So wake up your sleeping heart

 "I don't know, I probably said all the wrong things," Izzy told Harley over the phone about her time with Lily.

Lately, Harley had kept to texting. Really, she didn't want to have to face a voice on the phone, but now it felt comforting. Especially, when her friend who was only an hour way called. They caught up on Halloween. Harley knew it was all so mundane. After all, they'd had only thirteen trick-or-treaters that night and she and Rain dressed up like pirates to hand out candy.

"You call him Rain now?" Izzy made it sound so alarming like it might be a sign of what to come.

"Well, he is a grownup," Harley thought they were talking about Lily and her Halloween shenanigans instead of her roommate. "He's working the desk at Harmony Ridge now." It was an assisted living place, and the hours were nice. He could still study online and his Fridays and Saturdays were free. Honestly, she envied him a little. After all, she was tangled up with little feet that kicked when they got annoyed. It was a battlefield at school, but she didn't feel the need to explain this to her college friend. Honestly, she was dragging all the time. But it could be the emotional battle she was facing with Brick, too.

"Brick told me you guys are taking a break? What does that mean?" Finally, Izzy got to the point of the phone call, and Harley looked to the mess in the kitchen. She hadn't gotten to the dishes like she meant to. She wanted to say she had to go. She wasn't sure which mess she wanted to tackle. After all, she'd let the one with Brick go.

"Oh, it's fine," Harley said as one arm hugged herself and the other kept the phone to her ear while she leaned against the kitchen counter, putting her back to the pile of dishes. "He needs to worry about his education and you know, basketball."

"You know, he..he just pulled Lily off Merce-"

"How is Merce doing?" Harley's eyes lit with a certain sadness. She didn't want to hear Cade and Mercer was over, but she knew Izzy didn't like the thought that she and Brick were over too.

She melted into tears after she got over the phone. Why did some relationships have such expiration dates while others lasted a lifetime? She knew she might never figure it out. She was too tired. 

Finally, she sat down to take a load off. Her bones felt weary. She'd be achey if she stayed in bed too long. It was best to keep moving.

Rain showed up and got the dishes in the dishwasher. He never asked anything of her. He was apologetic saying he should have done it earlier.

"I can do it," she muttered. 

"I know, but I should have," he put on the kettle and brought her a cup of hot herbal tea. He grabbed a Zero Sugar yogurt from the fridge. "Eat something."

He asked her if her shoulders hurt.

"A little, just the left." She nodded.

He kneaded the left shoulder and then the right. She thought she might be slumbering.

"You should really get it checked out," Rain told her as he scurried to get back to the dishes. 

She thought she nodded, but she kept her eyes closed.

"Eat something," he shook her awake. Harley winced. He pricked her finger and did a stick test. She looked at him then as if she knew what he might say. 

"It's down to 75, you need to eat something." His intense dark eyes looked at her as if she couldn't let herself get this way.

She nodded. He opened the foiled cup and handed her the spoon.