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When Cassian woke up he was sweating, his skin unbearably hot under several layers of blankets. He blinked, disoriented, and it took him a moment to realize he was overheating because no one had stolen his blankets in the night. Usually, he would fall asleep under the covers next to you and wake hours later completely bare, with you having cocooned yourself in your sleep. Cassian ran hot, so he didn’t mind your thievery, and in fact, he found the unconscious behavior rather adorable. He could tell the moment you fell into a deep sleep each night by the feeling of blankets sliding off of his shoulders, and he knew as long as his blankets were gone, you were sleeping peacefully at his side.
He examined the untouched bedding, still tucked in around him, and realized you likely hadn’t slept at all that night. His protective instincts flared and he rolled out of bed, making his way down the hallway to search the house. Just as he was beginning to grow worried by your absence, he found you curled up beneath a faelight with a book in your lap. You didn’t notice him at first, concentrating on the page with your hair curtaining half your face. When he stepped out of the shadows and cleared his throat, you jumped, sending the book tumbling to the floor.
Cassian chuckled, smiling fondly, and retrieved the boo, returning it to you before taking a seat next to you on the couch. He lifted his arm in invitation and you leaned against him, wordlessly cuddling into his side. “I missed you,” he whispered, his voice rough from sleep. You felt slightly guilty for leaving him alone, but you couldn’t stand another sleepless hour staring at the ceiling, alone in your thoughts. “What’s go you awake?”
You shrugged, looking up to meet his gaze. His expression was soft and kind, if a bit concerned, and it made your heart squeeze with affection. “Couldn’t sleep,” you mumbled.
“Bad dreams?” he asked, familiar with phantoms that sometimes haunted you at night, stealing your sleep and peace. You shook your head, though, shrugging again and he posed another theory. “Are you worried about something?”
You shook your head again and sighed deeply, “That’s the frustrating part. I have no idea why. I just can’t fall asleep.”
“I’m sorry, sweetheart,” Cassian placed a soft kiss on your hair, running a calloused hand down your upper arm. This wasn’t the first time you had struggled to fall asleep, and you knew Cassian worried for you when your insomnia reared its ugly head.
“I decided to try reading for a bit, to see if it would help,” you explained. “Sorry if I woke you.”
“You didn’t,” he assured you. “I just got hot with all those covers on me. I’ve gotten used to them disappearing every night.”
“Ah, so you don’t mind it after all,” you teased.
“No, but you already knew that,” he replied, resting his cheek against the top of your head. “So, what are we reading?”
“We?” you asked, surprised. You could tell your mate was sleepy, his eyes drooping as he sat next to you, and you expected to send him off to bed now that he knew where you were.
“Well, I’m not going to leave you on your own,” he explained, reaching for the book on your lap. “Now, where were we?”
“Cassian…” you sighed, “you should go back to bed. I’ll be okay.”
“Nah, I’m wide awake anyway,” he said, barely stifling a yawn. It was a blatant lie, but you appreciated the effort. “I don’t like sleeping without you anyway. Especially when you can’t sleep.”
“I love you,” you whispered, a surge of emotion welling within you. On nights like this, you couldn’t help but marvel at how lucky you were to be loved by someone like Cassian. Someone who was always willing to forgo their own comfort to make sure you felt loved and whole.
“I love you, too,” he whispered, flipping through the pages. “Now, what chapter?”
“Fourteen,” you replied, knowing better than to argue. In the past, you had joked that Cassian’s love language was stubbornness, and you knew any attempt to get him back in bed without you would be futile.
Cassian pulled a blanket off the back of the sofa and wrapped it around you, tugging you across his lap so you could lean on his chest. He cleared his throat and found your place in the book, flashing you a small smile before he began to read. His voice was low and smooth, a deep melody that instantly put you at ease. From your spot in his arms, you could feel the rumbling vibration of each word. You had never told Cassian how much you enjoyed it when he read to you, but he had figured it out nonetheless. So, when you were sad or you couldn’t sleep or he just wanted to see that gentle smile of yours, he would offer to read to you and you could never resist.
The book you were reading was a good one, and soon, Cassian himself was lost in the story. It wasn’t until he looked down to gauge your reaction to a climactic reveal that he realized you had nodded off. He suppressed a chuckle, smiling affectionately as he watched you fall deeper into your slumber. Carefully, he placed the book down next to him and pulled you closer, enveloping you with one of his wings. He sat there for several minutes, content to listen to your slow, steady breaths until he was sure you had drifted off for good.
He moved as quietly as he could through the House, holding tightly to his chest in an effort not to jostle you awake. When he laid you in bed, you tugged at the blankets, dragging them towards you with your eyes closed, as you did every night. He grinned, shaking his head as he went around the other side and cuddled up next to your bundled form. As much as he wished he could cure you of your insomnia, he couldn’t help but love nights like this. Something about the dark skies and infinite quiet made the world feel so much smaller, as though the two of you were alone in a universe of your own making. It brought a feeling of peace he still hadn’t grown accustomed to, and as he laid in bed, listening to your quiet, steady breaths, he was glad for the occasional sleepless night.