&&. Verse Eight —— What We Fought For - Blog Posts
jemma hadn’t always been a light sleeper. it was just one of the many ways she came out of maveth a completely different person than she entered. getting a full night’s sleep without waking up in a cold sweat at least twice was impossible in the beginning, but eventually her nervous system calmed down enough that the slightest noise or movement of the bed didn’t wake her. especially when she knew fitz was at her side. but when he wasn’t, when he slipped out of bed to sneak off to the lab, it didn’t take long for her to wake with a start.
her eyes fluttered open when she reached out for him in her sleep and her hand hit empty space instead of finding his. she peered into the darkness, but it only confirmed her suspicions that he’d slipped away again. jemma sat up with a sigh, rubbing her palms into her eyes as she clumsily got out of bed. bare feet padded against the floor as she headed for the lab. she pushes the door open. “ fitz, ” she sighs, but there’s the faintest lazy smile on her lips, bleary eyes fondly taking him in as he worked. he was clearly too invested to even hear her, if the lack of acknowledgement was anything to go by.
she approached him carefully, resting a hand on his shoulder to signal her presence before sliding it down his back. there’s a small yawn as she wraps her arms around him, her forehead resting on his back and her eyes closing as she takes a moment to embrace him in silence. his familiar scent, his back against her chest, his warmth soaking into her, it all melted away the slight tension that had formed when she woke up alone. “ come back to bed, ” she murmured finally.
the refusal a few beats later was hardly a shock, but she frowned regardless. her embrace doesn’t break as she ducks under his arm so she was standing in front of him, resting her chin on his chest. eyelids are heavy as she looks up at him and she can see the exhaustion in his eyes as well. “ you’re tired, i can tell. you’re going to work yourself to death over this lightsaber, and i won’t stand for it. ” her words are stern but her bottom lip ever so slightly pokes out in a pout. “ i can’t sleep. are you making any progress, at least? ”
@simmcns asked !! Come back to bed fitz & simmons !! ask my muse to come back to bed. !!
oh this ! this was hardly a new scenario. sometimes some of his best work came to him in his sleep and that saw leopold fitz out of bed and into his work station. holotable on usually without the main lights, lit the work area and the features of the scottish genius up a harsh blue as he works on thoughts that could only ever come to him. ignoring hunger, ignoring tiredness , getting lost in his work.
he doesn’t hear it when the door opens, doesn’t hear the sigh of his name trying to get his attention as he scratches at the stubble on his jaw while his free hand twists the prototyped hologram of his latest invention before him. what he does feel first is the gentle slide of hands over his back before arms wrap around his chest and a forehead presses between his shoulder blades.
come back to bed.
jemma.
for a moment all fitz did was hum noncommittally, his brain racing to solve the problems of his work took slightly longer to realize what was being asked of him from the woman he loves. then the engineer freezes, just for a moment, a frown flickering across his face, before he reanimates once more. “ no, well, no, because I have to get this finished. ” and he says it like it’s obvious, like he’s not exhausted , but his words cannot come as a surprise —–it is his usual answer