almohada || Miguel O'Hara

almohada

AN: The theme of this chapter is "Almohada" by José José. Didn't think i'd keep this song theme going, but you can listen along for the feel i'm going for. Or imagine Miguel singing it, because it describes exactly what he's feeling.
———

Late at night, an exhausted Miguel stumbles his way into his apartment. His eyes are strained and his back aches from being hunched over his desk all day. Catching up on projects and taking on more than he could handle, he spent most of his days working well into the night.

What he looked forward to the most, was his chance to see you, unwind, and feel all his stress melt away. The mere thought of coming home to you, nuzzling and holding your body tight to his made it all worth it.

Making his way to the bedroom, he stripped down, preparing for bed. He paused, looming over the bed, watching as you slept peacefully; your chest rising and falling rhythmically. The stillness of the room and your steady breaths having a calming effect on him. Carefully sliding onto bed next to you, he gingerly traced kisses across your face and neck. Pulling his arms around you, closing the space, he whispered sweet nothings in your ear.

"I missed you, mi amor," he lulled you to sleep.

His body immediately relaxed into yours, fitting perfectly together. He felt his heavy lids flutter shut, as your breathing synchronized. The warmth of your body melting his stiff muscles as he slipped into the best sleep of his life.

The next morning, he stretches and reaches for you as his alarm rings. His heart drops as his hand roams the empty side of the bed and he realizes: you're gone. He sits up, and suddenly the warmth and joy is sucked out of the room. His morning is ruined and he drags himself out of bed, thrust into the draining routine once again.

Back at work, he feels himself once again bombarded by tasks to approve and reports to file. Every time he steps out of his office, it's another question, another matter needing his attention. The bustling and chattering, overwhelming his senses, until he sees you.

From across the room, pulling his gaze from the coworkers in front of him. He could always pick your face out in any crowd. Mesmerized by your giant eyes, focused on the work in front of you. His mind rushed to warm memories and playful glances that the two of you would once exchange.

Even after all this time, the only remedy for him, the only grounding force was you. The way his name sounded on your lips, calming and tender. The way the load of his day would melt under your touch. Sleeping and waking next to you, as safe and grounded as he'd ever been in his life.

Snapping back to reality, he fought every muscle in his body to avoid approaching you. You two were broken up, he no longer had that privilege or the strength. After the best months of his life, meeting you at work, you two were drawn apart by just that. Work . Or more specifically his inability to stop it from bleeding into his personal life, affecting his life with you. The inability to manage his time, focus, and real priorities.

Still, he couldn't help but wonder about you. Where your mind was, how you were feeling, why you seemed so focused and withdrawn today. No matter how much time had passed, he had to deal with this lasting side effect; His ability to read you, know and feel when something was wrong, but he promised to respect your new boundaries.

*

"Hey Miguel!"

Miguel looks up from his computer after hours of not hearing another human voice besides his own. His eyes land on Peter, his excitable coworker. After meeting you, Miguel had decided to push himself to be more friendly on the office floor and entertain the possibility of letting more people get to know him. But since you've been gone, he's reversed back into his irritable, reclusive self.