patients, making sure everything is in place for them, until one of the nurses finally points out the clock to him. Some of the staff around push Nic to leave, knowing if they didn’t he might end up staying all night. As he changes out of his scrubs, he remembers the flash drives and tucks them into a safe space in his backpack before he throws them into the bin for washing.

---

---

---

---

”Mmm, would you let me watch if they come before? I can shift into a mouse. No one will no,” he purred and nipped Nero’s neck. He slid his hands around Nero’s waist, finding the buttons of their shirt and started to pull them apart.

”How much more work do you have to do?”

---

---

---

---

Cassi sat on a cement bench outside the emergency department with her shopping bags on the ground next to her. She bounced her leg up and down and watched the sliding door open and close. She wasn't entirely sure if she was anxious to surprise Nic or nervous because of all the pain in the area. It could easily be a combination of both, but regardless, Cassi stayed rooted to the bench, afraid she would miss him if he moved.

Cassi’s phone buzzed in her pocket and she slipped it out to quickly scan the message. She grinned, glancing at the doors again before replying.

---

---

---

---

Nero’s chuckle turns breathless very quickly and they find themselves having to hold onto the dragon to stay upright. “S-sure…” Caden could have asked for anything and Nero would happily oblige right now. “…I’m… done, was just organizing…” Nero bites their lip as their hands start to roam, grasping Caden’s sweater by the collar and pulling the fabric upwards.

---

---

---

---

Nic pulls his phone out as just as he exits the hospital, smiling in bemusement at Cass’ text. He starts to walk over to where his bike is chained as he replies.



Nic slips the phone back into his pocket and stops as his gaze lands on the familiar form of Cass sitting on the bench outside. “Oh, you’re a sneaky one, aren’t you?” He says loudly before bounding over to her in a couple of steps.

---

---

---

---

”Good…That’s good.” Caden untucked Nero’s shirt once he had it unbuttoned and pulled it off of them before he helped Nero remove his own sweater.

”Do you want to show me your inventory? We can figure out what you should keep,” he said. He slid his hand along the back of Nero’s, tipping their head back to look at him.

---

---

---

---

Cassi grinned, standing to greet Nic. ”Surprised?” She looked up into his eyes, her grin fading a bit.

”You look tired,” she whispered. She brushed her thumb under his eyes, wishing she could take the shadows away. ”When eight thirty passed, I was getting worried something was going wrong.”

---

---

---

---

Nero gives Caden a flat look as they tilt their head as much as they can with him holding it. “I hope you’re saying implying that inventory is code for something else.” They say as they narrow their eyes but a smirk appears on their face as well. “Because showing you my ledger is the furthest thing on my mind now that you’ve removed my shirt.”

---

---

---

---

As Cass starts to look at him worriedly, Nic is glad he didn’t tell her about the vanishing patients yet. He wraps his arms around her and holds her close in a tight embrace. “I lost track of time - the rest of the staff had to remind me what time it was. I’m sorry.” He buries his face in her neck, not bothering to move her hair as he closes his eyes and inhales.

---

---

---

---

Caden grinned. ”Haven’t you heard of multi-tasking?” He ran a finger down the centre of Nero’s chest and torso. He hooked his finger into the front of their pants and tugged them close.

”I need to make sure I don’t take you against something that has good retail value,” he said, glancing around the room they stood in.

---

---

---

---

”Don’t be sorry…I’m just glad you’re okay,” she said. She wrapped her arms around his neck, playing with his hair. ”Are you hungry? Or should we just grab a bottle of wine and head back to your place?”

---

---

---

---

Nero snorts, absolutely amused by Caden’s antics. “All the high valuables are in my office currently. This room is… well it’s basically a trash can for items I don’t want to keep and that have practically no value.” There’s a lot of cat trees Nero had found beside a dumpster scattered throughout the room.

---

---

---

---

Nic’s eyes slide shut, almost immediately relaxing in Cass’ arms and from her touch. “Let’s get something to bring home and pair with that wine.” He says in a low grumble, not moving for a moment before he pulls his head out from his hiding spot to kiss Cass. He starts with her forehead, then her cheeks, then her nose, and is about to kiss her lips when another male nurse calls out a greeting.

“Nic? That’s you, isn’t it? Is this the famous Cassi?” Ron, a tall and gangly ginger appears at their side. He stands just slightly shorter than Nic at 6’1”.

---

---

---

---

”Perfect. We’ll start in this room then,” Caden said and unbuttoned Nero’s pants before kissing them deeply again.

---

---

---

---

Cassiopeia sighed while Nic showered her with kisses. ”Okay,” she whispered, ready for that final kiss on her lips when she heard Nic’s name.

Cassi flushes with embarrassment, turning her head to regain her composure before she turns her head to greet one of Nic’s co-workers.

