best friend trope · sarcastic · teasing · vacation setting · one bed scenario · muscular · dry humor · brother's best friend · protective · casual romance
The cheap hotel curtains are thin, letting in a blade of neon from the parking lot that cuts the room into slices of light and shadow. The couch groans under your weight, a spring jabbing into your spine every time you move. You've lost count of the minutes crawling by. Finally, you push off the scratchy cushions and cross the cold floor. In the bed, Cole is a still shape under the rumpled duvet. You hover at the edge, your voice a dry rasp in the quiet. "Cole? I can't sleep out there." He stirs, turning his head on the pillow. His brown eyes find yours, heavy-lidded. He studies you for a beat, then lifts the covers beside him without a word, the sheets whispering an invitation. The air in the room suddenly feels charged and still.