❣ Divided Paths ❣

[Lil]

Faye's sleep was dreamless, or at least it was starting that way. She was alright with that though. She was okay sleeping dreamlessly because that also meant no nightmares and shed do anything to avoid those. They were the most terrifying things sometimes and she wished they'd just be gone, as hopefully, eventually, now they would be able to. Because now they'd be just that, nightmares, not real life.

[Kicks]

"Of course," This question Colton also didn't hesitate to answer, "Everything eventually gets better. Didn't I tell you that once? I was right then and I'm right now. Nothing bad stays forever that way." He furrowed his eyebrows for a moment. Right? Yea.... yea, right. That's what he thought at least. Things had to get better. The nightmares would subside, they would have to. Right? As the brain developed the nightmares would have to secede... maybe that's why Richard still has his. Because he was in California with his brain fully developed. But all of this team, none of their brains were fully developed. So... the nightmares had to get better.
At least, that's what his logical way of thinking was trying to convince him of. In reality it was a long shot theory.
And everything else, the PTSD, the losses everyone had experienced... well that would get better too. It had to. Sometimes he knew it would hurt, but... it had to get better.

[Kicks]

Blake could feel his eyes closing but from closing them there was no difference between closed lids and open eyes because the room was so dark. When he did close his eyes an image of their apartment cut into his head. It was just an image of the apartment, nothing out of the ordinary about it. But it quickly changed from nothing wrong with the image to a flashing body moving from one spot to the other until it was right in his line of view and attacking.
He wasn't fully asleep, but at the same time wasn't exactly awake yet. Which is why when it started attacking, his eyes opened back up. But he didn't start or even gasp. He just opened his eyes and went back to staring at the ceiling. Just as when he was little he thought to himself "well now I definitely can't sleep".
Not that he had a complaint against that. On the ride to Florida he could just sleep. He couldn't drive in America without a license and if they took a plane, he didn't want to be awake anyways.

[DizzyMaelstrom!]

Zakai thought about it, "Yeah, you did tell me something like that, huh?"
The small child flopped down onto the couch and let himself sink back in thought. He was getting tired, but he was afraid to sleep. Right now, sleep was his worst enemy, and he wasn't sure of Colton's answer. Colton had to be right, of course, but was that because he was an adult? If that was the case, then Zakai really couldn't trust his own judgement. He could trust Colton but this seemed like something no one could predict... unless it was choice, he supposed? He didn't know. He felt like he was drawing blanks again.
"I hope that tomorrow there are clouds. They always look nice against sunlight... but not too many of them."
It seemed kind of random to bring up, but it suddenly came to mind.

[Kicks]

Colton slowly took a seat after Zakai had. A part of him did want to sleep only because he felt so heavy. But the reality of it was simple: he couldn't. Not after today. Probably not for weeks. He didn't know when he would be able to. But he knew it wasn't going to be soon. Unlike Spring who was fast asleep on his chest. But babies were easily happily and easily put to bed (sometimes). They didn't have a lot to worry about (most of the time) so for Spring with her parents now back, it would be easy for her to sleep. But for Colton... it was entirely different.He wanted to find Adalia. But she was taking a shower... not that that would stop him. But it seemed like a time when she would just want to stay in a shower for what felt like hours just to clear her mind. And Colton wouldn't take that away from her.He lifted his eyes back up at Zakai's peculiar statement."Well, in D.C it wouldn't be very surprising to see clouds." He mentioned. His dad had even said it was cold. So maybe Zakai would get his wish.

[DizzyMaelstrom!]

Zakai nodded, not sure what else there was to talk about at a time like this. Now he really would get to know what "normal" living was like. He wondered if he would really be okay? He was obviously going to have to attend school at some point and he'd have to get used to being in a new family. When did just normal 'you're my family' feelings that you didn't notice come in? It was natural for biological families because you lived with them your whole life, but even though he was closer to Adalia, Colton, and Spring than he'd been before it still felt strange thinking of them as family. Why? Well... he couldn't really call Colton 'dad' or Adalia 'mom'. Calling Spring his sister was easier, but that was just because it wasn't much of a title name. He guessed, when he was able to do that without thinking, that's when he'd have those feelings? In his mind, though, the words mom, dad, and sister, still brought images of his deceased family, but the word "family" brought both his deceased and current family to mind, along with glimpses of the rest of the team, though the others were most prominent. What did that tell, he wondered?

[Lil]

Darkness slowly morphed into something Faye didn't expect. There was yelling, and a lot of it, but it wasn't the yelling and screaming she had grown accustomed to. Instead it was Blake, and he was yelling at her. His hand was clutched tight around a half empty beer bottle and was waving it at her furiously. Faye was sitting hunched over the table shaking in fear. The scene was very familiar though, it was one she had witnessed as a child, but Blake had replaced her father and she her mother. The image shook her to her very core. Was that how their future would pan out?

[Kicks]

Colton closed his eyes and leaned his head back. It was merely to keep them from being so dry. Oddly he still felt nothing about the event that transpired today. And he wondered for a second if he ever would. But the answer was obvious. Yes, one day he would. That day just wasn't today.
His eyes opened again when he heard movement. They were heavy, formal footsteps and for a second he thought they belonged to Richard. Those footsteps belonged to a controlled person, someone with military training and would have to be big. But when he opened his eye a, instead of seeing Richard he was seeing his dad. Though it might as well have been Richard. Every day hi brother was looking more and more like their dad. He wondered if Richard's hair would fade to gray first starting on the corners like his dad. Or if one streak at a time he would turn gray. It was a funny thought to Colton.
"I was just seeing if people were still up." Clayton explained when his son looked at him. "If anyone needs some company I will be in the library." He tapped the doorway before leaving.
So that meant his dad also wouldn't sleep tonight. Probably not the next night either. Or after. Colton wondered if his dad had lost a lot of sleep since this began.

- - - Updated - - -

Blake laid in the darkness for a long time not moving. Part of him wanted to take a shower. But most of him just wanted to lay there comfortably with Faye. After all, he didn't like waking up to find her missing. He wasn't going to do that to get.
So he continued to lay there. He knew very well at some point it would 've too hard to keep his eyes open. But until his eyelids got heavy he would stay awake and listen to Faye sleep.

[DizzyMaelstrom!]

Zakai looked up when he heard footsteps and watched as Clayton came into view, curiously, until the man stated his business and then walked away. The child looked to his side. Colton was still here too. He wondered if Adalia was still awake as well. If she was still showering, then that was an awful long shower. He hoped she would be okay.
Looking down, Zakai bit his lip and folded his hands together for a moment, then stood up from the couch and looked at Colton.
"I'm going to go.. not to bed. I don't think I'll sleep. But I'm going so... I'm just saying."
With that he walked away. He'd just been sitting with Colton for a while, and he didn't know if the man would care or not if he stuck around. He hoped not. He wanted to ask Clayton something, and he figured he might as well now since they would be going to Florida the next day probably.
After wandering around in confusion for a while, Zakai finally came across the library and poked his head in.
"Clayton?"

[Lil]

The future could be as terrifying as the past and seemed to have the same result on Faye. Her eyes shot open and breath caught in her throat suddenly. She say up quickly and ran a hand over her face in a panic. Well this would certainly going to be an awkward one to explain. What would Blake think? She released a shaky breath and hunched over her knees, still trembling.