Quiet and darkness.

A cricket chirping.

A muffled "Goddam it."

The soft thump of a fist hitting a pillow.

Sips can't sleep.

He glares at the ceiling, lying flat on his back with his arms crossed on top of his chest. His brow furrows in concentration. Eyes darting to the side he looks at the empty space beside him and frowns, before angrily turning the other way and mumbling "shit." It's too damn silent is the problem. That's all it is. "Who the fuck could sleep with all this stupid quiet!" Sips shouts into the night, throwing the blanket off and getting out of bed. He paces the room angrily, kicking at his discarded nanosuit then sitting on the bed to nurse his bruised foot. That grows old and he's up again, walking over to the window, looking with pursed lips at the stillness of the compound at night. With a huff he returns to the bed and with exaggerated care slides under the covers, arranging the blankets on top of himself. "Alright, here we go Sips, this is it, time to sleep. You're a champ, sleep master number one, even a babby can do it. The sleep master doesn't need anyone around, doesn't need…" he whispers to himself, shutting his eyes tight. It feels like ages but is only really a few minutes when he jumps out of bed with a growl, shouting "I give up!"

Soon he is grumbling his way across the compound, blankets wrapped around his shoulders and trailing behind him, pillow held firmly against his chest. He enters the sorting facility and makes his way down the ladder. Throwing his bedding on the floor he smiles as the macerator grinds away and the other machines hum. Curling up on a pile of blankets on the floor he momentarily considers how much he must look like a dog and wonders if he's Hugo or Igo, but it's late and the sound of industry is soothing enough that he quickly falls into a uncomfortable sleep.

He's woken by a hand shaking his shoulder. "Fuck off" he mumbles, snuggling deeper into his.. bed? It feels a little different but he's exhausted, all that matters is sleeping. Then he's being shook again even harder and his frustration boils up, he swings his fist in the general direction of whoever is bothering him, it tangles up in the blanket but he feels it connect to someone with a yelp. Peeling his face of the wooden planks and fuzzily preparing for a fight while trying to work out where he is and who he could have just punched in the face Sips blearily sits up to see Sjin on the floor leaning against the furnace with a bloody nose and moaning. It takes a second for it to sink in and then he shouts "Sjin!" and launches himself forward, pulling Sjin into a crushing hug. "Aaah, what the hell Sips!" Sjin whines as Sips' shoulder bumps his tender nose but he quickly finds he can't stay angry in face of such an enthusiastic welcome and returns the hug. "Are those the blankets off the bed? What are you even doing down here Sips?" "Weeeeell…" Sips says, searching his mind for an excuse. "Come on Sips, you bopped me on the nose, I deserve to know!" Sjin states, trying to look as pathetic as possible. Which isn't hard with the blood still running down his face. Sips huffs. When Sjin looked like that it was hard to say no to anything, and he'd never say so but he did feel pretty bad about just punching him like that. "It was just… too quiet, with you away." "Aww, Sipsy missed me" Sjin teased. "No way! I'm just so used to your goddam lego talk I can't get to sleep without it!" Sips blustered, but the faint pink tinge of his cheeks brought a tender smile to Sjin's face to know that he was a big enough part of Sips' life that just one night away was enough to make the stoic lumberjack lonely. "I missed you too, I didn't sleep at all while I was away" Sjin admitted, a warm feeling growing when he saw Sips' smile and their hug slumped down into more of a cuddle in the messy pile of blankets. "Then screw the dirt factory today, lets just get caught up now" Sips says, shifting Sjin to rest on his chest and pulling the pillow under his head. Sips breathed in the smell of his lover, feeling the beat of his heart and the tiny adjustments as Sjin settled down to sleep, and closed his eyes in perfect contentment. The same thought went through both minds. "It's good to be home."