Sleepless Night

Because Fern didn't need to sleep, the boys had moved an armchair upstairs to the bedroom and put it next to Finn's bed. Most nights Fern sat there, ostensibly relaxing with a book by candlelight, but in reality he was attentively guarding Finn. Each night after Finn's breathing slowed and his body began to show the telltale signs of deep sleep, Fern would close his book and take on his sentinel's role in earnest.

Watching the human slumber peacefully night after night should have filled him with jealousy. After all as far as Fern could tell, the next time he would experience that kind of peaceful oblivion would be after his death. Instead, watching Finn put Fern's heart at ease and gave him a deep sense of contentment. While awake, Finn would always put himself in harm's way if it meant shielding others from danger no matter how Fern felt about it. At least while his boyfriend was unconscious Fern could protect him properly.

Tonight, however, those telltale signs of sleep never came. Unwilling to be caught in his ruse, Fern had continued to turn dozens of unread pages while he listened intently to the other boy and knew for sure that he hadn't dozed off yet.

The grass boy made a show of looking over and 'noticing' Finn was awake. He even took the time to mark his page and then closed his book and sat it on the nightstand beside him.

"Can't sleep?" he asked his boyfriend gently.

Finn, who had lain as quiet and still as he could for the past hour and a half so as not to disturb Fern's reading, was glad of the distraction from his bored restlessness.

"No," he replied sulkily before tossing off his covers and flopping over onto his side. "That dang cricket outside. I'm trying to shut it out, but for some reason I can't."

Fern had heard the cricket earlier in the evening but had easily filtered it out to better concentrate on Finn. He allowed himself to tune in once again to its chirping, listening intently for a moment he couldn't help but allow himself a small smile. For some reason it amused him that something so tiny could keep Finn from sleep.

The grass boy shape-shifted his right hand into a blade and his smile widened into a wicked grin as he showed it to his boyfriend.

"Want me to go out there and make cricket confetti?"

Finn reached out and lowered the weapon for him.

"Nah," the human said reasonably. "He's got every right to chirp it up. I just gotta figure out a way to deal, I guess. Although, admittedly if I don't get some sleep soon, I'm gonna be tired as heck when we hit up that sunrise cave in the morning.

Fern playfully entangled the other boy's hand in a web of grass before letting him go and reverting to his original form.

"I was just kidding anyway," he reassured his boyfriend. "It's not like I actually could have killed him. Somehow what he's singing is really relatable."

Finn raised an eyebrow at him.

"You mean 'cause you're a broody nighttime boy, too?" he joked.

The grass boy considered this.

"Well, sort of," he admitted with a chuckle. "But mostly I meant like I can understand the actual words to his song."

The human scrambled to sit up in bed.

"Whoa, for real?" he asked, impressed. "How does it go?"

Fern left his armchair to climb into bed with Finn and the human hastily made room for him.

"So, I don't know if this is exactly it," the grass boy said thoughtfully. "But I think he's saying 'I am here, and I am me. If there is anyone out there who could like who I am, won't you come and find me?'"

Without a word, Finn took Fern's hand in his and gave it a little squeeze. Fern smiled and squeezed back before continuing.

"I think for a while that was my song, too. When I was trapped in the grass sword I was so alone. And then when I finally got out and realized that I wasn't you, I felt really unsure of myself. Before I knew you loved me, all I wanted was for someone to be by my side and tell me it's okay to be who I am. I just hope things work out for the little guy out there the way they did for me."

Finn pulled his hand away to wipe away a tear. Then he clambered over Fern and out of bed. He crossed the room and wrenched the bedroom window open wide, letting in the cool night air and the cricket's song of longing.
"By the way, we are not going to that sunrise cave to afterall," he said seriously as he returned to the bed and climbed on top of his boyfriend.
"I had a feeling you were gonna say that," Fern replied before he was pulled into a deep and loving kiss.