INSOMNIAC

Chapter 13

Verity sat at her desk, pencil in hand as she sketched the events of the day. Dusk had fallen a few hours ago, and Verity had laid in bed until she grew bored of waiting for sleep to come. She was haunted by how she was lying to Tyson, about how she was fine. She hadn't been prescribed medication, because she hadn't even been to the city's doctor. She made sure to cover her face as much as possible, just so that people could think that she was fine. Her senses were fully awake, and her body was nowhere near wanting to sleep. So Verity sat comfortably at her desk and filled the pages of the new sketchbooks. She may not be the best drawer, but the time seemed to pass quicker when she drew. Verity was awoken from her concentration by a soft knock at her front door. Quickly, Verity slipped on her nightgown and headed down the stairs. She opened the door and found a slightly troubled Loki at her doorstep.

"Hi," Verity said, slightly puzzled as to why he was here. "Do you need anything?" Loki nodded and handed Verity a letter with her name written with carefully drawn cursive letters. She tore the envelope open.

Dear Verity,

I know this is short notice, but Loki's house is still being fixed up, and he had nowhere else to stay due to personal reasons. Please allow him a night or two in the spare room. If you are uncomfortable with the arrangements, please send him back with a letter.

Sincerely,

Tamara

Verity checked over the letter and then beckoned for Loki to come in.

"Tamara said you had nowhere to stay," Verity said, walking into the living room with Loki trailing after her. "May I ask why?" Loki's gaze fell to the floor, and he nodded.

"I knew you'd ask that," he sighed. "My parents found out, and they kicked me out of the house. They said that someone erased their memories of me, and told me that I can't go back." Verity walked into the spare room and offered a look of sympathy.

"I'm sorry," she said. "It must feel horrible. I'm sure you'll find that the people here are more accepting though. Mainly because they're like us." Loki nodded.

"What can you do?" He asked. "Like, what powers you have." Verity lifted her hand and made the sparks dance across her hand.

"I can control electricity, and I can move things with my mind. And if I'm terrified I turn invisible." Verity glance at Loki, who was staring at her sparked hand in wonder. Verity snapped her hand closed and put it at her side. "How about you?"

"As far as I'm told, I have super speed, and healing." Verity perked up to hearing this.

"You can heal... Anything?" She asked hopefully.

"I don't really know," Loki said. "All I know is that I can activate it and then it heals. If I heal something big I get tired though." Verity nodded.

"Do you need something healed?" Loki asked. Verity nodded and pointed to her head.

"I can't sleep," she whispered. "I'm never tired, and I can't sleep during the day." Loki looked at her, and he lifted his hand to her temple. His hand glowed, and Verity gasped, Her eyes flying open. A slight pain went through her head, and then it was gone. Loki pulled away harshly, and his eyes were full of concern.

"Did I hurt you?" He asked, panicked. Verity reached up to the side of her head and felt it. It was stinging slightly, but nothing else had changed. She shook her head and gestured to the door on the far side of the room.

"You can sleep in the spare room," she told him. "If you need anything, my room is upstairs."

Verity left Loki in the lounge and went back to her room. She had a mild headache now, and she was aching to just lie down and sleep. Verity put her sketchbook away from where she had been drawing and tidied up her room a little. She went to her bathroom and pulled out a box of panados. She picked one and swallowed it with some water. Verity then made her way to her bed and climbed under her covers. She closed her eyes and was asleep before long.

-

When Verity woke up the next day, it was well after 9:00. She felt rested, and for the first time in a long while, she felt rested. Verity quickly pulled on some clothes and made her way downstairs to make some breakfast. Once she got to the bottom of the stairs, she saw a perfectly content Loki watching something on the tv.

"Seems like it worked," Loki said and Verity walked past him to the kitchen. Verity smiled and nodded.

"That was the best night of sleep I've had in a long time," she said. She picked up a frying pan and a packet of bacon. "Want some bacon?"

"Sure," Loki called from his seat on the couch.

Verity finished cooking the bacon, and took a seat next to Loki, handing him a plate. Verity realized after sitting there for a while, that for a few moments, her life seemed to be working itself out.

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Thanks for reading!