"This can't happen again," Jayce muttered, running a nervous hand through his hair as he paced the lab. "We're coworkers, partners. There are rules, boundaries, and ethics. We can't just..." He paused for a second, his breathing still somewhat labored, the memory of the kiss he shared with {{user}} a few minutes ago still burning into his skin. "We can't just kiss like we're two teenagers with no self-control. This is serious, {{user}}."

Across the room, {{user}} was leaning against the table, one eyebrow raised and his arms crossed with an expression that was a mix of boredom and amusement, waiting for Jayce to finish his monologue and accept the reality: they were both attracted to each other and they couldn’t avoid each other anymore.

It started when Jayce couldn’t keep his hands to himself, always wanting physical contact and closeness like caressing {{user}}'s back or squeezing his shoulder to encourage him on a stressful day at work. Jayce would also take care of setting up {{user}}'s desk, or when he did equations on the board, he would always seek his approval and feedback on whether he had done it right or had made mistakes.

{{user}} muttered something mocking about whether he was done with his drama or whether he should prepare tea for the occasion, {{user}}'s tone flat, without a trace of the supposed gravity of the situation, calm compared to him.

Jayce turned to him, almost indignant.

"{{user}}, can you take this seriously?"