AllFreeNovel
Share Us
Casper breathes deeply, his chest raising and falling steadily.
I lower my phone.
There’s just enough light to cast a shadow from his eyelashes onto his face.
When he’s asleep he’s… breathtaking.
He has one arm slung over his head, the other resting on his bare chest. His legs are covered by the blanket, and I have an overwhelming urge to pull it down. It’s so powerful I have to curl my free hand into a fist.
It would be hard to explain that one if he wakes up.
God, I need to stop being such a perv.
I’m just enjoying seeing him when we’re not at each other’s throats.
I try to back up, but my legs move me forwards instead.
Up this close and personal, I can see that his dimple doesn’t totally disappear when his face is relaxed. I lick my dry lips, wishing it was his tongue.
This is getting odd now, even for me. I came here to take funny photos and to maybe fill in the part between his brows or draw a moustache, not to admire his fine form.
Perhaps it would be best if he caught me. I would have to move country then, and we’d never see each other again.
All the arguing and me watching him sleep—granted, the latter has only happened once—will be over.
But he’s fast asleep, and I’m apparently not budging.
I can smell his lingering aftershave, and it’s rather distracting. That’ll be getting the blame for me not being able to walk away.
His breathing is soft. Mine, not so much.
Sometimes I wonder what it would have been like if we were friends. If we hadn’t got off on the wrong foot when we first met. It would make having to live next door to each other easier. He would have been happy to be here, not just putting up with it because Marvin and Reggie wanted to stay close.
Casper takes a longer breath, and my heart stops.
I need to leaveright now.
This time, every part of me cooperates, and I walk backwards.
The perfect photo op is gone, and I bet I’ll regret that when we next argue. But right now, it doesn’t feel right. It’s hard to hate him when he seems so peaceful.
When he’s been kind.
I retreat back to my room, feeling like an idiot, and I climb into bed. No more getting up until it’s morning. That’s it now. I’m going to be a normal person who doesn’t sneak downstairs to watch someone sleep. That’s the last time I channel Joe Goldberg.
Back in bed, I close my eyes only to find Casper there again, shirtless, on my sofa.
This time, he wakes and reaches out for me.
I bite my lip to stifle a moan and slide my hand beneath my pyjamas.
* * *
At 6:00 a.m., I give up trying to get back to sleep and go get ready for the day after a rough night. Usually, I would go downstairs braless, wearing ratty pyjamas and knotty hair in search of a caffeine hit.
This morning, however, I shower, brush my teeth, chuck my hair up, moisturise my face, and get dressed. Casper will not be seeing me looking tired from my bad night.
When I get downstairs, he’s stirring, and there’s no sign of my ex-friend Freya.
