Insomniac Book Club (Monroe)

[Salem Hirch]

Groaning a bit and fingers fumbling in the darkness, Salem managed to find his glasses and slip them on his face. He had been wide awake for hours now, but had yet to bother to look at his clock. Or his phone for that matter, which was sitting face down in his lap. Rubbing his throbbing head, he turned to look at the clock.

3:00 A.M.? Was the clock seriously trying to mock him or something?

It had only been an hour since the headache started, only 45 minutes since he saw his brother's vision sitting on the bed. With a very disgruntled breath, he tossed the covers aside and moved to the edge of the bed. On his night stand was a still warm cup of coffee and some ibuprofen. Salem reached for the pills, popped the top, shook three out and the proceeded to drown them with the rest of his coffee. Sure he knew it might not have been the best way, but the caffeine always seemed to help at least. His roommates were all fast asleep, he couldn't hear a sound coming from any of their rooms.

"Asleep, or not in their rooms." He thought quietly to himself.

The pain behind his eyes was decreasing, so he stood up and stretched. Running a hand through his blonde hair, he knew that he would not be getting back to sleep anytime soon. So, he decided to find something quiet to do until morning. Already wearing way baggy pajama bottoms; he threw on a tank top and silly cartoon slippers and moved out of his bedroom.

Yep, all quiet in the common area.

Not wanting to accidentally disturb anyone, he headed to the door. Once in the hallway, he pulled his phone out and started playing a game, one for the light and two, to keep his brain occupied. Even the soft thumping of his fingers on the screen seemed to bother the lingering pain in his head. Pushing onwards he walked with a gentle yet steady pace towards the one place he knew he would be alone.

The library.

No one would be there, it would be quiet and with his phone and the lamps in there already he'd be able to read through another sleepless night. Silently as he could, he pushed the doors open to the library and slipped inside. Taking a deep breath, Salem felt instantly relaxed. The smell of old books was definitely a calming thing for him.

Using his phone to shine light on the book spines, he made his way around until he found one that he wanted to read. Grabbing it, he took it to the middle area where a few couches were set up. Snuggling  into one them, he sighed happily as the lamp nearby gave a soft yellow glow to everything. His headache was gone, he had a good book and he was comfortable. What more could he need?

Hearing a soft noise he looked around and shrugged. Maybe someone else was there too, or came in shortly after he did. Either way, he didn't mind. Though when he heard another noise he looked around into the darkness and called out in a whisper.

"Hello? Someone there?"

[Thomas "Monroe" Montgomery]

Sometimes Monroe just didn't know what to do with himself. Tonight was one of those nights. He often ended up in the library when he didn't know where else to go. It was comforting and quiet and not many people went to the library at strange hours of the night. He weaved between aisles framed by bookshelves, bringing his coffee mug to his lips every so often to take a sip. He'd taken a mug full from his dorm when he'd left. He'd stared at the walls for a while, did some reading for class and then decided he couldn't stay in there anymore because he'd fall asleep and dream walk as usual.

He thought he heard someone else in the library, which was strange. And then there was a voice, questioning in the darkness. He followed it and came out of an aisle, coffee mug in hand and messy hair covered with a beanie he'd tossed on when he walked out the door. He walked around the corner to see a blonde guy sitting in a chair, looking slightly spooked. He offered a tired wave.

[Salem Hirch]

Salem heard a bit more shuffling, there was definitely someone else here. In fact, his nose picked up on the faintest hint of coffee, which made him smile and curse himself for not bringing his own. The quiet footsteps grew closer and he squinted his eyes to try to make the other person out. If there was really someone there.

Sure enough, a very sleepy looking young man peaked out and waved from the stacks. Well at least he wasn't an illusion. Salem set up straight and smiled, giving him a little wave back then actually standing up. He didn't want to walk over just yet, but he also didn't want to be rude. Shaking the hair from his face he looked up at the guy.

"Couldn't sleep either?" He finally spoke, his voice above a whisper, but not to loud.

