Work Text:
Huff... Huff... Huff...
Pest panted and grunted as he ran across the suburbs of Macabre City, as fast as his legs and the dead weight he was carrying would let him.
The soles of his shoes echoed as they hit the asphalt, avoiding passing under any streetlights as usual.
What wasn't usual was that, instead of carrying around bags of scraps and goodies, he was carrying a whole person; PartyNoob held tightly onto his back as Pest lifted them by their legs with ease. Their lost eyes darted anywhere they could look, disoriented and afraid.
That was of no importance to Pest, though, who just focused on getting to his den as quickly as he could.
The half-beetle took a turn at an alleyway and carelessly shook Poob off his back. They nearly tripped and fell on the concrete as Pest just hissed at them, "Go!" as he pointed towards the back of the alley.
Poob held back a whine as they put both hands above their head defensively and ran towards the darkness. Pest stood behind and looked out towards the empty narrow street, wide-eyed and harshly gripping a penknife in his pocket, ready to jump at any threat that presented itself. After a moment, though, he retreated as well.
He ran past Poob, who had their back pressed against the left wall with a panicked expression on their face, and directed himself towards some heavy crates beside them, tucked in the far corner of the alley.
Pest wrapped his arms around the crate and planted his feet firmly on the ground before pulling it back with force.
"Hnnngh!-" He grunted, struggling to push the heavy box off the wall, a little wall trapdoor that was hiding behind revealing itself. Once done, Pest gasped for air before swiftly kneeling down, taking a paper clip out of his pocket, and hastily picking his own lock.
PartyNoob waited for him, a bit dumbfounded by the situation at hand still, their panicked eyes shifting constantly between his maneuvering and the entrance of the alleyway.
They heard an uncomfortably loud thud thereafter as the trapdoor opened. Pest groaned, then looked up at the clueless idiot beside him (or at least, that was the title he had given them in his head).
"Down! Now!" He hissed again, grabbing them by the wrist and forcefully pulling Poob down.
Poob grunted as they fell to their knees, but obeyed his command anyway, lying face down and hurriedly sliding into the small entrance as Pest hissed at them to speed up. They felt around with their foot as they slid into the tiny crook until it landed on what they deemed to be a ladder, and started to shakily make their way down.
Pest followed soon after. He slid in and took a few steps down, then reached out through the crevice, grunting as they pulled the crate back against the trapdoor from the inside, effectively hiding the entrance of the den.
The party-goer kept going down, shakily holding onto the ladder until their shoes stepped on the dusty floor of the den. They stepped off onto it and huffed, quietly panting as they tried to shake off their obvious fear.
Pest got down as well and punched the lights on upon landing, briefly catching his breath from the physical exertion, before glancing over at the person he had woefully dragged down with him.
Poob looked around the den, his home, his sanctuary, any hint of joy or innocence mostly gone from their eyes as they held onto their own knees for support.
"...Tch. ほとんど動いてないじゃないか。("You barely even moved.")" Pest lightly bumped their shoulder to call their attention. "Stay right there. Don't move, don't talk." he commanded in a harsh tone before making his way towards one of the corners of the small room.
Poob just quietly looked at him as he did so, then back around the place. This really wasn't the way they wanted to get to know it.
It wasn't exactly spacious, the room they were in had everything a house needed in a confined space: a bed, a couch close to floor level with a coffee table next to it, an old TV, and an oven, stovetop, microwave, and fridge tucked on the other side.
There were random counters, cupboards, and shelves full of tools and scrap, no windows, random tree bark scattered around, and a crinkly wooden door leading who-knows-where with a blueprint partially sticking out from below.
The place was messy, dusty, and sandy, and the walls were slightly beige from their decay. It didn't look like a place that was meant to be used as a home, and figuring out where the electricity was coming from was a mystery of its own.
Pest unplugged his phone from a charger and picked it up from the counter. He tapped away at it, then pulled it up to his ear, briefly looking back at Poob to give them a shushing gesture before looking away again. The party-goer grimaced before looking away, starting to grow tired of his attitude.
"電話に出ろ… ("Answer the phone...")" Pest whispered to himself as he waited on the line, his eyes fixed on the den's entrance as if someone was going to break in. It took a moment, but eventually, his call was answered. "...Doctor."
Poob saw as Pest turned his head towards the wall, with them only hearing his end of the conversation. "I've got an issue. (...) Yeah, they're with me. (...) No."
Poob chose to walk up to the couch beside them and sit down, resting their arms on their lap and sighing. The half-beetle glared at them as they did so, continuing the conversation over the phone. "...No, we're at my den. That rock and its cronies don't know where it is."
He went quiet, and whatever was said from the other side made him sigh and pinch the bridge of his nose. "...Keep them here how long?"
Poob raised an eyebrow as they heard that. Pest looked away from them with a frown on his face. "...Yes, fine. Thank you Retro." He finished the conversation before hanging up and placing his phone back on the counter, his voice not having any real thankfulness to it, but rather, irritation.
