Tucking him in with my free hand, I pull the covers tight around his shoulders. He probably won’t remember this in the morning. I smile and seriously consider taking a video to tease him with later. He would absolutely document me for posterity if our roles were reversed.
“Can you get into bed with me? I want you in my bed so bad, Gracie. It’s almost all I think about,” he pouts.
Oh. Okay. I guess I won’t be taking a video after all.
“You really don’t know what you’re saying, Danny Thompson. You’re in a fever dream,” I chide.
He shakes his head, brows furrowed. Looking particularly determined, he announces, “I do know. I know it in my bones. I know that you’re my best friend. And I know I want us to be more. I’ve always known.”
“Always my ass,” I scoff playfully. “Does the name Tori ring a bell,D?”
“I couldn’t love her, Gracie baby. Not like you.”
Ope.I choke on my own spit and start to cough. What is going on? I’ve never heard him call me anything other than Gracie or Gracie girl, and certainly nothing remotely close to “baby.” Did he take some kind of hallucinogenic earlier? I scan his room for odd pill bottles. Nothing.
“And please don’t call me D again.” He shivers, and I don’t think it’s from the fever. “It made me throw up in my mouth a lil bit.”
I giggle and try to pull myself together. “I think you need to sleep off whatever this is. Immediately.”
“You are in denial, my friend. My best friend. My best girl friend. My girlfriend.” He pauses and stares at me solemnly. “Hey, Gracie girl? Do you want to be myrealgirlfriend? The kind of girlfriend where I kiss you?”
How honest should I be? I thought he didn’t want to be more than friends, but now…maybe he’s changed his mind.
Or maybe he’s deep in delirium.
Either way, I know my answer. He won’t remember this anyway.
“Yes. I want to be your girlfriend, Danny.”
The utter joy in his eyes is palpable, and a huge grin spreads across his face, bringing a touch of color back to his cheeks. “I knew it, Gracie. I knew it all along. I wanted to be right, and I am. I should’ve known. I’m always right…about everything. All the time.” He boops my nose.
“Now, now. That’s a little too far,” I tease and pat the top of his head.
Sometimes my heart feels like it might burst when I’m around him. Like it’s itching to climb out of my chest. Danny’s presence constantly hums in me, even when we’re not physically together. He brightens every good experience and softens the bad. I wonder what he would think, knowing how desperately I want him to be mine in all the ways that matter.
Instead of revealing too much of myself, I whisper, “Go to sleep, Danny,” near his ear.
“I’ll sleep,” he agrees happily. Then he narrows his eyes at me. “But no takesies backsies, Gracie. You’re my girlfriend now, so quit messing around.”
“Mhm, whatever you say.”
“Night night, beautiful girl. My otter.” He smiles and closes his eyes.
I lie next to Danny on top of the covers, still holding his hand. My eyelids get heavier. I close them and fall into a deep sleep, peacefully dreaming of us as somethingmore.
The next morning, I wake up slowly. Yawning, I turn on my side to check on Danny and startle, surprised to find him completely awake. He’s staring at me with an unreadable expression, so I reach up to touch his forehead with the back ofmy hand. It feels cool. And when I lean forward to examine his eyes, they appear clear. He looks healthy and calm.
My heart, on the other hand, is anything but calm. It’s still racing from last night, and waking up next to him definitely doesn’t help matters. I don’t have a fever, but I wouldn’t be surprised if a thermometer said otherwise. The way my body reacts around Danny is getting harder to suppress.
He looks serious as he sits up in bed. “Grace.”
“Morning! Let me take your temperature really fast.” I’ll see if his fever is gone and then head downstairs. Janie should be home by now, and if we’re lucky, she’s making her famous cinnamon rolls. I grab the thermometer and stick it under his tongue before he can say anything else.
After a minute, it beeps, and I check it—97 degrees. “Hey, so great news,” I tease. “It appears you’ve survived the plague. Or a radioactive spider bite.”
He doesn’t return my smile. Instead, he leans closer to my face.
“What are you doing?” I whisper.
