Prompt: Elizabeth falls asleep at her desk and Henry comes looking for her

Henry had been waiting for Elizabeth for nearly two hours. He'd left her downstairs after the kids had gone to bed, and she'd kissed his cheek with a promise that she'd just be a few minutes; she just had something she needed to finish up at her desk. Henry had hesitated at that; he knew that Elizabeth had had a rough day at work, and truthfully she looked exhausted. But she was stubborn to a fault, and he knew that trying to convince her to skip whatever work she had to do and just go to bed would be a losing battle to say the least. So he had nodded his head, kissed her temple, and left her in the kitchen before heading upstairs. The first fifteen minutes of his time on the upper floor had been spent checking in with the kids. Then, he'd retired to the bedroom to read and wait for Elizabeth, hoping that she wouldn't be long.

However, time had crawled on and Elizabeth had not appeared. The house was completely silent as far as Henry could tell, and he sighed as he rubbed his eyes and read the blurred red numbers on the clock. It was late; every member of their family had somewhere to be within the next eight hours and Henry was determined that he was going to spend at least a little of that time curled up with Elizabeth. So he slipped a bookmark between the pages of his book, set it down on the nightstand, put on his glasses again and threw back the blankets. He padded barefoot along the dim hallway and down the front stairs.

"Elizabeth?" he called softly, following the light of the office that streamed into the foyer. He got no answer, and so he curiously stepped into the doorway where her desk was visible. He softened at the sight before him, his slight irritation fading away instantly at the sight that met him there in the office. Elizabeth was leaning over onto her desk, head resting atop her folded arms as her blonde locks cascaded over onto the surface of the desk. When he moved slightly, he could see her peaceful features at rest, eyelashes almost brushing her cheeks and lips parted ever so slightly. She looked remarkably calm for someone who had spent her entire day in a state of stress before falling asleep at her home desk. Henry smiled at the way the light illuminated her smooth skin and made her seem as if she were glowing. He thought she always looked beautiful, but just then especially so. He smiled slightly to himself and took a moment to just watch her; radiant and bathed in warm yellow light, her chest rising and falling slowly and steadily. Then, Henry stepped forward and crouched beside her, looking up at her as he brushed his fingers through her hair and tucked it behind her ear, waking her slowly. Elizabeth stirred as Henry spoke her name softly, blinking sleepily at him.

"Hey, beautiful," he hummed quietly, watching her features lift into a soft smile at the term of endearment.

"Henry," she muttered, and something about her voice and his name spoken like that snet a jolt through Henry's whole body, like a magnetic field drawing him into her.

"Hey," he said again. "Come on. Let's get you to bed."

"What time is it?" Elizabeth asked, voice warm and scratchy with sleep. Henry watched her wince as she stretched and looked around.

"Bedtime," Henry answered with a small smile at the way she rolled her eyes.

"After midnight," he informed her, holding out his hand to her. She took one last glance at her desk, but ultimately turned the light off and slid her hand into Henry's, allowing him to lead her up to bed.

"Sorry to keep you waiting," Elizabeth yawned as she folded herself into the mattress and drew the blankets close to her. Henry shook his head.

"It's okay," he said softly, settling in close to her at the center of their bed. Elizabeth immediately curled against his chest, and sighed contentedly as Henry wrapped her in his arms and held her close.

"Thanks for coming to look for me," Elizabeth mumbled, sounding already half asleep. "I was just...resting my eyes." Henry chuckled to himself, closed his eyes, and kissed the top of her head.

"You're welcome," he breathed. "Sleep, Elizabeth."

"Mmhmm," Elizabeth hummed, and then she shifted and he opened his eyes to find her looking at him.

"I love you, Henry," she said softly, and just like that Henry fell in love with her all over again.