He groaned under his breath, then glared at Poob from across the room, who looked back at him with a frown. "...Listen, you." he spoke sternly, "You're gonna stay here tonight."
Poob grumbled, clearly frustrated, as they too crossed their arms and looked at the floor.
The half-beetle scoffed, "What are you grumbling for, huh?"
"i wanna b home, not here" Poob replied stubbornly, glaring back at Pest, "i- i told u i dint want dis! u and drretro! but u draggd me ALL DA WAY ovr here and-"
"Stop. Talking." Pest interrupted, clenching his teeth in annoyance, "You don't get to decide that right now. Don't play dumb, you know exactly who's looking for you-"
"i can taek care of myself!" Poob interrupted back, their eyes flaring up.
Pest clenched his right fist at their rare pushback, "No. No you cannot."
"ive been fine so far!"
"Through no help of your own." He scoffed, "Seriously, if you just want to keep wandering around throwing parties until the day you become a vessel, then be my guest, but we can't let that happen-"
"wats da MATTER wit u pest?!" Poob finally seemed to snap, uncharacteristically confrontational as their fists clenched on their lap, "uve followd me around fr weekw, treatin me liek im sum helpless baby, n now u basiclly kidnappd me-"
Pest hissed, interrupting them. "What are you saying?! I didn't 'basically kidnap you', quit being ridiculous, I'm not in the mood to deal with you."
"then WHY DID U TAEK ME HERE???" Poob shouted back, their voice cracking as they did so.
Pest's eyebrows furrowed, his hand playing around with some loose thread on his jacket to relieve some stress. "What do you think, Poob? ...I have to protect you." he replied bluntly.
Poob raised a hand as if to pull their own hair out from their sheer exasperation, but they stopped themselves midway. "i told u i dont NEED U TO DO THAT!"
"バカ。("Idiot.") It doesn't matter how many times you scream that, you're staying here and that's the end of that."
"ugh!- since when do u care so much abt me anyway???" Poob pointed at him with their index, finally choosing to confront him about it.
"Hm?!" Pest grunted, his glowing red eyes widening slightly.
"y- yea!" they doubled down, "how many tiems hav i been frendly to u when no one else is?? nd- nd how many tiems hav u dismissed me or treatd me badly??? n i NEVR held any of it against u- but dont pretend u care abt me now!"
Pest glared at them, a bit dumbfounded, before letting out a scoff which resembled that of a stifled chuckle.
"...You think I'm doing this for you?" he asked rhetorically, walking towards the couch Poob was sitting on and forcefully slamming the wooden desk in front with his fist, making them wince.
"Do you SERIOUSLY think I dragged you all the way to my den because I care about you?" he asked again, more combative, towering over them.
Any fighting spirit Poob had present in their expression faded almost immediately, their eyes darting up to look at him with a bit of a scared expression.
"...Answer my question." Pest dared them upon hearing their silence.
Poob gulped, "i- i mean... i- y else woud u-"
"IDIOT." Pest interrupted harshly, "You think I've got a change of heart or something? What's at stake goes WAY BEYOND YOU. I'm NOT doing this for you, you're an important part of this equation whether we like it or not."
He took a heavy breath, trying to hold back his rage while his fist curled up on the table, "And trust me, I definitely DON'T like that you're important, but nobody gets to choose things like that. So quit whining, quit making assumptions about my intentions, and COOPERATE. この無責任なバカ野郎。("You irresponsible idiot.")"
Poob felt small under his heavy scolding, their figure curling up slightly as he bluntly hit them with nothing but harsh truths. Their face was one of total and utter distress, and they just froze up once he was done.
Pest just felt even more annoyed at their silence and the way their face scowled. He let his anger out against the poor coffee table, slamming it harshly again before turning around and walking towards the other end of the room, muttering some insulting Japanese under his breath as he approached the fridge.
He swung the door open, slamming it against the counter placed next to it, and just looked for something to eat and distract himself with, even though he wasn't really hungry.
Annoyingly enough, as he scanned the fridge, his eardrums were invaded by the sound of a faint whimper. He glanced over at Poob slightly over the fridge door and under the hem of his cap, witnessing the way they curled up further on the sofa and pressed their palms against their face.
He grunted, turning his attention back towards the fridge, feeling a brewing frustration in his stomach as the sound of their pathetic snivel echoed in his mind. He lightly bumped his head against the fridge's frame, his upper mandibles lightly rubbing off of it as his frustration heightened.
"本当に厄介な存在だ… ("What an absolute pain...")" He muttered under his breath while hearing Poob's muffled sobs in the distance, which only made him think about the fact they were going to stay there all night long.
As much as he hated it, it was probably not beneficial for Poob to stay like that. If they were unwell here... who knows, maybe they'll go rogue and escape the den at the dead of night. He didn't really know.
