Heaven Can Wait || Eddie Munson Story ||

At Dawn They Sleep

AnnMarie's POV

I wake up to the sound of my phone ringing and groan. My head is pounding and my face feels like it's going to implode. I feel awful. I roll over and pick it up off of my night stand and answer.

"Hello?" I croak, my throat hoarse and burning.

"Oh, no," Eddie says on the other line. " Are you feeling alright?"

"No," I whine. "I think I might be dying."

"Like hell you are. I'm coming over. Is the door unlocked?"

"No but the spare key is under the mat."

"OK, be over in a second."

Once he hangs up, I find the will to go to the bathroom and brush my teeth and comb my hair before flopping back into bed. I hear the front door open and despite feeling like crap my heart does a little flip, excited to see him.

Eddie comes into my room quietly. He has on black pajama pants and a white tank top and his hair is hanging loose around his face. His hands are surprisingly free of his rings. He meets my eyes and smiles.

"Hey there, sweetheart. Glad to see you're still alive."

"I'm barely hanging on," I complain. He moves to sit on my bed beside me and he places the back of his hand on my forehead and frowns.

"You feel really warm. Do you have a thermometer?"

I direct him to the bathroom and he goes searching for one. I prop myself up on my pillows and sigh. I don't know what he is talking about. I'm practically shaking I'm so cold. I pull my blankets up and around me and rub my feet together, creating friction.

Eddie comes back holding the thermometer above his head triumphantly and takes his place back on my bed. I open my mouth and he plops the thermometer under my tongue. We wait until it beeps and once he pulls it out his eyebrows shoot up.

"Babe, your temp is 102.7," he says concerned, running a hand down my face. "Have you taken anything yet?"

I shake my head, not really wanting to agitate my throat by talking.

"Do you have anything here to take?"

I go to open my mouth to reply and get thrown into a coughing fit. I lean away from him and tuck my face into the crock of my elbow, hacking. I can feel him rubbing my back. I wince and lay back, running my hand down my face before I simply shake my head, my throat burning.

He gets up and moves around my bed, picking up my phone and dials. I close my eyes, feeling exhausted even though I just woke up. His voice sounds so soothing as he speaks to whoever is on the other line, asking them to pick up some medication from the local drugstore and drop them off here. He sounds worried and I want to comfort him, but he hasn't come back to my bed yet. He's pacing my room as he talks, twirling some of his hair between his fingers.

Eddie hangs up and puts the phone back on my nightstand before leaning in and kissing me on the forehead.

"I'll be right back, princess," he says. I want to protest as he leaves the room, but I'm growing too tired.

A few minutes pass before he comes back, a tall glass of water in hand. He sits beside me and helps prop me up so I can drink from it. I take several gulps before setting it on my bedside table.

"Thank you," I whisper.

"No problem," he kisses my cheek and lays me down. I grab his arm and pull him along with me and he chuckles.

He lays beside me and I curl into him, laying my head on his chest so I can hear the beating of his heart. The feeling of his chest rising and falling beneath me was soothing and I feel my eyes growing heavy. He has hiked up my shirt and is tracing circles along my bare back, something that would normally keep me wide awake but seems to lull me further. He starts to hum a song that sounds suspiciously like "Lights" by Journey but I'm too drowsy to be certain. My eyes close and my last thought is that I hope I dream of him.