The next morning was brutal.

The sun was too bright. The air was too loud. And everyone was too hungover.

Skye woke up with a pounding headache, her face smushed against a pillow, an arm draped over her waist.

Wait.

An arm?

She blinked. Turned her head very slowly.

And came face-to-face with Nika.

Oh. Shit.

Her heart stopped.

Not because anything had happened—at least she didn't think so. But because the way Nika was sleeping, all peaceful and soft, looked too good.

Skye swallowed hard.

This wasn't normal.

At least, it shouldn't feel this normal.

Then, Nika stirred, stretching slightly before cracking one eye open. A slow, lazy smirk spread across her lips.

"Morning, trouble."

Skye was so fucked.

"Uhh..." Her brain refused to work. "Morning?"

Nika chuckled. "You good?"

No. Absolutely not.

Because suddenly, every stupid little moment flashed in her head.

Every late-night text. Every stupid joke. Every small touch that lasted a little too long.

And last night? The way she clung to Nika?

No wonder Paige and Trinity kept looking at her funny.

Because shit, she had it bad.

And now, Nika was right here, looking all soft and sleepy and undeniably attractive, and Skye hated how badly she wanted to just—

No. Nope. Not going there.

She sat up way too fast, immediately regretting it when her head pounded.

"Ugh. Fuck. I need water."

Nika laughed. "Yeah, no shit. You were a mess last night."

Skye groaned. "Please don't remind me."

"I mean," Nika smirked. "You did say something interesting."

Skye froze.

Her stomach dropped.

"What... what do you mean?"

Nika sat up, stretching. "Oh, just that you love me or whatever."

Skye choked. "I—WHAT?!"

Nika grinned. "Relax. Katie was the one who said it. You just giggled and didn't deny it."

Oh. My. God.

Skye wanted to die.

She immediately grabbed a pillow and smacked Nika with it. "WHY DIDN'T YOU STOP ME?!"

Nika just laughed. "You were too cute. I couldn't ruin the moment."

"YOU'RE THE WORST."

But Nika just gave her that stupidly attractive smirk, and Skye felt her heart betray her again.

She needed to get out of here before she did something dumb.

"Okay, nope. I'm leaving," Skye announced, dramatically rolling off the bed.

But the moment she stood up—

Regret. Immediate regret.

Her legs were shaky, her head pounded, and she felt like she'd just been hit by a truck.

Nika, of course, was perfectly fine.

She stood up and stretched, way too attractive for Skye's current mental state.

"Come on, let's go see how bad the damage is downstairs."

Skye sighed. "It's going to be so bad."

And it was.

⸻

Absolute Disaster in the Living Room

The living room looked like a war zone.

Katie was sprawled across the couch, sunglasses on, a blanket pulled over her head. Leah was slumped in a chair, looking half dead. Alessia was still fully passed out on the floor, and Trinity?

Trinity was cheerfully making breakfast.

Skye narrowed her eyes. "How the fuck are you functioning?"

Trinity turned, grinning. "Because I am built different."

Paige, sitting at the kitchen island with two Advil in hand, muttered, "No, you're just an idiot who never stops drinking."

Trinity shrugged. "Same thing."

Nika grabbed a bottle of water and tossed one to Skye. "Drink. You need it."

Skye caught it with zero coordination, nearly dropping it.

Katie groaned from the couch. "Why are you two being weird?"

Skye froze. "What?"

Katie slowly peeked out from under her blanket, squinting at them. "You and Nika. You're being weird."

Nika stayed perfectly calm. "We're always weird."

Paige sipped her coffee, raising an eyebrow. "Yeah, but now it's, like, extra weird."

Trinity smirked but said nothing.

Because she knew.

She knew everything.

And Skye hated that she had that power.

But before anyone could say more, Alessia groaned from the floor.

"Why am I on the ground?"

Paige sighed. "Because you tried to have a deep conversation with a lamp."

Alessia sat up slowly. "I stand by whatever I said."

Skye snorted. "You told it you were proud of how far it had come."

Alessia nodded. "I mean, look at it. So sturdy. So reliable."

Nika shook her head. "I cannot believe you people are professional athletes."

Paige sighed deeply. "Neither can I."

Trinity flipped a pancake dramatically. "I don't know about you guys, but I think last night was a success."

Katie groaned. "You would."

Skye ignored them, sneaking a glance at Nika.

Because the truth was—

She had it bad.

And now, she wasn't sure she could hide it anymore.