I woke up to warm skin pressed against my chest and scarlet hair tickling my nose.
Right.
Professor Reeves.
The laboratory.
The examination table.
The... everything else that happened after the examination table.
Morning light filtered through the massive windows, painting the bedroom in shades of gold and grey. The city hummed forty stories below, already alive and moving while I lay tangled up with a woman who could probably vaporize a city block if she got bored enough.
My phone buzzed somewhere on the nightstand.
I reached for it carefully, trying not to wake Laurana. She made a small sound of protest, her body shifting closer like she was chasing heat even in sleep. Made sense. She'd spent half the night showing me what her thermal manipulation could do in creative contexts.
The screen lit up my face.
Mera: did u survive
Mera: panda wants 2 know if ur dead
Mera: also ur lab professor gives 2 much homework so make sure she cant walk tm
Mera: thats an order btw
