...
. . . .
. . . .
In which the Flea is Warm and Cold
. . . .
. . . .
There was nothing wrong.
He, the master of the house, was in the bedroom and outside there was a dog-like monster dozing off on the couch with surprisingly no loud snores.
So there were no monster snores keeping him awake.
So why was he awake?
Izaya tossed and turned. He had laid in bed for at least half an hour, and he couldn't get to sleep.
His eyes were starting to hurt, being denied their shut eye. Izaya stared tiredly at the sheets, then forced himself up from the bed.
"He even ruins my sleep….."
Izaya muttered resentfully as he walked towards the door, opening it and walking to the ledge.
The bright light almost stung his eyes. Sure enough, the blond in a bartender suit was sleeping on the couch peacefully.
- Maybe the couch is better to sleep on tonight.
Izaya thought blearily, almost sleep walking as he walked down the stairs and turned off the lights so that the living room was engulfed in darkness. But the apartment was familiar to him and he found his way easily enough to the couches.
He collapsed onto a couch separate from Shizuo's, and closed his eyes.
And waited.
And waited.
But sleep still didn't come to him.
"…."
Izaya was ready to strangle someone. He was exhausted and needed his sleep and he had an appointment in the morning –
He shot up from the couch, scowling deeply.
"Why the hell can't I sleep?!"
He shouted when there was no one but him to see him cranky and losing control from sleep deprivation.
"I….za….ya…."
The deep rumble came from the monster of Ikebukuro on his living room couch. Izaya started, whipping his head to the side –
But Shizuo was still asleep. He was sleeping on his back, his expression peaceful and serene.
Izaya was envious of that peace and serenity in sleep. He couldn't sleep, and the monster who was the cause was sleeping so peacefully?
It screamed injustice to the exhausted male.
- Oh who knows maybe that couch is conducive for sleep.
Izaya thought illogically, for there should be no difference between the two identical looking couches. He staggered over to the couch Shizuo laid on, and tried to pull the monster off –
"Get off, you brute! This is my couch!"
Izaya hissed in the darkness, glaring. But Shizuo only mumbled some more then lazily reached an arm out to pull Izaya to him.
"H-Hey! What are you doing!? Let go!"
"Shut up flea."
"….!"
Izaya stilled, but when he looked, Shizuo's eyes were still closed. He seemed to be talking in his sleep.
- Shizu-chan sleep talks?
Shizuo muttered something incoherent and then Izaya was on the couch. Or more specifically, on the couch trapped in Shizuo's arms. The blond in a bartender suit had shifted his sleeping position as if to make space for Izaya.
Izaya froze when he realized he was trapped in Shizuo's arms. But the monster just tucked his head under his chin as he hugged the black haired man to his body, muttering something unintelligible, resting his nose in Izaya's hair and thankfully to the information broker, not nuzzling it.
- ….Oh what the hell.
Izaya thought with a sense of defeat. He swallowed, then moved himself closer to Shizuo's warm body. Shizuo was holding him with only one arm now, his other arm splayed lazily across the couch. His grip tightened around the slender back at Izaya's movement and he mumbled something else Izaya could vaguely make out –
"Flea….."
- …..Is he dreaming about me?
Izaya wondered. He raised his gaze to Shizuo whose eyes were closed and whose blond hair seemed golden in the dark.
"….."
Izaya decided not to say anything because contrary to Namie's belief, he didn't have a death wish and waking up Ikebukuro's monster would give him exactly that. So he just released the tiniest sigh, rested his head against the hard but comfortable chest, and closed his tired eyes.
"Goodnight, you dumb brute."
Izaya muttered. As if Shizuo had heard him, he made an incoherent, satisfied sounding sound and pushed Izaya closer to him with his arm.
"…."
Izaya's lips curved.
He relaxed, and soon fell asleep in the comforting warmth.
...
...
When Izaya woke up, it was in darkness and alone.
He was leaning against nothing.
Shizuo was nowhere to be seen.
"…"
Izaya got up for the third time that night, wondering if Shizuo had moved to the other couch.
But there was no monster on the other couch.
There was no monster in his apartment.
There was no monster in the darkness.
He was alone once again.
"….Shizu-chan?"
He called out, and only silence answered him.
"….I see."
Izaya said to himself.
"He left."
Shrugging, he got up from the couch and made his way up the stairs to his bedroom.
"Well, I'm surprised he didn't kill me when he woke up."
"Looks like I'm still alive."
Smiling sardonically to himself, Izaya opened his bedroom door and entered into another room of darkness. He closed the door and found his bed quickly, throwing himself onto it and burying his face in his pillow.
"You force me to take you home and you nuzzle me and you hug me and you annoy me and you kiss me and you say you want me and don't want me to leave and thenyou leave without a word?"
"Such an unpredictable, ungrateful brute….."
Izaya said to no one but himself. He blinked rapidly, then squeezed his eyes shut.
"I really hate you…"
It felt as if the bed was especially cold that moment of night.