.: Star Wars Buddies :|: Alex Riley/OC :.

04

When Emily woke up she hadn't expected to be in the position that she found herself in.

Now, cuddles were the norm at sleepovers with Justin. However. With Alex? No. She had only known him for a day at this point, and just because he didn't want to date Nori didn't make them best friends yet. Although the warm bubbly feeling in Emily's chest when she woke up to her face smushed against Alex's shoulder and one of his arms draped around her waist definitely said otherwise. Of course, the fact that her legs were draped across Justin's lap and he was leaning on her other side made it feel less awkward and more like a cuddle pile, so the girl wasn't really complaining.

She remembered making it through the first three movies and already getting a little tired, then she blacked out in the middle of the fourth. She wasn't exactly sure how long Alex had remained awake, but Justin had definitely been out cold before the second movie was over, but nevertheless, that was a new record for him. Judging by the fact that the screen was showing the information on the fifth movie, Alex had only made it part way through one more before he, too, fell victim to the wonders of sleep.

Emily had changed into her Chewy pajamas between the second and third movies, and the pizza had arrived part way through the first one which delayed them a little. It was getting later and later than when they had planned to be done, so that definitely had something to do with their struggle to remain awake.

But now it didn't really matter, because Emily was comfortable. Ron or Maggie must have come to give them pillows and stuff because they weren't really sitting up on the couch anymore and they each had an extra blanket. The fort was still standing, which was always a plus since Justin and Emily liked to spend the day in it when this happened.

It wasn't long before Emily had fallen back asleep. She really wasn't a morning person, and despite the comfy feeling of being close to her friends, she knew she would be grouchy if she allowed herself to wake up fully right then. Her signal to get up would be when Justin did, since he always got up first. Her glasses were sort of smushed across her face, since she had forgotten to take them off, but she fell asleep anyway, her head shifting to rest on Alex's chest instead of his rather bony shoulder.

It was around 9:00 that she finally woke up for good, but it wasn't because she wanted to. It was because Maggie had walked in like a woman with a purpose and snapped a picture of the three of them. Blinking the sleep from her eyes, Emily realized the woman had used her Polaroid and instantly grew rather excited at the prospect of another good picture. Lifting one hand, she beckoned Maggie closer and took the film, shaking it gently.

"That's a nice one," she remarked. "You're a great photographer." Maggie chuckled, shaking her head gently as she took the picture and put it into a pouch like the one that held the picture of Alex.

"I took a class on it in my senior year of high school. It's more of a hobby than anything else, and I don't do it often. I just couldn't resist. Here, I'll go put your camera back while you wake the boys. Ron is about to start breakfast, and Alex's schedule arrived in the mail." Her smile caused her nose to wrinkle as she backed out of the fort and straightened up, heading back to the boys' room. Emily sighed, savoring her last few peaceful moments and snuggling up against her new friend.

After a few long moments, she poked Justin first. He grunted, shifting slightly, but just ended up falling off of the couch in a tangle of blankets. The noise roused Alex, who's eyes fluttered opened and she squinted, trying to regain his bearings. Emily lifted her head, poking him in the nose. He glanced down and his eyes flew opened wide at their position. Emily laughed, doubting that he had ever woken up with his arms around a girl before.

"Good morning, sunshines. Ron is making breakfast and Maggie asked me to wake you sleepy heads up. Man, and I thought I was the one who slept late." She untangled herself from Alex's embrace and immediately felt rather cold, especially once she had thrown off the blankets they shared and scooted out from under the fort. She straightened up, stretching with a huge yawn as her hair sort of flopped pitifully out of what remained of her bun and tumbled over her back. She leaned down and picked up the elastic, slipping it over her wrist before turning to wait for the boys to join her.