Work Text:
Sleep easy
by Ann
Simon rested himself wearily back against their bunk, his eyes closing as the pillow welcomed his head, as it made the muzziness and underwater-feeling in his mind slowly fade. A welcome respite, a moment of peace. But only a moment. Simon tensed almost immediately after as a keening whimper reached his ears.
"Don't be movin' now, Simon. Know you need to rest easy, best to be takin' your captain's orders right about now, dong ma?"
Mal's arm across his chest forestalled Simon's movement and resigned sigh, though he didn't lose the tenseness even as Mal pulled him close and spooned against him, his mouth lightly kissing at Simon's earlobe.
"He might be-"
"Just wantin' you is all, already checked him close on a dozen times this last half hour. ‘bout time you got some shut eye."
"Mal-" Simon bit off the rest of his sentence and kept his eyes closed as Mal kissed the back of his neck, the whimper in the background growing louder, more furious. His lover knew what was coming, had experienced it every night for the last two weeks and yet no matter how firm they decided to be, what action they decided to take, all the determination and surety in the world changed when that cry came.
Last night it had been Mal who'd been up and down from the bed, though in truth neither had got much in the way of sleep, which reflected on their moods and had had half the crew tiptoeing around them all day. Simon pissy and snappish, Mal short-worded and grouchy.
"Gorramn it,"
Simon smiled slightly at Mal's curse, missing the feel of the captain's arms as he sat up and climbed from the bed. It was an exhausted smile though and Simon turned onto his back, trying to find a position to relax himself, to help himself sleep. But it seemed like if Mal wasn't too sleep than neither was he. As it had been last night, and every other, for the last two months.
At least the keening had stopped, but the bed still wasn't as comfortable as when Mal had been in it. Simon missed that, the intimacy they'd shared, missed the sex too though they had been able to sneak in a bit every now and again. But the intimacy, the holding...sleeping alone, feeling alone had been the hardest thing to get used to when he first came aboard Serenity and now he felt it again. Not all the time but the feeling flared up every now and again.
"Just for tonight."
Simon cracked open an eye at Mal's words, starting slightly as a light weight settled on his chest, familiar and making both his eyes open, his hands automatically cupping the back of the disgruntled, tiny squirmer. Familiar blue eyes stared crossly back at him, a small frown creasing the baby's forehead as it wriggled for a moment finding its comfortable position before making a noise that was part pleasure, part smugness.
"Well-there's no denying he's your son." Simon couldn't help the amusement colouring his tone as the baby yawned and waved one fist with a protesting squall on his lips when Mal climbed back onto the bed making it dip slightly. Mal spooned back against Simon's side watching the baby try valiantly to keep his eyes open as they became heavy.
"Stubborn as they come." Mal yawned but there was no mistaking the pride there, as he wrapped an arm around Simon, holding him close. "Best be sleepin' now, afore the less gentlemanly side of me starts wantin' more than just holdin' you. Boy won't like it if we move him back now, especially if it's just to grope his bà."
Translations:
dong ma - understand
bà - father