Fic: Pounding Heart
Title: Pounding Heart
Author: starrdust411
Fandom: Heroes
Pairing: Gabriel/Mohinder
Rating: PG-13
Summary: His heart would beat so loudly that it was all he could hear. (Sequel to " Sweaty Palms" and " Dry Mouth")
Disclaimer: I do not own Heroes.
Warnings: Slash, AU, Humor, Drama
The dinner was awkward to say the least. Gabriel had known his mother would make things uncomfortable, but he hadn't expected Virginia to treat Mohinder this coldly. After all, it had been nearly two months since he came out to his mother and told her all about Mohinder (well, he'd left out the part about the geneticist and his father doing research on him to see if he were the next step in the evolutionary ladder). He had thought that when she had started talking to him again and suggested he bring his "boyfriend" over for dinner that she was ready to move on and accept them as a couple.
He was foolish for even entertaining the idea.
The entire meal had been spent with Virginia being as hostile as possible towards Mohinder while the Indian man smiled and tried his best to be polite. When they got there, his mother constantly brought up church and all the services Gabriel had missed in favor of spending time with Mohinder (leaving out the fact that she had told him to stay away on the grounds that "sinners were not welcomed in God's house"). And if that weren’t bad enough, Gabriel was horrified to find that, in spite of his warnings, his mother had made roast beef for dinner, a food that Mohinder's religion prevented him from eating. (Virginia's excuse had been that she thought it was pork that his people couldn't eat.) The Indian man had politely declined the entree, filling himself up on the mashed potatoes and steamed carrots that Virginia had prepared as sides, but the woman still glared at him with a critical eye.
"I'm sorry, Gabriel," Mohinder whispered to him while his mother was in the kitchen cleaning the dishes and preparing to serve dessert, "but can we go now? I think it's rather obvious that your mother hates me and I don't think I can put up with this any longer."
The watchmaker nodded. "We'll tell her you're not feeling well and we'll leave early," he suggested. From the way his mother had been treating Mohinder, he wouldn't have been surprised if she'd poisoned his food.
The geneticist nodded mutely as Gabriel got up and went into the kitchen with his mother. "We have to go Mom," he said. "Mohinder's not feeling well."
"What's wrong?" she asked mock concern present in her tone. "Was it my cooking?"
Gabriel frowned down at the small woman, suddenly hating her more than he had in his hormonal teenage years. "No, it's just a headache. I'm going to take him home."
"No. Gabriel stay!" she pleaded, her thin hand reaching out to grab his arm and squeezing it tightly. "We haven't spoken in so long. I'm sure he can find his own way home."
"I'll go," Mohinder volunteered quickly, stopping Gabriel before he could even think of an excuse to leave with him. The watchmaker could tell that all the politeness Mohinder had built up for the night had already run out and the Indian man was just eager to get the hell out of there.
"Wait," Gabriel said quickly, rushing to Mohinder's side as the Indian approached the door. Mohinder gave him a questioning look as Gabriel slipped his keys into his hands. "Wait for me at home," he whispered. "Please?"
Mohinder's eyes flashed over to Virginia then back to Gabriel. He gave him a quick nod before excusing himself and leaving. Once he was gone, Gabriel turned and glared over at his mother, who was currently busying herself by putting her dishes away.
"Are you proud of yourself?" Gabriel snapped.
"What are you talking about?" Virginia asked innocently, closing her cabinets carefully before turning back to her son.
"Don't play dumb, Mom. Your behavior tonight was terrible! How could you be so rude to Mohinder?"
Her eyes widened as if he had reached out and slapped her. "What I... are you taking his side? Choosing him over your own mother?"
"Mom, what are you talking about? You invited us over for dinner and you did everything in your power to make him feel uncomfortable."
She frowned, shaking her head slowly at him. "I thought I could handle it," she told him. "I thought I could accept... this, but I can't. He's the Devil."
"He's not the Devil!" Gabriel sighed, rolling his eyes in annoyance at the woman's words.
"He is the Devil and he's corrupted you!" she snapped. "Look at what he's done to you! He's got you turning against your mother and God."
"I'm not turning against anyone!" he argued. "I just... I'm in love with him."