He got his head off the frame of the fridge and looked at its contents again. Why the hell were they crying... They damn well knew he was not one for people, let alone guests, right? As ironic as that sounded.
He huffed, then lowly muttered to himself "…医者なら、どうするだろう… ("...What would the doctor do...")" He wasn't one for people, but DrRETRO was...
His eyes then landed on a plastic container full of leftover apple fritters he had baked a day or two ago, the food meant for no one other than himself.
He looked at it intently, then back at his annoying guest, whose palms weren't effective at hiding the enormous frown on their expression.
Without giving himself a moment to second-guess his actions, he picked up the plastic box with a little too much force, then slammed shut the fridge before tucking the fritters inside the microwave, muttering some more frustrated Japanese under his breath as he turned it on.
Poob looked towards him slightly over their own palm, their eyes puffy and dropping some scarce tears, but they were a little curious, especially after smelling that strong apple scent once Pest opened the microwave back up.
He harshly gripped the box of fritters and took it out of the microwave, then walked over to Poob, carelessly placing it on the table in front of them.
Poob looked at it, sniffling in their sleeve, then looked back up at Pest, who just looked towards the wall and crossed his arms, "...Your dinner."
Poob shakily brought their palms off their face to pick up the food, placing it on their lap. They looked at it intently.
"...Quit crying, by the way." Pest said bluntly, walking back towards the fridge to get something for himself. "I have to deal with you all night, you know."
Poob just glanced at him as he walked away, then back at their food, their eyes lingering on it for a moment before letting out a low whine and picking up one of the apple fritters. They shoved it inside their mouth, really tasting the baked good, which gave them some soothing warmth which Pest simply didn't seem able to provide.
Pest just absentmindedly looked inside the fridge, his mind never able to focus on what was in front of him, but rather on the crunching he could faintly hear across the room.
The silence lingered, the deadlock remaining as Poob evened out their breaths, munching on the makeshift dinner.
Once calm enough, they chose to speak up again, "...u baekd these, rite?" they asked, tone wary.
Pest took a while to finally respond with a dismissive hum.
"mm" Poob hummed back, picking up and eating another one of the apple fritters, a hint of a smile returning to their expression, "they r delicious..."
Pest ignored the comment, desisting on the fridge idea and slamming the door shut. He wasn't really hungry, was he?
He approached Poob again, then 'stole' a fritter off the plastic box they held in their lap before sitting down on his own bed, which creaked as he did so.
Poob saw as he took a fritter for himself and chuckled lightly, finding the action funny. Pest couldn't help but glance at them, internally wondering and noting just how much better they looked already.
Poob spoke up again, tone a bit more joyful after swallowing the food, "u kno, i hav alwys wantd to try ur baking out!"
Pest just glared at them from the corner of his eye.
"...House rules." He switched topics abruptly, taking a bite off one of the apple fritters he was holding and swallowing it shortly after.
"First rule, don't touch anything. Second rule, stay put on that couch until I tell you to leave. Third rule, once the lights are off, stay quiet and sleep."
"waat?" Poob jokingly lamented, "dats no fuun! ur a boring sleepovr host-"
"This is not a sleepover." He replied curtly, shoving the rest of the apple fritter in his mouth.
Poob tilted their head slightly, "if dis is not a sleepovr then wat is it??"
"I don't know. Shut up." He replied, mouth half-full.
"u dunno cuz it IS a sleepovr!"
"No."
"yaaaa!" Poob smiled wider, cautiously regaining that characteristic careless joy they had. "its- its liek a sleepovr wit a grouchy lil bug!"
"いい加減にしろ… ("Cut it out already...")"
"yeaaa!!" Poob giggled lightly, then chanted quietly yet enthusiastically, "sleepovr wit pest! sleepovr wit pest! sleepovr wit pest!"
Pest swallowed the fritter, pinching the bridge of his nose in exasperation, "黙れ… ("Shut up...")"
"heh- oo!" Poob pointed their index up, "sleepovr party? eeeh? eeeeeh?-"
"QUIT IT!" Pest shouted at them, making them flinch, "Stop pretending this is something it's NOT! This is not a damn sleepover, this is your safehouse, start acting like it."
His scolding made Poob's shoulders drop slightly. They sighed as they looked down at the food on their lap, picking up another fritter and eating it.
Frowning, they spoke again, "...im- im jus tryign to deal wit dis da way i know how"
"I know." He said dryly, crossing his arms, "That doesn't mean I'll be fine with it though."
A pause. His red eyes flicked down to the half-eaten fritters in Poob's lap, then back up at their face, "Finish that up, then we sleep, in silence."
Poob huffed, and swallowed the apple fritter they were munching on before replying, "im jus sayign... if u ar gonna taek me nd 'protect' me,, u coud at least try to... i dunno, adapt to me" they said, their tone somber, not looking up from the box in their lap.
Pest's mandibles twitched, his irritation flaring up again. "Adapt to you?" He repeated, voice sharp as he stood up from his mattress, "How about you adapt to the situation for once? You never treat it seriously."
