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Peter has been super stressed lately, obsessing over every little thing that hasn't worked out or stuff that hasn't happened yet and may not even happen. It has gotten to the point where he can't sleep properly, and the Guardians are worried about him. Nebula suggested that Peter should take some time off, maybe even a vacation back on Earth, but knowing Peter, he instantly said no. As a result, his troubled sleep continues. He has tried different types of sleeping medicines, yoga, meditation, and the list goes on, but nothing has worked.
The lack of sleep is beginning to take its toll on him, and now he has started noticing it too. His thoughts are slow and heavy, he moves slower, he can’t remember things at times. Tonight, Peter goes to bed early to try and wind down, listening to some good music and drumming his fingers on his stomach. At last, his eyes grow heavy and he drifts into the place between being awake and asleep.
Carefully, Adam sneaks into his room later at night when Peter is half-asleep, standing next to the bed and watching Peter's chest rise and fall. At first, it rises quickly due to the stress in his system, but it slows down more and more until he's deep asleep. Adam started watching Peter sleep a few days ago and noticed that his presence helps Peter fall asleep, which is all he ever wanted. He's been falling in love with Peter for a while now, and he's quite sure Peter doesn't feel the same way. It doesn't matter, though. All he wants is to be by Peter's side, to help and comfort him no matter what feelings Peter may have for him. Peter has started snoring, which signals that he's going to sleep for the rest of the night without waking up. Adam quietly leaves the room and walks back to his chamber, a smile on his lips.
The next morning, Peter, Nebula, Adam, and Rocket are having breakfast together. They have the day off, and they're all a bit tired, but Peter is the most exhausted. After finishing his cereal, Peter looks at his family and asks with a quizzical look on his face, "Have you guys heard a strange sound lately when you're in your bedrooms? Like at night?"
"A strange sound? No, I haven't heard anything," Rocket says, and both Nebula and Adam agree with him.
"What does the sound sound like?" Nebula asks curiously, watching Peter. Adam stays silent, feeling a bit uneasy and worried that they're going to find out he's been in Peter's bedroom during a couple of nights.
Peter thinks for a moment, trying to describe the sound. He hums for a moment before deciding on another approach. He drums his hands on the wooden table quite rhythmically, and the other Guardians listen intently.
"It almost sounds like a heartbeat... but it has a different rhythm to it?" Nebula suggests. "At least different from a human heart, as far as I know," she adds.
"Yeah, I agree with you," Rocket says, his ears pricking up as he listens to the drumming sound Peter is making.
Adam stays silent, feeling his hands sweat slightly. Suddenly, he feels Peter's gaze on him. "And you, Adam? What do you think it might be?"
Adam clears his throat nervously, knowing Nebula is right, but he doesn't say anything about it. "Uhm... yeah. That sounds about right," he says, hoping they won't suspect him of anything.
Peter hums, thinking about something. "Why would I hear a heartbeat in my bedroom? It doesn't make sense," he finally says, and the Guardians nod in agreement. "How long has it been going on?" Nebula asks.
"Hmm... A couple of days? Not for long, anyway," he says, taking a sip of his coffee. Nebula hums, her nails clicking on the wooden table. "Is this something you'd like to investigate, Peter?"
Peter shrugs and shakes his head. "Nah. It hasn't been going on for long. I'm probably just stressed, and my brain's on fire," he says, trying to laugh it off. Rocket sighs and shakes his head. "You need to take some days off, Pete. Stress isn't good for you."
Peter sticks out his tongue childishly and clears his side of the table. "See ya later, dudes! I'm gonna play some games!" he says with a grin, looking at Adam. "Come join me, you golden dolt. I'm gonna show you how humans have fun!"
Adam follows him into the living room, seeing Peter sitting in front of the big TV with a gaming controller in his hands. Carefully, Adam sits down next to him, and Peter immediately hands him a controller.
"Look, Adam. We're gonna play Lego Avengers! How sick is that?! I have explained who the Avengers are to you, haven't I?" he says excitedly, waiting for Adam to pick one of the superheroes on the big screen.
"Y-Yeah, you have. They're the mightiest heroes, uh, on Earth, that is," he says and chooses what the game tells him is Black Panther. Peter chooses another character, a tall blond-haired man with a hammer.
