A/N: And we are back! What was supposed to only take three months with nightly updates has now taken over three years! Yikes! Only 19 chapters left, though!
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If there was one thing Alfred Jones wasn't, it was a quitter. That was how he won the heart of Lovino Vargas, after all. Well, that and a lot of begging. But the truth could be told that he never once gave up on his crush on the hot-tempered Italian. Even though people often asked him what he saw in Lovino, he would always respond with, "I thought you knew," and then he would either change the subject or end the conversation. What he loved about that hot-headed Italian was no one's business but his own. It were almost as if Alfred believed that the magic in their relationship would disappear if he were to utter it aloud.
If there was one thing Alfred would ever want to change about his boyfriend, it would be his sleeping habits. Lovino was an insomniac and appeared to never sleep. The two were always trying to come up with home remedies for it, leading to many sleepless nights. Through their fruitless struggles, hope for Lovino to properly sleep began to fade. They had tried everything from white noise to essential oils, but nothing worked. Lovino was quite adamant about not seeing a specialist or shoving pills down his throat. Unfortunately, the lack of sleep made him crabbier than usual, much to the dismay of nearly everyone around him. Everyone, that is, except Alfred, who always remained patient with him.
"Look, I know what people really think of me," Lovino would tell him. "I know that people think I'm a dick, and that I don't deserve someone like you. They've been saying shit like that for as long as I can remember. Doesn't it bother you?"
"I'll be honest," his boyfriend continued. "Many people have approached me on multiple occasions and have told me that I can do so much better than you. And do you know what I say to that?" Alfred paused for a moment. "I tell them that even if that may be correct, I don't want anyone else. You know, Lovi, you should really stop caring so much about what other people think. It'll really ruin your sense of self. I like you just the way you are."
The Italian man frowned and turned away from his boyfriend. "Yeah, whatever," he grumbled. "Thanks though, Al." Only once he was sure that Alfred couldn't see his face did he smile to himself, happy that he was fortunate enough to find someone so wonderful to be his partner.
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Alfred excitedly clamored into their apartment the next evening, holding a diffuser and a bottle of lavender essential oil. "Guess what, Lovino! I have a new idea to help with your sleep!" He presented his boyfriend with the objects in his arms, grinning from ear to ear. "The lady at the store said that this would work like a dream!"
"Oh really?" Lovino asked, taking the bottle from Alfred and inspecting it. "And you are certain this will work because some random lady out in public said it would?"
"Don't be such a skeptic," the blond laughed. "It's worth giving a try, right? The worst that could go wrong is that it won't work. If that's the case, we can just cut our losses and look for something else."
The Italian man squinted at Alfred but didn't say anything else. He examined the bottle more thoroughly. Could finding a solution to his sleeping problem really be as simple as this? If so, then that was nothing short of a goddamn miracle. But what if it didn't work? They would be right back to square one, which wasn't fun for anyone. Would it be okay for him to hope this would work?
"Let's try it," Lovino finally decided after a moment. "It's like you said, the worst that could happen is that it won't work. Since you went to the trouble of buying it, I see no harm in seeing if it will work."
Alfred's smile increased in size. "That's what I like to hear, Lovi! Excellent choice! You won't regret this!"
The brunet rolled his eyes. "Let's hope not."
That night, Lovino, as usual, tossed and turned. He dozed off for maybe an hour, but for the rest of the night as Alfred slept beside him, he mostly just laid on his back and stared up at the ceiling. Why couldn't he just sleep like everyone else?
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"I slept like a baby last night!" Alfred enthused at breakfast. "That lavender really does the trick! I was out like a light! How did you sleep, Lovi?"
Lovino scowled at him over the rim of his coffee mug. "I didn't," he dryly replied. "I got maybe an hour of sleep overall. Whereas that is a tiny improvement, it's still not good enough for my sanity." He frowned and drank half of the mug in one go. "It's fucking bullshit."
The blond frowned. "Don't worry, Lovino. I'll think of something else." He wracked his brain, trying to think of what could possibly work. All he wanted was for his boyfriend to finally sleep soundly. Was it so wrong of him? Why couldn't things just go the way he wanted them to, just once? "You'll sleep properly tonight. I'll make sure of that."
His boyfriend rolled his eyes. "We'll see about that, Al."
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At work that day, Alfred spent a majority of his time looking up sleep remedies, to the point that he was on the fifth result page of his search engine when he came across one that they hadn't exactly tried. His eyes widened as he read it. It said intimacy could help. Knowing that Lovino wasn't the type to snuggle before bed, he didn't know if it would work. But it was worth a shot. After all, as long as he could sleep normally, wouldn't it be worth a shot?
He bookmarked that result and carried on with his work. If that didn't work, then who knew what would? Either way, he would just need to show the article to Lovino to prove that it was a legitimate suggestion. Hopefully, it would work.
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"And you really think this is going to work?" Lovino asked as they laid in bed with each other that night. Granted, he was feeling slightly tired from their "bedroom activities" that night, but was it enough to get them to sleep? "You can't believe everything you read on the internet, you know."
"Just shut up and get over here," Alfred replied, extending his arm so that he could snuggle his boyfriend. "It's not going to kill you. Though I know you're not the type to snuggle, it just might work. And then I'll be right and you'll be wrong."
The Italian grumbled a bit to himself, but he did as his partner asked. "Now what?" he asked, resting his head on Alfred's chest. He felt his boyfriend's arm loop around him, closing him into a gentle and sensual embrace. While he felt safe and comfortable, something told him that it wouldn't work. "I don't think this is going to-"
His boyfriend cut off his words with a soft kiss. "Just trust me on this, Lovi. If it doesn't work, at least we can say we tried, right? Now just close your eyes and listen for my heartbeat. Focus on that."
With a sigh, Lovino did as Alfred suggested. He listened closely, and after a few moments, he could hear the soft and gentle thumping of his boyfriend's heartbeat. His body began to feel warm and light. Soon, a yawn escaped his lips. He didn't even notice when Alfred turned off the light, eyes having been closed for awhile. And before he knew it, he had fallen into a deep sleep.
"Lovi?" Alfred whispered, checking to see if his boyfriend was still awake. When there was no response, he smiled to himself and snuggled Lovino closer. "Goodnight, Lovi," he said, kissing the top of his head. "Sweet dreams."