"im tryign my best... ur not evn tryign"
"...Excuse me, I'm not even trying?" Pest repeated, his voice hiding the slightest bit of offense to it.
"no, ur not" they doubled down, eating the last apple fritter off the box.
The half-beetle's left eye twitched, "I'm- You know me, right? You think this is not trying?" he asked again, gesturing at the general surroundings.
"I'm letting you into my den, letting you sleep on my couch, I gave you food." He listed with irritation as if they were great achievements, "You think I'm not trying? I'd put tape over your mouth and lock you up in a cage if I wasn't trying!"
Poob's expression furrowed at that, only somewhat understanding his sentiment, "im- wel im jus tryign to get by, dont treat me so badly if u wanna 'protect me'" They said, their voice cracking a little.
Pest went quiet for a moment. His mandibles twitched, then slowly and painfully unclenched upon hearing the way they sounded.
"…お前を喜ばせるためにいるわけじゃない。("...I'm not here to please you.")" He said, sharp and stern, as he approached them and picked up the empty plastic box from their lap before walking away, throwing away any crumbs that remained.
The party-goer looked at him as he spoke in that foreign language, then laid their body down on the couch, their spirits giving up on them again.
Pest just eyed them at a distance, neutrally observing how sad and scared they looked, no comfort in those eyes.
He averted his sight, putting the empty plastic container on some random shelf before leaning back against a wall. He let the silence drag on, but this time, it was uncomfortable.
He crossed his arms and sighed. He felt frustrated, but more so at himself.
He just had to move on. "... We're going to sleep. Come on." He commanded, hiding how uncomfortable he felt as he looked at his guest again.
Poob, still laying flat on the couch, just hummed tiredly, looking like they were fighting demons internally.
Pest watched them for a moment, mandibles slightly clenched. He didn’t like the silence, not this kind of silence, not when it felt heavy.
His eyes shifted around the room before he walked back to his bed. He picked up an old blanket from below his bedframe and threw it at Poob's head with zero grace. Poob fumbled a bit as they caught it mid-air, before unfolding and tightly wrapping it around themselves, shifting around to look up at the ceiling.
Pest looked away, jaw tight. He didn't say or acknowledge anything before walking up to the light switch and turning it back off.
He walked over to his own, unmade bed, pushing aside some stray tools before laying down stiffly on his back, not bothering to take any clothes off, including his jacket.
The room went dark and quiet.
Poob's eyes shifted around, feeling small from how low the couch was compared to the rest of the furniture, including Pest's bed.
The room felt smaller, the only source of light being some stray red dots from turned-off electronics, as well as Pest's own eyes. With the room so dark, all that seemed to remain were their senses of smell and hearing.
Poob remained quiet, just laying there, fidgeting with the blanket, stopping, starting.
They thought of falling asleep, but they couldn't, and inevitably, their eyes darted towards Pest, laying in his bed not too far away from them, his back already facing them.
Poob looked back at the ceiling, feeling an air of unresolved tension, one they didn't really want to fall asleep with.
So they just spoke up, quietly, playfully. "...weird sleepovr i got into, huh...?"
Pest groaned, intentionally loud enough for them to hear, but without the energy to argue against their stupid definition of a 'sleepover'.
Poob giggled at the obviously annoyed noise, while the beetle just harshly requested, "...Shut up and sleep."
"mm... we coud hav a sleepovr chattt" They said, ignoring his order completely.
"No."
"coem onn! othrwise its borign"
Pest's eye twitched, and he slowly exhaled through his nose, "... I told you to be quiet. Rule three."
Poob just kept talking, turning a purposeful deaf ear to his complaints, "mmm... wat a strang place to sleep on, i nevr thought id be 'invited' here, hehe..." they continued, their tone seeming a little brighter.
Pest's teeth clenched as he kept facing the wall, a part of him wanting to snap at them yet again, but he felt it was overkill to do so at that point.
"...yuup, defintly strang" Poob spoke, not really letting the room fall into a definite silence, "...smells strange, too-"
"Quiet." Pest murmured.
"...ive slept in stranger places tho"
"どうでもいい。("I don't care.") Be quiet."
"... liek dat one time..." Poob reminisced. "one tieem... i jus... woek up in my bathtub. idk why, there wasnt aparty da nite before or anythign, i was in my pijamas too, but i jusss... woek up in a bathtub!
...mmm i dunno if dats rly weirder than dis tho, hehe"
Pest just remained dead silent, facing the wall, his mandibles twitching. Couldn't they shut up already?
Poob talked again after some silence, insistent, "...wats da weirdest place uve slept on, liek, evr?"
Pest groaned, irritated. He didn't answer for a moment, but... he silently noted how Poob sounded almost like their normal self once more. Would they start to cry if he just mentioned how much he hated them again? It'd surely make things difficult.
"...not in a chatty mood?" Poob said after a while, their tone a bit quieter and wary.
