Given Time

♡24♡

My alarm clock goes off in my room, signaling the beginning of a new week. I roll over sleepily in my bed and stretch my arms and legs, hearing my joints click in the process. I know I should get up, but I'm just too comfy.

After another minute of staying still, I lift my head to start the process of getting out of bed, but my soft feather pillow calls my name, and I quickly rest my head against it again and close my eyes. Maybe five more minutes won't hurt.

As my mind wakes up, I remember the weekend I spent with my parents and friends. I guess after the time spent on the yacht with Tanner, it changes what we are now.

He was texting me late last night, which is part of the reason I'm still too tired to get out of bed. His texts were so sweet as he was telling me he had fun and how he can't wait to see me today after our classes end. A smile spreads across my face just thinking about him, and I bury my head further into the pillow, thinking about his lips on mine.

My alarm clock keeps beeping, waiting for me to turn it off. It's one of those annoying ones that beeps faster and louder the longer you leave it. I hear Zara heave a huge huff, and she covers her head with her pillow. "I swear, Leah, if you don't turn it off in the next three seconds, I'm going to throw a shoe at it."

I laugh. "You're such a grouch in the morning."

Her voice comes out muffled beneath the pillow. "Am not!"

"Yeah, yeah. Whatever." I laugh again.

I force my body to move, and I slowly climb out of bed and hit the snooze button on my alarm. As programmed, it'll sound again in fifteen minutes to wake Zara up as she'll most likely fall back to sleep. It's become our morning ritual. I get up first and go shower, then once I'm back Zara showers while I get dressed. On the rare occasion, Zara gets up before me, and we head to a café for breakfast together. But it seems today is not one of those days.

I grab my toiletries and head to the shower by myself. As usual, I hear a few commotions coming from behind some of the other bedrooms as I pad along down the hall. I push open the communal bathroom door and find it almost deserted. Grabbing my favorite cubicle, I go through the motions of stripping out of my pajamas and go to stand in the corner of the stall as I turn on the water.

While I wait for the icy water to heat up, I reflect on how I've become used to doing this routine. I remember when I first had to use the shower and how that had been a disaster. But now, it doesn't faze me in the slightest that I'm showering in a room with other girls. I've also gotten used to the fact that the water always takes at least two minutes to heat up enough to stand beneath, and that no matter how hard I try, my towels and clothes always end up a little damp after.

When it finally releases warm jets of water, I pop the lid off my vanilla body wash and scrub it all over my body. The sweet scent fills the air, and I breathe in the delicious scent. I then grab my shampoo and squirt a bit in my hands, and then massage it in my hair. Once I'm done, I wrap a towel around my body and one around my head. I grab my toiletries and pajamas and walk back to my room. As expected, Zara's sitting upright in her bed and is texting on her phone.

"Say hi to Jake for me."

She smiles. "Will do."

Her fingers tap wildly on her phone while I blow-dry my hair. As my hair starts to dry, Zara dumps her phone on the bed and heads to the bathroom, leaving me in peace. I finish drying and brushing my hair, then get to work on picking out my outfit. I slide my clothes along the rail until I opt for blue jeans and a pink top. Not sure on what the weather is like today, I pull back the drape and look outside the window. The green leaves blow wildly in the wind, and the sky looks dull. For good measure, I grab my cream cardigan in case the weather drops too much and get dressed.