Mio Sole

13 [Aurora]

**June 20th, 8 am**

   Movement against my shoulder pulls me out of sleep. The comfortable warmth and luxuriously soft bed around me threaten to pull me back into unconsciousness once again, but another brush against my shoulder sends my eyelids fluttering open. Not a bed, a pile of pillows.

   My eyes settle on Sebastian laying next to me in the truck bed, his warm breath fanning against my shoulder with each exhale. His arm is draped across my stomach just under my blanket, and his body heat combined with his soft skin is sending euphoric sensations throughout my whole body. For once, the thought of being touched doesn't completely turn my blood to ice, and I consider staying and enjoying the feeling for a little longer. Unfortunately, my full bladder wins out.

   I gently push on Sebastian's arm, trying to move it off of me without waking him up. His grip tightens around my waist, pulling my closer to him and enveloping me in the warmth of his body. I sigh at the feeling.

   The sound stirs him a bit further awake, his face nuzzling into my hair. It would be cute if it weren't for the trail of drool he left along my shoulder.

   I settle for brushing my hand lightly along his arm until his eyes crack open. He squints in the morning light, blinking a few times as his eyes adjust. They settle on me almost immediately, and I offer a soft smile despite the mere inch between our faces. The movement draws his attention to my lips, and his gaze darkens slightly.

I'm quick to tap his arm again, indicating my desire for him to move it. He does so reluctantly, his eye darting between my lips and my eyes.

"Where are you going?" He asks as he moves his arm. His voice is low and rough from sleep, and the sound sends a wave of heat straight down my spine.

I push the blanket from my lap as I sit up, the cool, New York air replacing any warmth I felt a moment ago. I reach down to unlace the uncomfortable heels from my feet. "I left a set of spare clothes in my car."

   I finally manage to remove the heels and let out a hiss as they leave my sore feet. Sebastian stands, kicking away the tangled blankets and holding out a hand to me.

   I throw the designer heels out of the truck, trying not to wince at the sound of them hitting the ground. The sound combined with the faint sounds of cars driving in the distance, as well as everything else from this morning is starting to become too much. I ignore Sebastian's outstretched hand and jump over the side of the truck, landing on the ground as softly as I can.

   I pick up the shoes as Sebastian jumps down, the sound of his heavy footsteps adding another tally mark to the mental list starting to form in my brain. I try to distract myself with walking towards the car, but the bright color does nothing to help either. I reach for my bag in the passenger seat and fumble around inside of it until my hands land on the pill bottle and sports drink. I'm quick to open the bottle and dump a tablet only my hand as Sebastian heads towards the front door. The pill is quickly thrown in my mouth and washed down with the sports drink.

   I climb into the seat and close my eyes, trying to  tamp down on my thoughts before I become even more overstimulated. I busy myself with counting to 10 in every language I know. Then 50. Then 100. I'm through 7 of the languages I know when I finally decide my ADHD medication has finally kicked in enough to check my phone without worrying about an anxiety attack.

   I pull the device out of my bag, glad to see it still halfway charged. There are multiple messages from Archer that I ignore in favor of opening Alaric's. He informed me that my meeting today about purchasing land in Tokyo to open another Aurora Enterprises storefront has been delayed due to power issues there, meaning I have the whole day free. I'd told him where I was going yesterday, so he doesn't bother to ask why I'm up so late.