I put away the leftover tacos and fixings and turned on the dishwasher.
Hero was sitting in the middle of the couch with his feet kicked up on the coffee table. “You got shit taste in movies, Sunshine.”
I sat down next to him, careful not to actually touch him, and sighed. I’m sure I did according to his standards. I loved a good love story drama or a good documentary. On opposite ends of the spectrum, but it was what I liked.
“I like what I like.” I didn’t know what else to tell him. It wasn’t the first time I had been told I had shitty taste in movies. “Put on Netflix.” I grabbed a different remote from the end table, hit the Netflix button, and handed it to him. “I’m sure there are plenty of beat ‘em up and smash ‘em movies on there.”
He grunted and grabbed the remote. “Thank God,” he muttered under his breath.
The man who had been on my mind far too much seemed more relaxed. Not so wound up like he had been when I had first opened the front door. It was so easy to read Hero. He may play some things close to his chest, but it was always clear what kind of mood he was in.
He settled on some action movie that wasn’t going to hold my attention, but I figured he had a pretty stressful day and I could sit through a movie I wasn’t a fan of. He reached across the couch, turned off the light, and settled back next to me, this time closer than he had been before. Our shoulders touched, and I tried to fight the urge to lean into him.
Fifteen minutes into the movie, my eyes were becoming heavy and my resolve to not cuddle into him was almost gone.
“I have to confess,” I said through a yawn. “I’m pretty tired.”
“No shit,” Hero laughed. He looped his arm around my shoulders and pressed me into his side. “Sleep, Sunshine.”
It was too appealing of an invitation to turn down. I stifled another yawn and settled into him. We were like two pieces of a puzzle that aligned perfectly.
My eyes finally fluttered closed, and I completely stopped fighting sleep.
Hero had snuggled me next to him, so obviously he was okay with me falling asleep cuddled under his arm.
Who was I to argue with what he wanted?
I fell asleep to the sounds of a car chase on the TV and slept like a baby tucked into Hero. Not how I expected my night to end, but I wasn’t going to complain about that at all.
*
Hero
I gathered her to my side, laid down fully on the couch, and cradled her in front of me.
It had been a shit day, but this was the only ending I was willing to accept. I had only come over to tell Reva I was sorry about not showing up this afternoon, but as soon as I had seen her, I had wanted to be next to her and tell her everything that had happened.
She cuddled into me and sighed in her sleep.
Yeah. Today was shitty, but ending a shitty day with Reva in my arms was all I needed to make it better.
The movie played, but I stopped watching it.
Watching Reva peacefully sleep was more entertaining.
I fell asleep, my breathing matching hers, and slept like a damn baby.
*
Chapter Seven
Reva
The bacon sizzled in the pan, and I sipped my coffee.
See, this was normal.
Totally normal.