The woman paled at his words and for the first time he noticed how old his mother really looked. Her skin was covered in wrinkles and there were mostly grays lighting her hair. He felt certain that if he were to reach out and touch her, he might leave bruises without even trying. "You've sinned," she whispered. "You've been lead astray, but there's still hope. God can forgive you. We'll go to church tomorrow and talk to Father Maxwell-"
"I'm not talking to anyone, Mom," he cut in. "I... I'm happy."
He watched as her wide eyes slowly filled with tears and her whole body began to shake. He knew then that he wasn't her angel anymore.
-+-+-+-
Gabriel panted and gasped as he collapsed on top of Mohinder. He was covered with sweat and his skin was tingling with a fiery feeling he'd never known before. His mind reeled and his heart continued to hammer away in his chest at the memory of what he'd just done with the man he loved. Gabriel couldn't stop his hips from twitching with the memory of thrusting inside of the Indian man. His fingers couldn't stop trembling, yearning to feel their way over that dark, beautiful skin one more time.
If he had known losing his virginity would be this much fun, he would have done it years ago.
"That was amazing," Mohinder panted, kissing Gabriel’s bare shoulder with his sinful lips.
The watchmaker suddenly felt incredibly overwhelmed as thoughts and emotions continued to flow through him. For a moment, they'd practically been one person. He'd actually been inside Mohinder. What Mohinder had let him do... He never would have imagined...
The sob that erupted from his lips was louder than what he would have thought humanly possible. His whole body was shaking like a leaf in a hurricane as tears began to pour down his reddening face.
"Gabriel?" Mohinder began, noticing his lover's sudden emotional breakdown. "What's wrong? Are you alright?"
The pale young man said nothing. He merely continued to sob as he rolled off of Mohinder and buried his face in his sheets, wishing for the first time that the Indian would just disappear.
"Gabriel, talk to me," Mohinder urged, his voice dripping with concern.
"I just... you're so..." he babbled. The watchmaker wanted to tell the other man just how much he loved him, how he felt both blessed and unworthy at the same time when he was in his presence, but his tongue was tied. He couldn't think of anything except the way Mohinder made him feel.
He cried like a child as Mohinder reached over and gathered him into his strong arms. "It's alright," he soothed. "Just let it all out."
"Mohinder... I..."
"That was your first time, wasn't it?" Mohinder interrupted, a knowing smirk playing on his features.
The young man blushed, nodding his head sheepishly even as the tears continued to roll down his cheeks. "I'm sorry," he sobbed. "I just... I love you so much."
The geneticist chuckled, pressing a reassuring kiss to Gabriel's damp hair. "I love you, too."
-+-+-+-
Gabriel awoke the next morning to the smell of freshly brewed coffee and a wonderful variety of breakfast foods tickling his nose. He smiled, curling closer into his bed. His stomach was rumbling, but his body felt like he had just finished running a fifty mile race and was reluctant to leave his warm, inviting bed.
The sound of his bedroom door creaking open, barely registered to him as his blurry mind slipped back into the world of sleep. That is, before a strong hand reached out and paddled him on his backside. Gabriel felt his head jerked up in surprise at the sudden contact. He blinked several times, trying his best to focus on his surroundings.
"Time to wake up," Mohinder told him, rubbing at his shoulders roughly before walking across the room and opening his blinds. "I have to get to work and I'm sure your customers are waiting for you."
Gabriel frowned, reaching over to his bedside table and grabbing his glasses with still tired fingers. "No I don't," he pouted, slipping the thick black frames onto his face. "My shop is always empty and... and you can call out of work. Come on. Let's spend the day in bed."
Mohinder smiled, sitting down next to him on the rumpled sheets, and Gabriel was disappointed to see that the Indian man was already completely dressed. "My father is probably wondering where I am," he reminded him.
The watchmaker bowed his head sheepishly at the mention of the older geneticist. Their relationship was so complicated. His mother hated Mohinder and Mohinder's father hated him. He could only hope and pray that Mohinder had an open minded, understanding mother in India.
"Is something wrong, Gabriel?"
Gabriel blinked, looking up at the Indian man who was now gazing at him with worried eyes. "Nothing," he lied. "Just... sorry about last night."
