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The time that Vash had spent sitting in that car seemed to drag on and on and on. He wasn’t sure how much more he could take. The little things started to add up more and more, and he was getting overwhelmed. It was Meryl seeming to hit every single bump in the desert they came across, the way that Roberto chugged the alcohol in his flask, the smell of Wolfwood and Roberto’s cigarettes filling his nose to where it started to burn. His body was aching, his head was hurting, and his eyes were so heavy, but yet, he couldn’t drift off to sleep.
If it was the way that Meryl was shaking the car that kept him from sleeping, then he definitely needed to be out of it as soon as possible. He ran his prosthetic hand through his hair, reaching down and pushing up the glasses that had fallen on his nose, letting out a huff. “What’s wrong, Blondie?” Wolfwood asked, causing Vash to whip his head around to look at him. Wolfwood was reaching into his pocket, grabbing another cigarette and lighter. “Oh! Nothing! I am perfectly fine!” Vash said, smiling.
It was a fake smile, Wolfwood could definitely tell, but Vash was in a weird mood and didn’t have the energy to put all his effort into a “real” smile. This was the best that he could do. So he left it at that, turning his head back around and taking in a deep breath. The cycle repeated. Meryl hits a bump, Wolfwood and Roberto blow their cigarette smoke to fill up the car, and then Roberto takes a swig.
Eventually, the pattern of the three things that annoyed him to no end eventually became background noise, a simple lull in Vash’s ears. Not even wanting to ask Meryl how far away they were from the next town, Vash simply closed his eyes and hoped that he would fall asleep. After all, by the time they were going to reach another town, trouble was most likely going to follow them, so why not catch up on sleep now?
Pulling the hood up from his coat to surround his head, he leaned his head against the window, crossing his arms and letting out another huff. No words from Wolfwood this time. His eyes shut and after a few minutes, he seemed to slip into a slumber. He wasn’t fully asleep, however, it felt like that weird point where you don’t see or hear anything, but your consciousness is still there, forcing your body awake.
He was getting frustrated again.
Vash let out another groan as he tilted his head towards the sky, clenching his hands together in a fist, trying to release some tension. He needed to get out of this car as soon as possible.
“What is wrong with you?” Wolfwood mumbled, lifting his head from the window and opening one eye and looking over toward Vash. “You haven’t stopped moving for nearly thirty minutes and it’s getting annoying. Stay still!”
Wolfwood was not one to complain about being in a car for long periods, because anything was better than walking around and carrying a heavy gun cross on his back. Most of the time he could sleep the majority of the way until he was woken up by the voices of someone saying they were arriving in the next town. The things he couldn’t stand, however, were people who were constantly moving and huffing and making noise that disturbed his peace (AKA Vash the Stampede.)
Wolfwood heard all of the deep breaths that he was taking, he could see the way his eyes were innocently glaring at him and Roberto, the way his body would tense at the bumps they hit. Wolfwood heard and saw it all. He pitied the poor man, honestly, as he has had to deal with the long car rides for much longer than he has. But at this point, Vash had been moving for an hour and hadn’t stopped and it was pissing him off.
Vash seemed to sink his seat, going as small as a worm as he nodded his head, mumbling a “sorry.” Great, now Wolfwood felt bad. “Meryl, do you know how much longer it will be until we get into town? My legs need a stretch,” Wolfwood said, leaning up and grabbing the back of Roberto’s seat. Meryl glanced in the mirror to look at the both of them, seeing how Wolfwood's eyes darted toward Vash’s direction. She followed his eyes and looked at Vash, seeing how he had a different look on his face than normal. This one was frustrated and upset, it looked like there were tears in his eyes.
“About five more minutes, if you look, then there's the top of a city right there!” Meryl voiced, still glazing back towards Vash. He whipped his head towards the front, moving and copying Wolfwood and grabbing the back of Meryl’s seat. He didn’t say anything, but you could tell.
—-
Vash practically burst out of the car as soon as Meryl put it in park, rushing to open the door as soon as he could. When stepping out of the car, he stumbled a bit, his legs being asleep from sitting for so long. “Slow down, Needles, there’s no reason to rush. You can run around as much as you want in just a few minutes. Let’s get our shit together first.” Wolfwood mumbled, stepping up to reach on top of the car to grab the punisher.
