Filed to story: Penny and Navy Brother Asher
I lift an eyebro
“What do you mean?”
She shrugs one shoulder, staring into her mug
He texted me earlier. Said he was home. Chilling.”
Isip my tra, letting the heat scald my tongue before I answer.
“He left a few hours ago,” I say “Said he was meeting some friends.”
She stiffes.
Just enough that I notice.
She pulls her phone out of the giant pocket of my jogging pants and types something quickly, thumbs masing fast,
I look away, trying to give her privacy.
Not that I have to look hard – I’m tallet, sitting higher, and the angle of the couch lets me catch the message without even meaning to.
You okay?
A second later, the reply pings back
Yeah still chilling at home might sleep soon.
I watch the way she flinches – barely a ripple, barely there.
But it’s real. She puts her phone down slowly, confusion etched across her face.
I keep my expression blank, my voice low and egen.
“You okay?”
She blinks, caught, and then forces a smile.
“Yeah. Just tired”
But I let it go.
She looks too small already curled in my clothes, clutching the tea like it’s the only thing keeping her upright.
She doesn’t need a third person pashing right now.
She needs rest.
She needs warmth.
She needs to feel safe.
Don’t cry or dos T
I state down at my tea like it’s personally triprouble for my entire coumbling erectional state,
Tyler told me he was home.
Home.
So why did Asher say he tell hours ago?
Why is he lying to me?
The questions twist inside me, low and sour, but I face myself to blink fast, to be the slow.
I am not crying over this
Not here.
Not now.
Not when Asher is sitting right there – quiet and still, staring straight ahead like he didn’t just save me from dying of hypothermia and bad decisions tonight
I fish my tea, setting the mug carefully on the coffee table so I don’t accidentally shatter it with my shaky hands.
I glance sideways at
Thank you” I say, voice a little rough.
He doesn’t look at me
“Nothing to thank me for shifting og to face him mone
I buff, sh more fully.
“It’s not nothing.” I insist. That storm was awful. You didn’t have to come check on me
His jaw ticks – a tiny movement and then he turns, meeting my eyes. His eyes darken and for a second they hold a ston
Simple.
Certain.
I blink, feeling my cheeks heat, the flush creeping Ap my my neck before I can stop it
“Well, I mumble, awkward now, “thank you.”
He nods once, like that’s the end of it.
I rub a hand over my face, trying to cool
And immediately lunch when my fingers brush the rut on my cheekbon/.. than the one outside.
“Ow, I mutter, wincing. “Forgot thuit wa
Before I can say anything ehe, Asher shifts toward me
His band contes up – fast but qui nough-and his fingers catch my thin between them, tilting my face to the side.
His thumb bushes lightly along the edge of the scratch, inspecting. like the stora maked all the heat out of the world and left it coiled under his skin instead.
The touch is careful
That it still feels like it sears right through me.
¦You cleaned it he asks, voice low.
I pod. “In the shower. With water.
He exhales through his nose, unimpressed.
Not enough
Before I can protest, he’s standing jerking his head toward the kitchen.
“Come on.”
I hesitate because standing, moving, being closer to him feels dangerous right now
But he was there for me today.
Again..
So I push myself up and follow
I stumble after him, still catching at the waistband of his way-too-by pants like they’re personally trying to assassinate me
The hem drags against the floor, threatening to trip me with every step, and after a particularly aggressive stumble, I mutter a curse under my breath, yank them off, and kick them to the side.
The t-shirt I’m wearing his t-shirt is long enough to cover everything important anyway
–
Asher glances back at the sound, arching an eyebrow
“What are you doing?” he asks, vice hall serious, half amputed.
“Saving my life,” I multer. Those things are a hazard”
He smirks that rare, deadly one that always feels like a secret- and shakes his head, jerking his chin toward the kitchen counter.
“Come here.”
I move toward him and before I can brace myself, he steps forward, strong hands closing around my waist.
Without effort, he lifts me to the counter,
I gasp, clutching the edge for balance, heart hammering wildly in my chest.