Sleep Deprived.
Jo felt her eyelids growing heavy, and her breathing slowed. It deepened, and she immediately gave up all thoughts of fighting the weariness passing through her body. It came like a wave of tranquility, relaxing her muscles and quieting her mind. Her dark red eyes disappeared behind their protective curtain, and her head slowly tilted to one side. Her cheek pressed against the cool leather of the couch, and she nuzzled into its refreshing touch. She slowly slid down on the couch, until she was laying on her back. Eyes still closed, and head resting on the arm of the couch, she reached up and let her arms hang off the edge. She inhaled deeply, then sighed in gentle relaxation as exhaustion slowly took its hold on her. Slowly, her mind stalled as sleep gripped her in its gentle embrace. Right before she passed out, a small smile curved her lips as she remembered exactly why she was passing out on the couch in the middle of the morning.
Meg yawned widely, standing in front of her dresser wearing only white bra and panties.
"Hey Jo, you almost ready for bed?" Meg asked.
Jo looked over at her, towel draped across her damp hair. She met Meg's gaze, and the blue-eyed girl giggled at her.
"Ahh Jo, you're so cute!" She said.
Jo said nothing, but reached up and scrubbed at her hair vigorously once more with the towel. She let it fall to the floor, as she raised her head and slowly opened her eyes. She looked at Meg, but her gaze wasn't met; Meg was spacing out, staring at Jo.
Jo smirked, and slowly stalked toward her, her own nudity not bothering her. She stopped when she was inches from Meg, and the red-haired girl let her gaze trail up her body, taking in every curve before she tilted her head up to look into Jo's beautiful crimson eyes.
Jo heard Meg's breath hitch, and her eyes narrowed. In comparison, Meg's blue eyes widened. She brought her hands up in front of her, intending on caressing Jo's cheek, but Jo reacted swiftly, her own hands rising and grabbing her wrists. Her grasp was gentle, but a surprised whimper escaped Meg's throat. Jo pulled her close, until their chests pressed together, flat stomachs nearly touching.
"I..." Jo whispered softly, leaning down and kissing Meg's forehead. "...am ready for bed."
Meg leaned in and nuzzled Jo's throat softly, before kissing her collar bone. Jo gently pushed her away, toward the bed, releasing her wrists.
Meg wordlessly obeyed, turning and climbing into bed. She laid down, pulling the blanekts to her chin as she settled in, adjusting the pillow under her head. She watched intently as Jo pulled on a red thong. She then walked over to the small closet they shared, and pulled a black shirt off a hanger. Slipping it over her head, she pulled the hem of the shirt down to her hips. Turning slowly, she walked back to the bed, running a hand through her still damp hair.
"We don't have any work tomorrow." Jo said softly. Meg nodded, affirming her statement as she scooted over to make room.
"I plan on sleeping in!" Meg declared, patting the bed beside her.
Jo climbed in, and pulled the blankets over her nearly naked form. The lights were already out, and the room was slowly darkening as the sun fell behind the horizon.
Immediately, Meg cuddled up close to Jo, her arm curling around Jo's waist and pulling herself close. Jo relaxed, and closed her eyes as Meg nuzzled into her neck.
A few moments passed in silence, in which Jo desperately hoped she could fall asleep before Meg.
A few spasmodic twitches from Meg, as well as slow, deep breathing made Jo curse to herself. Meg was already falling asleep, yet Jo was still awake. Guess this would turn out just like all the other nights...
An hour passed, and Jo turned on her side, facing away from Meg. Immediately, the red-headed girl reached out and pressed her body tightly to Jo's. This wasn't what bothered Jo, however; it was when Meg started talking in her ear that she got annoyed. Jo closed her eyes, sighing softly, and tried to block out Meg's sleep talking. It proved impossible though, and Jo was forced to listen as Meg fought with Kyohei in her sleep about how long it should take for supper to be ready.
After a few moments, Meg fell silent. Jo sent a silent prayer skyward to whatever God was listening, and tried to relax enough to let sleep take her.
"Gnnn...THREE PIECES ALREADY!" Meg yelled, letting go of Jo and rolling over.
