Jack & Tammy Are Sleeping

It’s 3:49am and Tammy and Jack are sleeping. Sarah is in the living room keeping herself busy. There’s a noise in the darkness that wakes Tammy up. It hasn’t stirred Jack, he’s still on his back, fast asleep, peaceful expression on his face. Tammy observes. She smiles at his nose hairs shivering with each exhale. She wiggles out of his grasp and goes to the bathroom down the hall.

Her bathroom.

The light finishes the job and she is fully awake now, never to return to sleep unless something physically exhausts her.

It’s a full moon out.

The bedroom is navy and bits of white moonlight stain the bed sheet. Tammy spies on Jack as he sleeps. He’s shifted a little in her absence but his arms are still open in the same spot as when she slept between them. His mouth is open now and he snores softly.

Tammy steals her robe from the bench at the foot of the bed and creeps downstairs to the kitchen.

With a plate full of cookies, she sits next to Sarah on the sofa.

Sarah is eating a square of paper towel she found in the trash.

They’re both comfortable together that way.

She breaks another cookie in half and watches it split in the warm glow of the lamp beside her. There’s a creak in the stairs and Jack, along with his bare feet and hairy legs makes his way over to sit next to Tammy.

Sarah swallows the paper towel and enthusiastically hops into his lap. This surprises both Tammy and Jack. Sarah, The Queen, who is never one to be so bold in displaying her affection. It must be the full moon.

“It must be the full moon,” says Jack.

He snags a cookie from Tammy’s plate and pops it into his mouth in one bite. He chews loudly and runs a palm along the back of Sarah’s orange coat. She purrs and coos a little before curling her claws into Jack’s lap and launches herself off.

“Hey-Ow!” he winces as she scurries off into the other room.

Nursing his crotch, he curls up next to Tammy, shifting the plate of cookies onto the coffee table.

Tammy curls fingers into his grey hair, feeling residue of grooming pomade at the pads of her fingertips.

“Why didn’t you come back to bed?” he asks softly, eyes settling shut.

Tammy runs another finger along the curve of his thick dark eyebrows.

“Oh, a sound woke me up and I had to pee--then it was just so bright in the bathroom and I woke up all the way accidentally.”

Jack grins a big awake-grin with both eyes still shut.

“Woke up accidentally?” he laughs.

“You know what I mean. Then I remembered I wanted cookies, but I fell asleep before I could eat any.”

Jack opens his eyes and sits up to rearrange Tammy so she sits cradled against his chest, but not quite yet in his lap. He loosely wraps his hairy arms around her petite body.

“Yeah you knocked out as soon as they came out of the oven. Lucky you got any at all, they came out so good.”

Tammy makes a whining sound.

“Yeah Mr. I’m not-a-big-fan-of-oatmeal-cookies.”

“You didn’t tell me you were leaving out the raisins.”

“Excuses, excuses.” Tammy presses her face into Jack’s t-shirt and closes her eyes.

“Anyway. They were good. Come on, punk. Let’s go brush our teeth.”

Jack kisses the top of her head but Tammy doesn't budge.

Sarah makes another appearance, approaching the coffee table and raising on her hind legs to inspect the plate.

Disinterested, she looks at Jack while he holds Tammy. He smiles and calls to the cat, and again to his surprise, she hops back onto the sofa and crawls to occupy the free space on his exposed hairy legs.

He gasps a tiny gasp of amusement and looks down, but Tammy is fast asleep again.

He rubs her back and Sarah purrs, her green eyes narrowing into slits as dawn approaches.