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There's only one bed. You pretend to be bothered, at first, but your heart thrums with excitement and your cheeks heat up. You're going to be so close to Idia.
He enters behind you, his flaming hair already dashed pink from having to share a room, but seeing the single bed, in deep royal blue with fluffy blankets and star swept curtains, he dies inside.
"N-nope!" He mutters to himself and turns around, but you quickly stop him, balking at the immediately rejection.
"Idia, wait...!" You grab his sleeve with both hands. He's clutching the change of clothes he brought, and his toothbrush almost falls off of it onto the ground. He jumps, seeming even more eager to flee, but you hold on and say, "Please! I... I just want the company..."
You don't want to force him. If he'd rather try his luck somewhere else, then so be it. But your disappointment would be dragging you down the whole night if you didn't take this shot. You didn't know Idia that well, really. You had so few classes together, and of all the housewardens, he was probably the one you spent the least time with.
"If you hate it and can't sleep, I'll see if I can find a place elsewhere." Ace and Deuce weren't willing to cuddle, and they certainly wouldn't be happy letting a third person into the bed. But, even if it meant sleeping on the floor, you'd risk the giving up the bed for a chance to sleep next to someone, for a change.
Idia seemed really reluctant to agree. His complexion went from pale to blushing up a storm as he thought about it. "Y-you want me to—"
"I want to sleep next to you." You weren't sure if straightforward was the best choice here, but you didn't know how else to do it. It wasn't like you'd ever asked someone to sleep with you before. When he was still staring silently, you added, "in the same bed."
Idia spilled a mountain of 'nope nope nope nope nope' as he paced between the exit and the bathroom. He didn't leave though.
"Do you want to brush your teeth first, or, at the same time...?"
"First," he said quickly. "I'll go first."
As soon as he shut the door behind him, you felt butterflies in your stomach. You were an adult, in college, so you shouldn't be making such a big deal out of this, but it was new to you. In the old world, you had only shared a bed with family, and since coming here, only with Grim, who didn't really count. Well, not that Idia was different. But, he was, wasn't he? Sleeping with Idia was different, somehow. You blushed and tried to hold back a smile. When Idia came back into the room, dressed in his pajamas, you were hunched over on the floor trying to hold it together.
"E-eh... Why are you smiling like that?"
You wiped your face clean. "U-um, I just thought of something."
"...T-the bathroom's free..."
"Right." You looked around for your clothes and toothbrush, scatterbrained and distracted, and clumsily picked them up to go change.
Idia's pajamas were light blue, and slightly oversized. He seemed to prefer things loose. The sleeves hung around his hands down past the thumbs, and the pants crumpled at the bottom. Both had a stylish frayed texture. You wondered if the reason he wore clothes so baggy was because it was hard to find things for his height. You found yourself imagining him in other clothes—nightgowns would suit him well. Pastels in plaid. Maybe pink to match his hair. Well, his hair wasn't always such a hot pink—
"What are you still staring at?" He hid himself under the blanket and you startled and rushed to the bathroom, closing the door. Maybe you should clear your head.
Had Idia's nails been painted? His toes, that is. That was... Really cute. Ah, you were thinking of a grown man at least twenty years of age as cute. Get it together, you have to be respectful, he's an upperclassmen and a housewarden, and he's going to think you're weird.
You brushed your teeth for an extra long time, and then went to get your pajamas on. When you opened the door again, the lights were off, and Idia was facing away, pretending to already be asleep. Pretending is the key word. You were pretty sure if he was really asleep, his hair would have gone back to normal or something, and wouldn't be swirling around in different pink and blue hues, making gorgeous shapes like a light show. You wondered how Idia ever got any sleep with that amount of light. Then again, it was dimmer in its blue form.
You were polite enough to play along with his ruse, dipping into bed at a respectable distance. Though, you were still staring at him from this angle. You couldn't see his face, so you just had to imagine that his eyes were closed, and that he was trying really hard to keep still.
Eventually, you couldn't take it, so, at the risk of being an asshole, you said, "Idia?"
He was quiet for a minute, deciding whether to answer you or keep trying to feign unconsciousness. He wasn't confident it was working, and it would be embarrassing if he kept it up when you already knew, so he turned just his head and shoulder to look over at you.
You gave him the smallest smile. It was hard to keep from smiling. Your cheeks were starting to hurt. "Hey." Oh, wait, that wasn't what you had wanted to say. You went through a hundred thoughts, but forced them all down so that you could find the right one. "Are you uncomfortable?"
