Let the Healing Light Come In

Heavy boots dragged so that the squeaking against the linoleum floor interrupted the early morning quiet, but Reese didn’t really have the energy to pick her feet up any higher. Yet, she still somehow managed to smile as she dropped off a box of muffins at the nurses’ station and chatted with the nurses, both getting off and just coming in. Most of the younger ones asked how Roman was, and Reese had to physically hold herself back from sneezing out the scent of arousal clogging her nose. Some of the ladies and gentleman of Faywood General have no shame whatsoever. Reese can’t imagine how her brother does it, without going completely batshit. She quickly finished up with them and then followed Forrest’s scent further into the hospital. She’d know her older brother’s scent anywhere. He smells like family, and his own unique scents of sawdust and cinnamon. After a few minutes of dragging her squeaky boots around, she found the room and quietly stepped inside.

“Good morning, Reese. Is that coffee I smell?”

“Cinnamon Latte, just for you. Thought you might need it.” She passed over the still hot cup and smiled at Forrest’s blissed out expression. She took a sip of her own Americano and then rested a hand on Forrest’s shoulder.

“Thank you.” Forrest’s voice sounded exhausted, and Reese knew then that he hadn’t slept at all the night before.

“How’s he doing?” Soft brown eyes met her own, and a small smile curved her brother’s lips. His face is even scruffier than usual, his eyes are more than a little tired, and he still has sawdust in his hair. Despite all of that, Reese can’t remember ever seeing him happier.

“He’s nearly completely healed. The bite took. I’ve been taking pain from him when I can, but he’s still sedated.”

“You should go call Uncle Shane, tell him so we can take Kingsley home. I’ll sit with him.” Forrest grabbed the hand still on his shoulder and pulled her arm around so he could kiss the inside of her wrist. Then he was pushing her down into his empty chair and walking from the room. Reese waited until she heard the door close before shifting forward. The sheet was pulled up to the toddler’s chest, and his little arms were resting on top of the blanket. She couldn’t see any visible marks, but the left side of his head was shaved and there was a bandage covering his right arm.

Reese let her fingers lightly touch his exposed hand and felt a small twinge as she took in some of his pain. It didn’t help her exhaustion at all, but who is she to complain about a little sleepiness when this little kid just changed species? Oh, wow, the little guy is a werewolf now. He’s a part of the family; he’s Forrest’s son. He won’t remember any of this when he grows up. He won’t remember the car accident that killed his family, and he won’t remember what it was like to be human. Reese placed her hand back in her lap and just admired the strength of the kid, with his shaved light brown hair and untouched skin.

“He’s beautiful, isn’t he? How could anyone take the risk of hurting him?” Forrest’s voice was quiet as he stood next to her, and Reese leaned the side of her head against his hip.

“I don’t know.” The little boy on the bed shifted, and Forrest and Reese both leaned forward to get a better look. Big brown eyes slowly blinked open and looked at them with all the innocence of a small child.

“Where Mama?” Forrest stared down at her with wide eyes, but Reese just gave a tired shrug of her shoulders. She has no idea how to answer a two year old looking for his dead mother. Forrest stepped closer to the bed and wrapped his hands around one of Kingsley’s.

“Mama had to go bye-bye, so you’re going to be staying with me.” How much does he understand?

“No Mama?” Jesus, the kid’s sweet little voice was enough to make Reese drop to her knees and start crying. And she’s supposed to be the tough one.

“No Mama,” Forrest said as he shook his head.

“Me Keen,” the little boy said. What’s that supposed to mean?

“Hello, King.” Oh, that actually makes sense. “My name is Forrest.”

“F-forrer-frorr-” The kid looked so adorably confused. None of the kids could ever say Forrest’s name, so they normally called him For (or Fo) until their speech improved a little.

“You can call me daddy.” Forrest sounded so damn hopeful, and the kid just stared up at him. For a minute, Reese thought the kid was going to throw a tantrum or something. His eyebrows were scrunched and his mouth was puckered, but his expression eventually evened out.

“Daddy.” Forrest was nearly vibrating with happiness, and Reese placed a hand between his shoulder blades.

“I’m gonna head home, okay? I’ll see you guys later.” Forrest mumbled a farewell, and Reese left the hospital with a smile. The drive home was a bit of a blur, and Reese was walking into the kitchen before she realized she was no longer behind the wheel. Jackson and Roman were both sitting at the table, and she already knew Kit was at the station since they talked for a moment while changing shifts. With a sigh, Reese draped herself over Roman’s back and stole a bite of his pop-tart. It was more like half his pop-tart.

