Work Text:
“Dirk, honey, you need to sleep.”
Dirk mumbled something in response, barely coherent and nodding off as he attempted to force out a reply and keep himself awake.
He had been working on the same project for a majority of the night, his eyes now heavy and his fingers cramping. It was well into the early morning at that point, dawn breaking and the sun creeping in through the blinds, but he was determined.
He had always been the kind of person to force himself to keep going, even when exhaustion was on the verge of taking him. Once he started working on something, he needed to get it done or he never knew when he would he motivated to pick it back up again. His brain worked like a machine; once the gears began turning, they wouldn’t stop until he manually cut the power.
His head fell for a second as a blink turned into closing his eyes, shooting back up a moment later. He shook his head, which was an attempt to keep himself awake, and continued what he was previously doing.
John sighed and clicked his tongue in playful annoyance, knowing he would just have to wait until Dirk fell asleep before he could do anything. He knew about Dirk’s routine and how his brain worked. As much as he hated seeing him burn himself out, he never had an issue with staying up to keep his boyfriend company before curling up in bed and sleeping well into the afternoon.
He watched his boyfriend, admiring the way he worked and how persistent he was when it came to the things he enjoyed. He could talk about Dirk for hours and never get tired.
Dirk was stubborn, cold, and tried to act as stoic as possible, but he knew the real Dirk.
John had spent countless nights, holding Dirk in his arms as he sobbed and wished he didn’t have to pretend to be strong anymore. He knew the guilt his boyfriend carried that felt comparable to maggots eating away at decaying flesh, slowly tearing him apart piece by piece. He knew about the situations that left him sick and shaken to his core, feeling like deep scars on already tainted flesh.
John wanted nothing more than to be able to take the problems Dirk didn’t talk about away, but all he could do was be there in every moment and love him the way that the other had never experienced before.
John had gone back to his phone, mindlessly scrolling, when he heard a soft and tired, “Sugar?”
John looked up from his phone to see Dirk having turned to look at him, an expression on his face he couldn’t quite read. He set his phone aside and tilted his head. “Hmm?”
Even with the light barely peaking into the room, he could see the other boy’s eyes. They were softer than you’d expect for someone like him, which was the reason he had the habit of hiding them behind shades. His irises were different shades of hazel that looked almost orange in the sunlight. Despite the dark circles under them from the sleepless nights, they were gorgeous.
His favorite feature about Dirk.
Dirk remained silent as he got up from the seat and walked over to the bed, climbing onto it and putting himself in John’s arms. He buried his face in his neck, mumbling incoherently as he began to doze off.
John shook Dirk awake. As much as he wanted to let him sleep when the poor thing was clearly exhausted, he also didn’t want him to go to bed uncomfortable. “Baby, you gotta get changed.”
“Can you do it for me?”
“I was already on it, silly.”
As soon as he was in more comfortable clothing and had his binder off, Dirk immediately put himself back in John’s arms. He closed his eyes and let out a deep, content sigh, finally allowing himself to start drifting off.
It never failed to be an immediate shift when he was in his boyfriend’s arms. As much as Dirk tried to keep up the tough guy act, he was a puppy at heart, and he found himself being unbelievably vulnerable with John. It was not just a comfort thing, but a safety thing as well. The only real time he truly felt secure was with the other boy.
Dirk always let his guard down around him, and John knew that. It felt like confirmation every single time that he was doing what he needed to be doing as a boyfriend.
“I love you,” Dirk murmured in a half awake state. He wanted to lift up his head to look at his boyfriend, but he was comfortable.
“I love you too,” John replied, brushing Dirk’s hair out of his face to kiss his forehead.
“More than anything.”