Thinking Out Loud » Colleen and Erik

Rescuing Erik's arm

Erik's arm was very much asleep. It tingled and prickled with the throbbing discomfort of poor circulation. Its circulation was being threatened by the beautiful brunette who slept on the couch next to Erik. 

Erik, always the gentleman, did not want to wake the beautiful girl in front of him from her sleep. He had decided that his arm was a justifiable sacrifice for her comfortable sleep. It is a widely known fact that Colleen Ballinger does not get enough sleep. Erik had watched her spend months barely sleeping, wishing that he could hold her and soothe her to sleep. He'd spent months consoling his best friend while she cried long into the night. He'd comforted her, brought her coffee to stay awake, and watched dark circles forming under her eyes. He knew she'd spent entire days in the editing room without sleeping. He knew she'd stayed up late into the night calling family and friends. He knew that Colleen Ballinger needed her sleep.

Even if she fell asleep on the couch, Erik Stocklin would take every moment he could get.

Erik also rather liked watching her sleep. Not in a creepy way, of course. He loved to watch her chest rise and fall, feeling grateful for her with every breath she took. He loved to watch her soft, beautiful eyelids flutter as she breathed. He loved to watch the way her cheeks would curl upwards into a small smile when she dreamt. Erik wished he could plant little kisses all over her eyelids and her cheeks.

"Gus! Shh!" Erik was drawn out of his reverie by a loud hiss emanating from the kitchen. He raised his chin to peer over the couch, where he faced a guilty-looking Kory DeSoto throwing a dirty look towards Colleen's cat, who was prancing away.

Erik felt the weight in his arms shift and looked down towards the girl next to him. He looked down and was met immediately with a pair of sleepy brown eyes. They both turned to look at Kory, who'd quickly scarfed down his cereal. He threw a knowing smirk at Erik and scampered out of the kitchen.

Erik absentmindedly began tracing circles on Colleen's back. This was either a last-ditch attempt to get her to release his arm from the prison underneath her back or just a cute quirk. Either way, it got her attention.

"Hi," he whispered, grinning down at her.

"Hi," she smiled back.

"How did this happen?" Erik chuckled, looking down at Colleen. The two were so tangled up that neither had any idea where their respective limbs were. They'd started off sleeping on different couch cushions, but it was almost as if their subconsciouses had brought them closer together during the night.

"No idea. But here's your arm back." She'd been silently laughing at his attempts to rescue his stranded arm from underneath her. She arched her back and allowed him to slide out the now-painful limb. Her back felt cold in the space where Erik's arm had been.

"Ohh, thank you" Erik gasped dramatically, clutching his arm. He rubbed it up and down, scrunching up his face in mock-pain.

"Drama queen" Colleen mocked.

Erik rolled his eyes and laughed at his friend. He sleepily began to get up from his position on the couch. He was hungry and, much like Kory, was in search of something to eat for breakfast.

"Wait" Colleen placed her arm on his arm. Erik stopped trying to get up and looked back down at his best friend. She was looking back up at him with her still-sleepy eyes, pleading for him to lie back down with her. He forgot about his hunger in a split second. She didn't even have to finish her sentence before Erik plopped himself back down next to her. She laid her head back on his shoulder and smiled.

"Hmm," Erik smirked, "can't even be without me for a second, Ballinger."

"Yeah, whatever," Colleen murmured into her best friend's shoulder, raising her hand to poke his stomach "You're really comfortable. Shut up"

"Are you calling me fat?" Erik pretended to look shocked, shoving Colleen's hand away from his stomach. He sucked his stomach in as far as it could go and poked it again. He expected Colleen's giggle to fill his ears but instead felt her silently wrapping her arm around him. He didn't fight it. He was used to hugs from his best friend. After a few seconds, he heard her voice.

"Hey, Erik?" Colleen turned her face so she was looking up at him. He lowered his chin so he was looking down at her. He moved a bit of her hair out of her eyes, an action that made both of their hearts jump.

"What are you doing with your hand?"

Erik had been absentmindedly tracing circles on Colleen's back again. He'd been tracing patterns, words, shapes. He didn't even realize it until she asked him about it.

"Oh. Sorry." He pulled his hand back, suddenly embarrassed. His face flushed red like a little kid caught doing something they shouldn't. Colleen giggled at his reaction.

"No, uh, I like it actually. It's really cute," Colleen smiled, "It was a nice way to wake up."

"Oh," was all Erik could manage to say

She rolled over onto her stomach, so she was half laying on her best friend. She grabbed his hand and placed it back on her back, where he automatically continued to trace shapes on her back. Her shirt began to ride up, exposing her lower back, but neither cared. They were friends. The two lay in silence for a few more minutes, Erik's hand moving in lazy, careless circles on Colleen's pale skin. Erik was content to stay in that position the whole day, embalmed by the warmth of the girl next to him.

"Hey, Erik?" Colleen broke the silence, looking back up at her best friend.

"Yeah?"

"Can we stay here all day?"

"Avoiding work?" Erik smirked.

"No, I just want to spend the day with my best friend" she reached up and brushed some stray hairs out off Erik's forehead, "I want to stay here on this couch with you all day. We can snuggle and play Go Fish and watch Netflix and bake cookies and play with the cats. It'll be a perfect day."

Erik smiled at his best friend's request and basked in the feeling of happiness that had suddenly overwhelmed him. He had nothing in the world to worry about, except for this perfect day with his perfect friend.

"As you wish."

AN: Sorry this took so long to update, but it's a long one! I stayed up so late getting this one finished. My birthday is tomorrow, so I might not post, but I promise you guys I'll have the next chapter by Friday!

Song Inspo: "Wake Me Up" by Ed Sheeran and "Beautiful" by James Blunt