(We all had one of these days, come on raise your hand 🖐🏻🙋🏻)

Sighhhhhhhhh...it was gonna be one of those days. It was another day in the Hazbin Hotel. Everyone was up and about in the morning, either doing one of Charlie's exercises or just going about doing their own thing, except you. Laying on your bed, tangled up in blankets, you felt emotionally and physically drained. It was another one of your burnt out sessions. They would come and go, some days being mild and others being rough. Just wasn't in the mood for anything anymore, so staying in bed and getting through it was a better option.

You made sure to text Charlie that you weren't going to head down in the lobby and you were gonna stay in your room. She knew about your burnt out days and made sure that you were left alone, but sent Razzle and Dazzle to bring you some food, to make sure you were eating. It was nice that she cared so much, you honestly felt like a burden like this, but Charlie had a heart of gold and wanted to give you the time to feel better. Squishing your face into the pillow, you just stared in the corner of your darken room, letting your mind wonder. They were soon interrupted by a rhythmic knock at the door. Ah, it must be Razzle and Dazzle bringing you breakfast. Turning around on your bed, facing the other way, you yelled out "Come in".

They were both pretty silent, as they didn't really converse a lot with anyone, but they were friendly. Something felt strange as instead of the flapping of wings, there was a hint of static in the air. Huh? Suddenly, your bed shook as someone had taken a sit on it. "Why good morning, my dear! Why are you still in bed? Up and at em!" A static voice rang in the room, causing your body to jump. Turning your head to the side, you spotted a smiling red demon looking down at you. "Al? What are you doing here?" Turning your body back around, you continued to lay with your head on the pillow, eyes gazing up to look at Alastor. His piercing eyes were looking down at you, as his mouth was stretched wide, smiling like a jester. "I noticed your lack of presence when I was in the lobby with the other riff-raff. Charlie kindly told me you were still residing in your room, so I decided to pay a visit! He was still seated on your bed, legs crossed with his hands on his lap. His signature microphone was laying against the bed. "Ah I see" you said as you looked down, going back to staring at the corner of the room again. Alastor raised an eyebrow, pondering your lack of emotion.

Raising both of his hands, he placed his fingers to your lips, moving them up to form a smile. "My dear, its not very productive to be lying in bed and being grummy. Come now, gimme a big smile!" Alastor continued to smile down at you, still holding your lips up. You just gazed up at him, eyes devoid of any emotion, which put off Alastor for a bit. Moving your head side to side, you were able to shake off Al's hands on your face, placing it back against the pillow. "I'm not sad Alastor." Heaving a sigh, your eyes were just staring off into space. "Alastor tilted his head at you, confused at the whole situation. "If you are not sad, then why is there still a frown formed on your lips?" Alastor continued to stare at you, waiting patiently for your answer. Honestly, you expected him to be laughing at your situation, since he enjoyed the suffering of others. His eyes were a dead give away to how he was really feeling, and the eyes that peered down at you were filled with confusion, but also concern.

Heaving a sigh, you lifted your body up, sitting instead of laying, with the blanket still wrapped behind you. "Just feeling a little burnt out at the moment." There was a bit of awkward silence, as neither of you said another word. Al was still looking at you, but his head was tilted again. "Burnt out? Was there a fire in the hotel that occurred during my afternoon stroll?" Al questioned, while inching closer to you, looking to see for any burn marks on you. Heh, that earned a chuckle out of you. Laughing for a bit, you shook your head. "No no there wasn't a fire yesterday Al. Have you never felt burnt out before?" Your question earned a head shake from Al. Figures he had no clue what that meant. This man was giddy as could be everyday. "I'm afraid I have never heard of it before, my dear! Care to enlighten me?"

He inched a bit closer, waiting for your response. Looking down, your mind tried to piece together the correct way to explain it to him. "Well, being burnt out is just my body and mind feeling overloaded with stress, yet instead of being anxious, I become detached. I don't feel depressed nor am I being lazy, but I just feel like an empty shell, like all of my feelings are just sapped away, leaving behind nothing. I don't feel any motivation to do the things I usually enjoy doing. My body is exhausted yet I'm unable to fall asleep. I told Charlie that I get like this some days, so whenever I have an episode, I stay in my room, especially since when I'm burnt out, I kinda wanna isolate myself from everyone. It is a bit confusing to explain, so I hope I was able to narrow it down for you." Finishing your little speech, your lips drew into a tiny smile as your eyes gazed at Alastor.

