"Why you visit me?"
"Mom is partying and i get bullied by my siblings"
"How old are you anyway?"
"11" - she's half my age, she's small even for that age looks like 9
"Your clothes are still wet, you can stay tonight" - she looked relieved
i gave her my electric toothbrush with new head, her teeth are in not that bad state, probably because food stamp diet also means not much sugar
I made her bed on the couch, played her first Harry Potter movie and went to get ready for bed myself
I get up the mezzanine and she's there on my queen size bed, surrounded by my pillows which i have plenty, under my duvet, mesmerised with the movie
"You ever watched it? Do you like it?"
She shook her head no and then yes - they don't have television huh?
I sit next to her, take one of my pillows and get under duvet 2ft away
First movie ends, she's pumped up, i gave her cola, sweets and microwaved popcorn, she's not sleepy at all, so i turn on the second one
on ⅓ of the movie, she goes to the toilet and when she's back she sits directly beside me
on ⅔ of the movie she leans harder on my shoulder
It's close to midnight but she is not yet sleepy, good my favourite Harry Potter part is next
I get the remote, and she leans under my arm, on my chest, i turn the movie on and put my arm around her
She falls asleep on ⅔ of the movie
It would be hard to take her down to the couch without waking her up, and I don't think she wants to sleep there anyway
I lay her on the one end of the bed, i lay on the other
I can't sleep, i look at her from a distance, i feel mix of familial and romantic affection
At some point she raises her head, than upper body, supporting herself on both arms, looks around, lays down and rolls to my side, getting in the small spoon position, laying her head on my arm.
Few minutes pass and i get my other arm from behind her back, and move it over her chest
I feel her heart pounding like in a little bird