Pest sighed, almost resignedly.
"...Boxcar." He muttered in reply, not even knowing why he answered. Maybe it'd convince them to sleep if he played along just this once.
Poob raised an eyebrow, looking at Pest from the couch they were laying on, "boxcar...?"
Pest didn't look at them. He just shifted around on his bed and stared up at the ceiling, mandibles slightly clenched.
"...Yeah. A boxcar. You know, those train cabins full of cargo." He muttered, stern. "I slept in one of those. It was cold as hell, and full of burlap sacks."
Internally, Poob got excited at the fact he was engaging, so they cautiously invited him to indulge, "...was it movign while u slept?"
Pest huffed, closing his eyes. He knew what they were trying to do, trying to get him to talk.
"...Yes." He answered, not elaborating on purpose.
"woa... howd u sleep in ther?" Poob nudged him to elaborate anyways.
"...Poorly." He muttered. "Lying in those sacks, strong smell. It was a lot, even for me."
Poob turned around inside their blanket, looking over at Pest's little red dot eyes from the couch they were laying on, "nd y where u there?"
Pest wasn't looking back at them, nor did he plan to. His mandibles tensed slightly, his red eyes narrowing at the ceiling. He didn't want to answer that.
"...None of your business." He muttered, sharp, turning back to face the wall, "Now be quiet and sleep."
Poob pondered a bit, and ignored his plea once again, opting to ask something different. "howd u sneak in ther actlly? wasnt it lockd?"
"...Broke the lock." He muttered, his hand grasping the mattress, frustrated with himself.
"mm, maeks sens" Poob kept going, seemingly oblivious to his struggle, "were u tryign to get sumwhere? y not jus... taek da subway, or sumn"
Pest clenched his jaw at the memory.
He was starting to answer without hesitating. "...I was running."
He turned to face the ceiling again, "It was the day the doctor helped me break out of prison, after all. I didn't even know where I was, I just had to go."
Poob raised both eyebrows as they looked at Pest's silhouette in the darkness, listening with intent as he finally started speaking on his own.
Pest could feel their attention on him, it made him uneasy. He had no idea why he was talking; perhaps the darkness was playing tricks on his brain.
With his eyes still fixed on the ceiling, his voice was a little quieter and a little less sharp, though his expression was still stern. "...I just ran. I didn't care where I ended up. It was the dead of night, I remember."
Pest let some silence fill in for him, before scoffing at himself, "You don't even know about the prison stuff. 俺は本当にバカだ… ("I'm such an idiot...")"
Poob clenched the old blanket closer to themselves as they looked at Pest, feeling the frustration seeping through his speech. They treaded lightly, talking quietly, "... mm... nd u found dat boxcar? to get away?"
Pest took a while, but he hummed eventually.
He just rambled with a cold and monotone tone, as if what he was retelling hadn't happened to him. "It was uncomfortable. I was laying on top of those sacks... It was cold, and the train was trembling the entire night. I didn't sleep well."
Pest sighed, "...But I guess it sort of felt safe in there, after what I got through, it was nothing." he retold, even sounding a bit weirdly nostalgic.
"...woa..." Poob reacted, fascinated, yet not knowing what to say or do, unused to this kind of exchange with him.
Pest's mandibles twitched when he heard their voice, almost immediately regretting everything he just said. He didn't like the way they sounded, fascinated by his past...
He scoffed and turned onto his side, facing the wall once again. "...Go to sleep."
Poob remained quiet for a moment, letting everything sink in, before turning back towards the ceiling and continuing the conversation without being prompted.
"...mmm... da weirdest place ive slept on..." they began, scavenging their mind for memories while Pest just groaned quietly at their insistence, though unsurprised.
"...i- uh, actlly" Poob hesitated, a bit of fear slipping into their voice, "i shoud retell... da second or third option"
The hesitance didn't go unnoticed by Pest, even if he wished it did.
He remained silent as Poob talked by their own volition, "so, i coem home, partyd all nite, rite? da usual... hehe- da effects of all da blogsy had worn out whn i got to my apartmnt, i went from a hundred to zeroo"
Poob retold with a tinge of cheerfulness at first, "so i get to my apartmnt, liek 3am or so, all tired n sleepy, so i go to my bedroom, nd, um... i tried sleepign"
They took a while before continuing, clenching the old blanket Pest had given them as their eyes remained fixed on the ceiling. Their tone tried to remain cheeky, but it was faltering, "...nd i had dis rly creepy nitemare n stuff, so whn i woke up i was all panicky, nd- nd i was seein things, n hearing whispers, n stuf, it uh..."
Pest, although planning to pretend to fall asleep to their rambling, was interested enough by what Poob was saying to shift around in his bed and look at them, who started to curl up as they laid on the couch.
