Lullaby

Disclaimer - Emmerdale & its characters are not mine and I don't claim to own them.

He didn't know what time it was or what it was that woke him up but he turned over, his arm outstretched looking for his bed partner only to fall on cold sheets. He wasn't in bed and apparently he hadn't been in bed for quite some time. The sheets were freezing. He hadn't done a runner of that he was sure. Aaron was well past running, they had been together for ten years, neither one of them did any running from the other; they loved each other too much.

He lay awake, waiting on Aaron coming back, thinking he was just in the bathroom or getting himself a drink but after around ten minutes he could hear the faint sound of a voice. A voice that sounded like it was singing.

Looking around the floor, for his boxers that had been discarded somewhere on it hours before, once found he pulled them on and slipped from the warm cosy bed out into the cool air of the hallway. He could hear the singing a little more clearly now, he could now make out exactly who the voice belonged to, it was Aaron, he couldn't help but smile at that.

"Swing low, sweet chariot, comin' for to carry me home"

The singing was coming from the nursery, Aaron was singing to their daughter. That fact made his heart flutter a little as he padded, quietly, he didn't want to disturb Aaron's singing, well, he didn't want to stop it. They had decided to have kids around two years ago, it was a long process, they'd tried adoption and that had failed before finally settling on a surrogate and now, now their daughter was three months old but this was the first time Jackson had ever heard him singing to her. He couldn't help but wonder if this was a regular thing and he usually slept through it, although he was the one that usually got up with her because Aaron would and could sleep through anything.

"Swing low, sweet chariot, comin' for to carry me home"

Jackson comes to a stop outside of their daughters room, the door is open a little but it's just enough for him to see Aaron. He's standing by the cot in just his shorts and cradling their daughter against his chest as he sung to her. Jackson couldn't help but wonder what filming this and showing it to everyone in the Woolpack would do to Aaron's hard man reputation because right now that reputation was in tatters.

"I looked over Jordan and what did I see, comin' for to carry me home. A band of angels comin' after me, comin' for to carry me home. Swing low, sweet chariot, comin' for to carry me home"

Aaron was still unaware of his presence, the builder knew that but he was enjoying listening to Aaron's voice as he hushed their daughter even although she wasn't making a sound. Jackson guessed that either she had been or Aaron was trying to prevent it by singing. The only other time in their ten years together that Jackson had heard Aaron sing is when he's completely sloshed and they're in some club but never quite like this and if it was possible he was sure Aaron just made him love him even more.

Suddenly though Aaron sensed he was being watched and midway through his song he turned, half expecting to find nothing and completely surprised to find Jackson stood watching him silently.

"If you get to heaven before I do, comin' for to carry me home. Tell all my friends I'm comin' there-" Aaron stops mid song and scowls "How long have you been standing there?" he asks quietly and Jackson's eyes widen and a grin spreads quickly over his face at being caught "long enough" he says padding into the room and coming to stop just behind Aaron. He kisses him on the lips quickly with a reassuring smile and gazes lovingly down at his daughter before locking eyes with Aaron once more.

"Sing lullabies to her often?"

Aaron frowns "I wasn't singing a lullaby"

"Kinda sounded like it to me"

"Well then you need your hearing tested don't you?" Aaron fires back, slightly embarrassed to have been caught singing to their daughter.

"Nope, don't think so" Jackson grins "You just don't want to admit to singing lullabies"

"Will you shut up?" Aaron asks in a hushed voice "I just got her back to sleep"

"With your lullaby" that earns him an elbow in the side "If you wake her up I'm leaving her with you"

"Used to it" Jackson shrugs "You usually sleep through it, how come you heard her?"

"I was on my way back from the bathroom" he explains "Poked my head in and there she was wide awake, think I caught her before she started her screaming"

"Lucky you"

Aaron smiles "Thought I'd let you sleep, not often I get up with her. Like you said I usually sleep through it"

"Thank you" Jackson says kissing him again and Aaron just smiles at him, before kissing him again with the baby still cradled in his arms.

"I'll try and do it more often" Aaron says "but I don't wake up that easy, you'll have to start wakening me up"

Jackson pulls a face and they both know he wouldn't do that because as he sees it there's no point in the both of them being awake when it only takes one of them "We're in this together" Aaron reminds him "Let me help in the night more"

"She's getting better" Jackson informs him "she doesn't wake up every night"

"I'm going to try and get up" Aaron states with a nod of his head. He has no idea how he's going to do it but he's going to give it his best shot.

Jackson smirks, still thinking about Aaron's lullaby singing "What?" Aaron asks with a suspicious tone to his voice at his boyfriends smirk

"Just thinking about your lullaby, think you can sing to be when we're back in bed? See if it'll help me sleep"

Aaron rolls his eyes and sighs "It wasn't a lullaby" he states firmly

"No? Then what was it?"

"A song by UB40"

"Pfft" Jackson scoffs "Don't think those are the lyrics to the version by UB40, those were the lullaby version"

"Sung in the style of UB40" Aaron points out with a nod and Jackson shakes his head, he doesn't want to argue about whether or not Aaron was singing a lullaby because he knows he was as does Aaron. He's just trying to keep his hard man act in place "You don't have to pretend with me you know"

"I hate you sometimes" Aaron tells him

"No you don't" Jackson responds "That's why you're still with me and why you're going to sing to me in bed"

"I'm not" Aaron says as he slowly, carefully places their daughter back into her cot. She doesn't even flinch and he's glad, he'd been standing there singing for god knows how long already; he didn't really fancy doing it for much longer.

"Right, come on" Aaron whispers, grabbing hold of Jackson's hand and dragging him quietly out of the room.

Xxx

Back in their own bedroom, back in bed and the two of them are on their backs, trying to sleep. "Sing to me?" Jackson asks and is rewarded with a pillow in the face for his question "Spoilsport" Jackson mumbles as he turns onto his side, facing his lover.

"Shut up and go to sleep" Aaron orders "we both have work in the morning"

It was true, they both did but Jackson didn't feel much like sleeping, he was wide awake and thought he should let Aaron know. He rolls over so that he's now laying on top of Aaron and grins wickedly "I'm not tired" he says and Aaron rolls his eyes but at the same time he runs his hands up and down Jackson's back, bending his knees to cradle Jackson between his thighs.

"What do you want me to do about it?" Aaron asks

"Well" Jackson starts "I was thinking..." but he's cut off by Aaron's hand on his neck pulling him down until their lips meet. Their boxers are quickly thrown on the floor once more as they find themselves getting lost each other well into the early hours of the morning. Both knowing that their daughter will wake them up far too early and that they both have work to go to but neither of them can find the strength to care at that particular moment. Both of them are far too interested in the other to care about the morning.

Xxx

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