”Yes, hi, nice to meet you,” Cassi said, extending her hand to the gentleman standing next to them.

---

---

---

---

Nic sighs before he turns to shake his head at his friend and coworker. “You have the absolute worst timing, Ron.” He says with a playful glare before releasing Cass so she can greet the man. “Ron started as a nurse here at the same time as me - he works in the pediatric emergency room.”

Ron takes Cass’ hand and shakes it with a smile. “This jerk likes to kick my ass anytime we both happen to be in the gym together.”

---

---

---

---

Cassi grinned, the embarrassment wearing off, and she looked at Nic. ”Are you always in the gym?” she teased him.

---

---

---

---

Ron lets out a bark of laughter at Cass’ comment. “I haven’t seen him lately in the gym and was worried he’d stop boxing for a minute there.”

“Cass set me up with a friend of hers that’s a personal trainer, but if you want me to come back and kick your butt twice a week, I can do that.” Nic wraps an around around Cass’ shoulders with a smirk. “We can set up a double date or something with you some other nicethough, I’m eager to get home with my girlfriend.”

The other nurse laughs and shakes his head. “Nice to meet you!” He tells Cass before heading off for the bus stop.

---

---

---

---

Cassi smiled and waved goodbye to Ron before looking back at Nic. ”You used to kick his butt, hmm? Doesn’t seem very nice,” Cassi joked. She kissed his cheek before she went and retrieved her bags.

”I got you something, by the way,” she said and handed Nic the book of Scottish folklore. ”There may or may not be a section talking about witches and Sorcerers as well as Redcaps and other fun things.”

---

---

---

---

Nic chuckles and shakes his head after she kisses his cheek. “He’s no boxer - I just can lift more than he can is all.” He tells Cass as he follows her before she hands him a book. He blinks in surprise, turning the book over and peeking inside as Cass explains what it is.

“You have to be the most amazing girlfriend in the world, you know that?” He says, eager to read the book as soon as possible.

---

---

---

---

Cassi laughed and held her bags in one hand while she looked for some food places that were open on her phone.

”Why? Because I bought you a book?”

hr]

---

---

---

Nic grins, leading Cass over to the bike racks before crouching to unlock his bike. He plucks the shopping bags out of her hands and places them in the bike’s basket. “Because you were thinking of me while you shopped and got me something that not only interests me but also lets me learn a little bit more about you.”

Placing the book in his backpack, Nic leans down and kisses Cass’ lips softly. “Especially after today, this is… it’s exactly what I needed to be honest.” Steering his bike with his right hand, he wraps his left around Cass as he guides both towards his apartment, figuring they might be able to find a place while walking.

---

---

---

---

Cassi tucked her hair behind her ear while Nic took her bags and unlocked his bike. She shrugged, glancing away from him to stare at the ground.

”You like learning, so I thought it would be nice. Something we could talk about. I also got one about China and one about Japan,” Cassi informed him.

She walked along beside him, tucking her phone away to focus on him. ”Was it a difficult day?” she asked gently.

---

---

---

---

Nic simply beams at Cass with a bright smile - she knows him well already. “I might steal those from you at some point.” He says as they walk.

“Not difficult per se…” Nic says, drawing out the words slowly. “Well, I mean, the drunk driver who caused a three-car pile up certainly didn’t make the last two hours of my shift any easier.” He tightens his hold on Cass for a moment, kissing her head.

Nic silently debates with himself if he wants to mention the vanishing patients or not with Cass before he can confirm if it’s supernatural. He sighs softly before talking again. “We’re also seeing patients vanish from operations or rooms… Two from our hospital and I’ve found a couple at the other trauma centers in town. I found some footage that I want to take a closer look at and see if this might be something more up your alley.”

---

---

---

---

Cassi’s interest peaked when Nic mentioned disappearing patients. She looked up at him while they walked, trusting him to guide her away from anything that she might trip over or run into.

”Disappearing? Like poof?” Cassi asked with the hand gestures. ”Huh, that is interesting.”

---

---

---

---

Unable to help himself, Nic chuckles at Cass’ ‘poof’ and gestures despite the situation. “Yeah, exactly like that. I wanted to see if I can slow down the footage I found and go frame by frame.” He glances around to see if there’s anything that sounds good for food.

“Would you like to go over it with me? Also, what kind of food sounds good to you?”

---

---

---

---

”Yes please! We might be able to figure it out between the two of us. Caden owns a security company, as well. If we can't see what's going on they may be able to enhance the footage,” Cassi said.

She fiddled with the bracelet on her wrist while she spoke about Caden. She was glad they talked and hunted together, but things still seemed off for her.

She looked up and spotted a sushi place.

”Ooo, can we do sushi?” Cassi asked, pointing the restaurant out.