Disclaimer: I do not own Tales of the Abyss in any way, shape or form.
3. Waking Up
Guy woke up slowly, his mind still pleasantly drifting. He might have gone back to sleep entirely, except the position he was in wasn't particularly comfortable – slumped over the table in Jade's office, his head pillowed on his arms. The side of the table was digging into Guy's ribs and his arms were starting to protest. Halfway between sleep and true wakefulness, though, it was easy to ignore.
Just a few more minutes, then I'll get back up, he promised himself lazily, shifting slightly and almost knocking over the remains of a midnight snack.
Jade was presenting a research paper about fomicry the next day, his first step in "reclaiming fomicry," as Jade put it. Researchers from Belkend, engineers from Sheridan, and other noted specialists from all over the world were gathering to hear Jade speak. It promised to be a major turning point.
Jade had been steadily preparing for it all along, but the night before still proved to be a scramble for last-minute facts and figures. Guy, who'd volunteered to help out, found himself running back and forth between Jade's office and the library whenever Jade recalled books he needed, or looking up facts as Jade reconfirmed and added to the figures in his paper, or tracking down servants to deliver periodic tea and snacks.
Things were beginning to slow down when Guy rest his head on the desk. He promised himself he would just let his eyes relax for a moment, since they'd had trouble keeping open after about three in the morning. Just enough to take the strain off… Jade seemed to be content for the moment, it should be okay… Judging from the soft light he could see through his eyelids, though, it had been several hours, and not just a few minutes.
All this was in a very distant, easily ignored part of his brain, still operating largely on the most basic of levels as he drifted in and out of consciousness.
A cool hand brushed across his temple, smoothing back the hair which was tickling his face, then briefly caressing his cheek, lingering before pulling back.
Guy was vaguely reminded of his sister's soothing touch and a dozen other little gestures – things which normally hurt to think about, because he couldn't help but recall the end. Half asleep, though, he could allow himself to concentrate only on the good.
That's when he felt it, a light tickling across his exposed sides. He squirmed, unconsciously trying to get away, but still didn't fully wake up. The tickling became more persistent, and even Guy couldn't ignore it any longer. He woke up with a jolt to see Jade leaning over him, tickling unmercifully while Guy shook with laugher and squirmed in his grasp.
It ended as Guy finally squirmed right out of his grasp and fell with a bone-jarring drop onto the floor.
Jade observed him from beside the chair, looking as cool and remote as ever. "Awake, I see."
Guy glared half-heartedly back at the colonel, still breathing too hard to give it a good effort. "C-couldn't you… think of a… different… way to wake me up?"
Jade seemed to ponder for a moment. "I suppose so… but I doubt you would have liked them any better."
"Ugh…" Guy muttered, dropping his head to his hand. The adrenaline from the tickle-attack had faded, leaving him feeling horribly tired. From the way he felt and the fact that the sun had just cleared the horizon, he'd only been asleep a few hours.
"We've done everything we can," Jade said. "You might as well go home to sleep."
"Mm…" Guy wasn't going to wait to be told twice; his own bed was starting to sound really good. Carefully picking himself up off the floor, he gave a careless wave to Jade and headed for the door.
He stopped when he heard Jade say, "I'll be by at noon to wake you up. Remember, you volunteered to help me with the presentation as well." Out of the corner of his eye, he could see Jade push his glasses up and an amused expression on his face.
Guy cursed under his breath as he left, wondering again why he'd volunteered for this.