Archive of Our Own ^beta

"So just tell me again, why do I have to access the sauna room?"

Oscar was making his way through the resort, a spa retreat, advertised for the tired workaholics in need of a wonderful getaway, a time away from working life, where you could unwind and relax. Word spread that it was a front, however, and an opposing force using the business as a cover. They had the space, they had the resources; Oscar wouldn't deny that there could easily be something going on.

He just needed confirmation as to why he was heading towards the saunas.

"Did you not look through the brief?" Carlos' voice came through his earpiece, "It says we can most likely access the ventilation system, or at least the back corridors through a panel on the wall in the back of sauna three."

"You see, Carlos, I was trying to look through the brief, but someone would not shut up about the mineral properties of facials, and so I felt I was a little distracted," he bit back.

"Not my fault, you have no self-awareness when it comes to self-care, have you ever heard of a moisturiser, Osc? I sometimes question how you've got this far with a three-in-one shampoo—"

"It's always hot seeing you two argue," Lando spoke above them both, "but now is not the time."

"But Lan, you agree with me, no?" Carlos got a response in before Oscar could.

"Yeah, I think it's wild that Osc uses three-in-one. I've been trying to convert him since the day we met." Then he mumbled, "So unfair that his hair is damn fluffy all the time when he uses shit products."

"Guys, are we here to complain about what I put in my hair, or are we here to do our actual jobs?" He grumbled, rounding a corner, a set of neat doors lined the opposite wall. If they planned it correctly, no one would be booked to use these for the next couple of hours, so Oscar could get in, work his magic, and leave unnoticed.

"He's changing the subject because it's two against one," Carlos commented.

Lando, annoyingly, agreed, "Yep. Maybe after this mission, he can finally be converted to proper hair care."

"Right, I'm at door three," Oscar cut in, making sure to put an end to the ramblings. Luckily, he knew both his boyfriends would easily slip into serious mode and focus on the task at hand. The banter, the back-and-forth, was to fill the dull moments. The three of them worked well together, and focusing up was a good example of that.

"Lando, you still good with controls?" Oscar asked.

Lando hummed an affirmative. The plan was for him to turn off the system in the sauna, whilst also making sure not to notify any staff working, so it would be easier to complete the task. The heat would slowly become unbearable with his layers of gears and clothes, the condensation interfering with everything, so he would turn it back on when Oscar was safely out.

"Ready?" Lando called.

"Ready," Oscar confirmed.

The door clicked, the light above the handle flashing from red to green. Oscar carefully slipped inside, closing it behind him. The retreat was isolated, a couple of acres in the middle of nowhere, promising a healthy mind and detachment from the urban prison cells of office buildings and cubicles. They upheld that promise with the design too; the sauna had an old, rugged look, with planks of wood with an orange tint panelling the walls and floor. The only difference was that instead of coals, everything was electronic, controlled by buttons and wires, so there was no need to tip water onto sizzling rocks, which made it easier for Lando since he could break into the system and override the settings.

Well, that was what was supposed to happen.

"Erm, Osc," Lando's voice cut through the haze. It was warm in there, but Oscar tried to clear his mind and focus on tracing his fingers across the wood planks to find the notch he was looking for.

"Yeah?" He croaked.

"We have a problem."

He stilled, "What type of problem?"

"It's changed since last time— the servers, I mean. You know when I went through and could easily access it all? Well, it's different. I don't think I can get in with the stuff I've got right now."

Lando was the tech guy in their trio. Oscar would be the first to admit he knew nothing about gadgets and gizmos, whereas Carlos liked to pretend he knew, but Oscar watched him try to hack his way through a fingerprint scanner, and that ended in disaster. He and Carlos often switched who went out and who stayed as backup, though Lando occasionally did fieldwork whenever he got too antsy and wanted to get out of the van. Carlos was good with strategy; he hid his cleverness behind lopsided grins and cheeky remarks, but Oscar knew how smart Carlos truly was. Though he would never admit it out loud because he would never hear the end of it, the constant teasing he would get from Carlos would be endless. Oscar was clever, too; they all needed to be for this job. It was just that he was more dexterous, he was quick on his feet and able to lie straight through his teeth. They needed someone to blend into the background, an innocuous figure no one would notice; Oscar could slip into that role perfectly.

He was prepared for many things, but what he hadn't been prepared for was Lando's words.

"Oscar," that was now Carlos speaking, "I think we retreat. It wouldn't be smart for us to venture forward when they could be watching."

"Alright," Oscar agreed with the reasoning. He turned round and grabbed the door handle, rattling it.

It did not budge.

"Guys—" he sucked in a breath. Oscar was the epitome of calm; it was why he worked so well under pressure on missions. He was level-headed when he needed to be, where Carlos would become too frustrated, and Lando would lose his cool. Though he felt his composure cracking as he uttered his next words, "The door is locked."

"What do you mean the door is locked?" Lando sounded panicked, the response immediate, too rushed.

