Speak Soft // p.w.

>Routine<> Chapter 19

One hour later

Patty's POV

Around an hour and a half or so later, everyone had gotten to take a ride at least two times and, even though it was only around 1:00am, everyone was still pretty tired, except maybe Jason who was still wide awake as he always is at absurd times of the night.

"We should probably go back soon." Luke says with a yawn.

"Agreed." Max and Emma respond. Jason offers to drive us back since he was the only one who was not exhausted. In the SUV, Jason and Karim sit in the front, Luke and Emma sit in the middle, and then Max and I sit in the very back row of seats.

"God, I'm exhausted." Max yawns after she buckles her seatbelt.

"Me too." I respond. "What do you say we go back home and then immediately go to sleep?" I ask.

"I think that's going to happen whether I want it to or not." Max says with a small laugh, being too drained of energy to put any more effort into it. She leans over away from me and places her head against the window and closes her eyes.

"Here." I say, handing her a blanket that we always keep in the back and she places it on the side of her head to have a softer surface to rest on.

One hour later

"We're home." I say, shaking Max's shoulder slightly. She fell asleep almost immediately after we left. She sits upright and brushes her hair out of her face with her fingers.

"Where is everyone?" She mumbles, looking in front of us and seeing an empty car. Everyone else had already left the car, I decided I would wait and see if Max wakes up on her own but she didn't.

"They're inside and you need to be too so you can go to sleep, come on." I say gently as I open the door for her and she steps out. We both walk upstairs and she immediately goes right into my room. I don't think she's slept in her own room in at least two days, but I don't mind at all. I enjoy sleeping knowing that she's okay and right next to me and that if anything were to go wrong I would be with her.

"Goodnight." She mumbles with her eyes just barely parted as she slides under my duvet.

"Goodnight little miss Sleeping Beauty." I smile before laying down directly behind her and placing my hand on her hip before I, too, fall asleep.

The next morning

I pull my eyes open in the bed and see that Max is still asleep. I check my phone and see that it is only 10:28am. I stand up from the bed and walk to the bathroom, my morning routine has been going something like this for the last few days.

1: see if Max is still asleep when I wake up, which she usually is. If she is still asleep, follow the next steps closely. 2: go to the bathroom to brush my teeth and hair, making sure to close the door and run the water quietly so that I don't wake Max. 3: go back to the bed and lay back down behind Max, being very careful to not wake her. And finally, the most important step, 4: do not leave until she is awake and well.

I follow the steps and she wakes up only about 15 minutes after I did. "Good morning love." I smile as I lean over and kiss her cheek.

"Good morning, what time is it?" Max asks as she sits up on the bed.

"10:42." I respond simply.

"Okay, I'll be right back." She says before leaving the room and walking, presumably, into her room to brush her hair and teeth.

Max walks back in a few minutes later with her hair up in a bun and she replaced the jeans that she somehow slept in with a pair of leggings. The shirt of mine that she borrowed a few days ago is over her torso. She lays back down on the end and rests her head on my shoulder.