"It's time to get up, you two," Mom said, startling me when the words 'you two' came from her mouth.

Instantly looking next to me, I saw Beth still sound asleep. Relief followed shortly after, realizing she had stuffed two pillows between us to keep us from spooning in the middle of the night. Her hair was braided into a ponytail, with only a few strands of hair on her cheek. 'Man, I love her,' I thought, sitting up and pushing her hard to wake up. A little harder, and I would've pushed her entirely out of bed before she caught herself.

"Hey, brat, what are you doing in my...