Gifted | Sleepy Bois Inc

Chapter Twenty-Six

Five days.

Time was leaking out of my grasp. I felt like I was doing nothing, and yet time was flying away faster than my legs could carry me. I could only watch as it slipped away, evading capture, the sands trickling down nonstop.

Only five more days, the voices sang. Five days until the Smiley vs Techno duel.

***

"Good morning, Techno," Tommy yawned as he leaned against the locker next to mine.

I closed the door of my locker and glanced over at him. "What's up with you?"

"Hm?" He blinked his blue eyes at me drowsily. "What do you mean?"

"You've been looking really tired lately," I pointed out. "The bags under your eyes look like ancient Egyptian kohl eyeliner. You look pale. Do you even know what sleep is anymore?"

"Of course I do!" he said defensively. "I've been sleeping! A lot!"

I raised an eyebrow. "Sure."

He muttered some typical, angry things under his breath, turning away from me. It would've been disheartening if it wasn't for the yawn that he couldn't manage to hold in. The action reminded me of Wilbur and my conversation with him a couple days ago. The thought didn't cheer me up in the slightest.

"Hey, sleep is important, okay?" I said, softening my tone. "Being well rested is good for the body and mind. You need sleep. Three days without it, and the hallucinations begin."

Tommy sighed. He glanced over at me, then turned around to face me again. "I know," he said dejectedly. Then he brightened. "But hey, I'd gladly give over that sleep anyway. This is fun. A learning experience."

"What's a learning experience?" I asked. "If you mean studying, then forget about it. Information goes right out the brain the next day."

He scowled again, but it was more of a typical Tommy move rather than an actual expression of irritation. In fact, he seemed... fidgety. "I know. I'm not studying, though."

I harrumphed. "Well, you should be."

This time, his scowl was real. "Man, you're so annoying," he complained.

"Thank you. It's a personal pastime."

Tommy simply shook his head, but he couldn't suppress a grin. Even though I had been joking around, the bags under his eyes really were pretty dark. He seriously needed rest.

I put my arm around his shoulders and guided him towards our first class. "You know, you could always put a sleeping mask on and take a trip to the bathroom," I suggested. "If the teachers ask, tell them you ate a really spicy burrito."

His face flushed red. "Techno, I have an actual sense of dignity. I'm not gonna do that."

"Your loss," I shrugged.

But despite all my kidding around, I felt worried. Tommy looked tired enough to fall down and not get up again. I couldn't help but wonder what it was that was keeping him up at night like that.

"So, you're not doing anything illegal, are you?" I asked casually.

Tommy shot me a weary look. "What's it to you?"

"Oh, you know, Phil would kill me if he found out I was letting you do anything socially unacceptable." I shrugged. "But eh. Whatever floats your boat."

He squinted at me, as if trying to figure out whether I was joking or not. I kept a straight face as we walked. I wasn't really joking. I was pretty cool with anything, seeing how I probably wasn't the best person to set an example. But I didn't just agree with everything, either. If he was doing seriously bad stuff out there and his parents weren't stopping him, then I'd have to be the one to put my foot down.