Not a chance, Jo knew. No sleep tonight.
"Start hiding...cake...yaaaaaaayy..." Meg said softly.
Jo rolled over to face Meg, and considered abandoning the bed in search of quieter quarters. The last time she had done that though, Meg had awoken within ten minutes. She had quickly found the silver-haired girl dozing off on the couch, and had sleepily asked her if she didn't like sharing a bed anymore. Jo had said nothing; Meg's reply to her silence was to tell her how much she needed Jo by her side when she slept.
Jo had followed her to bed without another word.
Now, Jo turned onto her back, staring at the ceiling. A quick glance at the clock told her it was ten forty-seven. Another sigh. She closed her eyes. Meg was once more still and quiet.
Jo was able to doze off, her mind becoming hazy as sleep crept up on her more slowly than she would have liked. It was hard to sleep even if she did have piece and quiet, she knew. Too many nights spent awake, afraid of the dark and what evils may have been hiding in it. Too scared to sleep, lest someone come and take Meg away while she slept. She was terrified of waking up and finding Meg gone, or worse, killed. It made sleeping hard. It was...
Jo was rudely forced awake when Meg's hand slammed violently into her face, nearly breaking her nose. Jo shot up, holding her face, wondering what the hell Meg was dreaming about now. Taking a few deep breaths to calm her racing heart, Jo laid back down. She fixed the blankets she had upset, then laid down on her side, pulling Meg's back against her chest. She yawned deeply, then closed her eyes and nestled her face in Meg's hair. Inhaling deeply, she relaxed, hoping this was the last incident of the night. For a few hours, it seemed like it was.
Finally sleeping, the hours ticked away as Jo held her tight. The night wore on, and the gun-slinger fell into progressively deeper sleep. It was peaceful, and Jo's grip on the girl slowly relaxed, until...
"ICE CREAAAAM!" Meg shouted, arms shooting into the air, and head tilting back. Jo was once again woken with the back of Meg's skull smashing into her nose, and the impact made her reel back, blinking in shock. Disoriented and in pain, Jo's immediate reaction was to go for her guns. Arms entangled in the sheets and in Meg's body, she desperately struggled to get free for a moment before coming to her senses and realizing where she was.
Jo groaned in exhaustion and frustration. Slowly getting out of bed, Jo had had enough. She walked over to the door, and reached for the holster hanging there. She pulled out her guns, a strange calm spreading through her as she held the cold steel in her hands, the familiar weight comforting her. She moved back over to the bed, and stood there, staring down at Meg. The girl was splayed out, taking up most of the bed.
Jo shook her head, then sat down on the floor. She leaned against the back of the bed, and turned on the bedside lamp. She opened the drawer of the bedside table, and got out her cleaning tools.
She took a deep breath, trying to calm her nerves, and was rewarded instead with an explosive sneeze. She blinked, then shook her head. She cleared her throat, inhaling slowly again. The urge to sneeze was there again, but not as strong, and she managed to suppress it. Getting hit in the nose always resulted in sneezing, she thought. She didn't very much like it.
A quick glance at the clock told her it was four minutes past three. Four more hours, and Sei would be up. An hour after that, Amy, in time for Sei's prepared breakfast. Any number of hours after that -It was always random-, and Meg would finally awaken.
A deep breath from the bed she was leaning against, then Meg's tired voice.
"You okay, Jo?"
Jo paused, about to unscrew the lid to a powerful smelling clear liquid known as Gun Wash.
"Yes, why do you ask?"
"It's three in the morning and you're on the floor." Meg replied sleepily.
Jo pondered her answer for a moment, slowly undoing the cap.
"I couldn't sleep." She said slowly.
Meg hummed. "You won't leave me, will you Jo?"
"Never." Jo replied. "Only once the sun has risen, will I leave this room."
Meg smiled; it was unseen by Jo.
"G'night Jo." Meg said, laying down.
Jo tilted her head back until it was resting on the edge of the bed.
"Good night Meg." She whispered.
Meg studied the sleeping Jo from the kitchen, rubbing a bare foot against her naked calf. She took another sip from her glass containing chocolate milk, and her eyes narrowed as they slid across Jo`s sleeping form.