"Yeah, that's right! And that guy," he says excitedly, pointing at the fair man on the monitor. His eyes are glowing. "That's Thor! The god of thunder! He joined us for a while after we saved Earth. We had quite a good time together with him. He's a fierce fighter, a mighty foe to meet, and an amazing ally!" Peter continues with awe as he and Adam start playing the game. Adam feels a hint of jealousy. Why is Thor so cool in Peter's eyes? What's so special about him that he doesn't have? Suddenly, Peter lets out a laugh, remembering something about Thor. "But he's quite stupid, to be honest. A big man with a big heart but stupid," he says with a glint in his eyes. That statement makes Adam feel immensely better and he soon forgets about Thor.
They keep playing for quite a while. Adam finds it a bit hard to control the character and stay concentrated. His mind keeps slipping away to the thought of Thor and Peter's amazement with him. Peter notices that Adam isn't enjoying the game anymore, so he turns off the game and the TV, turning to him.
"I'll go and pop some popcorn, and we can watch a movie together," Peter says, and it's not really a suggestion. Adam just nods as he watches Peter walk away to get them some snacks. In a couple of minutes, he comes back, hands full with soda and popcorn. He places it on the table and bounces down on the couch close to Adam with a big smile.
"Take some popcorn, golden boy. They won't bite you," he grins and hands Adam the bowl of popcorn. Adam picks a few out of the bowl and chews them. They crunch nicely in his mouth, the flavor mixing with the salt. He takes a sip of the soda and understands why humans enjoy this stuff so much. It's delicious!
"Great, isn't it?" Peter chuckles as he shoves a handful of popcorn into his mouth. "Time to pick a movie!" he says excitedly and turns the TV back on, flicking through a list of films. He picks one and sinks back into the couch, pulling a soft blanket over them, cosying himself down beside Adam.
Adam swallows nervously when he feels Peter lean slightly on him to get more comfortable, and his smell mixed with his cologne fills Adam's lungs, sending shivers down his spine. "Y-You smell very nice, Peter," Adam blurts out, feeling his ears suddenly burn from the blush. Peter turns his eyes away from the movie and looks up at Adam with a shy smile.
"Huh. Thanks, goldie," he chuckles and playfully winks at him, returning his gaze to the TV. Adam's heartbeat picks up from excitement, and he beams at Peter, having a hard time concentrating on the movie with Peter's scent in his lungs and the wink he gave him. He feels like his heart is soaring right now, but he doesn't know how to express it properly, afraid of scaring Peter away if he does something drastic. So he keeps watching the movie with Peter, just enjoying that he's so close to him, relishing in his warmth and presence.
After an hour or so, Peter is snoring sweetly next to Adam, his head resting on Adam's shoulder. The blanket has slipped off him a bit, and Adam is quick to pull it back, not wanting Peter to get cold. Carefully, he stretches for the TV remote and turns the TV off, leaving the room black except for the soft golden light glowing from Adam’s skin. It shimmers beautifully on Peter's skin, and Adam can't resist the urge to pet his cheek. He drapes his thumb gently over Peter's skin, taking in and remembering every crevice he feels. He stills his hand, holding Peter's cheek and leaning close to his face. Peter's lips look so inviting, but he stops himself at the last second, knowing it would be wrong to kiss him without his consent. Peter's eyes suddenly flutter open as he wakes up from a nightmare with a gasp. Adam flinches, his hand quickly leaving the warmth of Peter's cheek. Peter looks disoriented, and he has a scared look in his eyes.
"Fuck..." Peter grumbles and rubs his eyes, realizing it was a nightmare, but his breathing is still quick as if he's still in it.
"Are you okay, Peter?" Adam asks worriedly, seeing the slight panic glowing in Peter's eyes.
"Yeah, yeah... I'm okay..." he says, still feeling the nightmare lingering. He stretches and yawns. "Maybe it's time to go to bed. I mean, falling asleep during movie night isn't very nice, is it?" he says with a smile and pulls off the blanket Adam so gently tucked him in and gets off the couch.
"You comin'?"
"Uh... yeah," Adam says and follows Peter out of the living room. They walk together to the sleeping area.
"Even though I had a nightmare, I still slept really well for once, and I think I heard that sound again I was talking about this morning... But I'm not very sure though. It might just have been part of my dreams," Peter says on the way back, giving Adam a slight suspicious look. Adam just gives a stiff shrug of his shoulders, too nervous to say anything. Peter's eyes linger on him, and he keeps looking at him until they arrive at the door to his bedroom.
"Thanks for today, goldie. It was a really good day," Peter says and gives Adam a quick but warm hug. Adam mindlessly leans into it, his heart brimming with affection as their chests press together. He's sure Peter can feel his heart pounding against his own chest, and somehow, he looks into Peter's eyes, and he knows. He knows where the odd sound comes from. Adam's stomach drops, and a cold hand grabs his heart, strangling it.
