Champagne Problems
THE NIGHT BEFORE - THE HOG’S HEAD
Tomoe and Levi sat to one corner, muttering between themselves while staring at Soma and Victor.
“Are you sure your co-workers are okay with me being here?” Soma muttered to Victor, trying not to draw attention to himself, shying away under Tomoe and Levi’s gaze.
“Of course, why not?” Victor slung his arm over the back of Soma’s chair casually. “What are we drinking?” he addressed Shanks.
“Inosuke is surprising us,” Fukuzawa drawled, chin in hand, “Hopefully something strong enough to actually get us intoxicated.”
Just at that moment Inosuke reappeared with a tray of shots and other such drinks. As he placed the drinks before the teachers Soma asked him embarrassedly, “Inosuke-san? Can you please get me something less strong?” Soma knew that his boyfriend - no, FIANCEE - and his friends had very high alcohol tolerances, which Soma himself did not share.
Inosuke glowed, “Of course, Soma-chan!!!! I shall bring you one of my favourite entry-level beverages! Wait a single moment!” he bowed, bouncing back to the bar.
-
Half an hour later all of the teachers were painfully inebriated, Shanks, Fukuzawa, Hawkeye and Victor singing to each other while Kakashi and Ayato beatboxed. Levi and Tomoe made out in the corner, Mustang watching on with clear jealousy.
Soma, the only one painfully sober between them, looked around to try and figure out what to do.
Inosuke stood at the bar, scrubbing it down and talking to Ban, laughing wildly.
Considering how preoccupied his fiancee was, Soma figured no one would miss his presence. He slid out of his seat, Victor not even looking to him as he did so, and made his way to the bar.
“Soma-chan!!” Inosuke cheered.
Soma took a deep breath, feeling a little relieved that at least someone seemed happy to see him.
“Inosuke-san, may I have another drink please?”
“Of course, of course!” Inosuke jumped into action, blushing slightly under his mask at the affection in Soma’s tone, pulling out a fresh glass (one which he washed with actual water) for champagne, brandishing it before him.
Soma ran his finger over the brim of the glass, his engagement ring catching the low lighting of Inosuke’s bar.
“Is that a ring I spy with my piggy eye? You have a mate?”
Looking over his shoulder, Soma let himself watch Victor for a moment, his silver hair glowing, face reddened with inebriation as he sung alongside his colleagues.
“My fiancee, Victor,” Soma pointed him out to Inosuke.
“FI-AN-CEE,” Inosuke pronounced the word curiously. “What is it?”
Ban dropped his cleaning rag on the bar, “It is when two people promise to be with each other for eternity. Just like me and my child-passing soon-to-be alive bride Elaine.”
“Waaa!” Inosuke cried, clapping his hands over his masked cheeks, “How exciting!”
“How did he ask?” Ban addressed Soma, “I’d like some inspiration for when I finally meet my love again.”
Soma smiled widely. He was glad to talk about Victor, if not just to distract himself from how horrible he felt being ignored by everyone that night. “It was a Tuesday evening. We were on the Oxbridge grounds, it was…” Soma cleared his throat, “He leant down on his knees to clean up some trash, but - before that, he took off his ring and handed it to me, staring up with that - with his…” Soma cleared his throat again, something distinct dawning on him, “And he didn’t even have to...ask…”
“But you said yes,” Ban ended with a nod, smiling widely.
“How romantic!” Inosuke cheered, clapping his hands, “How wonderful!”
Just as the feeling was settling in a little deeper - Soma looking down at his palms trying to figure his way through whatever he just realised - Victor wrapped his arms around Soma’s back, propping his chin on his shoulder, smelling strongly like liquor and sweat. “Soma-chaaaan!” he hummed into his ear, rocking them both back and forth, “What are you doing over here?” He turned his head to kiss Soma - Soma tipped his chin a little so Victor’s wet lips landed on his cheek, liquor-soaked breath fanning over his face, sweat from Victor’s forehead pressing against Soma’s face.
