AN: (Cross-posted from AO3) I just wanted to write some fluffy YukiSayo shorts to promote the pairing. The idea came to me on a sleepless night. It is a little self-indulgent, but hope you'd like the pointless yuri fluff regardless.

Tags: aged-up characters, established relationship, implied sexual relationship, descriptions of insomnia, minor anxiety and obsessive, intrusive thoughts

Sleepless Night

Sayo didn't want to turn around again on the bed she shared with Yukina, but that spot in the small of her back was starting to ache from her own weight. She tried shifting slowly, quietly, to not jostle Yukina awake, but no matter how careful, the bed springs still decided to creak. It made her pause in an awkward position, one shoulder already lifted from the mattress while her lower half was still lying flat. She was caught in a heated inner debate of whether to just complete her turn or lie back down. The latter option was probably easier. She just lay the shoulder onto the mattress again, conceding to the dull ache in her back that was starting to hurt in earnest. If only she could fall asleep then maybe it'd go away…at least until the pain screamed at her in the morning.

She closed her eyes and tried to drift off to the darkness. She had to convince herself it was a natural darkness and not staring at the back of her eyelids. Somehow, that thought just kept intruding. She was staring at the back of her eyelids…this was the back of her eyelids…that's actually a little gross come to think of it…not just a little, it's quite gross actually…ARGH! She opened her eyes again and stared at the ceiling above. She couldn't sleep with those stupid thoughts streaming through her head.

Calm down. If she couldn't do that, sleep would continue to evade her. She tried spacing out at the ceiling, only to have more thoughts enter her brain. She made three mistakes in yesterday's live. She didn't press quite right on her fretting hand in that one chord and it ended up a little muddied. There was one loop where she got the timing a little off and it didn't end perfectly…no. No. Just no. She should stop thinking about it.

Washroom. She felt the urge to go, or maybe she just needed to get out of here before the more self-loathing thoughts came. They always did without fail, from her late childhood years onwards to adulthood. It might've been almost a decade since she reconciled with Hina and came to realize she could shine in a different way without comparing herself to her younger sibling, but occasionally, those subconscious feelings of inadequacy would still return. She hated them. She knew they were unhelpful. But that didn't stop them from overwhelming her.

She shifted again to get off the bed, this time successfully avoiding the angry scream of the springs. She made sure to not lift the covers too high as that would risk the cold seeping in. Yukina hadn't been wearing a whole lot…anything really. That was most definitely Sayo's fault as the clothing now lay by her feet where she had discarded them earlier that night. She picked them up and left them folded on the bedside table. Then she put on her own shirt and headed for the washroom.

It was dark in their small one-bed apartment, making it difficult to navigate around the crammed space. And Sayo was too sleepy. She bent down to take a look at the digital clock on their microwave. 3:45 AM. Much too late an hour to still be awake. She most definitely kicked the very unnecessary doorsill leading into the washroom – if this were their own apartment and not a rented space she would not hesitate to rip it out with her bare hands. She groaned at the pain in her stubbed toe and somehow managed to stumble over to grab the washroom lights. It was blinding. She squeezed her eyes shut and took a moment to slowly open them again. Still bright but at least she no longer felt attacked by death rays or something…she squished herself into the washroom and pulled the door shut behind her.

She sat on the toilet. It started humming as the seat warmed. Now that she was sitting there, she realized she didn't really need to go. So, she just sat and stared at the weird stain on the wall in front of her. She briefly contemplated just falling asleep there, but that was probably a bad idea in more ways than one. Neglecting the fact that it was the washroom and probably didn't smell the best - even if it didn't stink – on the odd chance that she really fell asleep, she might smack her forehead on the small wash basin well within arms reach.

Who knew how long had passed before she dragged herself back to the bedroom. It was getting really cold and her flimsy shirt didn't cut it. She wanted to throw herself under the covers, but by the looks of it, Yukina was sleeping soundly. She had no confidence she wouldn't wake Yukina, and since she would most likely toss around again, that seemed like an inevitability. She put on her jacket and curled up on a chair instead. Tired. Too tired. She rested her head on her knees and closed her eyes in hopes of finding some rest. She couldn't. Her brain started wandering over the trivial matter of the colour of her picks. Should she match them to her guitar? Or to the colour of her hair? Or…

"Sayo?"

She opened her eyes to the voice that was calling her. Yukina was patting the bed where it was empty, and seeming to realize that Sayo wasn't there, she sat up and squinted around the room until she found Sayo on the chair.

"What are you doing over there, Sayo?" she said, this time a little louder and more coherent.

Sayo walked over and sat on the edge of the bed. "Sorry, did I wake you?"

Yukina breathed out deeply, just short of a sigh. "You did not wake me. I just woke up myself. Why aren't you sleeping?"

"I couldn't."

Yukina just stared at her for a moment. Sayo wondered what other couples would be like in the same situation. Would the other partner hug the sleepless partner and coax them to sleep or something? Would they ask what was wrong? Did they have a bad dream? Yukina did none of these things. She lay back down on the bed and pulled up the covers, gesturing Sayo to join her.

"Then would you just lie down with me?" Yukina asked.

"Un."

Sayo lay down in silence. She was glad that she did not have to explain herself. She was too tired to do that, not that she would have an explanation for why her brain insisted on being so obsessed with the colour of her picks anyway. Yukina snuggled closer, her hand grazing Sayo's as it fell to her side. She spoke again in a low voice.

"Don't worry if you wake me. I get back to sleep quickly, so it is okay."

"Alright."

Yukina's warmth was too enticing. Sayo rolled over to take her into her arms. She concentrated on Yukina's breaths slowing into a steady rhythm; she tried to synchronize her own breaths to that rhythm and found her heartbeats soften too so they were no longer pounding so hard she could hear them in her ears. Her mind finally started emptying out, with only that one little nagging thought repeating itself.

"Yukina?"

"Hmm?"

"I was thinking of buying some new picks. What colour would be best? Dark blue? Turquoise?"

"Lavender."

The insistent answer surprised Sayo. She repeated it to herself several times, only to find it oddly fitting.

She smiled, brushing her hand down Yukina's hair one last time. "Lavender it is then," she muttered before finally drifting to sleep.