The one-shot was originally posted on tumblr we-cant-all-be-penguins but since then has been edited to be cross-posted here.

Pebble

Kowalski fidgeted as he waited for the milk to boil resisting the urge to retrieve the small black box from his pants pocket and make sure that the item it contained was still, in fact, inside. He glanced at the clock on the stove and decided it wouldn't be worth the risk.

It would be his luck that he'd open the box just as Rico wandered in to see what was taking him so long to make "hot chocolate" because Rico was long used to him using power packets instead of the quote, unquote, the good stuff.

And yet, that behavior was Before and now in the After he worried that Rico wouldn't even be waiting for him. Despite the fact that biweekly movie nights were a staple in their relationship a deep fracture had formed between them as a result of the disastrous mission they had been on. Skipper had even apologized for assigning them to the mission, to begin with. Still, Kowalski didn't blame his leader for the fallout that had occurred. It had seemed logical to have the pair on the team that was in a relationship go undercover as a pair of newlyweds, especially since Marlene refused to pose as Skipper's or rather Diego Garcia's wife again.

Kowalski sighed as he unwrapped a thick chocolate tablet and added it to the bubbling milk. He watched in fascination as the cacao and spices began to float to the surface, much like all the problems in his and Rico's relationship had come to the surface a mere two weeks ago. In hindsight, he should have figured that things between him and Rico had been running a tad too smoothly and something was bound to happen.

After letting the chocolate melt for a moment he whisked the ingredients together and watched heterogeneous mixture became homogeneous. If only it were that easy for two people to come together despite fundamental differences, he mused as he filled to mugs with the spiced hot chocolate.

Kowalski took a moment to compose himself and not let himself get his hopes up. Even if he and Rico had talked and made tentative amends there was still a noticeable difference from what they were Before and what they were After. It hadn't taken long for Kowalski to notice Rico putting distance between them as if preparing for an inevitable split. After the Lipstick Incident, as they referred to it, had nearly slipt them for good he wondered if it had been too much to assume that the foundation of their relationship had been strengthened rather than irreparably damaged. A brief sense of relief washed over him when he spotted Rico on the couch flicking through their movie queue.

"I hope you don't mind, but there's a documentary I wanted to watch," Kowalski commented as he set the steaming mugs down on the table before sitting down, careful to put some space between them. He wasn't sure if he'd be welcomed in Rico's personal space so quickly and decided to put that ball in his court.

"This one?" Rico asked throwing Kowalski a semi-amused glance as he stopped on the most recently added movie.

Kowalski tried to keep a straight face, but felt his lips twitch."I'm aware of the irony, but since went had that minor incident in Antarctica," Kowalski leaned forward and picked up the mugs, "I thought it may be beneficial to learn more about our namesakes."

Rico snorted at the memory of Julien getting too close to a few mated pairs and their nests. With nothing more to say, Rico selected the movie and accepted the hot chocolate Kowalski handed him. He raised his eyebrows in surprise as he recognized the spiced scent that only came from Abulelita's hot chocolate.

Kowalski only offered a soft smile in return when Rico caught his eye and was rewarded by Rico closing the space between them. Despite the gentle ribbing Rico had given him over his movie pick, it didn't take long for his boyfriend to become engrossed with the ever adorable footage of fluffy penguin chicks.

Kowalski, on the other hand, watched the documentary with little interest (he had already watched it) far more concerned with the small box resting in his pants pocket. It seemed to be growing heavier with each passing minute and he feared his nerves would get the best of him. Rico must have sensed his unease and gave the hand he was holding a gentle squeeze.

"This courting process coupled with the fact that Adele penguins build their nests out of stones created the popular belief that the male penguin will search for the perfect pebble and upon finding it will present it to their intended mate."

As the narrator continued Kowalski pulled his hand out of Rico's slid to the edge of the couch and pulled the box from his pocket. He had been planning his moment for weeks and knew it was now or never.

Rico started at Kowalski with a growing sense of dread as he spotted the small black box cradled in his boyfriend's hands. They had finally started to return to a sense of normalcy in their relationship and Kowalski was going to spring this on him.

"Rico, I'm not asking you to marry me," Kowalski started seeing the panic on the younger man's face. "I haven't changed how I feel about marriage, but I know now how important it is to you to know that I am committed to this relationship. After that last mission, I had a lot of time to think and I realized that it's important to me as well because I don't want to lose you." With trembling fingers, Kowalski opened the box to reveal a small polished stone.

"K'walski?" Rico asked, knowing what Kowalski was getting to, but not wanting to get his hopes up.

"I-I guess what I'm trying to say is that I want to build a nest with you."

_3 Months Later_

Skipper watched in confusion as Rico set a pebble next to the cup of coffee he had put out for Kowalski. He was even more confused when Kowalski's face lit up like the 4th of July at the sight of the aforementioned pebble. Then he was completely lost when Kowalski pulled Rico down to him for a kiss over the pebble.