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“Come on, Spikey, let’s get you into the room…” Wolfwood mumbles into Vash’s ear, taking his free hand and tracing down his side, wrapping an arm around his waist. This only earned a whine from Vash, staring at Wolfwood with his eyes half-lidded and dazed. Wolfwood could only chuckle lightly at his words, beginning to lead him into the room.
While it wasn’t the best room they could get right now, money was a little bit tighter than normal, as not as much work had been coming up for the both of them. Having to leave the insurance girls in a town for a few weeks while they went about their jobs was not turning out to be as favorable as they had hoped for.
The duo seemed to run into more and more trouble as they ventured into more and more towns, and honestly, the two didn’t know how much more they could take.
———
When taking a close look at Vash, Wolfwood could see the dark circles that had formed under his eyes. Even if he was wearing those sunglasses that turned his eyes and some parts of his face orange, there was no escaping the darkness that lingered under his eyes.
Wolfwood wasn’t sure what was going on with Vash. When Wolfwood would slightly wake up in the middle of the night from his dreams, he was always sure to look for the blonde spikey head that was near him and make sure that his eyes were closed and he had been sleeping. The big question was… why did he still look so exhausted?
Lifting his head back up and turning towards Vash, he could see the sweat that was now pouring from his forehead. His body was pale and the way that he was leaning against Wolfwood, he immediately knew that something was wrong. Vash was not his normal self . Taking his hand and placing it on his forehead, he let out a sigh of relief, there was no fever.
Placing Wolfwood’s hand on his forehead set something off in Vash, his eyes suddenly blinking and coming back to life, beginning to slowly straighten up in his arms. Vash didn’t know what was going on around him, where he was, or what was happening. He blinked and suddenly Wolfwood’s arm was around his waist and was in the process of taking him into a room in a town that he didn’t even know existed.
Lifting his head to try and stand on his own was quickly stopped by the man standing beside him tightening the grip on his waist, leaning back down into his ear, “Take it easy, Tongari, you’re exhausted and you know it.” The voice made him shiver, a blush beginning to appear on his cheeks. Blinking for just a few moments before Vash began to open his mouth was stopped once again by the same voice. “Stop protesting for once and let me take care of ya.” This voice was sterner. The compassion and warmth was still there, but this time it was more of a demand for what he was saying.
Lowering his head back down and nodding once again, Vash leaned back into Wolfwood's body. Something just didn’t seem right with Vash right now, and for some reason, he couldn’t quite place his finger on it. He wasn’t sure why he wasn’t throwing a fit and arguing with Wolfwood about taking care of him or why he was leaning so far onto him because his legs felt like jelly and he couldn't even move them. His head and eyes were hurting and his world was spinning so Vash could care less at this current moment.
A whine flew from Vash’s mouth once again once he realized that his eyes weren’t focusing on anything in particular and that his head was pounding in one certain spot that seemed to cause him so much pain. Wolfwood pulled away slightly, staring down at him with a frown. “What’s going on with you?” He whispered gently, taking his free hand and gently carding it through his hair, pushing it back so he could better see his eyes.
The bright baby blue seemed to be taken over by dull darkness, not having that normal happiness shining behind them. Wolfwood only frowned more.
—-
Trying to unlock the door to a shitty hotel room with a three hundred pound cross hanging on your back, a close to two hundred pound man leaning heavily against you, and the key struggling to even go into the lock itself seemed to be even more of a challenge than Wolfwood had originally thought it was going to be. Sure, the man carries around that cross, gun, punisher-looking thing every single day, he’s used to all the extra weight, but there was something about another human… Vash… leaning against him which made it so much more difficult to maneuver around.
Sighing heavily as Wolfwood finally got the door unlocked, kicking it open with his foot as he flung the cross to lean against the wall. There was one weight off his shoulders… literally.
Turning his head to the side to take another look at the typhoon laying limply on his shoulder, he sighed once again. “What am I going to do with you, spikey?” Wolfwood mumbles gently, running his fingers through Vash’s hair once again. Vash seemed to gain a little more consciousness at this, just barely lifting his head so that his eyes appeared over the tops of Wolfwood’s shoulders. Wolfwood had the smallest and warmest smile on his face, seeming to make Vash blush.
Letting out the smallest of chuckles, Wolfwood proceeded to take the hand off of Vash’s waist, earning a groan from Vash at the loss of warmth. “Is that all you can do is whine and groan, needle-noggin?” Wolfwood muttered, no bite behind his words, looking down at Vash. Vash was in his own world; his own world of pain and exhaustion, not even slightly registering what Wolfwood is saying to him. All of his own sounds and movements involuntary.
Wrapping Wolfwood’s hand behind Vash’s back and leaning him back onto it, holding his droopy head as a support, he proceeded to set him down on the bed. Taking a step back to now fully look at how defeated and slumped the humanoid typhoon truly looked.
