The Fear of Falling

Chapter Twenty Nine

I tossed and turned inside my once meticulously organized bedsheets. The moonlight served as the only source of light in my bedroom. I assumed that total darkness would bring the sleep I craved after a long day of school and drooling over Gavin.

I was wrong.

After spending two consecutive days with him, I craved more. Unfortunately, our schedules allowed for little one-on-one time in the past week.

I glanced at the clock on my nightstand and sighed. One in the morning and I’m thinking about a boy.

What am I, twelve?

God. I threw the blankets off of me and slipped my feet into the house shoes beside my bed.

A glass of water would help my insomnia, right? At least, I told myself it was the answer to my sleepless troubles as I crossed the living room.

In the dark, the familiar territory appeared unsettling. Long shadows crept up the walls while the wind howled outside.

If I didn’t know better, I would turn on my heels and hide in my bedroom until the sun peaked over the horizon.

But I knew better.

The only danger I was in at the apartment was getting pregnant.

Horrifying.

I pushed myself through the darkness and into the kitchen where a pitcher of filtered water called my name.

One glass helped, but the second made late-night bathroom trips far more likely than I had planned.

C’est la vie.

It wasn’t until I was heading back to my room, glass in hand, that Gavin’s door creaked open.

“Meg?” He asked, half-conscious.

I felt the sudden urge to run like a raccoon caught rummaging through the garbage.

“Yeah?”

“You’re still up?”

Gavin and I had talked infrequently since I visited Chateau Airos, but I couldn’t help but feel giddy when his steady gaze settled on me.

“Yeah,” I brushed back loose strands of my bun, messy from tossing and turning. “I can’t sleep.”

Gavin nodded as if he understood.

But how could he?

I continued to retreat into the bedroom, fantasizing about him missing me as much as I missed him. I was halfway to the door when he stepped out of his room and asked if I wanted to go on an adventure.

I stopped in my tracks and raised a curious eyebrow. “It’s one in the morning.”

Gavin grinned, knowing he caught my attention. “Exactly.”

****

I waited by the front door and tucked my hands inside my large knit sweater. The fall weather had a bitter chill after dark that I usually avoided; but when Gavin suggested we escape the apartment, I jumped at the offer.