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Eddie, you aren’t sleeping enough.
Eddie tapped his pencil against the desk, squeezing his eyes shut and tipping his head back with a pained look. “You’re like a helicopter parent but like….a thousand times worse, you know that?”
We share flesh. If you suffer, so do I.
“No, you are in my flesh. You could always pick someone else who sleeps more.”
There was a quiet grumbling and he felt Venom slide down his spine a vertebra at a time, intentionally making his presence known like a cool ooze. For a while, Eddie ignored the childish behavior until he felt Venom probing around somewhere in his head like he was looking for the melatonin button.
“How old are you anyway?” he asked loudly, feeling Venom recoil with displeasure as the frequency vibrated through his skull. “Alien-wise. Because sometimes you act like a brat.”
There was a prickling all across Eddie’s shoulders, something he’d learned a while ago meant he’d sparked indignation in his parasite.
I am older than you know how to understand.
“Oh really,” he challenged, leaning his elbow on the table and propping his feet up. He reached slowly out for a Red Bull can sitting nearby, but it only took Venom a second to realize what he was doing and throw out tendrils to slow his arm in retaliation. Eddie leaned forward in a sudden jerk and grabbed the can anyway, but Venom just as quickly enveloped it in a layer of unappetizing black goo.
Eddie, don’t you dare. You know how that makes me feel. Your heart does strange things when you drink those instead of sleeping and your brain chemistry tastes bitter.
“Sounds like a deterrent to me, maybe I don’t want you licking my brain!” Eddie exclaimed, jerking against the hold the Symbiote had on his arm. He didn’t get far. When he and Venom were in agreement there was almost no limit to his strength, but when Venom was against him it was like having a very talkative straight jacket.
They could kill you, came the growl of retaliation.
Eddie couldn’t help his side-eyed smirk. “Aw you care.”
We’ve been through this. A jerk as they fought over the can. Go to bed.
“Tell me how old you are first and maybe I will.”
There was a snarl and Venom tried to make Eddie crush the can, but Eddie resisted so he couldn’t do it without risking a broken hand. Venom was good at healing but he usually worked to prevent injury in the first place.
“Even if you did trash this can I have like, an eight pack in the fridge,” Eddie said slyly, staring Venom down as the glob covering his hand prickled and turned white eyes on him. He was far past being disturbed by it.
Fine, bristled the teeth that manifested across his wrist. I am….something around 200.
“Somewhere around?” Eddie mocked. “Did you lose track or just give up?”
My place of origin does not have years the same as yours, I had to approximate.
“Okay I’ll give you that one. How long does your species live though?”
Until we can no longer attain life energy.
Eddie’s eyebrows went up. “So…...you could be immortal. Sort of.”
Yes.
“So you’re actually really young.”
….Yes.
“Well,” Eddie said, standing and tossing his can in the trash. “That explains a lot. Goodnight.”
Eddie thought that as Venom got more used to his ways maybe he’d back off a bit, even enjoy some of the less healthy habits he gravitated towards, but aside from eating mounds of junk food Venom didn’t approve of a whole lot.
Eddie, put the whiskey down we are dehydrated.
Eddie, your pulse is remaining unnaturally elevated. Why do you not just go fight Dan? You’ll feel better. We can eat him.
Move away from the smoke it is taxing our oxygen retention.
You worry too often. It is making your blood almost caustic. Stress kills, Eddie.
We really can just eat Dan.
Eddie--Eddie don’t block me out, I don’t like this song.
“YOU CAN TAKE ANOTHER HOST!” Eddie exploded one day, standing in the middle of his apartment. “Why don’t you!?”
I like you, Eddie…..do you really want me gone?
“Yes--no,” Eddie faltered, shaking his head and dropping onto the couch with a sigh. There was actually hurt in Venom's tone, and he felt bad. He’d been under a lot of stress and knew he was taking it out on the symbiote. After all, most of what Venom said was right and no matter how many times he insisted that his care was based on mutual interest, Eddie knew that wasn’t all of it. Venom wouldn’t have almost died to protect Eddie and Earth if he was only looking out for himself.
“I’m just... I need you to back off a little, alright?”
Talk less?
“Yes. Yes just...talk less.”
….But I know what is best for us.
Eddie scrubbed a hand down his face and sighed heavily. “Yeah I bet you do. Eating chocolate and tater tots sounds like the next big health discovery, you’re just ahead of the curve.”
There was a rippling and a wet sound as Venom bled out of him enough to form a face and look at him.
Eddie….
Eddie waved at him, avoiding those white eyes. “I’m just tired. Let me just rest on my own for once, will ya?”
Venom drew back slightly, looking almost afraid. Alone?
“No not alone you stupid parasite,” Eddie said, though the tone was fond. He pat his chest, an invitation for Venom to retreat again. “Just quietly. I know you need my lungs or you suffocate. Just stop telling me what to do with the body I’ve been living in a lot longer than you. At least for tonight.”
Venom eyed Eddie before sinking down.
Very well.
Eddie gave it a minute, but not only was Venom quiet, he was still. He sighed and closed his eyes in momentary relief before getting up and drinking a whole bottle of water and eating a bar of chocolate before brushing his teeth and laying down. He could feel Venom prickling with pleasure at the unprompted snack and he snorted, patting his chest as he fell asleep.
“You’re welcome, you dumb parasite.”
Venom pooled in Eddie’s chest cavity, content to nest in the minute spaces between heart and lungs and ribs. It gave him room to sprawl while he shared in the sleep chemicals flooding his host’s body, and it prevented him from sliding around Eddie’s chest wall on accident if he turned over in his sleep. That had happened once, and the sensation had been so strange it had jolted Eddie awake and caused them to fall off the bed.
As Eddie’s heartbeat and breathing slowed, Venom drifted off.
For a few hours, both slept peacefully.
Venom was jolted awake with the sharp burn of adrenaline. For a moment he was afraid they were under attack, but it took only a moment longer to realize that, even though Eddie’s heart was pounding and his body was curled tightly, he was not conscious.
The symbiote gently released his sleepy hold on Eddie’s organs, retreating long enough to get closer to his head.
Eddie, you are safe. Wake up.
He never had to be loud. His voice always woke Eddie even out of the worst nightmares. Even though Venom tried not to pick up too many of the images, he still got the edge of the dream and he flowed downwards again as Eddie shuddered awake, his chest heaving with strained breaths.
I have healed you, there is no split in your chest, Venom assured, blanketing himself across the inside of Eddie’s sternum and front ribs, an assuring vibration pulsing through him that seemed to calm Eddie down. Sure enough, the sensation of extra protection blanketing his abdomen rather than a cruel blade right through it seemed to snap Eddie out of it and soon he was calming down, throwing an exhausted arm across his eyes.
Venom waited for a while, resting on top of Eddie’s slowing lungs to give him space.
Are you...okay?
“Yeah….yeah buddy I just…” Eddie swallowed dryly and sighed. “Stress brings back all the bad stuff, you know?”
Yes, I do. He stroked gently along Eddie’s spine, stimulating nerves in his back and chest to soothe him. Eddie hummed in appreciation, his hand coming to rest over his sternum again. Venom rippled once under his hand and retreated, wrapping himself securely around Eddie’s vital organs.
You may rest, Eddie. I will keep us whole.