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maeve

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This is the first time that Steve has ever had the same girlfriend on Valentine's Day as the year before. He thought that maybe that would freak him out, but it doesn't. He's come to realize that he didn't jump from girl to girl because he was a player. Mostly, he just didn't want to get hurt.

But then he did, and he got over it. He moved on, and he found something better. Someone better. The someone who is over at the jukebox yelling in some dude's face. Steve gives her a smitten look as the guy stomps off, and then turns back to the bar to get them another round.

"There you are!" The high-pitched voice makes Steve pause, and he pastes on a smile as he turns to face the girl who has been following him around all night, despite him repeatedly telling her that he has a girlfriend. Usually, that's enough to make a girl back off, but not this one. She's been sort of relentless, and he's getting a little annoyed. "Finally, I've got you all to myself. Come dance with me!"

"Look, I'm flattered, but I can't," Steve tells her coolly, trying to be polite but not too polite, because apparently she can't take a hint. He lifts the hand holding his dwindling drink and uses it to gesture over his shoulder at Maeve, and then sets the glass down as he gestures for the bartender. "Like I said, I'm with someone."

While Steve is turned to place an order, he misses the woman turn her hand over the top of Steve's drink and pour a purple liquid from a small vial. By the time he turns back, she's smiling up at him again and holding up a drink of her own.

"Okay, okay. I get it," she tells him, shrugging as she holds her own drink up a little. "Here's a good night, I guess."

Steve lifts his glass to mirror her lazy toast and knocks back the rest of the liquor, frowning down at the empty glass before setting it on the bar. There was something sour about it and he smacks his lips, blinking a few times before suddenly feeling warm and calm, even as butterflies swarm in his belly. When he turns to look at the girl, his vision is a little glassy and he blinks a few times, feeling his expression smooth out as the girl puts a hand on his chest.

"Oh, wow," Steve says dreamily, and the young woman might think that the love potion she had bought a few blocks over has done the trick, but it hasn't. Steve is in love alright, but he already was so all he does is love Maeve even harder, even if he's a little too fuzzy to say it in the moment.

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When the girl cozies up to Steve, he doesn't even really notice. He's too busy staring at Maeve as if he's seeing her for the first time and would be happy to stare at nothing but her for the rest of his life.

She's so beautiful. She's so cool, and smart, and sexy. Just look at the way she says pet like that. Devastating.

"Sorry, it looks like he's made his choice," the girl says in a whiny voice that Steve barely even hears. Obviously she has misjudged the effect the potion would have on Steve, because he just takes her by the shoulders and gently pushes her back while still looking at Maeve.

"Oh, there's no choice to make," Steve says as he wraps his arms around Maeve in a hug, squeezing her so tightly that her feet nearly leave the floor. "Maeve is the love of my life."

"Ugh, what a waste," the girl says, rolling her eyes and flipping her hair back over her shoulder as she turns to grab her purse. "I'm totally getting my money back."

The hug is nice, at least until she's up on her toes, being squeezed so tight she can feel it in her chest and she wriggles in Steve's grasp, pulling back to look at him. The girl is already stomping off, talking about getting her money back, and Maeve has to wonder what the hell that means. Is there someone outside trying to pimp out her boyfriend without his knowledge?

"You alright?" she asks, looking up at him. He looks a little dopey, his eyes a little glazed, and she tilts her head to study him closer. Maeve doesn't care if Steve smokes pot, she even joins him some of the time, but that isn't what this is. It's something else.

It's only when Maeve wiggles that Steve sets her back down, sliding his hands up to cup Maeve's cheeks to tip her face up so he can stare down at her with an awed expression on his face. She's just so beautiful. He can't look away.

"Me? I'm perfect," Steve replies dreamily, smiling as he strokes the pads of his thumbs gently along Maeve's cheekbones. "How could I be anything less than perfect when I've got you?"

His voice is drawling and a little dreamy, like he's dazed, and he feels like he is but he isn't sure why. He only had two drinks, which should have only given him a slight buzz if anything, but he feels drunk. Maybe he's just drunk on her.

"Fuck, I love you," he murmurs, moving his thumb across the curve of her bottom lip. "Like, I really, really, really love you."

"I love you, too," Maeve answers, although her tone is faintly confused and more than a little concerned. Steve isn't above being affectionate, but this is far beyond his usual, and there's something about the way he's looking at her that makes her feel like this isn't entirely his own doing.

"Are you stoned?" she asks.

His voice sounds slower than usual, not quite a slur like he's drunk, but the casual, comfortable drawl of being spectacularly stoned.

