I practically collided into a wall of people as my friends stopped short in their drunken tracks. Shane looked over his shoulder at me before heading for the stairs. Luke shook his head and ventured into the living room, finally allowing me to see what had them acting strange. Buried beneath the crocheted blanket was a sleeping brunette. Luke sat on the edge of the couch, rubbing a hand over his face.
"Laine," he mumbled. I stopped him from waking her and nodded toward the stairs.
"She needs the sleep, man, and you're in no shape to carry her."
"And you are?"
"Who do you think drove us home?" I nodded again. "I've got her. Go on."
He looked down at his sister before getting to his feet. The warning glare was a silent reminder that I was to sleep down here after I got her settled. Then he was gone. Somewhere on the second floor and hopefully crawling into bed. I contemplated taking his place on the couch and coaxing Blaine back to the world of the living.Then I remembered my own warning.
The last few weeks have been rough on her. Heather told us that she hadn't been sleeping too much. Between classes and practice she wasn't able to do much else. Even at school all she did was study. I understood why though. If she kept her grades high enough, then she could get into any school she wanted after graduation. One's halfway across the country or maybe another country all together. If she could, she'd apply for a spot on the moon if it meant being away from this place.
Once I had made sure the blanket was wrapped around her, I gently scooped her up. The only time she moved was to snuggle closer. Her fingers curled around my shirt as I reached her room. The exhaustion clearly plaguing her didn't dull the beautiful gold and green color of her eyes as they looked up at me through her lashes.
"Go back to sleep, Lainey." Her head rocked back and forth against my shoulder in refusal. "Why not?"
"Because if I go back to sleep, you'll disappear." The long lashes fluttered as she tried to keep her eyes open.
"I'm not going anywhere," I promised as I set her on the bed. She didn't release me, big eyes pleading with me to stay. I sat beside her which seemed to ease her worries. She balled up the blanket I had attempted to use to keep her warm, and shoved it to the edge of the bed.
"I know Lucas is still being an ass, but I really don't want to be alone tonight." She crawled under the blankets and pulled back the corner for me to join her.
"Do your parents know where you are?"
"Can we not talk about them," she sighed as she stretched out on her side.
"After you answer the question." I gave her a smile then laid down beside her.
"They know, and truthfully I don't care what happens. I'm tired of living the way they think I should. I want things to go back to the way they were." Her voice softened as she curled her body closer to mine. My arm wrapped around her instinctively. It felt like ages since we'd had a peaceful moment like this.
We'd finally found our way back to each other and didn't have time to enjoy it. The drama with her folks got in the way. Factor in the everyday things, like school and ruthless practices, and we had five minutes if we were lucky.
"Heather didn't mention any of this."
"It just happened," she mumbled. "Lucas is going to be pissed."
"I think he'll be proud of you." I nuzzled the top of her head. "You're sticking up for yourself, Laine. Making your own decisions is a huge step, and your brother will understand that."
"Maybe." She let out a yawn and settled against me.
"Pancakes in the morning?"
There was the slightest of nods before she stilled. Her breathing found that rhythm that lulled me to sleep. Knowing that she was safe was all that I needed to be able to relax. Lucas and I were the only ones who knew how much she worried about all of us. It wasn't until this year that she started enjoying life for herself. Seeing her at the field parties, and on the field. It was like a new Blaine had taken over.
Over the last few months, the shy girl had stepped into the spotlight. She embraced the praise and the attention. Honestly, I never thought she would be that girl. It hadn't completely changed who she was though. She hadn't started dressing up for school, or gave up her battered converse. Now that she was playing football, I think she'd become the truest version of herself. Her brother had seen it, too. We all had, and it was a blessing.
Blaine was still asleep when I woke the next morning. Unlike when we'd found her on the couch, she looked peaceful. It had been weeks since I'd seen her look like that. I felt a pang of guilt as I slipped out of the bed. She was able to let her worries and stress wash away, but only in her sleep. That wasn't who Blaine was.
"Where were you hiding," Shane mused when I found my way into the kitchen. His mother smacked the back of his head while offering me a cup of fresh coffee.
"I know I raised you better than to be prying into people's business." The warm smile she gave me silently invited me to have a seat. "I thought for sure you two would still be asleep after last night."
"It's hard to sleep when a freight train is in the room next door." Shane tilted his head as he looked at me. "Think you can convince your girlfriend to trade rooms again?"
"Not happening." I could see the comment lingering in his eyes as feet padded down the stairs. Lucas was mid yawn when he strolled into the kitchen. His brow was knitted together as he took in all of us.
"Was it the beer or did I see Laine on the couch last night?"
"I'm going to pretend I didn't hear that," Mrs. Russel teased as she set a mug in front of Lucas. "She must have gone upstairs at some point last night. Does anybody want to explain to me why she's here?"
