Discoveries | TMR | Three

3:5

Nick has been tossing and turning for the better part of five hours. In fact, he would go as far to say that in those five hours, he has only managed to sleep through one of them. Sporadically, in light intervals of ten to twenty minutes here and there, never quite reaching the REM stage his body so desperately craves.

And for once, it is not Alby's snoring, returning to the Glade, Jeff's health, his missing peers or Wicked themselves that keep his brain so active and alive, no. On tonight's agenda, it seems his thoughts are entirely consumed by Adeline. More so, their last two encounters.

The car, and the staircase. Whether or not he had portrayed himself as clear as he could have, and whether or not she was just too oblivious to realise.

Five hours of thought had forced him to believe that her ignorance did partially get in the way of understanding what he meant, but it also made him think that he could have definitely been less discreet in his words. After all, the pair of them were never that transparent with one another in the Glade. Fuck, if they were, then it would not have taken them two years to share that kiss - no matter how fleeting that moment may have been.

So why would it be any different now?

It wouldn't, is the simple answer, and Nick realises that he must be more direct in his approach, which would be fine... if it were not for his lack of balls as well as the ever-growing and very real possibility that Adeline susses out his deception. His deceit. Figure out all the lies he has spun her since they re-met.

Part of him wants to tell her. Before their relationship becomes more than what it currently is - because, trust him, it will become more - and he is trapped in the lie for as long as it takes her to figure it out, or for someone to accidentally spill the beans. But the selfish part of him wants to continue to play out the fantasy that he has fabricated, the fresh start that he has created for them both.

Would the truth be better coming from his lips than any others? Probably. Would the fallout be a spectacular form of chaos? Most definitely. He only wishes that, when the time does come, that she remembers more herself, so that she may have a vague understanding of why he did it.

Because it wasn't all for selfish reasons, despite what may be believed by most.

"Nick." After another toss and another turn on the bed, Alby's firm voice whispers to him through the darkness.

"What?" Nick asks, his tone full of pent up frustration as well.

"If you don't stop moving about I swear to God I'm gonna smother you."

"I can't help it," he whispers back. "I can't sleep."

"Then get out of bed and go do something." Regardless of the pitch black that surrounds them, Nick can hear Alby shifting on the bed, and it is obvious that he has spun to glare at him. "Let. Me. Sleep."

"Let you sleep?" Nick snidely retorts. "It's not that when your snoring keeps me up every ni-."

"Nick."

The slightly hissed tone of Alby's voice on that last use of his name tells Nick that he is on his final warning with the boy, and being in no mood to immerse himself in a screaming match at God knows what time in the morning means that he takes heed of the boys words.

Reluctantly, and huffily, he gets out of bed, his hands darting out in every direction until finding a piece of furniture or wall he can cling to that will assist in guiding him to the door. He leaves the room quietly - not for Alby's sake, you understand. If Nick truly believed it would awaken no others in this house, he would surely slam the door shut just to piss the old leader off, but alas, there are five other people he could possibly wake up, and he does not wish to annoy any of them.