Work Text:
The soft, crackling fireplace reminded you where you were.
For a few minutes, you just laid there, staring at the flames, slowly bringing your brain out from the fog of sleep. Sometime earlier, after coming home from school, Belphie had dragged you down onto the large lounge room couch for some quality 'after-school nap' time (the best types of naps, he claimed).
Belphegor had one of his arms loosely wrapped around your back, and the other underneath his head. You tried to sit up, but the cow tail wrapped around your waist prevented you from going any further than leaning up a bit. The position let you put your elbows on the side of your face and rest your head in your hands, allowing you to see Belphegor’s face.
All you could think as you stared was how beautiful Belphegor was. You wanted to touch his eyelashes, and run your hands through his hair, rub your thumbs over his cheeks and feel the groves of his horns. But you didn't, and you couldn't, since giving in to your urges to touch him would disturb his tranquil state.
… that’s enough staring for now. Your gaze went to the clock on the wall. It’s late into the evening, and unless you wanted Lucifer breathing don your neck, you needed to get a head start on your homework for the week.
You tried to get up again, but the tail tightened around you. You glanced back to Belphegor, when after a few seconds of guilty silence, slowly opened his eyes.
“no,” he said bluntly. You held back a smile at his sulk. “it’s cuddle time.”
“It’s been cuddle time for about an hour and a half.”
“I was asleep, though.”
You rolled your eye. “Now who’s fault is that?”
You still gave in quickly enough, relaxing and laying your head back down on his chest. It was clear that even if you really wanted to, Belphegor was not about to let you go right now. His hand rubbed up and down your back soothingly, and the heartbeats in his chest provided a slow, lulling rhythm.
' Heartbeats' , huh?
…
“Belphie, how many hearts do you have?”
“hmm... see if you can guess.”
You tried to focus on the various pulses in his chest. You recognized one beat, then another, then a third… wait, wasn’t that the first one? Now they all sounded the same. His backrubs were not helping your focus either.“At least give me a hint.” you prodded.
He chuckled lowly. “I’m not supposed to tell, you know.”
“ten?”
“lower.”
“five?”
“No. shut up.”
“I think cuddle time is done.”
His tail gripped tighter around your waist, and both arms wrapped around you now, stilling all your movements immediately. Then, the world twirled for a moment as Belphegor flipped your positions.
“no.” he repeated as he snuggled his face into your neck.
You continued your guessing game. “seven?” You felt him nod. “Seven hearts... for seven brothers?”
“mmm.” You don’t know if that meant a conformation or a denial. He grasped one of your hands, bringing it close to his lips, rubbing his thumb over your knuckles. “Give me your heart, and I’ll give you all of mines.”