Work Text:
Charles woke from sleep slowly, floating up into the gentle sway of consciousness. He was comfortably warm, wrapped up in a comforter and feeling perfectly snug with the way it was dragged over him. The pillow under his head had the perfect amount of give that ensured his neck was at a comfortable angle. Charles felt a smile pull at his lips as he heard the soft chirp of birds from outside, proof that spring had recently settled over Westchester.
Charles was loving the nicer weather, enjoying each day more than the last as the temperatures continued to get warmer and warmer as the winter frostiness was melted away. They’d been busy the last week, getting spring preparations underway, cleaning out after the long months of winter and getting the grounds cleaned up. Today was Sunday, and Charles was more than ready for a lazy day spent in bed.
Speaking of beds, his own bed-companion shifted to cuddle against his side, no doubt realizing that Charles was awake. He was still too heavy with sleep to lift his arm and pull Erik closer like he usually would, so instead he opened his mind and allowed Erik in, twining their thoughts together sleepily and feeling his smile widen at the joyful tint Erik’s thoughts had that morning.
It was rare that they got a morning to spend curled together in bed like they were now. Erik tended to rise with the sun and help attend to breakfast whereas Charles generally slept a bit longer and then took his time getting ready for the day. Having a morning to laze around in bed was a pleasure they hadn’t indulged in years and Charles was considerably glad they were indulging in that morning.
Despite the heaviness in his limbs, he managed to roll his head to the side so he could take in the gorgeous way a stream of bright sunlight was hitting Erik's face and shining against his cheekbone. He was beautiful, covered in fiery stubble, eyes bright with a happiness that Charles still felt blessed, each day, for being allowed to see. He felt even more blessed knowing he was the cause of some of the ease along Erik's face, and he slid his arm across the bed to pet Erik's side with his knuckles as he pressed even closer against his side.
Erik's face transformed into a stunning smile that stole Charles’ breath. His lover moved forward to trace his lips over his shoulder, down his arm, back up to kiss the dip of Charles’ jaw. The scratch of his stumble caught on Charles’ sensitive skin and made him shiver even as he sunk through Erik’s thoughts as the comfortable embrace of their minds twined together familiarly.
Charles let out a quiet groan when Erik’s fingers skimmed over his belly, his rough palm catching on his skin. His upper body had been incredibly sensitive since the loss of his legs and as Erik’s hand gripped and smoothed over his skin, Charles found his belly heating with arousal that he pressed into Erik’s mind. Charles lifted his arm and allowed Erik to get closer, stuttering out a breath when Erik’s lips trailed over his chest and up his neck, before pressing against the lobe of his ear.
Erik drew in a stuttering breath as his mind went bright white with a nearly overpowering sense of hesitancy, but before Charles could ask what was wrong, Erik was already speaking.
“Will you marry me?” Erik whispered against his skin, lips brushing Charles’ ear as he spoke and making him shiver even as he pulled away to look Erik in the eye.
His eyes were shining brightly in the low lighting of the first rays of sun and his mind was alight with a joy he'd seldom felt from Erik but felt honoured to feel now. Even still, Charles gaped, a tad unattractively, as Erik's words permeated his tired brain and circled around his mind until he was able to parse out what they meant with enough awareness to know he should be quite shocked. “Erik where did this...”
Before Charles could finish his sentence his lover was shifting across the bed and moving to straddle Charles' stomach. Erik looked down at him seriously, not a single ounce of uncertainty anywhere on his face. His knees were warm against Charles' bare sides, heated still from sleep. Charles ran his hands along Erik's thighs, short hairs tickling his palms before Erik flipped his hands to link their fingers together and hold on tightly.
“I woke up this morning and the sun was shining through our bedroom window, birds were chirping, and you were right beside me. I thought about what we could do today, since the weather is beautiful, and I realized that it didn't matter what we did as long as we did it together. Charles Xavier, I woke up this morning and I was happy, and I was happy because of the life we've crafted with each other, and I promise that I'll wake up happy every morning for the rest of our lives as long as you're here beside me,” Erik trailed off with a long exhale that seemed to slump his whole frame, and Charles squeezed his fingers tightly to ensure Erik knew he was there for him.
Searching through Erik’s thoughts found him nothing but heartbreaking sincerity. They’d never been shy about showing each other how much they cared, not after that horrible day on the beach when silence and miscommunication almost led to the end of them, but it still rocked Charles, to feel just how deeply Erik loved him. Erik’s proposal had truly only struck him that morning, when he’d had the life-altering realization that he wanted to spend every day for the rest of his life beside Charles.
“You're a ridiculous man,” Charles told him seriously, even as his eyes stung with tears that didn't waste a moment before they began to shed, wetting his cheeks as he stared up through blurred vision at the man he loved, at the man he would always love. Of course I'll marry you.
Erik's face transformed into an astonished smile, and mere seconds later Charles' felt the way he reached out with his metal-sense to the chessboard they'd been playing on for nearly a decade. He didn't need to look to know the queen's of each set were floating towards them, shifting as they moved through the air, and with a simple thought projected by Erik, he raised his left hand so a white band of twisting metal could slide onto his finger then shrink down until it fit perfectly.
When Erik’s hand cupped Charles’ cheek as he leaned in to press their lips together, Erik’s own ring was cool against his face, and they each smiled into the kiss as joy burst between them.