“How’s that housemate?”
I glance next to me and soak up the sultry sight of him before writing, “Sound asleep in my bed,” adding a shocked emoji.
“WHAT?”
“Oops.” I punctuate it with a blushing emoji.
“R U saying what I think U R saying?” she asks.
“Yep.”
“OMG! Millie, never thought u would.”
“U haven’t seen him. Only have so much control.”
“Pic pls!”
“Don’t have 1 yet,” I reply.
“Take 1 now.”
My face elongates. “?”
She sends the camera emoji in response.
I look at him, so tempted, but then shudder. “Ugh. That’s cringey,” I reply because if a guy took a photo of me while I was sleeping, I’d be mad.
But of course, I don’t look as amazing as Dax does right now.
“Sigh,” she responds. “U r right. Was it good?”
I reply with, “2 good. How do I not get addicted?”
“I have no idea.” She adds a shrugging emoji. “I fell in love with my fling… your brother!”
I respond with a laughing emoji. “Don’t want that.”
“Y not?”
I press my lips together thoughtfully. “It would be rude 2 say 2 a man: I love u. But don’t contact me in any way after summer ends.”
She sends a rolling eye emoji in response along with, “Well, it would be better if u could leave off that second part.”
I glance again at Dax. I could fall in love with him too easily, I know.
But it’s different for me than it was for Ava when she fell for my brother. Because for all the worrying that she must be doing right now, she doesn’t know just how real things can get in the blink of an eye.
Ava’s still comforted by words like “Chances are, nothing will happen” or “The odds are in favor of him coming home safely.”
Because the oddsweren’tin Harris’s favor.
Because that phonedidring.
Because we nearly lost him, and I can’t help wondering if we used up all the luck my family had just to get him to pull through.
I smile when Dax stirs next to me and his eyes flicker open. I set my phone back down on my nightstand.
“I was wondering when you’d wake up,” I say. “It’s not like you to sleep in when we should be on our morning run.”