In His Name

Chapter 89 - Summer mornings

Stifling heat weighs heavily in the air, thick with summertime humidity. Sweat beads on Rosco's skin, unable to evaporate in the high moisture content of the atmosphere. Rosco is not all that bothered by the heat, he's used to the humidity of living next to a lake in the height of summer. Well, that and Rosco is snuggled into Hayden's sleeping form, his god's skin is always pleasantly cool against his own. So despite the heat, Rosco is so comfortable. Hayden is just the perfect pillow, always the perfect temperature to suit Rosco's needs. The perfect firmness, never too soft or too hard, flawless curves and valleys in the muscle of the arms that keep the boy close. Gods, Hayden even smells wonderful, like rain on the first cool morning after the end of a heat wave. Rosco might be willing to stay here forever, if he wasn't mildly concerned he'll completely melt into the sheets. The sun had risen a while ago, already reheating the land that never really had a chance to cool over the evening. The drapes aren't completely covering the windows like they ought to be, Rosco hadn't noticed them in the dark when they'd climbed into bed and now, he regrets not checking them more thoroughly. The cracks are small but blindly bright and the searing shafts of sunlight are inching up the covers as the sun moves through the sky. Rosco will have no choice but to actually get out of bed soon.

Rosco has struggled with being a late riser all his life. And sharing a bed with his god has only made the problem worse. The freedom to touch their new relationship gives him coupled with the confidence of darkness has the boy lying awake well into the night, luxuriating in the sleeping form of Hayden beside him. The dark makes the anxious boy bold. His hands, that are so hesitant to touch when they are both awake, freely wander and explore Hayden's marble skin. He has the planes of Hayden's chest completely mapped out in his mind. He knows by heart the feel of every muscle and tendon as they move beneath the skin of Hayden's arms. he can sightlessly follow the paths of the veins on the back of his hands. His god has taken to sleeping shirtless, so the boy is fairly sure he's curiosity is being encouraged, but he ends up staying awake so long, he sleeps well past what's considered an acceptable time to get up. The first few times Rosco had been beside himself with destress, incorrectly assuming Flynn would be angry with him. Turns out the lazy lifestyle around here fully supports late sleepers. The older boy keeps to his own schedules pretty religiously but as long as chores get done, Flynn doesn't care much when anyone gets up or goes to bed. Some days Barren doesn't even get out of bed at all. Though Rosco has a sneaking suspicion those days have nothing to do with poor sleep patterns and more to do with a certain god that everyone has avoided mentioning lately.

The sun finally reaches Rosco's eyes, too bright to feign sleep any longer, even behind his eyelids, forcing the boy to blink fully awake. Rosco may be bold at night, but daylight has him as shy and reserved as ever. He works to shimmy from his sleeping god's arms without touching him too much or even looking to closely.

When Rosco gets free, Hayden shifts in his sleep, his god's previously serene expression turning troubled. Rosco lightly brushes his fingers through Hayden's feather soft hair, soothing his god again so he can rest as long as he wishes.

The longer they stay here in Barren's house the more Rosco finds Hayden sleeping. At first, Hayden would only sleep in his temple, but since they made their feelings for each other known, he started taking Rosco down with him to the spirit realm with him to sleep with increasing frequency. The more trips, the more the lullaby soaked into Rosco's mind making it nearly impossible to ignore. Rosco was nervous to tell Hayden how strongly the lullaby was affecting him but the fear of the unknown made him speak up. Immediately upon learning the danger, Hayden stopped taking him, but that also meant the god wasn't sleeping at all. It took a few weeks of Hayden being stubborn and exhausted, but Rosco was able to convince his god it would be okay for him to sleep here in the mortal realm, and now he does little else.