Vash nodded, looking over towards Meryl and Roberto as they were scouting out the town, looking for a place to sleep. “You guys get our things, we're going to head towards that hotel. Get there when you can, okay?” Roberto mumbled, looking down at the map in his hands. Vash nodded, listening to his words. Vash stood there, staring out into the desert, letting the smallest of smiles appear on his face. He looked up, taking in a deep breath, before slowly letting it out. He was feeling better now.
“Spikey, grab your bag,” Wolfwood said, holding the punisher and Meryl and Roberto’s bag, “I got the rest of this. Let’s go!” Before Wolfwood could even finish his statement, Vash was already hopping on top of the car and grabbing his stuff. Wolfwood smiled gently, whispering, “Finally.”
—-
Arriving at the hotel went easier than expected, as no one had stopped to talk to Vash or ask him to do anything. Somehow, magically, in every single town, people knew Vash was a fixer. So it was nice to not have anyone ask him to fix or do something, and it also meant that he was out of trouble for right now.
“Two rooms, one with two beds and one with one double bed, I think you two know how this goes,” Roberto said, turning around and handing their key to Vash. “We booked for two days, so enjoy it while you can.”
Vash nodded, Wolfwood rolled his eyes, “I would like a bed to myself sometimes!” Meryl laughed, holding out her hands to take their stuff from Wolfwood. “Maybe one day! But not now!” She teased, giggling as she walked away with Roberto, beginning to talk about what they needed to report for the day.
“I can sleep on the floor if you would like the bed to yourself, Wolfwood,” Vash mumbled, walking down the hallway to their respective room. “I don’t mind.” He said, smiling gently at him.
Wolfwood was taken aback as he looked at Vash, finally getting a good look at him for the first time in forever after stepping out of the car. There were dark bags under his eyes, the baby blue that was the main feature of his face was now taken over by red, bloodshot eyes. Even behind the tint of the sunglasses that he constantly wore, you could still see the redness. Shaking his head, Wolfwood stepped into the room, leaning the punisher against the wall. “Not a chance, blondie, you are too exhausted.”
How had Wolfwood not noticed this in the car? Was it because he just wasn’t paying attention to Vash enough? Was he blinded by his fidgeting that he couldn’t realize that something was actually wrong with him?
Vash stepped up to protest, holding up his hand with a finger pointed, only to be stopped by Wolfwood. “Don’t argue, I’ll shove you into the damn bed myself if I have to..” Vash choked on his spit at that sentence, blushing as he quickly turned towards Wolfwood with his mouth hanging wide open. “What is that supposed to m-” Vash was cut off, “Do you really want me to answer?” Wolfwood said, smirking. That made Vash shut up.
“Now go take a shower, I want to get in bed as soon as possible. I’m exhausted,” Wolfwood said, taking his hands and rubbing them against his face, sighing. Vash slowly blinked, turning around and nodding, a yawn falling from his mouth. “I’ll be quick, don’t worry.”
–
When the bathroom door opened and Vash emerged, Wolfwood could practically see the exhaustion pouring out of him. His eyes, half-lidded and barely alert to his surroundings, blinked slowly. “M’done,” Vash whispered, sighing as he walked over towards the bed. Wolfwood, being too immersed in looking at his face, didn’t even notice that Vash walked out of the bathroom with only his pants on. The upper half of his body, scars, and the cage on top of his heart, were out for him to see. His body was still dripping with water, being too tired to fully dry off before exiting the bathroom. His prosthetic arm was still on, hanging limply to his side.
Wolfwood couldn’t help but warmly smile, seeing how the blonde was beginning to relax for the first time in a while. Standing up, Wolfwood walked towards Vash, wrapping an arm around his waist and gently pulling him close to his chest. Wolfwood took his hand and placed it on the back of Vash’s head, guiding his head onto his shoulder. “You’re exhausted, aren’t you, darling?” He whispered in his head, running his fingers through his hair. This earned a whine from Vash, barely nodding as he wrapped his arms lazily around Wolfwood’s body.