"Do you ever wonder why she sleeps all day?" Meg asked quietly, not wanting her voice to disturb the sleeping female.
Sei shrugged. "Maybe she has a sleep disorder? She could be an insomniac. Perhaps battle is the only thing that stimulates her interest enough to keep her from falling asleep. She IS that one-track minded, you know."
Meg pouted a bit, hands coming to her waist as she considered the idea that she wasn't stimulating enough to even keep Jo awake. She ran a hand through her hair, biting her bottom lip. She knew of more than one way to get that girls interest...
She discarded those thoughts, banishing them to the 'If only' section of her brain with the rest of her day-dreams and desires.
"It could be any number of reasons." Meg said, raising the glass to her lips again. Sei offered a shrug once more. The gesture wasn't something Sei was prone to, but she had picked it up from Meg. Despite her best intentions not to pick up any bad habits, they all lived together in very close proximity. They all had shared traits and habits that now, would be impossible to break.
Sei turned, and walked into the kitchen.
"Kyohei left me a shopping list of food he wants me to pick up. You want to come with me?"
Meg looked toward the kitchen, the desire to get out of the trailer strong. Slowly though, her eyes curved back to Jo, and a different desire tugged at her.
"Nah, I'm okay here. You should see if Amy wants to go though, I bet she would love to get out." Meg offered casually.
Sei, scanning the list, answered with a faint "Hnn." in agreement. Silence for another moment, then she looked up.
"Yeah, that sounds like a good idea, actually. I'll go get her. With everyone out of the trailer, Jo should actually get a decent sleep for a few hours, without constantly being woken up by incessant noise."
Meg could barely contain her smile as Sei walked down the hall to Amy's room. Her eyes fell upon Jo's dozing face, jaw slack and eyebrows relaxed. The black shirt she was wearing hung to mid-thigh, the sleeves a few inches shorter than elbow length. It was riding up though, exposing a few tantalizing inches of her stomach. Her silk red thong was visible, complimenting her dark skin tone and contrasting gently with the black shirt.
Her silver hair was messy, at best, a spiky disarray framing her sleek face that spoke volumes about her personality and who she was as a person. It was messy, uncared for, no particular style that eventually became her style.
Meg smiled fondly, and walked over on near-silent feet. When she was close, she reached out and ran her fingertips gently through Jo's hair. The sleeping girl hummed softly in response, and Meg let her fingertips follow a trail from her hair to her cheek; her cheek to her throat. From there, she caressed a path to her shoulder, then her shoulder to gently up the inside of her arm.
Jo's fingers twitched for a second, and Meg pulled away quickly. She didn't want the peacefully sleeping girl to wake up. Whatever trouble she had at night, it kept her from sleeping peacefully. Meg didn't want to disturb any rest she was finally getting now.
Meg walked over, and positioned herself on the couch at Jo's feet. She quickly made herself comfortable, then focused her gaze on Jo's slowly rising and falling chest, taking note of the level deep breaths.
"Who knows why she sleeps all day?" Meg whispered to herself. When she couldn't answer, she smiled amusedly, and drank the rest of her chocolate milk.
"See you two later." Sei said, Amy in tow. Meg looked over, and saw Amy holding Sei's hand, grinning cheekily at her.
Meg's eyes narrowed slightly, but she said nothing to Amy. That trouble-maker nearly always bore a cheeky grin, or some other sort of devilish expression, as if waiting for a prank to come to fruition any second.
"Have fun." Meg said.
Without another word, they were gone. The trailer door clicked shut softly, then the place was silent.
Bright blue eyes fell once again to the sleeping Jo, and a myriad of thoughts crossed her mind. She snuggled back into the couch, and tried to relax. She would ask her when she woke up, but for now, she would let her sleep.
A/N: Interesting little one-shot idea. Inspired by my Monster-fueled sleepless nights at my girlfriend's house, while she slumbers away fitfully. She never fails to elbow me in the ribs, or smack me in the face. Any thoughts or comments are appreciated, definitely more to come for this pair. Thanks for reading!