**WARNING: This is a Gene/Finny slash fanfic. If that is not your cup of tea, please don't be angry with me!

These characters belong to John Knowles and A Separate Peace

Gene's PoV:

When I felt my mattress dip down and heard the groan of my cot frame in response to the extra weight, I immediately snapped out of a fairly deep sleep, leaving myself pretty disoriented. As a fleeting idea, I thought maybe the school was being attacked or there was some kind of emergency, but I was a little too groggy to be overly concerned.

I saw a pair of familiar emerald eyes when my vision cleared and I let out a small, quiet sigh, knuckling my tired eyes. "What's wrong, Finny?" I asked, sitting up a bit and shooting Phineas a look of concern, "You okay?"

Since Finny had gotten back from the infirmary for the second time, his nightmares had gotten more severe and scary. He'd always have crazy dreams about the school being ambushed by the enemy or a big fire starting and burning the entire campus to the ground. He told me he always ended up trapped inside our room in the dreams, his bum leg making it impossible for him to get out fast enough. He'd come to my bed and want comfort, which I'd offer easily. I'd let him share my bed and I'd kiss his forehead and take care of him for once, instead of it being the other way around. And, no matter how many times he had those awful dreams, I'd insist that I would carry him to safey if anything bad would ever happen. That always made him feel better and he slept like a baby, cuddled up against me on my small cot, both of us happy and rested when we woke up.

This time, however, things seemed different. He didn't answer when I questioned him, choosing to simply stare at me for a few seconds before his hand came up and rested on my upper thigh, giving it a squeeze.

"Gene," he whispered, voice low and a tad bit huskier than usual, green eyes glittering with a sparkle I had only ever seen a few times as long as I had known him, "I need you."

He moved closer to me at that point, his good leg worming between mine and his casted leg hanging over the edge of the cot. His face inched closer to mine before taking a sudden turn into my neck instead, the press of a pair of moist lips against my pulse causing me to gasp. "F-Finny, I..."

I didn't know what time it was exactly, but I knew it was in the middle of the night. Everyone else on the campus would be fast asleep, the black of night seemingly intensified by the lack of lamps illuminating the dormitory room windows. We didn't have to worry about being bothered or interrupted since we were the only ones awake. How could I say no?

Truthfully, I don't think I could have said no even if he made this sort of move in broad daylight.

"Shh... It's okay," he breathed, hushing me as he trailed little kisses up my neck and jaw, bracing his hands on either side of my head when I lied back, our eyes meeting as he came closer, kissing me with such passion that I felt like I could die. "Hmm..."

I let out a whine into the kiss when his hips brushed against mine, blushing in embarrassment even as the noise was eaten up by our intense lip-lock. That felt much better than I could have predicted... "Finny, please," I mumbled against his lips, my own parting when I felt something warm and slick sliding across the seam of them, "Ah..."

This entire experience was overwhelming in the best possible way. I knew about all the wonderful possibilities of the physical side of a relationship, but Finny and I had never done more than kiss with a bit of tongue. We didn't think we were ready to take on the responsibility of something more serious, and that was perfectly fine...

Except when it wasn't. It wasn't fine when he kissed me goodnight and whispered a promise of love into my ear, only to fall onto his own bed and sleep peacefully. It wasn't fine when I had to take a shower with the coldest water possible to take care of the problems he caused, knowing that it was the only solution since I chose to not take matters into my own hands, so to speak. Sometimes I wondered if Finny ever explored in i that /i way, but I shook the thought from my head as quickly as I could. Thinking about that only served to cause more problems and more icy showers.

He pulled back slightly and began necking with me, my head falling back against my pillow as I let him go to town. I watched him idly with lidded eyes and swallowed hard, my gaze locked to the muscles of his bare back moving in perfect harmony as he kissed and sucked at my neck, leaving bruises that I knew I wouldn't be able to hide the next day. I hesitantly ran my hands down his back, settling on the curve of his buttocks and squeezing the slightest bit, my eyes fluttering shut when he moaned at the feeling.

"Finny... Finny, I need-need... Something," I insisted vaguely, feeling my whole body flush with a mix of embarrassment and utter desire, a heat settling in my belly as the front of my pajamas tented, my arousal pressing into his hip. "Gonna die..."

"You're not," he murmured, and I felt his hot breath and his smile against my neck. He tilted his head up and rolled his hips against mine, my eyes snapping wide open when I felt his impressive package against my own.

He kept this up for several minutes, thrusts alternating between torturously slow and ridiculously rapid. He kissed at my neck and jaw before he settled on my lips, his tongue fighting with mine as our teeth gnashed together, our bodies moving as one as an incessant fire burned through us.

I was going to die. All of that pleasure and stimulation... I couldn't handle it. There was no way I could live past all of this.

Suddenly, the heat in my stomach zapped down lower, causing the strangest sensation to send shivers through me before all of the pent up heat and energy left my body in a big shot of hot fluid, coating the inside of my shorts as I cried out and bit at Finny's lower lip until I tasted the metallic tang of his blood on my tongue. "Phineas!"

I felt his body shake and tremble violently on top of mine, watching with blurry vision as his head tipped back and his eyes fluttered with pleasure, ripe, wet lips parted in a silent scream, blood, sweat, and our combined saliva dribbling down his chin as he exploded inside his own underwear.

He looked absolutely, positively beautiful and I loved him more than I ever had before.

His body went limp on top of mine, his face nuzzling into my neck as he took some deep breaths in an attempt to calm down. He rolled off of me, his arms now winding around my waist protectively and pulling me flush against his chest, his nose nuzzling into my hair as he pressed a kiss to my forehead. We were both exhausted, but the gesture was appreciated regardless.

"I love you, Gene," I heard him whisper as my eyes closed, his voice sounding faint and distant, "Goodnight."

I wanted to return the sentiment and much more, but I was just too tired. "G'nigh', Finny. Lo' you..." I breathed just as I fell asleep, my body and mind finally at peace.

When I woke up a few hours later, Finny was right there, still holding me as he snoozed peacefully, a small smile on his face even as he slept.

And, when I nuzzled back against him and closed my eyes, I smiled a bit, too.