AH collections

The sugar baby escapades (12)

OT6
Word count: 17704
Chapters: 18

He's a white noise sleeper. Comes with having grown up in a city his entire life. Silence is unnerving. Silence is danger. Where are the cars? The late night laughter? The ...

The fact that there's another voice coming from his kitchen when he steps in is more concerning.

Rob's the only who's supposed to be at his apartment. Every once in a while Jeremy drops by when he and Rob need to cram or finish up a project. Or just to check up on him and make sure Rob doesn't hit his self-destruct button.

But this time, Rob isn't alone. And the voice coming from his kitchen sounds awfully familiar.

He steps into the kitchen and sees a Willems—a Haus member—leaning back against the counter, chatting it up with Rob like they're old friends. James is by far one of the friendliest members of Haus. He's an everyman like Gavin is—fits in easily and can charm anyone.

What he's doing in Jeremy's apartment is beyond him.

"Hey, Jeremy," Rob says. "Wasn't expecting you here tonight."

"Yeah, just picking up a few things."

"Oh, by the way, your friend here is wondering if he can stay for the night. I said it was chill 'cause you're like barely here, but." He shrugs.

"Yeah. I was going to say something about that, too. Hey, James. Can I talk to you for a minute in the bedroom?"

James nods. "Sure thing. Be right back," he says to Rob and follows Jeremy off to the bedroom.

Jeremy immediately closes the door and pushes James up against the wall.

"Ow! Hey, take it easy!"

"What the fuck are you doing here?"

"Okay," James says, holding up his hands. "Long story short, we hit a little snag in a pre-heist, so we all needed to lay low for a while. And I just happened to be in the neighbourhood and thought I'd stop by! That Rob guy is honestly a great cook."

"You are so fucking lucky that I care about what your death would mean to Elyse." He shoves James hard for emphasis. "Fuck this up and you're not going to last long in this town."

"Okay, geez. I get it. You'd think that someone with five partners would get enough dick, but apparently—"

Jeremy punches him in the jaw before he could say anything more and leaves the room. "Bye, Rob. I'll see you on Monday."

"Bye, Jeremy!"

He's riled up and he knows it. Not really fully of anxious energy, but a restlessness that makes it hard to sleep.

He immediately went to Ryan's after the surprise visit with James, and he immediately started bitching about it.

"I don't even know how he found my place!" he said. "The only ones who know about it are you guys and my close friends. I mean, like, why my place? Why couldn't he have holed up in some motel outside of town? I just don't get it."

Ryan was just looking at him then. Studying him fondly as he paced around in Ryan's room in nothing but a pair of shorts.

"Come here," he said then. "Let me kiss that frustration out of you."

And that's how they ended up on the bed for a good hour.

Now it's late, but Jeremy still can't sleep. Ryan's personal abode is located in a quieter part of town, where the apartment complexes are only three floors, and a lot of younger couples come out to raise their kids in peace. That an retirees not yet ready to make the final move into a home. It fits Ryan's personality to a tee. He likes the quiet and simplicity of it all, giving him a nice balance in contrast to his hectic work life.

But Jeremy can't work like this. Can't sleep like this. He needs that bustle, and tonight is no different.

He's tossing and turning on the large bed, not able to find that comfortable spot. He's forced to stop when a large arm wraps around his waist and keeps him pinned on his side.

"What's eating you, Jer?" Ryan asks. His voice is quiet, rough from exhaustion.

"I already told you."

"I know. I just haven't seen you like this before."

"I just. I don't know. I don't sleep like this."

"Like what?"

"Like. I don't know. I'm just used to sleeping with noise." He shrugs as much as he can underneath the weight of Ryan's arm.

"I can plug in my phone. Or." Ryan trails off, and Jeremy suddenly finds himself being rearranged, so that he's more or less lying on top of Ryan. Underneath his ear, he can hear Ryan's heartbeat steadily pumping blood through his veins. "Or I can sing to you."

Jeremy huffs as Ryan continues to rearrange the sheets overtop of them. "Like a lullaby? Gonna sing me to sleep?"

"Please. I have more class than that."

But Ryan does begin singing, a soft and sweet melody that pairs well with the beat of his heart. It's so easy to fall into it, to let go of the frustration, of the that fact that Haus keeps screwing one of them over in the end. For now, he's only living in this moment, letting himself be lulled and soothed by the deep baritone of Ryan's voice.

"Hey, Ryan," he says, half asleep after only a few verses. "You sing real good."

Ryan laughs, and Jeremy shakes on his chest. "Thank you. My grandparents made me sing with the choir when I was kid. Didn't appreciate the stiff dress code, but I do love music."

"Mm. Keep singing?"

"Of course, Jeremy."

And he continues, long until Jeremy is asleep, long until his worries are forgotten.