smile; au
When he was greeted by cruel, cruel sunlight in the morning, usually Hope's first instinct was to bury his face in his pillow for a few more precious minutes of sleep. But now, most of the time there was someone there to block him from doing so.
Not that she knew it, of course.
Hope shifted his body a little as he blinked the sleep out of his eyes, a small smile forming on his face at the sight of Lightning curled up next to him. Her bangs had fallen to obscure most of her face, but there was no hiding her serene expression - the sort he was sure most people had when they were asleep, but it looked especially relaxed on her.
His eyes softened a bit as he continued to gaze at her, eventually reaching out with a gentle touch and brushing her hair away from her face. Whether it was the motion or just her body clock, he found himself staring into those lovely blue eyes a few moments later, inwardly chuckling at her natural disorientation when she woke up.
But the quiet was well worth it when he was rewarded with her gentle smile, the kind she only gave to him in the mornings. It was a sight he'd grown so used to after waking up that he wondered how he'd ever done without it.
"Good morning," he murmured, fingers trailing down the side of her face.
Lightning hummed a little in response, eyes closed again in comfort at the touch, clearly relishing in it. "Morning." She scooted a bit closer, arm snaking around his waist as she sighed in utter contentment against his neck.
Hope smiled again, moving his hand to stroke her hair. It was strange for the two of them to remain to still and quiet, he knew, but he wouldn't trade these lazy mornings or precious time with her for anything.