Chapter
two hundred and sixty:
Jen
woke sometime later to find herself alone in bed. The
other girls had fallen asleep with her; she had been the last to fall asleep.
She was tired, but it felt strange to be alone in bed.
She
could hear the television in the main room, and followed the news. Luke was
seated alone in the middle of the sofa, wearing his flannel pajama pants. He
had an open bottle of water in front of him on the coffee table. He was
watching a soccer game.
She
quietly crept across the hotel room and curled up next to him on the sofa,
moving close to the warmth of his body.
“Love,
I’m sorry, did I wake you? I turned it down, but-“ He
began.
“It’s
okay.” She smiled, resting her head on his shoulder. “I was awake anyway.”
“Are
you still upset about going to LA?” He asked softly, gently brushing her hair
back from her face.
“A little.” She admitted. “But you and I will have some more alone time,
right?”
He
smiled. “I hope so. I want to take you out when we get there. Spend some alone
time, you know?” He turned away from the soccer game and gave her his full
attention.
“And
do what?”
“I
don’t know yet.” He laughed. “But we rarely get a chance to get out and do
stuff, just the two of us. I was thinking we could go out to dinner and then
maybe a movie? I know its a little cliché, but I know there are a couple of
movies you want to see.”
She
smiled. “That would be perfect.” She nestled closer to him.
He
put his arm around her and gently brushed her arm. “Jen, you’re freezing!” He
cried in alarm and wrapped both his arms around her as if he could suddenly
protect her from the cold.
“I
know. I can’t seem to get warmed up.”
Luke
reached for the remote control and turned off the television, suddenly finding himself uninterested in the score of the game.
“I
don’t know if I can sleep, after all that’s happened tonight.” She admitted
reluctantly. “I mean, I… I can still smell the smoke if I close my eyes-“ The thought nearly made her tear up.
“Love…
it’s okay. No one knows we’re staying here, they can’t
possibly find us here.” He soothed. “I promise everything will be okay.” His
arms tightened around her as he pulled her close protectively.
“I
know… I know it’s crazy. I just can’t help thinking it, you know?”
“Yeah.” He gently kissed her forehead. “Come on, why don’t we get back
into bed and we’ll sit up together until you feel like you can fall asleep,
okay?”
She
nodded and led the way to the bedroom, pausing once to make sure Luke was
within arms reach. She suddenly felt like she needed to be with him
desperately.
He
took her hand in his and gave it a reassuring squeeze on the way to the
bedroom.
She
climbed into bed, but felt wide awake.
Luke
disappeared into the washroom, and turned on the taps to start getting ready
for bed. She could see him brushing his teeth through the slightly ajar
bathroom door, but she still felt miles away from him.