sleep

Nadira leaned against the vending machine, staring up at the bright celing lights. Her head throbbed and she winced, flinching away from the glare. She turned around sharply, punching the number in, and inserted two quarters. Nothing happened and she kicked the machine furiously. I knew that wasn't enough money. She sighed, pressing the 'eject change' button, but no luck.

"You alright?" A tall, skinny boy with wavy black bangs and cautious eyes stared at her. Nadira shot him her best glare and tried not to yawn.

"Obviously not. This piece of crap machine just ate my change. Just what I needed." The boy dug in his pocket and handed her a dollar. Nadira waved it away. "No, keep it. I didn't really want anything. My mom just wanted me out of the room while my sister did her chemo." The boy's eyes softened.

"Please take it, then. It's the least I can do." Nadira snatched it after a second.

"What I really want is to sleep. It's like 11 at night and I can't see an end time." She fed the money into the machine and punched in her number. "I'm so tired." The chocolate cookies fell to the bottom and Nadira pulled them out. "Why are you here?"

"My grandmother has breast cancer."

"I'm sorry." The boy shrugged. Nadira cinched the bag and ripped it open, handing the boy a cookie. He took one. "I'm Nadira."

"I'm H...enry." Nadira smirked.

"You don't know what your name is?" The boy shook his head quickly, clearly embarassed.

"No, I've just been going by Henry recently. I've almost been forgetting to introduce myself like that." He hesitated. "Why can't you sleep?"

"Nightmares," Nadira mumbled. "And I'm too worried about my sister." Henry reached out and touched her shoulder, releasing every tense muscle.

"A good night's sleep is the most important thing you can do for yourself right now. You really should try to get one. Here, there's a chair." Henry led Nadira over to a chair in the corner of the room. "Listen to me. If you don't take care of yourself, that won't help your sister. You are no less important than her, okay?" Henry touched her face and instantly, Nadira's eyes closed.

"W-wait," she murmured. "Please, tell me your real name." Henry straightened and smiled.

"They call me Hypnos."

And then he vanished, and Nadira fell alseep. Maybe it was the other way around.