unclasp　her　bra；　which　she　let　fall　to　the　ground　casually。　？Nate；　can　I　sleep　in　your　shirt？？　she

asked　shyly。

？Course。？　Nate　nodded　eagerly；　trying　to　look　away。　He　pulled　his　cotton　tee　off　and　tossed　it　to

her。

She　pulled　it　over　her　head；　pausing　inside　the　darkness　of　it　to　breathe　in　his　overwhelming

scent：　his　armpits　and　his　laundry　detergent；　a　hint　of　pot　smoke　and　toothpaste。

Good　enough　to　eat。

By　the　time　she　popped　her　head　through　the　head　hole　in　the　still…warm　T…shirt；　Nate　had　kicked

off　his　khakis　and　crashed　out　on　the　bed　next　to　Serena　in　a　pair　of　funny　palm…tree…printed　boxer

shorts　that　Blair　was　pretty　sure　had　been　a　present　from　her。

She　switched　off　the　bedroom？s　overhead　light。　The　morning　summer　sun　was　pouring　through

the　bedroom　window；　illuminating　the　bodies　of　her　friends。　She　walked　over　to　the　foot　of　the

bed；　then　carefully　wedged　herself　between　Serena；　who　was　already　sleeping；　her　breaths　long

and　muted；　like　a　baby？s；　and　an　almost…naked　Nate。

？？Night；？　Nate　whispered。

？？Night；？　she　quietly　repeated。　Her　heart　pounding　in　her　ears；　Blair　suddenly　felt　wide　awake。

She　studied　the　delicately　molded　and　crenellated　panels　of　Serena？s　ceiling　as　she　listened　to　the

light　snore　of　her　best　friend　and　tried　to　ignore　the　soft　skin　of　her　other　best　friend？the　only　guy

she　had　ever　really　loved？whose　arm　was　grazing　hers　ever　so　slightly。　How　was　sheever　going　to

fall　asleep？

Then　she　felt　fingers　trailing　down　her　arm；　so　delicately　it　tickled。　Nate？s　hand　slid　down　over

her　wrist；　then　slipped　into　her　palm；　giving　it　a　gentle　squeeze。

Letting　out　a　sigh；　it　felt　like　she　was