Summary: It's nighttime. It's hot. And Bob's feeling cuddly.
Rating: G
Dot lay very still. She could see the alarm clock easily from her position on the bed, glaring at her with overly bright green digital numbers. 12:18 was what it read. The little dot of light in one corner indication pm was not lit.
In the clock's garish glow, she could make out Bob's shoulder, chest and arm. The arm and it's partner were wrapped around her waist in the bared space between her sports bra and boxer shorts, holding her tightly to his chest.
They had curled up together like this earlier in the evening, exchanging soft words and kisses until they fell to sleep. Or at least, until Bob fell to sleep, something Dot still had not managed to do. After some consideration, one exclusive reason had been discovered.
It was miserably hot.
Dot tried not to shift too much and wake her slumbering partner. If she lay still, perhaps it wouldn't be so hot. Her muscles grew tense from holding her rigid. A miniscule amount of sweat covered her body, making her feel sticky and uncomfortable. The ceiling fan clanked and tapped where the glass orb over the lightbulbs was too loose.
She lay awkwardly in her lover's embrace, wishing he weren't so warm. If it weren't for Bob's being woken up, she could peel his arms away from her, roll to the side, and kick off the blankets. The blankets. Why had she pulled them up in the first place? They were light, only sheets and a bedspread, but the bedspread held heat far better than she had expected.
Desperately, she blew her breath on to her own arm to move the air, something the fan was failing to do. This was ridiculous. She had to just move and make herself more comfortable. She'd never sleep like this.
She had one leg flung over both of his. Carefully, cautiously, she lifted it a minute amount. Not too much or she would let a rush of cold air into the blankets and shock him awake. Not that I wouldn't appreciate the cool air, she thought, but all the same, she moved her leg painstakingly slow until it reached matress. Ah, cool, fresh matress. She took a deep breath and let it out, glad for even that small comfort.
Encouraged by the cool of the sheets and Bob's soft snores, she picked up her arm and, using the same slow, smooth movement, removed it from his chest.
The next part would be a bit harder. He still had her imprisoned in his arms. She felt guilty at wanting to pull away from him, but physical comfort overruled her sentiment as a wave of heat-induced nausea swept over her momentarily. She reached up with her only recently freed hand and gingerly lifted one of his. She began to move it to one side.
Bob snorted and his hand wrapped around hers.
She blinked. And blinked again. After a nano of panic, she grasped his hand softly and moved it away, unbending his elbow and laying his hand on the bed behind her. He breathed deeply, turned his head a bit, and began to snore quietly again.
Dot breathed a sigh of relief. She was halfway there. Leaning her weight on to her free elbow, she reached down and clasped his other hand, careful not to squeeze too tightly, and stretched to place it on his opposite side. Then, she sighed comfortably and lay down on her own side of the bed.
And leapt back up. There was something in the way.
His hand! The arm she had originally unwrapped was laying stretched out straight across the bed. Invading her space.
The frustration and lack of sleep culminated in one high-pitched, desperate noise that escaped through her clenched teeth. She dug her nails into the sheets and raked them backward, finding this action the best available outlet for emotions. After a moment, she took a soothing breath and let it out slowly. You're acting like a child, she berrated herself. Just move his arm like you did before.
She slid her fingertips under the back of his hand and lifted. He breathed deeply and shifted, making her freeze ans stare hard at his face, searching for any signs of awakening. He slipped peacfully into slumber again, and she let out her breath in a controlled sigh.
Still determined to have her entire half of the bed, she put her palm flat against the side of his wrist and pushed, sliding it in an arc along the sheets and back to his side. As it neared its final destination, she grinned manicly into the darkness, half insane with exhaustion. She pulled her hand away triumphantly and slid down on the coverless half of the bed and sprawled, closing her eyes in relief at the cool air washing over her.
Bob mumbled a few nondescript syllables and rolled over on to his side, facing her. Her lips curled downward sharply as his hot breath blew over her face. Bob, I love you... she thought as she she wriggled away again, growing dangerously close to the edge. But your morning breath is enough to drive me away even in this sweet of a setting.
She pulled up a corner of the sheet and propped it up between herself and her Guardian's mouth, trying to block the onslaught of pungent warmth. Nothing could stop her from getting sleep now. She was a woman on a mission.
"Just stay outta my way." she whispered, and closed her eyes with a final determination. Sleep claimed the exhausted sprite shortly after.
***
Dot awoke with a headache, somehting that never struck her as fair. The sun streamed through her window, which would have been a beautiful morning greeting if not for the beam striking her across the eyes. She groan and rolled over to face away from the window. Her stomach leapt, her eyes snapped open and she flung her arms out to catch something as she rolled straight off the side of the bed.
She hit the floor ungracefully on hands and knees, and a frusterated shriek escaped her. I'm tired, I'm achey, I've got an entire day of work in front of me...I don't need this!
She heard footsteps and turned her head towards the door. Bob peeked in. "Dot, honey? You okay? I heard a thump and..."
He stuttered to a halt at the look she gave him. Her glare pinned him to the spot with a puzzled and hurt expression. "What's wrong?"
Dot gave him a withering stare. This was his fault. All of it.
"Get me java." She ordered, wasting no words and noticing that her voice was still raspy with sleep. The effect of the situation, posture, glare and voice on the poor, lost Guardian was that of a satanic creature possessing his love. He nodded fervently and rushed out of the room at the quickest pace he could, not to seem too eager to leave. He feared the wrath of the demon on the bedroom floor.
Dot crawled halfway down the hall, then stood and tried to regain her dignity. The warm, thick, sweet smell of the java swept over her, possibly the first enjoyable thing to happen all morning, and gave her renewed strength. Bob watched her enter the kitchen with a concerned and slightly frightened look on his face.
The silence as she sipped her java became unbearable for the Guardian. After a few moments, he smiled and started, "Boy, it was sure hot last night, huh?"
Dot's gaze switched from the far wall directly in front of her to Bob. She set her java down again and blinked before replying. "Yes. It was."
The answer was somewhat unsatisfactory, so Bob decided to try a joke. "It would have been way cooler if you'd have stopped clutching to me."
Dot's eyes grew wide and she clenched her fists. "Me?! Cling to you?!"
Immediately sensing his tactical error, Bob attempted to ammend the statement. "Hey, I appreciated it and everything...I don't mean that you were being clingy or anything..."
A shrill, morning-crackling voice cut him off. "Me clinging to you?! I tried to sleep for cycles, Bob, cycles! But you were holding me! I didn't want to wake you up, so I was moving you so carefully!"
Bob listened to her squeaking protests with a half-smile. "Uh-uh, Dot. I think I'd remember what happened. I was there, after all."
His grin infuriated her. She flung her placemat at him for lack of any better projectiles. "Bob! It was hot and miserable! And I was thinking of your feelings! See if I ever do that again!"
Bob was amuused by her overreaction. "Sure. And I suppose I snore, too."
Dot growled through her teeth in undue anger. She needed sleep.