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“Is it really necessary that we sleep on the floor?” The question left Rook’s lips even as he laid down the tattered comforter, borrowed from the closet in Ben’s parent’s room.
“Of course it is! We ate junk food and played video games, but it isn’t a real sleepover if you’re in a bed.” Ben’s reply was lighthearted as he flopped down onto his own comforter he had relocated from his bed to the living room floor.
Rook opened his mouth to comment on the fact that Ben eats junk food and plays video games whenever he isn’t working, but Ben cut him off before he could speak: “And I know what you’re gonna say. We had this conversation already; yeah, we’ve slept in the same space before, but camping out in the proto-truk isn’t a sleepover either. There’s like, an order to these things, or something. I don’t know.”
“There is an ‘order’ to sleeping at a friend’s house? How do you know the correct order?” He tilted his head as he asked the question. “Is there a guidebook, or something?”
Ben let out a breathy laugh at the other boy’s question. “Nah dude, it’s not like there’s rules you gotta follow. But also there are, like, rules.”
“So there are no rules, but there are rules?”
Ben sat up and propped his arms on a pillow in his lap. “Exactly.”
Rook’s face was straight, but his eyes betrayed an amused smile. “You still say many things that I do not understand, Ben.”
Tilting his head back a bit, Ben closed his eyes and hummed. Without adjusting his head, he opened his eyes and looked down his face at Rook, who had moved into a not-quite laying down position. “You know, it might be a bit stereotypical, but I think there’s one thing I need to show you if I want to give you a genuine Earth sleepover experience.”
Rook shifted his weight to prop himself more upright on his arm, blinking as he looked expectantly at Ben. He did not, however, expect the soft weight that then collided with his chest before falling to the ground before him.
“…Did you just throw a pillow at me?”
“Yes.”
“Is throwing pillows a part of the order of sleepovers?”
Ben’s voice and eyebrow both raised playfully. “It can be,” He drew out the length of his words. The smile on his face answered Rook’s unspoken question—
—and was quickly wiped off by a flying pillow.
“Alright, it is on!” Ben stood as he grabbed a pillow in each hand, arming himself with both weapons before his opponent had a chance to take one. He pulled his left arm back before flinging the pillow towards his partner, but Rook rolled to the side, effectively dodging the attack. He grabbed the fallen pillow as he stood, taking a stance that was, admittedly, a bit dramatic for a pillow fight, but not unexpected of him.
“I am not sure I understand this custom,” he spoke before he moved, “but that does not mean I cannot see the fun in it.” As his sentence ended, he moved towards Ben, pillow swinging.
Ben blocked with his own pillow, grinning up from behind it. “There you go, buddy. It’s always good to see you learning more about Earth culture.”
They separated, both preparing to swing their pillows again. “Actually, I think I just rather enjoy hitting you with this pillow.”
“Hey!” One hit directly to the face from Rook. “Dude, watch the face!” The joking annoyance in Ben’s voice was exposed by the laughter in his voice as he swung forwards, pillow connecting with Rook’s side.
“I am sorry, is there something about your face that needs protecting?”
Ben lifted his pillow and used both arms to bring it down on top of Rook’s head with mock force. “Dude, you’re a jerk.”
Rook used his free arm to shove the pillow off his head. Smiling at Ben, he retorted, “Would a jerk have let you get that hit in?”
“You did not let me hit you! I totally hit you with my own finely tuned Tennyson skills.” Contrary to the words he spoke, his next blow was easily brushed aside by the smiling revonnahgander.
“You will have to actually show me these finely tuned skills of yours if you wish me to believe they exist.” He tossed his pillow at Ben. Ben took the hit in what he would call stride, but was really more of an awkward fumble as he barely managed to grab it before more than a corner hit the floor.
Ben shifted his balance, imitating a rather impractical fighting stance from an early Sumo Slammers game. “Arming me was your first mistake, greenhorn,” he spoke with a bad imitation of an over-dramatic action movie character.
Rook waited for Ben to swing, but instead he crossed his arms and flung the pillows, one hitting Rook and the other bouncing off the couch. He jumped towards the couch, grabbing the pillow and swinging it at Rook. It bounced backwards as it was blocked by the other pillow which had already been retrieved by the taller boy.
A light laugh left Rook’s lips as his pillow connected with Ben’s defensively raised arm. A few more blows were exchanged between the boys before Ben paused as he heard a noise from the hall. It was a sound he was familiar with, being a celebrity in the age of smartphones, and he dropped his arms to his side as he turned to the hallway the sound originated from.
“Mo-om!”
A patient, amused smile was on Sandra’s face as she lowered the phone she had used to snap a picture of the dueling boys. “Sorry, Ben. I don’t mean to disrespect your privacy, but I so rarely see you just having fun with anything other than a video game anymore! I promise that picture won’t go to anyone except Carl.”
A slight blush rose to Ben’s cheeks as he tossed his pillow aside. “I don’t suppose I can convince you to just delete it?”
She chuckled as she tucked her phone into her pants pocket. “Hmm, sorry Ben. You know I respect you as an individual, but I am still your mother.” Placing one hand on the wall, she offered a “Goodnight, boys,” before turning away and heading towards her own bedroom.
“…’Night,” Ben called after her. He plopped himself down on his comforter, glancing up at Rook.
“I suppose our impractical sparring session is over?” Rook positioned himself on his own comforter as Ben let out a silent laugh in reply.
“It’s called a pillow fight, dude,” he spoke as he stretched his arms above his head. “But, yeah, we oughta call it a night.” Reaching behind himself to wake up his charging phone, Ben saw the time was 11:03. “Early morning tomorrow, and all that.”
“I think our definitions of ‘early morning’ differ.” Rook was already laying down, pillow previously used as a weapon under his head and half the comforter folded over his body.
“Not my fault I’m up till like, three A.M. half the time,” Ben replied as he moved to lay down himself.
Rook turned his head to his partner. “It is when you stay up playing Sumo Slammers,” he retorted matter-of-factly.
“Hey!” Ben pouted. “I haven’t stayed up playing games in like, five months. At least. I do have some sense of responsibility, you know.”
“Yes, yes. You are very mature. I know.” Rook’s eyes were already closed.
“Sometimes I wish you didn’t know how to use sarcasm.” Ben’s voice was flat, but Rook offered a small smile in response.
“I know. Goodnight, Ben.”
Shifting and closing his eyes, Ben replied. “’Night, Rook.”