Mr. Love: Queen's Choice One Shots

Victor: Sleepless

You couldn't sleep.
    You stared at the paper in front of you, the words waving slightly. You willed them to stay still, but they refused. You put the paper down in frustration and rubbed your eyes so hard you saw stars. Anna noticed your frustration and paused, walking backwards to your desk.
    "You look like you haven't slept in days," she said.
    In reality, what she said was right. You were going on your third day without sleep—a whole 72 hours. You sighed heavily and gave your best smile. "I'm fine, Anna. I just need some more coffee, that's all."
    Kiki poked her head over the cubicle's walls. "That's your fourth cup today! Boss, are you sure you're feeling alright?"
    You stood. "I'm fine, guys. Seriously, there's no need to worry."
    You said goodbye to them as they all left for the night. The moonlight flooded through the office windows, illuminating everything in a blueish glow. You had on only a desk lamp, shuffling through the papers you had looked over earlier. You noticed some large gaps in the plan that Victor was certain to comment on. You scribbled out some of the typing and wrote down other arrangements.
    You kept at it as the night progressed. Out of the corner of your eye, you saw a shadow hop from one corner to the other. The motion startled you, and you jumped, your leg hitting the underside of the desk. Your coffee mug tilted and spilled, the coffee running towards the papers. You quickly picked them up and stood, swearing under your breath.
    "Damnit," you muttered as you set the papers down on top of the filing cabinet. You went into the kitchen, not bothering to flick on the light. You went to turn to find paper towels when a face appeared in front of you. You let out a loud cry and slammed into the ground. As quickly as it had appeared, the figure disappeared. You touched your forehead. "Okay, somebody is here with me. I've got to protect myself."
    You grabbed a butter knife and held it close. You ventured towards your desk. You needed to grab your things and get out of there. You picked up the papers and clutched them tightly to your chest. When you turned, you saw the foot of a figure disappearing around the corner. You dropped the papers in surprise and held out the knife.
    "I know you're here," you tried to say confidently. "Show yourself and nobody gets hurt."
    There was no response for a long while. You quickly gathered the papers and made your way down the hallway to the elevator. You went in, pressed a button, and let the doors slide close. You got to the ground floor and rushed out. You slammed into an object, causing you to fall and drop the papers yet again.
    "Pull yourself together!" you said to yourself as you gathered the papers. "You're almost out. Just get home and everything will be fine."
    You felt a hand clasp around yours. You looked up and saw the stern face of Victor, his black eyes piercing. His hair was windswept, but still maintained its professional appearance. You wondered if you were still hallucinating.
    "What on Earth are you doing here so late?" Victor scolded. Nope, this was the real deal.
    "I was finishing work," you said, gathering the rest of the papers and standing. "I was just about to walk home."
    Victor chuckled. "You're an idiot. It's three in the morning. What makes you think you can walk home and not get attacked?" He pinched the bridge of his nose. "On top of that, I saw your little run-in with the pole. You can hardly walk straight."
    You frowned. "I can walk just fine, thank you very much." You straightened your shirt. "I have to get home and lay down."
    Victor folded his arms. "Hold it."
    You paused. "What?"
    "I heard from Anna and Kiki that you've been drinking lots of coffee. Not only that, but you've been staying late and arriving early every day this week." He tapped his chin. "Have you been sleeping?"
    You snorted. "Of course I've been sleeping!" you lied. "I've just been having dreams. It's not a big deal, Victor. I'll go home and take some medicine and go to bed."
    Victor's frown deepened. "Don't lie. The bags under your eyes are very unappealing to look at."
    You touched them. "Hey! I bet yours don't look good when you haven't been getting good sleep."
    "But mine aren't that dark when I've at least been sleeping." He grabbed your hand. "Come on, you're coming home with me."
    "Hold on, who said I wanted to?" You tried to dig your heels into the ground, but you couldn't slow him down. He was too strong and too determined. "Victor!"
