forum Out in Space (classic lit and sci fi!) (CLOSED, stalkers welcome)

Started August 14, 2020 by @ElderGod-Icefire

tune

(Aww, poor lad!)

Eden, miserable monster that they were, headed to bed and didn’t sleep for the guilt they felt. All they could do was stare blankly at the ceiling, intrusive thoughts running around their brain and flashbacks flying rampantly in their skull. They couldn’t sleep, so after a few hours they got up, and went to apologize to Victor. Deep down they knew they weren’t in the wrong, not at all, but they hated themself and quite frankly thought they deserved all of the horrible things Victor said about them. So they went to the lab, and knocked on the door as gently as they could.

It swung open. Victor had apparently unlocked it at some point, maybe unthinkingly and maybe on purpose. Maybe he wanted to see Eden. Even apologize, as unlikely as that was. Whatever the reason, it was unlocked, and Eden saw through the small sliver that had swung open with the force of their huge fist knocking, Victor. Victor was fast asleep, the man hadn’t slept properly in days in truth. This was good, Eden didn’t really want to confront him.

They lifted him up, like a mother would her child, and gently carried him up the stairs, setting Victor down on the bed. They gently closed his bedroom door, and went downstairs to prepare something to eat. They’d completely forgotten dinner, in all the events that had gone on earlier.

Alek didn't really manage to get to sleep, and eventually headed downstairs to sit on the couch and…he wasn't sure. Drink, maybe. Drinking chased away memories for the night, and then he usually managed to fall asleep in the wee hours of the morning, exhausted and drunk but not remembering his past, and was able to snatch a few hours of sleep before waking.

“Good morning to you, or night, whichever it is at this hour.” they said to Alek as they heard him walk in. They didn’t really know who was up, only that someone was and they were in the living room and had taken no car to be stealthy. They were putting together a large serving of spaghetti that would be enough for three, maybe four people, but would be only just enough to feed them. They didn’t like incredibly large meals, but their size and the amount of energy they burned on a regular basis caused them to eat quite a bit more than most.

Alek jumped a little bit, startled, head whipping around until he spotted Eden. "Ah. Night, I believe." he said, sitting down on the couch and letting out a breath. He didn't want to go through the cupboards right now, he decided. Maybe he would see tomorrow night if there was any sort of sleeping medication squirreled away somewhere.

“It’s a rough night for both of us, it seems. Do you usually have difficulty sleeping? I know a few remedies for that, if you don’t mind some unsolicited advice.” they said, boiling the water for the noodles and preparing the sauce from scratch, as they preferred to do their cooking. They chopped up some tomatoes and some garlic, mixing them in with some spices and boiling the concoction until it turned to a sauce they could easily pour over the noodles, which had also boiled by then.

Alek let out a faint breath. "I…suppose so. My way of sleeping is not very healthy." his mouth quirked faintly, and he shook his head. No, drinking the way he did was certainly not healthy.

“I recommend taking a moment to sort out the bad thoughts, the ones keeping you up. Just breathe, in and out, remember where you are and who you are. Stay in the moment, know who you are and what you’re going to do.” they said, putting together their meal and going to the dining room table to eat it. The dining room had a clear view of the living room, there wasn’t even a wall separating the two. “And what you’re going to do is sleep. I’ve also found a good cup of tea is always calming, even if I never drink it. It’s more the presence of a hot drink that helps.”

Alek looked over at them, shrugging a little. "Thanks." he replied softly, running a hand through his blonde hair. He didn't really know what else to say in response to this.

(Wait Alek is blonde- oh my gosh my art of him is so innacurate then isn’t it lol? Too late to fix it tho so I guess I’ll just exist here.)

“You’re welcome,” they said, practically devouring their meal. They really were quite hungry, after all, and they didn’t care about ‘manners’ or ‘not looking like a starved wolf’ at this hour.

(yee, he blonde boy lmao)
(I mean he's Scandinavian, what else would he be lol)

Alek looked around the room quietly, biting his lip for a moment and dropping his hands back down to his lap.

Lo had taken a quick power nap after taking care of her night routines, before suddenly feeling the urge to cook. It had woken her, actually, from what would have been a longer nap. She felt restless, probably due to the new surroundings. So she quietly rose from her bed, throwing on a robe, open, over the sleep shorts–on the shorter side, she got warm easily–and spaghetti strapped tank top she had worn to sleep. With her hair thrown up messily, she snuck downstairs, surprised by the sounds of voices as she did.

Instead of going to greet whoever was up, though, she let them be, as they were likely not in the mood to talk. She headed straight for the kitchen, humming softly as she began pulling out dishes. Cookies sounded good, but so did everything else she could think of.

She turned on her phone, connecting it to a pair of bluetooth headphones and only putting one in. Her music was worth listening to, but so was the space around her.

Maybe I'll make pasta and cookies. Enough for anyone who's up to have some, and maybe…triple a batch or so. That seems like it would feed everyone. Musing to herself silently, she began preparing. She could make at least one batch without any dairy. Even if she wasn't too fond of Victor, cookies were a matter that deserved to stay separate from personal opinions.

Mina was curled up with Jonathan in their bed, fairly satisfied. They’d checked every window or way to the outside they could find, and they were all shut tight. Now, in their night clothes and their things properly unpacked, her mind had moved back to what happened earlier that evening.
“I… I still feel like I could’ve handled the situation better,” she murmured, both to herself and Jonathan.
He combed his hands through her hair, making her eyes close at how soothing it felt. She heard him make a “Hmmph,” sound, like he expected her to say that.
“Darling, you care too much. It’s in the past, and the past can’t be changed. You know that.”
“I do,” she said. “But I can’t help but regret.”
Outside their window, the faint stripes of Jupiter could be seen hovering in the night sky, almost eavesdropping on them.
“There’s always tomorrow,” Jonathan sighed sleepily.
Mina opened her eyes. Underneath his loving gaze, there was a hum of nervousness.
“What about you? Are you alright?”
His gaze lowered. “I guess… this reminds me too much of three years ago.”
She nodded. She kept her eyes on him, reflecting on how similar their time downstairs had been to the meetings Van Helsing held in his study with them, Dr. Seward, and the rest. Of course, minus the arguments on how to treat the person you created in the name of science.

Apparently many of their group also struggled with sleep. Eden finished off their late dinner and clean off their plate, letting Lo go about her business completely separate from the little world of intruding thoughts that Eden found themself in.

Alek shifted, heading into the kitchen and starting some hot water for tea. He figured he may as well test out Eden's suggestion about making tea.