"Adam... You...?" The words come out of Peter's mouth as he looks deeply into Adam's eyes. Suddenly, Adam feels Peter press his ear to his chest, his heart pounding even faster now as Peter is so close to his vulnerability. He sees Peter's shoulders relax as he keeps listening for a couple of minutes, and Adam isn't sure what to do. His mouth is dry, and he feels a bit faint, so he just stands there unmoving.
Peter pulls away from Adam, still looking into his eyes.
"Your heart is the sound I've heard these past couple of days. Your heartbeat, the sound that makes me relax and fall asleep. But... but why? How?" Peter asks with mixed feelings, a nervous smile plastered on his lips as he takes one step away from Adam.
"I... I just wanted to comfort you... I mean, I've noticed you've been very stressed lately, and I figured maybe I could... um... you know, watch over you when you sleep? Just to... help you relax..." Adam says awkwardly, feeling his cheeks heat up from embarrassment. He looks away from Peter's eyes, scared of what he's going to see in them. Peter seems a bit taken aback by Adam's response, but he doesn't seem to dislike what he's hearing.
"That's... very thoughtful of you, Adam... But... have you, um, been sleeping next to me?" Peter asks, with a wrinkle appearing in the middle of his eyebrows.
Adam waves his hands quickly, gesturing no. "N-No, of course not Peter! I've just been... keeping guard of you, I guess you could call it?" Adam doesn't know how to explain his behavior without dragging his feelings for Peter into all of this. He bites his lip, looking at Peter anxiously. "I'd never invade your privacy like that, Peter! I have only stood next to your bed!" He adds and hears how stupid and weird it sounds. He feels deflated and wants to run away more than anything. Flee like the messed up weirdo he is. Sweat trickles down his back and he starts walking away.
”Adam?” Peter asks surprised and grabs Adam’s wrist, holding him still. ”Sshh… it’s okay Adam.” He gives him a reassuring smile. "I mean, you're still kinda invading my privacy by looking at me while I sleep, but y'know, I forgive you. You're not a human from Earth after all, so it’s not weird you don’t know all of our customs. And you have helped me sleep these past couple of days too, which I'm very grateful for." He grins and puts his hand on Adam's shoulder, giving it a tentative caress. "Would you like to join me again tonight? But not creepily standing beside my bed, but rather maybe... lying in my bed as my pillow?" Peter asks, smiling brighter at how weird it sounds, but he doesn't care. They're the weirdos of the galaxy and almost everything goes for them.
"Y-Yeah, if you'd let me," Adam beams, and Peter gives him a nod and mouths "of course." They go into Peter's bedroom, and Peter quickly changes from his usual clothes to pajamas. Adam looks away while he changes and hears a thud on the bed, so he turns around. Peter is tucked under the blanket, smiling at Adam.
"Borrow a shirt or pajamas or something from me and come here," he chuckles, and Adam does as he's told. ”I should have something in your size.”
When Adam is done changing clothes, Peter moves closer to the wall to give Adam room to join him in bed. He, too, slips under the blanket, and Peter worms his way to Adam's warm and soothing chest.
"Mmm... You're so warm, Adam... I love it," he says dreamily, smiling up at Adam as he slowly places his ear on Adam's heart. Adam is filled with such a nice warm and fuzzy feeling, being so close to the one he's in love with. His heart starts pounding, for what feels like the million time this evening, and it skips several beats.
"Oh...," Peter exhales with slight concern. "You okay, goldie boy? Your heart's living its own life in there," he says, knocking on Adam's firm chest as he looks up at him.
"Oh, um, nothing to worry about, Peter. My heart just beats differently than a human's," Adam quickly explains and can't help but feel a bit embarrassed. Peter nods, accepting his explanation. "Human or not, it's very comforting to listen to," Peter says warmly as he presses his ear back against Adam’s chest. Slowly, his hand begins tracing circles over Adam's chest.
The skin on Adam's arms prickles with goosebumps from Peter's tender touch. He relishes in it, never wanting Peter to stop touching him.
"Your heart is so loud too, Adam... I guess that's why I could hear it before, even though I was sleeping," Peter says thoughtfully, his voice soft. Adam just hums and leans a bit closer to Peter's body. Soon, he's watching Peter's chest rise and fall slowly; his breathing is heavy so the soft embrace of sleep has finally captured him. Adam smiles, feeling very content with Peter sleeping so close to him and sharing his vulnerability. He closes his eyes, thinking back to this morning, never believing he’d go to bed together with Peter. He smiles widely and soon enough, he joins Peter in a sound sleep.