Borrowed Coats

“Where’s my coat?” Charlie looks to and fro at the closet. “I could have sworn I hung up my coat here…” He’s speaking more to himself than anyone else; Thandi has fallen asleep on the couch, and he’s not keen on waking her before he’s ready to go. 

The rattle of hangers gets on his nerves until he finds his coat. The thing is, it’s not the coat that he arrived in. He misplaced it just last month…in much the same situation…Is Thandi stealing his coats? Or worse, everything inside his coats? He pulls it on and explores the pockets. Everything is here. Hm.

Buttoning up, he’s got everything he needs, and it’s time to say goodbye to Thandi. He kneels by her face, shaking her shoulder gently, and his eye catches the edge of a sleeve peeking from under her pillow. Why would she…

Ah.

Oh.

A smile breaks across his face. It makes him feel warm, actually. It’d be fun to tease her a little later, so rather than trying again to wake her, he pulls the coat from under her pillow and lays it over her. He pauses for a moment. If he’s not waking her, then he should at least make sure her hair is wrapped or she’ll be irritable about it in the morning.
And if he’s doing that, he may as well tidy up a little.

Thandi stirs in the wee hours, surprised to feel as warm as she does. Two coats lay over her. She blinks, aghast, and looks about the room. The lights are out, their meals are tidied, her hair is wrapped, and–there he is. Charlie is asleep on the floor, borrowing her pillow and blanket from the bedroom.

He looks so sweet like this. Carefully, she reaches out and tangles her fingers into his hair, scratching his scalp lightly. The sound of his breathing deepens, seeming to calm from what she hadn’t realized was a fitful sleep. It must have been agonizing, waiting for her to wake. He always did love to poke fun at her. Thandi weighs her options. He’s no longer so touch averse with her, and he seems to know. Besides…that’s *her* pillow, and it’s *her* blanket. Perfectly justifiable. And perhaps he is a little cold. 

She slides off the couch and settles in beside him. It’s best to go straight to the source for this smell, this warmth, this comfort.