stel's fanfic archive

Overtime

SUMMARY

In the late hours of the night, George gets a visit from her girlfriend.

George squinted at the eye-blinding computer screen.

The screen flickered back.

Despite having started working in the early morning, George felt like she hadn’t made any progress at all that day – despite night having already fallen.

Well, just another normal day of work for George.

…Another normal day of editing, stress, and too much coffee.

How long had it been since George slept more than four hours…?

She shook her head — she was getting distracted again. 

The box of drafts was innocently sitting at the bottom of the table. George pushed it away from her view with her foot, almost shooting the papers a glare.

Maybe she could get another half dozen or so pages done by two…

She stared at the papers, reading and rereading them.

…She wasn’t processing a single word.

Suddenly, the door creaked open, waking George from her trance. Somebody was here to talk to her, apparently, and at this ungodly hour, no less.

Not even bothering to turn around, she sighed. “What do you need?” 

What responded was Kip’s voice, followed by the feeling of Kip’s arms on her shoulders: “George! I’ve been calling for the past couple days, but you haven’t been answering, so…” 

There was a hint of worry in the scientist’s voice. 

“…I wanted to come and check up on you!”

George gave Kip a blank stare. Sure, she would be a hypocrite if she were to criticize Kip for being up so late, but at the same time…

She decided not to say anything.

George sighed once more and leaned back into her chair. “I know you want to spend time with me ‘n all, ‘n you like…” She lowered her voice slightly. 

“worry about me, or whatever…” 

“…”

“But I’ve barely made any progress with these manuscri-” She shot another glance at the box. “…I don’t know if I’ve made any progress with these manuscripts!” 

She gestured toward the papers sitting on her desk, as if to accuse them of some crime.

“I haven’t heard from the Author in who knows how long, but the pile just seems to keep growing on its own…”

The librarian leaned forward, resting her elbows on the table to bury her face in her hands.

Kip gave George a sympathetic look: “I know you’ve been busy lately… or, well, all the time- but- please!” Kip’s expression softened. “Don’t overwork yourself…”

She waited for George’s response.

…She had nothing to say. 

Kip spoke once more, giving George a worried look: “Are you… okay?”

George’s response was almost too fast. “Mhm. TOTALLY fine. Don’t worry about me,” she snapped.

“...Are you… sure…?”

“YEAH, YEAH, COMPLETELY and TOTALLY okay. I want a hug.”

Kip chuckled, lifted George out of her desk chair - she was much stronger than you’d assume - and pulled her into a bear hug, before setting her down on the bed. She gently pulled George in again, letting George’s head rest in the crook of her neck. 

“It’s not two yet, I can still get things done…” George protested.

Kip shushed her. “It’s not two yet, you can still fix your sleep schedule.”

“But…”

“No buts. The work day is over.”

George left out a quiet groan, then returned Kip’s hug, albeit reluctantly. Kip smiled, tilting her head slightly to let it gently rest against George’s.

The archive fell silent except for the almost-silent hum of the computer.

…Eventually, George pulled away from the hug, yawning. 

Kip giggled. While George was almost always in a constant state of tiredness, “sleepy” was a whole ‘nother thing entirely. 

“Alright, bedtime now! You want me to tuck you in? Give you a goodnight kiss?” she teased. “Help you into your pajamas? I mean, unless you’re planning on sleeping in those clothes…” She made a hand motion at George, who was wearing her usual white shirt and teal dress.

“What does that mean?”

Kip laughed.  “Don’t tell me you sleep in those everyday…”

“…Are you saying YOU don’t sleep in your work clothes??”

“…”

“Isn’t that, like, normal???”

“…”

“…”

Kip suddenly burst out laughing. “Pff— no, that’s not a thing normal people do—”

Oh. 

Well, uh, how embarrassing.

“G-goodness, would you just shut up,” she quipped, trying to hide how embarrassed she was. As much as she would’ve liked to prevent it, her sassy demeanor was fading the sleepier she got – The past couple weeks of barely sleeping were starting to catch up to her.

“Sure, sure, whatever you say.” Kip pulled George’s blanket over her. “I’ll stay, if you want me here that much.”

“What? Of COURSE not…”

“Well, if it wouldn’t be too much trouble…”

Kip giggled, and pulled a book from her bag. “Well, good thing I came prepared.” She grinned. 

“I’ll go sleep in the guest room once you fall asleep, is that alright…?”

George nodded quietly, then yawned again.

Kip gave the blanket a gentle pat. “Well, uh, goodnight! Don’t hesitate to let me know if you need anything, alright?” She sat herself down in George’s desk chair and crossed her legs, then gave a quick wink, before her face flushed and she turned away.

“Yeah… goodnight.” 

George, quite self-conscious of being watched, turned her body in her bed to face the wall, conveniently hiding her face… 

If she had a mouth, she’d be grinning like an idiot.

The silence was comfortable.

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