"Sorry about what?"
"You know," he began, feeling his whole body flushing bright red at the reminder of last night's incident. "The... the crying."
"Don't be sorry," Mohinder chuckled, wrapping a tender arm around Gabriel's still bare shoulders. "A lot of men cry after sex."
Gabriel felt his eyes widen at the geneticist's words. What did he mean "a lot of men"? Had Mohinder slept with "a lot of men"? Did he measure up to them? Was he as good as them?
His train of thought was severed when he felt Mohinder's lips pressed against his. It still amazed him that after all this time Mohinder could still make his heart hammer so loudly in his chest that it drowned out everything else. "Don't think about it," Mohinder directed as if reading his troubled thoughts. The geneticist read him so well that there were times Gabriel wondered whether the other man was telepathic. "Now come on. Your breakfast is getting cold. I made you pancakes and eggs."
Gabriel felt his heart skip a beat and his stomach rumble fiercely. He couldn't imagine anyone more perfect than Mohinder.
-+-+-+-
The watchmaker felt his stomach turn cold and his heart slowly crawl to a stop as he took in Mohinder's words. He had planned this dinner for weeks. He'd spent months watching useless romantic movies, weeks picking out his outfit, and days agonizing over what to say and how to say it. Now Mohinder had dropped this bomb on him and he felt like he was going to die right then and there.
His head was buzzing and he was certain that if he looked in a mirror, his already pale skin probably looked like freshly fallen snow. How could this happen? It couldn't... it shouldn't... it wasn't supposed to be like this.
"Gabriel? Are you alright?"
Alright? Alright! How dare he ask him that question? How was he supposed to be alright? Mohinder had just reached into his chest, ripped out his heart, and stomped on it. "No," he told him firmly. For once his voice was completely steady and even. "I'm not alright. How can you do this to me?"
"I'm sorry, Gabriel," Mohinder sighed, "but it's out of my hands. My visa has expired and my father and I have to go back to India."
The pale young man scowled, clenching his hands into tight fists and gritting his teeth together. His heart suddenly felt dead in his chest. Mohinder couldn't leave him, not like this. It just wasn't fair.
"So this is it?" he asked bitterly. "You're breaking up with me?"
"I'm not breaking up with you," Mohinder stressed.
"Bullshit," he snapped. "You're moving to another country!"
"I still want to try to have a relationship with you Gabriel," the Indian man sighed, brushing a stray curl out of his face. "We can work something out."
"What? Weekly phone calls that turn into monthly phone calls before eventually you forget about me all together and find someone else?"
"Well why don't you come with me?" he suggested. "You've always told me you wanted to travel, move out of the city."
"With what money?" he asked bitterly. "I can't just pack my bags and go!"
Mohinder leaned back in his chair and fixed him with a hard look. Gabriel suddenly realized that he was pushing his lover too far. Mohinder was brilliant and kind, but he could get testy and stubborn when rubbed the wrong way. He'd discovered what it was like to be on the receiving end of Mohinder's fury a few months ago during their first real fight. The watchmaker had discovered that Mohinder could make someone feel utterly worthless without even raising his voice. It was an experience that he did not want to relive.
"This isn't exactly easy on me either, Gabriel," Mohinder said evenly, his voice leaving no room for argument. "India is my home, where I was born and raised. My family and all of my friends live there. I have a well respected position at a university and my own apartment to go home to.
"In this country... I've lived here for six months now and it still feels so foreign to me. I drive a taxi and share a shabby little apartment with my father. The only good thing that happened to me here was meeting you."
"But I'm not enough," Gabriel concluded solemnly. He should have seen this coming. Mohinder was like a dream, too good to be true and too wonderful to last, yet he had allowed himself to get wrapped up in his charms. Mohinder's love had blinded him from reality and just when he thought he could be really happy, the real world came crashing back in.
"I love you, Gabriel," Mohinder told him, reaching across the table to brush his long brown finger tips over the American's snow white skin. "I really do, but-"
"Stay," he blurted out. He didn't want to hear excuse or apologizes anymore. He just wanted to hear Mohinder say that he'd be with him forever. "You have to stay. Please."
Mohinder frowned, shaking his head slowly. "I can't."
