[She gives a dramatic yawn, and stretches out her legs and toes.]
... The castle gave me pretty sick insomnia. I woke up with the sun every morning, and couldn't go back to sleep until it was dark. And then after I died, it wouldn't let me wear pajamas. So that's why I sleep so much here. I'm catching up on three years of no rest.
[He makes a slightly displeased sound as he leans into her. Stefan closes his eyes, thinking of something - anything - that wouldn't remind him of that stupid castle.]
I'm sorry it was for something like that, and not... [Not what he'd been guessing. Still, he makes a mental note about the pajamas. Maybe the next planet would have something.] Just don't sleep the whole day away, okay?
[Kiss her, some small part of his brain's saying, and it's the part of his brain he furiously wants to beat down. Salvatore would kiss her, but Salvatore's not the only decision-maker.
So he takes a breath and listens for her heartbeat, and how soothing it is - and wow, for the first time in forever, his guard's completely down.
It's weird, letting every mental defense go - but it's worth it.]
[It's taking every ounce of his willpower to keep his composure - his entire body's shaking, because God he's not going to lose it, he's way more collected than that and--
And he can't. He can't hold it in. His laughter's so warm and rich and loud that the poor souls across the hall probably heard it.]
Only sort of? In that case... [He wrinkles his nose, as if his smile weren't betraying how he felt] I guess you're alright too.
[She grins widely at hearing his laugh. Good lord, she would kiss him right now if she could. But with that ache for contact in her skin, she instead reaches down and slowly slides her hand into his. Just feeling his fingers between her own can be enough, and it is.]
... I love you. And I'm basically gonna say that all the time now that I can.
[The rest of their crew might, after a few weeks (or days, depending on how schmoopy they get) - but in this moment, he feels like he could hear this all day every day.]
[It will probably take the rest of the Paisley crew about thirty minutes to get entirely sick of this behavior. But Alex can't make herself care right now. She hasn't actually been happy in a ridiculously long time, and it's intoxicating - enough so, in fact, that she finds herself starting to drift off to the feeling of a dopey smile still on her face. She catches herself after a moment though, and stifles a yawn.]
Okay, we can make gross moon eyes at each other some more tomorrow. I need to get some sleep before I start to, like, drool on your shoulder.
[Gently, so as not to disturb her, he kisses her forehead again and scoots closer to the edge so he can get up. They've only just established their relationship; he can't exactly ask to stay with her, no matter how much he wants to curl up at her side.
Just before he leaves, he murmurs something under his breath in Arabic, and pulls up the collar of her shirt so he can blow in it once, twice, and then again. It's such an unconscious action that his cheeks don't even turn red as he pulls back.]
That should protect you until morning. Sleep well.
[She smiles up at him, letting go of his hand as slowly as possible as he leavers her side.]
You too.
[They've already visited each other's dreams, so she knows she won't see him until morning. But somehow that's alright - they've shared enough this evening, and she doesn't want to pry any further. She wants to give him a few hours to himself, to make sure he's comfortable.]
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[She reaches to wrap an arm across his shoulders, and rests her chin on his shoulder.]
... I almost forgot this started out with me crying.
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You were pretty wigged out by your--["nightmares"] dreams. Even if it didn't end like this, I'd still be here.
[Just like he had been these past few months.]
Honestly? I'd been on edge too. I haven't slept this long since... well, in a long time.
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[She gives a dramatic yawn, and stretches out her legs and toes.]
... The castle gave me pretty sick insomnia. I woke up with the sun every morning, and couldn't go back to sleep until it was dark. And then after I died, it wouldn't let me wear pajamas. So that's why I sleep so much here. I'm catching up on three years of no rest.
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[He makes a slightly displeased sound as he leans into her. Stefan closes his eyes, thinking of something - anything - that wouldn't remind him of that stupid castle.]
I'm sorry it was for something like that, and not... [Not what he'd been guessing. Still, he makes a mental note about the pajamas. Maybe the next planet would have something.] Just don't sleep the whole day away, okay?
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[She gives his shoulder a teasing nudge, then closes her eyes contently.]
It turns out I've got something pretty nice to wake up for.
[Holy shit that was the sappiest thing yet. She disgusts herself.]
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Is that so? Maybe you should tell him more often.
[Kiss her, some small part of his brain's saying, and it's the part of his brain he furiously wants to beat down. Salvatore would kiss her, but Salvatore's not the only decision-maker.
So he takes a breath and listens for her heartbeat, and how soothing it is - and wow, for the first time in forever, his guard's completely down.
It's weird, letting every mental defense go - but it's worth it.]
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Yeah?
[She makes a production out of leaning over and cupping her hand around her mouth, as if she's about to whisper a secret.]
I guess you're alright and I sort of like you.
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And he can't. He can't hold it in. His laughter's so warm and rich and loud that the poor souls across the hall probably heard it.]
Only sort of? In that case... [He wrinkles his nose, as if his smile weren't betraying how he felt] I guess you're alright too.
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... I love you. And I'm basically gonna say that all the time now that I can.
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[The rest of their crew might, after a few weeks (or days, depending on how schmoopy they get) - but in this moment, he feels like he could hear this all day every day.]
You know I love you just as much.
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[It will probably take the rest of the Paisley crew about thirty minutes to get entirely sick of this behavior. But Alex can't make herself care right now. She hasn't actually been happy in a ridiculously long time, and it's intoxicating - enough so, in fact, that she finds herself starting to drift off to the feeling of a dopey smile still on her face. She catches herself after a moment though, and stifles a yawn.]
Okay, we can make gross moon eyes at each other some more tomorrow. I need to get some sleep before I start to, like, drool on your shoulder.
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[Gently, so as not to disturb her, he kisses her forehead again and scoots closer to the edge so he can get up. They've only just established their relationship; he can't exactly ask to stay with her, no matter how much he wants to curl up at her side.
Just before he leaves, he murmurs something under his breath in Arabic, and pulls up the collar of her shirt so he can blow in it once, twice, and then again. It's such an unconscious action that his cheeks don't even turn red as he pulls back.]
That should protect you until morning. Sleep well.
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You too.
[They've already visited each other's dreams, so she knows she won't see him until morning. But somehow that's alright - they've shared enough this evening, and she doesn't want to pry any further. She wants to give him a few hours to himself, to make sure he's comfortable.]