Spinning.

“Alright! How many of you guys came to dance?” I put my guitar on the rack before returning to the microphone, taking it out of the stand before continuing, allowing the screams to die out. John and Pat were watching from the wings, trying to stay out of the way of the techs as they ran back and forth to help with instrument changes and other things. “Well then, this next song is for you guys. It's called 'The Best Secrets are the Ones You Can't Keep.' And if I don't see you dancing I might come out there and personally hunt you down.”

The crowd went wild as Mason and Dave started off this song, the twins joining in with Ian as they danced around the stage while playing. The show had been going perfectly fine, and we all had been doing our usual stunts, jumping off of things and running into each other while playing, but during the bridge, I climbed up onto the speakers and landed wrong when I leapt off, rolling my ankle and sending a sharp pain up my leg. On the bright side, I had successfully turned the fall into a graceful tumble, popping up just in time to sing again. On the not so bright side, we had three more songs after this one finished, which meant I had to force myself to ignore the pain in my ankle and keep performing. As the song finished and the crowd cheered, I turned around quick and tried to move my ankle, but winced as the pains shot up my leg again. John shot me a concerned look, mouthing “are you okay?” to me, which I ignored.

“Damn B, that was a pretty sick tumble you did there! What do you guys think?” Alex spoke into the microphone as one of the techs brought out my stool and guitar for the next song. The crowd cheered again as I hopped up onto the stool, avoiding any movement of my ankle.

“I'm pretty sure I just broke my ankle.” I laughed into the microphone. “I'm kind of a klutz sometimes. But hey, if you guys thought it was graceful, then what do I know?” I adjusted the microphone stand before placing the microphone back on it, grabbing a pick so I could get ready for the next song.

“So this next song is a love song--” I started to say, only for Ryan to cut me off.

“Love sucks!”

“You suck!” Alex shouted back at him.

“Your Mom sucks!” Ryan retorted, grinning.

“She's your mom too, loser!” The crowd started laughing as the two twins glared at each other.

“The twins, ladies and gentlemen.” I chuckled. “Anyways, Ryan was kind of right, this is a song about how love can totally suck. So we're going to slow it down for a moment now, hope y'all don't mind because you don't have a choice.” I started playing the first notes when someone shouted “Beret I love you!”

“Well, mystery shouter, I love you too.” I grinned, pausing for a moment. “Oh yeah, I forgot to tell you what the name of this song is. It's called 'The Breaking Game.”

As we made our way through the song, my ankle began to throb even more, and by the end of the song I could feel it swelling to the point where my ankle was pressing against my boot. As soon as the Breaking Game was finished, we went straight into the next song, since the transition worked perfectly that way.

“Wow, shit I'm pretty sure I actually did break my ankle,” I laughed when the song was done. “I can feel it swelling in my shoe.”

Another mystery voice shouted “Take it off!” and the crowd started cheering again.

“Wait, take off my shoe?” I asked them, to which they cheered. “I don't know if I can do that!” I laughed.

“You know how I feel about feet, baby...” Alex suggestively spoke into his microphone, wiggling his eyebrows at me.

“Well then come over here and take my shoe off!” I sassed, thinking he wasn't going to actually come do it.

Honestly, I should have known that he was going to do it and make a scene out of it while he was at it. He took off his guitar and ran over to where I was, kneeling down and trying to untie my boot strings with his teeth.

“Dude, this is like at weddings when they make the groom take off the bride's garter with his teeth, I don't know if I can watch this!” Ryan feigned disgust as I sat on the stool laughing uncontrollably, my face turning bright red.

“I don't know I feel kind of creeped out and enthralled at the same time here.” I giggled, Alex looking up at me and winking before gently pulling my shoe (and my sock) off.

“Holy shit I have a cankle!” I squeaked at the sight of my very bruised, and very swollen ankle. “Would ya look at that!” Camera flashes started going off as I raised my leg up, making sure I didn't lose my balance.

“Alex I feel like you and Beret just got married.” Ryan teased.

“Beret would be lucky to marry me! I'm a sexy beast!” Alex fired back, earning screams from the girls in the audience.

“Alrighty then!” I stopped the two from getting any more distracted.