"It means exactly what you think it does," Oscar responded. The door handle just continued to wiggle up and down, not budging as he pulled and pushed against it, "It's locked. Fully."

"Hang on, let me see if I can override it, surely it can access the locking system and…" Lando's voice trailed off.

"Lan?"

"Shit," he cursed under his breath, "shit, shit, shit. They've been onto us the entire time; there is no way I can access any of this right now. The door is well and truly locked, you're stuck in the sauna, and there's a timer."

"Timer?" Oscar tried once more for good measure, but the door did not move.

"Yeah, says it'll be locked for twelve hours."

Silence struck them all simultaneously. Oscar couldn't move, suddenly acutely aware of the heat. The back of his neck prickled with sweat, his chest felt tight, and the vest constricting against his skin. He ran a shaky hand through his hair, coming back damp, palm shiny with an unmissable sheen. He glanced over to the thermostat, eyeing the numbers, only to see it slowly increasing. One by one, the numbers climbed, inching higher and higher into dangerous territory.

The problem was that the control system was located outside of each sauna room. The website described it as designed to protect electronics from the sweltering heat, promising safety for all its clients by using a door that did not lock once someone was inside. Anyone was free to leave at any point, which gave them continuous access to the control panel throughout their session.

Oscar couldn't access those controls right now, and by the sound of the hushed conversation Lando and Carlos were having, neither could they from the van. The walk would be even longer now that they knew they had been exposed; whoever came to retrieve him would have to be very careful not to get spotted. The last thing they wanted was a fight. They were meant to be inconspicuous, not drawing more attention to themselves.

Though a sense of urgency took over as Oscar saw the temperature creep even higher, "Guys, they're controlling the temperature of the sauna."

Both Lando and Carlos stopped speaking.

"It's getting warmer."

"Fuck, Oscar, stay on the line with Lando. I will come and get you. Try and do anything to keep your temperature down, I know it will be hard, but try, okay?" Carlos instructed before Oscar heard the telltale sound of the van door opening and closing.

"He's on his way, talk to me, Osc."

"It's fucking warm," he complained, stripping off his first layer. He didn't want to get naked; he didn't even know if that was a smart idea, but at least he could remove some of the clothing to hopefully slow his body down from overheating.

"I know, fuck, I'm so sorry, Osc," Lando said sympathetically.

"It's okay, not your fault."

"But it is, if only I had managed to override the systems, I should have seen this coming, and now you're in danger, and it's my own stupid fault—"

"Hey, hey, no, it's not," when Lando got into his own head, it was often hard to get him to come down from wherever he was taking himself, voice laced with guilt and eyes full of unspoken apologies, even if more often than not it wasn't Lando's fault. He took the blame for too many problems, issues that they couldn't have controlled. "I'm okay," he wasn't sure if that was a complete truth, his head was now pounding, the wood panelling warped around him dizzily, "I'm okay."

Lando didn't argue, but Oscar could tell he still put the blame solely on himself. Instead, he asked, "How are you feeling?"

"Hot." Oscar blinked, body swaying, and he decided to perch himself on the bench to stop himself from falling over. "Dizzy. A little bit sick, but I'm fine."

"That doesn't sound fine! Look, Carlos will be with you as soon as possible. Do you think you can hold on just a little bit longer for me?"

The voice was fuzzy, Lando's words echoing around his skull; he blinked again, albeit slower this time, as if his own body had started to lag, struggling to catch up.

"Oscar?"

He hummed, "Yeah? Yeah, oh sorry, yes. I can hold on."

"I need you to keep talking to me, Osc, okay? So I know you've not passed out on me."

His stomach cramped, he peeled off his tee and then his underlayer, the clothes sopping with sweat, landing on the floor in a crumpled pile. He was now topless, skin dotted with red patches, somehow soaked in sweat, but he felt dry too, the skin rough under his fingers.

Oscar chuckled, "Moisturiser."

"What?" Lando spat out, baffled.

He giggled a little bit more, "Carlos said I needed to moisturise more, and he's not wrong," he poked an area of skin, running his finger along it, "I feel hot and dry."

"Shit, I did not pay enough attention to our medical training to know how to handle this. I think you're delusional. Fuck, I should have been paying attention more," Lando murmured and then added, louder, "you still with me, Oscar?"

"Yeah, but it's fucking hard to see, black spots dancing across my vision," he gritted out, his mind bobbing between complete awareness and a lack of control. One moment he was giggling at certain words; the heat around him muffled the rest of the world. The next, he snapped out of it, aware of how hot he was, panting heavily as sweat beaded above his brow, cascaded down the contours of his face, and pooled against the wood.

"I feel like I'm about to throw up," he added.

"I know this is asking a lot of you, but try not to, okay?" Lando pleaded, "You're already losing too much fluid as it is; we cannot have you vomiting."

"Cheers, I'll keep that in mind, shall I? Tell my body to stop being in pain?" He snarled back; the thoughts that filled his mind were grim.

