Work Text:
Adam was falling asleep.
Truth be told, Adam was almost always falling asleep. He had been working for so long that he was almost confident he could work a full eight hour shift with his eyes half closed and otherwise completely tuned out from the world. Gansey allowed Adam cat naps in the booth at Nino's while he bombarded the others with rhetorical questions that gave them all headaches because he was Gansey, and because he cared about Adam's well-being probably more than he cared about his own. Occasionally Adam fell asleep studying, if the coffee in his dollar store coffee maker wasn't strong enough, or if he worked a double, or if Ronan spent the day with him. Ronan often spent the day with him.
School was the only place Adam refused to fall asleep. It usually wasn't a difficult task to stay awake during class; hyperawareness of his surroundings was required at an all boy's school where claps on the back and playfully hard punches flew like the paper airplanes Ronan sometimes launched into the air during a particularly boring lesson. A hand looming behind his head would make him flinch and jerk like he'd actually been punched and it was embarrassing, to say the least.
So sleep wasn't a threat during class. Usually. Today, however, Adam was even more tired than usual. Cabeswater had creeped into his head late at night, just as he was closing his economics book and laying his head down on his cheap, thin pillow, and it demanded attention. He scryed, which was exhausting, and barely got 2 hours sleep before his morning shift. Ronan had showed up at his work before school to bring him a breakfast sandwich and a small cup of coffee. Small, only because he and Ronan both knew Adam would not accept a larger size. He accepted this one though, and Ronan was grateful.
"You're about a million times less annoying when you're not hungry, so take it or I'm gonna feed it to Chainsaw," he'd said.
"I'm almost positive it's not ethical to feed a bird McDonalds." So Adam took the food and the coffee and that was that. The BMW roared away as Adam climbed into his own car, heading home to shower before school.
And now he was falling asleep. He was definitely drooling, but he couldn't find it in himself to lift his head up and wipe it away. His body was light and warm. He jerked awake when he felt something jab his arm, hard, and realized he had no idea how much time had passed since he put his head down. Ronan had twisted in his seat in front of Adam and poked him. The drool in his mouth spilled over and pooled on the desk. Ronan smirked.
"Ugh, god," Adam grumbled, wiping at his face. He glanced up at Ronan, who was still staring at his mouth. "Thanks," he said, rubbing at his eyes. They felt raw and heavy. It took three whole seconds for Adam to force them open again. When he did, Ronan was turned back around, done with his good deed of the day. Adam groaned quietly and hurried to catch up on his notes.
Ronan was waiting for Adam by the Hondayota after school. This wasn't surprising anymore. Ronan usually went home with Adam after school. He'd lay on the bed or attempt to at least start some homework or listen to his awful Garageband-esque electronica or convince Adam to do doughnuts in the church parking lot until the nuns threatened to call the cops. Sometimes he slept. Usually he did not.
"I have work at five," Adam reminded him lightly, walking past him, as if Ronan hadn't memorized his entire schedule by heart.
"You should let me drive." Ronan was squinting towards the sky. "You're dead on your feet."
"I'm fine."
Ronan moved to Adam's side. "You're not and you should sleep before your shift anyway. Go ahead and get a head start." He took the keys from Adam's hand, gently, and shoved him out of the way, not as gently, to climb into the driver's side.
Adam woke up at 4:13 P.M. in his bed, a pillow much softer and plumper than he was used to awkwardly shoved under his head. Ronan was seated in front of the desk that was actually a box, linking paper clips together in a long chain.
"Very artistic of you," Adam yawned, pushing himself up onto his elbows.
"Thanks. It's a necklace. I think I'm gonna give it to Blue for Christmas."
"She'd wear it."
"I know," Ronan rolled his eyes. "That's why I'm giving it to her."
"Hmm."
"What?" Ronan glanced back to Adam on the bed, eyes narrowing.
"Nothing." Adam fought a smirk. Remembering, he asked "Hey, where'd this pillow come from?"
Ronan turned back to the desk-box. "Isn't that your pillow?"
Adam took it in his hands and fluffed it up. "Uh, no. This is like... way softer than my pillow. And bigger, too."