I hopped off the stool, trying not to limp as I handed the guitar off to the tech. I returned to the microphone, using the stand to balance before hopping back on the stool. “We still have another song to play for you guys, unfortunately it's the last song of the night,” I had to pause while the crowd yelled, “but we're still going to make it fun. Because we're all about fun.” Ian started drumming, and as soon as Dave came in on the bass the audience erupted into cheers. I didn't even have to introduce this song, since it was the one that got me to where I was in the first place-- Wordplay.

“Thank you Nashville!” I shouted into the mic as the last notes started to fade. “We'll be hanging out after the show if you want to come say hi! Go check out our merch at that lovely table in the back with our friend Max, who is so gracefully waving at us, and get pumped for the Maine! Good night!” I grabbed my boot before carefully hobbling my way off stage, paying attention so I didn't trip on any cords. Carolyn and John were waiting at the edge of the stage, and as I made my way over they both waved to me.

“Beret! Are you okay?” Carolyn was panicking. “Do you need to sit down? How bad is the pain?” She was firing off questions faster than I could even process them. I looked to John for an explanation, but he just shrugged, making a confused face.

“Carolyn, calm down. It's not like I can't function.” I took a step forward, trying not to wince as I moved. “Let's get back to the dressing room and then we can take a good look at it.”

“Here.” John turned so his back was to me, crouching down. “Piggy back?” I hopped on and he carried me back to the dressing room, where he set me down on the couch.

“Alright, let's see the results of that killer tumble,” Dave came back with a first aid kit from the bus. Since Dave had first responder training, we would run to him for help with every bump and bruise we encountered.

“How about you lay back on the couch? That might make this more comfortable for you.” He suggested. I leaned back and hissed as he rolled up my pants leg, his fingers brushing against the bruises that had already formed around my ankle. The rest of the band had spread out around the room to watch, while John had perched himself on the arm of the couch.

“Wow, this is some serious bruising. Are you a hemophiliac?”

“No?” I responded, confused as to why it even mattered.

“Well that's good. If you were we'd be booking it to a hospital. Does it hurt when I touch here?” Dave pressed on the space behind my ankle and I yelped.

“Shit, some warning?” I inhaled deeply, trying to stay calm about the condition of my ankle.

“Well, I'm going to keep doing it. How about here?” He pressed again, my face scrunching up as I swore under my breath.

“And here?”

“Yes, fuck it all hurts!” I groaned, ready to just chop off the bottom half of my leg. John pulled a chair up next to me and grabbed my hand, giving it a reassuring squeeze.

“Okay, I'm going to try moving your ankle now. Are you ready?”

I swallowed, nodding my head. Dave took a deep breath and pushed my foot down like I was trying to point my toe.

“Ow Ow Ow SHIT!” I shot up, clutching John's hand involuntarily from the pain. Dave let go and I collapsed back onto the couch, panting.

“And this way?” He pushes my ankle in, like it was being rolled.

“AH! Fuck! Fuck! Oww why did you have to do that??” I yelped, knowing it wasn't his fault but still miserable from my leg.

“What in God's name is going on in here?” Kennedy burst through the door, looking bewildered. “All we can hear is Beret yelling about being in pain!”

“I think I broke my fucking ankle,” I moaned, covering my face with my hands.

“Holy shit!”Kennedy moved closer to look at it, mouth hanging open at the sight of my bruised and swollen leg.

“Beret you're definitely going to have to get this checked out by a doctor. This is pretty serious.” Dave looked uneasily at the ankle as he gently moved it around.

“Fuck, I still have to sign though.”

“No, Beret I'm sure they'll understand if you don't sign because you're getting this looked at.” Carolyn interjected, staring at my ankle.

“But I said I'd be out there and I don't want to disappoint them!” I protested.

“Take a shit ton of IB Profin and have someone help you get out there. But don't walk on it,” Dave warned, “or else it's going to get a lot worse. Also, we should get some ice and wrap it up for now, that'll help with the pain and swelling.”

I rolled over onto my stomach, holding my ankle up so it didn't hit anything as I moved.

“Well this blows. How are we going to do this with bus calls?”

Carolyn thought for a moment before answering my question. “We'll get your ankle checked out as soon as signings are done, and then from there whenever we get out we'll head on the road. If we have to postpone an interview or something we'll do that, but for now don't worry about it.”

I nodded, resting my forehead against the arm of the couch while Dave pulled out the things he needed to wrap my ankle.