Vash tried his hardest to keep himself sitting up, but by the looks of it, there was not much support there. His shoulders were slumped and his coat was dipping off his shoulders. His head was facing down, his sunglasses slipping to the end of his nose. Taking a closer look at him, as Wolfwood had noticed earlier, the dark circles under his eyes only began to grow.
Even though his eyes were barely visible through the sunglasses, they were barely open. His mouth was parted, he was slightly panting from it, seemingly exhausted.
Leaning down onto his knees in front of him, Wolfwood stared. Taking his own sunglasses off and staring up at the man in front of him, frowning. When lifting his hand to gently cup Vash’s face, Wolfwood noticed how cold he felt to his touch, which only deepened his frown.
“Hey, angel?” Wolfwood whispered, staring up at him, concern gazing in his eyes. Vash unconsciously leaned into the touch, closing his eyes, letting out the smallest of whines, “Are you with me?” Wolfwood whispers once again, leaning in even closer to his face.
Vash could only blink a couple of times, staring at him, with no light or desire in his eyes like normal. After taking just a minute to register his words, Vash slowly began to nod. “With you…” Vash mumbles, knowing that Wolfwood always wants to hear his voice when asking how he was feeling.
A small smile appeared on Wolfwood’s face upon hearing his words, nodding slowly with him. “That’s good… you’re okay…” He whispers, beginning to stand up and stand closer to Vash. Vash let out a noise at the loss of warmth, falling forward to lay against Wolfwood’s stomach.
Wolfwood could only let out a small chuckle at this, immediately taking his hand and beginning to card his fingers through his hair. Wolfwood took notice of how knotted his hair was, even with it being so short. This made a frown appear and deepen on his face.
Now that he was thinking about it, it seemed that it had been a long time since either of them had a proper shower or bath. They had just been taking what people call “whore baths” where it’s just enough to wash the dirt off their face.
Being in a proper hotel room, Wolfwood thought about taking advantage of it. Looking back down at the boy laying in his arms, he did fight against the thought for a small moment, seeing how exhausted Vash was lying in his arms. He could go ahead and lay him in bed, let the exhaustion take over Vash…
But a warm bath…
Not even saying anything, Wolfwood reaches down and picks Vash up slowly, pressing a kiss to his cheek, gently whispering in his ear, “We’re gonna go take a bath, alright?” Vash’s eyes seemed to light up at his words, nodding as he leaned further onto Wolfwood.
Carrying him into the bathroom was easier said than done, as sitting did not help Vash gain any bearing on his surroundings. His eyes only continued to daze, his body getting heavier and heavier. Wolfwood couldn’t help but chuckle at this. “I never thought I would see Vash the Stampede so defeated…” He mumbles, setting him back onto the counter, and turning around to plug the drain in the bathtub.
Vash only hummed, tilting his head back and leaning against the mirror, sighing out softly. Wolfwood turned around and smiled at him, stepping forward and standing in between his legs, bringing his hands to gently grasp his waist.
Taking his fingers and tracing up his sides, touching like he was something that was so delicate that even the lightest press might shatter him under his touch. Sliding up to his chest, dragging his finger down to his shoulder. “Come on, Spikey, let me take this heavy thing off of you…” Wolfwood mumbles into his ear, pulling away and pressing a kiss to his forehead.
Vash, severely out of it, just slowly nodded his head.
Wolfwood danced his fingers around his skin, pressing lightly into the socket where the nub of his arm sat in the prosthetic. Having watched Vash undo his prosthetic multiple times, Wolfwood had grasped the concept of what to do, especially in an act to not hurt him. His fingers traced over the latches, popping them to where they opened with a small hiss of air escaping them. Unbuckling the latch and gently sliding the prosthetic off, Vash let out the heaviest and most relieved sigh that Wolfwood has ever heard before. “How long has it been since you’ve taken this thing off?" Wolfwood said, taking his hands and gently massaging the nub of his arm.
Vash’s mouth parted open slightly, like he was ready to say something, but ended up letting out another sigh of relief. Wolfwood knew at this moment that he wasn’t getting much out of Vash tonight. But Wolfwood knew it had been weeks, meaning that it might get infected or turn raw pretty soon to the point where he couldn’t even wear it.
Turning around and glancing at the water, Wolfwood nodded to himself, “Come on, sweetheart, let’s get you undressed.” Expecting to at least get a smirk or something out of him, Wolfwood couldn’t help but be disappointed. He really was exhausted.
Wolfwood’s hands danced around his waist again, taking his fingers and hooking under Vash’s black shirt, peeling it off his skin. Trying his hardest to be gentle with the man below him seemed to be harder than he was expecting. His touch was delicate and soft, but his fingers were rough and calloused, afraid that he was somehow going to hurt him.
