Chapter Text
Day 60
There was something strange happening with Bill.
Well…unusually strange since Bill wasn’t exactly your run of the mill citizen to begin with…
The first thing Ford noticed was that the other man slept a lot more than usual and when the blonde eventually woke up he looked as if he had gotten no rest at all. The heavy bags under his eyes and the pallor of his skin made Bill look extremely sickly…
The second abnormality was how quiet and reclusive Bill was once he was awake. Ford couldn’t help his disappointment when Bill never reached out to play chess with him again and even when they did, Bill just didn’t seem like himself…he would knock over pieces while moving another one and it seemed all his strategy was gone.
It had been like this since Bill showed up in Ford’s dream a few weeks ago. How he was doing that, Ford had no clue but it wasn’t as if Bill was around to really talk about this newfound ability.
Not only that, but when Bill showed up in his dreams he was like a different person entirely. Energetic, charismatic, even…charming. This wasn’t too abnormal but it didn’t seem to match the person in the real world.
Ford became more worried with each passing day and when he tried to talk to Bill about it when the man awoke from three days of near constant sleep, Bill would shrug it off and ask to be left alone before returning to the guest room.
Three days later, the process would repeat. The more time passed the less Ford saw of the shadow of a man he called his partner.
So Ford decided on a different approach. He would ask Bill when he showed up in his dreams.
The surf on the beach was rougher than usual in Ford’s mindscape. Ford rubbed his arms as a chill swept over him, “Bill?” He looked around the shoreline and watched as the sand was whipped through the air by the harsh winds, “Bill? Are you there?”
The wind calmed down and the surf quieted, “I’m here,” a voice approached from behind him and Ford turned to face Bill, “Got something on your mind, Stanford?” Bill observed the now calm surf.
Ford’s gaze shifted nervously, “I wanted to ask you something…” he started, waiting for Bill to retort. When the other man said nothing, Ford continued, “…is everything alright with you? You seem off lately…”
Bill shrugged, “People get tired, Stanford,” he said dismissively as he sat down in the sand, “Can’t fault a guy for wanting to get some sleep when he needs it, am I right?”
Ford figured Bill would dodge the question but to this extent? “There must be more to it than just that, Bill,” he said as he sat down next to the man, “You don’t look like you’ve been getting sleep at all…”
Bill slacked his shoulders and leaned back on his hands, “What kind of convincing do you need in order to believe that I’m fine?”
Ford shook his head, “Look, I’m just worried is all,” he said, waving his hands defensively, “You’ve been a tremendous help with the portal…and I know our efforts have been extremely exhausting…I just hope you’re not feeling overworked…”
Bill cracked a small smile, “Of course not,” he said with a gleam in his eyes, “We’re almost there, after all. We’re running the last sprint of the race.”
Ford regarded him for a moment before venturing one last time, “So…everything’s alright, then?”
Bill smirked, “The devil’s in the details, Stanford,” he replied before adding in a serious tone, “So don’t look too much into it.”
With that, Bill was gone and Ford was left alone on the beach. Feeling dejected, he lied down in the sand and willed himself to wake up.
A few days later, Ford was surprised to see Bill resting on the couch in the living room. His skin didn’t look nearly as pale as it had a few days ago and his hair was damp against his forehead. Ford could smell the soapiness in the air and figured the man had just taken a shower.
As he walked past the couch he ruffled Bill’s hair, “How are you feeling?” He asked as he walked into the kitchen.
Bill made a small noise of approval, “I’m okay,” he said before perking up and looking over the couch into the kitchen, “Are you making tea?”
Ford was actually getting ready to leave the kitchen but turned back around to save face, “Sure am,” he lied, “Want some?”
“Please.” Who could say no to that?
“All we have are your boxes of jasmine,” Ford said as he fished out a few of the small satchels, “It’ll have to do I guess.” As he placed two mugs of water in the microwave, he figured he could probably invent something to boil water faster (and probably safer). Tomorrow was a new day.
Maybe after the portal project.
Once the tea was ready, he carried the two mugs to the living room and set one down in front of Bill, “There you go,” he said as he took a seat next to Bill on the couch.
Bill eyed the mug for a second before grabbing it and sitting up, “Thanks…” he mumbled quietly.
Ford nodded and they sat in a comfortable silence as they each sipped at their tea. Every now and then Bill would break the silence with a small yawn. Ford noted that Bill still looked really tired despite sleeping so much. He wondered if Bill actually got any sleep at all.
Bill hummed and a small smile crossed his face, “This tea tastes stale...” he said teasingly.
Ford chuckled, “I told you a while back that would happen,” he said as he peered into Bill’s empty mug, “You finished it, though.”
Bill shrugged, “Nothing like some hot water with a slight aromatic flavor to center your being,” he responded sarcastically. Bill stretched before he lay back down on his back, his head propped up on the arm of the couch and his feet pressing against Ford’s thigh, “I feel like I could sleep for a week.” He adjusted his knees to give Ford more room on the couch.
Ford was thankful for the icebreaker over that conversation and he shifted to allow his partner a more comfortable position, “Have you slept much the last few days?”