"What? No," Steve replies as he stares at her, reaching up to tuck a strand of hair behind one adorable little ear. "I've only had two drinks. I'm fine."

He leans down to give her a soft kiss on the mouth, and then her jaw, then just under her ear as he slides his hands around his hips, fingertips resting just at the swell of her ass. Suddenly, he very much just wants to get her out of here and all to himself, so all of his attention can be on her.

"But I think that I'd really like to take you home," he whispers in her ear, turning on all the seductive charm that he has at his disposal. "I want to make you feel good. Whatever you want, I want to do it, Maeve." He kisses her ear and when he speaks again, his voice is less seductive and back to the awed, dreamy tone it was before. "And then we can just like, snuggle all night. You're so pretty. I just wanna hold you."

"So this is the time to ask if I can stick my fingers in your arse," she answers, but she's only using sarcasm as a way to deal with the worry that's creeping up on her. Steve says he's fine, he isn't drunk, but she doesn't think he's had too much alcohol. She thinks something else is going on with him.

"Steve, seriously," she says, pulling back to look at him. She cups his face between her hands and searches his eyes. "You're acting off."

"Oi," someone says from near Maeve's shoulder and she turns to find a tall, strongly built man with impressive eyebrows. "He alright?"

"Why?" she asks, eyes narrowing.

"Saw that other girl slip something into his drink from over there," he answers, nodding to the seat he's apparently vacated.

"Yeah, we could do that," Steve says easily, because he's down to try anything once, especially if it means that Maeve will be touching him. He tries to kiss her neck but she pulls away, and his brows furrow as his lips purse from his she's pushing up his cheeks.

"Me loving you is off?" He asks, suddenly feeling wounded. His eyes go big and shiny. "I just want to make you happy!"

Some guy walks up and Steve is saved from further embarrassing himself, even if Maeve is still sort of making him look like a chipmunk in front of this obviously very cool dude.

"You think I was drugged?" Steve asks, huffing and pulling his face out of Maeve's grasp. "Do I not tell you that I love you enough? Are you mad at me?"

So much for not embarrassing himself.

Both Maeve and the guy who had warned her about whatever was slipped into his drink make astonishingly similar expressions at that.

"Word of advice, mate?" the guy says. "Listen to your girlfriend. They always know more than we ever fuckin' could." Then he looks at Maeve again. "You think you'll be alright?"

"Yeah," she answers, although she really is worried now. "Yeah, we'll be okay. Thanks. For... you know."

The guy tips Steve a lazy salute before heading back to his seat at the bar and Maeve takes Steve's hands in hers.

"Look at me," she says. "I'm not mad at you. Your eyes are glassy, you're speaking slowly, you're saying things that, while very sweet, are a little... much. For you. For us. That girl who walked away, she said something about getting her money back, that guy said he saw her slip you something. We need to get you home."

Steve blinks owlishly at the man and his eyebrows and then looks back at his girlfriend. She seems upset, which is awful, and instead of protesting, he listens to her speak because that's what she wants him to do.

"I-- okay," he says eventually, because he does feel a little off, and that girl had been very weird. Maybe Maeve is right. That would make a lot of sense; she's very smart. "I was drugged? Are you serious?"

He feels a little violated, but before he can examine that too much, he looks at Maeve's pleading expression and nods, reaching up to gently cup her cheek. "Okay, yeah. We can go home. I wanna go home with you."

It's a relief when he agrees and Maeve nods, then takes his hand and heads for the door. At the same time, she's on her phone, ordering them a car. They had planned on drinking, so they'd walked over rather than Steve driving, and she's kind of relieve they had. Maeve knows how to drive, she just hasn't practiced much, and she hasn't technically gotten her license yet either and honestly, the last thing they need right now is a cop getting tangled up in all this.

At least she would probably have a way out, she realizes. Just insist they get Vimes for her.

"Your place?" she asks as she bundles Steve into the back seat of the car, making sure he's settled and comfortable. He probably has some sort of sports drink in the fridge where she definitely doesn't.

While they wait for the car, Steve keeps his arms around Maeve, face buried in her neck, keeping her warm as they stand out in the chill. He's happy just to be there with her in his arms, inhaling the sweet scent of her shampoo.

"Yeah, my place. Robin's at yours, I think." It's pretty convenient that their roommates are dating each other, but they do just seem to be apartment hopping all of the time. "You guys should just switch forever."

