• Tomorrow Will Be Different • {J.C} (P.1)

•Chapter Forty-One•

        Erin left Julian to his own devices after he had left her in the living room floor, giving him space that he clearly needed.

She wanted to take offense by the way Jules had walked off; fleeing the intense scene without an explanation. However, Julian didn't need to give a reason as to why—Erin already knew.

        She had seen the dread settle in his eyes as he looked at her. Neither would come out of this unscathed; one night of drunk, passionate sex wasn't going to make up for when it came time to leave—having sex again before the inevitable would only make it worse.

        Hungover and weighed heavily by remorse, Erin sluggishly made her way to Julian's room.

She let herself in without bothering to knock, hearing soft snores coming from the other side of the door.

       Julian was sprawled in the middle of the bed, lying on his back. He had passed out, still in last night's clothes.

Erin crawled into bed with him, shaking him awake by his hand centered on his chest.

Julian's brows furrowed before his eyes squinted open with annoyed confusion.

        "We need to talk about what happened last night." Erin insisted.

        Julian groaned, turning over to face away from the beautiful girl that was clearly ignorant to boundaries.

        Erin stared at his back, still cloaked by his leather jacket. She waited, hoping that he would get the sense of being watched, prompting him to face her.

        Realizing that Julian was being stubborn, Erin sighed. She lied down next to him; perhaps that would make him face her—acknowledge her in his bed.
       ...or perhaps he would just tell her to get out.

Instead, the sound of his soft snores came to fruition—Jules had drifted back to sleep.

        "What happened last night—what I did last night... was really outta line, and I'm sorry." Erin apologized, looking over at him—still unmoving.

       Erin sighed, "I've had feelings for you since the night we smoked together. The night you let me lie to you about being scared of Michael." She waited for Julian to say something; thinking he was pretending to be asleep; but he still hadn't moved.    
       "When we had sex... it solidified my fear. That it was more than just feelings." She swallowed hard, watching Julian's back rise and fall steadily in a peaceful slumber.
        "I'm crazy in love with you... and I'm too chicken-shit to say it to your face. But I do, Jules—I love you too." Erin finally confessed.

She was overcome with relief; the weight of it all finally falling away at the sound of her own admission.

        "But that's all I needed to say. I'm sorry I got so drunk I threw myself at you—that was stupid. I just wanted to feel that close to you again... before I had to leave." Erin said. She sat up, creeping out of the bed, attempting not to wake him.

        She gasped at a pair of arms suddenly wrapping around her waist, dragging her back down into the mattress.

        "You didn't think I was just gonna let you walk outta here after sayin all that, did you?" Julian spoke with a sleepy rasp behind her ear.

Pulling her back against his front, Julian whirled himself on top of her, tracking kisses along her jaw, trailing his lips down her neck.

         Erin's fingers slipped through his hair, feeling the feverishly sticky skin of his face against her hands.