His eyes were still looking at you with concern, his signature smile turned into a small grin. One of his gloved hands raised to your head, stroking it. "I appreciate the explanation, darling. But, it is detrimental to your health to be staying like this." Rolling your eyes at his words, you flopped back down, smooshing your face against the pillow, lifting the blanket to cover your face. "I'll be fine Al. Don't worry about me. I'm sure you must have stuff to get done especially since you're doing more broadcasts, so don't spend all day worrying about me."

He didn't say anything back, so you assumed he just used his powers to teleport out of your room. "Wanna hear a joke about paper? He said in an excited tone. What the hell? Peaking your eyes out, Alastor was still sitting on your bed, smiling down at you, teeth flashing at you. "Um no?" Raising an eyebrow, you wondered what brought this up. Alastor began to chuckle at your response, "Oh that's fine it's tear-able!" A laugh track then erupted from his microphone. Staring at Al, you let out a soft chuckle, shaking your head. "It was terrible." Alastor made a face, like he was offended, but you knew he was just being dramatic. "Ahh well how about this one? What do you call a bear with no teeth?" Tilting your head, you thought about it before shrugging saying you didn't know. "A gummy bear! AHAHAHAHAHA!" He burst into fits of laughter, clearly very amused with his joke.

That was a better one, you thought as you let out a chuckle. Alastor had ventured further up your bed, sitting closer next to you, with his back against the headboard. "Lets see...Ah! What did the ocean say to the sailor?" Gazing up at Al, who was wearing a goofy smile, you laughed a bit before asking what did the ocean say. "Oh nothing my dear, it just waved!" Hehehe...these jokes were so corny that they made you laugh. Little by little, your mood began to improve a bit, the feelings of emptiness were lifting a bit. Getting up, you sat wrapped around your blanket, copying Alastors position. "I have a joke for you." Alastor's ears perked up, leaning in, ready to hear the joke. "Why did the deer go the dentist?" Alastor leaned back, placing a finger under his chin, thinking of the answer. "Hmmm...not sure my dear." Smiling widely, you said, "It had buck teeth." Alastor just stared at you wide eyed, before he burst into fits of laughter, causing the whole bed to shake. It took him a minute to calm down, before he turned back to you. "Haven't heard that one before! Another one to add to my collection!" He gazed at you, while whipping his eyes of the tears caused by how hard he was laughing. "Glad you liked it. Here's another one. What happens when a doctor gets frustrated?" Al's smile grew, very pleased that you had more jokes. "What happens, my dear?" "Well sadly, they lose their patients."

Oh that one really got to him. Al's head flew back in laughter, as he was kicking his legs, along with holding his stomach. You soon followed after him, laughing at his reaction and the joke. Soon the both of you calmed down. Al was taking deep breaths, having lost it from cackling with laughter. His eyes had pin pricks of tears as well, which he was wiping away. "Pant...pant...that was splendid, my dear!" Alastor was gazing into your eyes, smiling kindly at you. Smiling back, you told him that you were happy he liked the jokes. Al's hand slowly moved and placed itself on your cheek. "Feeling more yourself now, my dear?" He rubbed your cheek with his finger, causing you to lean into it. "A bit yeah." Al's eyes were tender. Quite a sight to see, since he never shows that side of him to anyone.

Removing his hand from your face, he raised his hand to snap his fingers. A tray had appeared on your lap. On the tray was a plate of pancakes, your favorite, along with a glass of orange juice and a bowl of strawberries. "Eat up, my dear! Can't have you being starved!" Al smiled at you, leaning back against the head board. Smiling, you dug in, humming happily with how amazing it tasted. His kindness made your heart ache. He was such a mystery, one side he was the feared radio demon, who enjoyed murder and gore, while the other was the Alastor you knew, a goofy man who loved jazz and cooking dishes his mother use to make. Two sides of a same coin, but you like both of them, as long as the murder and gore weren't aimed at you and your friends.

Flushing, you inched a bit closer to Al, who eyed you with curiosity. Slowly, you leaned your head against his shoulder, eyes still focusing on the breakfast, as you would feel super embarrassed to look him in the eye. His body tensed from the contact, having not expected that from you. His eyes were locked on you, eyebrow raised. "Thank you, Alastor." Whispering out a response, you continued to shyly look down, while nibbling on a strawberry. The tension had left his body, and he had leaned into you a bit. He wore a soft smile on his face, as he leaned his head back to place against the board. His hand then placed itself on top of yours, giving it a soft squeeze. "Anytime, my dear!"

~END~