FIA
The quiet stretched long after he spoke. It filled every corner of the room, heavy and alive. The sound of his breathing, steady and calm, became the only thing I could hear apart from my own heartbeat. It should have made me uneasy, knowing he was right behind me, but instead, it began to settle something restless inside me.
The tension in my shoulders eased little by little. I adjusted my position, tucking the edge of the blanket tighter beneath my chin. The sheets were warm from his body heat, the faint scent of pine stronger now that we shared the same air. My eyelids grew heavier, though I fought the pull of sleep for a while, unwilling to give in. It felt too strange, too intimate.
I told myself not to relax. That this meant nothing. That I couldn't afford to let my guard down, not with him. But the warmth was coaxing. The silence felt safer than it should have, and the exhaustion I'd been holding off all evening finally started to creep through.
