Author's note: Sorry I haven't posted in a while, I've been distracted by life. I'm making up for it now though by posting four tonight
I wasn't sure what roused me from my peaceful slumber first, the knocking on the bedroom door or the gentle shifting movements of the warm body beneath me. I had Warner trapped, one of my legs was twisted around his and half of my body was draped over his torso, my head resting against his chest. I was barely awake but I could feel him untangling our limbs, trying to slowly roll me off of him in order to appease our visitor. My body complied lazily, rolling over with a groan as he slipped out from underneath me, pulling with me as much duvet as I could.
The side of the bed where I usually place my body was cold, sending a chill across my warm skin. The pillows were in a disorganized heap, sticking out at various different angles as I planted my face against them, my knotted hair falling over my face. I could hear the faint murmurs of conversation from across the room, but was too tired to pay attention to what they were saying. The room was still very dark, the only light a thin sliver creeping in from the hallway where the door was open.
Last night Warner had returned home after a week-long trip to the capital and we'd wasted no time in making up for all of the lonely nights. Last night had been an incredible blur of hands in hair, captured lips, hushed words and skin on skin and I was still exhausted. My entire body ached, my thighs were burning and my shoulders were stiff from sleep. Tiredness swam in my thoughts and pulled at my eyes. I just wanted to cocoon myself in the sheets and never come out. My attempts to drift back to sleep did not last for long because a short while after the visitor went away Warner climbed back into bed beside me, wrapping his arms around my waist.
"Are you awake?" he spoke softly against my ear.
"No," I groaned, pressing my face further into the pillows. I could feel his lips begin to curl into a smile against my bare shoulder.
"It's time to get up, sweetheart," he said as his lips brushed my skin, sending shivers down my spine.
"No," I grumble in protest, pulling one misshaped pillow closer. I felt him sigh, his chest rising and then slowly falling against me, before raising himself up on one elbow, brushing a few strands of hair from my face, a movement so relaxing that I almost fell right back to sleep.
"Come on, you need to wake up," he continues quietly, toying with the waves of brown hair spilling over my shoulder and cascading down my back.
"Says who?" I mumble, the pillow muffling my voice until it's barely understandable. I can feel him laughing behind me, imagining the amused look that must be etched into his perfect features.
"Says the sector that the two of us run together and the rebellion we're leading," he answers, clearly entertained by my persistent refusal to get out of bed.
"If I'm leading a rebellion then why can't I decide when I get out of bed?" I insist, hugging the pillow tighter against my chest. He starts laughing again, this time louder, taking a full minute before being able to speak.
"Unfortunately love, the world does not work that way," he says with an amused sigh. I groan inwardly, dragging the covers up to my chin. Right now I feel way too tired for the way the world works.
"I'm not getting up, you can't make me," I protest, clinging to the pillow, my voice no longer raspy from sleep. Warner lowers himself back down so he's no longer resting on one elbow and presses himself against my back, running one hand along the slope of my hips.
"Okay," he murmurs, resting his chin on my shoulder. I let out a contented sigh, letting myself relax. "Will you at least let me give you a good morning kiss?" he adds. Finally, something I am willing to do.
"Hmm, I think I can manage that," I reply teasingly, rolling myself over and pulling him against me, sliding my hands into his soft blond hair as his lips find mine. His kiss is sweet, his lips trace mine lightly and they're soft, so remarkably soft that I can feel them slowly bringing me to life. He's gentle, compared to last night where his rough, fervent kisses left my lips swollen and my lungs desperate for air. His hands roam over the skin of my naked back, closing around me and pulling me flush against him.
"I missed you," he whispers along my jaw when he finally drags his lips from mine. I'm suddenly struggling to breathe.
"I could tell," I laugh, remembering the burning trails his lips made down my body, the fierce intensity of his movements, the barely comprehensible words sighed into my neck. "I missed you too," I reply, my voice barely a whisper.
He continues kissing me, this time harder. My heart starts to hammer in my chest and my hands tighten around him. He grips one of my legs and drapes it over his hip, dragging his fingers slowly over my thigh as his lips move away from mine and onto my neck. I can barely think, I can barely breathe as his lips move down my neck and along my collarbone. I'm so incredibly tempted to forget whatever responsibilities I have today and never let him stop. I struggle to stifle a gasp.
"Are you awake now?" he says against the crook of my neck before lifting himself off of me and climbing out of bed. I'm suddenly alert, blood throbbing in my veins and flooding to my cheeks, I feel such a surge of frustration that I bolt upright before following him out of bed.
