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A gentle shake jostled me awake. It took everything I had to reel in the instincts that roiled through me -- I had to tamper the sharp urge to send a spike shooting forward to eviscerate whoever was intruding in my room. It was the familiar scent that stopped me; that, and the soft and insistent sound of sniffling.
I knew those sniffles -- I knew the smell. "Blue?" I said his name before my eyes opened, my brows furrowing. I didn't have it in me to pretend that I couldn't see in the darkness, so instead, I sat up in the bed, aware of the fact that I was without my suit. The blanket slid low on my hips, but Blue didn't bother to follow it as it fell down my bare body.
"I... uhm..." He actually wrapped his arms around his stomach and turned his head to the side, apparently abashed.
"What's wrong?" There were streaks of tears on his cheeks, and he frowned.
"It's stupid." Now that he was here, he didn't seem to have it in him to tell me what was bothering him. I sat forward and grabbed his hand, yanking on his arm slightly so that he toppled to sit on the bed beside me. In this proximity, I could tell how fragile he was. How... innocent. I could smell the sweet-salty tang of his tears, and I could see that his blue eyes were wide and brilliant, even in the darkness of the room.
"I... uhhh..." He frowned again, his human sight only just adjusting to the low lighting of my room. When it did, his face flared crimson all the more for my state of undress, but that embarrassment seemed to give him some kind of push to speak. "I had a nightmare." He finally muttered the words out, carefully picking over each syllable like they were made of sugar-spun glass.
"A... nightmare?" The human concept of dreaming was... strange. "Why?"
I realized a beat later that the correct question would have been 'of what', but it was too late. I continued to hold his hand, tugged his fingers in soft encouragement. It was hard to concentrate; his proximity was doing things to my human-shape that were not conducive to me finishing my mission. Somewhere in the back of my mind, I was starkly aware of the fact that now was a perfect time to strike. I could take him out and no one would know...
I held his hand instead. This was going to be a completely fruitless endeavor, and I already knew it.
"I…” He took a deep breath before speaking in a rush. “Black was talking at Mess about the ship he was on before this one." Blue bit his lower lip, adverted his gaze... but his fingers holding mine gave a tight squeeze, and he audibly gulped. "He said that there are things that get on the ship among us, and they kill everyone if they can. He said," his eyes were so wide and startled, and I had to school my features to stop myself from growling at the fact that Black couldn't keep his damn mouth shut... that he knew too much for his own good. "He said that it will probably happen here, too. That it could already be happening. When it was his ship, the entire crew was almost killed before they figured out what was going on -- he said that some of them were cut in half, and some were stabbed, and I just don't know what I would do if something happened and you were hurt, I--"
I jerked his body forward abruptly, pulling him into a tight embrace against my chest. It wasn't because I wanted him to shut up -- it was because I realized that he wasn't concerned for himself.
He was concerned for me.
Blue really was the most innocent human I'd ever met. He was sniffling again, and he hugged me tight. "I don't want anything to happen to you, Red." He whispered the words softly against my chest, his fingers digging into my back.
I raised one hand and ran my digits gently through his hair. My voice was a murmur when I spoke. "It won't."
Blue shifted his gaze up, looked at me with eyes that glistened with unshed tears. "Do you promise? "
"I do." I kept my voice to a soft cadence when I spoke, and I could feel our breath mingling, warm, and tantalizing. We were so close... and just an inch further would--
White stood in the doorway, and I could see the glittering grin on his features. I had Blue alone -- he wanted to come in for the kill.
He’d fucking cockblocked me -- I pulled Blue against my chest in a protective hug that had him sighing in contented delight, and I pressed his face to my shoulder and held it there. He cuddled tight to me, snuggling and oblivious to the danger behind him. I pulled a gun from the dresser and aimed it at White's face.
White glowered, growled... and stalked away.
I kept the weapon trained on the door for another few minutes before slowly extending a tentacle and shutting it, locking it, making sure that nothing was going to get in to hurt Blue.
To interrupt us.
Only when I was sure that it was safe did I turn back to the bundle against my chest... and immediately found that he was clinging to me tightly, and his breath was coming in deep, even waves.
He was sleeping.
I couldn't help myself. I smiled -- I brushed a few strands of hair from his forehead... and I laid back with him.
"Mmm... keep you safe, Red. Promise." Blue murmured the words in his sleep, snuggled against my neck, and gave a soft little snore.
I was beginning to realize that resisting these oddly human emotions that were rippling through my body was becoming quite... useless. I wrapped my arms around him and held him close, murmuring back to him in turn.
"I'll keep you safe, too. Promise."
In his sleep, Blue smiled.