Every morning they would wake up, splayed across one another, sometimes hand-in-hand, sometimes one curled around the other, and then they'd yawn and murmur hello to each other, ruffle each other's hair with a smile, and should one of them raise an eyebrow they'd stay in bed a little longer.
This morning was different. Cry's sleep was plagued with nightmares and torment, tearing Pewdie from his arms as they kicked and struggled, but faceless ghosts dragged them apart, vile snickers echoing through him. They were bloodied and ripped limb from limb, arms and fingers hanging on my threads, flailing and flicking as they woves into Felix's red-stained locks, dragging him back, back into the abyss. Dropping Ryan, and suddenly he was falling, voiceless screams resonating in stereo, but none of them his own. Pewdie. Shadows swallowed him in slow motion, devouring every last smile, trying to whisper, trying to call him, but Cry was deaf. And seconds later, blind.
The black had taken him.
He sat up, panting and shivering and sweating in paranoid fear, glancing around and clutching for him, phantoms lingering behind his eyelids before he buried himself into Felix's arms, holding onto him tightly, surrounding himself with his warm comfort, wanting to be with him more than seemed even possible but he was blubbering quietly, telling him, pleading with him not to go.
The Swede instantly woke, lust and love evaporating back into dream land, worry for his partner taking over. "Ryan..." Pewds whispered tiredly, rousing himself with a stifled whimper. "What is it?"
Ashamed of himself, knowing this wasn't the first time and wouldn't be the last, Cry tried to breathe, starting to kiss him frantically, lips lingering on his chest, feeling his heartbeat, letting himself relax in knowing he was safe, alive, here.
"Nightmares?" Felix murmured, although not needing to ask. As he felt Ryan nod he held him tighter, knowing it was better he didn't ask. Cry didn't need to think about that right now. He just needed him. "It's alright, I'm here, I've got you..."
That was enough. Ryan shuddered with sighs, knotting their hands together, pressing their palms together as Felix stroked his shoulder lovingly, promising him everything was going to be okay, nothing bad would happen: he wouldn't let it. Cry felt his muscles easing, visions blurring away into the same darkness, leaving him be, nuzzling into his partner, waiting, resting. And they lay there in silence before, in his comfort, tears welled into his eyes, and he looked up at his lover in anxiety.
Felix ruffled his chocolate hair softly, kissed his forehead, hushing and shushing his fears. He hated seeing Ryan this way - so weak, so scared - it made him question how the man must have coped before he arrived. But then again, the question answered itself: alcohol and shutting himself away, and other hauntings Ryan dared not mention, and Pewdie couldn't cope with the thoughts of it all.
"They- they took you..." Cry told him at last. "So many of them..."
Felix gulped, held onto him a little tighter, as if trying to reassure him still, wanting to help in any way he could, asking quietly, "What were they, Cry?"
"I-I don't know, something- something undead but... alive... They tore you back, by your hair, a-and you just smiled at me..."
"Zambies?" joked Pewdie, wishing he could smile at this point, but caring for Ryan, making him smile again, was more important. "Cry... nothing's going to take me away from you."
"Th-the hair, though... That's what you were trying to tell me. "Keep that hair short." You remember that?"
"Of course I do... The ending of 'The Walking Dead' still gets to me."
"Me too... M-more than I realise, apparently..."
Felix stroked over his partner's chest, trying to grin at him weakly, but Cry was clearly still shaken.
"I-I don't want to lose you, Pewds..."
This time he truly did beam at him as he whispered, "Don't worry about it, Cry; you won't, I promise."
Cry looked up at him, his expression brightening as he leaned closer and touched his partner's lips gently with his own, lacing his hands into Felix's hair and hitching himself closer, tousling the blonded locks as he pressed into his kiss tighter, briefling flicking his tongue over his lip, and as Pewdie drew back he raised his eyebrows. Ryan just smiled, and then murmured, "You need a haircut, friend."
Felix chuckled a little at first, but before he knew it Cry tugged him up from the bed, led him through into the bathroom and sat him down on the edge of the bathtub, stroking the insides of his thighs softly to get Pewdie to agree to this. But Pewds trusted him, sitting still as he rifled through the cupboard, taking out the hair scissors and glancing over at him almost motheringly, and stepping over, touching his cheek as he trimmed the locks around his head, letting them drift back into the bathtub, cutting his ragged fringe back into it's soft sweep, keeping his fingertips light and teasing with him every now and then.
"Let me guess - you have a fetish for this?"
"Oh, ha-ha. What about you? And don't lie, I can see."
"Nope, just you, friend. And plus, I kinda like sleeping naked."
"I know you do."
"Oh, shut up, you know what I meant... Being close to you. It feels good."
"Mmmhmmm..."
"... Don't, you'll make me mess up your hair."
"You always do."
With or without his asking, Felix rested his head bowed forward so that Ryan could trim the back, and as soon as he was done he tipped Pewdie's head back up, ignoring his grumbles and chuckling softly as he ruffled his partner's shorter hair, thinking he'd probably done it wrong but whatever. As always Felix looked in the mirror and tried to sort out some sort of parting that wouldn't go, but as Ryan stepped up behind him and kissed the back of his neck, it didn't matter any more; he turned and let Cry scruff it all up again.