Kevin woke up alone. His hand searched the sheets beside him in vain. Grumbling, he cracked an eye and reached for his phone. Five in the fucking morning. He groaned.
"Edd?" he called out.
There was no answer. He rolled over, figuring Edd must be in the bathroom. He burrowed into the sheets, found his warm spot again, let his heavy eyelids slide shut... A loud guffaw from another room startled him. He lashed out and fell with a shout. He listened with annoyance as Eddy began to laugh and Nazz shushed him. He untangled his legs from the sheets and shoved his hat onto his head. Stomping from the room and slamming the door behind him, he was met in the hall by a very tired-looking Edd and a mug of coffee. Edd stood up on his toes to press a kiss to Kevin's forehead, nose, and finally his lips, darting his tongue out to tease along Kevin's lower lip before taking it playfully between his teeth.
"Good morning, darling," he said quietly. "I apologize for waking you, but please don't be upset. As predicted, I had a difficult time getting to sleep, and Nazz thought it might be nice to watch the sunrise together. You don't have to join us, but I would appreciate your company." He held out the mug. "I brought you coffee, if that helps."
Kevin debated being grumpy and going back to bed, but Edd was trying so hard. He could tell, and for some reason it made him really happy. Careful not to spill the hot liquid, he took the mug and pulled Edd in for a hug. "For you, babe, anything. Just give me a minute to get dressed and shit."
Edd nodded happily and turned to go back into the living room. Kevin took a testing sip of the coffee and hummed in pleasure. It was just the right temperature and held a hint of hazelnut. Mmm...my favorite. His mood lifted considerably as he drank, changing his shorts for a pair of sweats with one hand. He drained the mug and set it down so he could pull on a shirt. He brought the mug with him when he left the room and padded into the kitchen.
"Morning, slugger," Nazz said brightly. She took the mug from him and set it in the sink. "Everyone's out on the porch. Ed is telling an extremely interesting story about the two ghosts he saw last night." She pressed the back of her hand to her mouth to hide her grin.
"Ghosts?" he asked. "Sounds freaky."
"Oh, it was freaky, alright."
She laughed, clutching at the counter for support. He raised an eyebrow, but she waved him out the door without explanation. Annoyed, he stepped through the living room and out onto the back porch. There he found Ed talking animatedly to an enthralled Rolf, Eddy in tears laughing on the sand, and Edd sitting very uncomfortably and very red at the picnic table. He slid onto the bench behind his boyfriend and wrapped his arms around him.
"What the hell is Eddy so happy about?" he grumbled.
If possible, Edd's face grew even redder. "Ed is telling us a story, Kevin, about two ghosts that he saw last night."
"So?"
"He saw them streaking by the house, Kevin."
"Oh."
"Streaking, Kevin."
"Oh."
"They were huge, Double D!" Ed yelled. "And white. Well, one of them was white. The other one was REALLY white! Like the snow beasts on the third moon of Jupiter!"
Eddy looked over at Edd and laughed harder, rocking back and forth. Edd pouted and folded his arms across his chest. Nazz came out of the house with a plate stacked high with toast. She set it down on the table and sat across from Kevin and Edd. She stared at them with a knowing smile until Edd broke and looked away.