"I wish I knew," Lucas grumbled past the hand rubbing his face. Shane looked at me from over the rim of his own mug.
"All she said was that your folks knew she'd be staying here. Sounded like they might have had a fight."
"No surprise," Shane snorted. Another smack shut him up.
"Hurricane Blaine. Predicted to make landfall as a category five in a week." Lucas' body was hunched over the table, his fingers laced at the back of his neck.
"You Lester's," Mrs. Russel tsked. "You're so hard on each other."
"Sorry," Lucas asked, picking his head up to look at the woman who had become the only mother figure he needed.
"Your sister has put up with a lot of shit from you boys. She came here for the same reason as you, so don't go making her feel guilty. None of you. Is that understood?"
"Yes, ma'am," we all replied. She gave us a warm smile before digging into the fridge to start breakfast. The last set of footsteps filled the house as Blaine made her way down the hall and stairs. The crocheted blanket she had been tucked under last night was folded neatly over her arm as she entered the kitchen.
"Good morning, sweet heart. How'd you sleep?"
"Really well. Thank you again for letting me come by," Blaine spoke softly as she draped the blanket over the back of the chair beside me. There was another flicker of amusement in Shane's eyes as a blush tainted her cheeks. My fingers wrapped around hers under the table and I gave them a reassuring squeeze.
"Mom and Dad know you're here, right?"
"You, too," she groaned. "Yes. The guard dogs know I left and that I'm not crashing under a bridge for the night."
"Enough with the attitude."
"Enough with the questions."
The pair were in a stare down that even Shane was afraid to break. His mother, on the other hand, was more than happy to play referee. A plate of pancakes was set in the center of the table. Shane was fighting the urge to dig in like a barbarian at the sight as a pan of fresh scrambled eggs was added. Blaine let go of my hand to help the older woman with the plates. Shane lazily got to his own feet to his own feet to search for condiments.
The normalcy that filled the room left an odd warmth in me. Anyone who walked in off the street would swear they were a blood family. Not two runaways sitting at their friend's breakfast table. The woman passing the pot of coffee to my girl isn't her mother, but keeps giving her encouraging smiles. My own family was nothing like this. It wasn't as messed up as the Lester's home, but it was getting damn close. Maybe if I asked nice enough, the Russel's would take me in too.
**~~**
"What's your next move, Lainy," I whispered in her ear. We were sitting on one of the lounge chairs beside the pool. It was covered and ready for the midwest winter. The sleeves of my stolen hoodie were pulled down to her fingers, trapping the heat from escaping into the fall chill. I pulled the crocheted blanket tighter around her lap before wrapping my arms around her.
"I have no fucking clue," she sighed, burrowing closer to my chest. "I'll probably hide here until after the season's finished."
"You're brother isn't going to like that."
"He doesn't seem to like much of anything these days." There was a tinge of disappointment in her voice. It quickly shifted to guilt. "I wish that there was something I could do to help him unwind."
"You two want the same thing." She looked up and I smiled at the confused wrinkles in her forehead. "Normal. If things could go back to the way they were, before your mom came back, he'd be fine. So would you."
"When I was little, I wanted so badly for her to come back. It was that one thing all the other girls had that I didn't. Someone to go shopping with. A confidant to share all my drama with. Lucas wasn't very good at any of it, but he tried. That's when I stopped hoping for her to return." She took a deep breath, her hands reappearing from the sleeves to curl around my forearms. "I didn't need her anymore. I had my brother, some really amazing friends and their parents."
"Is that why you bailed on the dances?"
"Yes and no." The corner of her mouth curled up. "Mrs. Russel offered to take me looking for a dress plenty of times. So did Heather and her mom. I thought it would be a waste since I don't actually, you know, dance."
"I've seen you dance before."
"Barely, and only because I was loaded with whatever Heather had made me."
"Then we're going to have to start practicing." She stared at me with the confusion plaguing those hazel eyes. Then they widened as she caught on. Her head rocked back and forth as she uttered a weak excuse. "I'm going to prom, Lainey, and you're going as my date."
"Like hell I am."
"I couldn't go to junior prom. I'll be damned if I'm going to my senior prom without my girlfriend."
"Finn," she sighed.
"There are months before then. You have plenty of time to settle into the idea. Who knows," I smiled down at her, "Maybe you'll enjoy it."
"You better bring a flask."
"No way." I planted a kiss on the top of her head. "You're going to remember each photo taken song that we dance to."
All morning she'd been holding back. A wall prepared for the verbal brutality of her brother. Right now, she was letting it out. The wild grin that I'd come to love. It spelt trouble, freedom and just a touch of warning. It was the purest thing that Blaine could offer me with everything going on in our worlds. Honestly, I didn't need much of anything else either. Her in my arms, with that smile in place. I could die a happy man for a life like this.