“I missed this.” Jane, who was on the couch with her life long friend, comments while hugging him.

Bloom didn’t fancy letting the man in black sleep near her. Hawk didn’t mind Jane’s presence but she sure did his’.

“What? Hugs? Like you don’t get enough of them from big mouthie over there.” He mocks her while bumping her head slightly, to which she responds by pounding him on the chest. He yelps. “Besides, it has only been two days.” She pounds him again.

“Shut up, you idiot. I’m talking about…” She stops for a moment. “I’m talking about feeling safe. Feeling like nothing can hurt me.”

“I know.” He kisses her forehead. “I guess I also missed this.”

“What? Feeling like you’re worth something by protecting a defenseless little girl like me?”

The comment was so abrasive and ruthless that if that had come from anyone else, Samuel would have been deeply offended and would probably throw a knife at them.

But Jane knew him inside out and so did him. The hundreds of talks they had just like this one allowed them to open up to one another in ways they never did to anyone else.

That’s why their trust was so strong.

And that’s why the man in black just bumps her head again. “Yes, exactly. Don’t say it like that though, you’re gonna make me cry.”

She giggles. He sighs.

The lights in the room were off and the only source of it was the moon, which didn’t do much in the lighting department.

A full minute passes in where she just listens to his steady heartbeat, a sound she grew to love the more she, quite literally, forced herself into sleeping close to him.

Not that he ever had a saying in the matter, it was what she wanted that counted. He said so himself.

The story has been illicitly taken; should you find it on Amazon, report the infringement.

Then, he asks. “Are you happy with Bloom?” He feels her nod on his chest. “I get weird vibes from her.”

“I mean, sure, she is a vibe.” She says.

“No, like, I feel like she’s a troublemaker.”

“Aren’t we all literal thieves?” Is the dark skinned girl’s counterargument, to which she feels Samuel’s shrug for a response.

“Fair point. Still, I… I feel like something’s up with her. Watch your back.”

“You don’t need to tell me that. And besides, to you, everyone is up to something.”

“Fair point.”

Another full minute passes where they enjoy the serenity of it all.

This time, Jane says. “Crimson is hot.”

“I know, right?”

“So you really are into her?” She sarcasms a hurtful tone. “What about me? I thought you wanted to snuggle with me forever.”

“No.” Is all he says while bumping her head again. If the lights were on, she would have seen his annoyed face. Well, she knew it was there anyway.

He continues. “You can keep your eyes off of her, by the way, she’s mine.”

“Wow, so possessive. Girls don’t like that, y’know?”

She snorts at the fact he has no defense against that verbal jab. She then literally jabs him, although lightly. “Don’t sweat it.”

He sighs. “Sometimes, I can’t tell whether you want to make me feel miserable or not.”

“Good, keep guessing.” She then yawns, sleep finally catching up to her. “She has some trust issues. It kind of reminds me of myself eight years ago.”

“She does. Even a blind person could tell.” Her yawning makes him yawn. “But when we’re on our own, talking to her feels refreshing. Good, it feels good.”

“You always said you loved when I smiled.” Jane, who was now with her eyes closed, comments. “I kind of forgot why though.”

“Because when I see sad people feel happy, I just… feel happy.”

“Happier.” She corrects him. “I can’t remember you ever being depressed or anything.”

“The secret is drinking milk first thing in the morning.”

“No it’s not, stop lying, you dumbass.” This time, she doesn’t hit him, instead, yawning one last time. “Love you, sleep well.”

“Love you too. Get ready to get wrecked tomorrow.”

“Don’t even remind me.”

Time passes and when Samuel is about to hit dreamland, he hears a voice say: “Beol is hot though.”

He has enough energy in him to snort. “Everyone is hot to you, stop being such a simp.”

“No.”