City Lights - Gale Dekarios x Reader
Pairing: Gale Dekarios x gn!Reader Word Count: 1,827 Request: : Anon: I was wondering if I could req Gale who’s been busy / reading a lot and a reader who’s touch starved but anxious about asking for affection?
Warnings: None! (maybe bad writing and some spelling mistakes?)
Notes: This once again took me WAY too long to get to and I can only apologize. But it is here now! No physical descriptors or pronouns are used, so it should be completely gender neutral.
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The lights of the city seemed so small from up here. Looking down from the bedroom balcony, the cosy glow made the city look more like a toy world than the real one. It was beautiful, in its way, but a part of it made you realise just how far away from everyone you were. That wasn’t to say you never went down into the bustling streets, enjoying being lost in the crowds, unrecognized and unbothered as you experienced the varying merchant’s carts and local bards singing in the taverns – you found yourself most nights now, especially with Gale so busy with the academy.
Shifting your gaze out to the bay, your eyes followed the merchant ships coming into the dock. Their warm lights broke through the thick fog that was rolling in with the coming autumn. Instinctively, you pulled your sweater tighter around your body to fend off the light chill.
You supposed that was the whole point of the tower – to keep Gale away from the masses of people he was so afraid to hurt. You huffed a little, your breath fogging up in the cold night air as you looked up towards the moon, poking out from the clouds. It was beautiful, but gods was it lonely.
With one more deep breath, letting the cold air burn your nostrils, you stepped back inside again, pulling the balcony door too behind you again and drawing the curtains to block out the cold. Your skin prickled as the warmth of the fire warmed you again, your shoulders automatically relaxing as you padded across the bedroom to poke your head out into the hallway, glancing towards Gale’s office. Unsurprisingly, the doorway was still illuminated by candlelight.
Frowning a little, you headed towards it, pulling your sweater down over your hands as you hugged yourself for comfort. Sure enough, Gale was hunched over his desk, his back to the doorway as he held scroll after scroll up to the light. This was routine now. You had been elated for him when he was offered his position at the Academy, he had needed some recognition after everything he had been through, but now it was all he seemed to do. You don’t remember the last time you had fallen asleep with him, or woken up beside him for that matter. Sometimes you wonder if he had ever come to bed in the first place.
“Are you nearly done, my love?” You called out quietly as you approached his chair, resting your hands on the ornate back and glancing over the mounds of books and paperwork he surrounded himself with.
He was visibly startled as you approached, looking up to offer you a small smile before going back to the scroll in his hand. “Of course, I’ll be with you-
“-In a few minutes,” you finished for him with a small smile, pressing your lips into a thin line as you pushed off his chair and headed for the door again.
You held back your sigh until you were back in the safety of your bedroom again, sinking down onto the mattress and leaning down to pull off your socks and ready yourself for sleep. You paused briefly as your eyes fell on the portrait Gale had gifted to you on your anniversary. It was a beautiful piece of the two of you – the way he looked at you with nothing but love in his eyes was one you had never quite gotten used to, as much as it warmed your heart. It was there every time he looked at you, even now, but the living touch that rested on your shoulders? Well, you don’t remember the last time he had so much as held your hand. On a good day, you would get a hasty kiss on your cheek as he breezed out the door for the Academy, but even that was few and far between.
You swallowed thickly as you urged yourself not to tear up again, instead busying your hands by continuing to undress for bed. You supposed that it may have been your fault – at least in part. You were a warrior when he met you. You held your head high to keep the others going even when you wanted nothing more than to run away with your tail between your legs. Yes, you often sought comfort wrapped in Gale’s arms when the rest of the camp was long asleep, but he had always been the one to wrap you up and pull you close as if he knew on instinct that was what you needed to help keep you together. He didn’t fall in love with someone so needy, you reminded yourself as you pulled back the sheets and settled in for another night alone. You curled up into yourself as a tear finally fell.
****
The night after that followed much the same. As did the night after, and the one after that. You had quickly come to realise that during finals season, the only way you would see Gale would be to sit in his office with him. And so you found yourself curled up in the spare armchair closest to the fireplace. The whole tower seemed to be getting colder and colder by the day.
