Chapter Text
Steven Stone gritted his teeth as his alarm clock blared. It was the day after Halloween, and at Syringa State University, that meant that the weeklong university Fall Break was over. Steven, of course, like the other faculty and administrators, didn’t get a break. Instead, he had been attending various professional development sessions - which were, of course, of various levels of effectiveness.
“Hey, Steven, wake up,” said his husband, Wallace Stone. Wallace untangled himself from his husband’s grasp as well as from the steel-colored bedsheets. “It’s November 1, and we’ve got to go to work.”
Steven sighed, stretched out his chest - which Wallace found was very cute - and then rubbed his eyes. The ragweed pollen in Boise had proven to be unbearable for Steven this semester, and he was certain that his eyes were red from the exposure. After realizing that fighting against his allergies was futile, Steven attempted to go back to sleep.
That was when Wallace yanked off the comforter and the sheets from their bed.
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An hour later, Steven was in his office. There was lots of talk regarding all sorts of Halloween stories, but Steven really needed to get some work done. He left his door ajar, as if signalling that he was only to be bothered for serious inquiries, and went back to reading his reports.
<< Oh great,>> thought Steven. << There are ten more emails about installing the new university app. How hard can it be? Just follow the directions, which literally takes five minutes at most and can be done by a ten-year-old. >>
<< Heh, >> responded Carlo the Metagross though a Psychic Whisper. The Psychic Whisper was a way for Carlo and Steven to communicate without verbally talking. Because Steven and Carlo shared an extremely strong Pokemon-Trainer bond, Steven was able to open up his mind to be read by Carlo, who in turn could respond by planting whispers in his trainer’s head through the Psychic Whisper technique. << You’d think they’d figure this out by now. But no, they’re going to have to panic because that’s what happens every time the IT department decides to use a new mandatory program. >>
<< I would feel sympathetic for Chloe if she hadn’t been such a jerk to me for no reason, >> responded Steven. One of his major pet peeves was insecure people who projected their insecurities onto him; Chloe definitely fell in that category.
<< Ignore that twerp, >> responded Carlo. << She brought that on herself. She can deal with it herself. And - Steven? Steven? I’m feeling frustration building up in your mind. Are you still mad about the Halloween party yesterday? >>