Vash was being no help in trying to get his shirt off, not even attempting to lift his arms over his head to be able to peel any of the clothing off of him. Wolfwood let out a groan when he finally peeled off his shirt, turning to throw it to the side while also being met with an exhausted Vash beginning to fall forward.
His eyes widened as he acted quickly, catching the typhoon and sitting him back up. “Jeez spikey,” he mumbled, not continuing his sentence afterward.
After taking just a moment to let Vash rest, Wolfwood decided that the water was finally high enough to go ahead and put him in the bathtub. Leaning down and slipping his hands under Vash’s knees, placing a strong hand on his back so he can hold him upright. Vash whined at the sudden movement, earning a small chuckle from Wolfwood, who was now lowering him into the bathtub.
Vash let out a small hiss at the sudden contact of the water, only to be then met with a satisfying hum and how much it relaxed his body. His eyes fluttered shut as he relaxed in the bathtub. Wolfwood could only stand at his side and smile warmly down at him.
Leaning down to the side of the bathtub, Wolfwood took one of his hands and slowly dipped it into the water, scooping some up into his hands and letting it run down Vash’s back. Another small hum left his lips, letting his head fall back on the edge of the bathtub.
“Gotta stay awake, sweetheart, just for a little bit longer, okay?” Wolfwood whispered into Vash’s ear, taking some more water and letting it fall onto the top of his head, wetting his hair. Wolfwood’s hands traced up his skin once again, taking his fingers and gently scraping them on his back, pressing multiple kisses up and down his neck. Vash couldn’t help but whine at this, shaking his head and letting out a small yawn. “I can’t wash your hair if you fall asleep, tongari,” Wolfwood mumbled, pressing a small kiss to his cheek.
Vash’s face suddenly flushed with red, the corners of his mouth curling into a small smile. Wolfwood wouldn’t help but chuckle at this, dipping his hands back into the water so he could wash them off before grabbing the shampoo.
His hands were delicate as he foamed up the shampoo in his palms, gently placing them on the top of Vash’s head. His fingers had a slight pressure to them, running over and gently massaging his scalp. Vash’s mouth parted, beginning to hang open, tilting his head back into Wolfwood’s hands. “That feel good?” he mumbles, thumbs going slowly in circles around the temples of his head. The smallest attempt of a nod was made, but Wolfwood got the hint.
Fingers carding through Vash’s hair made him melt even further into the bathtub, Wolfwood leaning over more and more just so he could reach the top of his head. Even while washing the shampoo out of his hair, Wolfwood continued to slowly massage his head, making sure to go over specific places over and over again, especially if he could see that Vash was enjoying that spot.
While the conditioner didn’t take nearly as long to put in his hair, Wolfwood was going to let it sit in before he washed it out. Now came to be the hardest part, washing his body.
While the two had seen each other naked many many times, there was still that slight hint of shyness that ran through the both of them whenever it happened.
Wolfwood dipped the cloth into the bath, letting it fill with water before he took it out, pouring soap into it. Rubbing it together in between his palms for just a moment before he ran the cloth down Vash’s back.
Another gentle hiss came from Vash’s mouth, feeling the sting of the soap and the warm water running over his scars. Even if they were healed and sealed to his skin, the hurt was never going to leave. WIth the gentlest of touches, the slightest touch still stung. After a minute of getting used to the touch, his body relaxed, a low hum coming from his mouth. Wolfwood could only smile softly, leaning forward and pressing a light kiss to the top of his head.
The rest of the bath went quickly, Wolfwood rinsing his hair and body, every so often placing kisses on random spots on his face and neck, earning the smallest of giggles from Vash.
Instead of dressing Vash back in the disgusting black shirt he was wearing, Wolfwood walked towards the bag he carried around, grabbing a new and oversized shirt for him, plus some shorts for him. The room was hot.
After getting Vash dressed and his hair dried, Wolfwood picked him up in his arms. One of his hands was placed on his back, the other holding the back of his head. His fingers gently started to run through his hair, pulling him close to his chest.
Sitting on the bed, Wolfwood did not let go of the grasp that he had on Vash. Positioning him so that way he was now laying on his chest, his hand still carding through his hair, pulling out any tangles or knots that had formed, while the other hand was tracing shapes onto his back.
Wolfwood leaned close to his head, pressing kisses across his face, mumbling sweet nothings and praises in between each of the kisses. With each kiss, Vash would hum, the blush on his face light but the back of his neck and ears were a bright red. Wolfwood couldn’t help but giggle.
While still whispering sweet nothings into his ear, looking down, Wolfwood noticed that Vash’s eyes were slowly beginning to close. They would close and jerk open, staying open for a mere second before falling again. Letting out the smallest of chuckles, Wolfwood whispered.
“Get some sleep, Tongari, you deserve it,” pressing one final kiss to the top of Vash’s head, smiling down warmly at him.