Work Text:
- “It’s late. Shouldn’t you be asleep?”
Insomnia was no stranger to Six. Many a night had seen him tossing and turning restlessly, to no avail. What little sleep he did get was plagued with nightmares of his past failings, of loved ones left behind. A rare blessing was a night of dreamless slumber, but scarcely was the universe that kind to the courier. Yet another night lying awake, staring at August’s ceiling as the Enforcer slept soundly in his arms. Patterns in the grains of the wooden ceiling were long since memorized, plenty of logistics mentally run through, an entire library of songs quietly hummed. And yet, sleep had not yet taken hold of him. He wasn’t sure how long August had been asleep; it had to have been at least two hours.
With a deep sigh through his nose, he slowly untangled himself from their hold, shifting the sheets over their bare shoulders as he rose. They looked so peaceful when they slept. It wasn’t fair. To have such a whirlwind of a mind, of power, and to be able to look that serene. A soft smile crossed his lips.
He turned to the small pile of clothes left abandoned on the floor and grabbed his trousers, slipping them on as quietly as he could. Once fastened, he ducked out of the bedroom towards their office, opting to get some work done if sleep wasn’t happening anytime soon. He did still have a number of reports to scrape together…
A small exertion of will caused the candles to ignite, illuminating the well decorated office. Just barely enough light to work with. Oh, well. Six took a seat at the extremely expensive desk and got to work on the stack of papers in front of him. It would be less work for him to do in the morning.
August awoke not too long after; a soft, sleepy groan leaving their lips as their eyes opened. The space next to them was still warm, but their partner was nowhere to be seen. A sense of panic shot through them, thinking for the briefest moment Six had finally decided he was tired of them, before remembering Six talking about his issues regarding sleep. Rubbing the sleep from their eyes, they rose to seek him out. They tied one of their flimsy silk robes around their waist and grabbed a lit candle before leaving their room.
Six heard them before he saw them. Soft padding of bare feet on hardwood flooring, barely audible to most, alerted him that he had been less successful in his stealth than he had thought. Not pausing his work, he hummed as they crossed the room to meet him.
“It’s late.” They murmured, wrapping an arm around his shoulder. “Shouldn’t you be asleep?”
“Sorry if I woke you.” He replied, finishing his sentence before looking up at them. “Having trouble falling asleep. Figured I’d do something instead of staring at the ceiling for six more hours.”
“Makes sense, I suppose.” August frowned. “Come back to bed. I’ll see if I can do something about it.”
The courier was helpless as they pulled him out of the seat, leading him back to their bedroom. The bags under his eyes felt heavier than normal, he noted, as a yawn left his lips. As soon as he had made contact with them, a wave of exhaustion washed over him. Good thing he fell for a psychic, he mused, as he collapsed back into the mess of sheets. August climbed in after him, resting their head in the crook of his neck and lying their weight across him to keep him in place. He was quick to wrap his arms back around them, breathing in their comforting lavender scent. They pressed a soft kiss to the column of his throat, and his eyes fluttered closed.
“Sleep.” They whispered, and he was more than happy to obey.
A dreamless sleep, then, with the love of his life in his arms. It seemed the universe was in his corner, for once.