“Alright, this is probably going to hurt, but let me know if it's unbearable or if it's too tight.” He warned, adjusting the position of my ankle so he could properly wrap it.

Wincing again, John grabbed onto my hand with one of his, letting me squeeze as Dave started wrapping.

“Hey... take a deep breath,” John moved his free hand in circles on my back, “holding your breath only makes it hurt worse.”

I started breathing deeply, trying to focus on anything and everything except for my ankle.

“Alright, how does that feel? Not too tight?” Dave finished, taping the wrap down so it wouldn't move until we could get it looked at.

“No, it's not too tight. Thanks.” I sighed, rolling over onto my back again.

“Hey, John and Kennedy!” Tim poked his head into the room. “You're on in five!”

“Oh shit, how are we going to do the cover?” Kennedy asked, looking over at John.

“We'll bring out that stool, does that work for you Beret?”

“Sure, as long as I'm not standing on it.”

“Perfect.” John stood up, adjusting his shirt before looking at Kennedy. “Show time!”

From our dressing room, we could hear what was going on from the stage, so we stayed back and listened until it was our cue to head out. I stayed on the couch while the rest of the group went out and got their instruments, thinking that I'd get a piggyback ride from a tech or someone on the crew to go on stage.

“Alright! That was pretty cool I suppose.” I could hear John's voice echoing through the space as they finished the song before “I Won't Back Down.”

“So how about The Lady Says?” He asked the crowd, which erupted into cheers. “Yeah, they're pretty cool. I don't know about that lead singer though, she's a character...” He joked with them. “Anyways, we're going to bring them out for this next song, and when I say bring them out, I literally mean it with the one who had a little too much fun earlier!” I looked at Carolyn, confused by John's words. My explanation came about thirty seconds later, when John burst through the door.

“Showtime!” John chuckled. He moved so I could jump on his back, picking me up effortlessly. Garrett and Kennedy were entertaining the crowd with the twins while we made our way out.

“Eew, you're sweaty.” I laughed.

“Would you like me to drop you?”

“I didn't say you stank! Just that you're sweaty.”

“You still said Eew.”

“Please don't drop me!” I tightened my grip as he pretended to let go, causing me to yelp.

We walked out onstage and John set me down on the stool before returning to his microphone.

“I was generous enough to help her out here and she told me I was gross and sweaty.” John mocked me, sending a wink my way.

“That's not what I said! I just said you were really sweaty, I didn't say it was gross. To be fair, he threatened to drop me.” I protested, throwing my hands in the air.

“You two sound like the twins.” Kennedy laughed. “So shut up and count us in.”

“This is called 'I Won't Back Down!” I chuckled, smiling at the audience. “One... two.... one two three four!”



“So, I'm your resident transportation until further notice.” John laughed after the show as I hopped on his back to head outside for signing.

“Looks like it! But if you drop me, I will find other means.” I warned him, cracking a smile. My ankle still hurt, but between serious ice and a double dose of Advil the pain was much more tolerable.

“What, do you think I wouldn't be able to handle you? You're light as a feather! And I'm ripped.” He smirked, moving through the halls of the venue.

“Right, and I'm Snooki.” I scoffed, rolling my eyes at him.

“So where am I taking you?”

“I think to my bus. I don't know where I'll specifically be signing.” We rounded the corner to see a massive group of fans waiting outside of the buses. I waved and John smiled as we waited for the door to open, quickly ascending the steps onto the bus.

“There's a nice ledge over there that you could sit on.” John pointed out the window after we got inside. “You could grab a blanket so your butt doesn't freeze, that way you don't have to stand or really move, and people can sit on the ledge with you for pictures.”

“Look at you, being all thoughtful and stuff.” I messed up John's hair, receiving a dirty look from him. “Wanna grab me a blanket?”

“You're lucky I like you so much.” John went to the back of the bus, finding a blanket for me. “Is this good?”

“Yeah, that's fine.” I smiled at him. “Thanks for putting up with my clumsy ass.”

“I would be lying if I said I didn't enjoy it.”

Outside, Carolyn was asking people to keep their requests for pictures and things short so we weren't here too late, since I was going to be getting my ankle looked at as soon as we were done signing. I hopped onto John's back again, and outside we went.