"I'm sorry, Oscar—"

"No, I shouldn't have snapped. I'm agitated. It's the heat."

His heart was rapid in his chest, fluttering against his ribcage as each breath left his lungs weakly. His vision blurred, the world slowing, and Oscar fought to keep his eyes open, to keep them trained on the door waiting for Carlos.

"How long until Carlos gets to me?" His words were now slurring together. Oscar hoped Lando understood enough to answer.

"He should be there soon. Stay with me."

"I miss him," Oscar mumbled, his head lolled forward, and instinctively, his body perked back. He groaned, low, feeling like static, the sweat scratching against his skin, "I miss you, Lando."

"You'll see me soon, I promise. Carlos is entering the building now."

"Gonna sleep."

"No, Oscar, do not fall asleep," true, unfiltered fear laced in his words. Why was Lando so scared? All Oscar wanted to do was nap. It was cosy and warm, a perfect opportunity for some shut-eye.

"'M tired."

"I know you are, and you've been doing such a good job staying awake, you think you can hold on for just a few more minutes for me?"

There was thudding at the door. Oscar could make out a figure moving behind the clouded window. Steam was slowly filling the room. He inhaled, coughed wetly, and watched as the figure seemed to distance itself a few steps before running forward. The flicker of the shadow moved, grew larger and smaller as the thudding continued. Somewhere in the back of his mind, Oscar was aware that whoever it was was trying to knock down the door.

His name was being called; several voices were speaking to him. One right next to his ear, crackling, but he couldn't figure out what it was saying. The second one came from the shadow hidden behind the door. It creaked under the weight, bending each time the body slammed into it.

Oscar felt himself slipping.

The door burst open and Carlos was suddenly there. Hands cupped Oscar's face, a wave of cold filtering in from behind, and a palm came up to swipe away his slick hair.

"Come on, I've got you," Carlos spoke softly, picking up Oscar's discarded clothes and lifting him so he could stumble along too.

Oscar blinked grogily. "Carlos?"

"There you go, good, good, see I got you," he reassured as he guided Oscar out of the room, the air cooling dramatically, a sigh escaping him. "Stay up, come on, one foot in front of the other."

"Tired," he mumbled into Carlos's shoulder.

"I know, but just keep walking with me—"

"G'night."

Oscar slumped forward, eyes rolling back, and his weightless body slipped out of Carlos' grasp, hitting the floor.

Time passed by blurrily. His energy had dissolved, eyelids too heavy to lift; instead, he was just carried through the motions.

There was a pinch on his hand, the skin pricked by something before the feeling settled.

Voices, the squeak of wheels across linoleum flooring, a sound Oscar was familiar with. When they came to a stop, he felt something get draped over him. He heard the gentle hum of a fan, the sound of subdued chatter, before he succumbed to the drowsiness and drifted away again.

When he fully woke up, his body was aching all over. A slight tremble in his muscles, a twisting in his abdomen where he knew it had cramped earlier, but he'd had worse injuries when waking up in the medbay, so he supposed it was all too bad.

He peered beside him. Lando was staring down at his phone, aimlessly scrolling. Oscar reached out, the IV tugging slightly from where it was sat against his hand, and poked his partner.

Lando's head shot up, and instantly he was pulling Oscar into a bone-crushing hug, babbling nonsense about being sorry, my fault, I should be better. Oscar wrapped his arms around Lando and held him there, running a hand up and down his back.

"This wasn't your fault, Lan. How would you have known? None of us did anything wrong, so don't go blaming yourself, okay?"

"That's exactly what I've been trying to tell him," another voice called.

Lando untangled himself from Oscar, revealing Carlos stood by the door, waterbottle in hand. He was across the room in three large strides, pressing the crinkling plastic into Oscar's hand, "Drink."

Oscar obliged, his throat parched after their mission, and the water was heavenly as he drank it, wetting his chapped lips.

Once done, Carlos leaned over and brought Oscar into a kiss, "How are you feeling? You scared us out there."

"Tired but okay," he smiled back as Carlos pulled away; their hands remained intertwined.

Lando took the other, careful not to jostle the IV. He brought it to his lips, gently kissing each knuckle.

Carlos chuckled, "You're such a sap."

"Well, I just happen to like it when both my boyfriends are very much alive and not suffering from heatstroke, thank you very much. I'm celebrating," Lando shot back cheekily.

"I passed out?" Oscar asked

Carlos nodded, "I had to carry you all the way back to the van. What a struggle."

"Hey, I'm not that heavy!"

"I've had to carry you both. I'd say you're both as bad as each other," Lando cut in, and before either Carlos or Oscar could argue, he added, "Besides, there are much bigger problems for us to deal with right now."

Oscar raised a brow, "Such as?"

"When are you going to stop using that terrible three-in-one shower gel?" Lando responded.

Next to him, Carlos laughed, Lando's lips split into a wide grin, and Oscar groaned. He wouldn't have it any other way.