"What if we were married?"
The words were out of his mouth before he could stop himself and just as he thought about changing course, he saw Mohinder's eyes nearly triple in size. The Indian man studied his face for several seconds, trying to see if Gabriel were just throwing out wild ideas or if he was sincere in his suggestion. "I don't... what?"
The watchmaker sighed as he slid out of his seat and got down on one knee. This was not how he had wanted to propose. He had intended to wait until after they had finished their dessert before he got down and recited the speech he had written and spent so many sleepless nights practicing in front of his bathroom mirror. Yet Mohinder's declaration had forced his hand. He had to pull out his trump card and hope that things turned out in his favor.
He watched as the geneticist's eyes lit up as he pulled out the ring he had emptied out his savings account to purchase. His heart, which had once been resting dead in his chest, had suddenly kicked back to life as he took Mohinder's trembling hands in his own sweaty grasp.
"Mohinder Suresh," he began, suddenly very conscious of the fact that nearly everyone in the restaurant had stopped to stare at them. "When I met you, my palms were sweating so bad, I could barely hold on to the tea cup that burned your lap, my mouth was so dry that my tongue turned to sand, and my heart beat so loud that I couldn't even hear myself think. Now, six months later, my palms are still sweaty, my mouth is still dry, and my heart still skips a beat when I look at you. I love you more than life itself. I would be honored if you gave me your hand in marriage."
A collective gasp engulfed the restaurant as Gabriel finished his speech. The watchmaker swallowed against his sandpaper tongue, as he waited for Mohinder to say something, anything in response. It felt like an eternity had passed before Mohinder finally nodded his head and whispered a choked, "Yes. Yes of course I'll marry you."
Tears sprang into his eyes as he slid the ring onto Mohinder's finger, just as the other man grabbed his face and pulled him into a fierce kiss. The restaurant quickly erupted into a flood of applause as the two sat there, awkwardly kissing each other in front of a crowd of witnesses.
A sloppy smile spread across his face as Mohinder slowly pulled away from him, nuzzling his stubble covered cheek against his own and whispered, "I'm getting my green card before we get married."
Author: starrdust411
Fandom: Heroes
Pairing: Gabriel/Mohinder
Rating: PG-13
Summary: His heart would beat so loudly that it was all he could hear. (Sequel to " Sweaty Palms" and " Dry Mouth")
Disclaimer: I do not own Heroes.
Warnings: Slash, AU, Humor, Drama
The dinner was awkward to say the least. Gabriel had known his mother would make things uncomfortable, but he hadn't expected Virginia to treat Mohinder this coldly. After all, it had been nearly two months since he came out to his mother and told her all about Mohinder (well, he'd left out the part about the geneticist and his father doing research on him to see if he were the next step in the evolutionary ladder). He had thought that when she had started talking to him again and suggested he bring his "boyfriend" over for dinner that she was ready to move on and accept them as a couple.
He was foolish for even entertaining the idea.
The entire meal had been spent with Virginia being as hostile as possible towards Mohinder while the Indian man smiled and tried his best to be polite. When they got there, his mother constantly brought up church and all the services Gabriel had missed in favor of spending time with Mohinder (leaving out the fact that she had told him to stay away on the grounds that "sinners were not welcomed in God's house"). And if that weren’t bad enough, Gabriel was horrified to find that, in spite of his warnings, his mother had made roast beef for dinner, a food that Mohinder's religion prevented him from eating. (Virginia's excuse had been that she thought it was pork that his people couldn't eat.) The Indian man had politely declined the entree, filling himself up on the mashed potatoes and steamed carrots that Virginia had prepared as sides, but the woman still glared at him with a critical eye.
"I'm sorry, Gabriel," Mohinder whispered to him while his mother was in the kitchen cleaning the dishes and preparing to serve dessert, "but can we go now? I think it's rather obvious that your mother hates me and I don't think I can put up with this any longer."
The watchmaker nodded. "We'll tell her you're not feeling well and we'll leave early," he suggested. From the way his mother had been treating Mohinder, he wouldn't have been surprised if she'd poisoned his food.