It's a big thing to suggest, and one he probably would freak out about very much under other circumstances, but right now he can't think of anything better than waking up next to Maeve every single morning. "Come here, babe. Cuddle me."

"Uh... wow, no," Maeve answers, patting Steve's chest once they're settled in the car. She sits close to him, because she's not annoyed or anything, something has clearly been done to him, but she's also really not even close to being ready to switch flats so she and Steve can live together.

"That's a conversation we're definitely not having while you've been drugged," she tells him, leaning against his side. It's not a conversation she imagined they would be having any time soon at all and she's sort of hoping Steve won't be inclined to go down that road once the drugs or whatever wear off.

"Fiiine," Steve replies, because with whatever's been done to him, he can tell that she's probably right. When she leans against him, Steve shifts to wrap his arms around her, practically pulling her into his lap as he buries his face in her neck.

"You're so hot. I don't even understand it," he mumbles, squeezing at her hip as he presses a kiss just below her ear. "I want to put my face on your boobs. But in like, a respectful way."

"You guys good back there?" The driver asks, obviously amused and probably thinking Steve just had a few too many. "Young love, huh?"

"Excuse you!" Steve replies a little too loudly, popping his head up. "We're having a moment!"

"A someone put something in his drink moment," Maeve clarifies, feeling a little like Steve has suddenly grown two extra sets of hands, given that they're everywhere.

After a beat, she adds, "Not me."

Just in case. She would really rather not anyone think she'd been the one to drug him. The very thought of it makes her sick and even though nothing has happened and Steve is safe, there's still a pit of anxiety in her stomach, because there is every possibility he might not have been. If she had been late or if she'd gotten distracted, the chances are high the girl who had drugged him would have taken advantage of him and Maeve doesn't want anyone she cares about to feel violated in such a way.

When Steve cuddles up to Maeve again, it takes a few moments, but something cuts through the happy, fuzzy blanket of feelings that he has for her. She's tense and almost squirming, and Steve pulls back to look at her face, frowning when he sees her furrowed brows and little pout.

"Hey, I'm okay," he assures her, reaching up to cup her cheek. He may not really understand the gravity of what happened just yet, but he doesn't want her to be upset or worry about him. "You saved me. I'm gonna be fine, babe."

As the car pulls up to the curb in front of his apartment building, Steve gently kisses one downturned brow and then the other, nudging their noses together as he reaches for the door. "Let's just go inside, huh? I want it to be just you and me."

Steve looks up and catches the driver's eyes in the rearview mirror. "No offense."

He may think it's fine and she supposes it is, since he's here and he's safe, but Maeve isn't quite so ready to just let it go. Already, she's thinking if there are ways to track down the girl from the bar, take her information to Vimes, if not an actual police station. People shouldn't be allowed to just go around Darrow putting things into drinks; it's dangerous and it's illegal.

"Thank you," she says to the driver as they exit the vehicle. She takes Steve's hand, leading him toward the building, then waits for him to unlock the door.

"I know you're fine," she says after they're inside, waiting for the elevator. "But it's still incredibly fucked up that someone would do this."

"Yeah, it is," Steve agrees, twisting to lean back against the wall as they wait for the elevator. He feels a little better now that he's had some air and he's under the bright lights of the lobby, even if still a little hazy.

"All I wanted was you," he says after a moment, smiling a little at her. "Even with a-- a love potion, or whatever, and with her pawing at me. I just wanted you."

That means a lot, he thinks. Steve may have been kind of a player in high school but he wasn't one to outright cheat, so it isn't as if he's easily tempted. "That's sort of sweet, I think. In a weird way."

She seems upset, and even though Steve knows she isn't mad at him, he still feels a little bad for ruining their date. When the elevator doors slide open, Steve twists around and walks inside, turning to lean against the back wall and tip his head back.

At that, she smiles faintly, a twist of her lips before she shakes her head. "You shouldn't be able to turn getting drugged into something romantic," she tells him. "That's very annoying."

It isn't at all annoying and her voice says as much.

"I'm glad you're okay," she says to him, stepping closer and resting her hands against his stomach as the elevator climbs. "I'm also glad you didn't want to hook up with the girl who drugged you, because I'm pretty sure the pitch of her voice could summon dogs."

"What can I say? I have a gift," Steve says with a laugh, smiling fondly down at Maeve as he rests his hands on her hips. Already, the drugs seem to be wearing off. He still feels a little dopey, a little dazed, maybe a bit turned on, but those are all things that he generally feels when he's around Maeve anyway, so it's hard to tell.

