Saving the Reject | Michael Clifford | Editing

t h i r t y f o u r ;

Charli

I was happy, beyond that, just sitting in bed with Michael, cuddled up, watching Netflix. Dawson and Emmy were back in the UK with Emmy's family, and weren't due back until the week before my birthday, so to keep myself from going insane, most of my time had been spent at the Cancer Center and Mikey's house. In fact, most of the nights were spent with Michael - just sleeping, of course - and his home had begun to become a second home to me - except this one had an extremely comfortable bed I could sleep on.

"Do you think Dawson would pull a Ross?" Michael asked randomly as he played with my hair. We were watching the episode of Friends that showcased Ross and Emily's wedding, and how terribly it turned out.

Laughing, I answered, "Oh God, no. As far as I know, Dawson's never even been in another serious relationship. He's too in love with Emmy to do anything as stupid as Ross did."

"I'm still laughing at the similarities," Michael chuckled. "I mean seriously, Emmy, Emily - they're both from the UK, marrying someone that's on a completely different continent."

I looked up at him for a second, before laughing. "I've never thought of that!"

We returned to watching Friends, my head on his chest, his fingers brushing though my hair so soothingly that I wanted to fall asleep, but didn't at the same time. We stayed in this fragile state of comfort through to the end of the episode, when I began to think less of Friends the show, and more of the ones I had in my life. It's been a while since I've talked to Scarlett over FaceTime with Evie.

I heard the sound of the front door opening and closing again. Knowing that on this Sunday afternoon, Luke and Calum hadn't planned on leaving the house, I assumed that Ashton was home. I sat up, drawing Michael's attention from the show.

"Ashton," I called, getting out of Michael's bed.

"Yeah?" he replied, proving my assumptions to be correct.

"Is Evie with you?" I question, turning the corner into the living room to see that she, if fact, was not.

Ashton continued his walk to the kitchen, depositing his keys on the counter with everyone else's. "Nah, her parents are taking her to visit her grandpa in Brisbane, remember?"

I crossed my arms with a soft laugh at myself. "Well, now I do," I commented, leaning into Michael as he wrapped an arm around my waist. I kinda felt bad for making him get out of bed, but, at the same time, was glad that he followed me. "I was hoping to FaceTime Scar."

"Char!" Luke called from the living room, obviously ease dropping on us.

A crease formed between my eyebrows as Michael and I turned to look into the living room, wondering why Luke had called me. "Yes?" I questioned. The blonde was sat on the couch, watching some shark-themed action movie with Calum.

"Use my laptop," he offered. "Scarlett misses you."

*****

"Luke! How do you work this thing?" I called out twenty minutes later from within Michael's room.

"What do you mean, how do you work it?" Luke replied doubtfully, from somewhere else in the house. "It's a standard laptop!"

"You're saying that like I know how to use technology!" I yelled with a laugh. "I have a flip phone, and the only computers I've ever used in my life were school provided!"

"Jeez, Charli, it's the twenty-first century, you gotta know how to use technology," he sighed, walking into Michael's room. I handed him the laptop, and within a minute Luke had accomplished what would have taken me an hour.