Your mind is a turbulent mess of too much.
Too much sickening worry, swirling through your cloud of thoughts, mixed together with too many emotions about those thoughts, and the ceaseless string of words and plans that you can’t seem to quiet no matter what you try.
Sleep eludes you. Despite the physical and mental exhaustion that wracks your body, your brain simply won’t shut up long enough to allow you that blissful respite. Yet it refuses to give you the energy to do anything more than shiver in place.
In the darkness of your bedroom, you curl up beneath the covers, desperately holding back the brimming storm. You squeeze your eyes shut, biting your lip to prevent the whimper of overwhelming thoughts from waking your sleeping boyfriend beside you.
But somehow, he stirs from his dreams. Whether it’s the subtle shaking you can’t stop yourself from doing, or the tiny sniffling you do without realizing it.
The bed shifts beside you, but at this point, you’re too distraught to notice.
“Hey, hey…what’s wrong?” Ace mumbles through the fog of fatigue, his arms slowly sliding to wrap around your waist, pulling you closer to him.
The sound of his voice tips you over the edge, and you let out a strangled sob.
“Come ‘ere.”
You say nothing as he hugs you against his chest, forehead pressed to his chest. Your muffled sobs are covered by his gentle shooshing, the warmth of his skin a beacon and a comfort. You feel pathetic, crying like this, but you can’t help it and Ace’s presence and quiet mutterings that everything would be ok were a balm on your troubled mind.
“You wanna talk about it?” He asked sleepily, then gives a sigh as you shake your head. “Alright…you don’t need to. Just know I’m right here, ok?”
“I’m sorry…”
“For what?”
“For…crying-”
“No, no, no, don’t apologize, Y/N. It’s ok.” Ace mutters beside your ear, hands trailing gentle paths along your back. “I’m here, baby, I’m here…”
You let out everything that’s been building up, tangling, knotting, and overgrowing in your head through your tears. His chest grows wet from your crying, but he gives no indication that he’s bothered. Surrounded by his strong arms, there’s no other place in the world you’d rather be.
It takes minutes, or perhaps hours, before you begin to calm down, but Ace doesn’t rush you, doesn’t speak a word other than to comfort you with his soft mutters, doesn’t complain or even fall asleep…until you’ve cried everything out, totally exhausted yourself.
You fall into a deep, restful sleep, in the arms of the one man who can make it all better, if even for just a moment. Because in that moment, it’s just you and him, and nothing else.
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