Don't Wake Me Up - Shawn Mendes

PART TWENTY EIGHT

"So, do I really mumble in my sleep?" Shawn asks me on the drive back.

I look at him and laugh.

"Yeah you do! Maybe you're rehearsing your songs, you subconsciously wish you could remember all the words!" I tease him.

He laughs with me and gently shoves my thigh with the hand not holding the steering wheel.

"But seriously," he continues, "would you like to fly out with me? I can definitely arrange that!"

"If it were only up to me, you know I'd be there for the whole thing! An all paid vacation across Europe? Sign me up! But I have to work. March and April are actually super busy months in the marketing industry."

"Okay... And after that?" he asks, hopeful.

"After that, I can probably take a few days off, turn it into a 4 day weekend and fly out to you!" I say with a smile. "We'll make it work. I promise."

Shawn squeezes my thigh and smiles as he faces forward again. I also look away, to the passenger side window. I can't help but feel a bit of remorse about what I just said, because right now, I can't even picture myself making it until May. Long distance is already hard to do, so I can't imagine how it will affect our fairly new relationship. And not just that, he would have to resist the hundreds — if not thousands! — of gorgeous girls throwing themselves at him every single day. And if his girlfriend is out of sight for two months, she may as well be out of mind.

I try to shake myself out of it as I see the familiar city lights reflecting on the windshield of the car. Soon enough, Shawn is clicking the remote button and we're making our way into the parking garage of his building.

"So, you've been pretty quiet..." Shawn says to me. "That's unusual. Anything wrong?"

"No, no. Just enjoying the ride," I say, trying to convince myself more than anyone else.

We reach the elevator, and Shawn remarks that he didn't even ask me if I wanted him to drop me off at my place tonight. I wrap my arms tight around him and press my whole body against his.

"Don't worry. I wouldn't want to be anywhere else right now," I say softly.

A bit surprised, Shawn hugs me back and snickers before kissing the top of my head.

It's still pretty early, but all the stress from meeting Shawn's family has completely drained me, so I immediately change into the shirt of Shawn's I always wear as pyjamas. I'm in the bathroom getting ready for bed, and I remind myself to try and sneak in a little bottle of makeup remover to leave in a drawer, and maybe a toothbrush? I mean, I've been sleeping over here enough not to have to use the travel one I keep in my usual bag!

"Hey, there's leftover pizza, do you want a piece?" I hear Shawn shout from the kitchen.

"Are you kidding, Shawn? We just had the best meal at your house!" I yell back.

"Uh yeah, like 2 hours ago! I'm a growing boy."

"Well, you better not grow too much more, or I'll need more than heels," I say to him across the kitchen island, as I take a seat on one of the stools.

"Alice? What happened to you?" Shawn asks me, confused, as he sees my face.

"Excuse me?" I reply, immediately offended. I just took off my makeup. This isn't the first time he's seen me barefaced.

"What? Just wondering when you got this drop — he pauses to give me a quick peck on the lips — dead — and another — gorgeous — and a last one."

"Oh I'm not," now it's my turn to kiss him, but just a centimetre from his lips, I whisper "but I kill you anyway," and smile as I plant my lips on his. Our teeth clink together because of our smiles, and I kiss him even harder knowing I can always make him laugh.

Shawn eats a piece of cold pizza while I head to bed. I check my phone as it charges for the night. When Shawn finally joins me, I've already turned off the light, and my eyes are closed trying to fall asleep. I can hear Shawn being so cautious not to make any noise so he doesn't wake me, and I can feel him slide into bed next to me. He kisses my cheek before wrapping his arm around my stomach. Without even looking at him, I know exactly when he falls asleep, because I can feel his breathing slow down, and his embrace around me loosen. And I'm still awake to feel that, because I can't fall asleep myself. The thought of Shawn celebrating a good show one night, and giving in to a moment of weakness is still running through my head. I know he wouldn't cheat on me, but we don't know what this tour could do to us. We have only been together for two months. I do love Shawn. Every day, I can't believe how lucky I am to have found a person that makes me feel the way he does. With him, I'm in heaven. I just don't know if I could handle the fall from this high.