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Giggling to myself, I skipped down the hall to my room. It was quite possible Alex had gone to sleep, so I opened the door carefully even though I hoped he was awake.
He’d turned off all the lights but the one in the bathroom, just as I’d done for him the night before. I took off my shoes and tiptoed to my bag to grab my pajamas. My dress fell off my shoulders, and I shimmied my hips until it dropped to the floor, then bent down to snag it and—
“Nice show, boo.”
Yelping, I spun around to find Alex stretched out on the bed, very much awake, and watching me. It was dark where I stood, but my black panties and bra stood out on my pale skin.
Once my heart calmed, I decided not to be embarrassed. My flaws were pretty well disguised in the dark. “I thought you were asleep.”
His chuckle rasped. “That would have been pretty fast. Did you even check the bed?”
“No.” I pulled my T-shirt over my head and unhooked my bra, then slipped it off before pushing my arms through the sleeves. “But you had a late night last night and the room was dark, so I just assumed.”
After I pulled on my shorts, I made my way to his side of the bed, peering down at him. “Go to sleep,” I whispered.
He grinned back and tugged on my shirt. “Can’t.”
I tapped his nose. “I’ll fix you up. Let me wash my face, then I’ll be right back to tuck you in.”
I left the door open a crack, occasionally peeking out to make sure Alex was still awake as I went about my business. He laid on his side, watching me from the bed. I opened the door fully when I was done and leaned against the jamb as I tied my hair in a loose bun on top of my head.
“So,” I dropped my hands and moved to the side of the bed, “turn over on your stomach.”
Alex’s brow furrowed with suspicion. “So you can stab me in the back?”
“No way, silly. When I stab you, it’ll be right in the heart.” I jabbed my invisible knife into his chest, then pushed his shoulder. “Roll over and I’ll put you to sleep.”
With a groan of protest, he rolled over onto his stomach, his head turned to see me. “I’m worried, Yael. I have no idea what’s about to happen.”
“Just wait, it’s magic.” I placed one knee on the bed, then another. I hadn’t done this since college, so it took a moment for me to figure out how to situate myself. “Here we go.”
I climbed on top of Alex, aligning my butt with his so we were back to back, then released a long exhale, letting my weight sink into him.
“What’s happening now?” he mumbled.
“Mo and I discovered this trick when we were kids. Sometimes I’d get restless at night and my parents didn’t want to deal with me, so Mo did. He used to pile my stuffed animals on top of me, and that worked when I was little, but once I got older, I needed something heavier, so Mo squished me into the bed just like this and I loved it. I found it deeply relaxing.”
Once we hit middle school, my brother told me we were too old to do it anymore, which sucked. But I used to coerce friends, and then later, boyfriends, to lie on top of me when I had trouble sleeping.
“I think you’re about fifty pounds too light for this to work,” he said.
“Shhh...just feel yourself sinking. Close your eyes and breathe out all your troubles.”
He wiggled a bit under me, and I almost went rolling to the side. “I don’t think this is working,” he said.
“Give it more time.” I swatted his side. “Relax.”
Alex snorted. “That’ll do it. Smack me into submission.”
“Shhh.”
“I’m trying, Cool Girl. I’m trying.”
