#held close

Trope of the day: comfort (alternative)

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Swallowing hard, Whumpee opened the door to Caretaker's room and got in, closing it behind him as noiseless as he could. His heart was beating fast, another nightmare had woken him up. Tears stained his flushed face, his eyes were reddened and still wet.

The young man played with the hem of his shirt and walked closer to the bed in which Caretaker was sleeping. He had told him, allowed him, to come over if he needed something and it was the first time Whumpee actually decided to take the offer.

With a little hesitation, he laid down next to the other man and just looked at him for some time. He was breathing in a steady rhythm which Whumpee repeated and which made him calm down. Even though his body still felt tense and a little shaky, he felt his heartbeat slow down.

Caretaker took a deep breath and sighed a little, rubbing his eyes which made Whumpee nervous. As the older man opened his lids, Whumpee couldn't help but stare at him with a little panic. But Caretaker smiled tiredly and took his blanket to cover his guest with it. “C'mere,” he mumbled and the younger man scooted closer, now welcomed by the warmth of the other's body.

Half awake, Caretaker wrapped his arm around the fragile figure which he normally handled like a fine china, but he knew that the young man needed to be held to actually relax. “It's okay,” he said in a low voice and felt the body next to him finally lose some of the tension.