I was grateful for that.
???
Early morning light woke me first. It was the gray glare of winter, with the sun starting to rise, and the surrounding trees and neighborhoods hiding its arrival. The day promised to be cold, and sections of my body was chill, even with the blanket around me.
Without opening my eyes, I sensed Kota in the bed next to me. I knew that Nathan slept on the roll-out cot next to us. North, Gabriel, Silas, Luke and Victor were nearby in sleeping bags spread out along Kota's bedroom floor. I smelled them in the air: Kota’s spice, North’s musk, Luke’s vanilla, Silas’s ocean, Victor’s moss, Nathan’s leather, and Gabriel’s new blend, which I thought to be cranberry.
To me, that was what smelled the best. I didn’t have to look to sense they were there, and they smelled wonderful. My heart fluttered, even while I was still partially asleep, warmed simply by the different scents blending together.
It was winter vacation. We had two weeks to ourselves. Two weeks without a crazy principal and vice-principal looking over me, or sneering students trying to look into my life. It would be the longest amount of time I’d spent with all of them for any length outside of school, without having to work at the diner, deal with school work, or do anything for the Academy.
“Everyone needs a break,” Dr. Green had said. I could almost envision him trying to lecture me like he did in class at school, but failing to hide the grin on his lips. “That includes you. We work hard, but we take holiday breaks very seriously.”
My skin tingled with chill, waking me further. I hadn’t realized while sleeping that parts of me were almost numb. Despite the sheet and blanket, I was still freezing. It was usually moderately warm in Kota’s room; why was it so cold now? Perhaps the weather had changed quickly, and the heater wasn’t able to keep up.
It felt odd to be upstairs, with Erica, Kota’s mother, and Jessica, his sister, sleeping downstairs and knowing I was up here with the boys. Maybe they didn’t know that I shared the bed with Kota, but Erica trusted the boys to not do anything “unbecoming of a gentleman” as she called it, with a laugh and a teasing wink at Kota. Kota blushed when she said that.
I turned in the bed slightly, drawn to Kota’s warmth and peeked at him, trying not to get caught looking.
His handsome face was still. His chest was bare, which surprised me because I thought I remembered him wearing a T-shirt the night before. The glasses were gone, although there was a spot on his nose, close to his eyes, where his glasses normally rested on his face. He didn’t open his eyes, but he must have sensed I was awake anyway because he started to move. He threaded his arm around my shoulders, inviting me in.
I rolled into him and snuggled up against a firm chest and my legs folded near his, drawn to body heat. When I was pressed up against him, he tucked the blanket around my body. How the boys managed to keep their bodies warm when I ended up cold was beyond me.
He didn’t say anything and I didn’t either. I thought I should be shy about snuggling with Kota when the others could wake up and see us, but if Kota didn’t have a problem with it, I wasn’t going to object. I was too cold to move away. The boys were still sleeping, too. It was probably the quietest I’d ever heard them when they were together.
I settled and stilled. I thought maybe I’d fallen asleep again, but was listening to their breathing.
As I was listening, something caught my attention. My eyes opened a little, staring at Kota’s chest, unsure of what I was hearing though I’d heard the sound before. My half-asleep state wasn’t putting to words what it was. It was a very delicate sound, soft, crackling like a fire hissing...but softer.
There was also a familiar taste in the air.
I knew it. I knew it in my bones.
Excitement surged through me. I forced myself to still, grinning against Kota’s chest. “Guys,” I called, nearly cooing, the sound muffled against Kota.
Someone grumbled, though not Kota.
“Guys,” I said louder, pulling my head away so I could be heard.
A grunt. A rustle of a sleeping bag as someone flipped over.
“Guys, wake up.”
“Go back to sleep, Sang,” North said, his voice gruff and deep, sleepy. “It’s too early to get up.”
That was a first. I was usually the last one in bed. The boys had a habit of waking me, urging me to get up and move quickly.
I quieted and listened again for the sound, not wanting to be wrong, but it was so distinct, unmistakable. “We should get up,” I said.
North cleared his throat. When I peeked over Kota, I caught North dragging his blanket over the top of his dark head of hair. His broad shoulders caused the blanket material to tent around him. “Baby, sleep.”
Kota reached a hand up, rubbing my back. “Sang,” he said softly. “Let them sleep. It’s vacation.”
“No,” I said, even as I closed my eyes. I would normally agree with them, but they wouldn’t want to miss this. “Get up. Guys, we have to go outside.”
Gabriel gave off a loud groan. “Trouble, I love you and everything, but shut the fuck up and go back to sleep.”
I dismissed the love comment, knowing it didn’t mean anything. It's what he said when he wanted any of us to shut up or do something he wanted. “Guys,” I said. “It’s snowing.”
Kota’s hand at my back stilled. “Sweetie, you’re dreaming.”
“No really. It’s snowing.”
Kota chuckled. “You can’t even see the window.”
“It’s snowing. I swear. I can hear it.”
There was a dead silence and I knew the boys were listening.
Someone snorted and then laughed. “You’re so full of shit, Trouble.”
“Meanie?” I sing-songed his name.
“Trouble,” he mumbled, his voice slurred.
“Go look.”
Gabriel groaned. “No. You’re tricking me.”
“I swear,” I said. “It’s snowing.”
“No, it isn’t.”
I turned away from Kota, lying on my back. “I bet you a dollar.”
“I’m not getting up for a dollar.”
“I’ll bet you...what do you want?”
“Gabe,” Luke said. “Don’t fall for it. She’ll get you to get up and then while you’re up, she’ll get you to get something for her. Like a cup of water or something. It’s an evil girl trick.”
“Guys,” I said in a more urgent tone. Why did they never believe me? “I swear. I’d bet my soul...”
“No betting your soul, Princess,” Victor mumbled.
I grumbled, frustrated. “Gabriel,” I called. “Go look.”
“No.”
“Please?”
“Fuck, no.”
“God damn,” Nathan said. “Someone get up and tell her it’s not snowing so she’ll go back to sleep.”
I shoved my hands into my face, yawning and stretching. I could have told them I heard gunfire and they’d still sleep. I turned enough so I could peek out at the boys, over Nathan bundled up on the cot nearby. He was on his back, but his eyes were closed with an arm draped over his face to ward off light. I spotted Gabriel on the floor nearby, his hair sticking out from just under his blanket. The blonde mixed into the russet and the locks were wild, twisted about and sticking up in places. “Gabriel, I’ll give you anything you want if I’m wrong. Cross my heart. It’s snowing outside right now.”