Talk Nerdy to Me

Chapter 13: Awakening

Summary:

In which Ra awakens under her new friends, and draws them while they sleep.

Chapter Text

For better or worse, Ra could not sleep away an entire fourteen-hour flight, even sick and emotionally drained. She felt rather than heard someone singing, low enough that if there were words, she couldn't hear them. It wasn't one of the ones who were sleeping against her - there were several of those.

The music was unfamiliar, not one she'd heard yet. She let her eyes open, taking in her predicament. Felix's head was in her lap, his arms wrapped around her legs like they were teddy bears. Lee Know's chest was under her, a firm pillow that didn't rise and fall in the rhythmic way of sleep. He was awake. On her other side, Seungmin was deep into the nap, holding onto her waist. On the other side of him, Hyunjin was in much the same position.

Her eyes rose then, to meet Chris' amused eyes over Seungmin's fluffy black hair.

"You want some help over there?"

"I don't want to wake them," she said, glancing down at Felix's sleeping face. Her heart melted in her chest at the sight. He looked so sweet and innocent, his lips parted, his blonde hair in his face. She extricated her hand from around Lee Know's chest, and gently pulled the hair aside. Neither Felix nor Seungmin budged.

"They're out," Changbin said dryly. "It might be better to get Felix off the floor."

Ra glanced down at the man, whose head was cocked at an odd angle. "I don't want to cause problems..."

Changbin and Chris both got up, the former practically peeling Felix off of her, the latter just casually lifting Seungmin like he weighed nothing. Ra tried not to gape at them. She did not succeed.

"Don't have these muscles for nothing," Changbin said with a grin.

"No kidding," Ra muttered, standing up.

Lee Know also stood, and Ra saw that IN was also sleeping against the windows, an airline pillow between his head and the drawn shades. Changbin nestled Felix up against the youngest member, and then Seungmin right behind him. All three seemed to sigh as one, and fell back to sleep as though undisturbed. Lee Know picked up Hyunjin and the four of them slept on.

Lee Know sat back down on the end with ear buds in, as though none of this had happened.

Ra stretched her legs, her arms, trying to get feeling back in any of them.

"Puppy puddles are nice, but they do put your legs to sleep," Chris teased. "You hungry?"

Ra shook her head. The nausea was gone, and it felt like the fever might be too. The nap had likely kick started the antibiotics in. She did open a bottle of water from the tiny bar they had at their seats. Ice cold. It felt good after the heat of the "puppy puddle." She sat down between Chris and Changbin again.

She tried not to dwell too much on what had made her so upset earlier. There was nothing she could do right this minute to fix any of it, at any rate. Energy on things she can control, let go of the things she couldn't. It was a saying a college professor had taught her once.

"I owe you guys an apology," she said, looking down into the bottle. "For getting myself that worked up."

"Ra, don't ever apologize for being upset," Chris said. "I get all kinds of comments about me being incompetent, but never a fucking police report."

"Do you think JYP might think it's true and nullify my contract?" She asked, her voice small.

"Let's see if we can get it taken down before we loop him in," Chris said. "I don't think he wants to lose you. Not with what Jin was saying earlier."