This was prompted by 'writingdawn'!

Enjoy!

Mara rested her head on the palm of her hand and stared forward, but she wasn't really looking at anything. Her mind was blank and her eyes were heaving but she couldn't get any sleep. When she felt the sofa dip as someone sat beside her, her brown eyes flitted to her boyfriend. He smiled silently. She smiled back, but when she didn't say anything, he strapped his bag over his shoulder again.

"Do you want to be alone?" he asked hesitantly.

"No, you're fine. I'm just tired." She explained.

He nodded in understanding and dropped his bag on the floor by his feet and leaned back on the sofa. He reached over to her and picked up a strand of her black hair, twirling it around his finger. "Haven't you been sleeping well, darling?"

"I haven't been sleeping at all," she admitted, snuggling into his side and he wrapped his arm around her shoulders.

"Will a hug help you sleep?" he chuckled, kissing her hair.

"I don't know." She shrugged slightly, closing her eyes.

Several minutes later, Mara pulled away from him and ran her fingers through her hair. "Where are you going?" Jerome asked, standing up with her.

"The bell's about to ring; we have to get to class." She reminded.

"No, you're tired," he protested, grabbing her hand. "I'm sure Mr. Sweet will understand if you don't make it—"

"Jerome, I'm fine," she assured and slung her bag over her shoulder, leaving the room.

Jerome gently kicked Mara's bedroom door open with his foot and carried a tray in. He leaned against the wood to close it and his girlfriend looked up. She smiled and closed her laptop.

"What's this?" she questioned.

"Well, I'm gonna help you go to sleep. You have to at least take a nap. Sleep's really important and I don't want my Beansybop to get sick. So, I've got tea, ice cream, a couple movies and some music and candles…what?" he demanded when he noticed that she was giggling, and his cheeks tinted faintly.

"You're so amazing." She whispered, biting her lip.

He looked down at her and put the tray on her bedside table. He moved her books and laptop and sat across from her. He handed her the cup of tea and she thanked him quietly, sipping from the mug.

"Do you know why you haven't been able to sleep?" Jerome asked, running a hand through his blonde hair. He picked up the stack of CDs he had brought and began leafing through them, trying to pick the best one to play.

"I don't know," she mumbled, stirring the pink liquid.

"You've got to know, Jaffray. Is your family okay? Are you sick? Are you okay?" he demanded, putting a CD into her player.

"There comes a time, a time in everyone's life; where nothing seems to go your way, where nothing seems to turn out right…" Ray LaMontagne's voice sang softly from the stereo.

Mara listened for a moment. "I'm never disappointed in your taste in music."

"Are you going to tell me what's wrong?" he asked, sitting on the edge of her bed and tilting toward her.

"I'm just a little stressed out. You know, school…thinking about the future…"

"You have no reason to worry about the future; you're future's going to be amazing." He tried to convince her, moving his head so he could look into her eyes when she cast her gaze down to the pattern on her duvet.

"Can't you just kiss me and make me stop thinking about it?" she whispered.

"I think you need to face it instead of pushing it away, love." He said.

She put her empty mug down and turned her back to him. He watched her and reached forward. He began massaging her shoulders and rubbing his thumbs into her back, trying to sooth her tense muscles. She brought her knees up to her chest and her forehead met her knees, closing her eyes tightly.

"Come on, lay down." he prompted, holding onto her shoulders.

She scooted back, lying beside him and he pulled her into his chest, arms wrapped around her protectively. She closed her eyes and tried her hardest to fall asleep. As Jerome's breathing evened, soft snores coming from him, she listened to the music that played behind them. Jerome's music never failed to help her feel better, but it didn't help her sleep. She kept her eyes shut, singing along with a song that reminded her of Jerome and the situation she was in. She knew immediately that he had burned this CD just for her and what she was going through. She turned in his arms and buried her face in his jumper and let tears fill her eyes, but she didn't allow herself to cry.

Jerome squinted and breathed in deeply. Vanilla filled his senses. He looked down at Mara and saw that her eyes were closed, but when he smiled, she looked up at him briefly. His smile dropped, noting her bloodshot eyes.

He cursed softly, sitting up. "I fell asleep and you didn't get a second of sleep. I'm such a—"

"J, it's okay," she began.

"No, it's not," he shook his head. He looked at the tray on the bedside table. The ice cream had been eaten, the music in the stereo had been changed and one of the candles had been lit and then put out. "I'm so horrible! I hate myself."

"You tried," she reminded him, grabbing his arm in her small hands as he gripped the ends of his soft hair between his fingers. "It's okay, Jerome."

"Sweeties, time for supper!" Trudy's voice hollered through the house.

Jerome hung his head and sat on the edge of the bed as Mara stood up, straightening her shirt. "J…" she whispered.

"What's wrong with me? Why can't I make you feel better?" he demanded brokenly.

"You did make me feel better," she corrected. "You always make me feel better."

"But I want you to get some sleep and I can't help you sleep." He groaned, falling back on her bed.

"Do you want supper?" she asked.

"I'll be down in a minute," he replied and she nodded, leaving the room.

Jerome leant against the doorway, watching Mara silently as she did her homework in the school lounge. No one else was there at the moment and the room was silent. She had light but noticeable bags under her eyes but she carried on with her work.

She suddenly stopped writing and looked up at him. "Everyone's scared of the future, Jerome; even the ones that have plans."

Jerome blinked. "I'll always be there for you."

"I know." She smiled.

A real smile.

Jerome returned her smile and sat at the piano that sat by the stage. "Do you mind?" he asked, peering back at her. She shook her head in reply and rested back to read from her poetry book. He put his bag down and let his fingers dance over the ivory keys in a quiet tune, humming along with the notes. When the song ended, he dragged his fingers through his hair and spun around on the bench.

"Sweetheart," he began, and then he froze. She was sleeping. Her book had fallen onto the floor and she had moved to lie on the sofa. He chuckled. "That's all I had to do?" he demanded softly and covered her with his blazer. He sat back on the bench and started playing again.

Eh, I don't think it's my best, but I hope you liked it! Review? Prompt?

"Live like there's no tomorrow ('cause all we have is here right now). Love like it's all that we know (the only chance we ever found). Believe in what we feel inside; believe and it will never die. Don't ever let this life pass us by. Live like there's no tomorrow." -Live Like There's No Tomorrow, Selena Gomez

I'm gonna start putting the names of songs and artists in case anyone ever wants to know. :)

-Rachel