Carolyn and John came with me to the emergency room: Carolyn because she was my manager and would be in charge of organizing any changes to the plans we had, and John because, in his words, he was my “resident transportation” and as such he had to come with. The signing had been relatively painless, afterwards John helped me get back onto the bus so I could change into shorts, thinking it'd be easier for them to look at my ankle if they didn't have to deal with my pants.

To put it simply: I thought my ankle hurt when Dave examined it, but then I went to the emergency room.

It was surprisingly quiet when we went in, so I was able to get a room right away. A nurse came in to get the basic story on what happened and what was wrong before unwrapping my ankle, taking my vitals, scribbling some notes on a clipboard before leaving again. And then we waited.

“So not to go all business on you, but have you said anything about your little tumble on the internet? “ Carolyn was transfixed on my ankle, her face showing disgust and fascination with the bruised and swollen joint.

“Like, tweeted it? No.”

“Okay. I was just wondering. Alice may or may not want you to say something.”

“Actually, now that you mention it...” I pulled out my phone and handed it to John. “Wanna take a picture of the hot mess that is my ankle?”

John obliged, taking the phone and moving so he had a good shot of the ankle before returning my phone. I put it on instagram, attaching a message before tweeting the link: “Nashville! Tonight was a blast! My ankle says we rocked too hard but #YOLO ;)”

“Did you really just use 'yolo?” Carolyn started laughing when my tweet popped up.

“Damn right I did.”

John rolled his eyes at me. “You're so weird.”

“Are you one of those people that hates yolo?” I snickered. “Going to the store, yolo! Jumping off a cliff, yolo!”

“Yolo is the stupid people's version of Carpe Diem.” John shot back, grinning at me.

“It doesn't have the same ring though. 'Walking my dog, Carpe Diem?' No! Yolo!” I giggled.

My phone started going off, Kelly's name flashing on the screen. I glanced at the screen before taking the call.

“Hello?”

”Beret! Your ankle! Holy shit!”

“Well you obviously saw the picture.” I laughed. “What's up?”

“How the fuck did you do that? Is it broken?”

“I landed a jump wrong, no biggie. And I don't know, we're at the Emergency room now getting it looked at.” I glanced over at John, who was looking flustered while texting someone.

“ Shit! That's intense! My dorky husband wants to steal the phone from me but first tell me about touring because it's been too long and last time we didn't really talk about it last time!”

“It's been good, we've been pretty busy but it's really fun.”

“And I'm assuming you do, judging by the things you tweet and blog, but you like The Maine? Like, they're cool guys?”

“Yeah, they're pretty awesome. We hang out like all the time.”

“Going to jump any of their bones anytime soon?”

“Kelly!” I scolded, hearing laughter on the other end of the phone.

“What, I googled them. They're hot. Especially the really tall one. The singer? He's the one you like, right?”

I could feel the heat rising off my cheeks. “Oh my god we're not talking about this right now.”

“Oh my god he's there isn't he? Hi super sexy lead singer!” Kelly shouted through the phone, to which I cringed. I looked back over at John, who was too busy texting someone to realize what had just been shouted through the phone.

“Hey, I thought I was your super sexy lead singer!” I heard Andrew shout in the background, which caused me to start laughing.

“I think you made Andrew mad.”

“Oh he can get over it. But we will be talking about this later!” She laughed. “Anyways, I should give the phone to Andrew because now he's pouting like a two year old. You're a babe!”

“So are you.” I chuckled.

“Beret clumsy as hell Emerson?” Andrew's voice popped up on the phone.

“That's not my name!”

“Now it is. That looks painful, by the way!”

“Yeah, it is. Not so bad right now though, it's pretty numb at the moment.”

“Well lucky you. So what was this my wife was shouting about sexy lead singers?”

“Oh my god you two. There is nothing about that.”

“I don't believe you but I'm going to let that slide. How's the road? Missing my dazzling personality?”

“Don't flatter yourself.” I laughed. “No, but really. It's really fun, I definitely missed it. Los Angeles can suck your soul away.”

“Hey now, eventually you'll come to see it as home.”

“Sure, maybe. But it's nice not to be followed around by people who get paid to stalk my life.”

“Touché.”

Just then, the doctor appeared in the doorway.

“Hey I've gotta go, the doctor's here!”

“Alright, talk to you later!”

“Bye!” I quickly hung up the phone, smiling at the doctor as he came in.

“You must be Beret!” the doctor held out his hand. “I'm Dr. Hanson, I'll be taking care of you tonight.” I shook his hand, watching his eyes move down to my ankle. “So what happened here?”