They stood like that for just a minute, Wolfwood still carding his fingers through Vash’s hair, gently rocking him back and forth, holding onto him as if his life depended on it. “Let me go take a shower, okay? Then we can lay together all you want, okay, sweetheart?” Vash whined again, struggling to pull away. Wolfwood couldn’t help but let out a small laugh, turning to where he could lay Vash on the bed. “Give me ten minutes, okay?” Wolfwood mumbled, pressing a kiss against his forehead. Pulling away, Wolfwood couldn’t help but smile again looking at Vash, seeing how his eyes were closed more often, his body barely being able to sit up on the bed.
Wolfwood walked towards the bathroom, taking one last glance at Vash before closing the door to the bathroom.
—-
While Wolfwood held to his promise of ten minutes, they felt like forever to Vash. At one point, his body gave up and he finally laid back on the bed, eyes shutting but still in the weird phase of sleep like he was before in the car. He huffed as he turned on the bed, now eyeing the bathroom door.
As soon as he did, he saw light come into their room, the door opening and revealing a shirtless Wolfwood. Vash couldn’t help but smile, turning his head and blushing slightly at the sight. Wolfwood walked closer to him, seeming to have the same expression Vash had as he exited the bathroom. “Showering is exhausting,” he mumbled, crawling into the bed and laying beside Vash. Vash hummed, scooting closer towards Wolfwood, wrapping his arms around his waist.
Vash curled into Wolfwood, burying his face into his neck. Wolfwood let out a light laugh, wrapping his arms around Vash, and holding him close. Leaning his head down, Wolfwood pressed a kiss against the top of his head. “Come on sugar, let’s get you some sleep, m’kay?” He whispered into his ear, pressing an open-mouthed kiss afterward. “Can’t sleep,” Vash mumbled, pushing himself further into Wolfwood’s neck, “Don’t know w’s wrong,” he slurred, his voice barely escaping his lips.
Wolfwood frowned at his words, seeming to hold him even tighter at this. “Let’s see if ‘can fix that, hmm?” Vash clung to him, just barely nodding his head, “Don’t ‘na move,” Vash said, sighing into Wolfwood’s neck. “We don’t have to move the rest of the night sweetheart,” Wolfwood whispered, beginning to trail kisses up and down the side of Vash’s face, “Just lay here and let your body rest,” his fingertips tracing the scars on his back, “You are safe in my arms.”
Vash’s body became heavier and heavier in Wolfwood’s arms, his breath beginning to slow. Wolfwood couldn’t help but smile softly, “Tell me what’s going through that pretty head of yours,” Wolfwood mumbled, turning them slightly so he could hug Vash closer. His fingers never stopped running through his hair, his other hand never stopped the patterns on his back.
Vash took a deep breath in, inhaling the scent of cigarettes and musk, sinking further and further into his grasp. “‘na be close t’ya,” Vash mumbled, his words becoming less and less clear as he lay in Wolfwood’s arms. “‘M not leaving for a while, I told you,” Wolfwood whispered, “‘M gonna stay here all night, holding you, protecting you, making sure you’re safe,” he mumbled against his shoulder, pulling the covers over both of them.
Vash hummed, sinking into the sheets, “Nico,” he whined, slowly turning his body once again. “You’re s’tired, baby, why don’t you give in to it, hmm?” Wolfwood slurred, his eyes slowly beginning to close. Vash’s body tensed for a second in his arms before he let out a breath, relaxing in Wolfwood’s arms once again. “‘co” he mumbled as Wolfwood took one of his hands and ran his knuckle across Vash’s cheek. “Sleep, tongari,” Wolfwood barely voiced, already being able to tell that Vash was mostly asleep in his arms.
Vash breathed out once again, nodding as his head rolled further into Wolfwood’s chest. He took in another breath, only to be met with Wolfwood’s words, “‘M right here baby, “m not leaving you.” Wolfwood reassured, voice slurring as his eyes shut.
Wolfwood lazily hugged him, continuing to press kisses against Vash’s bare skin. Wolfwood, barely being awake himself, clung onto Vash.
“G’night, beautiful."