The Calm Before The Storm

Morning

~Max~

A voice in my head is telling me to wake up, So I obey it and open my eyes.

It's bright inside the room, a warm beam of sunlight leaks in from one of the windows.

It's weird waking up in a bed that isn't my own, but, no complaints here. It just feels good to actually sleep for once.

I yawn a little and sigh, peering over at the chair Chloe's sleeping on. It's empty. my heart jumps in my chest for a moment but then settles when I realize her jacket is gone too, so I figure she must be outside smoking.

I close my eyes again and snuggle up even further under the covers. God, it's so nice and warm here, *sigh* I could stay like this forever. I hug my pillow and smile to myself. Something shifts behind me and suddenly I'm aware of an arm wrapped around my waist.

For a second it feels nice... until it clicks.

There is an arm around my waist, and Chloe is nowhere to be seen.

I swallow audibly and turn my head. Sure enough, when I look behind me, all I see is butterfly blue hair.

For some dumb reason, I panic.

"Shit!" I say, basically pushing Chloe off the bed.

She immediately wakes up when she hits the ground, jumping up and karate chopping the air around her,

"What, What is it? Are we being robbed?!".

"No!" I reply quickly, pulling the sheets up to my chin even though I'm fully clothed. It's my beet red face that I'm trying to hide.

She relaxes and looks at me curiously, "Then what's wrong?".

"You were in the bed with me," I reply.

"Ok... and?".

"What do you mean 'and' ? What were you doing here?". I raise my voice a little, uncertainty and panic fills my every word, "I don't really remember what happened last night, aside from falling asleep".

"Oh... really? You... uh, you were having another nightmare so I woke you up. We talked for a few hours and before you fell asleep again you uh, asked me to stay with you, and I did... all night,".

I blush even more, "You... you did?".

She nods with a slightly sour expression, "Yeah, I did. So... uh, I um... I'm sorry if I scared you".

Chloe looks down at the floor for a moment, seeming anxious in the awkward energy I created.

She stands up abruptly and walks to the door, trying to hide her flush face, "I'll um... I'll see you outside".

And with that, the door clicks closed and I'm left alone with my thoughts.

Nightmares? Did I have another nightmare? I think to myself as I roll out of bed and slip my shoes on.

I don't remember having one and I certainly don't remember asking Chloe to sleep with me, but I know she would never lie to me. Especially about something like this.

I get my bag and step outside, seeing that she's waiting for me on the small balcony, cigarette in hand. She has her elbows propped up against the railing, her old leather jacket hanging loosely over her shoulders. Her trademark hair sticks out of her old ratty beanie which she scratches at.

I sigh inwardly, still sorta awestruck at how beautiful she is.

Chloe hasn't realized my presence yet, so I watch as she closes her eyes and tilts her head up, letting out a plume of smoke.