Beauty and the Dork

Big Brother

I jolted awake, my heart pounding and my breath ragged. Eddie rolled over to me, his eyes lazily blinking open.

"You okay, baby?" he slurred, his speech impaired by his tiredness. I took a couple more breaths to calm myself down. He sat up, snaking his arm around my waist and pulling me into his chest. "Same nightmare?"

"Same one," I replied, my voice rasping. I closed my eyes, relieved as he rubbed my back and kissed the crown of my head. I nuzzled further into his chest, sighing as he laid back with me.

"I'm sorry for making you watch Poltergeist," he cooed, kissing my forehead. "I'm exhausted and I'm not even the one having nightmares."

Eddie had insisted on "expanding" my horror knowledge, and we had watched a scary movie every night for two weeks. Once I started having nightmares, Eddie felt guilty enough to stop the movie marathons. The nightmares had not stopped, though, and I had been exhausted in class. Eddie was at least willing to wake up with me and calm me down.

He pulled me tighter to him, gently scratching my back as he yawned. I felt comfortable and safe in his arms, relieved that my strange nightmares weren't real. His touches became lighter, softer as he kissed my forehead. I looked up at him and wrapped my arms around his neck. He smiled sleepily, leaning close to my face. I pressed my lips to his, my heart fluttering as he kissed me harder and deeper.

Suddenly, he rolled onto me, his hands roaming down my body. I pulled back, smiling as he moved to my neck.

"What happened to being exhausted?" I croaked, my heart pounding as he nipped my earlobe.

"I'm never too tired for this," he murmured, making my hair stand on edge. He came back to my lips, grinning before kissing me deeply. I melted into him, suddenly less tired than before. Our fervor picked up, Eddie sitting up and peeling his t-shirt off before throwing it across the room. I felt those butterflies I had never managed to lose since he first kissed me so long ago.

"Still scared, princess? I can feel your heart racing," he flirted as he moved down my neck. I couldn't answer, my mouth dry from how he made me feel. I shook my head quickly, making him chuckle, and I felt my brain get fuzzy as he snaked a hand up my shirt.

I gasped when there was knocking at the front door. Eddie pulled back from me, just as surprised as me. I glanced at the clock – it was six in the morning.

"Who is that?" Eddie whispered, rolling off me and pulling me tight to him. I clung to him.

"I have no idea," I replied, panic rising as there was another set of knocking. He looked at me, his face setting into a stern expression.

"Stay here," he ordered before kissing my forehead and rolling out of bed.

"Eddie!" I yelped, watching him as he strode out of our room. "Eddie! Eddie, come back here!"

I sat, in a state of panic, worried about my boyfriend. I heard him clear his throat.

"Who is it?" he boomed, attempting to be intimidating. I would have laughed if I wasn't so freaked out. I heard a muffled response and Eddie groaned. "Shit."

My brows furrowed as I heard the door open, and Eddie's tone dropped to a hush as he spoke quietly to someone. Some of my panic was giving was to confusion, and my heart started to race as I heard Eddie pad back to our room. He appeared in the doorway, a sheepish grin across his face.

"So, I will understand if you get mad, but I really hope you aren't," he explained bashfully. My fear was now completely gone, and I was just confused.

"What do you—"

"There's no way she would be mad," a voice chirped. A mop of curly hair poked his head around the door frame, and my face broke into a huge smile.