Page 227 of No Need to Run
She purrs.
"Is your dad asleep?"
Another meow.
“Is he okay?”
She purrs, then heads down the hallway.
I follow.
The bedroom door is half open.
I stop in the doorway.
Drew is sprawled diagonally across the bed, still wearing his jeans and shoes. One arm hangs over the edge of the mattress.
His breathing is slow and even. Normal.
Only then does the knot in my chest loosen.
I quietly disappear into the bathroom to grab the trash can.
I set it beside the bed, just in case he gets sick.
Then I head to the kitchen and grab a bottle of water.
He keeps a bottle of aspirin in the kitchen in case he gets a headache while working. I grab two of them from the bottle.
In case he wakes up miserable, he won't have to search.
I carry them back to the bedroom, Luna trailing behind me.
I set the water and aspirin on his nightstand, scooping up his car keys.
He was definitely still buzzed from alcohol. He always hangs them on the key holder.
I shove them into my pocket, then kneel beside the bed.
I untie one shoe, then the other, and slide them off. His stocking feet hang over the edge of the bed.
He never wakes.
My heart melts.
There's a folded blanket at the foot of the bed.
I unfold it and drape it over him.
He sighs, his shoulders visibly relaxing.
Almost instinctively, he rolls onto his side.
I freeze.
His fingers twitch against the mattress, but he doesn’t wake.
For one reckless second, I want to climb in beside him. Just until morning, leaving before he wakes.