“How’s Forrest and Kingsley?”

“Little King woke up right before I left. He’s healed, Ro, and obviously getting stronger. Uncle Shane was on the way when I left.” The tension bled out of Roman in a rush, and Reese nuzzled against his cheek a bit. He smelled like his usual lemon and dark chocolate, but there was something else tickling at the edges. There’s also a mix of leather and oranges; the scent of Jackson is still clinging to his skin. Jackson must’ve had another nightmare.

“Good.” Roman pulled his phone from the pocket of his shorts, and Reese read the message over his shoulder. “Jackson, you’re gonna help me move the stuff in Forrest’s office here to the attic at his shop.”

“Why?”

“Because Forrest’s office is right next to his bedroom, and Kingsley needs a room. Forrest is going to set up the office in the shop’s attic. We’ll train some this afternoon. Join us when you wake up?”

“Of course. Take it easy on him today. We don’t want your grumpy face scaring him away.” Roman let a growl rumble in his chest for a reply (he’s used up his words for a while), and Reese smacked a kiss on his cheek. With a kiss blown to Jackson, she meandered out of the kitchen and up the stairs to her room. Her uniform fell to the floor, there was a silent promise to pick it up later, and then she promptly passed the fuck out.


She was thirteen, and they were living in Texas. The ranch house was big and roomy, but the kids at school didn’t like her. Not that it mattered. Allison was sure that they would be moving soon; they always did. She was walking through the living room to get something to drink when she heard the sound of the old couch creaking, and her socked feet slid a little as she came to a stop.

“Dad? Mom?”

“It’s just me, sweetie.” Allison moved around the couch and leaned her hip against the arm. Her mom was sitting with her back straight and the house phone in her lap. Her knuckles turned white where she was gripping it, and Allison tugged on the end of her hair.

“Is everything okay?” Reddened eyes looked over at her, and Allison immediately thought about her father. Had something happened?

“That was your cousin, Dean. You remember him?” Her uncle and cousins visited three Christmases ago, when she was ten. Her youngest cousin, Sam, gave her the first six Harry Potter books. Dean gave her a compound bow that almost had her in tears and even shot a few rounds with her that afternoon. Her Uncle John had been quiet and given her a card with fifty bucks in it, and all Allison can really remember about him was the scratch of his stubble as he kissed her cheek before they left.

“The pretty one, right?” Sam had been eighteen when they visited, and he still had that gangly look like he was still growing. Dean, who had been twenty-two, looked comfortable in his own skin and had really pretty green eyes.

“Yes, the pretty one.” Her mother’s cheek twitched.

“What did he want?”

“He wanted to let me know that John’s dead.” Allison moved to sit next to her mom and grabbed her hands.

“When’s the funeral?”

“He was cremated. They had a memorial service.” So Dean didn’t call until everything was over. Allison curled her legs under her and leaned her head against her mother’s shoulder. “Dean said it was a heart attack. Very sudden.”

“Will you tell me about him?” Her mom squeezed her hand and took in a deep breath.

“There’s not much to tell. His father died when he was real young, and John was sixteen when our mother had me. He joined the Marines at eighteen, and I didn’t see him until I was seven. Then he was married and had Dean a year later. When his wife, Mary, died a few years later, all three disappeared for a while. I didn’t see John again until I married Chris. He just showed up at the wedding, with the boys. We’ve never been close, but I am sorry about his passing.”

“Do you think we’ll see Dean and Sam more now? We’re the only family they have left.” It’d be nice to see some more family. The only family Allison had was her Aunt Kate and a grandfather she never saw.

“I doubt it, sweetie. Like I said, we were never close. Now, get back to bed. It’s late, and you have school tomorrow.”

“Okay. Goodnight, Mom.”

“Goodnight.”


“Again.”

“Give me a second, asshole.”

“You don’t have a second.” Jackson launched himself at Roman with a snarl, and Roman once again used a single hand to throw him across the small clearing they were in. Jackson’s spine cracked against a tree, and he sucked in a few breaths as the bone struggled to knit back together.

“See, this is why you need constant supervision, Ro.” Reese was standing in the tree line, and she shook her head as she walked closer to her brother. Roman just snorted and crossed his arms over his chest. It was a little eerie how the twins were dressed alike. Roman was wearing black basketball shorts and a red wife beater, and Reese was wearing baggy bright red shorts and a black tank top. Both were barefoot.

