Monster in My Bed

Chapter Thirty-Six | Just a Shower

I was so tired. Mentally and physically, I felt drained to the point that I wasn't even that hungry. Every single thing felt like so much of a chore that I slept a good portion of the day.

The first day after the whole ordeal with Apsens, Matteo didn't say anything. He just let me sleep for nineteen hours. I woke up feeling more tired than I did when I first fell asleep. The second day, Matteo tried to get me to eat lunch. I rolled away from him and went back to bed, but I did eat dinner with him later. It was mostly because he brought it up to our room and practically force-fed me. Yesterday, Matteo made me wake up before noon. He didn't really say much, just ran me a bath and let me lay in there for a while. I knew that what he was doing was right. I didn't want to stay in bed all day. I didn't want to not eat, but not a single cell in my body made that possible. It was a feeling I hadn't felt in years.

"Kai," Matteo shook me lightly, making me groan. "Look at me." I sighed in annoyance but decided to just listen to him. If I'd learned anything from the past few days it was that Matteo really didn't like to take no for an answer. He pretty much always found a way to wake me up or get me eating.

My eyes slowly opened to see Matteo fully dressed and crouched in front of me beside the bed. Despite the weather still being cold, he only had on a pair of dark wash denim jeans and a long-sleeved black shirt. I wasn't complaining, though. The shirt fit his chest and shoulders nicely which was always a bonus for me.

"Come with me today," he said softly. His face was so close to mine that I could feel his minty breath fan over my skin. It caused goosebumps to rise on my arms, but they weren't detectable from being under the blanket. I didn't respond, I just shook my head. "It wasn't a question. I need you today." I'm not sure why, but hearing him say that he needed me made warmth swell within me. If I wasn't so tired, I probably would have smiled.

"I need to shower," I mumbled. The corners of Matteo's lips turned upwards into a small smile. Again, warmth swelled in my chest making my toes curl.

"I'll grab you some clothes," he said, placing a soft kiss to my cheek. I took in another deep breath before pushing myself out of bed. I think it was a little too swift of a movement for the morning, though. My vision went blurry for a moment, and a coldness swept over my entire body. I gasped and felt my knees buckle underneath me. Luckily, the bed was below me, so I hit that before the floor. I held my head in my hands as I waited for the dizzy feeling to go away. This shit felt worse than a hangover. At least hangovers aren't emotionally involved; well, mine aren't.

I heard Matteo's heavy footsteps make their way around the bed. I didn't trust my body enough to lift my head up to look at him. Matteo wasn't really having it with that excuse, though. His large hands held both sides of my face and lifted it so that I was looking at him. He frowned, most likely taking in the drained look on my face.

"Bath instead?" I shook my head.

"I need to get up," I sighed. I didn't entirely trust my legs, but I needed to get them going. I might as well have pool noodles for legs at this rate. Matteo helped me up and steadied me by holding my arms. "Will you come with me?" I asked, feeling a bit brave. Honestly, I could see this conversation going either way. He could either say, "no, I already had a shower," or "sure, I love seeing you naked even when you look like you've been hit by a bus". Either are acceptable answers coming from my mate who seems to have two totally different personalities half the time.

Matteo didn't really give me either of those answers. Instead, he gave me a lopsided smile.

"Come on," he coaxed, gently pulling me toward the bathroom. As we got in, Matteo took a seat on the lid of the toilet. I frowned knowing that this is what he meant when he agreed to come with me. This is not what I wanted.