"Oh, Steve!" He says in a high-pitched voice, tickling playfully at Maeve's sides. "You're so sexy, Steve!"

He's still tickling her, leaning in to kiss at her neck, when the elevator doors slide open and Steve is faced with an unimpressed looking older couple. Doing his best not to laugh, he puts his arm around Maeve's shoulders and leads her out of the elevator and past them, giving them a lazy salute. "Evening, folks."

They step onto the elevator Steve waits for the doors to close, face carefully blank, and as soon as they're alone again, he brings his tickling fingers back to her waist, lips close to her ear. "Oh, Steve!

"Oh my god," Maeve answers, rolling her eyes as she tries to twist away from his fingers, even before the doors open to reveal the couple looking at them, their expressions stern. She's used to pissing off boring old people, though, and she has to press her lips together to stop her smile as they step off.

"Oh, Steve, you're gonna get smacked," she warns, still mostly teasing when he starts to tickle her again. "It's only because you've been drugged that the threat isn't worse."

She catches one of his hands and then pretends to wring his finger before she threads their fingers together. "Come on," she says.

"Ooh, foreplay," he jokes, but he stops the tickling and holds her hand instead, following after her as he gets his keys out of his pocket. After letting them into the apartment, Steve calls out for Robin and gets no response, so he does a lazy sort of fist pump and tosses his keys onto the table. Not that he doesn't want to see Robin, but it's a relief to have the apartment to themselves for the night.

"I'm pretty sure whatever it was wore off," he assures her as he kicks off his shoes and locks the door, tugging off his jacket as he walks towards the kitchen. "Man, she really did get ripped off."

Steve goes into the kitchen to grab himself a sports drink and Maeve a bottle of water from the fridge, holding them both in one hand as he runs the other through his hair on his way to the sofa, gesturing for Maeve to follow him. "I think I'm gonna make it, babe."

"So I don't need to go kick someone's arse tonight," she says with a small, tight smile as she sinks onto the couch beside Steve, one leg tucked under her body. She's still going to tell Vimes, because she thinks it's pretty fucked up that people can just go around trying to drug people or dose them with love potions or whatever the hell had happened. He might not be able to do much, but it'll make her feel better.

"I'll save it for tomorrow," she jokes as she takes the bottle of water from Steve and twists off the cap so she can have a swallow. The threat is mostly empty. Mostly. "What's with everyone and this complete lack of consent being something they're okay with? That's so messed up. There's nothing real in drugging someone into liking you."

"I'm not okay with it," he tells her, brow furrowed a bit as he turns to face her on the sofa, pulling one leg up onto it. "I just-- I don't know. Some people just suck, and I didn't want it to ruin our night."

Steve screws his sports drink shut and sets it on the table before leaning back against the sofa, pressing his palms to his eyes. He feels tired and kind of fucking dumb for not realizing what was going on, or being more careful. He isn't victim blaming himself, or whatever. It just sucks.

"I really wanted it to be a good night," he says as he drops his hands and rolls his head to the side to look at her, corners of his mouth quirking up briefly before he looks away.

"Not you, dummy," Maeve says, kicking his thigh with the top of her foot. It's barely a kick at all, more a nudge than anything. "I meant her. She's fucked up."

She smiles at him and sets her bottle of water on the table before she shifts on the couch, moving so she can straddle Steve's lap. Draping her arms over his shoulders, she tilts her head and looks at him, smirking a little.

"It is a good night," she teases. "Because you told me I could put my fingers in your arse." She doesn't really expect him to go through with it right now, not after she'd asked while he was drugged, but it's still something she has to give him a bit of shit about.

When Maeve climbs into his lap, Steve is grateful for numerous reasons, but especially because it means that the night isn’t ruined, and she isn’t upset, and he might still get laid.

He puts his hands on her thighs and slides them slowly up at down as he watches her, and then quirks a brow as she brings up putting her fingers in him again. She doesn’t say it like she’s actually expecting it, but she’s mentioned it more than once. She must want to try it.

Not long ago, Steve would have balked at it, maybe even found it weird. He probably would have said no, but he’s a different person now. He has plenty of gay friends, and they seem happy with their sex lives, so it must feel good to have something up their ass.

That, and he trusts Maeve. She’s probably the only one that he would trust with something like that. She’ll stop if he doesn’t like it. Also, he’d very much like to do the same thing to her someday, and fair’s fair.

“Okay, let’s give it a shot,” he says after a few moments of thought, smiling crookedly up at her as his hands go to her hips. “I took a very thorough date night shower before we went out, so I’m game to try.”