“Well I'm in a band, and we were playing a show when I jumped off a speaker and landed wrong.”

“And how high was this speaker?”

“I don't know, three feet?” I shrugged. “Not very high.”

“Alright, well let's take a look at it.”He moved down to the end of the bed, gently lifting up my leg to get a better look at it. I hissed as a pain shot through my ankle, biting down on my lip to try and stifle the sound.

“Did that hurt?” I nodded.

“And if I push here?” He pushed down on the outside of my ankle, eliciting a yelp as my face scrunched up.

“And here?” I clutched to the railing on the bed, knuckles turning white as he pushed another spot.

And here...” He pressed again, my eyes beginning to water as the pain intensified.

Carolyn was watching us intensely, worry carved into her face as the doctor worked. John, on the other hand, was going between watching the doctor work with wide eyes and furiously texting someone.

“Alright, if I move your ankle this way...” The doctor twisted my ankle inwards.

“Shit!” I cried, tensing up. John just about dropped his phone at the sound, head shooting up to see what was happening.

“And this way?” He moved the opposite direction, causing me to cry out again. John slid his chair over, peeling my fingers off of the bed railing and sliding my fingers between his.

“Well, I'm going to order some x-rays to make sure nothing's broken. Stay here and a nurse will come get you once it's all set up.” He lowered my ankle back down to the bed and I winced, the bed pressing against a bruise.

“Fuck, why do they have to do that shit?” I cursed as he left the room, trying to get comfortable.

“Do you really want me to answer that question?” John looked at me, letting go of my hand so he could text again.

“No, don't.” I rolled my eyes. “Also who on earth are you texting? You're like, tweaking out over there.”

John's face was a like a deer caught in headlights. “Just... Jared...”

My stomach dropped as my mind instantly flipped back to my conversations with Jared, scenarios of John finding out running through my head. Shit.

“Beret?” The nurse from earlier appeared in the doorway, a pair of crutches in hand. “Would you prefer crutches or a wheelchair to go to the x-ray room?”

“Crutches, please.” She brought the crutches over and I slid off the bed, careful to not bump my ankle on anything.

“Does this mean I'm not your transportation anymore?” John joked as we left the room, following the nurse down the hallway before turning into the room where my X-ray was going to be taken.

“Not for now.”

The nurse gave me instructions to hop up on the table, directing John to stand behind a barrier so the radiation wouldn't affect him. After adjusting my ankle to the right position, they took an x-ray, before coming out to move my ankle into a different position. As they moved my ankle, I tried my best to not cry, but it was by far the most intense pain of the night and I couldn't help but let a couple tears fall. It felt like the x-rays took ages, when each one probably only took a couple minutes.

“Are you okay?” John came around and met me with with a scared look after we were finished. “You're trembling.”

“That hurt so fucking bad,” I reached up to wipe my eyes, trying to catch my breath.

John's free hand reached up, brushing a loose piece of hair out of my face before moving to rub my back. “Ready to go back?”

I nodded, pushing off the table and slowly crutching my way back to the room. We didn't have to wait long before the doctor returned, x-rays in hand.

“Well, the good news is that it's not broken.” He hung up the x-rays and pointed to a couple places on the x-ray. “That means it's just a very bad sprain. We'll set you up with a brace, crutches, and some strong pain medicine before you go. Keep off of it for a couple weeks, and don't return to normal activity until you can hop on it without pain.” He began writing on his clipboard. “Are you familiar with the RICE method?”

“Yeah,” I nodded, having high school sports to thank for my basic knowledge in sports medicine.

“Alright, well make sure you do that. If you take over the counter pain relievers, make sure you avoid aspirin because that can affect your blood's ability to clot, and with the bruising that can make it worse. I'll write you a prescription and have the nurse come in to give you a shot of pain medicine before you go.” He wrote out the prescription and handed it to Carolyn, explaining to her where she can get it filled before leaving to get the nurse and the discharge paperwork. The nurse came in with paperwork, having me sign before she gave me the shot. The needle stung for a second before a feeling of warmth moved through my arm, startling me slightly.

“Whoa, that feels really weird.” I looked at the nurse, who simply smiled at me.

“That's what most people say.” She finished giving me the shot before leaving the room for a moment with the paperwork.

