"I don't really sleep," Kaye answered with a small shrug as he set the bottle down beside him. He had a few pills at his house that he was prescribed with in order to fall asleep, though after a few months of using them, he stopped. He didn't like sleeping anyway…especially the dreaming aspect of it.
Simon recognized the feeling. But it had been a while since he'd been afraid of sleep, and he preferred to keep it that way. "You should rest a bit though… I can sleep on the floor.."
"No, Simon, sleep on the couch. You're injured," Kaye insisted, part of him wondering why the other man was trying to help him. Most people had never put that much thought into him, so it was an odd feeling at times. He tried to stifle a small, sleepy yawn as he took a sip from the bottle, hoping that Simon wouldn't notice.
Simon opened his mouth to argue, but he was already slipping away, down into a deep sleep. The pain washed away, the fear dissipated, all thoughts of his family disintegrated, it was just him in the blackness. At rest for now.
A weak smile managed to make it's way to Kaye's face as he watched Simon slowly slip away and close his eyes. The other man must have been really tired after all…and thankfully he stayed. If not, Kaye worried that they might have lost their way home or fallen asleep somewhere else. He soon grew tired himself and tried to stay awake by taking large swigs of whiskey, but all the alcohol seemed to do was make his lids feel heavier.
(skip to morning?)
also are you okay? your username worries me (no sarcasm intended)
(oh, I'm fine. My friend just changed my username lmao, but thank you for checking)
(And yeah, we can skip to the morning)
(oh lol okay)
(sure)
Simon stirred in his sleep, the meagre sunlight playing across his weary face. Even in his slumber, he looked exhausted, devastated, but at least somewhat at rest. He shifted, the blanket slipping off his shoulders, but didn't wake.
Kaye had also fallen asleep last night, and was still sleeping in a seating position on the coffee table, his shoulders slouched forward. The bottle of whiskey seemed to have been knocked over in the night as well, part of it spilling onto the surface and onto the cement ground.
Eventually, Simon came to, groaning as he slowly opened his eyes. He was met by unfamiliar surroundings, surroundings that were definitely not those of his flat, and his first response was fear. He sat bolt upright, pain shooting through his head and back– and relaxed. Of course. He was still at the bar, safe.
Kaye continued to sleep in front of Simon, slouched forward on his elbows as his messy hair fell across his gaze. Even the far away voices of a few workers couldn't wake him up, which was quite surprising. Instead, he slept through all these noises, a soft frown was their features which made him look a little upset as he slept, as if he were stuck in some sort of thought or dream
Simon’s gaze fell on Kaye, and his heart skipped a beat. He would have moved to frown down at the traitorous organ, but his eyes were glued to the slumbering form of the man in front of him. Mussed locks of reddish hair fell across his forehead, his features softened by sleep, but there was a frown on his face. Was he dreaming? Simon sat up with a grimace of pain and carefully approached.
Soft puffs of breathe escaped Kaye's lips, as well as the occasional mutter, as if he were talking to something…or himself. He hadn't sleep talked in quite some time– or not that he was aware of– but it was usually quite sudden, or came in short bursts of words. Though, as he continued to sleep on the small coffee table, he stirred in his sleep faintly, signaling that he would possibly be up sooner than intended.
None of the words Kaye uttered were recognizable or decipherable from were Simon stood, but they did serve as a source of worry. He crouched down next to the other man and placed a hand on his shoulder, shaking it lightly to wake him.
Kaye grimaced faintly when he felt a hand on his shoulder, though after a few moments, his wider eyes opened to meet the mismatched ones he was so used to by now. His gaze still looked a bit faraway and sleepy as he glanced down towards Simon's bandaged shoulder, a soft frown of concern crossing his face. "Simon…your shoulder. You shouldn't be up…" Kaye yawned as he motioned towards the couch near the other man.
At this point, Simon had barely registered the pain. Tearing his eyes away from Kaye, he frowned down at his shoulder. “Eh. It’s fine.” He then glued his eyes back on Kaye. “How are you? You looked like you were… dreaming.”
"Dreaming?" Kaye mumbled tiredly as he watched Simon, not used to such proximity between him and the other man. It almost distracted him from his thoughts and the question Simon had just asked. "I–I don't remember…" he trailed off, running a hand through his hair, though it continued to poke out in every direction. He remembered a few tidbits, a couple faces, memories, though nothing that really caught his attention. He had been wandering around for so long that he barely remembered much.
Simon tried to get himself to move father away from Kaye, to or some distance between them, but his limbs wouldn’t obey. Swallowing, he drew his thoughts away from Kaye’s messy hair and hazel eyes. “You looked upset?” he prodded, trying to nudge the other man in the direction of recollection. “In your sleep, I mean.”
"Upset," Kaye repeated as he looked towards Simon, drawing his brows together in thought. "Yeah, I was. It was– it was about my brother, and– and sister," he added on, his gaze brightening as if he were remembering little bits and pieces, though as soon as he did, the talking stopped. It was if he just suddenly cut himself off, remembering something specific.
"I..I don't remember anything else," Kaye added on quickly, trying to cover up his silence with a white lie. He didn't want Simon knowing too much about him already, and he wasn't sure if he was ready to talk about it either.
(Good morning! Sorry, I fell asleep by accident)
Brother… Sister…. Simon stashed this bit of knowledge away for another time, and there was evident concern in his expression when he looked down at Kaye. He nodded in response to what the young man had said. “How are you feeling now?”
(Morning! And don't worry about it)
"My head hurts," Kaye mumbled as he pressed two fingers to his temple. It wasn't surprising if you looked over towards the bottle of whiskey near him, already half empty. Though, still in his drowsy state, he didn't understand why Simon cared about his wellbeing so much…what had he done to deserve that?
(thanks
how are you?)
Finally, Simon snapped out of his sleep-induced haze and shifted farther away, a subtle mask of detachedness crashing down over his expression. He was getting to involved, showing too many emotions, and it needed to stop. Immediately. He glanced at the bottle besides Kaye, indicating to it. "That's probably why."
(I'm good, hbu?)
Kaye nodded slowly as he glanced down towards the bottle, though the change of emotion of Simon's face quickly caught his attention. The other man's usual…almost blank expression returned to their features, and he felt himself frowning, confused as to why it had changed so quickly. Had he done something wrong?
(I’m good)
Simon turned away from Kaye in an attempt to collect himself, looking around for a clock. “What time is it?” he asked, though he knew Kaye probably didn’t know either. Get it together, he told himself harshly, reaching up and pressing down on his bandages shoulder wound as a reminder. The burst of pain brought him successfully back to the present.