A Year With You

Ten

"Babe"

"..."

"Baby"

"..."

"Honey, Darling, My love"

"..."

"Dad-"

"Is there a reason you're spewing out cringy pet names?" Roman asked as he looked up from his work to see Alain just staring intently at him.

"I'm trying to decide on a name I want the main character in my book to call their significant other. While doing so, I realized that we don't really do that so I wanted to try it out" Alain explained and Roman gave an amused smile.

"I don't really think it's necessary to give your boyfriend an endearment" Roman said.

"Yeah, I know but it's still interesting to try it out. So, what do you like to be called? I have a whole list" Alain said as he pointed to the list of endearments he had written out on his notepad.

Roman gave a small chuckle before shaking his head.

"I don't think I'm really the type to call others by such silly names" Roman said and he flinched when Alain bopped him on the nose with his pen.

"I said what would you liked to be called" Alain said and Roman raised an eyebrow.

"Those feelings apply to that as well" He said. Alain pulled a pout before picking up the list in his lap.

"So since you weren't responding earlier, I'll start over and you can give a simple yes or no" Alain said and Roman just gave a sigh before nodding seeing that he clearly wasn't going to be able to get out of this.

"Babe or Baby?" Alain said as he watched Roman's facial expression. Alain was quick to pick up on the fact that although Roman's words said one thing, his body language said an entirely different thing.

It was usually the latter that was more honest.

"Neither" Roman said and Alain nodded before moving down the list.

"Honey?" Roman grimaced as he thought it would be weird if he were called that. Whenever he hears 'Honey' he automatically thinks of Ceres since that's what Kade often refers to her as.

"No" he said simply.

"Hmmm...darling? My love?" Alain said and Roman gave a short sigh as he shook his head.

"I told you, I don't really find the appeal in pet names" Roman said as he shifted his leg to cross over the other.

When coming to the next name on his list, Alain gave a smirk before leaning and whispering the name in his boyfriend's ear which made Roman freeze up.

"...no" he muttered and Alain pulled away with a grin.

"You hesitated" he said as he pointed at Roman who glared at him in turn.

"Did not" he said and turned his head away in hopes to hide the red on his cheeks from Alain but with how close the younger male was, that was just impossible.

"Do you like it when I call you that? Does it turn you-" Roman quickly put his hand over Alain's mouth who just stared at him amusedly from his position.

"Do you ever know when to shut up?" Roman asked with a glare and Alain removed Roman's hand from his mouth to reveal the smirk that rested on his face.

"There are definitely a couple things we could do that will keep these lips occupied" He said with a wink and Roman gave an irritable sigh.

"You're hopeless" he muttered.

"But you love the hopeless me, don't you?" Alain asked and Roman raised a brow.

"I'll answer that later" Roman said before standing up and taking his work into the other room.

Alain gaped at the older man's response before dashing after him.

"You can't do that!"