𝐒𝐋𝐔𝐓! ʲ ᵇᵘʳʳᵒʷ

𝐛𝐞𝐭𝐰𝐞𝐞𝐧 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐬𝐡𝐞𝐞𝐭𝐬

CHAPTER FOUR          between the sheets

"Do you ever stop to think about what you're doing?"

JOE LET ME use his shower (I was pleasantly surprised with his high-end hair products) and some clothes. The pain from my head was gone for the most part, despite the tenderness in the back of my head. As for my nose, it's still swollen and sore.

Joe sat at the other end of the couch, watching the television screen intently. I'm not supposed to be looking at screens, so I finger the pages of the decor magazines the athlete had lying on the coffee table. I get bored quickly.

"I think I'm going to head to bed. Do you have a blanket I could use?" I ask Joe, pulling the strings on his extremely large jogging pants. He pauses the movie to glance at me with a puzzled expression. "Are the blankets on the bed not enough? I can turn the temp up if you're that cold."

I shake my head, "No, I was going to take the couch so you can sleep in your own bed." Joe rolls his eyes, unamused. I shrink back into the couch. "It feels wrong making you sleep on your couch instead of your own bed."

"Get up," Joe huffs, tugging me by the arm. I push myself up, holding the pants around my waist so they don't fall. He leads me to the bedroom, where the motions to the bed. "If you feel that bad, we can share, as long as you're comfortable."

I bite the inside of my cheek, thinking it over. I don't want to make things awkward, but he genuinely doesn't seem to mind- but I don't want him to feel obligated. "I don't wanna be a burden," I say, looking up to him.

Joe scoffs, pulling the blankets back. "It doesn't bother me. You mind if I take my shirt off?" He asks, his hands already reaching for the back of his shirt. "Oh, um, go for it."

He pulls it off with ease, discarding it on the floor. He clicks the television off. He glances back to me, an embarrassed look blushing his face. "Sorry, I can't have any noise on when I sleep. Does that bother you? I could turn it back on." I climb into the bed, pulling my hair back and into a ponytail. "That's actually perfect. I can't either."

"Nice," Joe quips, shutting the door slightly. He clicks the lamp off before walking around the bed and sliding into the sheets. "If you need anything, wake me up. And if you wake up and think about taking the couch, tell me. I really don't mind."

I nod in the dark, before realizing he can't see me. "Okay. Goodnight."

"Night."

I turn away from him, facing the wall. I curl into a ball, pulling the blankets around it. This mattress is so soft- it practically molds to my shape. I sigh in content before letting the sleep pull me away.

---

The house hummed softly, waking me up to a quiet, peaceful atmosphere. I open my eyes, thanking God that the throbbing in my head has disappeared fully, despite the tenderness. My eyes land on Joe's sleeping figure- his arm wrapped around a pillow; his eyebrows furrowed with sleep. My heart rate creeps up as my mind races.