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 Posted: Thu May 03, 2012 12:57 pm
How long had they been here by now?
Gale had long since lost track of the days spent beneath the ground at their current base, silently and steadily working through his own missions as though moving on autopilot. He knew he was pushing his body to the limit, that he needed to rest, but Gale did not want to close his eyes. Closing his eyes meant sleeping, and sleeping meant dreaming.
Dreaming meant nightmares.
He was utterly drained and completely exhausted, but still Gale forced himself to stay awake. Almost forty-eight hours without sleep already, now he sat beside the door to the sleeping quarters, pulling on a clean shirt in the semi-darkness. He pushed his hair away from his face and exhaled slowly.
His eyes closed - just briefly.
Just five minutes of sleep wouldn't hurt would it?
Gale's head knocked back against the wall, swaying a little unsteadily as he fought the urge to keep his eyes shut, to give in and sleep. Forcing them open, he felt a wave of dizziness sweep through him, and Gale pressed his fingers to the sides of his heads, against his temples.
Don't think about it.
Pushing himself to his feet, Gale stepped into the barracks, intent on just...sitting...for a little bit. Perhaps it would ease some of the tension that was making his shoulders stiff, get rid of some of the exhaustion seeping into his veins.
He highly doubted it, but it was worth a shot.
The barracks, surprisingly, were almost entirely empty, save for one or two people curled up on the uncomfortable beds, blankets drawn up over their shoulders. One person in particular, on the lower bunk of a bed pushed far into the corner, was familiar, and Gale stood there for a moment, debating internally.
But then he made his way across the room, and stopped when he reached where Candace lay, not wanting to be alone. Silently he sat down on the floor beside the bed, sinking down so that his back was leaning against it. Strange as it was, being near her made him feel relaxed already, and Gale closed his eyes, his head falling back, already feeling the tangles of sleep beginning to grasp at him.
Don't dream.
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Posted: Thu May 03, 2012 1:52 pm
Candace was usually a heavy sleeper. It was easy to be when you knew you were safe in your bed in a shielded base where nothing could hurt you, where despite still doing so you didn't need to check under your bed or in your closet for monsters. It was easy to sleep when the only nightmare you had was of a man you could barely remember the face of as a child. It was easy to find comfort in knowing if you needed to there was a room two floors up you could go to if you had trouble sleeping.
It wasn't so easy when all of those factors were impossible to use. Still, it hurt to see all the groups and couples and people who were bunking together. It hurt to see, to be reminded she was going to bed alone. It hadn't been so bad at first, Candace was fine with sleeping alone...until she had the option not to. Giving her the option to sleep with company whenever she wanted had spoiled her. It had spoiled her a lot. Tack on the infection and you had one paranoid woman worrying that at any moment the horsemen or those fog creatures would find a way to get into their underground base. A lonely paranoid woman.
Candace wasn't a heavy sleeper anymore. At least not right now.
Something leaned against her bed and she sat up with a bit of a start, eyes wide and heart racing. Who? What? Huh? She looked down and noticed a familiar head of blonde hair sitting beside her bed, pouting. "Gale? What're you doing on the floor?"
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Posted: Thu May 03, 2012 2:46 pm
He was trying desperately to still stay awake, but it wasn't working anymore, Gale's eyes fluttering, thick with sleep. He leaned against the bed, shifting as he tried to get into a less comfortable position - perhaps that would help in some way.
Or maybe he should just give in and sleep already.
"Gale?"
Candace's voice. He jerked abruptly awake - or rather, more awake than he actually was, his head snapping upwards rather painfully. Wincing a little, Gale lifted a hand, rubbing at the back of his neck as he turned to see Candace, her own eyes open, looking down at him.
"Sorry," he murmured, and shook his head, trying to dispel some of the exhaustion. "I didn't mean to wake you, I just..." A small pause.
"...didn't want to be alone, I guess."
He trailed off with a small sigh, closing his eyes briefly. "Go back to sleep, I'll be quiet, I promise."
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Posted: Thu May 03, 2012 4:12 pm
At the apology she pouted. Sorry? Why was he sorry? Candace watched him, moving to rest and support herself on her elbows. She would have explained to him that waking her took absolutely no effort but admitting he didn't want to be alone stopped her. He was alone? But why? Gale was so sweet, how was he alone? Candace frowned. "..I can understand that." She said quietly, reaching down to toy with his hair. Being alone sucked. It was getting worse and worse being alone lately...