"...u kno, all thos things wit da ppl lookin at me liek im important, dat stuf" Poob admitted quietly, "so i jus panickd and left my apartmnt"
They went silent for a moment, but they tried flipping their frown, raising their tone of voice to try to recover their cheerfulness, "nd- nd u kno, it was liek, 4am, so alllll of my frends were sleepin, split, melanie, proto, scag, kaspr, you, everybdy!" they retold, forcing a little laugh out, "so i coudnt exactly call anyon nd arrang an improvisd sleepovr wit any of my frends to pass da nite, so i was jus runnign aroun da streets liek a lil maniac, nd i had to improvisee..."
Poob went quiet, for real long this time, their story left hanging in the still air of the room, unfinished.
Pest's eyes were fixed on his guest, unsure what to do as the silence dragged for longer, barely seeing the way Poob's face remained completely still through the darkness.
The situation eventually forced him to hum a small "...Hm?" to nudge them to speak.
"...i- yea, everyone was asleep, split, proto, scag, melanie..." Poob repeated themselves quietly, "nd uh... hum... isnt it weird howe robots sleep too?"
Pest was a bit taken aback by the deflection. "...Uh, those who do, they're purposefully programmed to do so." he replied curtly.
"rlly? i didnt kno dat" Poob responded, clenching their blanket a bit less tightly. "...wait, who programmd scag??"
Pest hummed lowly, "How would I know."
"mmh... fair. tho- weird to say ive had sooo many sleepovr partys wit robots huh??" they said more playfully as they turned to look back at Pest, a small smile returning to their face.
The sight made Pest's brow furrow before he looked away, going back to facing the ceiling. "...Sure."
"yeaa rly weeeird!" Poob continued, "woaa... reminds me of jus how many sleepovr partys iv hadd..."
Pest remained silent, internally noting the way they suddenly switched topics before finishing their 'weirdest place to sleep' story, but he sure as hell wasn't about to ask them to tell them the rest.
Poob's mind, in turn, just kept drifting elsewhere. "i mustve had liek a hundred sleepovrs!! sleepovrs are funn... including dis one!! tho i dont think ud call dis a 'sleepovr party' its more liek a... um..." they turned their head back towards the ceiling, "...wats da opposit of a party?"
Pest sighed lowly, annoyance flaring up again at their sheer stupidity.
"... mmmmm... i dont think 'party' got an antonym... wowe"
"何言ってんだ… ("What are you even saying...")" Pest scoffed, "Just sleep already."
Poob once again ignored his instruction, which had little conviction to it by this point. "watevr- point is dat dis is a sleepovr evn if its a lil rough!"
Pest's mandibles clicked, "違う… ("It's not...")" he replied tiredly.
"hmmm" the party-goer pondered, "..mh hav u evr had any sleepovrs before dis one or is dis ur first?"
Pest felt like he'd bang his head against the wall if he had the energy to, but he replied anyway, "... If your definition of sleepover is 'sleeping in the same room as someone else' regardless of intention... then no, this is not my first."
Poob gasped lightly, their grin somehow widening, "rlyy??"
"Don't get ideas." Pest halted their enthusiasm, "It was a practical thing, like right now."
"okaa..." Poob nodded along, not really swayed by that at all, "wit whom, tho??"
Pest's eyes twitched at how peppy they sounded. He briefly made a gesture with his palm to indicate them to lower their voice before actually answering. "...I've had the doctor sleep here while we've worked together once or twice. For convenience."
"oooo-"
"The difference," Pest interrupted harshly, glaring at them again, "is that she didn't buzz around like a mosquito, and knew to shut up and sleep when the night fell."
Poob looked back at Pest, hearing his attempt of an insult and just giggling at it, finding it more amusing than anything else. Pest sighed, then looked away again, not really surprised that Poob was numb to his attitude by this point.
Poob calmed their giggles and kept probing, "n did u guys do anythign fuuun? any games or music?"
"...What do you honestly think." Pest replied dryly, getting another irritating chuckle out of Poob, who already knew the answer was 'No'.
The half-beetle further sank into the mattress. "Sleep already. I'm tired."
"mmh..." Poob hummed lazily, admittedly getting a bit sleepy themselves as they got comfortable in the night chat. "...me, wit my frends, we did looots of stuf at my sleepovr partys..."
"うるせぇな… ("Shut up...")" Pest muttered under his breath as Poob started speaking unprompted again.
They continued, "ha!- i remembr, actlly, one of my sleepovrs wit uno dos n tres, n liek, halfway thru it we kindaaa realizd nobody brought snaks, so they sent m out to go buy sum...
nnnd u knooo... i was a littl tipsy... nd when i arrivd ther the cashier jus lookd knockd out, liek, face planted on da desk, i dint evn kno if they were awake..."
Pest slowly turned away from the wall and kind of leaned his ear in, curious, and with a gut feeling he knew where this was going.
"n so... i jus lookd at thos bag of chips..." Poob hesitated before continuing, "nd i thought 'im kinda low on money' so... i kinda jus snuck a few of thos chip bags inside the regretevatorrr"
"...You shoplifted." He called out, internally finding it hard to believe.
