Love Me Crazy

29. Gone

I woke up to the sound of sprinklers and dogs barking. I like the sound of sprinklers but when *it's* half drowned out by the yapping of a canine I feel nauseated. I rubbed my eyes. They were incrusted with sleep. How disgusting.

I sat up rather quickly; my morning ritual. I don't like staying under my covers too long. If I do, I will remain in slumber for the whole of the day.

"Morning."

These words did not come from my mouth

What…the…heck…?

I rolled over instantly. I gasped.

Leon!

Leon.

Leon…

I sighed, crashing my hands against my face. I had completely forgotten about last night up until this point. Given, I had only been awake for two minutes but still. Last night was hard to forget.

Leon and I…were on good terms. Sort of.

I breathed in heavily, grabbing the quilt that was currently tangled around my body. I spent a few moments unraveling it. Leon observed me curiously.

"I shouldn't…I shouldn't have slept in here," I whispered, the words tasting like garbage on my tongue. Well…maybe not garbage. But they were icky.

"I don't…didn't mind," Leon mumbled, turning his gaze to…yes…the window.

"But my mom would," I retorted, "And so would yours."

Leon stifled laughter, "No…she wouldn't. And will you quit bothering with that quilt. You're making it worse."

I raised an eyebrow and glanced down at my torso. I had definitely made the "knots" worse.

"Sorry…" I murmured, leaning against the headboard.

"For…what?" Leon said, glancing at me.

"I don't know…staying in here. I mean…even if your mother wouldn't mind, I should've gone to the guest room."

Leon eyes shifted up and down, scanning over my entire figure. The right side of his mouth curved slightly. It almost looked like a smile.

"I wasn't lonely…" he whispered.

Then he instantly turned back to the glass.

I smiled.

I found no need to respond. I closed my eyes, listening to the chatter of the birds. It was in no way peaceful. The birds in this town always seem to fight for some lame scrap of food in the morning. It was awfully exasperating. But I imagined it to be peaceful. And with the dogs full of their barking and the sprinklers still…sprinkling…it was almost fantasy like. I could feel the sun's rays shining over my body. They warmed me all over. They seemed to tickle my legs and dance upon my arms. And, most of all, they slowly stroked my cheeks. They moved back and forth, filling me with a precariously wonderful feeling. It was almost as if…it was the touch of a human.