He didn't say anything. He pressed the bottom of his face into the pillow. Ah, he was going to be the death of you. Why did his face have that texture? Why were his lips that color, and that shape, and why did they fit so well against the plush navy blue pillowcases. He was so pale in contrast that it was he was the only thing in the room at all. His eyes didn't meet yours, but you didn't know if you could look there right now anyway. You could barely breathe as is.
"If you aren't.... Um... Comfortable....then...." The words were hard to find.
"It's fine. I'm comfortable."
He was definitely lying. Even his ears were pink. Or maybe that was just from the glow.
Your heart was beating so fast. You nodded, and closed your eyes and pressed your lips closed. Breathe.
"Um, are...you...okay?"
You opened your eyes. "Huh?"
"You looked a bit pained."
"No, I'm fine." You blushed when you saw his pupils were studying you. You were pretty sure you had a crayola crayon that color as a child. Lemon or banana or something. Why were you thinking of that right now? You felt like a child. You had the verbal and thought processing skills of one, right now, when your brain was completely melted by Idia. Your tongue could barely remember the shapes to make to fit together a clumsy, "Do you want to cuddle?" You're pretty sure it came out stilted or at an odd time, and you squeezed your eyes shut and then opened them again. He looked shocked. Like a cat. His eyes were wide, and he'd shifted back. There was a buzzing in your skull, and you didn't know if you even wanted him to answer, you felt like you might faint if he did. Had you really asked that?
"U-um...!" he stuttered, and all he could do was hide his head under one arm and let out a long squeaking sound.
Your mutual embarrassment made it feel like even the walls wanted go elsewhere.
"I don't mean anything weird by it. Just, like... Do you want to.... I want to...." You want to know so badly what it would feel like to touch him. But, how were you supposed to word that in a way that sounded normal? He was going to get the wrong idea.
"W-why...?"
"Just 'cuz?" You looked at the ceiling, pink tulips forming cheek to cheek.
"Y-you look pained again..."
"No, I'm not!"
He made a weird noise, and then said under his breath, "you can hug me if you want."
Something was wrong. That definitely shouldn't have worked.
You reached out and wrapped your arms around his middle, not moving too fast. It felt still. You didn't know what you had been expecting, but this moment felt still. All of your other thoughts went perfectly quiet. You moved your head to rest on his shoulder, pressing into the crook of his neck. He had a deep, fruity sort of smell. Sweet, sour, and spicy all at once. It was definitely something he was wearing, but it was too strong to just be soap or deodorant. Did Idia wear cologne? Well, you didn't know why he wouldn't, but the smell itself was very unexpected. You had imagined he would smell light or flowery, maybe even something refreshing. It was a welcome difference. You slotted this into your understanding of him as your hold tightened around his waist.
He was so slim. Especially right there. It was easy to completely encompass him with your arms, even though he was so much taller. His pajamas were a very gentle-on-the-skin cotton. Just knowing it was him you felt underneath made the touch amazing. All of him was warm. You committed every bit to memory.
"Yuu?" he asked awkwardly.
You buried your face in further in embarrassment. He let out a sharper breath than all the others, and you realize that the way your lips pressed against his neck like this was almost like a kiss. You wondered if you should pull away, for his sake. But you felt like if you did you might cry. You felt like you might cry if you didn't. You were holding him. You still wanted more.
You wanted to squeeze him tighter, part your lips and let his skin touch your teeth, your tongue.
But you didn't. You carefully, painfully, slowly, pulled away. Only then did you open your mouth to finally breathe.
His hand came up to your face, and brushed your hair out of it. He had only wanted to see your expression, concerned and confused, but you pressed the side of your forehead into his hand. Your tongue felt too big to speak with, and your eyes couldn't turn to look any higher than his chin. His hand was warm. It was unexpectedly calloused. His pink hair floated around him as if it were alive.
You figured out your words, and sucked in before saying, "Sorry, I just want to cuddle more." You didn't just want to cuddle. Not that you wanted to do anything bad, but your mind kept focusing on the sensations of your lips. What if you kissed him? What if he kissed you?
His hand slid down, and it was clear there would be no kissing tonight. Idia wasn't ready. You didn't even know if it was a thing he wanted to be ready for, ever.
"...Idia," you said. "You can hold me instead."
You waited, to see if he would make a move. If he didn't, you would let this be over. You had no intention of pushing him further than he wanted to go.
It was a long time before his arms cautiously came to encircle you. He took your arms and chest, and pulled you close to his own chest. You could hear his heartbeat from here. It was fast.
You listened to it as you fell asleep.