Wide Awake

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“Ah, it’s nothing,” Ingrid promised him, joking, “I’ve got no office hours tomorrow; after my 8 AM, I can hole up in my office and nap, keep the door locked.”  He gave him a grin and settled into his seat a bit more, looking over the different textbooks Liu had brought with him.  “What’s your schedule like, hm?  Which classes do you have tomorrow?”

Liu couldn’t help but laugh a bit at his professor’s joke. “Alright, alright, only if you’re sure it’s okay.” He looked at the spine of each book, picking out the ones for courses he had tomorrow. “Just psych and stats tomorrow, then more psych and astronomy, which I guess is an okay class.” 

-

Ingrid took to helping Liu organize the stacks of paper on the table, setting them aside for the moment, and picking up a few that had landed on the floor.  “I did,” He explained, taking a seat in the open chair next to him.  He took one of the coffees from the basket and held it out to him, going on, “I came to make copies of the study guide for my 8 AM class tomorrow; I assume you’re studying for exams, yes?  Would you like some help?”

“Aw, Ingrid, you didn’t have to,” he said as he stacked his textbooks and notebooks so as to make more space. “But I appreciate it! Thank you.”

As an astronomy professor, it came as no surprise that some of Ingrid’s classes were held in the evening.  His last one let out at 9:30, which was really no big deal since he could just Flash home; no way he would want to fight with Manhattan traffic at night.  Plus, it was only twice a week anyway.  No biggie.

He stayed after for a bit, though, to help one of his students with a question she had–an important one too, he knew he’d been planning to use it on the final exam.  So after helping her understand rather than simply giving her the answer, it was pushed to around 10 o’clock before he actually left the classroom.  

Still, he wasn’t ready to go home just yet; his class in the morning needed their study guide to complete over the weekend.  He had to get to the library to make copies of it for everyone.

So off he went, arriving only a few minutes later with a flashdrive in-hand, the file he needed to print saved on it.  He went to the back office and printed the copies, stepping out once he’d finished, ready to leave.

Until he saw Liu at one of the tables, nearly passed out among a sea of textbooks and paperwork.

He sighed, and started to go over, but stopped after only a couple of steps.  Instead, he returned to the copier room, and Flashed the study guides over to his apartment the second he was left alone.

Then he left the library, and returned twenty minutes later with a pink and green Easter basket in-hand, filled with bottles of water and Starbucks Chilled Frappuccinos, packages of Pocky, and miniature bags of Cheetos.

He went right over to Liu’s table and set it down in front of him, then tapped him on the shoulder with one finger to wake him up gently.

“Late night?”

The only problem with his plan was the fact that he was almost always exhausted, sleep deprived for one reason or another. Whether it was vine compilations or nightmares, this boy always found himself getting well under the recommended amount of sleep. As a result, it wasn’t uncommon for him to fall asleep relatively early in a place that wasn’t his bed. He just didn’t think this would happen in the middle of the school library, head resting on his laptop, all his textbooks and notes strewn about him. 

Feeling someone tap on his shoulder, Liu immediately sat up. In a sleepy daze, he rubbed his eyes and mumbled a quick “I’m sorry”, thinking it had been a librarian trying to politely kick him out. But when he turned around and saw Ingrid, he finally registered where he was and who had come up with him. Unable to contain a laugh, he nodded.