[Kalli]

Jet’s sleep-patterns became more broken, his muttering more urgent. Reaching out with his hand, he seemed to be grabbing for something which wasn’t there, and not finding, it, began to curse. Still, he continued to sleep and to wade further into an apparent nightmare. Sweat beaded on his brow, even in the cold room, making dark hair stick to his forehead.

“No….nononono…NO!” Suddenly, his cries became louder and clearer, and he rolled over onto his stomach, then back to his side, trying to escape something or someone. “Don’t hurt him! Don’t! Leave him alone!!”

Almost as soon as he said this, Jet’s startling blue eyes snapped open, and he jerked into a sitting position, one hand covering his mouth. He was sucking air into his lungs at an alarming rate, as though afraid there wouldn’t be any left if he didn’t hurry. Both eyes closed tightly; his body shook with the effort of trying to calm down.

“It’s not real….just the same damn nightmare again…” he rasped to himself, not very convincingly. For the moment, Jet forgot there was someone else in the room with him.

[Whatsyourface]

48 watched jet as he shifted in his bed. Mumbling things. Then he sprang up breathing. Truly the human mind has much control over itself. 48 blinked as the boy seemed to be talking to himself and things that weren’t there.

“Do you still believe yourself within an illusion? Are you aware of your location?” 48 made a cackling noise rather loudly to get jets detection and simultaneously scan the area. Then it said.

“There is no one here. But you. And I.”

[Kalli]

Jet’s eyes snapped in his direction, and for a moment, he seemed to have forgotten bringing 48 there at all. With a startled look, and quick movements for someone so tired, he scrambled into a crouch, fingers going immediately for his gun. It was out and pointing at 48 before the boy recognized him, and all tension seemed to release from his body. His gun hand dropped, and he let out a ragged breath and a violent curse, simultaneously.

“Don’t DO that!” Didn’t 48 know not to just lurk there like some creepy stalker? Jet knew he was being unreasonable, but it was better to hide behind anger than to face fear. The nightmare hung over him like a shroud, and he couldn’t seem to shake the feeling that he was still not awake yet.

“Yeah, just you and me…I know that.” He shoved his gun away and rubbed his face rather violently. Then, sitting back on the mattress, his blue eyes turned to 48 in the near dark. “I didn’t know watching me sleep was so interesting.” His voice had taken on a rather nasty tone, which might have hurt 48’s feelings if he had the ability to be hurt.

Even if he didn’t, Jet knew he was wrong to lash out, and he looked away. “Don’t you sleep at all?”

[Whatsyourface]

48 saw the boy pick up the gun and figured he was in an illusion. A bullet ricocheting back towards jet was nigh impossible. No one else in the room. 48 however did put close a thin nearly film over it’s eyes in case jet actually shot to block the bullet. With it being a small caliber pistol, it posted practically no threat. “Don’t do what?” 48 inquired towards the boy.

When Jet stated his unawareness of 48’s intrigue in watching him sleep his reply was “Yes. It is. You do not sleep like other humans I have seen. I have never seen a human sleep before, with my own eyes. You are also very vocal. When you sleep.” It answered the statement so straightforward and bluntly, that it didn’t seem like 48 even knew that it was an insult.

“Not frequently. It is not required though beneficial. It also aids in recovery, repair and recharge if required. As well as increasing or decreasing metabolism. Sleep is optimal but unless special conditions are met. Unnecessary.”

[Kalli]

Jet’s eyes, which were turned down toward the mattress, went wide at this. Just what had 48 heard? Part of him wanted to know, but mostly Jet didn’t want to think about it at all.

“What do you mean, ‘with your own eyes’? Did the freak jobs who made you show you videos of people sleeping? Because I’m pretty damn sure I’m not the only one who talks in their sleep.” Jet was rather surprised at himself for continuing to snarl. Maybe he would have been like this if he’d ever had anyone else catch him in a nightmare, so it was probably a good thing they hadn’t.

“Just forget whatever you heard, got it?” he muttered, standing up and going to the fridge- he needed something to drink and steady his nerves. Pulling out a beer, he opened it and gulped down half the contents in one swig, wiping his mouth on his bare arm. There were goose-pimples on it, which surprised him. He’d been too upset to notice the cold. Going back to the mattress and grabbing his jacket, he slipped it on again, taking another long draught of beer. Honestly, he hated the taste, but it numbed him somewhat. Anything stronger was a big no-no; he couldn’t afford to be wasted if he was trying to survive. Jet had seen too many other people killed or starve to death because they were addicts. He could understand why they became that way, though.

“If sleep is optimal, why don’t you sleep, then? Or is this place not special enough for you?” He took one more swig, crumpled the can with one hand, then tossed it toward the trash can. He missed. Jet sighed. “Listen…better not to talk to me right now while I’m in jerk-ass mode. You’ll end up thinking you did something to set me off. It’s all just me.”

[Whatsyourface]

“No. I can see with sound. To see through hearing and feeling. Rather then with light. Often. I saw humans sleep at desks. Rather than in beds.” He tells 48 to forget it. “Request denied.” 48 says flatly. It does not wish to forget Jet’s words and has not been given sufficient reason to remove that from his mind.

jet’s behavior struck 48 as odd. He began to notice the differing tones in his vocal patterns. It seems that he is angry. “Because I do not wish to sleep. Not now.” 48 looked at the projectile jet threw towards the trashcan. “Jerk ass mode?” 48 said repeating after him “As you wish, then” 48 just looks at jet for s few moments then the wall.

