Work Text:
It was only a couple more days until the holiday break. Almost everyone Azul knew was excited to return home for a well-deserved break after a rather eventful start to school.
Idia mentioned that he would be binge-watching anime for the next few nights (which wasn’t an active change from his schedule already) and Riddle would be going home and was ready to have peace and quiet (but he did seem rather disappointed when he told him).
Aside from making plans and dreaming about the moment the final bell would ring in eleven days, students were busy studying for their hardest finals and cramming in assignments that were due at the end of the week.
Everyone was trying their best to make their way through the remaining two weeks before the break.
So, when the weather fairies decided that now was the best time to take a break, everyone's mood soured fast.
Why they decided to leave early was everyone’s guess. All they knew was that it was going to be cold remaining days.
Azul and his fellow housewardens originally assumed that perhaps a group of fairies took the magestone as they did not so long ago. So, they all set out to find where it had gone this time.
The shock they had when they saw that the magestone was unscathed in its original holding place but also alone with no fairies in sight sparked a bothered conversation with the headmaster.
Crowley explained to them that the fairies must have confused the date and took their leave early. So, the rest of them were stuck in a cold winter. Everyone wanted to complain, but they knew their situation could have been worse. They had to make do with what they had.
Azul quickly noticed that many of the students from the warmer dorms were struggling the most compared to the rest of them. It was pretty clear as water as to how much it affected Kalim, a Scarabian student, by how he was acting right now.
With homework pages for different classes scattered along the table in front of him, he lay on his couch wrapped in many blankets. He would occasionally let out a dramatic sigh (loud enough for Azul to peer over at him), and let out a puff of air before saying about how he wished the fairies would come back to warm up the school.
Azul didn’t mind the temperature. He liked it, oddly enough. The cool temperatures reminded him of being at home with how cold the water usually was. It was a rather nice reminder of what he unfortunately wouldn’t be able to receive this winter break. But still, not everyone was as fortunate as him.
“Kalim,” Azul grumbled with a smile. He pointed down at Kalim’s homework with a forceful expression. “You need to work on your assignments before Friday. Mr. Trein already talked to you about this.”
Peeking up from his fort of blankets, Kalim only replied with a loud complaint. “But Azull! It’s so cold!”
“I think the temperature is fine.” He finished writing down the last question on his history paper before collecting his notes into an organized stack. Then, he placed them into a deep blue folder. “You just aren't used to it.”
“I know! Everyone in Scarabia is having a hard time adjusting!” He cried with his eyes closed and a frown appeared on his usually bubbly face. But, Azul could only see his eyes peeking out from underneath. “It sucks!”
It was clear from the moment he stepped foot into the dorm that many Scarabian students were struggling with the change. When he saw Jamil on the way here, he surprisingly looked under the weather. When he asked him what was the matter, Jamil brushed him off and told him the weather change was messing with him. He reassured him he was fine and did not need his assistance.
Without much thought, Azul spoke up. “It’s almost break. Just hang in there for a few more days. But, as one of your tutors, I can’t have you purposely ignore your schoolwork!” How it would look if Riddle saw Azul blatantly allowing Kalim to ignore his academic responsibilities would be a disaster!
“It will be done at someee point! Just not right now.” Kalim’s attention shifted to Azul, who was already staring back at him with a stoic expression.
If this wasn't Kalim he was dealing with, he would simply turn the other shoulder. His homework being untouched wouldn’t be his problem, especially because this was outside of their tutoring lessons. But this was also his boyfriend.
He knew better than anyone else (aside from Jamil and Riddle) that sometimes Kalim needed a friendly push to continue working on his schoolwork. The question was what would it be today?
The two held their eye contact for what seemed to be a lifetime before Azul let out a sigh of compliance. “Fine.” Kalim watched Azul with a raised brow as the silver-haired student shifted his body towards him. “What do you need to start doing your assignments?”
The once sullen housewarden scrambled to properly sit up with all the blankets on top of him. But, he was able to manage. “You’ll help me?”
Azul didn't know if he should feel offended or impressed that Kalim knew that his favors were hardly ever favors without a price (Kalim being an expectation from this rule). “If it helps you study, then yes. How can I assist you?”
Once Kalim realized that he was serious and wasn’t playing a joke on him, a smirk appeared on his lips. “Anything?”
