Revamped

fourteen

It was the pain that woke him.

Somehow, Tyler had managed to squirm his way onto his back in his sleep, with his left arm bent underneath him in an awkward angle that pulled at his shoulder. The limb felt like it was going to dislocate itself, and he wondered how long it had even been like that. And how he hadn't noticed it before now.

Grimacing, he shifted so he could pull it over his chest, the ache disintegrating as he stretched his whole body too, wiggling his toes with it. The release of tension made him sigh, relaxing into the post-stretch muscle tingling with a quirk of his mouth as he slowly blinked open his eyes.

The eggshell ceiling was awash in a soft, muted gold light that peeked through the window shades, giving the room a warm sleepy hollow vibe. He absently rolled his shoulder, not really awake enough to be thinking quite yet, and just enjoyed the silence.

He'd gone to sleep earlier with the worst migraine he'd ever experienced, which he still had no explanation for.

He winced as he remembered, his temples giving the faintest throb in warning. So he quickly shut the thought out, reluctant to go through that again, whatever it had been.

He turned his head sideways and studied the mirror propped against the wall beside the bed, his mouth curling upwards in a small smile that he wasn't aware of.

I wonder what other things he could show me...

He snorted slightly at the thought, unprepared for it. He wasn't sure what had happened, at least in terms of between him and Josh. Sure, it had been amazing, but what else? Had it changed anything? Maybe not. But at least he had the memory of it.

A soft sigh echoed, and he whipped his head towards the other side, blinking in surprise.

Josh was in his desk chair, sat by the bed with his cheek propped on his right hand, body limp and relaxed, asleep. He was in different clothes than earlier, now in a dark gray long-sleeved shirt that fit to him perfectly, and a pair of ripped black jeans with no shoes, his black sock feet making Tyler frown slightly, confused.

What's he doing here?

His pink hair had lessened in its vibrancy from a few days ago, so it was more towards a softer hue now, tousled and messy. Like he'd been running his fingers though it.

Sliding his gaze down, he studied the fingers in question, his brow furrowing slightly as he noticed the tips were still slightly too pink for normal human flesh. A quick glance at his hair again had Tyler snort, understanding. He must have just recently dyed it, then.

He suddenly wondered if Josh had ever done any other hair colors. The thought had him biting his lip, considering the color red on him.

He shook the idea away, suddenly studying Josh's fingers again and now he was biting his lip for another reason.

His dream from that morning. The one where Josh had almost...

Cheeks warming, Tyler sat up, bringing his knees to a half bent state and digging his heels into the mattress as he remembered. Just the thought of Josh using his fingers that way on him made his hands shake slightly from anxiety, but the hot feeling in his gut told him something else. So he studied Josh's dozing form again and slowly pushed off the bed, feeling his bare feet hit the soft carpet and standing.

He wondered briefly if Josh had fallen asleep watching over him, then quickly brushed that aside. Not likely.

His heart was beating rather quickly, and he clenched his hands into fists to expel his nerves a little, tiptoeing closer to Josh and ignoring his own trepidation.