Page 27 of Kaine

Wait.

What?

I search over my last thought.

There’s a blanket over me.

“Ahhh!” I jump up, standing on the couch, throwing the blanket from my body as if it’s a sheet over poison ivy. “Woah.” I exhale, pointing at the blanket to command it to stay in its crumpled-up place on the floor.

I did not fall asleep last night with a blanket.

And yet, there’s a blanket, right there. I point at it again, to confirm with myself I’m not going crazy. “What the flying hell happened?”

At some point last night, someone came and draped a blanket over me while I was sleeping. For a split second, I feel a melting feeling, oh how sweet of them, to be so thoughtful. And then it freezes. Not sweet. Creepy.

Um, creepy? You’re the one squatting at a stranger’s house,I remind myself.

“Shut up! I’m trying to think.” I yell.

I climb down from the couch and look around the apartment. Everything else looks the same, unmoved. Not that there is that much to move. I run to the fridge and throw open the door. The plate of food is still there, unwrapped, uneaten. None of the other food that was in there is touched.

There’s nothing else in the apartment that shows any indication of change.

Just me. Just the blanket.

That he must’ve draped over me in my sleep to keep me warm.

It would be sweet, if I wasn’t an oven when I sleep.

No.

It still is sweet.

Dammit.

I find my phone still lying on the coffee table and press “2” on the speed dial.

“Harold? It’s Jade. I’m okay, just letting you know I’m not coming into work today. I’ll explain later, there’s just someone I’ve got to see.”