"That's not fair!" I call across the room, my voice high and my face hot. He stops mid stride and turns to face me. I now feel painfully aware of the colour of my cheeks, the rosy flush that must cover most of my body.
"It isn't?" he answers, a smug grin plastered across his face. The frustration coursing through my veins makes me realize how much I want to wipe that smug grin off his face. With my lips.
"Where do you think you're going?" I blurt, my frustration still holding control over the rational part of my brain. He stops in front of the wall that leads to his closet, studying me quickly before answering.
"To get dressed," he begins. "I'm about to go and work out, you're welcome to join me if you would like."
"No thanks," I answer, stretching out the knots along my spine and the straining in my legs. The way I feel right now, more physical activity was the last thing I wanted to do, with maybe one exception. Shaking that thought from my brain, I continue. "I'm going for a hot bath," I explain, making a start towards the bathroom.
Once I close the bathroom door behind me I stick the plug in the bath and turn on the faucet before walking over to the mirror. My cheeks are a dusky rose, bright and blotchy against the rest of my skin. My hair falls in messy waves over my bare shoulders, tangled in knots at the back and sticking up at various different angles, I suppose I will have to run a brush through it. I move my hair over my shoulder, noticing a few small purple marks along my neck and collarbone. I run my hands over them to examine their severity in the mirror, nothing the right shirt wouldn't cover. I then begin combing the hairbrush through the knots in my hair when I hear the bathroom door click open.
Warner is leaning against the doorframe in a t shirt and sweatpants, our eyes meet for a brief second before he makes his way over to me. He stands behind me as I tackle my tangled hair, looking at my mirror image from over my shoulder. Once I deem my hair acceptably untangled I put the brush back in the drawer, studying my reflection. The hot water pouring from the taps is making the air feel stickier. I feel his hands on my shoulders, he leaves them there for a second before slowly moving them down my arms.
"It's a shame that we're going to be rather busy today," he says from behind me. I watch his reflection without turning around, observing the way his eyes darken as they follow his hands down my arms. "I would have enjoyed some extra time in bed this morning," he finishes, the corners of his mouth tugging upwards into a smile.
"That makes two of us," I reply, although I'm not quite sure we meant the same thing. I can feel the tiredness return, pulling at the corners of my eyes now that my heart rate and cheek colour have returned to normal, and I think to myself that the first thing I'm doing once I'm ready is getting a cup of coffee. I shoot Warner a look, letting him know that I still hadn't quite forgiven him for his interesting way of waking me up. He laughs low in his throat, and I glance quickly over at the bath, realizing now that it's almost full. I step out from in front of him and walk over to the bath, shutting off the faucet.
"Enjoy your bath," He calls from over by the sink. I grab a bar of soap and dip in my toe.
"Enjoy your work out," I reply as he heads towards the door. He's almost out of the room before I remember that I was going to ask who was at the door.
"Wait," I call out, and he stops in the doorway, green eyes watching me with intrigue." I never did ask, who was at the door?"
"Delalieu," he answers.
"What did he want?" I respond, sitting myself down on the edge of the bathtub.
"I told him to come," he explains. "Last night when I arrived back on base I informed him that I would likely be tired from travel and may have needed waking up in order to be ready on time."
"What time is it now?" I ask, realizing that I actually have no Idea.
"Just after six," Warner answers. My eyes fall closed as I struggle to stifle a yawn. It is six AM. I really want to crawl back into bed.
"So you're the reason I got," I started, counting an estimate of hours on my fingers. It must have been at least one before we finally fell asleep. "Five hours sleep?" I continue, shooting him an accusing glare.
"I survived on much less for a long while," he states quietly. Which is true, how he ever managed to survive on two to three hours sleep a night astounds me. I feel great knowing that now he usually gets a much healthier amount of sleep, but he still functions better on less sleep than I do.
"Well not everybody functions so well at the crack of dawn," I reply, watching the small smile forming on his face. "Next time come home earlier." I groan.
"I'm afraid that is beyond my control, love," he laughs. "And if it improves your mood, I told him to have our breakfast delivered here in one hour, accompanied by a steaming cup of coffee."
"Thank you," I sigh with blissful relief, already imagining a mug of the piping hot liquid, ready to pull my brain out of its tired haze. I can see Warner still laughing from just inside the doorframe, gently shaking his head.
"I'm going to head down to the training room," he explains before starting to slip out of the door.
"Okay, see you soon," I call after him as the door closes. I finally lower myself into my bath, letting the hot water soothe out the aches in my body. With a long hot bath and breakfast ready for me when I'm done, I suppose being woken up this early isn't that bad after all.
