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“What time do you have to get up?” Jimmy asked, his mouth moving against her shoulder.
Kim came to with a jolt. “Shit,” she hissed, and sat up to peer at her alarm clock, which glowed green in the black of her bedroom. Twelve-thirteen.
“Five? I think?” she said, and pushed the buttons on the clock to set it. She fumbled it and had to start over, then finally got the thing right. That meant maybe four and a half hours of sleep tonight. That was not as good as she’d had last night, but better than the night before. She sighed, and rolled onto her back. “I fall asleep?”
“Little bit.”
“God, I’m sorry,” she said. She’d had to rummage in her gym bag to find her toothbrush, so when she finally got to bed, Jimmy was already in it. She’d sunk into it, thinking only of sleep, but then Jimmy’d turned over to kiss her, and she didn’t have the heart to say no. Between her pulling all nighters on Mesa Verde more nights out of the week than not, and the added prep for his New Mexico Bar Association hearings had destroyed whatever free time they’d had left for the past few weeks. Even in the relief of the Bar Association’s dispensation, Rebecca’s visit had spoiled the mood, leaving Jimmy sour and uncommunicative for the rest of the night.
So when he’d kissed her, she kissed him back gamely, figuring she could spare him the - what, ten, fifteen minutes? - it would take him to come, then get a night’s sleep in her own bed. Hell, maybe she’d even enjoy it once he got going, despite the fact that she could barely lift her arms when he started to take her shirt off. And then she’d started to drift to the rhythm of his breathing, and she must have just fallen asleep on him.
“Nah, it’s fine,” he said. “Kind of cute, y’know, reverse Sleeping Beauty thing.”
“What does that make you, Prince Charming?
“I dunno,” Jimmy said, settling onto his side. “I was always a little more partial to the witches than the princess.”
“What, like, Maleficent? You have a thing for green skin?”
“No way, more like the wicked queen in Snow White, y’know? I mean, pre-hagification, she was a MILF. No - wait, she was the step-mom, right? That would make her a SMILF.”
“SMILF, got it,” Kim said, reaching out to brush Jimmy’s hair back from where it’d flopped over one eye.
“I didn’t want to wake you up, but I figured you’d probably want to set your alarm.”
“Thanks. What about you, when’re you up?”
“Five’ll do it,” he said. “First day of community service. They start early; the van waits for no man.”
“Mm,” Kim said. “Y’know, I moved out of Nebraska so I wouldn’t have a boyfriend doing state-mandated community service, right?”
For a second she worried he’d be upset, but he just smirked. “You know what they say, you can take the girl out of the cornhusker-”
“Pfft,” Kim said, and smacked him with a limp hand. “It just seems a little like overkill, you’re already suspended for twelve months, why add insult to injury?”
“I’m just happy for this opportunity to give back to the community, your honor,” Jimmy said. “So, uh. I’ll see you after, yeah? I mean, once the shoot wraps. Maybe you could come home a little early, I’ll cook you dinner?”
Kim sighed and looked away, toward the glow of the alarm.
“Hey, I just figured, the hearing’s over with, and you got your approval from the Commission on Mesa Verde, maybe things’ll slow down for you a little, huh?”
“Not really, Jimmy. Kevin’s hammering on this expansion - I’ve got meetings all afternoon about Colorado, and I have to be up on the Utah regs by the day after next.”
“Sounds like another all nighter,” said Jimmy, and his voice was edging into sour.
Kim decided not to answer; she rolled onto her side away from Jimmy and closed her eyes.
“Hey, I didn’t mean it like that,” Jimmy said, putting a conciliatory arm around her and pulling himself close. “Maybe you could tell them to put the breaks on a little, give you a rest?”
“Come on,” Kim said, “I’m the one who told them I could handle everything they threw at me.”
“Well that’s not a license to serve up five rising fastballs at once,” Jimmy retorted, lifting himself on his elbow to look down at her. “How much longer are you going to keep up this pace, Kim?”
Kim didn’t turn. “As long as it takes,” she said, and closed her eyes.
“That’s not - you have to take a break sometime,” he insisted.
“I’m trying to get some sleep.”
“That’s not what I mean. A few hours of sleep, it’s not - I just don’t want you to wind up like-”
He stopped, and Kim felt him shift to lie back down, away from her. She sat up.
“Like what?” she asked, her voice flat. She could see Jimmy’s mouth turn down in the wedge of lamplight coming through her window.
“Never mind,” he said. “I didn’t mean it.”
“Like Chuck?” she asked. “Is that what you think happened to him?”
Jimmy sighed and threw one arm over his eyes. “I don’t know,” he said. “I’m just worried about you.”
“Jesus - Jimmy,” Kim said, exasperated. “I’m not going to end up like Chuck. Yeah I’m stressed, and yeah, I’m tired, but it’s not forever. Just til we get on our feet.”
She hated lying to him, but she hated more the turn of his mouth when he thought of his brother. He really is worried , she thought, Jesus.
So instead of justifying herself, or arguing, or digging in, she settled down, lying on her stomach, and poked at Jimmy’s arm.
“Hey,” she said.
Jimmy lifted his arm. “Hey.”
“Thanks for worrying. But it’s okay.”
“I’m gonna hold up my end,” Jimmy said. “Hand to God. And when we’re on our feet? Take you on a vacation somewhere, huh?”
“Oh yeah?” Kim said, putting her hands on his chest and resting her chin on them. “Where?”
“Mm. Thinking the opposite of here. Sun and sand?”
“Nope,” Kim said. “Had my fill.”
“Okay, what do you think of… Irkutsk?”
“Kind of close to Mongolia if we want to get away from sand, you think?”
“Is it?” Jimmy said. “I thought it was, like a region, like on Risk?”
“Hmm-mm,” Kim said. “Try again, counselor.”
“Huh,” Jimmy said, then his face lifted. “I know exactly where you wanna go.”
“Oh? Try me.”
“South pole! I mean obviously, your obsession with the Antarctic, you gotta want to see it sometime, right?”
“Guided tour of Mount Erebus and Mount Terror?” Kim said. “Sounds perfect.”
“Yeah, well. Never say I don’t treat you right.” He tucked a strand of hair behind Kim’s ear. “I mean it by the way, about dinner. If you can get away. If not, rain check. Okay?”
“Yeah,” Kim said, “okay.” It wasn’t going to happen, and she knew it wasn’t, but it wouldn’t do any harm to let him be optimistic for a little while. So she settled her head onto his shoulder and closed her eyes.
A warm pressure as Jimmy kissed her forehead. “Get some sleep,” Kim,” he said.
She did, but as usual, it wasn't enough.