Wait, what? Be quiet? She pouted. "Gale. Get up here. You are not sleeping on the floor, idiot." It was the first time she'd ever called him something like that but he deserved it, okay? Candace moved over, patting the beside her on the bed. "Come on, no one should be alone." She didn't like being alone either.
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Posted: Thu May 03, 2012 6:06 pm
He could feel Candace's fingers in his hair, and Gale closed his eyes, exhaling slowly. It was just a small gesture, but it was familiar and reassuring as she gently tugged at the strands, and he could feel just a small bit of the tension ease.
But only a small amount. His eyes flickered over his shoulder back at Candace, brows drawing together in confusion.
"You want me to..." he started to say, then stopped, pressing his lips together. Ordinarily he would have refused instantly, but in this case it was just Candace - Candace, who he had once thought nothing of and now thought everything of. She was not just some girl, she was the girl who was his "older sister." And though his face was a little pink, Gale eased himself up from off of the floor and crawled into the bed, all but collapsing onto his side on it.
Every part of him ached, and his head was spinning. Gale closed his eyes, turning to press his face into one of the pillows as he sighed.
"...I don't want to sleep."
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Posted: Thu May 03, 2012 6:57 pm
"Yes." Candace replied with a sigh as Gale questioned her. She waited patiently for him to climb onto the bed with her, lifting the blanket to drape it over him as well and pulling the boy close with his back against her. She nuzzled at the top of his head and closed her eyes, her arms hugging him. He didn't want to sleep? That was a shame. Growing boys needed all the sleep they could get! Plus, he looked ready to pass out.
She sighed, smiling and shaking her head. "Such a kid." She teased affectionately, reaching for one of his hands and slipping her fingers between his. "Well, what can I do to help you stay awake, hm?" The usual way was something she would not do with Gale.
Never ever.
Not if he begged.
Just no.
Candace was at a bit of a loss. How does one help an exhausted boy not sleep? Keep his mind busy, maybe? But with what? She didn't...have any idea. She was tired.
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Posted: Thu May 03, 2012 7:16 pm
If it had been anyone other than Candace, Gale probably would have been redfaced, awkward, and stuttering. But this was Candace - she was a sister to him, and he could not view her any other way than how she was. Anything else would just be awkward and unwanted, for the both of them.
Gale closed his eyes, sighing. He squeezed Candace's fingers when she linked them together before forcing himself to not fall asleep, one arm beneath his head, staring at a fixed spot against the wall.
"Sleeping means dreaming," he muttered, and blew a strand of blonde hair away from his face.
"Just...you can sleep. I'm just..." Gale blinked, his eyelids feeling heavy.
"I had a dream about you," he said, but then realized how that sounded, and amended himself. "Not...not a weird dream, but...you were in it. And so was...Bix and Before and Marcus and Cass and..."
His voice wavered, ever so slightly.
"And Ben. Again."
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Posted: Thu May 03, 2012 9:45 pm
He began to explain why he didn't want to sleep and she was confused. Dreaming is bad? Since when? Dreams were great! She frowned, squeezing his hand again and nuzzling her face into his hair. A dream about her? What was so bad about that?
..Ben?
Candace lifted her head a little. "..It's okay, you don't need to explain it unless you want to." She smiled. "We'll just talk and stuff, okay? Until you're so exhausted you fall asleep and don't dream about a thing. How's that sound?"
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Posted: Sun May 06, 2012 10:48 pm
He felt at least a little bit more comfortable with Candace being gently affectionate, and dared to close his eyes, exhaling slowly.
"Ben is always in my dreams lately," he murmured tiredly, and forced himself awake again, pressing his lips together in a thin line as he struggled to keep his eyes open, to not fall asleep. "It's not very...pleasant."
There was a small pause as he shifted, sighing, and then Gale said, "But enough about me. How are you holding up? Are you all right?"
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Posted: Fri May 11, 2012 12:38 am
Were this anyone other than Gale, and were it not for the fact that he was here because he was tired and stressed out, Candace may have made a very inappropriate joke about how Ben was always in his dreams. No, that was a bad idea. It wasn't something one joked about; even Candace had her limits on what she would touch and who she would upset. "It's fine. If it helps..you're not the only one who has someone who frequents their nightmares." Candace chuckled and sighed, toying with Gale's hair. "Though mine is probably nothing like yours." It's not mine. She shuddered, shoving that memory away and instead forcing herself to focus on Gale again. This was about Gale. Don't think about anything but Gale. Sweet little Chipmunk.
One day he'd be a squirrel.
