#what happened in those earlier visits that made alan smiles so brightly like this

[aprilblossomgirl]

First Kanaphan Puitrakul as Alan Anantachai in Midnight Series: Moonlight Chicken (2023)

Mr. Gaipa. I just changed my phone number. Can I please have your chat ID? / Yes? / In case the headquarter asks for more documents. You can just take a photo and send it to me. / Ah, of course. 

[curiosi-tea-writes]

Stuffed T-Rex

Pairing: Alan Grant / Ian Malcolm

Summary: Ian has had a hard time sleeping for years but a joke gift from the man he has feelings for brings him just enough comfort to help. After a while, though, he has to admit it to someone other than himself.

Note: Wrote this little one-shot for @intricatecakes because if it weren’t for her, I wouldn’t have had the confidence to actually post it.

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Alan thought it was hilarious. It was the funniest thing in the world at the time. He knew it would earn him a scowl, perhaps a light hit to the shoulder, but it was worth it to watch Ian pull the red stuffed t-rex out of the bag.

"You really just enjoy making fun of me, don't you?" Ian scoffed as he set the bag aside with a roll of his eyes.

"What else are friends for?" Alan shrugged with a laugh. He gave the man a nudge to his shoulder with a large smile.

Ellie laughed which earned her own scowl from Ian. "Alright, open my gift, birthday boy." She handed him another small bag.

Ian rolled his eyes with a huff. "Such great friends," he spoke with a sarcastic tone but truly he meant it. The two paleontologists at the table with him knew that.

Alan would soon forget the present he had gotten his friend slightly as a joke, despite that it had sat on his desk for nearly a month leading up to his birthday. But Ian eyed the gift bag with a soft smile. There was something about who it came from that made what could have brought about a painful memory rather sweet.

That night after Ian had said goodnight to Kelly, he went through his normal nightly routine of tossing and turning. He hated this time of night where he could lay awake for hours, fighting to go to sleep with no hope of such a thing actually happening. He could go nights at a time with not a wink of sleep, he should be used to it. This had been happening for years, since the first night he slept after the incident of Jurassic Park. Sorna had only made it so much worse. Before it was just nightmares. Now he would wish for even those because at least that would mean he slept.

He had tried many different ways to fix it. After Jurassic Park, he would often wake from nightmares, needing to not be alone. Ellie helped with that. A simple phone call to her would talk him away from the fear triggered pain in his leg and calm him enough to rest for the remainder of the night, even if he couldn't fall back asleep. After Sorna, he couldn't put Ellie through the long nights he was awake for. After having her first child, he knew she needed every ounce of sleep she could get. So he started calling Alan. He knew the paleontologist worked incredibly late nights, up fascinated over his latest finds or agonizing over funding. After the third of fourth night, Ian began to believe Alan enjoyed their late night calls as much as he did. Even if for most of them they simply sat in silence.

With a tired sigh, after multiple hours of struggling to sleep, he finally sat up. He made to reach for the phone sitting on his nightstand but his hand froze. Pain filled his chest as he remembered that the other man was currently on a plane back to Montana, having only been able to go to dinner with him because he and Ellie had work to do a few towns away from him. He wouldn't be home for a few hours still.

He let his hand fall back to the bed. He racked his brain for who he could possibly call but no name besides the two paleontologists came to mind. Nobody knew him like they did. Nobody else understood.

His eyes fell on the bags the two had given him earlier that evening at dinner and Ian's face softened to a small smile. Nodding to himself, he got out of bed and pulled the red stuffed dinosaur from the bag Alan had earlier set in front of him. He examined the animal slowly, taking a moment to enjoy how soft it was. In a moment of unthinking, he brought the toy up to his face and took a deep breath, taking in the scent that he knew all too well was Alan's cologne and the dust that perpetually filled his house, carried back from the dig site every day. It was a scent of comfort.

It pained him a little when he realized what he was doing. Although he would deny it to any person who presented him with the question, he had to admit to at least himself that his feelings for Alan went well beyond friendship. If there was a possibility he could deny it to himself before, there was no chance of it now. Not as he carried the soft t-rex back to his bed and climbed back under the covers, the toy never parting from its spot nestled under his chin.

