I'll Be Your Heater
Title: I'll Be Your Heater
Characters: Gabriel Gray/Peter Petrelli
Rating: PG-13 (slash)
Word count: ~500
Setting: Post BNW
Summary: Gabriel's got the winter chills and Peter's a handy heater.
A/N: Based on a comment about 'Sylar being Peter's heater so he never had to be cold.' Written for the 2012 Heroes Advent Calendar, Day 19.
“Whoa!”
Gabriel looked up to him, “What? Oh, sorry.”
He’d been trying to cuddle up against his boyfriend, getting ready for a long winter’s nap. Apparently, his permanently cold body parts - toes, fingers and nose contacted Peter’s much-warmer flesh, sounded out with unappreciative noise. Gabriel exhaled a huffy sound, restricting his snuggling so Peter would be spared the ice-cube treatment. It was a bit of a task getting his nose not to touch his partner, though. Gabriel was neither happy nor appreciative of that but there was no help for it until he warmed up somehow. He hadn’t been able to for months, since autumn it seemed.
“New York’s weather can go fuck itself,” he mumbled into Peter’s chest, “Either too hot or too cold.”
Peter idly petted his hair, which helped curb his wrath at the temperature. “Hmm.”
“Mmmm,” Gabriel responded, glad to have garnered a response (well, a positive one this time) and to be part of his lover’s awareness, even as Peter read his medical text.
Gabriel shifted again, aiming for more attention, when his nose brushed Peter’s sternum once more.
“Aiye…” Peter hissed. “You really are cold.”
It wasn’t perfect, but it was something. It was attention. And it was Peter’s wonderful attention, best of all. “Regeneration only keeps the frostbite at bay. I won’t die but…”
“It’s because you’re tall.”
Gabriel frowned, placing his chin on his favorite chest to meet the other man’s eyes. “What do you mean?”
“You get cold easier because you’re tall. Sometimes the skin is thinner, but it’s mostly that the heart heats and pumps the blood and it takes longer for it to return from extremities in a taller person than in a short person.”
A few quiet seconds as Gabriel blinked at him.
Finally, he teased, “Your jealousy at my height has taken a new and disturbing turn…”
Peter merely snorted. “Medical fact. Can’t argue with that.”
“Maybe not, but I can argue with you.” Purposefully now, Gabriel rubbed his chilly nose over Peter’s skin.
“A-ah…” Peter said, drawing out the word as the contact prolonged. Goosebumps briefly rippled along Peter’s flesh, tightening his nipples a little. Gabriel knew because he watched.
“Warm me up?” he asked hopefully, putting on his most innocent and helpless face.
Peter was suckered right in, laying his article aside to briskly rub at Gabriel’s back, creating friction of a rather platonic nature, making him purr. “I really should be reading this, Gabe…”
“It won’t look good if I die on your watch, Peter Paramedic. Put those magic hands to work.”
“Magic hands, huh?”
Gabriel’s pitch lowered, his voice a deep, seductive call, “Oh, yeah,” as he rolled his hips towards his partner. Let Peter figure it out.