Dusk & Dawn

2- another twenty-one days

• 3 years later

The room was bathed in the dim glow of the tv screen while I leaned into the couch with my beer bottle in hand. Harper's laughter resonated in the room that lazy evening as she tossed the blanket and scuffled for the tv remote. She paused the movie midway before turning to the rest of us.

"I still think Zendaya is lucky, though," Harper declared, a mischievous glint in her eyes. Naomi draped in the blanket groaned in response as she as she flipped the blanket over and dashed to Harper to snatch the remote.

"Oh, Tom is lucky!" She yelled as she struggled to get the remote from Harper.

"Okay, Raine! Cleo! Back me up on this one," Harper demanded.

I had been watching all of their actions subconsciously, but at the mention of my name, I was brought back into my consciousness.

"I think that neither Tom nor Zendaya cares about what we think," Cleo answered, facepalming on getting to Harper before they all turned to me to listen to my opinion.

"This one right here is drunk out of her mind," Naomi shook her head at me as she came over and snatched the empty bottle from my hand. I resisted, but with no energy left in my being, she took it away in a second.

"Play the movie, Harper," Cleo yelled again before giving up on snatching the remote from Harper as well.

"Not until Lane tells us what he thinks," Harper answered. At the mention of Lane's name, my pretty little puppy wagged its tail and found its way to Harper on the bean bag. Naomi recoiled as she scrunched her nose up, returning to the seat beside me.

"Has anyone ever tried skydiving?" I chipped into the conversation, and they all turned to me again.

"Okay, time to sleep, Raine," Naomi patted my hair as she pulled me closer. I snuggled in her folded knees and drew the blanket over my body.

Tears threatened to spill from my eyes when the curtains were pulled apart, revealing the orange reflection of the sunrise that blinded my already half-opened eyes. The morning reflection of the sun— it was the only way to get me to wake up.

I groaned, feeling my body ache all over, plus the headache that was about to split my skull bone in half. I turned to find Harper snoring, her legs planted on Cleo's torso as they sleep. I shook my head at them, seeing how they do not even flinch at the light creeping into Naomi's room.

Once I turn to Naomi with a threatening look, she immediately raised her hand in surrender as she spoke, "I swear you told me to wake you up early no matter what."