The geneticist nodded mutely as Gabriel got up and went into the kitchen with his mother. "We have to go Mom," he said. "Mohinder's not feeling well."
"What's wrong?" she asked mock concern present in her tone. "Was it my cooking?"
Gabriel frowned down at the small woman, suddenly hating her more than he had in his hormonal teenage years. "No, it's just a headache. I'm going to take him home."
"No. Gabriel stay!" she pleaded, her thin hand reaching out to grab his arm and squeezing it tightly. "We haven't spoken in so long. I'm sure he can find his own way home."
"I'll go," Mohinder volunteered quickly, stopping Gabriel before he could even think of an excuse to leave with him. The watchmaker could tell that all the politeness Mohinder had built up for the night had already run out and the Indian man was just eager to get the hell out of there.
"Wait," Gabriel said quickly, rushing to Mohinder's side as the Indian approached the door. Mohinder gave him a questioning look as Gabriel slipped his keys into his hands. "Wait for me at home," he whispered. "Please?"
Mohinder's eyes flashed over to Virginia then back to Gabriel. He gave him a quick nod before excusing himself and leaving. Once he was gone, Gabriel turned and glared over at his mother, who was currently busying herself by putting her dishes away.
"Are you proud of yourself?" Gabriel snapped.
"What are you talking about?" Virginia asked innocently, closing her cabinets carefully before turning back to her son.
"Don't play dumb, Mom. Your behavior tonight was terrible! How could you be so rude to Mohinder?"
Her eyes widened as if he had reached out and slapped her. "What I... are you taking his side? Choosing him over your own mother?"
"Mom, what are you talking about? You invited us over for dinner and you did everything in your power to make him feel uncomfortable."
She frowned, shaking her head slowly at him. "I thought I could handle it," she told him. "I thought I could accept... this, but I can't. He's the Devil."
"He's not the Devil!" Gabriel sighed, rolling his eyes in annoyance at the woman's words.
"He is the Devil and he's corrupted you!" she snapped. "Look at what he's done to you! He's got you turning against your mother and God."
"I'm not turning against anyone!" he argued. "I just... I'm in love with him."
The woman paled at his words and for the first time he noticed how old his mother really looked. Her skin was covered in wrinkles and there were mostly grays lighting her hair. He felt certain that if he were to reach out and touch her, he might leave bruises without even trying. "You've sinned," she whispered. "You've been lead astray, but there's still hope. God can forgive you. We'll go to church tomorrow and talk to Father Maxwell-"
"I'm not talking to anyone, Mom," he cut in. "I... I'm happy."
He watched as her wide eyes slowly filled with tears and her whole body began to shake. He knew then that he wasn't her angel anymore.
-+-+-+-
Gabriel panted and gasped as he collapsed on top of Mohinder. He was covered with sweat and his skin was tingling with a fiery feeling he'd never known before. His mind reeled and his heart continued to hammer away in his chest at the memory of what he'd just done with the man he loved. Gabriel couldn't stop his hips from twitching with the memory of thrusting inside of the Indian man. His fingers couldn't stop trembling, yearning to feel their way over that dark, beautiful skin one more time.
If he had known losing his virginity would be this much fun, he would have done it years ago.
"That was amazing," Mohinder panted, kissing Gabriel’s bare shoulder with his sinful lips.
The watchmaker suddenly felt incredibly overwhelmed as thoughts and emotions continued to flow through him. For a moment, they'd practically been one person. He'd actually been inside Mohinder. What Mohinder had let him do... He never would have imagined...
The sob that erupted from his lips was louder than what he would have thought humanly possible. His whole body was shaking like a leaf in a hurricane as tears began to pour down his reddening face.
"Gabriel?" Mohinder began, noticing his lover's sudden emotional breakdown. "What's wrong? Are you alright?"
The pale young man said nothing. He merely continued to sob as he rolled off of Mohinder and buried his face in his sheets, wishing for the first time that the Indian would just disappear.
"Gabriel, talk to me," Mohinder urged, his voice dripping with concern.
"I just... you're so..." he babbled. The watchmaker wanted to tell the other man just how much he loved him, how he felt both blessed and unworthy at the same time when he was in his presence, but his tongue was tied. He couldn't think of anything except the way Mohinder made him feel.
