Lighter

s e v e n t e e n

if you ever get to the place
where the sun is shining every day
then i'll be on your m i n d . . .

⚡️⚡️⚡️

One of my favorite things was how the morning light would cascade across the interior of Ben's palatial bedroom.

Being together for ten months, I was used to waking up beside him, but the feeling never got old. While almost every weekend after the four-month mark I'd tell my dad I was sleeping at Cheyenne's, I'd be at Ben's place. I was always with Ben.

I usually woke up before him, mostly because I just couldn't sleep in as late as he could. It was rare for me to have a nightmare whenever I slept over Ben's house, but even if I did, they were never serious. They were just enough for me to wake up gasping, which never disturbed him.

It was just another Saturday in his bed with me patiently waiting for him to awaken. Watching the sun filter through the curtains, wondering how the hell I got so lucky to be able to date Ben Axford.

I turned over to admire the sought-after heartthrob that was all mine, and smiled at how he slept. His wispy brown hair was chaotic – the complete opposite of him. He was always so poised that for anybody else, it would be unnatural. But for him, it worked. His absurdly long eyelashes skimmed the tops of his cheekbones, a loose one fallen on the side of his nose. The warm sunlight glowing on his shirtless body only added to his ethereal beauty.

After I realized he wasn't going to get my telepathic message to wake up, I quietly escaped out from under the covers and went to his attached bathroom, shuffling across the cold wooden floor in nothing but my pair of tiny shorts and an old sweatshirt. I took my time, hoping that I'd somehow happen to wake Ben up by the time I was done.

Of course, I didn't. He was in the same exact spot that I left him in, not moved even an inch.

Biting down on my lip, I stared at the bed from across the room and considered waking the sleeping prince. When I saw that it was almost eleven o'clock, I decided to go through with it. It wasn't the first time I'd woken him up, but it was the first time going with this tactic.

I raced to the bed and jumped up on it, landing right next to Ben's body. He jerked around from the movement, his eyes snapping open with a grimace distorting his face.

"Hi," I beamed.

He breathed a short laugh and shook his head, croaking out, "Good morning." Nestling myself down into the bed, I propped up my chin with my elbow and watched as Ben sleepily rubbed his eyes and grunted to himself. "What time is it?"

"About eleven," I answered him.

"Hm," he hummed, taking his hands away from his face and looking at me, one side of his mouth curling up in a standard Ben Axford smirk. "You couldn't just let me sleep and wake up on my own?"

I shook my head now, unable to fight the grin that was forcing its way onto my face. "And miss how sexy your voice sounds like this? No way."

His eyebrows raised in amusement, and I gazed back at him like a smitten idiot until he cut the moment short by pulling me on top of him. He had me locked in his arms, his grasp secure and unwilling to let me go. Our legs were entangled, the warmth of his body plus being under the covers with him giving me a sort of comfort I couldn't describe.