Poob felt a bit embarrassed that Pest called it for what it was, getting a wobbly smile to come out of them, but the choice to retell this story to him had been very much intentional. "...da wors part it dat the cashier woek up and lookd at me while i was doin it" they continued, "so i jus had to go up to them and buy the chips i was holdign n pretend i wasnt tryin to steal itt"
Poob snickered sleepily as they remember the occurrence, "i think... i think da cashier knew i was up to sumn, cuz they were lookign at me weird... mayb i jus got away wit it cuz i got a pretty face or sumn..."
"...Hmph." Pest reacted, eyes darting away from Poob and back at the ceiling. He held back a smirk, he was admittedly amused. "...Beginner's luck."
"ohhhh im sorre i wasnt up to expectationsm, mastr of thieves..." Poob called him out between playful chuckles.
"Tch." Pest frowned, though somehow, he didn't feel as if they were judging him, which made him feel strange in a way he wasn't ready to address.
"waat?" Poob kept poking at the bear, looking over at Pest again, "dont play duuum... i had to learn to keep my pockts empty around u"
He rolled his eyes at that, "...Yes, it was beginner's luck. You think I could afford getting caught stealing, looking like this?"
"hehe- wats wrong wit da way you look?" Poob questioned innocently.
Pest took a moment to reply, his expression unreadable. "...I look and act like a criminal, you don't. Let's leave it at that. Now sleep."
Poob could sense a hint of vulnerability in his tone, so they remained curious with relative caution as they kept talking, clutching the blanket a little tighter to themselves. "mmh... i dunno how u do it... stealin stuff, dat is"
Pest remained dead silent, turning to face the wall once more, pretending Poob would try to fall asleep.
"...ive done it once or twic but i felt rly bad aftr" Poob admitted quietly, inviting comparison. "how do u do it?"
"...Tch. Why are you asking?" He said curtly, "You want to learn how to steal all the weed you can?"
"ey- no!" Poob laughed, "hheh- no im- im jus curious... did u get used to it, or..."
Pest took a moment, then sighed, a little disappointed in himself from the fact that he wanted to answer.
"...It just never felt bad." He eventually said, bluntly so.
"rly...? n how did u start doign it?" Poob kept asking in a curious, sleepy tone.
He still couldn't shrug off the fact that they didn't sound judgemental about it as he replied. "...Well, let's just say... one day I realized it was just easier to take things than to 'earn' them."
He turned his head to look at his guest in the darkness, "The difference between making twenty bucks and stealing them is that stealing takes you a minute or two. And I don't exactly care about being 'approachable' either, so if people want to think I'm dangerous, so be it."
Poob quietly processed what he was saying, and felt like pushing back a little, "wel... but if everyon startd to steal then, liek, da world woud fall apartt cuz nothin woud work, u kno wat i mean?"
Pest looked back at the wall. "The world seems to work just fine regardless of if I steal or not, so it can kiss my ass." He replied sharply, getting a little giggle out of Poob.
Pest then sighed lowly, irritated by the sound. His eyelids were drooping slightly as he pivoted, "As I was saying, you got lucky with that shoplifting."
Poob's eyes were lazily looking up at the ceiling, "heeheh- ey- i may not look liek much of s thuef or anythin, but i can mounnt a prety craaezy parteyyy..." they replied, before a yawn unintentionally escaped them.
"See? You yawned." He pointed out, "Sleep already."
"nnooooooooo....." Poob replied in a silly tone, making his mandibles twitch in annoyance. "i gotta find anothr topicc..."
Pest huffed, "君の口を塞ぐガムテープ、探さなきゃ。("I gotta find some duct tape to shut your mouth.")"
"hmmmmmmm? whatdja sayy?" Poob questioned, their eyes squinted.
"Nothing." he replied, "Sleep, idiot."
"pffft..." the party-goer lazily shifted around inside their blanket, "u always do datt... talkin in dat strange languag..."
"Japanese." Pest felt the need to clarify.
"yeayea- japanes..." they nodded, "nd liek... i nevr understand uu..."
Pest scoffed. That was obviously the point. "Well, go learn it if you're so desperate."
"learn itt...?" Poob repeated, mostly to themselves, as their sleepy expression slowly lit up, "peeest! u shoud teach meee!"
"What? No." Pest rejected almost instantly.
"yea...!" Poob insisted.
"I'm not a teacher."
"u dont haev to be..."
Pest groaned lowly, turning around in his sheets to look at Poob, "I'm not teaching you anything. Now be quiet."
Poob looked back at him, their silly and sleepy expression contrasting his stern one, never afraid to look directly into his red, glowing bug eyes. "yeayea... u shoud teach me sum words rite nowee"
His sight darted away at the eye contact. "I'm not doing that."
The party-goer then got an idea, "mmmh... teach me... teach me one word, n then i go to sleeep..."
Pest remained quiet for a moment, subconsciously letting his tense muscles ease. "...Tch. Fine."
