Work Text:
Kurapika took a deep breath in and looked at the clock by his bedside; "3:28 am" it blinked slowly ticking on and on through the night like a timed bomb. He couldn't sleep, even though he had thought his excessive use of emperor time had taken a toll on his body, and was heavily encouraged by his comrades to rest and recharge, he simply couldn’t close his eyes for longer than 5 minutes. Worries, irrational or not, rush through his head continually, drowning out any possibility for peace.
With a sigh, Kurapika swings his legs over the corner of the mattress and begrudgingly stands up. The door to his suite creaks on his hinges as he enters the cool air of the hallway. the air has a cool, collected quality to it, marked with the En of those protecting Wobble and Oito in his stead for the night. Kurapika was thankful he still had those he could trust, but now more than ever, he was constantly consumed by an overbearing sense of dread— something evil was lurking on this ship, and he couldn’t rest until he had it under his control.
Lost in his thoughts and combined with the haze of exhaustion, Kurapika found himself walking down the adjacent hall, the one where Leorio, once Kurapika and his team had re-established contact with, was relocated to. One of the more modest rooms it was, but compared to Leorio’s life pre-hunter exam, it more than exceeded his wish-fulfillment fantasies. And, to Kurapika’s surprise, the door was slightly ajar, with soft light streaming out of the crack.
Chains active, Kurapika rushed into Leorio’s room, terrified at the gruesome scene he was certain that would await him.
To his relief, the only surprise that Kurapika got was an equally disheveled Leorio, espresso cup in hand, placed next to an ashtray overflowing with used cigarettes and piles upon piles of gently rumpled documents.
“Kurapika…? aren’t you supposed to be on bedrest…?” he questioned, startled by the sudden presence of the blonde.
“I didn’t think you were supposed to be on active duty either, Doctor.” He said as he leaned against the doorframe, relaxing his posture.
“I’m reviewing files,” he replied, “health data and ship blueprints, mostly. There’s been some reports of a flu-like illness breaking out on some of the lower middle decks, and I’m trying to figure out how it’s spreading so easily. Here, take a look.”
Kurapika quietly closed the door and took a seat next to Leorio on the floor in front of the couch.
“You really should be resting though, you know.”
Kurapika ignored him. “Let me see the blueprint.”
Leorio handed it over. Their hands brushed lightly as he passed the document over and Kurapika felt a shudder down his spine.
“I bet it’s a product of poor ventilation. These lower decks don’t have any air access and the quarters get cramped easily, leading to poor circulation.”
“That’s what I thought originally,” replied Leorio, leaning closer, almost touching Kurpika’s shoulder. “But if you look closely here,” Leorio pointed at the blueprint, moving even closer. Kurapika could feel the gentle rhythm of Leorio’s breath on his neck. “Every room is equipped with a fan and a vent connected to the circulation system for the middle decks— it shouldn’t be a problem even if the quarters get cramped easily.”
Distracted by Leorio’s proximity, Kurapika takes a second to process his reply. How long has it been since he’s had human contact that didn’t put his life at stake?
“Ah, yes. Those must’ve slipped my mind. Still, those decks are definitely over-crowded. Beyond my intuition, I have data that states that these decks are at least double capacity, possibly even triple. At any rate, people that aren’t supposed to be here are, possibly putting those systems way overcapacity. “
“Hmm.. definitely a possibility. People that aren’t supposed to be here are here, lots of them even. Are these.. extras.. presumed to be extra citizens or…?”
Kurapika leaned into Leorio as he flitted through the records splayed out in front of them. The contact is nice, almost too nice, and as soon as he realized what he was doing, he withdrew, anxious of taking too much, of building a false sense of security.
“Mostly, however, there are reports of some rouge groups, possibly gang or opposing political factions. I heard reports of these groups harboring potential nen users as well, even, though I am not sure of the accuracy of this information.”
“Nen users…” Leorio whispered back. Kurapika took his eyes off the papers and directed them to the man next to him instead. He looked more disheveled then normal, more akin to his mid-hunter exam appearance, if not a little worse. More disheveled than Kurapika had seen him in a year. He didn’t really have a chance to talk about what Leorio had seen during his time on the lower decks of the ship, even what Leorio had been doing since he had seen him last. He knew vaguely about the election, studying and med school, but what else? What parts of Leorio had Kurapika missed, what happened and made Leorio the man sitting next to him, the man with a more disciplined and determined look in his eye than Kurapika had ever seen before. His chest filled with an indescribable sense of loss.
“And I hadn’t even thought of the possibility that the virus could be nen related, but with the virus’ unpredictable nature and strange display, that is a possibility I can’t overlook. What do you think?”
“Kurapika?”
Kurapika snapped back to reality, but not out of his haze. Seeing the glazed over look in his eyes refusing to leave, Leorio gripped his face and turned him so that they faced each other.
“You good?”
The gentleness in which Leorio caressed Kurapika’s face could’ve stopped his heart inside his chest. It radiated pure kindness and warmth, touching Kurapika to his very soul. And every fiber of his being screamed more more more.
“You’re over-exhausted, I can tell. You’re overworking yourself again.” Leorio brushed his hand over Kurapika’s chin and tucked a strand of hair behind his ear.
Kurapika combusted internally. If only Leorio knew what emperor time really did to him.
He opened his mouth to speak but said nothing. His only thought was that he didn’t want Leorio to take his hands away, to stop the warmth that radiated down his spine.
Leorio took his hands away.
“Here, you really need to rest. I’m taking you back to your room.”
Leorio grabbed his hands once again, slowly helping him stand up.
“Be careful.” Kurapika swayed and Leorio wrapped his arm around him, steadying him. “You really just almost passed out, huh.”
Kurapika managed a nod as the warm, safe feeling returned. He never wanted to live another day not held by Leorio again. How did he go without this feeling for so long?
In a daze he let Leorio lead him back down the hallways to his room, back to the ticking time bomb of his clock and inescapable loneliness, accompanied by Leorio’s arm around him the whole way.
Leorio gracefully set Kurapika down on his bed, moving the pillows and covers to a much more comfortable position.
“You’re in your own bed now, you can let go of me now.” Leorio chuckles, gently tugging for Kurapika to let go of his sleeve.
“Please don’t go.”
“What?” Leorio whispers back.
“Please stay. Please.”
“W.. what?”
A faint blush surfaces on Leorio’s cheeks, barely visible in the dim light of the clock.
“Please.”
He tugs on Leorio’s sleeve.
“I don’t think I’ll ever understand you.”
Leorio shrugs off his shirt and cautiously lifts the covers next to Kurapika.
“Tell me if I’m making you uncomfortable.”
Kurapika stays silent, replying again with a tug on Leorio’s arm. The color on Leorio’s cheeks deepens as he cautiously reaches around Kurapika, pulling him into an embrace. He relaxes as he feels Kurapika relax into him, breathing slowing almost instantly into a soft and quiet rhythm. He’s never felt more connected.
There, in Leorio’s arms, Kurapika sleeps, actually sleeps, for the first time in months.