Teach me to trust

21. Sleepover

"Of course I have. He's got this guilty conscious that he didn't see the signs that JD might have been spiked, but he said he wasn't really acting any differently, he just seemed drunk"

I have a faint memory of Marc's reaction to JD telling us, his head hanging down and the shame was clearly weighing heavy on his shoulders. Something he will have to talk to JD about, I think he is the only one who he'll believe when he tells him it isn't his fault.

"I'll see what I can do. Sam should still have the tapes of that night and I can vaguely remember what she looked like. We'll do our best for him"

I lean over, resting my hand on Nate's arm, giving him a kiss on the cheek in hopes of brushing away some of this darkness that has sat itself so heavy on his chest.

"Why did JD thank you when he left?" he murmurs the question to me and I don't know if it's my place to tell him of our conversation outside. It seems such a personal thing to share.

"JD and I had a conversation outside last night and he seems to think I helped him out with something" I shrug, and I see understanding on Nate's face.

He grips my hand, pulling it up to his chest where his heartbeat rests under my palm.

"I'll wait for JD to tell me. Thank you for caring so much" he says, looking at me with a softness on his face that makes a swarm of butterflies come alive in my stomach.

Why are you looking at me like that?

I wonder in my head, his touch on my hand gentle and warm, and my body curls itself into his side, head resting on his shoulder and hand still firmly clasped in his. Comforting and warm and I realise that in my subconscious fear of falling, I didn't even realise that I was already off the cliff.

We sit in comfortable silence. No words spoken between us, only the TV in the background and I have never felt more at ease.

"What time are you working tomorrow?" Nate asks above me.

My head moved down onto his lap around an hour ago, with no disagreement from him and I fight the way my eyes want to slide closed at his gentle movements through my hair.

"I start at 8" I mumble to him, watching whatever is on the TV, not really interested but looking nonetheless.

"You won't be able to stay tomorrow then?" he asks quietly, and I can hear the hesitation in his tone.

I turn my head to look up at him and his eyes are already on me, that burning soft look that I can't place set steady on his face.

"Did you want me to stay tomorrow?" I can't help but tease him, enjoying that this man, who was so mysterious when we first met, has seemingly become so needy of my time.

He rolls his eyes, pushing me away from him gently before grabbing me and putting me back where I was. I can feel the smile on my face,

"Of fucking course I do. What kind of question is that" he grumbles, still unable to resist smiling at me.

"It'll be late by the time I'm off work" I tell him and almost feel guilty at the resigned smile on his face.

"I know, I know" he nods along to his own words,

"I just don't know how I'm supposed to get used to sleeping on my own now" and I feel my heart stutter in my chest, breath catching in my throat at his words.

"I think you'll manage" I say back to him, a teasing tone in my voice that doesn't let on how fast my heart is beating now.

A smirk rises up on his face at my cavalier response, he seems to enjoy my teasing as he leans over me, laying on his lap. Clutching my hip in his hand,

"Hm, I don't know if I will to be honest sweetheart" and he rubs his nose against mine, landing a quick kiss on my lips and leaning back up over me,

"How am I supposed to get a good nights sleep without having you wrapped around me", his finger rubs along the skin of my cheek as he looks down at me, and I shrug my shoulders not wanting to admit how good my sleep has been when we've spent the night together.

He chuckles,

"I think we might have to make those little sleepovers a regular occurrence" and I can't deny the giddy feeling in my chest at the thought.