In Another Life

107

"Terra." I heard a deep, whispered voice close to my ear, invading my dreams. I didn't want to leave them. I was in LA, with Colby, spending a night up in the mountains, after hiking all day. The sky looks magical from up here. The stars were placed in between the clouds in patterns and designs that had me almost breathless. I wasn't ready to give this up. "Terra, baby, wake up." Again that voice came, accompanied with soft full lips pressing against my own. My eyes fluttered open, to see Colby hovering over me. I smiled at him gently, my eyes still heavy with sleep. "Good morning," I replied, my voice still scratchy. He grinned at me, making my heart go into overdrive. I hoped that there was never a day that he didn't have this effect on me. "Good morning. I overslept. We need to get you packed and ready to come with me. Are you asking Denise to come? Because we actually need to hurry." I blinked at him, my brain still driving to wake up. "Wha- oh," I replied, remembering that I said I was going to Savannah with him. Doubt now flooded into me, and I bit my lip, sitting up as he sat back. We were still in the same clothes from the night before, still on the foot of the bed. I was positive that my makeup was probably so smudged, and my hair was standing on end. I combed my fingers through my hair, and glanced over at him. "Do I have time to take a shower? I'll make it quick." He smiled softly and leaned towards me to press his lips against mine in a slow, drawn out kiss, his tongue darting out to swipe over my bottom lip. "I think you look fantastic...but yeah." I blushed and rolled my eyes, then stood up. He pulled out his phone and started texting while I grabbed some clothes to change into. "Were you going to invite Denise?" he asked, without looking up from his phone. "Um...yeah, I'll call her now and see if she wants to come. She may not be up yet though." He sighed, and met my eyes. "Babe, Sam is already pissed. I really have to go." I nodded, and grabbed my phone, holding my clothes in my other hand, and walked to the bathroom. "Fuck," I whispered, as I dropped the lid on the toilet so that I could sit down. I pressed Denise's contact and waited, while the phone rang in my ear. "Oomph," was all I heard when the line was connected. "Neece?" I asked, hearing a lot of rustling and groaning. "Whaaattt?" She groaned out. "Good morning to you too," I laughed. "I'm hungover with a headache from hell T. What do you want this fucking early in the morning?" I laughed again, as I pulled my phone back to check the time. "It's after ten. Not even that early. Look, get in the shower now and wake the fuck up. We're leaving for Savannah with Colby as soon as possible. No time to wait. You're going to meet Corey!" "SHUT THE FUCK UP!" she screamed so loudly, I had to pull my phone away, but heard her voice echo from the other room. "I'm up! See you soon!" With that, the line disconnected. I grinned to myself, as I undressed and got in the shower. Last night was like a dream. I honestly didn't expect Colby to show up. I almost wondered if I was actually dreaming and if he were just an illusion of my overactive imagination. I breathed a sigh of relief when I exited the bathroom, to find him lying cross my bed, still on his phone. He glanced up and a smile formed on his beautiful face as soon as his eyes met mine. What did I do to deserve this? It still didn't make sense to me. "Denise will be ready. She's ecstatic. I'm almost ready. Just need to pack a few outfits and dry my hair. I can do my makeup in the car," I told him shyly. For some reason, ,that nervousness was creeping back in on me. This feeling that he shouldn't be in my room, because it was just so unreal. He wasn't real. He stood up and crossed the room, wrapping his arms around me without a word. As he hugged me tight against his body, my wet hair dripping onto his clothes, I choked back a sob. "Hey," he said leaning back from me. "What's wrong?" I shook my head and let out a watery laugh. "Nothing. This is just..I'm so glad you're here, with me. I missed you." He chuckled a little, and kissed my cheek. "I missed you too. Now come on baby girl, let's hurry before Sam decides to come hunt me down." He helped me throw a few outfits into my bag, as I looked around the room, trying to think of anything that I might be leaving behind that I would need. "You ready?" He asked, raising his eyebrows. I held my finger up and ran to the bathroom to grab my necessities, and my make up bag. "Let's go," I replied, walking back into my room. We walked into the living room to find Denise standing there with her bag, looking as fresh as ever. She flipped her hair back and smiled as she met my gaze. "What took you guys so long? A morning quickie?" I blushed and rolled my eyes. "Shut up. Wouldn't you like to know?" I retorted, winking at her. Colby pulled his phone out again, and looked at it before sighing. "Jesus Christ Sam," he muttered, before sliding it back into his pocket. "You ladies ready? Can we go?" We both nodded, and followed him out the door, locking it behind us. Colby took our bags and put them in the trunk, then opened both of our doors. "Aw, I knew that sweet, respectful Kansas boy was still there, under all that high fashion and hair dye," Denise joked, winking at me. I couldn't help but laugh as I saw the blush creep up Colby's cheeks. "Shut it Denise, or you'll ride in the trunk," he retorted, before closing our doors behind us. We both cracked up.