[Kalli]

“Request denied.”

That phrase made Jet’s teeth clench and his eyes burn, though no tears came. He shouldn’t have been so worked up about it, except he didn’t know what he’d said, and showing weakness on the streets, even emotional weakness, could mean the difference between life and death.

On the other hand, how likely was 48 to use whatever he heard against Jet? Probably not intentionally, but the creature was socially unaware enough to say something off-hand. Jet didn’t want to think about what would happen then. Anyway, it wasn’t like he could fight with 48 and force him to forget.

“Whatever.” he growled, laying down and turning his back to 48. Anger, shame and sorrow burned in his chest. Even with a creature who didn’t understand emotion, he hated to be vulnerable. Jet shut his eyes tightly, grabbing the ragged blanket at his feet and curling into it. But for a long while he couldn’t find sleep. Memories of the nightmare rose constantly before his closed eyelids, only slowly dulling with the help of alcohol. That was all the self-medication he would allow, but even with his relatively low tolerance it was never quite enough. Even if he couldn’t forget, Jet’s last thought, as he finally drifted off again, was that 48 would truly not remember what he’d heard.

(Cut to morning? Does 48 have more musings? Jet will be very apologetic!)

[Whatsyourface]

48 looks at the wall. It’s thoughts eventually quelling. By the time it has arrived at any kind of conclusion, it already is morning. 48’s eyes go over to jet whenever he begins to stir in his bed. Whether he wakes up in the morning or evening.

[Kalli]

Jet woke a few hours after the sun had risen, feeling a little headache-y, but otherwise better in spirit than the night before. Things always seemed to press down on him less when the sun was shining. It was a wan kind of sunlight, though, shining weakly through clouds of smog and debris which hung over the city. Dust motes swirled lazily in the single beam of sunlight that came through the cracked blinds. They settled on Jet’s face, along with the sunlight, waking him slowly. He covered his eyes for a moment, then groaned and sat up, stretching and cracking his joints. A few choice expletives escape his lips- quite apart from the headache, his body was screaming loudly about its ill-usage the day before.

Letting out another groan, he rubbed at his face. Jet’s memory was piecing itself back together again, and he’d seen 48 out of the corner of his eye. So far, the creature had done nothing to harm him while he slept, and it had saved him before. Yet, he recalled quite clearly being an asshole the night before. Not good, Jet…

“Hey.” he called out softly to 48. “Did you get some sleep?” Those shining golden eyes were on him, watching.

[Whatsyourface]

“No. I never slept. I did not wish to sleep. Did you have more illusions as you slept?” 48 asks Jet.

[Kalli]

The boy snorted but offered no further reply to this. Standing up, he arched backward, trying to stretch his spine, then tottered over to the shelves of food. For a moment, Jet counted what he had, calculating, and sighing at the end. He’d have to go without breakfast today…

Jet turned to 48, looking him over. “You need more water? We might be able to get you out of here if we’re real careful. I gotta look for something to sell for food anyway…could find some bottles down by the water plant.” Why hadn’t he thought of that the night before? Oh yeah- strange creatures, underground labs…

[Whatsyourface]

“I will not require water for some time, unless I unless I exert myself. If you wish, I may scavenge for things. I am well suited to such a task…due to my echolocation.” 48 says to Jet. It’s echolocation made it adept for finding specific objects. Though 48 could not obtain anything however. It would not be as well suited to obtain objects where anyone could possibly see it. Though it could probably keep undetected as long as it was aware of it’s environment.

[Kalli]

“That could work…maybe if we stuck to the junkyard or something.” the boy muttered. Not too many people went near the South side of “the Mound” as it was called, because there was something there that kept killing people. At least, those were the rumors. There must be something to them because even hardened street dwellers kept out of that area.

“Too bad you can’t turn invisible, but we’ll just have to risk it. Unless you wanna stay here all day.” Jet doubted it, but he was being serious. Turning to 48, he looked at him with a softened expression. “I don’t want you to get shot down on my behalf. We can wait until night to go out if that’s easier.”

[Whatsyourface]

“It would be best, to proceed on foot. I will tread on the rooftops. Alone, unheard and unseen. You may travel on the ground. I wish to conserve fuel.” 48 said to Jet. Though 48 would consider flying at an higher height among the clouds, it wouldn’t bring jet up there. It gets extremely cold and the lack of oxygen can be a problem should 48 go too high with Jet. Though 48 does not need to breath, due to it’s head being essentially a self contained ecosystem at the moment.

“I am very maneuverable on the ground…”

[Kalli]

“Maybe that’s the best way.” Jet knew shortcuts and such that would be difficult for 48 to go through, and he was not eager to fly again if he didn’t have to. The one thing he could have used 48 for was to fend off gang members and others, but Jet preferred to fight his own battles…when they weren’t against science lab monsters, anyway.

Turning back to the shelf by the fridge, he shifted it to reveal a cut out panel in the drywall, inside which was a small arsenal. From this he took a small allotment of bullets for his gun and loaded it, checking to make sure everything was in working order. His mind wasn’t really on this, however, as it was a routine thing he didn’t have to think about. Jet was thinking of last night, the nightmares, and how he’d treated 48. Even if he wasn’t sure how the creature’s feelings worked, Jet felt the need to make things right.

“Listen, 48…” he said quietly, placing his loaded gun in the holster. “I’m sorry about last night, about how I acted. I shouldn’t have been such a jerk.”