Stay With Me ✔

5.

"Wake up!" I say for the tenth time as I reach down and pull the blanket off of Rave's sleeping body. "We have to go to school." 

His response is a mix of mumbling and groaning as he throws his arms over his face and tells me to go away. Rave sleeps like the dead. I had poked, shoved, and lightly kicked him for ten minutes before I finally got a reaction out of him - and that reaction was him pulling the blanket over his face. 

"Rave, get up." I reach down and pull his arms away from his face. He opens his eyes and pouts, but when I start to pull him up, he lets me. When he gets to his feet, he looks so young and innocent as he yawns and rubs his eyes in attempt to wake up. 

"I'm up." He says before yawning again. I reach for the fresh glass of water and the Tylenol I had for him, after he swallows the pill, he looks at me like he just realized where he is. He runs his hand through his messy hair and looks at me nervously. 

"Ky, I'm so sorry, I-"

"Not now." I hold up my hand to stop him as I interrupt his apology. "Right now, we have to get ready for school, we can talk later." 

Rave's mouth snaps shut as he nods in agreement. "I don't have any clothes..." He says as he looks down at his wrinkled t shirt and jeans that he slept in last night. It was the same outfit he wore to school yesterday and from the smell of his shirt, I'm guessing he spilled some of his alcohol on it last night.

"Go take a shower, I'll find you something." I point towards my bathroom and without another word, Rave heads towards the shower. When he closes the door, I put my face in my hands and try to push thoughts of last night and Rave away. I take a deep breath and head to my mom's room to find Rave something to wear. 

My mom kept a few of my dad's old t shirts, sometimes she sleeps in them or wears them around the house on her days off, but I'm sure she won't miss one. I dig through the drawer and finally find a plain grey v neck. 

Rave is taller than my dad, and I'm not even sure if any of his own pants are still around, so I take the shirt and head back to my bedroom. I hear the water shut off in the bathroom as soon as I enter the room and then I hear the shower curtain pull back. 

Since my mom is still at work and not cooking breakfast this morning, I decide to go make myself a bowl of cereal while I wait for Rave to get dressed. I know that we should probably talk about last night - and the past eight months - but I don't want to ruin this moment just yet. He's here and I don't want to talk about the time he wasn't.

Just as I'm about to leave, Rave opens the bathroom door and stands before me in nothing but a towel wrapped around his waist. My eyes immediately go to his abs and travel up his chest, lingering a little longer than they should on each part of his toned body. When my eyes finally meet his, I can see the amused twinkle in the green color, and the smirk on his face as his lips part and he lazily says, "Damn, Ky, that's a new shade of red." 

My hands fly to my face, I'm still holding the shirt I got for him and I toss it at him as I turn and walk as fast as I can from the room. When I make it to the kitchen, I stop and lean against the counter, completely forgetting about breakfast.

"Ky, I don't know what to do..." His voice trails off as he looks up at the sky, his hand holding mine as we sit in his car listening to the faint sound of the radio playing around us. 

"What do you want to do?" I ask even though I'm afraid that the answer won't involve me. I know he'll pick her, why wouldn't he? She's pretty and popular, she's everything I'm not. 

Rave is quiet for a long time, he just stares out at the moon in front of us, his thumb mindlessly rubbing small circles on my hand. I guess it's a good thing that he's taking so long to think about his answer - that must mean there's a decision to make, right? It must mean that Lexy isn't a clear choice and that I have a shot. I can't be the only one that has felt something these past couple of months. He's holding my hand, doesn't that mean something?