Chapter Text
Yet another night Akutagawa found himself awake in the dead of night unable to go back to sleep. Being a common occurrence it was all too familiar to him. Unlike other times however he was not alone in the room as his "little guest", as he liked to call him, was with him. That meant he couldn't turn on the lights and try to read or find something else to do. He just lied staring at the ceiling of the dark room, hoping the boredom would send him back to sleep.
He was unable to tell how much time had passed but the plan was not working and he was still awake. Akutagawa turned around and lied on his side now face to face with Dazai - his "little guest" who seemed to enjoy his new position of being Akutagawa's new cuddly toy. Akutagawa smiled softly at Dazai who was sleeping calmly wrapped in the covers like a burrito, only his messy red hair and his forehead being visible. That blanket thief always gets way with it. Maybe Akutagawa was too lenient but he'd once again let it slide.
Usually after struggling to fall asleep at night Akutagawa would get irritated but tonight there was no trace of such feeling. In fact, he had to hold himself from laughing a little as looking at Dazai made him remember the very first night they ended up sharing a bed.
It was a sleepless night just like this one. At around midnight Akutagawa was up writing, he did not remember exactly what but that was irrelevant anyway, when suddenly he heard a knock on his door and a familiar voice calling his name.
He opened the door to find an upset looking Dazai on his doorway. The unexpected visitor's expression concerned him so he asked what was wrong and invited him to talk it over.
Although Akutagawa might have not noticed it at first or perhaps just overlooked it, he now realized that Dazai got drunk and got into a petty argument with Oda - a thing that actually happened often and by the time he sobered up he had forgotten he was even angry in the first place. The discovery made Akutagawa's initial worry disappeared. He could never take Dazai seriously when he was like that. In fact it was hard for him to take him seriously when he was upset even for something that was actually of matter. His baby face, cuddly appearance and hair that seemed so head-patable that Akutagawa often had a hard time resisting the temptation to pet, were the reason.
Dazai was going on and on about completely random things. Akutagawa had long ago lost the flow of the "conversation", which mostly consisted of Dazai rambling and Akutagawa agreeing with whatever he said regardless if he even understood it. The scene had turned into some comedic parody of a therapy session with Dazai lying on Akutagawa's bed while Akutagawa stood beside him listening, or at least pretending to listen. It all ended with the tipsy visitor falling asleep, something Akutagawa didn't even realize had happened until he took notice that the room had gotten quiet.
Akutagawa looked at the bed invader, wondering what to do with him. He probably should wake him up and bring him to his own room but Dazai looked far too cute in his slumber, only interrupted by occasional snores which for whatever crazy reason, unknown even to him, Akutagawa found to be so adorable.
As he stood beside him, he wondered what will it be like to cuddle him. Would he be as soft and huggable as he imagined? Akutagawa had had the chance to hug Dazai before but never to truly hold him. To Akutagawa's affection in the past Dazai had always reacted positively so perhaps he wouldn't mind...
After gently pushing Dazai to one side of the bed, fortunately without waking him up in the process, Akutagawa took the empty spot next to him, turned off the night light then hugged Dazai close to him.
Akutagawa had always had somewhat of a soft side for the peculiar redhead which was clear in the affectionate way he looked at him but if he had ever gone all soft and lovey towards Dazai it was definitely that night. Holding him tight to his chest and gently playing with the curls on his head, Akutagawa took note of every single movement he made in his embrace, a bit anxious of Dazai waking up but he seemed to be in a deep sleep. That anxiety soon faded and Akutagawa joined Dazai in a peaceful sleep until morning.
Although if was the best sleep he had had in a while, the awakening was far from perfect. Akutagawa, and after him Dazai as well, was startled by the bedroom flying open as a panicked Oda walked in.
"Akutagawa! Dazai is missing! We've been looking for him all over the library and he's nowhere to be found!" He called out to Akutagawa without realizing he was not the only one in his bedroom.
That morning upon waking up was when Oda realized that Dazai hadn't came back after they argued last night which got him instantly worried and rushed in search for him instantly. It must have been a huge relief to see the "missing" person get up from underneath the huge blanket Akutagawa had put on him. But although Oda could now calm down, it was Dazai's turn to panic upon realizing he had stolen Akutagawa's bed for which he apologized multiple times despite Akutagawa reassuring him that it was all good. Little did Dazai know at the time that kind of visit would slowly become a habit.
After getting a taste of Dazai in his embrace, Akutagawa found himself wanting that same comfort once again. In desperate attempts to recreate it he tried different plushies but none even came close to the real deal. At the end he just gave up and had to muster the courage to ask Dazai to come spend the night with him again. He knew that he won't refuse - after all he knew so well how much Dazai admired him. Still while making his request Akutagawa's face turned as red as Dazai's hair. What was most important was that it was accepted though.
Akutagawa always rested well whenever Dazai was with him and hopefully the same was true for Dazai as well. So why was he unable to go back to sleep tonight? Whatever the reason Akutagawa realized he actually did not mind it at all. As long as his little guest was by his side, being awake at such an hour was not only fine but also worth it.