Poob somehow smiled wider, feeling an unintended pang of drowsy warmth as he allowed them to go on.
"mmh..." they thought, "tell me howe to sayy... 'hallo'?"
"...Kon'nichiwa." He replied dryly.
"wait-" Poob said, "oops, i already knew dat one, dat doesnt count..."
Pest sighed as Poob rambled too fast for him to intervene, "okeoke- howe do u sayy... 'party'?"
He rolled his eyes before replying, "...Pātī."
"woa, dat sounds da saem, basiclly..." Poob noted drowsily.
"Indeed." He said, turning back to face the wall again and closing his eyes, "Now sleep."
"holdon holdon..." Poob yawned, "i- i wanna knoo... how to say 'do u wanna party?' in japaneese toooo"
"...You said I'd teach one word." Pest argued while still facing the wall, his lower mandibles clenching slightly in annoyance.
"but- but if i kno dat thn i can invite japanes ppl to my partys, n dats liek a hundrd million potential guestss!" they replied with childlike wonder.
Pest wasn't nearly as annoyed by that stupid logic as he wanted to be. He replied reluctantly, "... It's 'Pātī shitaidesu ka?'. Now sleep."
Poob giggled a bit, then cleared their throat before they tried forming a sentence, "konnichiwaa, pest! paatii shitaidsu kaa?"
Pest tried, really tried, to not let a genuine chuckle come out of him, but he couldn't help himself. He hated that he did it, but he did. The sleepy Poob, in turn, felt immensely proud upon hearing him so amused, and laughed alongside him.
His breath hitched, trying to suppress his amusement before replying to his guest, "いいえ。やりたくないんです。 ("No, I don't want to.")"
"mmmmm? wat did u sayy?" Poob asked, a tinge of amusement and pride hidden in their silly tone.
"...I said 'No, I don't want to.'" Pest clarified, shifting around in his bed to face the ceiling yet again. "'Īe' means 'No', and 'Yaritakunai ndesu' is 'I don't want to'."
"aaaahh... i seee..." Poob said, then yawned again.
"You keep yawning." Pest noted. "Sleep."
"mmmhh..." Poob insisted on the chat, their eyes never darting away from Pest. It was starting to feel cozy enough to fall asleep to. "...ndd how... howw do u tell sumone to go to sleep in japanese?"
Pest sighed, but eventually replied. "...Ne nasai. You should do that."
Poob giggled slightly, eyelids drooping lower. "ndd... nd howe do u say 'gud mornign'? to say it to u tmrw..."
Pest took a few seconds to reply to that one.
"...Ohayō gozaimasu." he said, subconsciously clutching the blanket tighter around himself, feeling unintentionally cozy too.
"o hai-o... gozaymsuu..mmhh..." Poob kept on asking sleepy questions, "nd wat about... 'im havin fun'? howe do u say dat...?"
"...Tanoshinde imasu." He replied curtly. "Sleep already."
"dat ones complicatd..." Poob exclaimed, closing their eyes. "nd how do u say... 'thank u'?"
"...Arigatō." Pest replied, starting to get into a monotone rhythm with them.
"o i already knew dat one too... but how abt 'ur welcom'?" Poob asked quietly.
Pest grumbled lowly, "...Dōitashimashite."
"doi- dooitashi... whatevr..." their head further sank on the couch cushions, "w... wat abt 'im sleepy'...?"
"...Watashi wa nemui." he answered.
"mmh... wtshi wanemui..." Poob drowsily nodded along, "...nd 'im happy'?"
"...Watashi wa shiawasedesu."
"okaoka... nd uh... how abt... how to say 'gud nite'?"
"Oyasumi."
"... nd how do i sayy... 'i love u'...?"
Pest froze, his eyelids opened slightly wider, laser-focused on the ceiling above him.
He remained quiet for way too long.
He didn't know what to do. He didn't know what he was feeling.
But eventually, he had to speak up, stern, wary. "...Why do you want to know that?"
Poob didn't reply, his words lost in the darkness of the room.
"...Poob?" he said their name as he kept staring up, a call which went unanswered as well.
"...Poob." he repeated, turning in his sheets to look at the couch across the small room.
There he saw them, with their eyes closed, hugging the dusty blanket he had given them, their breathing slow, and their grin wide. They had fallen asleep.
Pest's gaze on them lingered, lingered for longer than he would've liked. Thousands of unprocessable thoughts flew across his mind.
He looked at how they rested, at how they had fallen asleep smiling despite everything, and he clutched his own messy bedsheets tighter.
Their question, which went unanswered, lingered like a spirit.
Eventually, Pest scoffed loudly, and swiftly turned around to face the wall again. They had finally fallen asleep, so that's it, he'd sleep too.
He stared at the concrete in front of him for a good while.
Just staring, expression unreadable as usual, even if nobody was looking at him.
He took far too long to close his eyes.
And he took even longer to finally drift into sleep.