Ian couldn't help the small smile he had as he held the toy close to him and, for the first time in a very long time, managed to slip into a peaceful sleep.

Years later as Kelly lay dozing on Alan's sofa one summer night and the two men sat on Alan’s bed, Ian commented that he should go make his way to the hotel he typically stayed at while visiting the other man in Montana. But for the first time in their few month old relationship, instead of offering to help get Kelly to the car, Alan asked him to stay.

A small wave of panic washed over Ian. He had long ago made Alan aware that he was sleeping better through the night but never, even after they got together, admitted what made that change. He thought a part of him believed he wouldn't have to tell him. Maybe one night he would manage to fall asleep without clutching the stuffed animal to his chest. Then he could consider himself cured of his nightmares for good without the need of a crutch. Now, however, he was put in a position where it was impossible to avoid the fact. He couldn’t bring himself to turn down the offer he had silently been waiting for Alan to be comfortable enough to bring up. But in order to accept, he needed to either tell him or make peace with the fact that he wouldn’t be sleeping that night. He found himself not particularly fond of either option.

"Hey," Alan drew his attention back, his hand falling gently on the back of Ian's neck. He smiled softly as he felt Ian lean into his touch. "What's going on in that head of yours?"

Ian sighed heavily and made his way to his suitcase in the corner of the room. "You are not by any means allowed to laugh at me for this," he told Alan sternly and he knelt and opened the bag. He took a calming breath as he pulled the stuffed dinosaur from his bag and carried it back to the bed.

Alan smiled brightly, memories of working at his desk with the animal sitting beside his papers came back after years of being forgotten. "You still have this thing?" He held out his hand for the toy and smiled softly as Ian handed it to him. "I just found it in a museum gift shop and thought it would be a funny gift."

"Yeah, well. I slept with it that night and it became a crutch of sorts," Ian admitted quietly, eyes down looking at his hands as he fiddled them in his lap. "I can't manage sleep without it. It just- it made me think of you and it helped."

"That's why you started sleeping better?" Alan gave a soft laugh.

Ian scrunched his nose a little. "Hey, I told you not to laugh." He bumped Alan’s shoulder with his own, trying to lighten his own mood.

Alan brought his gaze up to Ian's face and covered the man's slightly shaky hands with one of his own. "I'm laughing but not at you. I think it's sweet and I'm glad you found something that helps."

With a sigh of relief, Ian let his head fall to Alan's shoulder. He turned his hand over and threaded their fingers together, smiling brightly as he felt Alan give his hand a light squeeze. "Now that that's done with," Ian chuckled out, "can we go to bed?"

Alan nodded with a bright smile. He turned his head to place a soft kiss to Ian's hair and hummed, holding the t-rex out to the other man who took it happily and held it close to him. Alan could only smile fondly at the man he absolutely adored.

As Ian tucked his head under Alan's chin once they were in bed, the t-rex under his own, Alan gave another soft chuckle. "Did you name it?"

Ian sighed out a soft laugh. "Uh, yeah, I did. I named him Parker."

"Parker?" Alan pulled back a little to look at Ian, smiling as he met his eyes. His brain ran through different reasons for the name, looking for some connection Ian might have to it but nothing came to him. "Why?"

"'Park,'" Ian spoke with a large smile. "Like 'Jurassic Park.'"

Alan scoffed lightly with a smile. "You named your stuffed t-rex after the place where you were almost eaten by a real t-rex?"

Ian shrugged. "Felt appropriate."

"You're absolutely ridiculous," Alan muttered, shaking his head.

"Yeah," Ian sighed, putting his head back to Alan's chest. "It's why you love me." He smirked softly to himself as he could hear and feel Alan's heartbeat quicken at his statement. He held the paleontologist closer and gave a soft content hum.

Alan sighed into Ian's hair. "Yeah, it is," he admitted, his voice muffled, unsure if the other man could even hear him. It didn't matter. They both knew it was the truth.