I stretch under the mess of blankets, slowly allowing consciousness to push away the sleep that wants to drag me back in. "Hey, Jade," I hear.
I open my eyes. Cat, who is next to me on the bed, is hovering over me, resting on her elbows. She's looking at me, smiling, and I can tell she wants to give me a good morning kiss but won't until she's sure I won't tear her head off. It's probably too early for pleasantries. Despite that, I smile back.
She takes that as a good sign. She leans down and kisses my nose. I roll my eyes, even though I'm still smiling. Of course she would kiss my nose.
She lays back on her side and continues to look at me with that smile that has yet to leave her face. I look back at her, glad she's not jumping up and down on the bed begging me to get up and do something.
Cat's really pretty. Like really pretty. I could probably say that sleep and tossing around at night don't faze her, that somehow she looks more beautiful when she wakes up than when she goes to sleep. But then I would be lying. The truth is, she looks like a mess. I laugh at the thought. "What?" she asks, with a raised eyebrow and an adorably curious smile.
"You look like crap," I say.
For a second after I open my big mouth, I hold my breath. I never know how she'll react to such comments. She stares at me for a moment, with that smile frozen on her face. Then suddenly she turns serious. "At least I don't have raccoon eyes…and half my eyeliner on the pillow," she says.
I blink. Then I look down at her pink-clad pillow and see that it is indeed tainted by my black makeup. I laugh again. "Guess I look like crap, too."
She smiles. "It's okay, Jade," she says. "I like you for what's inside."
"I don't know why," I say, as I get out of bed so I can wash my face.
"Because you're a big softy," she says from her spot on the bed.
I turn to look at her and narrow my eyes. I want to say something, preferably mean. But my brain fails me. It's Cat. My heart turns into jelly whenever I look at her and I want to puke out rainbows. I shudder internally and walk away before I say something disgustingly sweet.