"What are you doing sitting in the Commons alone?" Roman asked his boyfriend, who was sitting on the plain black couch, curled in on himself and hugging his knees to his chest.
"I'm tired."
"Then go to bed and sleep," he said as he walked into the kitchen to fill up a glass of water. Luckily the kitchen and the Commons weren't separated by a wall so Roman could still keep an eye on his boyfriend - the behaviour he was showing concerned him, Virgil was never so open about how he was feeling unless it was a particularly bad day.
"No, I'm tired not sleepy," Virgil said with an exhausted sigh. He rubbed his eyes and glanced at the controller that had been in his hand for half an hour now, trying to find the energy to turn the TV on.
"What's the difference?" Roman asked as he returned to the Commons and sat beside his obviously upset boyfriend; he wanted nothing more than to reach out and take his hand but he couldn't, he knew that wouldn't help Virgil.
"Sleepy is wanting to sleep and being able to do so... tired is rewatching old episodes of cartoons trying to remember how happy they made you. Tired is opening an old favourite book and intending to read it but you cant figure out what any of the letters are, its sitting alone in the Commons at 3am because you desperately want to sleep but the thought of being in your bed terrifies you. Sleepy is heaven, tired is life."
"oh... I think I might understand," he didn't really understand, but he would try. He always tried for Virgil after all.
"I can explain it in terms of creativity if that would help?" Virgil asked, knowing that his boyfriend hadn't understood the long metaphor filled explanation. His prince wasn't stupid, in fact he was far from it, but he learnt and understood things visually rather than just being verbally told something. He learnt through pictures and colours rather than textbooks and lectures, but Virgil wasn't very good at creating pictures to make a point like Roman so he settled for an easier way to explain it - using something the prince could somewhat relate to... with a few metaphors thrown in.
"Please," Roman responded, he desperately wanted to understand what the other was going through so that he could begin to help his boyfriend in ways other than just hoping to be there when days like these struck.
"Its having an amazing idea and wanting to do it yet you cannot make your body obey you so instead you lay in bed thinking about how amazing the idea would've been - until the idea fades and you're left alone, laying in bed and baptizing yourself in sadness."
"I... I understand, thank you, is there anything I can do to help?" Roman asked, unwilling to let the other suffer through the Dark Days alone anymore.
"I... watch some old Steven Universe with me. Please?" Virgil asked, his voice so hesitant that Romans heart ached and he instinctively took the remote from Virgil's hand and replaced it with his own.
"Of course! Season one?" He asked enthusiastically, trying to his blush despite the fact that they had been dating for three months. Virgil found it cute so he didn't point out that Roman was failing at hiding the red tinge on his cheek.
"Jailbreak?"
"Of course, anything for you, love."
"Thank you.. Roman," Virgil sighed as he lent on his boyfriend, listening to his heart beat.
"It's nothing, Virgil. I love you."