“Should we show him how real wolves fight?”

“Fuck you, grumpy bear.” It wasn’t his best insult, but he was healing a broken spine.

“Nice one, but I guess we could show you a thing or two.”

The twins moved so that they were facing each other and quickly stripped off their shirts. Roman was left bare from the waist up, and Reese had on a black sports bra. For the first time, Jackson noticed that they both had pretty big tattoos on their backs. As they started to fight, Jackson was able to get a better look. Roman had a wolf on his back, a black one with ice blue eyes. The head rested over his left shoulder blade and the body stretched diagonally with the tail curling around his right hip. When they flipped around, he got a look at Reese’s. It was simpler, just a spine tattoo that disappeared into her hair line and stopped right at the crack of her ass. The two of them continued to twist around each other, like they were dancing instead of fighting.

Roman tossed his twin up into the air, and Reese’s fingers locked around his wrist. She used the momentum to swing herself around and locked her long legs around Roman’s neck. The pair of them rolled to the ground, and they were just a big mess of rumbling growls and fast hits. Jackson’s spine finally felt whole again, so he shifted around to lean against the tree. Today had been…different. Yesterday with Reese had been full of motion, her teasing, and only the occasional silence. Spending the day with Roman had been the opposite. They moved a lot, packing up Forrest’s office and loading Roman’s truck, but it was at a slower pace than with Reese. Roman was quieter and barely said anything, except to give instructions or answer whatever question Jackson came up with.

“Give it up, Ro! I’m too fast for ya!” Reese was sitting in the center of Roman’s back, and she had his wrists clamped in her hands so she could stretch his arms back. “Here’s a lesson for you, Jackson. Stay nice and lean. If you get as bulky as Ro here, you lose some of your speed.”

“Don’t need it,” Roman growled out. The werewolf wasn’t overly bulky, but he did have clear muscle definition and thicker limbs than his much leaner twin. He used the strength of his legs to stand up and immediately dropped to the ground. Reese let out a yelp as she was smashed between the ground and her brother’s body, and Roman looked over at him. “The strongest doesn’t always win, but it doesn’t hurt.”

“You’re both complete idiots. Are we done here?”

“I am. I’ve got the night shift, so I’m going to get some sleep. He’s yours to babysit.” Roman flowed to his feet, but Reese stayed sprawled where she was.

“Your brother’s a real asshole.”

“Tell me about it.”

“Fuck you both very much!” With that, Roman was gone. Reese grinned over at him and shuffled a bit on the ground.

“Can you control your shift?” Jackson shifted into his beta form and flicked the sharp point of a fang with the tip of his tongue.

“Anything else?” he asked in a bored tone. Shifting into his beta form was nothing, not after the painful forced shifts of his kanima form.

“Last few full moons, you were a werewolf. How’d it go?” He let his beta form melt away and crossed his arms. The past three full moons have been hell, and he wasn’t looking forward to the next one.

“Derek chained me up.”

“Urge to kill?” He gave a quick nod of his head, and Reese hummed.

“That’s completely normal, but we’ll work on it. Guess you don’t have an anchor?” At his blank look, she added, “Something to focus on that keeps you human?”

“No.” Simple as that. Derek tried too, but he couldn’t call up anything. Derek had anger, Isaac had his father, and Scott had love. Jackson couldn’t think of anything, nothing at all.

“We’ll work on that too. How’re your senses?”

“Better than a human’s.” Reese rasped out a chuckle at that and started rooting around in her shorts. She typed out a message and let her phone rest on her lightly moving stomach. Her phone went crazy a few minutes later, and Jackson just looked on as she let out a whoop and rolled to her feet.

“Come on, Jackson. I’m gonna show you how werewolves play hide-and-seek.”


“That…was…awesome!” Reese twisted around and dropped her head down onto Kit’s thigh. Her big brother was sitting upright today, and he reached down to ruffle her hair.

“Did you have fun, Jackson?” Kit asked as he started absentmindedly braiding one of the longer sections of Reese’s hair.

“It was alright,” Jackson shrugged from his spot on the couch.

