Chapter 26

Dreamless sleep can be so deep and restful I believe sometimes it's all the medicine a tired soul needs in order to heal.

I woke up with Gabe next to me, still deeply asleep. Daylight filtered through the shutters, making it difficult to guess the time. My body told me perhaps eight o'clock, but it's seldom right about time of day. I turned to look at the TV display and saw that it wasn't on. A sign I wasn't to bother with time today? I decided not to worry about it and rolled on my back to give Gabe a kiss on his shoulder. His left arm folded across his eyes as if to shield them from the intruding daylight. I peeked under the arm to see if he was really asleep and met his blue eyes wide-awake, laughing at me.

"Oh! Ma vai!" I hit him.

He rolled on his stomach and pinned me down.

"I can't believe you're awake!" I mumbled with my face smashed against the pillow.

"Why not?" he asked, curious, letting me go.