When I met you

9

"They were really good considering the state they were in." Harper complimented the cookies from beside me, practically sitting on me as we were all piled onto a two seater sofa.

"I agree." I said, moving a bit to give Kali more space. Her legs were bent up against my side in an attempt to still allow some personal space between us, but not completely pushing me away. Harper seemed to notice my intentions as she got up, allowing me to slide over a bit more.

"Right," Harper clapped once she was stood up properly, "I'll be heading to bed. You two need to clear off. Goodnight!" She said, backing away and waving as she disappeared behind the door to her bedroom.

"Okay then, she clearly isn't a late night person. We'll see you tomorrow okay girls? Bright and early remember, you have training Kal." Easton said, gathering his things that were littered across the floor and giving a quick hug to the both of us as we remained sat next to each other.

"What he said. Bye girls." Asher spoke up, waiting at the door until we had responded before leaving with Easton.

"Are they a thing or is it just something Harper teased them about?" I questioned, breaking the few seconds of silence that hung in the air after the door had closed shut.

"She has always teased them about something, this is just another thing added to the list. But I do think they might have something going on, it's their choice whether they tell anyone or not though so I'm not complaining." She said, getting up and disappearing behind me to a door that I hadn't noticed when I had come in. Another bedroom. Her bedroom.

"It's like when she teases us. This is the first day you've been here and she's already teasing you about me and me about you. Which is so bloody annoying but it's just her way of easing the tension a bit."

"Tension?" I asked, wondering how she would go about explaining that one.

"Look, I won't go into it but she tries to make a joke out of things when they get a bit too serious. She already said that we shouldn't be making any moves because we hardly know each other, and I agree. But that doesn't mean that I'm not attracted to you. She tries to add in a joke with me because she's trying to make it easier for me to understand what's going on and take the edge off it." She rambled, clearly unable to stop explaining herself.

"Kali, it's alright. You don't have to go into anything. You're not obliged to talk to me about it. Don't worry." I said, turning to face her as I looked over the back of the sofa at her moving around in her room.

"I just feel like I can tell you anything. I'm sorry.Are you coming?" She asked, cutting off any chance of the conversation carrying on.

"Yep." I muttered to her, grabbing ahold of my crutches and pulling myself up. I hobbled towards her and stopped in the doorway. She rained standing, unsure on what to do next. "Which side do you sleep on?" I asked.

"Right." She said quietly.

"Okay good, because I sleep on the left. We're a match made in heaven." I spoke softly, slowly going towards her bed and surrendering to it. It was actually a lot comfier than I thought it would be. She made it look cosy with an oversized faux fur throw on the bottom and a huge grey duvet under it. It was all so plump and awaiting my arrival. The pillows at the top were more than I was used to, but they were as soft as anything and I sank into them in comfort.

"Make yourself at home why don't you." She mumbled after watching me the entire time before moving to get in with me.

"Hey Moody Margret. Hush. You invited me into your humble abode and I accepted. Deal with it." I said drowsily, my eyes closing but my mind still running away from sleep.

"Don't call me that."

"Your wish is my command. What do you want me to call you then? Sweet cheeks? Bootylicious? Honey bunch?"

"Don't be sarcastic." She slapped me, chuckling quiet enough that I nearly missed it.

"Star shine? Sun beam? Sugar lips? Sugar plum?-."

"How would you know if I have sugar lips?" She spoke up.

"What?"

"How would you know if I have sugar lips? To know if I have sugar lips or not we would have had to have kissed. We have never kissed." She huffed to the right of me.

"Okay Kal, how about this. I kiss you and then I have every right to call you sugar lips for the rest of our lives."

"That one's more tolerable."

"Kal? That's just your name though?"

"Mhm. You make it sound calming."

"Okay then."

"Have you spoken to your mum yet?" She asked, rustling around next to be to which I can only assume that she was turning to face me. I kept my eyes closed.

"I only text her earlier to tell her that I had someone to stay with."

"Didn't the Uni give you a dorm?" She asked concerned.

"Nope, said that there were none left."

"Stay with me." She said. She was not asking. She had already made up my mind for me.

"Won't that be too much? We're going to be together for football, whenever we go away for a match, most likely any other spare time we have and then we're going to add sleeping with each other to that list too? Is that a good idea?"

"For fuck sake Smith, it's not like we're going to have any couple squabbles or anything. Besides, I find you comforting, so it's fine by me if you decide to stay."

"Language Kali. You complain when Harper does it, don't you start being hypocritical, I'll have to tell her." I smirked to myself, unaware that she could see the outline of my face from the light coming through the crack in the curtains.

"Don't be so proud of yourself. I hardly swear. Only where I feel like it's necessary. I found that sentence very necessary." She finalised.

"If you say so. Can't argue with the profanity police."

"Shut up and go to sleep." She spoke softly, willing my brain to slow down and finally let me slip away.

But my heart was racing. I could hear my heart. I could feel the beating in my legs, my arms, my fingers. My hands were shaking, my legs were shaking. Slow down. Slow down. Slow down. Why is it beating so fast? I'm not worried about anything, I have nothing to worry about. I'm okay. Count down. 'Count down from 200' my therapist always used to say when mum had no other choice but to seek help for me.

199. 198. 197. 196.

"Hadley." A quiet voice mumbled beside me, moving her hand to lay on my chest.
"You're okay." Her fingers stretched a little to slowly move back and forth on my chest, trying to soothe my thumping heart. But she remained calm. She remained unfazed.

"I don't know why it's happening. Nothings happened. I can't stop it." I whispered, breathless.

"It's okay. Sometimes these things just happen. You have to ground yourself again. Give me your hands."

I turned to her, offering her both of my hands. She carefully grabbed ahold of them and placed them on her chest, allowing me to feel the beat of her own heart.

Her hands then dropped, but one came back to pull me in so she could put it back where it was. On my chest. My heart skipped a beat just by the feel of her hand, and there's no way that she missed it.

"Count my heart beats."

1, 2, 3

47, 48, 49

64, 65, 66, 67

"There you go. You're okay. You're safe with me." She spoke up quietly once my heart had come to the same rhythm as her own.

My head fell into her chest as a single tear escaped, I was completely exhausted. And then I finally did slip away.