Firecracker

-16- ✔️

"MICHAEL?" I WALKED INTO MICHAEL'S bedroom around 11:18 that night.

He rubbed at his eyes and yawned, extrememly tired, yet still awake. Just like him, I couldn't sleep. Not with this creepy stalker—who wanted me dead— somewhere watching me.

"What?" he said tiredly, yawning once more.

"Wanna watch a movie or something?"

He frowned, his green eyes glinting in the low light, "It's almost midnight"

"Is that a 'yes' or a 'no'?"I huffed.

"It's a 'cut the bullshit and tell me the why you're really here'" he snipped, rubbing his eyes again.

"It's just," I sighed, rubbing my arm before I let it drop to my side, "I can't sleep, is all"

"What am I supposed to do about that?" he questioned, his eyebrows lazily furrowing together playfully. Typical asshole.

"Can I sleep with you?" I blurted out, my face instantly going red with the way that must've sounded.

"I'm off the clock, firecracker. Maybe in the morni-"

"You know that's not what I meant," My cheeks flushed most likely a vibrant red as he chuckled lowly, "I meant, can I like, sleep in here. With you?" F*ck, there was no non-embarressing way to put that no matter what.

He gave me a look, "What are you, two years old?"

"You're making me really regret asking you, you know" I simply just rolled his eyes.

I watched as he shifted to one half of his bed, giving me the greenlight to come.

I walked over to the bed and lay down under the sheets, keeping my distance from him as he turned off the bedside lamp, drowning us in complete darkness.

"Can I ask you something?" his voice cut through the growing silence, and I hummed in response before he asked.

"Did you like, date anyone after us?"

The question was so abrupt that I was unsure whether he could see my bewildered expression or not.

"What? No, why?"

He shrugged his shoulders, "I was just wondering," A smirk became present on his lips, "Don't sound so defensive"

I scoffed, "I'm not being defensive"

"Mhm"

"Can I ask you something too?" I bit my lip, unsure if I was about to go into personal territory or not.

"Go for it"

"How's your insomnia?"

I knew that it was a pretty blunt question for me to ask him, but I wanted to know. It had been bothering me for a long time, but I've lately noticed how much the bags under his eyes were beginning to disappear.

He cleared his throat, "It's fine"

"Is that the honest answer, Michael?"

Sighing, he obliged, "It was a really bad problem for me after the breakup. Getting drunk off my ass till I passed out was one way of dealing with it. And, uh, sleeping with other girls was another way—more of a distraction, than anything else, really.