"Hmm." Ronan picked up the paperclip necklace again. "Weird."
Adam paused and considered his options. He could say he didn’t want it, that his own pillow was perfectly fine, even thought it clearly wasn't, and make Ronan angry. He'd storm out, probably destroying the paperclip jewelry in his wake, possibly kick over the desk-box only to feel guilty and pick it back up again a minute later. Or. Or he could say thank you and go back to sleep for fifteen minutes before he had to get ready for work. Or he could not say anything.
Adam and Ronan were very good at not saying anything.
"I read somewhere that you can develop neck problems if you sleep on shitty pillows." Ronan still had the paperclips in his hands, only he wasn't linking them together anymore. He was just playing with them, turning the chain over in his hands and twisting it around his fingers enough to turn them red. "And your pillow was shitty. I threw it out," he added as an afterthought. "It smelled fucking weird anyway."
Adam blanched. "You... read somewhere?"
"Yes, Parrish on the fucking internet or something. You know, that thing that normal people have." Ronan was openly scowling now. Adam felt guilt eat at his stomach, only he wasn't quite sure why.
"Okay," Adam said, surprising himself as well as Ronan, who stared at him as though he'd just announced that he was planning on dropping out of Aglionby to join Mallory's European pigeon hunt.
"Yeah." Adam leaned back on the pillow. "Thanks. It feels nice."
Ronan narrowed his eyes for a moment before softening his expression. "Yeah. Whatever." He picked up the paper clips again and looked down, a slight blush visible on his cheeks. "You're welcome," he added. Softer. Quieter.
Glancing at the clock a few minutes later, Adam groaned and slid down farther on the bed, throwing his arms over his face.
"What?"
"I have to get ready," Adam said, muffled.
"Oh. Sucks." Adam groaned again.
Ronan was standing by the door, paperclip necklace gripped tight in his hand when Adam came out of the bathroom in his work uniform. He was as alert as Adam was exhausted.
"Are you coming by later tonight?" Adam asked as they found their way out the door, both of them moving reluctantly, slowly.
Ronan looked at him for a long moment. "Probably," he said suddenly. Casual.
Adam nodded. Casual.
Ronan lingered too long at the Hondayota's door. He realized he'd just walked Adam to his car, as though they were finishing up a date. Not that he knew what a date was like, much less what a date with Adam Parrish was like. He glanced around awkwardly and shuffled his feet, deciding the best course of action would be to stare menacingly at the pavement until Adam either drove away or said something. Hopefully something casual. Hopefully not.
Adam did neither of those things, so Ronan finally lifted his head to look him in the eye, and it happened.
Ronan did not expect it to happen. Adam might have, if he was being honest with himself. When Ronan raised his head, Adam stayed put instead of ducking his own, and one of them decided (or didn't decide) to lean two inches forward to press their lips together, very lightly.
Surprisingly, Ronan's lips were so, so soft. Almost as soft as the pillow Adam had been gifted. Ronan's lips should not have been soft, Adam thought. They should have been rough and hard like the rest of him. They should have been exhilarating and unafraid. They were hesitant and scared shitless, if the way that Ronan's breath was instantly knocked out of him was anything to go by.
It didn't last more than a few seconds but Adam could have sworn they'd stood there long enough for him to be late to work. Long enough for Gansey to have found Glendower without them. Long enough for Ronan's stubble to grow out enough to lightly scratch his face as they kissed. Except, oh- that one was actually happening.
When one or both of them pulled away, Adam decided he was tired enough to warrant leaning his forehead against Ronan's. Ronan graciously allowed it, his arms tentatively reaching to wrap around Adam's back in return.
Eventually, Adam pulled away because as much as he'd love to feel Ronan's strong hands on his back forever and probably for a few days after that too, he still had work. Ronan stepped back to allow him to climb into the car, and he leaned against the open door, less afraid and out of place than he seemed before.
"So, tonight?" His grin was deadly.
"I get off at eleven," Adam answered, his own smile refusing to back off.
"I'll see you," Ronan said. He leaned into the car and Adam met him halfway again, lips meeting and moving against each other more earnestly.
"Definitely."
Adam was wide awake.