azuremosquito replied to your post “I need to write something. But it’s been ages. Can y’all send me...”
Please write some sleepy morning Yael
Her legs had gone numb.
Yael groaned as she tried to roll over before realizing she wasn’t lying down on a bed. Blinking open reluctant, bleary eyes she caught sight of the empty hearth, the small table and the ramshackle pile of parchment decorating it. Must have fallen asleep on the couch. Again. She thought as she tried to shift her stiffened neck.
She gave a start when she looked down to see Cullen splayed out across her lap, head tucked against her stomach, legs taking up the rest of the sofa. Well that at least explained how her legs had gone numb.
She’d never seen him like this.
They had never spent a full night together. And certainly Yael had never imagined it would happen like this. So unceremoniously. She brushed off a few papers that were covering Cullen like a make-shift blanket. They had camped out in her quarters to make there way through the numerous reports Yael had always meant to file but had purposefully put off.
She didn’t know what to do with her hands. They hovered slightly above Cullen. Could she touch him? No, that would wake him. What if she draped her arms over the back of the coach instead? No, her back and neck were already stiff from sitting up all night. Her fingers crooked as she ran her knuckles against each other.
She settled for a hand upon his chest. Cullen didn’t move in the slightest. A smile twitched at the corner of Yael’s lips. The linen of his undertunic was warm against her fingertips, the sensation only adding to the surreality of the situation.
Exactly how many times had they attempted to share quarters for an evening? Yael had lost count. They had tried everything to make it easier for Cullen. By now Yael had assumed they would never quite manage it. That it was best for him if he was simply left alone at night. What exactly was the matter with her? They had spent plenty of mornings together.
Creators, Yael blinked back the haze of sleep that still clung around her eyes. Cullen’s hair was a mass of tangled yellow curls. She found herself shaking with quiet laughter. How could she have been with the man for over a year and not know that? It was such a small detail. It was absurd. And she could not for the life of her stop laughing.
Cullen stirred under her hand, rolling over to blink up at her. Yael watched his eyes widen and felt him lock up momentarily. She tried desperately to stop herself from laughing. The whole thing was ridiculous and far too sentimental for her tastes.
Gently, Cullen reached out a hand to touch her face. His fingers ghosted over the line of her jaw and just as quickly as the manic laughter had found her it left suddenly, leaving her hollow. There was no panic in Cullen’s eyes. Not like she thought there might be. He stared quietly, but did not seem to find the absurdity in this situation the way Yael had.
She felt him grasp her hand. He seemed fixated on staring at his hand in hers, sparing the occasional glance to the rest of the room. Yael became aware that she hadn’t said a word yet. Cullen relaxed, looked up at her, and--as if sensing her inability to speak--answered for them both.
“Good morning.”
