EMBRACE winrina

CHAPTER ELEVEN

Winter POV

The next few days were weird, to say the very least. I would wake up before Karina, shower and make the both of us coffee, and I'd usually still have a little less than an hour to spare. I was careful not to wake Addy, though I had to admit, both her and the brunette in the room over were fucking adorable when they slept. Addy scrunched herself up into a tiny ball and mumbled in her sleep, while Karina's long body stretched out on her bed. She stayed on the right side, but I still found her usual sleeping position, loose and sprawled out, humorous because it was the complete opposite of how she presented herself while awake.

She seemed to shift back into teacher mode though, even while in her apartment, because she didn't speak to me much and when she did, it was only to ask me why I was up so early. I wouldn't give her a real answer, because I didn't need to add my insomnia onto the growing list that she had of my problems.

Addy couldn't get enough of me though, and while Karina got dressed, I got an earful of whatever was floating around in her head that morning. I didn't mind because she was cute, but I almost wished Karina was as willing to talk as she was. I practically already knew everything about the girl; her favorite color was purple but it had to be a certain shade of purple or it was no good, she was good friends with Angel and Gianna, but she wasn't sure how she felt about Zoe, she wanted to be a race car driver when she grew up-

The list went on.

Even if I was staying in her apartment though, I hardly talked to Karina. I convinced her to let me walk to her apartment from the grocery store, since she had to stay with Addy anyhow, so I only ever saw her in the morning, in class, and when I went to sleep. We didn't speak in class or at night because she'd already be in bed by the time I got back, which only left morning.

When my eyes shot open on Thursday, I realized I was staring into Karina's worried black eyes. Her hair fell around both of us and her right hand was supporting her body as she hovered above me, her other hand on my shoulder. "Win? Are you okay?"

I was sweating, shaking, and I knew I'd been having a nightmare. I could only be grateful that it wasn't about my parents because I wouldn't have been able to pull myself together so easily. I forced my body to control itself, sitting up as her hand fell off of me. I squinted in the darkness, but immediately stood up and hurried toward the bathroom door.

"I'm fine," I muttered, before closing the door behind me. After a few moments, I heard a soft knock.

"Winter?" Her voice sounded tired, but still laced with concern. "Please, what's wrong?"

I sat down on the lid of the toilet, exhaling. "Nothing, I just have to use the bathroom. Can you give me a little privacy?"

I expected her to continue pestering me about what had just happened, but instead, I was met with silence. I sighed in relief, putting my head in my hands. I honestly didn't think I would ever be able to consistently stay asleep for more than one or two days. I would never be normal, which I couldn't say I minded because normal was boring as hell, but I still would've preferred to have a less fucked up mind. I still would've preferred for my parents and my sister to be alive, and I still would've preferred never to have been introduced to Leo Park.

Thankfully Karina didn't try to talk to me about what had happened when I woke up on Friday morning, and that school day passed normally. Giselle and I continued to make conversation, and I had to admit, I was warming up to her. She was sweet and funny, and I hoped maybe one day we could actually be friends.

But then again, hope was overrated.

I woke up on Saturday at around four in the morning, tossing and turning next to Karina for what felt like forever. I didn't want to leave the room, in fear of waking up Addy, so I stayed in bed and studied the brunette's features. I could see how the situation might've appeared creepy had Karina woken up, but I sat up against the headboard anyway and let my eyes travel over her face. She was fair-skinned, her only imperfection being the almost unnoticeable beauty mark under her eye, which wasn't really an imperfection at all. Her nose was long but slender, and its curvature suited her face well. I studied her long lashes and her plump pink lips, which were almost urging me to lean forward ever so slightly and just-