He cried like a child as Mohinder reached over and gathered him into his strong arms. "It's alright," he soothed. "Just let it all out."
"Mohinder... I..."
"That was your first time, wasn't it?" Mohinder interrupted, a knowing smirk playing on his features.
The young man blushed, nodding his head sheepishly even as the tears continued to roll down his cheeks. "I'm sorry," he sobbed. "I just... I love you so much."
The geneticist chuckled, pressing a reassuring kiss to Gabriel's damp hair. "I love you, too."
-+-+-+-
Gabriel awoke the next morning to the smell of freshly brewed coffee and a wonderful variety of breakfast foods tickling his nose. He smiled, curling closer into his bed. His stomach was rumbling, but his body felt like he had just finished running a fifty mile race and was reluctant to leave his warm, inviting bed.
The sound of his bedroom door creaking open, barely registered to him as his blurry mind slipped back into the world of sleep. That is, before a strong hand reached out and paddled him on his backside. Gabriel felt his head jerked up in surprise at the sudden contact. He blinked several times, trying his best to focus on his surroundings.
"Time to wake up," Mohinder told him, rubbing at his shoulders roughly before walking across the room and opening his blinds. "I have to get to work and I'm sure your customers are waiting for you."
Gabriel frowned, reaching over to his bedside table and grabbing his glasses with still tired fingers. "No I don't," he pouted, slipping the thick black frames onto his face. "My shop is always empty and... and you can call out of work. Come on. Let's spend the day in bed."
Mohinder smiled, sitting down next to him on the rumpled sheets, and Gabriel was disappointed to see that the Indian man was already completely dressed. "My father is probably wondering where I am," he reminded him.
The watchmaker bowed his head sheepishly at the mention of the older geneticist. Their relationship was so complicated. His mother hated Mohinder and Mohinder's father hated him. He could only hope and pray that Mohinder had an open minded, understanding mother in India.
"Is something wrong, Gabriel?"
Gabriel blinked, looking up at the Indian man who was now gazing at him with worried eyes. "Nothing," he lied. "Just... sorry about last night."
"Sorry about what?"
"You know," he began, feeling his whole body flushing bright red at the reminder of last night's incident. "The... the crying."
"Don't be sorry," Mohinder chuckled, wrapping a tender arm around Gabriel's still bare shoulders. "A lot of men cry after sex."
Gabriel felt his eyes widen at the geneticist's words. What did he mean "a lot of men"? Had Mohinder slept with "a lot of men"? Did he measure up to them? Was he as good as them?
His train of thought was severed when he felt Mohinder's lips pressed against his. It still amazed him that after all this time Mohinder could still make his heart hammer so loudly in his chest that it drowned out everything else. "Don't think about it," Mohinder directed as if reading his troubled thoughts. The geneticist read him so well that there were times Gabriel wondered whether the other man was telepathic. "Now come on. Your breakfast is getting cold. I made you pancakes and eggs."
Gabriel felt his heart skip a beat and his stomach rumble fiercely. He couldn't imagine anyone more perfect than Mohinder.
-+-+-+-
The watchmaker felt his stomach turn cold and his heart slowly crawl to a stop as he took in Mohinder's words. He had planned this dinner for weeks. He'd spent months watching useless romantic movies, weeks picking out his outfit, and days agonizing over what to say and how to say it. Now Mohinder had dropped this bomb on him and he felt like he was going to die right then and there.
His head was buzzing and he was certain that if he looked in a mirror, his already pale skin probably looked like freshly fallen snow. How could this happen? It couldn't... it shouldn't... it wasn't supposed to be like this.
"Gabriel? Are you alright?"
Alright? Alright! How dare he ask him that question? How was he supposed to be alright? Mohinder had just reached into his chest, ripped out his heart, and stomped on it. "No," he told him firmly. For once his voice was completely steady and even. "I'm not alright. How can you do this to me?"
"I'm sorry, Gabriel," Mohinder sighed, "but it's out of my hands. My visa has expired and my father and I have to go back to India."
The pale young man scowled, clenching his hands into tight fists and gritting his teeth together. His heart suddenly felt dead in his chest. Mohinder couldn't leave him, not like this. It just wasn't fair.
