#soft tummies

~

When Eskel sleeps, Jaskier notices he sleeps on his side, hiding his scars.

Jaskier tries not to make a big deal out of it, but when they wake up, he makes a point of kissing his scarred cheek, his broken lips.

The first time he did, Eskel flinched. Jaskier asked if it hurt, and Eskel stared at him for a long moment before he admitted, no, he just isn’t used to kisses on his scars.

Jaskier never pushes him, never mentions what he sees. He just pours as much love as he can into it. He heard of a technique once, from a land far, far away. You don’t throw out broken pieces, you meld them back together with gold, and make them even more precious.

Jaskier is not vain enough to think of his kisses as gold, but he does his best to mend, to see the beauty that Eskel won’t.

He has a plan. Jaskier knows Eskel likes to face him as they sleep. So he puts his trickster plan into motion one night in Kaer Morhen. Jaskier sneaks off to bed early, taking Eskel’s side of the bed.

“It smells like you,” he says by way of explanation, giving Eskel his softest smile. Eskel forgives him, like he always does.

This time however, Eskel doesn’t settle easily. Usually, he would lay on his side and watch, touch, kiss as Jaskier falls asleep. Tonight, he struggles. His scars are in plain view, and Jaskier can see how much he wants to hide them.

Eskel flinches when Jaskier reaches out a hand and cups his cheek. The skin under his fingers is warm, alive, and Jaskier is forever grateful that he is allowed to touch, to love.

“I love you,” Jaskier whispers. “Everything that makes up you. If you’d let me, I want to stay by your side always.”

It was never his plan to make Eskel crumble. But in front of his eyes, this big man falls into pieces. Jaskier pours all his golden kisses in the cracks, holds him close to fit the pieces back together.

They kiss, cry, and then Eskel pulls Jaskier on top of him. Warmth turns to heat, and Jaskier’s fingers stroke Eskel’s wide, hairy chest. He kisses his soft stomach, adores his thick thighs.

Jaskier loves everything that makes up Eskel, and when he finally sinks into him, he thinks Eskel might start to believe it too.

“I love you,” Jaskier tells him, over and over again. “I love you”.

~

Eskel sleeps on his side.