Work Text:
Norway looked up from where he was sorting out the bills, confused, when Denmark came into the room and started emptying his pockets on the table. "Flipped the schedule," Denmark responded to the question in Norway's slight frown. "I'm on the night shift now."
Oh, he thought, turning back to the accounting at hand. It took him a few more moments to realize Denmark wasn't moving, making Norway wonder not for the first time if it was really okay to trust him with patients' lives if he was really this stupid. "You should get some sleep."
When Denmark still didn't move, he resigned himself to putting the bills down again and returning his attention to the other man. He didn't much like what he saw in the corners of Denmark's grin, bracing himself for siege as he read the request in that smile. "No."
"Nor," Denmark whined, "for the first time in forever, our schedules line up, Ice is at school, and you want me to go take a nap alone?"
Yes, that was exactly what Norway wanted. He wanted to get all the boring housework out of the way so that in a week and a half, when they had a planned full day off together, they wouldn't have to worry about it. He was about to say so, but as he really looked at Denmark, past the distracting grin to all the little nuances of his expression, the words died in his throat. "You're a pain in the ass." He watched as the smile widened victoriously, but the tension around his eyes still stayed. "Just until you fall asleep," Norway added harshly, wary of letting Denmark get the mistaken idea he could get his way whenever he wanted.
"Thanks, Nor." The sincerity and relief in his voice was difficult to hear, and it forced Norway to wonder if something was wrong as Denmark went off to collect his futon and Norway went into his room to draw the curtains, not blocking the cheerful afternoon sun as much as he'd like, but enough that it wouldn't disturb Denmark's nap.
The futon was a jumble of mismatched plaids balled up in Denmark's arms as he appeared in the doorway. Norway circled behind him, shutting the door he'd left open to block out more of the light. When he turned, somehow Denmark had managed to get the mess laid out neatly, even having the forethought to push Norway's over to be closest to the door. He held out a hand from where he was kneeling on the covers, beckoning Norway over.
Norway took the offered hand, kneeling himself, before Denmark wrapped his arm around his shoulder and pulled him close as best he could given the way they were sitting. From the way his fingers clung to the back of Norway's shirt, it was clear Norway had made the right decision. He turned his head to order in Denmark's ear, "Go to sleep."
Denmark sighed in defeat, releasing him and settling himself squarely on his side of the bed. He ran his thumb once over the back of the hand he still held. "I always sleep better when you're here." It was said affectionately, and Norway had no doubt he meant it, but from the way the stress stayed on Denmark's face even as he closed his eyes, he felt a little indignant that he'd have the nerve not to relax when Norway was ignoring his chores and sitting right next to him.
He began to climb under the covers, still stewing about Denmark's gall, when he glanced over at his troubled face again and felt his blood boil. Still propped slightly up on one elbow, he let go of Denmark's hand and moved towards the center of the bed, pulling the other man by his giant head to rest next to his chest. Before he could say anything stupid, Norway spoke, "Listen to my heartbeat."
For once, Denmark did as he was told, and Norway watched as his eyes slipped closed and then tension actually did start seeping out of him. Running his fingers soothingly through Denmark's bangs, he mentally took stock of the last time he'd really seen Denmark relax, and concluded that he might have to start getting his colleagues fired to gain seniority faster. He'd known it would be stressful, had the burnout statistics always lurking in the back of his mind, but the fact that they were both still relatively junior made things difficult in a way he hadn't predicted. Given that he'd recently been on a rotation with a lot of shifts no one wanted, and somehow always different from Norway's own, he supposed he couldn't fault Denmark for feeling a little lonely. He wasn't even sure when the last time he'd seen Iceland was.
Denmark let out another sigh, this one much more content, and he turned into Norway's embrace, loosely throwing an arm over his side and pressing his forehead impossibly closer to his chest. His warmth made Norway realize almost as an afterthought that he'd been a little lonely lately, too. He hadn't even noticed. Craning his neck, he kissed Denmark's temple, and he felt him smile before his breathing evened out and he drifted off to sleep.
Norway continued smoothing Denmark's unruly hair automatically, not really thinking about anything, for several more long moments, before he decided to break his promise. He reached behind himself, groping for his pillow and laying his head down when he found it before curling back around Denmark. It was hot, and there was noise from outside the open window, and he really should be doing other things, but he found that he didn't care. He focused on the soft sounds of Denmark breathing as he let himself be lulled into sleep.