Everything I'm Not (GirlxGirl)

27. Sleepover

Alvarrez

I wake up to the face of the most beautiful girl I've laid my eyes on. She's sleeping soundly with my arm still under her neck. I don't know how she ended facing me, but I'm grateful she did. This way, I get the perfect close-up view of her flawless, unblemished skin. High cheekbones. Sharp, pointy nose. Full lips. I could get used to this.

I love her. I know I'm a wimp for telling her in a language she doesn't understand—while she's asleep, I might add—but it's the only way I'm prepared to tell her. She doesn't have to know. It's enough that I know and I'm sure, and I'm going to make her feel it.

She shifts a little, her eyebrows drawn together. She snuggles closer to me, burying her face in the crook of my neck and snaking an arm around my waist. I hold her tight against me, my hand finding itself tangled in her hair.

I glance at the clock. 9:30 am. It's way too early for me to get up. Plus, it's a Sunday. I don't function before noon on Sundays. I did the only logical thing to do in this situation: go back to sleep.

The next time I open my eyes, Julia's gone and I'm feeling so damn cold again. I bring the covers up to my neck, shivering. I look around her room. I was so out of it last night I didn't get the chance to explore.

Julia's room is big. One king-size bed. One study table. One bedside table. A bathroom. And, of course, a walk-in closet. On the wall in front of her study table, there are Instax pictures of her with her dogs. The floor-to-ceiling window that occupies one side of the wall is shrouded by baby blue curtains. Judging by the way the sunlight hit her this morning when I woke up, the window is angled so that the sun shines on her in the morning.

A bark startles me. I turn around to see Sammy sitting on the floor, his tongue out and he looks like he's smiling. He barks again.

"Hi, Sammy," I make a gesture with my hand and he obliges. I scoot over to the edge of the bed and let him lick my hand.

The door swings open. "You're awake." Julia greets as she walks inside.

"Good morning, baby," I give her a lazy smile.

"Hi, baby," she smiles. "Come here."

I was ready to jump from the bed and throw myself at her, but she kneels with one knee on the floor, and Sammy runs to her, licking every inch of her face.

Julia must've seen the look on my face because she laughs and rises. She walks towards me and sits on the edge of the bed. "Good morning to you too, Al. How are you feeling?" She touches my face with the back of her hands, probably checking my temperature.

I hoist myself up with my elbows. "Better, I guess?"

"You still have a slight fever," she says. "Do you usually wake up at noon?"

I bite my lip. "Actually, I woke up this morning while you were wrapped all around my body," Julia's face turns red. "You looked really comfortable sleeping in my arms," I smirk.

She snorts. "Coming from the girl who still has drool on her face," she smirks back. "Slept well?"

My hands automatically fly to my face, feeling around my mouth for drool. "Fuck." I run to the washroom inside Julia's room.

"Come downstairs after you're done washing up, I made lunch." She says, heading for the door with Sammy right behind her.

"Oh, wait," I call out before going inside the bathroom. "What does Al stand for, Alex or Alvarrez? It's kind of a big deal for me."

"It stands for alpaca," she says with a straight face before shutting the door behind her.

As I was going down the stairs after fixing myself, the smell of freshly brewed coffee wafts under my nose. It's the same smell as the one in the office. "Coffee at noon?" I ask as soon as I see Julia.