"Ti?"
There was some silence, then there was the sound of aged wood creaking. "Yes, Rusty?" Her throat was a little sandy.
"What does it feel like to fall asleep?"
There was another beat of silence. The silence was not unbearable, but rather something comfortable and tranquil.The dead of the night soothed him, and the darkness was like a thick blanket; one where evil deeds are hidden and good deeds not shed to light. To him, it would be what humans called 'comfort'.
"Hmm--" The girl pondered that thought. "Sleep is a waste of time. Humans spend a third of their lives sleeping and while you're asleep, you lose conscious. Meaning that you're oblivious to the things that are happening around you. But sleep feels nice, the oblivion and darkness is warm and nice." The bed gave a violent creak before there was the sound of bare feet on stone.
"Sometimes I think of all the things I could be doing if I weren't asleep, but other times it's addictive and I feel like I could sleep forever. It laughable right? How contradictory humans are."
Rusty shook his head even though she wouldn't see. However the whisper of metal gears grinding together gave the action away to her.
"Actually I think the world is like that too. Some things are just better off not knowing, because being in oblivion is a bliss. But once you know the truth, like how the gears of the world turn, it lures you in and entraps you."
The girl laughed dryly. She scrambled about in the darkness for a while, groping for the shape of a small matchbox. In an instant, the flame was lit into an oil lamp and the shadow of the small girl danced in the glow of amber.
"Then," Rusty started, "Would you rather be asleep or awake?"
The girl rubbed her arms from the chill from the night air and picked up a screwdriver and some screws. She smiled at Rusty, warmly, with affection.
"Of course I'd rather be awake."