Yup, he knew he was going to regret this later on. “Yes, anything legal.”
Without a second to waste, Kalim with his hands together, yelled, “Cuddle with me!”
.
..
…
Azul’s once kind expression turned to stone. Was he serious? He couldn’t tell if he was joking. But he seemed too determined to be kidding. “... You want to cuddle?”
Kalim nodded with a dorky grin. He used his left hand to softly pat the empty spot beside him on the couch. “Silver told me that body heat is a great way to warm up! He and Sebek used to cuddle a lot when they were smaller and said it instantly warmed him up!”
While he did appreciate the thought Silver exchanged with Kalim, he had a feeling this excuse was going to come up more in the future for more cuddling sessions. “I hardly think that’s appropriate for the time being.” Azul adjusted his glasses with a snort. He never was the type of person who liked cuddling sessions. He only did it when he was younger with the tweels when they would constantly bug him about it. Otherwise, he would never dare go out of his way to get snuggles.
Throwing himself down in defeat, the Scarabian boy cried. “You said anything though, Azul! That’s not fair! Please! Just for a bit!” For the first time in an hour, Kalim wiggled his way out of his blanket fort and sat himself right in front of Azul.
“Please Azul!” he begged as he fell toward Azul’s lap, wrapping his arms tightly around the Octavinelle’s student’s waist.
His body rejoiced at the sudden contact, feeling confined as his arms were awkwardly squished against his sides. Closing his eyes in annoyance, he shook his head. “Kalim-” He was so ready to tell him something. They could cuddle at a later time when there was less work to be done, but just as he turned down to Kalim, he was met with a very dangerous sight.
Looking at him with his big, crimson-red doe eyes and a sad pout, Azul felt a twinge in his heart and his face quickly burned. Kalim’s hold became slightly tighter around his waist, causing Azul to instinctively back away, but he couldn't. “Please, Azul?”
Now feeling himself flush at the sight, his eyes torn away from his boyfriend’s. He hated how Kalim used that look to his advantage. From the eyes to the voice, it weakened Azul’s thinking! It was simply just too cute and pure for him to think correctly! “Fine! Just stop giving me that look!”
Content with his response, Kalim sat up and clapped his hands together in happiness. He quickly was back on his feet and practically dragging Azul to his blanket fort on the red couch.
Without a second thought, Kalim rolled back underneath his blankets and somehow managed to drag Azul under with him. His strength was surprisingly strong when he had a motive.
Azul let out a small yelp as the other student swiftly brought him under.
If the Octavinelle student was in his octopus form, he would have instantly kicked the blankets off and claimed that it was too warm for him. But in his human form, the warmth was strangely inviting. The body heat that Kalim’s body provided made the experience more cozy than he thought. Different from what he experienced with the tweels.
“Nice, huh?” Kalim laughed. His eyes were staring straight at him with now pure intentions. He leaned in close and he placed a small kiss on Azul’s lip before snuggling close to Azul’s chest. The student’s hands slowly crawled behind his back and rested on his shoulder blades. “Just for a bit, then we can go back to studying, kay’?”
Azul took his defeat with a final sigh. To allow Kalim to refocus his attention on his homework, he would have to take a small break from his own schoolwork.
Raising his left arm to Kalim’s side, he began softly brushing his hand through his white, short hair. If he was going to be here, he might as well be comfortable. “Just for a bit.”
Azul felt Kalim’s head move up and down on his chest, indicating a nod.
The Octavinelle student found himself slightly more engulfed in the warmth, his eyes suddenly becoming more and more droopy as time went on. He tried his best to fight off the sudden urge to nod off, but after a few minutes had passed, he realized this was a grave mistake. Before he knew it, his hand slowly and subconsciously fell from Kalim’s hair and onto the pillow that supported the both of them. With a few more weak blinks, his world ultimately turned dark.
Time passed as normal, but once Kalim knew Azul was asleep, he looked up at him with a proud grin. Was this just a ploy he enacted on Azul so he could get some sleep after working so hard recently? Yes, it was. Was he ashamed of the tactics he had to use to get here? A little bit, but it was all in good work!
With a bit of effort and stillness, he was able to properly remove Azul’s glasses from his face and gently tossed them to a nearby pillow on the floor.
After that, he snuggled right back into his position and began to fall asleep himself.
Their schoolwork can wait.