Revolution- Runaways 3 [EDITING]

Chapter 3: Peyton

I hated being confined to my bed. All I wanted to do was get up and give Marcus a hug, but that was impossible for both of us. Not only did I want to get up to see him, but I couldn't bear the thought of Eli and Luke going into camp alone on Monday. I knew Luke had said they wouldn't be alone, but it still worried me. I wanted to be able to go with them.

It was getting late. There was a nightstand between my bed and Marcus's, and the alarm clock sitting on it read 9:12 p.m. My stomach was growling. I hadn't eaten since the pitiful lunch we had in the hospital cafeteria before we boarded the plane. But I doubted we had arrived in time for dinner. Luke and Marcus had probably already eaten.

Eli still had his arms encircled around me. His eyes were closed, and his breathing was the rhythmic breath of sleep. Marcus and Luke were exchanging hushed words, and I could hear them both crying softly. I knew exactly what they were going through, and it broke my heart.

My own tears had dried almost an hour ago. I didn't know if it was because I was dehydrated or because I simply couldn't cry anymore. Too much grief enveloped us, and my eyes were tired of the tears.

I kissed the top of Eli's head, trying not to wake him. I had spent every minute with him since the surgery, and I still hadn't wrapped my head around the fact that he was alive. Just days ago, he'd been buried in Florida's underbrush, and now here he was. It brought about tears for a whole other reason.

I wasn't sure how long we laid like that. It could have been seconds or hours. Eventually though, I did have to wake him. I shook his shoulder gently. "Eli," I whispered. "You can't sleep with me. You know that."

His eyelids raised halfway as he mumbled, "Said who?"

I couldn't help but chuckle. "Said me, silly. I can move to the bottom bunkbed if you want."

Those words seemed to rouse him. "Um, no. First of all, you're staying here whether you like it or not. Your leg is in a cast, Peyton. I'm not making you move from where you are right now. Second of all, I'm also staying here, so get over it."

"Eli," I groaned. "We went over this."

In response, he got off the bed and grabbed a blanket off the bunkbed. "Would you rather sleep on top of the quilt so you can keep your leg propped up? I can give you this blanket if you want."

I rolled my eyes. "Eli."

"This is non-negotiable." He smirked, then kissed me tenderly. "I'm not going all the way over there when you're all the way over here. We'd be too far apart."

"I think you're getting clingy," I joked. "That, or you've got serious abandonment issues."

"We both know it's probably the latter," he pointed out. "Honestly, if you really want me over there, I'll sleep over there." He comically poked out his lower lip, slumped over, and pulled his shoulders to his ears. Then he made a show of stomping to the bunkbed.

I grinned, biting my tongue so I didn't erupt into a fit of laughter. "Wait."

He looked up at me, giving me puppy-dog eyes. "I guess you can stay over here with me." I let out an exaggerated sigh. He knew I wanted to sleep with him too. I just chose not to most of the time for personal reasons. He made a show of putting on a wide smile and bounding over to me. "Only for tonight though."

"But—"

This time, I kissed him. "I'm kidding. You can sleep with me every night if you want to."

"Yes!" He pumped his fist in the air. Luckily, Marcus and Luke seemed to be completely ignoring us. I doubted they really were though. They were probably eavesdropping. I would be too if they were being this dramatic at ten o'clock at night.