"So this is it?" he asked bitterly. "You're breaking up with me?"
"I'm not breaking up with you," Mohinder stressed.
"Bullshit," he snapped. "You're moving to another country!"
"I still want to try to have a relationship with you Gabriel," the Indian man sighed, brushing a stray curl out of his face. "We can work something out."
"What? Weekly phone calls that turn into monthly phone calls before eventually you forget about me all together and find someone else?"
"Well why don't you come with me?" he suggested. "You've always told me you wanted to travel, move out of the city."
"With what money?" he asked bitterly. "I can't just pack my bags and go!"
Mohinder leaned back in his chair and fixed him with a hard look. Gabriel suddenly realized that he was pushing his lover too far. Mohinder was brilliant and kind, but he could get testy and stubborn when rubbed the wrong way. He'd discovered what it was like to be on the receiving end of Mohinder's fury a few months ago during their first real fight. The watchmaker had discovered that Mohinder could make someone feel utterly worthless without even raising his voice. It was an experience that he did not want to relive.
"This isn't exactly easy on me either, Gabriel," Mohinder said evenly, his voice leaving no room for argument. "India is my home, where I was born and raised. My family and all of my friends live there. I have a well respected position at a university and my own apartment to go home to.
"In this country... I've lived here for six months now and it still feels so foreign to me. I drive a taxi and share a shabby little apartment with my father. The only good thing that happened to me here was meeting you."
"But I'm not enough," Gabriel concluded solemnly. He should have seen this coming. Mohinder was like a dream, too good to be true and too wonderful to last, yet he had allowed himself to get wrapped up in his charms. Mohinder's love had blinded him from reality and just when he thought he could be really happy, the real world came crashing back in.
"I love you, Gabriel," Mohinder told him, reaching across the table to brush his long brown finger tips over the American's snow white skin. "I really do, but-"
"Stay," he blurted out. He didn't want to hear excuse or apologizes anymore. He just wanted to hear Mohinder say that he'd be with him forever. "You have to stay. Please."
Mohinder frowned, shaking his head slowly. "I can't."
"What if we were married?"
The words were out of his mouth before he could stop himself and just as he thought about changing course, he saw Mohinder's eyes nearly triple in size. The Indian man studied his face for several seconds, trying to see if Gabriel were just throwing out wild ideas or if he was sincere in his suggestion. "I don't... what?"
The watchmaker sighed as he slid out of his seat and got down on one knee. This was not how he had wanted to propose. He had intended to wait until after they had finished their dessert before he got down and recited the speech he had written and spent so many sleepless nights practicing in front of his bathroom mirror. Yet Mohinder's declaration had forced his hand. He had to pull out his trump card and hope that things turned out in his favor.
He watched as the geneticist's eyes lit up as he pulled out the ring he had emptied out his savings account to purchase. His heart, which had once been resting dead in his chest, had suddenly kicked back to life as he took Mohinder's trembling hands in his own sweaty grasp.
"Mohinder Suresh," he began, suddenly very conscious of the fact that nearly everyone in the restaurant had stopped to stare at them. "When I met you, my palms were sweating so bad, I could barely hold on to the tea cup that burned your lap, my mouth was so dry that my tongue turned to sand, and my heart beat so loud that I couldn't even hear myself think. Now, six months later, my palms are still sweaty, my mouth is still dry, and my heart still skips a beat when I look at you. I love you more than life itself. I would be honored if you gave me your hand in marriage."
A collective gasp engulfed the restaurant as Gabriel finished his speech. The watchmaker swallowed against his sandpaper tongue, as he waited for Mohinder to say something, anything in response. It felt like an eternity had passed before Mohinder finally nodded his head and whispered a choked, "Yes. Yes of course I'll marry you."
Tears sprang into his eyes as he slid the ring onto Mohinder's finger, just as the other man grabbed his face and pulled him into a fierce kiss. The restaurant quickly erupted into a flood of applause as the two sat there, awkwardly kissing each other in front of a crowd of witnesses.
A sloppy smile spread across his face as Mohinder slowly pulled away from him, nuzzling his stubble covered cheek against his own and whispered, "I'm getting my green card before we get married."