Her eyes still had that wakeful edge to them, but there was exhaustion underneath it.Heavy.Deep.She’d only been standing there for maybe fifteen minutes, and I could already see the way she was fading.
“I know you say you’re not tired, but you should try to get some sleep,” I told her.“If you’re wanting to go to The Badger Den, you’re going to need all the energy you can get.”
She sighed.“I don’t want to lie in my bed anymore.”Her gaze drifted to the couch.“Want to watch a movie?”
“You gonna fall asleep if we do?”I asked.
She gave me a half-smile.“I mean, I’ll try to stay awake.”
I chuckled and pushed off the window.“I want you to try to sleep, sugar.”
We made our way over to the couch, and she sat on one end while I took the other.
I grabbed one of the throw pillows and dropped it into my lap, then reached back for the blanket draped over the couch.
Britta grabbed the remote and turned on the TV.The screen flashed through menus and apps while she clicked around, muttering under her breath about how she had too many subscriptions and nothing to watch on any of them.
Finally, she landed onTransformers.
I looked over at her.“Really?”
She glanced back at me.“What?Giant alien robots are comforting.”
“Sure they are.”
She tucked her legs under herself automatically, and I shook my head before she could get too settled in.She looked at me.“What?”
I leaned over and took hold of her arm carefully, making sure not to mess with her shoulder.“Lie down, sugar.”
Her eyes searched mine for a second.Not arguing.Just… looking.Then she let me guide her.
Slowly, I eased her over until her head came to rest on the pillow in my lap.She shifted once, getting comfortable, and her hair spilled across my thigh.
Something in my chest tightened.Just enough to remind me that this wasn’t normal.
That none of this should’ve felt as right as it did.
I pulled the blanket over both of us, tucking it lightly around her.
She looked up at me, eyes heavy now, the fight gone out of staying awake.“You know,” she murmured, “this is probably not helping your whole keep-watch thing.”
“I can multitask.”
That got the tiniest smile out of her.
The movie played.
Explosions.
Engines.
People yelling.
The kind of loud nonsense that should’ve kept both of us awake.
But somewhere in the middle of giant robots fighting over Earth, Britta’s breathing evened out.Her body relaxed a little more against me.
Sleep took her fast.I looked down at her for a long moment, one hand resting on the arm of the couch, the other loose near the blanket.
