Universal Headaches - Revised

Chapter 17

It was morning by the time the lab team returned from their trip. Sutton knew that because she was still awake when they got back. Granted, she laid slumped against the headboard and practically drooled due to sleep deprivation, but she was technically awake.

She just couldn't take the risk of sleeping. And she'd had a nap. She was fine.

The group filed in as quietly as they could, looking nearly as tired as Sutton felt. They kicked off their shoes and put down their bags and Sutton clicked her tongue at them. It didn't sound like she'd done it right.

"Breaking curfew, you guys."

Why did she say that? It was the dumbest line she could've come up with.

They looked surprised to see her up, probably because she always took an opportunity to sleep, evidenced by her earlier nap. Also, possibly, because she was obviously hanging onto consciousness by a fraying thread.

"Why are you still up?" Bruce asked.

The rest of the room was still, but the floor tilted to one side in her vision. Thor snored from the next room and she hoped that meant Loki was sleeping too. Clint also refused to sleep, though he wore exhaustion much better than she did, and she knew he wouldn't rest while Loki was free and able to move about. He at least hadn't commented on her refusal to sleep.

After a pause she processed that she hadn't replied audibly.

"Not tired." She told him.

Tony had dark bags of his own and he harrumphed in disbelief; Natasha's gaze shot to where Sutton knew Clint lay at the end of the other bed. She didn't see what sort of look they exchanged, but she curled up further into herself anyway. As far as she knew they had a telepathic connection too and could gossip in front of people openly.

"Well, you could try." Suggested Steve. "You look kind of... sleepy."

Sutton sighed.

"No. I'm good."

Clint stood up from the bed and exited through the door; Natasha followed and closed the door behind them. Sutton groaned aloud.

"No." She complained, drawing out the 'o'. The blurry figures of everyone around her shuffled and frowned at her whining. "They're going to die, then I'm going to die, then we're all going to die."

"What in the world are you talking about?" Tony scoffed.

Why did she say that too? She hadn't meant to say that. The words in her brain were coming out of her mouth wrong. She ought to care more about it than she did.

She laughed lightly. Then hiccuped. Then choked back tears.

The others froze at the sounds of her struggling not to cry, as if she were a bomb about to go off instead of an overly emotional woman.

"Uh, hey. Don't do that," said Tony. "Stop."

"Tony." Steve admonished.

It was early morning and Sutton had already gone through one dream meeting with Loki, a confrontation with Clint, and now this. Her social barriers were crumbling and she almost didn't care that they were seeing her like this. Almost.

Sutton stumbled off the bed in a tangle of limbs and snagged a pillow on the way.

"I'm just gonna- I'm just-" Her voice warbled as she inched toward the bathroom. "I'm sleep."

"Sutton."

Before anyone could try to move to stop her, she dashed for the bathroom and locked the door behind her. She dropped the pillow into the tub and crawled in after it while ignoring the delicate knocking on the door and cajoling to come back out.