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Robotnik was tired.
He wouldn’t normally notice such frivolous human things such as tiredness or general needs, but this time was different. He couldn’t fall asleep.
Ever since he had come back from the mushroom planet, he had found himself almost longing for the comfort that the mushrooms had ultimately given him. Most importantly, he missed the stone that he had come to call, well, Stone, as it had ultimately come to help him fall asleep.
Needless to say, Robotnik was having a difficult time falling asleep. And the worst part? He had an utterly idiotic conference Walters had insisted he attend the next morning and he knew that he would struggle to pretend that all of the mouthbreathing, lowlife idiots there were on his level! How was he supposed to do that when he was running on much less sleep than was optimal?
If he was being honest with himself (and he rarely was), sleep had become much more difficult since coming back to Earth. There were more and more days where he, the great Doctor Ivo Robotnik, would find himself staring up at the ceiling from his bed as sleep eluded him. It didn’t matter if he was tired, if he was hurt, if he actually wanted to sleep, he would inevitably find himself staring at that same spot after hours of tossing and turning.
At this specific moment, it was nearing 4 am and Robotnik would be lucky if he were to get 3 hours of sleep before his alarm would go off in the morning, swiftly interrupting any real rest he would be able to get. Frustrated, he balled up the blanket covering him in his hands, considered tearing it, and then remembered who it came from: Stone.
His lovely agent had gifted him the blanket shortly after he came back to Earth. Robotnik had come all that way, struggled so much, just to discover that most of his possessions had been lost or otherwise disposed of after his disappearance. It was something that Walters was still begging his forgiveness for, and part of the reason the man was so lenient with his budget. Stone had given him the blanket as something to start his rapidly regrowing collection of personal necessities.
Anyway, that wasn’t the point. Robotnik couldn’t sleep. He had spent the last 4 hours staring at the ceiling, waiting for some semblance of tiredness, and it had become glaringly clear that he would never achieve it. Reluctantly, and with great groaning from his limbs, he lifted himself out of bed and wrapped himself in his blanket. Fine. If he wouldn’t be able to sleep, maybe his agent would be able to help.
When his agent opened the door to his living quarters after approximately 31.725 seconds of Robotnik banging on it as hard as he could, the man looked almost… cute. It was strange for Robotnik to think such a strange thing, something that he would later chalk up to utter sleep deprivation in the morning. However, in the moment, it was all he could think of the agent’s appearance.
Agent Stone opened the door, his hair a mess, wearing a simple black t-shirt and loose sweatpants of a similar color. Stone yawned and looked at him confused, having very obviously just been woken up to deal with whatever his boss had decided was important at such a late hour.
“Doctor? Why are you up at this hour, what’s wrong-”
“Stone.” The older of the two grumbled. His original plan had been to shove past the man and demand he fix whatever had gone wrong, but his apparent mental glitch had caused him to hesitate for too long and now the moment had passed. Stone promptly understood the slight frustration in his boss’ voice and wisely decided to shut up.
Robotnik shifted in his makeshift blanket robe, holding it with his left and pointing ominously at Stone with his right. “There is something wrong with me, sycophant, and I need you to fix it.”
Stone raised an eyebrow quizzically, now both very tired and concerned. “Yes, Doctor? What is it?”
It was in moments like these where Robotnik wished that Stone could simply read his mind. To be forced to admit such an utter display of weakness aloud, it was embarrassing. It went beyond embarrassing, actually, and ran so deep through the Doctor’s bones that he felt he might combust upon explaining his issues.
“I… I can’t sleep.”
Stone blinked. Once. Twice. Then he had the utter audacity to laugh at the great Doctor Ivo Robotnik, coming to him in his hour of need. Before Robotnik could aptly rearrange his thoughts to scold his traitorous agent, the fool spoke.
“Oh, Doctor, is that all? You could have just said so, or just come in. I know you could have hacked your way in in a mere matter of seconds.” Stone opened the door further and gestured inside. “Come in, sir. Make yourself at home.”
Robotnik cautiously stepped inside, and a strange thought occurred to him: He had never actually seen the inside of Stone’s living quarters before. In all the years that the pair had worked together, despite having the entire place bugged and wired to absolute perfection, he had never actually bothered to look at the security footage.
The area was actually very bare bones and almost lonely feeling, the more Robotnik looked around. There were sparse pictures hung in frames along the wall. None of them contained anything personal, and more than a few seemed to still contain the stock photos that they were purchased in. There was a comfortable looking couch and a TV, and in an attached kitchenette he could vaguely make out what seemed to be an espresso machine. The entire place was clean, tidy, and altogether perfect, eerily similar to its occupant.
“Doctor?” Stone queried, and Robotnik abruptly turned to face the man. He was now standing at the end of a short hallway, in another doorway that Robotnik could only assume was to his actual bedroom.
“Guh, what?” Robotnik said, choosing to aptly ignore the embarrassing noise that had escaped his mouth at the state of half shock that he had found himself in.
Stone’s expression softened at the edges until he was almost looking at Robotnik with pity. “I was asking, sir, if you wanted to sleep on the couch or if you would rather take my bed. I can sleep on the couch, I don’t mind.”
Robotnik paused, thinking about it for a moment before impulsively answering anyway. “Forget sleeping on the couch, Stone. We are both grown men with a conference to attend in about three and a half hours. It would benefit neither of us to wake up sore. We will both sleep in your bed, it’s fine.
Had it been any lighter in the agent’s living quarters, Robotnik would have almost certainly noticed the light flush that dusted the Agent’s face as he awkwardly invited Robotnik into his room.
Robotnik dramatically flung himself onto his agent’s bed with a distinct “Hmph!” Sighing, he covered himself with both his own blanket and Stone’s duvet, being sure to leave just enough for the man to remain comfortable. Stone gently laid down next to the Doctor, the surprisingly comfortable mattress shifting with the added weight, and delicately tucked himself in.
Stone laid there stiffly for a few moments before rolling to face away from the Doctor with a quiet “Good night, Doctor.” Within just a few minutes his breathing evened out and the Doctor knew he was asleep.
Surprisingly, the Doctor found himself quickly being able to relax and actually found himself tired now that he was resting next to Stone. As he settled in, he found Stone’s presence more and more relaxing. Stone was the only constant Robotnik had in his life anymore. He was consistently by his side. He was kind. He was warm.
Robotnik didn’t realize that he had actually fallen asleep until his alarm rapidly pulled him from it. He sat up and rubbed his eyes, rubbing the sleep from them, and then realized he wasn’t in his own quarters. Nor was he in the lab. Panic nearly overtook him until Agent Stone walked in, holding his signature latte. “Your coffee, Doctor.”
If this was all it took for Robotnik to be able to sleep, he would certainly have to take advantage of it more often.