Arrows - Animo Sequel {Completed}

Chapter Twelve: The Morning After

Chapter Twelve: The Morning After

Mo's P.O.V.

My eyes were sore and my mind was blurry when I woke up the next morning. I remembered Barton coming in after I had been lying in his bed for a while. He'd heard me crying and had come to investigate. I suppose I'd told him everything, hadn't I? He'd asked. What could I do but tell him the truth? Strangely enough, he was more receptive than I'd thought he would be.

I rolled onto my side, feeling a dead weight lying across my body. I lifted my head; Barton's face was inches from mine with his arm draped over me, holding me against his chest. My face grew hot and I attempted to scoot backward and away from him. He held fast. How the hell did we end up like this? Nothing had happened - I knew that for certain.

I settled in a little, eyes never leaving Barton's face. His arm tightened around me, and I fought to suppress a smile. This was wrong, it was very wrong, considering I was in a relationship with Brendon, but then again... Could I really get in trouble for talking through everything with Barton to the point that we accidentally fell asleep together? I sighed. If I had to ask, the answer was probably not the one I wanted. Honestly, the only thing I wanted was to close the gap between the two of us -

"What time is it?" Barton asked, blinking open sleepy blue eyes. He yawned and stretched, consequently removing his arm from over me. I was both relieved and upset by the motion.

I wriggled around on the bed, turning myself till I could see his alarm clock. "It's almost ten," I said, rolling back toward him. My nose bumped against his chest, and I tilted my head back to look up at him. When he glanced down and saw me staring back at him, his body jerked and he moved a few inches away from me. "What's the matter?"

"Did I fall asleep here?" he asked, eyes wide. I nodded slowly, and he closed his eyes and buried his face in his pillow with a low groan. "God, I can't believe I did that."

My heart was beating a little too fast, but I scooted closer to him and set a hand on his shoulder. His body tensed but relaxed a moment later, and he turned his head just enough to look at me with one blue eye. "Are you okay?" I asked softly. He blinked. "Nothing happened, Barton."

"Nothing?"

"No."

He propped himself up with one arm and ran a hand through his - admittedly, very messy - hair. He exhaled slowly and glanced at me once before darting his gaze away just as quickly. "I'm not thinking straight. My - my brain is still a little fuzzy. I don't know if it's from what Garfield did to me, but..." He coughed once, scratched the back of his neck, and looked up at the ceiling. "I shouldn't be in here."

"This is your room."

"With you, I mean." Barton's voice was solemn, almost defeated. He sighed. "I shouldn't be in here with you."

I sat up, quick to pull the blankets up over my legs. God, why didn't I sleep with pants on? "Nothing happened," I said again.

"I know you keep saying that, but - "

"Barton." His mouth snapped shut as I spoke. Now his eyes were on me, and the hairs on my arms rose as I took the situation in. "You - " I stopped, swallowed, continued. "You heard me crying and came in to check on me. And then you sat with me while I told you about everything that Garfield said to me." Barton was still watching me, now sitting up completely with his hands folded in his lap. "I cried a lot, actually. You made me lie down and told me silly stories until I fell asleep. And I guess you fell asleep, too." I smiled at him, but he only frowned and looked away. Sighing, I moved closer to him, and reached out to grab his shoulder, but he snatched my wrist before I could manage it. Not enough to hurt me, but with enough force to jolt me forward and almost into his lap. "Barton, nothing happened." Why was he freaking out so much about this?