“Are you having fun?” Soma asked gently, pressing his hands over Victor’s on his stomach, his ring catching the light again - Soma’s chest throbbed.
“Mmmm, so much fun,” Victor drawled, rubbing his nose into Soma’s neck. He slid one hand from Soma’s torso and ran it lower, to Soma’s hip...
Something in Soma snapped. He pushed Victor’s hands off him, shrugging away from his head, “That’s good,” tone brittle.
Victor took Soma’s hand from the bar, “Why won’t you drink with us my love, we’re about to do more shots,” tugging Soma’s hand to pull him toward the other teachers.
“You’re so excited about Ayato’s wedding,” Soma’s eyes sharpened under the lighting, glimmering, “Why am I even here? Why did you even invite me?”
Victor looked at him, dazed, pupils blown.
“Didn’t you think that - that this -” motioning to the teachers, the raucous laughter, “Would be - would be uncomfortable - for me?”
Victor’s expression didn’t falter.
“I came,” Soma’s tone was becoming more shrill with exasperation, “Because you asked me to! Because I thought you needed me here - but - but you don’t need me, do you?”
“Soma…” Victor blinked slowly, “So you don’t wanna do shots?”
Ban ‘ooohed’ in the background while Inosuke looked on with confusion.
“No,” Soma said stiffly. “I don’t want to do shots. I don’t want to be here. I’m going home.” Soma slammed a few notes down on Inosuke’s bar.
“Home?” Victor echoed blankly, “No, no - stay here,” he grabbed Soma’s wrist as he passed, pulling him closer, face flushed with a sheen of sweat.
“Tell me,” through gritted teeth, “Why your proposal was so shitty.”
Victor didn’t reply, pulling Soma closer so their torsos were pressed together, leaning forward to kiss him again in something which was clearly supposed to be a distraction.
“No,” Soma pushed at his shoulders, “If you have so much energy to expend on people like Ayato -” he seethed, “Why couldn’t you spare me an ounce of this excitement and at least ask properly -”
“Ask?” Victor drawled lazily, “I don’t remember doing that.”
And it was true, wasn’t it? Victor hadn’t asked. He’d held his ring out to Soma, sure - and he’d been on one knee, sure - but he…
Hadn’t asked?
He hadn’t wanted to -
Soma stiffened, breath halting. He barely felt the first tear run off his chin. “What?!” he slammed his fists against Victor’s chest, voice rising - Tomoe and Levi turned to the pair and started sniggering, the fight loud enough to reach the louder corners of the bar - “What do you mean - you don’t REMEMBER?? You proposed to me -” tears blurring his vision “and I said YES -”
“I didn’t propose,” Victor snapped, “I never proposed to you. But I was hardly going to fix a misunderstanding that you made, not when you were clearly -”
“A MISUNDERSTANDING??” Soma screamed, grabbing the champagne glass he’d been drinking from off Inosuke’s bar and throwing it on the floor, “What do you mean, a misunderstanding?!?”
Inosuke perked to attention, pulling out all of the champagne glasses from behind the bar for Soma to use for ammunition as he decorated the floor with glass shards.
“I mean you JUMPED TO CONCLUSIONS and I -”
“I THOUGHT,” Soma screamed, smashing more glasses on the floor, “That you were the one person who wanted me - out of everyone, my parents,” glass smashed, “Mina,” glass smashed, and Soma’s cries worsened, “even Agni - but you, you stayed -”
Victor’s lips twisted, opening his mouth to say something -
Soma pulled the ring off his finger, “You DIDN’T propose to me? Then fine! I won’t burden you with my stupid childish MISUNDERSTANDING - take your shitty ring back, I didn’t want it anyway!” Soma screamed, throwing the ring at Victor, vision too blurred with tears to know if it met his mark -
Leaving the bar alone, burying his face in the collar of his jacket as he prowled the Hogsmeade streets, trying not to shiver against the cold of the night.