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Sucrose sat alone at her research desk, surrounded by teetering stacks of paper. The cramped room was dimly lit by a fading lamp and rays of dawn peeking through the window. Fighting off exhaustion, Sucrose adjusted her glasses and squinted at the beaker in front of her, leaning in to examine the substance at the bottom. Is that… Geo precipitate? But which of the reagents had Geo in it? Maybe I should double check…
Distinguishing between different types of elemental particles is hard even under normal circumstances, but Sucrose hadn’t slept in 22 hours and her vision was getting hazy even with glasses on. Sure, her girlfriend always tells her to take breaks and go to bed at a reasonable hour, but Sucrose had been planning this experiment for weeks and wasn’t about to give up on her breakthrough. As long as she could stay awake, she’d try to document these new results. But as she kept staring at the beaker, her head started to droop, and her eyes drifted closed as her head settled down into her folded arms.
A sudden creak startled Sucrose awake. Her head shot up, slamming into a shelf overhead with a loud crack. “Ow!” she yelped.
“I’m sorry!” A hushed voice came from the doorway. “I just wanted to check in, I tried to open the door slowly… Are you hurt?”
Gingerly rubbing her head, Sucrose turned to look at the door and saw Noelle standing in the doorway holding a tea tray, clearly very flustered. Sucrose’s face relaxed at the sight of her girlfriend. Noelle would often stop by Sucrose’s laboratory on her early morning strolls, and sometimes even brought tea and sweets. Her visits always made Sucrose’s day.
“N-no, I’m fine. Don’t worry about it. That door has been squeaking for the past couple days, it’s not your fault. But thank you for coming.” Sucrose smiled softly as she spoke, still fatigued and hurting but in much brighter spirits.
Noelle’s eyes widened with concern. “You could have told me, half of my job is fixing things around here. I’d be happy to help. And oh, Sucrose, please take care of yourself… nobody expects you to put in the kind of hours you do, or to work yourself to exhaustion like this.”
Sucrose looked down at the cluttered floor, avoiding Noelle’s gaze. “I know, but this experiment… I had to see it through…”
“But you didn’t, did you? I see how your notes have trailed off. Working like this doesn’t help you, or your research. Rest will help you. Please, please, know when to take a break!” Noelle paused, realizing that she’d been yelling.
Sucrose had retreated within herself, arms tightly crossed around her chest and head turned down. She wasn’t crying, but her steadfast stare at the ground had lost all its earlier warmth.
Noelle gasped. “Oh no, that was much too harsh. I’m so sorry.”
“I’m fine,” said Sucrose, her voice numb.
Noelle took a few hesitant steps towards Sucrose, gently setting down the tray on the cleanest spot on the desk. The tray clattered loudly against some test tubes, making them both wince.
“Are you sure?” Noelle asked, tentatively reaching her hand towards Sucrose’s face.
Sucrose took Noelle’s hand, slowly lowered it to her lap, and sighed. “Yes, I’m fine. I’m just… tired. And I know you’re right.” She looked up into Noelle’s soft hazel eyes, then off to the side as she spoke again. “But I don’t think there’s much I can do about it at this point.”
Noelle squeezed Sucrose’s hand in her own. “Oh, sweetie, I know it takes time to learn how to take care of yourself properly. But I’ll always be here to support you in the meantime. Look, I brought you some Valberry tea - decaf, of course, I want you to sleep - and some honey drops!” She gestured to the side, where the tea tray was precariously perched on the edge of Sucrose’s desk.
Suddenly aware of how hungry and thirsty she was, Sucrose snapped her head to look at the tea tray. “Oh, that’s my favorite! Thank you so much, Noelle, I really appreciate it.” She smiled warmly and stood up to hug Noelle. She stumbled as she got up, but Noelle caught her and held her tightly in a strong embrace. Noelle cupped her cheek and kissed her softly, and said, “Of course, my love. I’ll stay with you for a few minutes to enjoy the tea while it’s hot, but then we’re getting you out of this stuffy room. My room is close by, you can take a nap on my couch, okay?”
Sucrose nodded into Noelle’s chest, grateful for the offer. Noelle released her grasp, though she kept her hands on Sucrose’s waist. “Alright,” she said. “Now, let me serve you some tea~”