Playing it Straight

Chapter 14

The girls fell asleep around 5 am. After hours of talking, exhaustion overtook them. Lily woke up cuddled into Charlie's side, and it felt great. She looked at the clock, and it said 8:13. Even after only three hours of sleep, she felt completely rested. She never slept better than when she had Charlie next to her. She basked in this feeling for a while before grabbing her phone. Her group thread with the cheer squad had hundreds of messages. There were a few from Ryder, and her most recent was from Jenny. 

Jenny: "The coast is clear. You are free to come home anytime."

Lily just laid there without responding. For a second, she forgot she used Jenny's date as an excuse to stay over. In reality, she was happy she had a reason to spend even more time with Charlier. She thought about getting up but decided she wasn't ready. She reclaimed her position in the bed and allowed herself to soak in the warmth from Charlie's body. A few hours later, she finally got up and decided she needed to join the real world again. She looked over at Charlie who was still peacefully sleeping. She considered waking Charlie to say goodbye, but they had a late night, and she didn't want to disturb her. Lily went to the living room where she found a notebook in Charlie's backpack. She grabbed it and wrote, "Charlie, I am so glad I got to spend last night with you. It was amazing getting to show you something so special to me. I didn't want to wake you. Get some sleep. Text me later." She had so much more she wanted to say, but she didn't even know how. She drew a heart and placed the note next to Charlie's sleeping form.

She drove home in the outfit Charlie lent her, even though the streets were filled with people clearly walking home in last night's outfits. When she walked in the front door, she saw Jenny sitting in the living room with two cups of tea. "Hey, sweetheart. I made you a hot beverage. Sit and tell me about your night." Jenny said with a smile. 

Lily laughed, "What the hell? How did you know when to make tea?"

"I was tracking you on Find my Friends. I started heating the water as soon as I saw you left Charlie's."

"Stalk much," Lily said through a smile.

"It is my job as your best friend to ensure your safety. That means knowing where you are at all times, and that sometimes includes spying on you. I will not apologize for taking my job seriously."

Shaking her head, Lily sat on the couch. "How was your night?"

Jenny's smile told her everything she needed to know. "It was fantastic! We went to a party with some of the lacrosse players."

"So he plays lacrosse?" Lily still had no idea who this person was; she was definitely fishing for any information.

"They do not." Jenny emphasized the word they, and Lily knew she was not going to be getting any details today. "So we went to the party, and it was great. There were a lot of people, but it didn't feel suffocating. We were able to dance and have a few drinks. Nothing too crazy." Jenny was starting to talk faster, and her excitement was intoxicating. "It was so nice, Lil! Like, nothing felt weird or awkward. We could talk or not talk, and it didn't feel like there was any pressure."

Lily knew the exact feeling Jenny was describing. That's how she always felt around Charlie. 

"Well, it got later, and we talked about the plan after the party. Neither one of us wanted the night to end, so that's when I texted you. Thank you by the way for letting me have the place last night."

"Don't even mention it. I am always happy to take one for the team and sleep in my car so you can get laid."

Jenny scoffed. "First of all, you did not sleep in your car. I watched your location you to make sure you got to Charlies."