A/N: Am I bad for submitting this so late? Perhaps. Do I regret being late? Oh yes. Do I regret writing it? Aw hell nah!

~I do not own Welcome to Night Vale!~

"Perfect, perfect Carlos~!" Cecil sang cheerfully, walking down the street with the brightest of grins on his face. He'd done his broadcast earlier and now, as then moon hung high overhead, he was ready to do science-y things with the perfect love of his life.

Carlos -his perfect, precious Carlos- was doing experiments on rock samples from the sidewalk entering the Dog Park all night and he'd said Cecil could come by. So Cecil was, and he was thrilled by the idea of working with his lovely, perfect, precious- "CARLOS~!"

Jamming his finger against the doorbell with a cheerful cry of the scientist's name, Cecil rocked his weight back and forth on the balls of his feet in anticipation for the sight of his dark-skinned scientist. His hair would be pulled back from his slightly-stubbly face because he'd been too busy to shave and Telly the barber was gratefully missing from his store and unable to cut his perfect locks. He would be a little breathless, having only heard the doorbell end and run to get the door for him, and a sheen of sweat might cling to his perfect face and neck because of the temperature he kept his lab.

He would call his name, "Cecil!" as if he hadn't expected him, and Cecil would come inside and they would do wonderful science-y- "Cecil?! Hello?"

"Carlos!" Cecil jumped, not realizing he had been staring giddily into empty space while that oaky voice had washed over him like his washed over the citizens of Night Vale. He felt heat rise in his face, dyeing his cheeks a dark orchid purple, and Cecil quickly recovered his composure enough to smile and form a coherent sentence. "It's so great to see you!"

"...I can tell." Carlos said slowly, "I called you five times before you answered back."

"I was just... thinking!" Cecil explained, clasping his hands behind his back and grinning at Carlos' unruffled expression. Cecil was the Voice of Night Vale; the perfect citizen, and none of the other people seemed to notice he was also just Cecil. He was the Voice, the host, and never ever the man with the deep sonorous voice. But Carlos... Carlos accepted him always, whatever 'odd' thing he was doing, and Cecil felt the warm affection for this man burst open in his chest like a firework. He had never belonged to anyone the way he belonged to Carlos, and some days that knowledge had torn him apart. But now... with his beautiful, precious, accepting, perfect Carlos, Cecil could belong to someone. And that someone was Carlos.

Following the scientist inside as he murmured lowly about variables and the volatile substance on the main table, Cecil toed off his loafers and slipped out of his dusky blue suit jacket. He'd dressed to impress tonight and Cecil felt another surge on confidence as he smelt his own cologne waft up suddenly from his jacket.

"Gorgeous..." He told himself, whispering as he hurried down the hall and emerged into the brightly lit main room with a gasp. Vials of fluid and jars of others were everywhere, some bubbling on little metal pads and others stacked or stored in racks and specially ordered with tiny labels. "WOW!" He exclaimed, hurrying over and picking up one open bottle curiously.

"DON'T TOUCH THAT!" Carlos' smooth voice thundered from across the room, bursting forth from near-silence, and Cecil squawked in surprise, falling backwards. His arms pinwheeled as he tipped backwards, bumping into another smaller table, and Carlos was suddenly there and clutching him to his warm lab coat-covered chest. Cecil could hear the scientist's heart pounding in his chest, the 'ba-bmp' drowning out everything for one thrilling second, but then Carlos had him at arm's length and was staring at him intently.

"Car-" "ARE YOU CRAZY!?" Demanded Carlos, his eyebrows drawing down toward his expressive eyes for the most terrifying of expressions. Cecil could feel his whole body lock up; Carlos was angry with him, so very angry! "THAT'S HYDROFLUORIC ACID, YOU IDIOT! DON'T YOU KNOW THAT AQUEOUS HYDROFLUORIC ACID HAS THE POTENTIAL FOR DEEP BURNS AND ENSUING TISSUE DEATH!?"

Cecil dipped his head, feeling his throat tighten as Carlos' eyes bored into his. He looked away -down at the bottle he'd spilled on the table- and his vision blurred a little. Cecil berated himself mentally for not having been more careful, hearing Carlos' words repeat in his mind. '"You idiot!"'

"I'm sorry, Carlos..." Cecil said feebly, looking up at the furious scientist through his lashes.