[Thomas "Monroe" Montgomery]

"No," Monroe answered with a shrug before lifting his mug to his lips again. Regardless of the fact that he was indeed awake did not help the fact that he actually felt like a zombie and mumbling was common for him when he did. "I didn't mean to freak you out. No one is normally lurking around the library at this time but me. Not that you're the lurking type..." he trailed off, running a hand through his hair with his free hand.

He knew he appeared rather stoic and apathetic, but that's the impression he usually gave off. He was too exhausted to really show how much turmoil his mind was experiencing.

[Salem Hirch]

As he watched the other boy take a sip he cursed himself for not bringing his coffee with him. Now he shuffled awkwardly from one foot to the other, sort of at a loss as to what to say next. Mainly because of the slight pause in conversation. He smiled though and gave a little chuckle when the other finally spoke again. "Oh, you didn't." With that he held up the book he was reading. It was obviously a horror story. "I should know better than to read these things in the dark."

A little blush spread to his cheeks. "Nope, I'm not a lurker...I'm a Salem." Internally he slapped himself in the forehead. "I mean, my name is Salem. For some reason my brain decided to tell you in the most awkward way possible." Feeling a little embarassed, he flopped back down in the oversized chair and ruffled his hair.

"Well, since we're both up...we could keep each other company?" Biting his lip, he watched the other boy and tilted his head.

[Thomas "Monroe" Montgomery]

"Good, because I don't think I classify as very sneaky with these things," Monroe said, gesturing to his heavy combat boots. "Much less at this time," he agreed. But the type of stories he was reading did peak Monroe's curiosity. "I prefer darker reading myself, but...it can get a little creepy in an abandoned library in the middle of the night." It was one of the things he did when he couldn't sleep, pick up a book in the library and hoped that it sucked him in for a few hours until the sun came up.

Salem's awkwardness seemed to match his own, which sort of relieved Monroe as he sighed in relief. He shrugged his shoulders, to show the boy that he didn't care. "I did call you a lurker," he pointed out. "I'm a Monroe." He said the next part with a smile on his face, hoping the boy wasn't totally uncomfortable by now. But then he suggested that they hang out and Monroe nodded. "Alright, yeah," he agreed. He hadn't seen him around before and so a question popped into his head. "Are you often not able to sleep?"

[Salem Hirch]

He chuckled a little at the other as he made note of the combat boots. Not typically something one would put on as soon as you woke up, it peeked a curiosity in Salem, that he would put aside for later. "Me, I'll read just about anything...this just seemed like a good option at the moment." Another chuckle passed his lips as he got comfortable in his chair. Now he was considering what could have happened if his imagination had taken over and his power kicked in. There was no telling what kind of illusion would have appeared before the other.

"Yeah, ya kinda did call me one huh?" Salem smiled shook his head. His slightly country accent always made him cringe a little, even if most didn't seem to notice it. "It's nice to meet you Monroe." Salem felt a little less shy as Monroe made a little joke out of his awkwardness. This let him know the boy understood. "Oh Yay! At least I won't be alone tonight..." Wrinkling his nose he thought about the question Monroe had asked. "Yeah. I get these really bad headaches because of my power. So, once I get the medicine in to help...I'm usually up for the rest of the night. What about you?"

[Thomas "Monroe" Montgomery]

"It's a good option to scare yourself shitless at three a.m. in a dark library with a strange guy you just met that called you a lurker?" Monroe asked, joking, but the humorous tone was lost from his exhaustion. "Are you sure about that? I don't know if I trust your judgement."

As the boy sat back down, he followed suit, plopping down in an arm chair a few feet away from him. "Ah, sounds rough," he agreed, not one to try and figh with people about who had it worse, although Monroe was sure he'd definitely have that title. His power didn't come with a side effect of headaches, he did get headaches from not sleeping though. He let out a light chuckle at the reciprocation of the question. "Side-effect of my power," he offered in return. He wouldn't explain unless he asked, but it wasn't something he was just going to talk about.