As always, Gale was reading, leaning back with his legs kicked up on his desk as he chewed on a quill. You, on the other hand, couldn’t quite get as comfortable no matter how much you tossed and turned and tried to pay attention to the tome you had plucked off of the shelf. It was a book Gale had picked up for you a few days earlier on his way home from the Academy, but as much as you wanted to love it, your brain could not process the words as your eyes kept flicking back up to him.
Even the gentle, soothing crackle of the fire wasn’t enough to quiet your mind as you toyed with the corner of the page, chewing the inside of your cheek. Like a wave, your anxiety bubbled up in your chest again and for a moment you considered bolting for the bedroom as you usually did. You even sat a little straighter as you shuffled to the edge of your chair, but froze as you did so, your eyes landing on Gale again.
As if by chance, he glanced up, somehow sensing your unease. With a frown, he put his book on his desk and slowly lowered his feet as he took in your expression,
“My love?” He asked, confused as he edged forward in his seat. Your eyes found his and, for a moment, you sat frozen still, anxiety still welling in your chest. After a moment, his gaze visibly softened. “Oh, my love…’ He trailed off as he pushed himself up and walked over to you, noticing how you stayed completely still even as he crouched in front of you. He could read the tension in your shoulders, the tiredness in your eyes.
His voice was soft and quieter as he spoke again, “I’ve been so wrapped up in my work I didn’t realise how long it’s been since I truly paid attention to you,” he murmured, extending his hand as he did so, inviting you to hold it if you wanted to, but sadly understanding if you were too angry at him.
For a moment, you stayed still before you reached out to take his hand. His grip tightened around yours instantly as he pulled it to his lips and placed a soft kiss against your knuckles. Pulling you gently he encouraged you to your feet before scooching into your chair and pulling you into his lap. His grip was tight yet reassuring, holding you to his chest as his fingers drew slow circles on your lower back.
“Why didn’t you say anything?” he asked quietly, his lips tickling the shell of your ear.
You shrugged as you considered your words. “I didn’t want to bother you, I suppose.”
Gale scoffed a little, “You could never bother me, no matter how busy I am. I suppose I fell into a bit of my old routine again – not that that is any excuse.”
You nuzzled into him a little, eliciting a chuckle that rumbled through his chest. “I know how busy you are with the Academy. I guess, I don’t know, that you would think less of me if I was so needy. I never used to be, afterall. Not when we first met.”
Gale’s body tensed beneath you for a moment before he pushed you away a little, his eyes full of concern as he looked at you.
“The circumstances under which we met were unlike anything either of us had ever experienced or should experience again. You were forced to be a leader when the rest of us were too busy wetting our breeches to even consider stepping up to help ourselves, let alone countless others. You didn’t let yourself back down for even a second, and while I admire that about you, I will never hold you to that again. Not so long as I have breath in these lungs enough to keep us both away from any situation as dire as the one we found ourselves in.”
There was a deep sincerity in his eyes that melted your heart and you snuggled back into his chest again your arms weaving around his waist tightly. You felt every part of your body relax into his warmth, your anxieties melting away at the steady thrum of his heart beneath your ear.
“Now, what do you say to an early night?” He asked, pressing a kiss to your forehead. You nodded and he lifted you as he stood, still holding you to him as he made for the bedroom, dropping you softly on the edge of the mattress. “I’ll be right back,” he murmured as he backed towards the door again, noting your furrowed brown and chuckling, “I promise.”
You sat for a moment as you heard him wander back down the corridor before you stood and went to open the balcony doors again, leaning against the doorframe and breathing in the cool night air, shuddering as the sea air washed over you.
“Gods, you’ll catch a cold!” Gale’s voice made you jump and you swung your head around to see him toss the book you had been trying to read in his study onto his side of the bed. As you watched him he approached, resting his hands on your waist and pulling your back into his chest again, looking out over your shoulder at the coastline. “I’m so glad you like this view. From the moment I met you, I wanted nothing more than to show it to you.”
“I love it, especially with you,” you spoke softly, a small smile playing on your lips as you observed the soft lights of the city below.
