Only one bed

[madmeemey]

there's only one bed!

Two characters have to share a room for the night. Every room is occupied, but fortunately there is one last room available.

There's just one problem — there's only one bed, and the characters aren't comfortable sharing it.

- TV Tropes

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[perastra]

[ This is not awkward, actually, given the fact that Stelle's very first memory is of Dan Heng's face getting shoved out of the way by March 7^th as he'd been preparing to administer emergency CPR on her. She's polled people anonymously in the weird chat groups she's been added to and most of them agree that meeting in such a way is about as awkward as it gets, and that subsequent interactions should be easier by comparison.

Granted, it hasn't been entirely smooth sailing, but Stelle is pretty sure they have an Understanding at this point.

Or at least she thought they had one, but now they're faced with a single bed and he wants to sleep on the floor all of a sudden? The fact that he sleeps on the floor the rest of the time too is immaterial--they're receiving hospitality and they should accept it without making a scene. ]

I don't thrash around in my sleep or anything, if that's what you're worried about.

[ She's sitting on the edge of the bed now, cross-legged, wearing an oversized t-shirt and sweatpants that she'd borrowed from Welt in the early days of her trailblazing and just never given back. The bed beneath her is certainly large enough for two people to sleep comfortably, provided they don't mind sharing close quarters. ]

There aren't any blankets to spare, anyway. Let's just share; I promise not to hog the covers.

[moondrunk]

[ Dan Heng stands on the opposite side of the bed, coat draped over one arm, pursing his lips and surveying their accommodations dubiously. He'd taken care to check the room over for security first before shedding his shoes and outer layers, and only then had he noted the... situation.

It's not that he isn't grateful for the hospitality. He's certain that for most of the crew, this is probably a luxury well-earned, and he's happy for them, truly. It's just very quiet and very comfortable, and Dan Heng isn't accustomed to either of these things. ]

...It's not you, [ he says at last, and doesn't elaborate. He dislikes the absence of the server noise, and the Express's engine, and the dancing patterns of water displayed on the floor, but there's no way to say that out loud without sounding silly in the face of their host's generosity.

He sighs and goes about folding his jacket, setting it aside with his shoes before climbing onto the bed opposite Stelle.

...And then produces his notepad and begins scrawling away. He smiles briefly, a peace offering, and pats the bed beside him. ]

Please don't stay awake for my sake. I may be up a while yet.

[perastra]

[ Uh-oh. “It’s not you” is definitely the kind of thing someone says when it absolutely is you, but Dan Heng has always been pretty blunt. If she’d really been doing something that bothered him, he’d tell her directly, or show his annoyance in some way, so she reluctantly stops nagging him about it. After all, his comfort is just as much a consideration to her as their hosts’ hospitality, and a more long-term consideration at that; he is her traveling companion aboard the Express, and she cherishes that bond.

Sighing, she acquiesces, turning off the lights (save for a lamp for Dan Heng to write by) before crawling under the covers and shuffling about until she’s found a comfortable position lying on her stomach with her arms under the pillow to brace her head. Sighing deeply, she finally settles down. ]

Good night, Dan Heng.

[ And then she closes her eyes and goes still and quiet, her breathing soft and even for so long that it might certainly appear she’s fallen asleep. That is, until she starts talking again without opening her eyes. ]

What are you writing?

[moondrunk]

[ Listening to her breathing slow, it'd be easy to assume Stelle has fallen asleep but Dan Heng has learned enough about her in their time traveling together that he assumes it's only a matter of time before her natural restlessness gets the better of her.

Right on queue, her voice cuts through the scratching of his pencil, interrupting his thoughts. He glances up from his notepad, a bemused eyebrow arching toward his hairline. ]

You know, [ he says dryly, ] usually when someone says "good night" it's because they intend to go to sleep.

[ He's just teasing, of course. He slots his pencil into the centerfold of his notebook and folds it shut, humoring her for the moment. ]

I like to write down the day's observations and events into this notebook before I sleep. It's helpful for later, when I'm recording the results of our trailblazing expeditions into the data bank.

[perastra]

Did you mention how cool I was when I fought those fragmentum monsters? I made sure to strike a pose--did you notice?

[ Stelle kicks her feet a little under the blanket like an eager child, just enough to make the sheets ripple over the surface of the bed. If he glances down at her again, he'll see that she's peering up at him now, her yellow-gold eyes luminous in the dim light. ]

I'm kidding. I know you'd write it better than that. I've read some of your archived works, you know? You're really talented. I'm sure the Nameless who come after us will really appreciate all your effort.

[ It feels a little unsettling to think of future generations when Stelle has only just begun her own journey, but even Akivili himself hadn't succeeded in blazing new trails indefinitely. Every story has an end; every train a final stop.

With a soft grunt, she curls up a little, bringing her into closer proximity with Dan Heng. Her body is warm, radiating heat like a furnace, the Stellaron inside of her always burning, burning, burning. ]

Do you ever write anything else? Anything that's just for you?