It's his favourite way to wake up--or fall asleep. There's something just entirely genuinely comforting about having Elliot's fingers tracing over his bare skin. It's starting to be a pattern, even, and the familiarity makes it even better.

Recently, he's started to wonder if the delicate patterns are something more than just random expressions. They've started to feel familiar as patterns themselves, after all.

So the return of consciousness today comes with as much stillness as he can. His breath stays slow and steady, eyes gently closed. Now is the time, groggy though he is, to try and guess the pattern.