Page 17 of Beauty Sleep

That breaks the tension with a laugh. Robby snorts and tosses a napkin at me, which I bat away.

“Dickhead,” Theo grins.

I wink at him. “But a beautiful dickhead,” I run my fingers through my hair and pat my cheeks, opening the top textbook in the stack. “Shiny, healthy, and radiant as the noon sun.”

“Are you studying?You? On a Sunday, before noon?” Robby’s look of concern is back.

“Yep,” I chirp at him, giving away nothing.

Don’t get me wrong, it’s like throwing a nickel at a student loan’s worth of sleep debt… but compared to usual, I feel better this morning than I have in months.

“Mr.I’m going to flunk this test because the teacher says so, and there’s nothing I can do about it, studying,” Theo shakes his had.

Robby grunts in agreement. “What thehellgot into him? Can we get some of that?”

Not a chance.

The intensity of my wave of jealousy surprises me. But in all my years of fantasizing about the magical first time… I didn’t think I’d enjoy it so much, or that it would be so sweet and tender afterward.

I don’t even know what Prince Charming looks like, much less how to find him again. All I can do is wait for him to show up again.

There’s nothing for me to get wrong. It’s all up to him.

I can’t text him a million times today and scare him off. I can’t stalk his Facebook profile and decide how many kids we’re having. I can’t even imagine my first name with his last name. I just have to wait.

As hard as it’s going to be tonight—in more ways than one—I also can’t wait.

“Maybe Gay Jesus took the wheel because Briar’s an inch away from failing this prereq,” Robby grunts. “And he keeps sleeping through our study hours. And the big test is this week.”

Actually, that’s a good point. I’ll never focus on my homework if I’m thinking about him all day long.

“You know, I’ve got an idea,” I tell them, bouncing to my feet to slam my textbook closed and drain the rest of my coffee. “Group coffee-slash-study sesh at the cafe.”

“Sesh?” Theo groans loudly, folding his arms on the table and plopping his head down on them.

“Sesh,” I repeat firmly. “Now, get off your asses and get dressed. The special is half-price before ten AM. And I happen to know this weekend’s special is that fruity little blueberry number you all love.”

Robby groans. “Fuck. Idolove that fruity little blueberry number. With whipped cream. But first, who are you and what the fuck have you done with the real Briar?”

“I couldn’t possibly say.” I grin as I gather my armful of textbooks. “You guys in or what?”

“Fiiiine,” Theo sighs. “Give me ten minutes.” He winces and hunches down over his folded arms again as I turn to head for my room. “Or twenty, and a blowjob.”

“Ten, no blowjob, and a fruity little blueberry number. Final offer,” I call over my shoulder.

I’m not so far down the hall that I can’t hear Robby saying, “Guys… I’ve changed my mind. That boy needslesssleep. Anyone want to take turns waking him up tonight?”

But I’m feeling great. For the first time in months, I’m not just going along with what other people want.

I’m not sleep-walking through life. I’m awake, and I’mslaying. I don’t know how long this will last, but until my next sleepless night, I’m going to take full advantage of it. And for once, everyone else can come along for the ride.

I feel like I’ve been brought back to life to discover I’m the queen of my own goddamn life.

Last night, I made my deepest, most secret dream come true. The only hard part now is going to be waiting for my Prince to return. Tonight will be the real test. Compared to that, everything else in my life is a piece of cake with a half-price, fruity little blueberry number on the side.

And extra whipped cream.

Mmm. I can’t wait.

---