“Alright? Don’t let him fool you, Kit, he was amazing! He remembered where the herb patch was and used some wolfsbane to cover his scent. We spent thirty minutes looking for him and still couldn’t find him.” Jackson’s smug smile fit his face perfectly, and Reese stuck her tongue out at him. All of the older kids joined in, along with all the younger kids that could leave their mothers. There really was nothing like a giant game of hide-and-seek in the Trucco woods. It’s something that they all do whenever they can, and it’s a good training exercise for the kids.

“That is smart. I guess that makes Jackson the reigning champion?”

“Yup. Star has passed her crown on.”

“You’re all idiots,” Roman said as he stalked into the living room. He fell back onto the loveseat with a giant pot of spaghetti in his lap, and Reese’s nose wrinkled at the slightly burned smell.

“Still not up for cooking?” Reese looked up at Kit, who grinned down at her.

“I offered to cook, but Roman insisted on doing it himself.”

“That’s because he’s an idiot.” Roman huffed, and Reese rolled off the couch. “I’m going to take a shower. Later, losers!” Muffled shouts followed her departure, and she stripped down as soon as she got to her room. There’s really nothing like taking a hot shower to soothe away the aches of the day, and Reese heard the front door open and close as she worked some shampoo into her hair. Forrest is home, with little Kingsley. Maggie and Malvina are with them, and there’s a lot of movement going on. Oh, shopping. Makes sense. They don’t have anything at the house for a two year old, but it sounds like Maggie and Malvina have made sure that Forrest is completely prepared.

Reese slipped on a pair of panties and tugged a tank top on over her head. She thought about going downstairs to see how everyone was doing, but she can hear that they’re all fine. Maggie and Malvina are talking excitedly about painting Kingsley’s room, and she can tell that Forrest is holding his son in his arms. Roman is eating burned spaghetti and listening to Kit talk about his day, and Jackson is napping on the couch. Everyone is fine. Reese laid crossways on her bed and just stared up at the ceiling. She’s so tired, and a little sleep never hurt anyone. Nope…no hurt at all…just…sleep.


“Why are we stopping here?” Dean, surprisingly enough, let Sam take his precious car so she could get a few things for her room. Like a lamp or less scratchy sheets. They were supposed to be going to Wal-Mart but were instead sitting in front of some park. Sam opened the car door and stepped out, and he bent down to stick his head back in the car.

“This won’t take long. Come on.” Allison hurriedly followed after him, and her cousin’s long legs led her over to an empty bench. Sam gently sat down, and Allison eased herself down next to him. He was leaning forward, elbows on his knees, and looking straight ahead. She mirrored his position but kept her eyes focused on him.

“What are we doing?” she whispered with a smile. Sam glanced over at her, and his lips twitched to show matching dimples.

“Look out there and tell me what you see.” Allison turned her head and looked around the park.

There was a tire swing hanging from one tree, and a small kid was pushing what looked like his little brother on it. A little girl was tossing a small stick, and a giant fluffy dog was dutifully chasing after it. There was a couple under a tree on a picnic, and they looked blind to the rest of the world. A group of pregnant women were sitting in a semi-circle, with another woman facing them and showing them breathing exercises. The group of nervous husbands weren’t far away, and one of them was flipping hamburgers on a grill. All around were families with laughing kids, couples staring into each other’s eyes, and smiling faces for all the world to see.

“I see…happiness.”

“This is why I’m a hunter. I fight for them, to keep them safe and happy. Whenever I lose sight of why I chose this life, I come somewhere like this and just look around. I look at how happy and carefree these people are, and I get it. Everything falls back into place. Of course I’m a hunter. I have the knowledge and skill to protect these people, so why wouldn’t I?”

“I don’t think that’s why Kate and Gerard hunted.” Allison wiped at her misty eyes, and she felt Sam’s large palm gently squeeze her knee.

“Some hunters believe that anyone who’s different is automatically a monster, and I get that too. We have to choose to believe that even other species can be good. There’s good and bad people, so why not good and bad monsters? Nothing is ever completely black or wholly white. We live in a lot of shades of gray.”

“You should write a hunter’s guide.” Allison caught his hand in both of hers and smiled over at him, without bothering to wipe at the tears on her cheeks. Instead, Sam reached up and brushed the tears away.

“Actually, we have journals.” Her laugh was lighter than it has been in a long time, and Sam pulled her to her feet.


