Thread by @Fawn_Eyed_Girl

Established #KuroAka, soft Kuroo, insomniac Akaashi

Staring at the wall. The ceiling. The window. The wall again.

“Can’t sleep?” purrs a low and sultry voice, rough with exhaustion, as an arm snakes around his waist and pulls him close.

Not wanting to be a burden, Keiji closes his eyes and does his best imitation of being asleep, but it’s no good when it’s Kuroo Tetsurou nuzzling at his neck.

“It’s okay, honey,” he murmurs. “Tell me what’s on your mind.”

Keiji freezes. He’s tried everything he can:

counting sheep, using those relaxing techniques his therapist taught him, even running through his to-do list for tomorrow.

But to actually talk about it? No. Keiji shakes his head, but pushes back into Tetsurou, just a little bit, seeking out his boyfriend’s warm touch.

Tetsurou hums, thrusts lazily against Keiji; they both know it's not what he needs, but the motion is oddly soothing. It reflects the things he craves: comfort, assuredness, stability.

And he has them all with Tetsurou, but sometimes…
He cannot find those things within himself.

Sometimes it starts small: the fear, the anxiety, the insecurity.

Sometimes, like tonight, it hits Keiji like a wave: fast, sharp, cold, unrelenting.

And sometimes, like tonight, he’s frozen in time, unable to sleep, but also, unable to stay awake:

captured in a state of limbo from which he fears he will never escape.

A soft press of lips, a tightening of a hand around his waist, draws Keiji out of his head and into the physicality of the moment: Tetsurou is here, Tetsurou understands Keiji’s insecurities,

and Tetsurou loves him anyway.

“I think,” he muses, his breath warm against Keiji’s skin, “that this weekend, I’ll let you pick a couple movies, and we’ll spend it huddled on the couch with lots of blankets and some wine. I’ll draw you a bath, cook your favorite meals.”

He kisses Keiji’s earlobe, running his tongue along the cartilage. Keiji shivers. “How does that sound?”

And Keiji wants to cry, because while all he wants to do is run away, Tetsurou knows how to ground him, how to bring him back to the present. Tetsurou knows what he needs

when his mind is exploding and cannot seem to focus on any one thing, when his body is literally shaking from the tension, when his mind is screaming run, run, run.

/You can run,/ Tetsurou’s voice calls, /but I will always find you./

He knows it’s warmth, and comfort, and simple things. The press of lips to his shoulder. The tightness of arms around his waist. The scent of orange and sandalwood, light but present, always.

Keiji wants to wrap himself up in Tetsurou, wants to feel protected, even for a while.

He knows that the demons will return; he knows sleep may come now, but not tomorrow—maybe, not even in an hour.

But for now, Keiji turns, and burrows against Tetsurou, who huffs and circles both arms around Keiji, burying his face in Keiji’s rustled curls. He, in turn,

hugs Tetsurou close, his nose in the valley of Tetsurou’s pecs, where his scent is the strongest. Keiji inhales, and exhales.

“You know,” Tetsurou says lazily, his hips pressing forward almost unconsciously, “I’ve heard sex can lead to better sleep.”

His hand settles on the swell of Keiji’s ass, pats it lightly. “But so can this,” he adds in a whisper, trailing his fingertips over Keiji’s spine. “And this,” he adds, massaging Keiji’s shoulders. “I’m sorry this is so hard for you,” he says quietly,

and Keiji is stunned to hear the hitch in Tetsurou’s tone, like he, too, is in pain. “I wish I could be inside your head, a knight fighting off the demons, so you can sleep.”

It’s so endearing, so Tetsu, that Keiji nearly weeps.

To want to protect him, to want to understand exactly what is happening, to analyze and to correct and to comfort.

Keiji loves this man’s mind, loves this man, so much.

“You don’t need to be inside my head, Tetsu,” Keiji murmurs into his chest.

One arm reaches around and clutches at Tetsurou’s shoulder. “You’re here, in person, with me.” He sighs, his eyes feeling suddenly heavy.

The pain, the anxiety—none of it has disappeared, none of it has faded, even a little.

But here, in Tetsurou’s arms,

Keiji feels a little bit safer from his mind. Tetsurou might not literally be in there, fighting Keiji’s demons, but his words, his promises, have built a barrier, one that makes Keiji feel secure enough that, when sleep threatens to wash over him again, his mind is quiet,

and Keiji can just /be./

He feels a gentle press of lips on his hair, feels his body being squeezed, ever so slightly.

“Sleep well, Keiji, my love,” Tetsurou whispers. “Tomorrow, we’ll conquer those demons…together."

--Fin!--

I literally wrote this at 4am in the midst of my own insomnia. I hope it makes sense 🫠

A little content for the KuroAka lovers out there; I hope you enjoy this one! I wish we all had a Kuroo to hug us when we're awake and our minds are being a bastard 💗🥺💗