"YOU SHOULD BE! THAT ACID IS HIGHLY VOLATILE! BY INTERFERING WITH THE BODY'S CALCIUM METABOLISM, THE ACID CAN CAUSE SYSTEMIC TOXICITY AND EVENTUAL CARDIAC ARREST AND FATALITY FROM CONTACT WITH JUST TWENTY-FIVE SQUARE INCHES OF SKIN!" Carlos shook him, once, and Cecil squeezed his eyes shut to avoid seeing the scientist's livid expression any more. He didn't want to see the anger, or the disappointment, or the distaste flood those expressive pools and burn into him, or see the way Carlos' mouth turned down in an uncharacteristic scowl.

"I'm sorry," Cecil moaned, hunching his shoulders as Carlos gripped them and covering his eyes. He leaned forward, expecting empty air, but Carlo's chest met him and his forehead fit perfectly in the junction of his neck and shoulder. Why hadn't he pushed him away? Why was Carlos holding him like this if he had been so angry? "I'm such a fool! I should have been more careful!"

"Exactly," Carlos growled, his voice resonating through his chest and Cecil's cheek. It was deep and gravelly, lower than the usual oaky tenor Cecil heard on the phone, and the radio host quivered a little.

"You said something about it earlier, didn't you?" Cecil asked meekly, hiding his face shamefully as Carlos nodded. He felt the man's chin bump against his hair as he nodded and flinched, but didn't pull back. "And I didn't listen... and now you must hate me."

"No," Carlos said softly, and Cecil pulled away in shock, his mouth floundering for something to say. Carlos watched him calmly, his dark eyes giving Cecil goosebumps as he stumbled backwards and rubbed his own upper arms to dispel them. How could he not? Cecil had just spilt his acid on the table and probably ruined the other samples that were now soaked in it. He stared at the table, at the mess he'd made, and then back at Carlos in confusion. "I don't hate you, Cecil,"

"Why not?" Cecil mumbled, "You sounded angry."

"Because..." Carlos said ambiguously, "and people don't always yell because they're angry, Cecil." Carlos tugged at one sleeve gently, giving Cecil a small smile and reaching out tentatively for one of Cecil's rune-marked hand. He watched the runes buzz actively on Cecil's wrist, recoiling from where their skin connected at first and then gradually returning to test the skin-to-skin contact.

"..." Cecil stared at his hand, at the tattoos testing out the new territory that was Carlos' skin, and then looked deep into Carlos' eyes. His lips parted with nothing to say; the Voice was speechless.

"I shouldn't have yelled at you." Carlos admitted faintly, the corner of his lips curling upward as one bold tattoo adorned his ring finger. Cecil blushed, scolding it under his breath, but Carlos continued. "When I saw you pick up the bottle, my heart stopped." He told Cecil, "What if you drank it? Or spilt it on yourself and didn't realize? ...I couldn't forgive myself if you got hurt by it, so I-I overreacted."

Carlos looked up from the tattoos twining around his hand now and blinked wetly at Cecil. And Cecil gasped, because he had never seen the glistening tears that were filling Carlos' eyes then, not even in the face of all of Night Vale's oddities and events.

"Carlos..." Cecil whispered, taken off guard by the soft confession. Carlos had been worried about him; him! Cecil suddenly couldn't restrain the wide grin that appeared on his face and he threw himself into Carlos' arms for a tight embrace, laughing aloud as Carlos' arms wrapped around him. "Oh Carlos! My perfect, perfect Carlos! I love you!"

"Cecil?" Carlos gasped, his turn confused now. "What? Aren't you mad that I yelled?" Cecil hadn't expected that question, so he pulled back a little and caught Carlos' face between his hands. His thumbs stroked Carlos' cheeks and he grinned giddily at the scientist, and soon a few runes had slipped between them to explore Carlos' jaw. "Y-Your tattoos! They're-"

"You're too perfect to be mad at," Cecil sighed, touching their foreheads together and closed his eyes with a blissful sigh. "especially when you're being so cute!"

"Cute!?" Carlos sputtered, blushing heavily, "I am not cute!"

Cecil laughed and cooed: "Oh yes, yes, you are. You're my perfect, cute Carlos!" and he rubbed their noses together as his tattoos returned to his hands. "Now let's do something science-y!"

~I do not own Welcome to Night Vale!~

A/N: Ladies and gents, shots fired. Cecil is now a smooth operater and so goddamn cute at the same time. *dies* It may be late, but I'm so glad I wrote it. Now goodnight, readers, goodnight.