The itchiness of dried blood was still making his hands tingle when Jackson jerked awake, and a rough voice gently talked him down. It was fucked up, because Jackson never would’ve described Reese’s rough gravel voice as comforting. Yet here she was, curled around him and comforting him once again. His ear was set over her heart, and its strong beat was loud in his ear. It should’ve been too loud, but he focused on the sound anyway. Roman’s heartbeat was a little slower. Her arms were loosely wrapped around his shoulders, and one hand was playing with his hair. One bare thigh was hiked up and pressing into his abdomen, so it felt like she was completely surrounding him.

“You have to stop doing this. You and your asshole brother.”

“Not until you stop needing us to.”

Back on the first floor, quiet whimpers turned into full on wails. Jackson jumped, but Reese locked her limbs around him. She quietly shushed him, and they both listened as Kingsley began screaming. Forrest’s quiet tones drifted through the house next, as he did his best to soothe the toddler. Forrest and Kingsley were the only ones with bedrooms on the first floor, Roman was at work for the night, and Kit was in his room. Going by the sound of things, he was still asleep. Kingsley continued to scream, and Jackson looked up at Reese.

“So you can cuddle me, but you won’t go cuddle the kid that actually needs it?”

“Too many people right now would overwhelm his senses, and Forrest needs to connect with him. That, and the kid’s been through some rough stuff. Things like that don’t just disappear overnight.” Her eyes flashed blue, the same shade as his own eyes, and he huffed at her.

“What are you trying to say?” She used the hand in his hair to push his head back down, and he weakly struggled against the hold. He quickly gave up and just listened to the sound of her fast beating heart.

“That I’m right where I need to be.”


She looked around her new room with a proud smile and lightly patted her new bedspread. Sam bought her one of those bed-in-a-bag sets, so her bed got a little makeover. Dean brought in a good sturdy desk while they were gone, and she had a lamp and her new journal sitting on top of it (because hunters keep journals to tell their stories). She bought a fluffy pink rug that Dean wrinkled his nose at, which had made her and Sam laugh. On a whim, she bought one of those inspirational posters and hung it above her bed. It had a picture of the night sky with pretty shining stars, and she liked the simple quote. Destiny is not a matter of chance, but of choice. Simple and true. She fell back onto her bed and winced a little when her head clashed against her phone. Her phone that had a new text message.

From Lydia: How’s Paris? See any hot guys yet?

Allison quickly sent a message back and then wiggled around until she could get under her blankets. Right on time, Dean popped his head in the door. He called out a soft goodnight and then flipped her light off. Allison rolled onto her side, curled her legs up, and went to sleep.


From Allison: Not yet but the louvre was amazing :)


“Good morning.” Reese dropped a kiss to the top of Forrest’s head and plopped down into the seat next to him. Kingsley was sitting in his lap and tightly clutching Forrest’s tee shirt. The right side of his head was shaved now, but he still has hair going down the middle. Forrest allowed his son to get a Mohawk, and the little kid still looks adorable.

“Me Keen,” the little boy said quietly. The poor thing finally stopped screaming around two this morning, but he looks okay right now. Reese patted the top of his head and then swept her hand down to his cheek.

“Good morning, King. My name is Reese. Can you say Ree?” It’s what most of the kids called her. King grabbed her hand and really concentrated on her face. Or maybe he’s trying to shit?

“Ree.”

“That’s right! Good job.” She ruffled what bit of hair he had left and got up to make herself a bowl of cornflakes. Jackson wandered in as she was pouring herself a bowl, so she pulled out another bowl and fixed some for him too. He raised a brow at her, but she just pointed to the table. He walked over without a single complaint, and Reese placed his bowl in front of him a moment later.

“So, Forrest, what’re you gonna do about the shop? You can’t really leave King with anyone yet,” Reese pointed out. King is still so new that taking him to the daycare center would be a disaster. None of the kids stay there until they can more or less control themselves. Then there’s the fact that King needs to bond with Forrest as his father.

“I don’t know,” Forrest groaned around his cinnamon toast. “Everyone has a job or other things to do, so I don’t know.”

“What about Maggie and Malvina?”

“Summer job at the mall. They were so proud of getting jobs outside of the family; I can’t ask them to quit. I could close up for a while, just until things get settled.”

“Yeah, you could do that, if there’s absolutely no one else that can help you.” Forrest’s eyes followed Reese’s, and he coughed lightly around his breakfast before swallowing fully.

“Hey, Jackson?”

“What?” The guy must’ve been completely checked out of the conversation, because he looks really confused.

“How would you like a summer job?” Jackson looked over at Reese and then back at Forrest.

“What kind of summer job?”

