## TEN !!

you needed to sleep tonight.

pushing your stiff shoulders into the mattress, you stretched your back, wiggling a little until you heard a an unexpected pop that left you groaning, your body aching in a whole new way.

now this was just wonderful. what a fun night to be sleeping alone on a giant, cold, empty, irritating bed. honestly how dare this bed be so uncomfortable? the audacity! it was so expensive too.

huffing once more, you turned to lie on your side, bunching up the blanket wrapped around your body to make a makeshift plushie—eyes scrunched, jaw set, a tiny whine leaving your lips as you thought of how badly you needed a warm hug to ease your anxious body.

eventually you did end up dozing off. or at least… that was what it felt like. if you were being honest, when the bed dipped and stirred you awake, it felt like you hadn’t been asleep at all. but at the same time, you didn’t quite remember when the tired figure of your husband walked into the room, let alone get under the covers.

eyes fluttering open, you let out a little hum, which in turn prompted him to grimace. ‘sorry, baby. did i wake you?’

‘hm… yeah,’ you yawned. ‘i guess so. not really.’

chris chuckled. ‘yes, those are all the possible answers.’

‘shut up,’ you mumbled with a sleepy smile. ‘you’re home late. long day at work?’

‘mhm,’ he let out a breathy groan as he slipped down and pulled your body a little closer, arm resting on your hip. ‘long day, yes. but i wouldn’t say it’s that late.’

‘oh yeah? feels like i’ve been trying to sleep for an entire night.’

he furrowed his brows and brushed a lock of hair out of your eyes. ‘something troubling you?’

‘yeah. my inability to sleep.’

‘okay smartass,’ he rolled his eyes with a breathy laugh. ‘you know what i mean. did something happen? stressed about anything?’

you closed one eye, and raised the adjacent eyebrow. ‘you know what? not really. i guess it’s just one of those weeks,’ you sighed, and he let out a knowing hum.

‘so now what?’

‘now you hold me,’ you quickly buried your face into his chest, ‘until i fall asleep.’

chris smiled, pulling you even closer. ‘that can be arranged,’ he whispered, a gentle hand moving to stroke your hair.

for a while it was just you, listening to his heartbeat and inhaling the sweet scent of his perfume—and him, stroking your hair while humming a soft tune, his own eyes closed.

after a few minutes, his touch had left your body, chest peeled away from yours ever so slightly, allowing cold air to hit your face as his hand manoeuvred to fish his phone out of his pocket. the sudden flash from the screen hitting your eyelids made you groan, and you tightened your grip around his torso, a silent plea to make him turn it off.

‘sorry, baby,’ he simply slid the phone to drop by his pillow, ‘just checking the time.’

‘what time is it?’ you asked, voice muffled by your cheek pressed into his hoodie. and for some reason, that one question made his heart melt into a puddle. your words so soft and ever so slightly slurred, small hums leaving your lips every now and then with an exhale. he smiled and kissed the top of your head.

‘happy new year, sweetheart.’

‘hm?’ you pulled back to look at his face and blinked, eyes wide and clueless. ‘wait. new year? already?’

chris chuckled. ‘you really haven’t been getting proper sleep, have you?’

now that made you pout. because yes, you really hadn’t. and it was really annoying. and for some reason said annoyance was something that made your husband get the widest grin on his face, eyes sparkling even in the darkness as he leaned down to press a small kiss on your pouty lips.

‘so cute.’

you knit your brows together. ‘don’t find my misery cute, christopher.’

‘i mean it’s kind of cute,’ he giggled, pinching your cheek. that only made your frown deepen, eyes narrowing more and more as you stared into his round, affectionate ones. you weren’t sure how he did it, but the more you snarled, the softer his gaze got. and suddenly, you couldn’t keep up with the drama any longer and broke into a tiny giggle.

‘you’re lucky you’re cute,’ you murmured, eyelids a little droopy. ‘happy new year to you too, my love. i’m glad we made through another year together,’ you grinned and reached up to peck his lips. ‘my resolution is that i want to sleep.’

chris let out a breathy laugh, shaking his head. he knew it was meant to be a joke, but the genuine exhaustion and frustration on your face made it all the more obvious that you meant it.

‘okay. let’s try and make that happen, yeah?’ he stroked your cheek for a moment before pulling you to press your cheek into his chest once more, peppering a few kisses on your head.

‘want me to sing you a lullaby?’ he asked, and you nodded. and then immediately shook your head.

‘was that a yes or no?’ he asked, astronomically amused.

you lifted your head, watery eyes blinking to focus on his features in the dark. ‘no. you need to sleep too,’ you declared and pushed at his shoulder so he was lying on his back, head resting on the soft pillow. chris eyed you with a small smile and craned neck as you wiggled down a little, placing your head resting on his chest. nuzzling your head ever so slightly, you let out a small hum before you pushed his head back to hit the pillow, your hand covering his eyes.

‘sleep,’ you instructed, and he chuckled.

‘okay. let’s both sleep.’

his hand found yours and peeled it away from his eyes, before bringing it to his lips to press a kiss on your palm, the moving it to lay over his heart.

‘goodnight, sweetheart.’

‘night…’ you drawled in an almost unintelligible mumble, finally feeling yourself drifting off to sleep.