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There was a rustling behind you, pulling you out of your slumber. You sat up on your elbow, looking over your shoulder at the man sleeping behind you. Muriel’s back faced you, but you could tell something was wrong by how he twitched. You turned over to face him, running your hand down his arm gently. You could feel his muscles tense under your fingertips. “Muriel…” You cooed softly, trying to wake him. Muriel seemed to react, mumbling incoherently in his sleep, and pulling himself away from your touch. “Muriel, it’s okay…” You brought your hand up to Muriel’s shoulder, shaking him softly.
Muriel sputtered, but woke up, startled. He turned to look at you, panic in his eyes. “It was just a dream, Muri.” You spoke softly, caressing his shoulder. Muriel stayed still for a moment, before shifting awkwardly, rolling over to face you. You brought a hand to his cheek, stroking it gently. “There there, you’re alright.” Muriel let out a soft sigh, shutting his eyes in what seemed like relief. “What were you dreaming about?” You asked.
“... Arena.” That’s all he needed to say. You gave a sympathetic wince, before pulling his head into your lap.
“Do you want to talk about it?” You offered, running a hand through his hair. He shook his head, shifting uncomfortably. “That’s okay too, I understand.” You reassured.
You continued to comb your hand through his hair, massage his shoulder, whatever you could to provide comfort him, or take his mind off of it.
“Well, y’know what I was dreaming about?” You started. “Inanna.” You chuckled softly. “She was chasing butterflies, and you were scolding her for wandering too far.” Muriel let out a soft hum of acknowledgement.
“...Sounds nice.” He said, nuzzling himself into your thigh. One of Muriel’s hands reached for yours instinctively, and you placed it against his palm. He gently closed his fingers around your smaller hand, shutting his eyes. Your free hand idly stroked down the side of Muriel’s face, trying to soothe him. “... Tell me more.” He requested.
“Oh, well…” You began. “We were in a big field with a lot of flowers,” you chuckled awkwardly. “We were holding hands- kind of like we are now- and Inanna was walking at your side, when she saw a butterfly. She ran after it, until we couldn’t even see her anymore. You got so worried, you ran after her.” You smiled to yourself. Muriel hummed softly, before propping himself up on his elbow.
“Lay down… Please.” You could tell he was blushing, just from the sound of his voice. “I want you to be comfortable, too.”
You did as he asked, laying on your back. He didn’t seem to know where to lay, so you directed him, pulling his head down to your chest. His breath hitched in surprise, but he recovered quickly, trying to make himself comfortable without moving too much. You reached for his hand, smoothing your thumb over his scarred knuckles, pulling it up to your lips, pressing soft kisses against each one. Muriel hummed, trying to nuzzle himself closer to you.
“Do you want me to hold you?” You offered. Muriel let out a soft noise that seemed like a yes, so you carefully urged him up, more of his upper body on top of you, as you wrapped your arms around him. His head was nuzzled into your neck, allowing for you to press kisses on the top of his head. Muriel pretty much purred, raking his hands through your hair.
You decided to try and distract him even more- moving slightly so you could better access Muriel’s face. You pressed many kisses along his cheeks, purposely making them as noisy as possible. You could feel him relax under your touch, but you decided to go even farther.
You brought your hands to either side of his face, running your thumbs over his cheeks. You kissed his lips, and pulled back. “I-” another kiss. “-love you-” another “-so much!” and another. Muriel let out a somewhat startled noise, but seemed to grip you a bit harder, pulling you even closer. He seemed to like it, so you continued, lavishing him in kisses, while telling him how much he meant to you in between.
Muriel was melting in your arms by this point, He seemed to lean in to each kiss a bit more, seeking out your affection while letting out soft, pleased hums from time to time. Your kisses slowed after a while, but you kept your arms around Muriel, holding him close, rubbing his back softly. “Do you think you can go back to sleep now?” You asked.
“... Mm…” He gently nudged his nose against your cheek. “... A few more..?” There was a question in his tone. You chuckled, and pressed a long, passionate kiss to his lips, following it up with a couple quick ones against his forehead.
“As many as you want, love.”