“Just at the store. I’d just need help with the customers, someone to work the cash register, maybe clean up. I can keep King with me in the shop.” Forrest has his business separated into two, now three, parts. The front part has his various creations on display for people to wander in and buy, which made it the store part. Behind that was the shop, where he actually made the creations. Now the attic is his office, where he can keep track of everything.

“Will I get paid?” Jackson really is all about asking the important questions.

“Of course, minimum wage and by the hour. Will you do it? For me? And King?”

“Yeah, sure, but we’ll need to set up a contract. I want all of my business in writing.” Forrest broke out in a wide grin, and he suddenly jumped from his seat and ran around the table. He held King in one arm and hugged Jackson with the other. One of Jackson’s perfect cheekbones was pushed into Forrest’s stomach, and he had that deer in the headlights look in his eyes.

“You got a deal. Watch King while I run to the bathroom?” Forrest set the little boy on the table next to Jackson’s bowl and sprinted from the room. King looked straight ahead at Jackson, and Jackson stared right back.

“Me Keen,” the toddler said as a way of greeting.

“Ja—”

“Bubba! His name is Bubba! Can you say Bubba, King?” The little boy looked over at Reese and then clapped his palms on Jackson’s cheeks.

“Bubba!”

“I hate you so much for this,” Jackson whispered out of the corner of his mouth. King just smiled right on, which is a nice change from last night. Reese knows it’ll be a while before King recovers from what happened, but the kid’s pretty resilient.

“My Bubba!” King declared and hugged him. Uh-oh…hope Jas is up for sharing.


“Should we…should we ask Scott for help?” Derek turned his head towards him, and Isaac reached up to pluck a leaf out of his hair.

“Scott isn’t a part of our pack, remember? Besides he…” Derek didn’t finish his sentence, but he didn’t have to. Scott was trying to better himself, and Derek didn’t want to burden him. Wanted to protect him. “It’s just us, Isaac. You’re the only one I need.”

“I know.” It wasn’t what he thought, but he knew that it was what Derek thought. It was the only reason his heartbeat remained steady. What he thought was, “I’m all you have.”


“Dad, just stop complaining and eat the tofurkey!” His father glared at him as he took a giant bite of the deliciously healthy sandwich, and Stiles took a bite of his identical scrumptious sandwich…that tasted like cardboard. Ugh. Whatever. It was for his dad, and he’d just make a curly fry run when he left. His dad never had to know.

“This tastes like cardboard,” the sheriff grumbled.

“That’s because you’re uncultured. Broaden your horizons, Dad! Try new things!”

“Like tofurkey?”

“Like tofurkey.”

They ate in relative silence, relative because Stiles was updating his dad on the town gossip that Dispatcher Rhodes had imparted to him before he came into the office. No calls came in about mutilated bodies, vicious animal attacks, or any other kind of strange happenings. It was quiet, but Stiles couldn’t shake this feeling. He felt like he was waiting for something, but he didn’t know what. Scott hadn’t even heard from Derek since Jackson left town, so there couldn’t be anything nefarious going on.

“Go, before you’re late.” At Stiles’s blank look, he continued, “Lacrosse practice with Scott? You’re cutting it close there, son.” Stiles checked the time and felt his eyes bug out. He nearly tripped trying to get out of his chair and slid a bit as he ran out of the room. His head popped back in for a moment so he could yell a goodbye at his dad and then he was running again. His bad feeling was probably because Scott was going to yell at him for being late and cutting into his study time. And by yell, he meant beat into a bloody lump that only resembled Stiles.


Jackson left with Forrest and King, so Forrest can give him a rundown of how things work at the store. Kit’s already left for work, so it’s just Reese and Roman. Reese is still in her pajamas, so she should go get changed and get ready to face the day. Instead, she stumbled her way into Roman’s room and wiggled her way up his bed. He was laying on his stomach, so she plastered herself against his back. She’s a little above average at five-ten, but Roman is three inches taller at six-one and a little bit wider. So, he can take it.

“Okay?” Roman doesn’t always talk in full sentences when he’s at his best, so Reese is a little surprised that he was able to say anything at all in his sleepy state.

“Yeah, everything’s fine. Just felt like sleeping with my other half.” Roman pulled his hands out from under his pillow and placed them on top of it instead. Reese linked their fingers together and rested her head between his shoulder blades.

“The kid, he’s not so bad.”

“Which one?”

“Both.”

“Agreed.”