Late Night

It was another late night in the labs for Riley, tracking statistics, documenting them, comparing the statistics, documenting that. The work was laborious and brain-numbing for most, but Riley found passion in every aspect of her job—even the tedious bits. She could have easily offloaded this work to an understudy or coworker as it wasn't all that complicated. It was even fair to say, for all intents and purposes, that the work was beneath her, and yet, she delighted in the monotonous activity nonetheless. Riley approached every facet of her job with the same fervor she had when working hands-on with test subjects or marine wildlife. Arguably the most exciting, interesting, and overall fun part of being a Marine Biologist.

Most people who chose this profession were first enticed by the prospect of interacting with all sorts of creatures and life forms. As well as having a direct impact on the ecosystem for the better. Riley, of course, loved working with animals, especially aquatic, and being able to dive into the mysterious and wonderful world just below the surface. She couldn't think of anything more exciting than being at the forefront of potential discoveries and possibilities awaiting humanity. Her passion, however, reached further than this. She reveled in being a part of every process she could and understanding the intricate aspects of the facility and what it means to be a marine biologist. She couldn't say she even viewed any of it as work, and she couldn't imagine doing anything else with her time.

Riley was truly happy, she was living the life she wanted and enjoying a luxury she didn't take for granted. She appreciated every day that she got to do what she loved, with family and friends supporting her. She had excelled in school, flying through middle school, high school, and college. She felt blessed to have the life she did, between all the opportunities she didn't pass up, and all the hard work she put in. However, Issues still poked their ugly heads through the cracks every now and again. Along with the occasional bad days, but she pushed through nonetheless.

July 20th - 11:44 P.M.

A man walked into the lab after noticing the lights were still on. it might not have been unusual for someone to still be up this late, or at any hour, but he has a suspicion it was a certain someone. Sneaking up behind her, as she had yet to notice him, he got as close as he could while still being out of range of an immediate counter. This wasn't the first, and he suspected, not the last time he would have the privilege of scaring Riley.

"Boo!" The man half shouted.

On cue, Riley jumped, very clearly startled, and swung her arm toward the noise reflexively.

"Not funny John." Riley reprimanded him, an exasperated expression gracing her face as she glared at him.

John stepped back a bit more just to ensure his safety and laughed, after getting it out of his system he acted a bit more serious. "Riley, it's almost midnight, what are you doing still awake and slaving away at research? Also, need I to remind you that you are not required to assist in any of the research. Are you even being paid for this? John questioned, his turn to have an exasperated expression. He was only irritated because he cared, as much as she sped up the research she could be better utilized elsewhere. As well as actually taking care of herself.

Riley stared back at him for a second, guilt in her eyes, before she gained conviction. "Of course, I'm getting paid for this, and am I not allowed to analyze and document data? Riley asked, deflecting his questions attempting to shift any guilt.

"Listen, that's all well and good, you do stellar work and are allowed to do as you wish. But when was the last time you ate or drank anything?" John asked, care and worry laced in his tone.

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It was true that Riley was a genius, heavily motivated, passionate, and above all else happy. But it was just as true that she wasn't doing so well. She barely slept, and when she did, it was unrestful, her brain failing to fully shut off. Most days she was found passed out at a desk or computer, the monitor still on. On top of this she would get so absorbed in work she would outright forget to eat or drink anything for hours. One time, It had gotten so bad, she had to be rushed to the infirmary due to passing out in the middle of the day. This was made worse by the fact she wanted to dive the very next day, which was promptly shut down. All in all, It could be said she was a bit...too motivated, neglecting her body to simply work.

"I-um, I'm sure I ate today, and I've got water right here," Riley responded, holding up a bottle that might have had one or two sips taken from it. She tried to come off convincing but the attempt was half-baked as she knew she wasn't going to fool him.

"Come on, I can drive you home where I hope you get more than 4 hours of actual sleep." John offered.

Hesitenetly, Riley accepted. "Alright, just one last thing before we leave." As she said this John went over to the computer, saved the progress, and turned it off.

"We are leaving now."

As soon as Riley got into the passenger seat of John's truck she started nodding off. He did have to admit it was weird seeing her in this state, it was unnatural. While he did want her to get sleep and it was unhealthy for her to neglect it, seeing her so still was strange regardless.

"Hey, Riley.-" John began Riley, jumping slightly. "Sorry if I woke you up, but I'm going to pick up some food for you at Mcdonalds," John stated matter a factly.

Grogilly responding Riley spoke up in defiance. "But I don't have any monies."

"I can pay."

"Eating right before bedtime can negatively affect digestion, messing with your circadian rhythm, and it can also cause a range of ailments. Including but not limited to, heartburn, acid reflux, weight gain, and worse sleep quality." Riley sleepily and robotically replied, as if she were reading from a script.

"While I could argue that eating a light snack before bed could be beneficial and that is 'eating right before bedtime'. I'll instead argue that eating anything at all when you haven't eaten anything all day, heavily outweighs the negatives of eating right before bed. I'm sure you have some facts in your head that agree with this correct? Why eating food is important?" John asked rhetorically

Riley simply grumbles before quickly taking up a new angle. "Mcdonalds is unhealthy."

"It's the only thing open, plus, not eating anything is debatably more unhealthy," John says, reiterating the questionable logic that eating, may in fact, be important.

"Fine." Riley resigned, reluctantly of course.

"So, what would you like?"

"A large double quarter-pounder meal with water, and a 20-piece chicken nugget with sweet and sour sauce," Riley said shyly, a bit too prepared for the question.

"That seems like a lot of food for someone who seemed so adamantly against getting food, it's alright to eat you know." John teased.

"Yeah, you're right...I'll...try to do better." Riley resigned.

John attained the precious sustenance for Riley and she happily took the food and started scarfing it down.

"Hot, hot!" Riley complained, trying not to burn her tongue on hot fries.

"Hahahaha!" John roared out laughing. "For being so smart you can sometimes do some pretty stupid stuff, let it cool down silly."

"I'm not me when I'm hungry," Riley said smiling and then bursting into laughter.

Riley ate her food as John continued driving her home, they made more light small talk before Riley once again passed out. When they got to her place John had to try and wake her up without scaring her and possibly getting slapped. Coming up with a brilliant plan, if he said so himself, John got out and tapped on the passenger side window. Riley awoke with a start and hazily looked out the window at John, who was smiling wide at her. John opened the door to let her out, she lazily exited and walked toward her house. John watched from his truck until she made it in safely and then drove himself home.

Riley, in a sleepwalk-like state, made her way to her bed, which was up some stairs down a hallway, and through a door. A treacherous journey to be sure. She reached her bed and plopped onto it, sinking into the firm yet soft mattress with a sigh. With some movement to her right, the covers shifted slightly.

"Hm? Oh, you're actually home." A sleepy voice spoke.

"Yeah, sorry Kate, I got caught up with data and statistics again, John drove me home." Riley apologized, slurring a few words.

"John huh? Kate questioned teasingly. "And you know, the offer still stands. I can pick you up from work when you're done."

"We...we can talk about it later.." Riley uttered out before ultimately falling asleep.

"Goodnight babe." Kate cooed, giving Riley a loving kiss on her head before snuggling up and falling back asleep.