He surfaced from his dream slowly, summoned by the soft call of those two hummed syllables. It was a rarity to return to wakefulness so gently. Whatever he'd dreamt of had already faded into nothing but fuzzy impressions of a classroom and the feeling of running late. When the voice repeated Jason's name once more, he resigned himself to not returning to that nostalgic place.
"M'wake," he mumbled. Or grunted. Or both? Peter would've said something stupid like grumtled.... Or mumted... Speaking of... "Why'm I 'wake?"
"Because it's ten-thirty and I'm not venturing out of this room without you."
He frowned, but refused to open his eyes. Sunlight passed through the thin barrier of his eyelids and landed warmly on his bare arms. "Why not?"
It took a bit to remember, but Peter was right: he knew why. The furious words that spilled from Peter's mouth had been startling. Gratifying, too. Were it not for Jason's own exhaustion, he might have given into Peter's desire to return to the apartment, rather than stay at the manor. Fortunately, Peter's own fatigue meant he didn't even complain about the single bed this time.
"He's prob'ly not even up."
"He is." Peter spoke sulkily, with that certainty Jason still was yet to understand. Somehow, Peter just knew things.
"M'not your security blanket," Jason said, interrupted halfway through by a jaw-cracking yawn.
A warm body suddenly flopped on top of Jason, startling the breath out of him. "I could bribe you?"
Jason huffed with laughter. "With what?"
"Resent it all you want, princess. 'M incorruptible."
"Lies. You let Duke bribe you with donuts just last week."
"Don't take it personally." Jason blindly lifted a hand to drop it onto Peter's head, running his fingers absently through the fine strands. "Us north siders gotta stick together."
Whatever Peter grumbled was lost to Jason, muffled by his own shirt. Then Peter was up, only to straddle Jason over the covers. "C'mooon. I'm hungry."
"You're a big boy," Jason shot back, and bucked slightly to highlight his point. Peter was heavy, in a compact package. "Go and feed yourself."
"Nooo." A finger poked at Jason's cheek. "He'll be more awkward if you're there. You're awake now - you said it yourself!"
"M'eyes are still closed. Therefore, I'm 'sleep."
Suddenly, Peter straightened. "Oh my God! What is that?!"
It was the oldest trick in the book. Jason shouldn't've fallen for the alarm.
"What?" he said, eyes snapping open at last. "What's'it?"
Peter laughed at him. "Gotcha."
"You brat." Jason lightly slapped Peter's thigh and Peter just laughed even more.
There was no better sound, Jason thought. No better vision.
Peter practically glowed. Sunlight cast his hair in gold and caught on the edges of his dark eyes, bringing out the striations of burnt umber and sienna that were usually hidden in the murky Gotham days. Petrified wood polished to a glossy sheen. Peter's too long hair fell over his face and he reached up to try and tuck it behind his ears, to limited success. It had reached that awkward point between too long and not long enough, and he was forever attempting to push it back.
Jason wanted to tuck it back for him. Rest his palm against Peter's smiling cheek. Feel the apple of it nestle into the stretch between thumb and forefinger. A custom fit.
Instead, as Peter's laughter subsided to snickers, Jason let his eyes slip shut once more. Closing them brought the faintest of watering, as they did when he was tired. And sure enough, exhaustion still settled in the nooks and crannies of his body, pinned down by Peter's weight.
"Hey." Jason smiled against his will at the humour in Peter's voice. "I didn't give you permission to go back to sleep, mister."
"Don't need your permission. You ain't my daddy."
"But I could be." Quiet and low and close to his face. The teasing words had Jason's breath catching on nothing.
In retaliation, Jason tossed a squawking Peter straight off the bed.
Even if it ended with him getting up far before he should have, Jason still found himself chuckling at that sound of outrage when they finally stumbled out of their room and made the long walk to the kitchens for breakfast.