Bill groaned and covered his eyes with his forearm, “If you call that sleeping,” he said tiredly, “Feels like I’ve been awake for weeks…”
Ford frowned, “It seemed like you were sleeping well enough when I went and checked on you earlier…”
Bill smiled, “Aw, that was sweet,” he said, “Checking on me.”
Ford felt his face get hot, “Well…I was worried…we’ve both been working hard lately…”
Bill nudged Ford’s hip with his foot, “Calm down, sixer, I’m just teasing,” he said, “Appearances are deceiving, though…I feel like I haven’t slept at all despite how it looked. I keep having bad nightmares…”
“Nightmares?” Ford was confused. Bill had to know he was visiting Ford in his dreams…at least it certainly seemed like it… Though Bill had never actually talked about it when they were both awake…Ford didn’t want to press the matter just yet, it was strange enough as it was… “What kind of nightmares?”
Bill was silent before he removed his arm from his eyes to reveal they were bloodshot and glossy, “I don’t really want to go into it,” he said, blinking rapidly and wiping at his eyes, “Sometimes I’m afraid I’m not going to wake up…”
Ford felt like his heart was breaking at the sight in front of him. He had never seen Bill look like this…never imagined he ever would for that matter. He seemed so haunted by whatever was plaguing his sleep. Ford set his mug down and gave Bill a reassuring pat on the knee, “Don’t talk nonsense,” he said, “Once this portal gets finished, you’ll feel much better, I guarantee it.”
Bill gave an unconvincing smile, “Yeah…” He broke off into a yawn again and sighed irritably, “Dammit…I really don’t want to sleep now…”
Ford patted Bill’s knee again, “Clearly you need it,” he said as he grabbed the blanket that was draped over the couch, “Here, catch a few z’s.” Before Ford could lean forward to give Bill some privacy he heard an indiscernible mumble from Bill, “I’m sorry, did you say something?”
Bill’s gaze shifted nervously, “I said will you stay with me? I don’t…” he looked conflicted and he turned over on his side, “I don’t want to be alone…”
Ford stared at him for a minute before he smiled, “Of course…sure, I’ll stay,” he said as he sat back down, “I’ll be here.” He noticed Bill relax almost immediately and he chuckled at how Bill was hiding his flushed face with the blanket.
Their positions on the couch proved uncomfortable and Bill was starting to push his feet against Ford in an effort to stretch his legs out. Ford noticed the struggle and tapped Bill’s ankle, “You can stretch your legs out if you want,” he said as he coaxed Bill into stretching his legs across Ford’s lap, “If you want me to move, I can go grab the armchair from the study…”
Bill shook his head, “No…stay here…I don’t mind,” he said sleepily, “Thank you…” Within minutes he was fast asleep.
Ford was glad he kept a book nearby. Theories on anomalies proved to be very interesting subject matter while he was serving a purpose as a human pillow for his partner.
Every so often Bill would jerk a bit in his sleep but would instantly calm when Ford would give a few reassuring pats to his thigh or rub his thumb over Bill’s knee.
Still, Bill continued to shift uncomfortably until finally, he sat up and switched positions, placing a pillow on top of Ford’s lap and laying down. As he adjusted into a more comfortable position, he nuzzled his face against Ford’s stomach.
Ford, meanwhile, was having an internal dilemma at this change. He was pretty sure his face was redder than a tomato and that his heart had probably fallen in his stomach. Bill had moved so quickly that he hardly registered what the man was doing until he was fast asleep in his lap.
Which irritated him because now he had no comfortable way of holding his book unless he rested the spine on top of Bill’s head. And that wasn’t going to happen. Ford sighed and leaned back against the couch, resting one hand on Bill’s shoulder and considering just going to grab the armchair from his study.
But when he noticed how peaceful Bill appeared he found it difficult to convince himself to move. After a few minutes, Ford reach over and yanked at the handle which allowed him to recline his section of the couch to a small degree. The recliner for the back was jammed so all he could really do was elevate his legs, still it was a lot more comfortable and Bill didn’t seem bothered by the movement.
Until Ford noticed Bill’s eyes tighten stressfully and he made a low noise from the back of his throat. Concerned, Ford gently shook Bill’s shoulder and nearly went into a panic when that seemed to exacerbate Bill’s stress.
Before he could make things worse, Ford took a deep breath as he placed his hands on Bill’s forehead and gently rubbed the crease of Bill’s brows with his thumbs in an effort to coax Bill’s muscles to relax. For a moment, it seemed to work and while the small massage was helping Bill on the outside, Ford could still tell that Bill was stressed on the inside.
Unfortunately, he didn’t know how to alleviate that in this position so instead, he focused on making sure Bill stayed relaxed. Eventually, one hand sifted through Bill’s hair to massage the back of his skull to the nape of Bill’s neck.
After a while, Bill’s twitching had stopped completely and for a full hour, the other man slept peacefully on Ford’s lap. Ford smiled as he continued with his ministrations and told himself not to get used to it.
But he knew he was lying to himself.
Eventually, Ford fell asleep with his hands resting on Bill's head in a contented moment of peace.
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