i got suede on my vinyl

he lets out a very quiet, careful sigh, making sure his chest doesn't expand too much. if he breathes in too deeply, he’s going to knock over the tower of jellycats stacked precariously near your feet.

you are sleeping completely fine. you’re curled up in a comfortable little ball right in the center of the mattress, one arm hooked around a plush bear, looking totally peaceful. you have no idea that your boyfriend is currently fighting for his life in the plushie trenches.

martin honestly hates sleepng at your place. he loves you, and he loves hanging out with you, but your bed is a literal hazard for anyone his height. he needs space to stretch out, but your room is basically a toy store warehouse.

the worst part is the plastic noses. right now, there are at least three different hard, plastic animal noses digging straight into his lower back. one of them feels suspiciously like a vintage care bear, and it’s hitting a nerve that’s making his left foot go numb.

he tries to slide his hand down to shove the care bear away, but the second his fingers move, the fabric of your blanket rustles.

you stir slightly, blinking your eyes open in the dark. "mars?" you mumble, your voice thick with sleep. "you okay?"

martin instantly freezes. he forces his muscles to relax, even though his spine is screaming at him.

"yeah, baby," he whispers back, his voice smooth and entirely casual. "just shifting a bit. go back to sleep."

"are you comfy?" you ask, shifting your weight to lean closer to him, which inadvertently pushes a giant plush penguin right onto his face.

martin takes a breath through his mouth, the soft felt of the penguin's wing tickling his eyelashes. he could easly tell you the truth. he could ask you to just throw the plushies on the floor for the night so he can actually breathe.

but then he thinks about how happy you looked showing him the new frog you bought yesterday, and his chest tightens for a completely different reason. he hates saying no to you. he absolutely sucks at it.

"so comfy," martin lies smoothly, reaching out his arm with great effort to pat your head through the dark. "best sleep of my life. close your eyes."

"okay," you murmur, completely satisfied. you bury your face back into your pillow and are asleep again within thirty seconds.

martin wait until your breathing evens out before he uses his fingers to gently pry the penguin's wing off his mouth. he accepts his fate. he accepts that his back is going to be completely ruined tomorrow during practice, and he accepts that he will probably have the imprint of a unicorn horn stamped into his cheek by morning.

he closes his eyes, letting his head rest against the hard wall, and prays for the sun to come up quickly.