Alec shifted forward in bed, moving to press his chest against your back. You were so... warm. Cozy. It wasn't quite a shiny-new relationship anymore. In fact, this was your first time sleeping together as a couple living in the same house. But it had happened easy, natural as another leg around you in the bed frame. It was rather ironic, really. Between the two of you, you were the warm one, and yet, you always felt cold and needed him to warm you up.

As he laid there behind you, leg hooked over your hip, he began to press soft kisses to the back of your neck, letting his beard scratch against the skin. It would be undoubtedly red when the sun came up, but he didn’t think you'd mind. He hoped you wouldn't mind.

In the soft chill of the early morning, pitch-black and perfectly silent, it was almost too easy for Alec to pay attention to his heart. Bump-bump. Bump-bump. Bump-bump. He couldn't help but be thankful for the pacemaker. How long ago would he have passed if not for the device? How much of life with you would he have been deprived of? How long would the rivers of his veins have been filled with the cold lake water of his heart instead of the warm, rich blood that filled him with life? He didn't know.

He felt you stir in front of him, and it brought a tender smile to his face. There you were, waking up to fill the world once again with your sunshine and joy.

"Love," Alec whispered, hesitant to wake you so very early, "are ye awake?"