Tom Holland Blurbs

The Mini Bet

I wake up slowly, feeling the pounding of my head reverberate through me. A quick crack of my eyelids shows a vague outline of a person sitting next to me, but I couldn't make out who it was before the light in the room was too bright for my poor eyes. I squeeze them shut and then after a few minutes of darkness, I decide to take another stab at opening my eyes, hoping this time goes better than the last one.

It does. It's slow and semi-painful, but I'm able to fully open my eyes after a few minutes of slowly getting them adjusted to the sunshine streaming through the window off to my left. And with the light and my eyes working properly again, I can clearly see the person in the chair next to me is none other than Tom.

Of course it is. I would expect nothing less from him. I can only imagine how ragged he must be in order for him to be as passed out as he is right now. He wasn't with me when the car accident happened, thank God, but the poor man has to have been worried out of his mind at me and the state I'm in.

The damage is honestly not as bad as I had expected it to be. My right leg is in a hard plaster case, there's a brace on my left wrist, and I can feel several large bandages on my stomach, back, arms and legs as well. I ache from head to toe too. Everything hurts. But I'm just thankful that it doesn't seem like I have a concussion so far. That's a plus at least.

Tom starts to stir from his awkward position in the chair that he slept in, and I can't help but notice how peaceful he looks even though his face is lined with dark purple bags and he looks positively worn out. With the sunlight falling softly on to the top of his head, it illuminates part of his messy brown curls and his face is relaxed and younger in sleep. My heart feels warm and light as I look at the man I love sleeping quietly.

I'm interrupted from my thoughts as his eyes open and they dart around the room before they come to rest on me. And I swear, the second we make eye contact and he realizes I'm awake, his whole demeanor shifts.

His eyes widen in surprise and all vestiges of sleep disappear as he practically launches himself from his chair to come give me one of the gentlest hugs I've ever had, despite his speed.

I hug him as tight as my arms will allow me, grateful for the opportunity to even do so. He hugs me back just as tightly and we don't let go for several moments, needing this more than we'd usually be willing to admit.

Eventually, we pull apart and Tom looks at me and asks, "How are you feeling, love?"

"Alright. Everything is sore and it hurts, but I think I actually dodged a bullet on this one. But seriously, Tom? You're gonna stand there and ask me how I'm doing when you're over there looking like a piece of extremely exhausted trash? No offense, of course. You're still my piece of trash, Tommy."

"I'm not the one who got in a car accident, darling. I highly doubt you look better than I do right now."

"I'll take that bet. You do look terrible, Tommy. Have you even slept since I was admitted?" He shakes his head no sheepishly.

"I'm gonna have to fix that once I'm out of here."

"We'll ask the nurse next time she comes in, ok?" Tom asks.

"Ok. Now, until then, will you please come snuggle with me? It'll be just like usual except we'll be watching cable instead of DVDs, so no fast forwarding unfortunately."

He smiles and nods at me, before climbing into bed next to me, careful to avoid all the needles and tubes. Once he's on the bed, he spoons me to him and we turn our attention to the tv which, luckily, is playing Friends, mine and Tom's favorite late night unwinding show.

We snuggle even closer to each other, if that's even possible, and simply enjoy the feeling of having someone to be with and to hold. I smile softly to myself at the feel of Tom's arms around me and the gentle way he's playing with my hair. It feels absolutely amazing and before I know it, my eyes are impossible to keep open and I'm drifting off to sleep with my head on his chest and the feeling of peace and happiness lighting up my heart. I'm with the love of my life and I'm lucky and overjoyed to be alive. What more can I possibly need?