At the question of how she was holding up she shrugged. "Doing okay. Harrison's been helping me stay a tolerable level of sane. Atropos has been chasing off..the voices...though other than that it'd been a little rough." Candace chuckled. "As is to be expected~. I'll be happy when we can have our home back, I'm ready to go back up there and have some personal space. Current situation aside, of course." She smiled and hugged him tighter, rubbing his back and propping her head up with one hand. "But I'd rather not talk about what troubles me. I feel like I'm beating a dead horse with my feelings. Let's talk about happier things, hmmm~?" But what..
"Oh! Aria told me my training is coming to an end soon." Candace looked instantly excited by this news. Gale had been promoted before her last time, so it was safe to assume he was close as well, right? "Just think! Soon you and I will be hunters, not just trainees."
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Posted: Fri May 11, 2012 11:49 pm
He was being selfish, complaining to Candace about this. It was not as if she did not have problems of her own, especially everything going on within Deus Ex Machina. Gale could no longer control his own self, and he felt pathetic and tired.
"Harrison's a good guy," he said, his voice sounding weary. "One day I think I'd like to get to know him better...and preferably not when I'm all hopped up on JOY cookies and preferably not revolving around kissing."
Letting out his breath in a small sigh, Gale absently tugged at a few strands of his hair, his other hand resting against Candace's where her arm was wrapped around his waist. Despite the fact that he knew her words were true, he couldn't help but feel a small shiver of apprehension at the thought.
Hunters.
"Yeah," he said quietly. "Yeah, we will. Very soon."
A pause.
"...you nervous?"
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Posted: Sun May 13, 2012 5:07 pm
Candace grinned and nodded when Gale complimented Harrison. He was a very good guy, yes. "That is a very good idea. He's my best friend, I'd recommend him to anyone." She chuckled, holding Gale closer when he sounded like he was getting tired. Almost. She almost had him. Not that she was complaining but she wanted Gale to get sleep. She hummed quietly, soft enough that it wouldn't disturb any music-hating sleepers but loud enough for Gale to listen. It was just a random soft song on her iPod playlist, but she figured it could possibly be soothing enough to lull him to sleep.
At his question Candace paused, considering the question. Was she nervous..? She was definitely excited but...
She smiled, giving a little shrug and burying her face against Gale's hair. "Not really. I'm ready to be a hunter, I think. I want it so badly. I'm sick of just being a trainee. I need more." Candace toyed with the ends of Gale's hair. "Are you?"
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Posted: Thu May 17, 2012 9:32 am
"Remind me to get to know him, then," said Gale, and yawned again, covering his mouth with his hand. His eyelids felt absurdly heavy, but he could not sleep, did not want to sleep. Not yet, if he could help it.
Candace's voice felt warm and familiar in his ear, and Gale pressed his lips together as he listened silently. After a moment he said "...a little. Though admittedly, I'm more uncertain than nervous. I mean," he gave a small, slightly bitter laugh, and shook his head. "It's already difficult for people to take me seriously with how I look."
He sighed, exhaling slowly. "I'm just hoping that as a hunter, people will respect me and respect my decision to be a hunter. I know I'm young, but this was my choice."
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Posted: Thu May 17, 2012 10:37 pm
He was getting sleepier and sleepier. Perfect. Come on, Gale. Fall asleep. Please. Candace would protect you. Come on...if he got scared she would hold him, calm him. She would protect him.
"I take you plenty serious." Candace murmured, petting Gale's hair. "Something I've been..ah..taught is that if you want something...take it." She smiled, nuzzling her cheek against the top of Gale's head. "You earned my respect, didn't you? That's a hard thing to do sometimes. If you want respect, get it. Don't let anything or anyone stand in your way, understand?"
Candace leaned back enough to see Gale's face, pushing his hair out of the way. "Don't let your age or your height hold you back. I've seen it. You're strong, capable, efficient.." A pause. "Your handwriting is pretty s**t though. You should work on that." She grinned.
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Posted: Tue May 29, 2012 8:37 am
"Well," said Gale, giving a small snort, but it was a light one, not meant to be derisive. "I'm glad one person does, though it would be nice to have more..."
He trailed off a little, listening to her speak, a slight frown tugging at his lips. While he had been determined to prove himself, the ambition was less so, less of a fire, and it was for that reason, perhaps, that he had had such a difficult time with respect on the island.
Those who don't give respect and don't get respect don't deserve respect, isn't it?
Gale closed his eyes, sighing. "Yes, well...I'm glad we're not judged on handwriting," he said, a bit dryly, and let himself move a little closer to Candace, tiredly (and most likely subconsciously) curling up against her. He was already starting to fall asleep, though he was trying desperately want to.
"...you're a good sister."
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