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"Rumpled Linen" (1/1) FICLET
by Marie-Claude Danis

EMAIL: mc@verticalcrawl.com
SITE: http://verticalcrawl.com/westwing
FEEDBACK: Would be delightful.
ARCHIVE: Sure, just ask.
RATING: PG
PAIRING: CJ/Josh, in spite of themselves.
NOTE: Just a silly little thing...

* * *



CJ woke up with the kind of stiffness you only ever get from
sleeping on someone else's mattress. Groggily she extracted her
face from the head-shaped dent of the pillow, and rested her
cheek on the moist spot where her mouth had been. She sniffled
lightly at morning allergies and opened her eyes, blinking
painfully at the greyish light reflecting off the white walls.
She shifted slightly and stretched her legs under the tangled
sheet, wondering when was the last time she had slept only in her
panties. She never slept only in her panties. 

She propped herself up on her elbow and let her eyes roam slowly
around the familiar room, taking a few deliberate moments before
identifying it. She smacked her lips together and tasted... guy.
Some guy. She knew exactly which guy. 

She wiped her mouth with the back of her hand and looked over her
shoulder at Josh. He was just sitting there, legs stretched out
before him, slouched, the sheet pooling at his waist. He looked
back at her with tired eyes and an expression that tried to
convey something between utter exhaustion and mild surprise.

They stared at each other for a moment, wordlessly. CJ considered
his stubble, pillow hair, the slightly cross-eyed look of tired
confusion... 

"Boy, was this a bad idea."

"I'll say."

CJ nodded knowingly and dropped onto her back, pulling the sheet
over her chest and throwing an arm over her head. She closed her
eyes, yawning. The mattress sunk under the weight of Josh's body
lying back down next to her. 

She sighed. "It's Saturday, isn't it."

"Yup."

"And if I were to leave here and go to the office to avoid
whatever we'll be doing next, I'd be sitting there twirling my
thumbs, right?"

"Uh huh."

"Figures."

He yawned. "Yah."

They stayed silent for another moment. CJ scratched her throat
and opened her eyes again to stare at the bright ceiling above,
biting the inside of her lip thoughtfully. She heard Josh getting
comfortable again next to her, and kicked him under the sheets.

"Ow."

"Don't go back to sleep."

"But it's *my* bed," he whined, and his voice was a little
muffled by his pillow.

"I'm in it."

"I'm tired."

"Yeah, thanks to who."

CJ couldn't help the smirk that tugged at the corner of her
mouth, and Josh smiled into his pillow. He reached out blindly
and nudged her hip. "C'mon, Claudia Jean. Nap with me."

"Nap, huh? I can nap."

"I won't tell anyone if you do."

She stifled a yawn and a smug grin, settling back in the warm
linen. "And when we get up, I'll tell you about the guy I ended
up sleeping with last night."

"I'm sure he's terrific."

"He has his moments."