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Ness continued to lie awake, feeling as if time was slowly going by. He waited for the day to come at a faster pace, knowing full well it wouldn’t happen. Not anytime soon.
He continued to toss and turn in bed, not a trace of exhaustion present in his eyes. He closed his eyes, waiting for sleep to come to him , but it ended up not happening. He straightened, deciding not to focus on sleeping, at least for the time being.
Before Ness could move any further, he heard the sound of tinkering from not far away. Although it sounded more like something hitting metal of some sort. He got up, his legs hitting the floor and his hair bouncing with activity. He sauntered in the dark, but he still was able to see Jeff working on a new invention. He had been doing this since he joined Ness and Paula back when he saved them in Threed. Come to think of it, had he gotten any sleep since he accompanied them? From the looks of it, it didn’t seem so. Knowing this, he might as well remind him to sleep whenever he got the chance, starting now.
Instead, he asked, “Whatcha workin’ on?”
It came out of nowhere. He had to admit, he was curious when it came to Jeff’s trinkets. He proved himself to be a useful asset to the team with those, as well as his critical thinking skills. He was very passionate about his inventions, too.
“O- oh,” Jeff whispered sheepishly, and he began to explain what he was working on. It appeared to be a bazooka, probably serving as a weapon for himself. Not only was he working on that, he was working on a shield killer for the rest of the team. So he multitasked as well? He really needed to catch a break, Ness thought after a while.
As Jeff continued talking, Ness found himself to enjoy Jeff’s company, and he loved how he was able to gush about his interests. The more he thought about it, the more he found it cute, for lack of a better word. He even found Jeff himself to be cute, and he couldn’t understand why. Was it his shy demeanour? The way he fought in battle? His appearance? He couldn’t figure it out for the life of him.
Jeff stopped talking for a moment, focusing on his work. He appreciated Ness coming over to watch him do his thing, as he craved company every now and then. He continued to have his back turned to his work, then at Ness, who was smirking slightly as he was facing the ground. His violet eyes seemed as if they were lighting up the room, though that could have been Jeff’s mind playing tricks on him, considering how sleep deprived he was. He felt his face burn at the sight of his facial features, and for a second, he looked to be the definition of perfect.
Was it just him, or did he just find Ness attractive for a second?
“Why are ya lookin’ at me like that?” Ness asked suddenly. “Is there something on my face? You really gotta tell me about these things…”
Jeff quickly averted his eyes, blushing like crazy. He couldn’t have been thinking about that right then. It was a feeling he had never experienced before, especially when it was towards a boy . And thanks to his slip up, he ended up weirding Ness out in the process. Go me, Jeff thought for a moment.
No. He couldn’t have fallen for Ness right then. There was no way. No way in hell. And even if he did, it would get in the way of their whole ‘saving the world’ business. He shouldn’t let his feelings get in the way of his, as well as Ness and Paula’s mission. Besides, he was almost done with the new invention, and he didn’t want to wait until tomorrow to finish it.
Ness wondered why Jeff was staring at him oddly every now and then. It gave him the feeling that Jeff wouldn’t be interested in an intimate relationship with him. No , he shouldn’t be thinking like that. He had to keep control of his feelings, at least before they escalated even further.
As Jeff continued to work on the halfway-finished bazooka, Ness inched closer, getting a better look. “So when are ya gonna be finished with it?”
Jeff shrugged. The amount of time he finished making an invention varied. As well as that, it usually depended on whether or not he was tired.
He turned to face Ness, only to see him much closer than he was earlier. He had a better view of his eyes that way. His hands were placed in front of him, but Jeff wasn’t specifically focusing on that at the time. He wanted to tell him not to be so close, but he couldn’t find the words to express it to him. So he stood there, petrified, with his face glowing red.
“I, uhh…”
“Hmm?” Ness cocked his head a certain degree.
Jeff swallowed. “Nothing… it’s nothing…”
Ness changed his sitting position, turning to Jeff’s tools and not close to his field of vision. “Isn’t it about time we sleep soon? I’m startin’ to get tired, anyway.”
Jeff shrugged once again. “I guess? If that’s what you want to do, go ahead. I’ll keep on trying to finish this.” He pointed to the bazooka.
“What?” Ness asked. “I’m talkin’ about you, too. Now c’mon, I’m not lookin’ forward to wakin’ up super tired in the morning.”
“Then you go to bed. I’ll sleep soon, just let me finish-”
Before he was able to finish his sentence, Ness relaxed, his body hunching forward, the weight of his chest now upon Jeff’s legs, making him unable to move. He then proceeded to curl up into a ball. This resulted in Ness’s body refusing to budge as well.
“What are you doing?”
Ness looked up at him, eyes half-open. “Falling asleep.”
Jeff clicked his tongue. “At least do it on the hotel bed .”
He wondered if it was because he refused to go to sleep. He moved back to adjust his position, causing Ness to pin him down even more. He attempted to reach for his tools, but he couldn’t, considering Ness was hovering over his abdomen. His head wound up against the floor, but he continued to lie there, somehow content with his situation.
Ness was right. He had to sleep soon, if not now. He couldn’t even remember the last time he slept, let alone had a proper sleep schedule. He rubbed his eyes, noticing how heavy they felt. As a result, his eyes forced themselves shut, drifting into unconsciousness. Perhaps Ness had a point there.