“Let's get out of here.” I moved to the edge of the bed, swinging my feet over and hopping off. John passed me the crutches and the nurse returned to lead us out of the ER, John staying with me while Carolyn went to get the car.

The ride home mostly consisted of John laughing at me, because the pain medicine had really kicked in and I was getting really excited about everything. Somewhere in there we apparently stopped to get my prescription filled, but I didn't even notice because I was on another planet.

“Beret, we're here.” John got out of the car, opening the door for me and handing me the crutches. I climbed out and braced myself against the car for a moment, waiting for the momentary dizziness to wear off before moving to take the crutches.

“Whoa, everything's spinning.” I giggled, reaching out for the crutches.

“You're not climbing up the bus steps if you're dizzy.” John held them away from me. “You'll fall and break your head open, knowing you.”

“Would not.” I pouted.

“Yes you would. Here, I'll carry you.” He leaned the crutches against the car and picked me up, careful to make sure he didn't hurt me.

“mm, you're strong.” I giggled again, wrapping my arms around his neck and kissing him on the cheek.

“And you're as high as a kite!” John laughed, carrying me onto the bus. He set me down on the couch in back, going back out to retrieve the crutches that were left outside.

Everyone else was asleep on the bus, the only light coming from the street lamps outside. Carolyn flipped a lamp on before going to the bathroom to get ready for bed, leaving me alone until John returned.

“Is your bus gone?”

“Yeah, they left a couple hours ago.” John sat down next to me, yawning.

“So where are you going to sleep?”

“Probably on the couch.”

“Sleep with me!” I couldn't stop giggling, drawing out the me.

“Okay you're definitely higher than a kite. I want some of what they gave you.” He laughed. “Let's get you ready for bed.” He vanished for a moment, returning with a pair of sweats and a t-shirt.

“Those aren't mine.” I pointed at the clothes as he set them down.

“No, those are mine. The leggings in your bunk wouldn't have been easy to get on you, and I wasn't about to go hunting for the rest of your stuff.”

“Well what are you going to sleep in? Nothing?” I smirked, trying not to start giggling again.

“You wish.” He laughed. “Can you change, or are you too high?”

“Nope, I've got this.” I started fumbling with the button on my shorts, a bemused John watching me.

“Here, just let me help.” He was trying to repress his laughter, kneeling down and undoing the button on my shorts before sliding them off.

“I'm being undressed by John Oh,” I giggled, “So many girls would kill to be me right now.”

“Focus, sweetheart.” He laughed, helping me slide on the sweatpants. “I'm also helping you get dressed.”

“But that's no fun!”

“Arms up!” He ordered, grabbing the bottom hem of my tank top before slipping it over my head.

“Hey, I could have done that.” I looked at him, confused.

“You don't even know what way is up right now.”

“Yes I do!”

“Point to it!” He challenged, smirking at me. I looked up at the ceiling for a couple seconds before actually pointing, causing him to start laughing. “See, you had a little trouble there.”

“That's not very nice.” I pouted as he slipped the new shirt on.

“Hey, I'm the one helping you out here.” He pulled off his pants and sweater, leaving him in his boxers and a t-shirt. Folding them up, he placed them in a neat pile on the floor, before folding my shorts and shirt and laying them next to the first pile. “I don't think you're going to be climbing into your bunk tonight, by the way.”

“Why?”

“Because that's like a health hazard waiting to happen. I'll go get your pillow and some blankets.”

I watched him leave, quickly getting distracted by the sensation of the bus beginning to move.

“Will these be enough?” John returned, holding up the blankets.

“You're really cute.” I blurted out, blushing.

“Wait, what?” He stopped, staring at me in disbelief.

“You're really cute!” I repeated, giggling. “I just thought you should know.”

“You're definitely high right now.” He chuckled, rolling his eyes. “Come on, lean back.” He laid the pillow down and I complied.

“I wanna watch a movie!”

“You're like a little kid right now.”

“Pleeeease” I begged.

“Fine,” he sighed, smiling despite his tone. “What movie?”

“The Lion King.”

John's grin widened. “Best choice.” He found the movie and popped it in, getting it started before sliding onto the couch. I slid up so my head could rest on his chest, feeling his fingers loosely playing with strands of my hair. The last thing I remember before falling asleep was the soft sounds of the television and John's lips brushing against my forehead, whispering “you're pretty cute yourself.”