    Victor led you outside and set you in his car. He closed the door and went to the driver's side. He climbed in and began to drive to his apartment. You were not happy; you folded your arms and huffed.
    "Pouting like a petulant child?" Victor asked, glancing over at you.
    "You bet," you mumbled. The steady rumbling of the car was causing your drowsiness to grow. Your head lolled to the side, but you snapped awake quickly. You ruffled through the papers and made sure they all were there.
    "Are those the final drafts for the plan?" Victor asked as he stopped at a red light. "They're covered in your handwriting. Not very professional, (your name)."
    "No, these aren't the final drafts," you said, rubbing your temples. Your head was pounding.
    The light turned green. Victor was about to pull forward when you yelled, "stop!" He slammed on the brakes. He looked to you. "What the hell?"
    "There was a person in the road!" you said. You rolled down the window and poked your head out. "Are you all right?"
    Victor gripped your shoulder and pulled you back into the car. He rolled up the window. He kept driving forward. He glanced at you. "There was nobody there."
    You looked behind you. "Yes, there was! I saw them!"
    Victor frowned. "What you saw was a hallucination. You've probably been having a lot of those recently, haven't you?"
    You didn't want to admit that you were. You folded your arms and stared ahead. "I'm fine, Victor. Just take me home."
    Victor pulled his car into the parking space and quickly hopped out. He opened the door for you. You hopped out, still holding the papers. He walked with you towards his apartment. He unlocked the door and swung the door open. He led you inside and then shut the door behind him. He grabbed your hand and led you to his bedroom.
    "Victor, what—hey!"
    Victor threw you onto the bed. You quickly took off your shoes and laid them on the floor. Victor has his back turned to you, ruffling through a cabinet. He pulled out two white pills and dropped them into his hand. He shut the cabinet door and retrieved some water. He held them out to you. "Take it."
    "What? Why?"
    Victor frowned. "If you don't take the medicine willingly, I'll have to forcefully shove it down your throat. Take it."
    His tone left no room for argument. You took the pills and washed them down with water. Victor set the glass aside and threw back the covers. "Get under them."
    You obeyed. Victor tossed the covers back over your body and pulled up a chair next to the bed. He sat down, folding his arm across his chest and resting his ankle against his knee. "You're going to sleep here tonight."
    You sat up. "No, I can't. I have to work on the presentation plans."
    Victor glared. "You're sleeping. The plans can wait."
    You went to get up. "No, I'm not sleeping."
    Victor stood, his height intimidating. "Stay in that bed or I'll strap you down." He watched as you slumped back. "Those pills are going to help you have dreamless sleep."
    You struggled to stay awake. The weariness of working for three days straight was catching up to you. You blinked rapidly, trying to keep your eyes open. The pills began to take effect.
    "I can't sleep," you said, going to sit up. "I can't, Victor. What about the work?"
    Victor shook his head. "It's clear you won't finish it by tomorrow. I'll hear it in a few days."
    "You're giving me an extension?"
    "You've worked yourself to the bone on this." He touched your forehead. "It's clear that you haven't slept in a few days. You need to keep yourself healthy." He ran a hand over his face. "Explain to me how you managed to stay awake for 72 continuous hours?"
    "Coffee and energy drinks," you said quietly.
    "Jesus," Victor breathed. "You're asking for a hospitalization, aren't you?" He covered your eyes with his hand. "Just go to sleep. I'll be here if you need anything."
    You felt your eyelashes brush against his skin. You felt your eyes slowly close and sleep overtake you. His hand was still on your face long after you had fallen into a deep sleep. He went to pull his hand away when you reached up and gripped it, snuggling it close to you.
    "Sleep well," he whispered, giving you a rare smile.
—
Life update: things have been definitely crazy recently. Between the world plummeting into chaos and my own world crashing down, it's been hard to keep my mental health in check. So the stories may be a little darker or more serious than usual. If you feel uncomfortable with that, then you don't need to read them; that's up to you. But please continue to support people. Love wins, not hate. ❤️
    See you in the next one-shot!