Eden and Bea (LGBT+)

🌳 x 22

Bea's POV 

"It's fine. If we ignore it, then we'll be able to get some sleep," I said, to a slightly anxious-looking Eden. "Realistically, we'll be fine. You know, as long as there's no lightning." 

"Don't tell me that," Eden said, as she got into her sleeping bag and pressed her face into the pillow. 

I felt my mouth twitch again. 

"Don't you love being out in nature?" I asked her. 

Her eyebrows creased together at the question. 

"Not when there's a chance that nature could kill me," she replied, with certain worry behind her words. I could tell that this was really bothering her. 

Even so, she soon squeezed her eyes shut in an attempt to get some sleep. When she was sleeping, her face seemed to relax a little, but there was still some tension visible, like the faint lines in her forehead, that told me she was still not entirely calm. 

In that moment, I wished that there was some way that I could bring her peace of mind. I wished that there was a way that I could balance out her worries and reassure her that she wasn't alone, or that she didn't have to do everything a certain way simply because her parents wanted her to. 

As I closed my own eyes, I couldn't help but feel a little anxious myself. I was worried that I would wake up the next morning and all of this would be some sort of dream. It would be as though Eden and I had never got onto friendly terms and she still disliked me. In truth, I wasn't sure that she didn't. Nevertheless, I liked to hope that we were now doing better than we ever had before. 

I knew that I could never go back to talking to her the way that I had before. I only wanted to be kind to her, now, to be there for her as much as I could, so I could prove to her that I didn't hate her. I never had. 

I thought about it a little while longer, but soon opened my eyes. 

A few moments later, Eden's eyes fluttered, too, and she met my gaze. 

"I can't sleep. I have severe insomnia. There's another one of my secrets," she said, with a thoughtful expression, "And this storm really isn't helping. I feel as though I'm going to have nightmares. Whenever there was a storm, I always used to wish that I would have someone with me, so I wouldn't be so worried..." Her voice faded out, then, "You probably think I sound stupid." 

I really didn't. 

"Move your sleeping bag closer," I said. 

She raised an eyebrow at me, but shuffled closer anyway. 

"You don't hate me, do you?" she asked then, as she rested her head against the pillow again. 

"Where did you get that idea?" I teased. 

"I don't know. I based that on pure intuition," she said. 

We gazed into each other's eyes, as the seconds passed by, and I became thoughtful for a moment before I spoke again. 

"I wish I knew what you were thinking about," I said. 

The corner of Eden's lips twitched upwards slightly. She always looked so beautiful when she smiled. 

Now, what was I thinking about? 

"If the storm comes for us, I'll make sure you survive," Eden said. It only half-sounded like a joke. "I'm actually an incredibly caring person, underneath this super cool exterior," she added, playfully. She then adjusted the collar of her pyjama top and exhaled again, as the storm continued to brew outside. 

I noticed that, in comparison to my own pyjamas, Eden's weren't creased at all. 

Then again, she had probably got a maid to pack them...I smiled, with some amusement, at the thought. 

"Thanks, Eden," I said, in response to her earlier comment. 

"You're welcome," she said. "We're going to be alright," she added. 

I wasn't sure whether she meant in general or when it came to the storm, so I settled on both. 

"I don't care what my mum says, I think that you should be able to come to my house this summer. We got a pool installed," she said, "And it's boring swimming on my own. Wait..." she trailed off then and her eyes went wide, as if in realisation. She shook her head. "I mean- you don't have to swim, if you don't want to. You can just sit at the edge and dip your toes into the water, like a paddling pool." 

I coughed out a laugh and then yawned. 

"Getting sleepy?" she asked me. 

"A little...but I don't want to leave you to be awake by yourself. Are you going to be alright?" I asked her. 

She smiled then. It was only a small smile, but I had made her smile, all the same. 

"I'm always alright, Bea," she said. "You know something? You're good to have around, whenever something scary happens. You seem to bring peace along with you. At least, you make me feel better." 

"I try," I replied, with my own smile. 

"I like your pyjama top," she said then, changing the subject again.  

I looked down towards the little bee graphic t-shirt. 

"I like yours," I replied, "Very pink." 

She released a soft laugh, that sounded equal parts amused and sleepy. 

"It's so last year," she joked. 

Her eyes began to close and though there was so much more that I knew I wanted to ask her, I was going to have to wait. 

I didn't want to end up bringing up a controversial topic of conversation. 

For instance, she seemed to dislike talking about her family most of the time. 

For another, I wanted to ask her how she really felt, but she had been so secretive in the past that I wasn't sure I would ever get a real answer out of her. 

"Eden," I said quietly, into the darkness. 

"Bea," she replied. 

"Are you awake?" I asked her. 

She chuckled softly at my question. 

"Go to sleep, Bea," she said. 

Soon enough, the storm died down and at last, I did.