Train Wreck

seventeen

Alice POV

A loud growl woke me from the warmth and coziness of a cat nap.  I yawned and stretched, not quite sure where I was or how I fell asleep. Disoriented and bleary eyed as my contacts shifted, I heard laughter while stifling a yawn. My eyes slowly pried open and I took a minute to get my bearings.

"Hmmm... wha-What?" my mouth was dry so I smacked my lips and felt around for the bottle of water I thought was nearby.

More giggling, but this time I could tell it was both Benji and Daisy. I turned to see them at the kitchen table where they were sorting through boxes of video games. My arms stretched before I realized I was tangled in a throw blanket and cuddled with Remington who was still passed out. I bumped into him and was surprised, but turned and grinned when I saw him sprawled on his back with his mouth open and tongue hanging out. He was snoring lightly, with the most peaceful expression I could ever imagine on his face.

Be careful, Liss... guard your heart...

"Get a good nap?" Benji startled me when he walked closer, causing me to jump and smack him in the arm. He and Daisy cackled at my reflexes while I just laughed sheepishly.

"Great. Thanks. Pain meds knocked both of us out, I guess. What time is it?" I stood and stretched while reaching for my phone.

Benji's stomach growled as I saw it was past noon and I grinned, "Lunch time?"

He nodded sheepishly, "I was hoping you'd wake up soon but otherwise we planned to just make us grilled cheese or something."

Daisy cooed, "Aww, you weren't gonna tell me to go make you a sandwich?"

"Nah, you already did!" He replied. "And it was really good even though it gave me the shits."

I burst out laughing at Benji's candid confession about the ice cream sandwiches while his hand immediately flew to his mouth. Daisy cackled as well, blush creeping on her cheeks. "Lactose intolerance an issue for you, Benj?" Her question was with an awkward laugh but I could tell they had a great rapport and would navigate this without any issue.

He laughed nervously, "I mean, sometimes, I guess?" Benji looked at me for help but I shook my head, a silent indication that he was on his own this time.  I trusted Daisy would handle this without making him feel bad and knew he felt safe, so there was no risk.

You've got this, Beep... more than you know...

Daisy hummed and dug into her bag a moment before handing him a Lactaid bottle. "Try this, then let's make that grilled cheese. I know Liss got canned soup, too, so we can warm that up also. By the time everything is done this will have kicked in and you can see if it makes a difference."

He gave her a curious look but smiled and gave a quiet thanks.

I grinned, "Thanks, Dais. I never considered grabbing Lactaid or anything. It usually isn't a big issue when we are careful about portions..." I gave my brother a pointed look and he shrugged while swallowing a Lactaid pill with some water.

"Okay." I stood up, grabbing my phone again and moving into the kitchen. "Let's get this going."

Within a few minutes we had sandwiches toasting and soup warming on the stove top. We stuck with classic tomato soup plus grilled cheese using sourdough and sharp cheddar with gruyere. Daisy was adamant about using mayonnaise, not butter, for grilling and we decided to try the sandwiches both ways so we could determine which we liked best. Lunch now became a science experiment where plates were labeled with post it notes and ideas like adding thin slices of honeycrisp apple or a smear of cream cheese also started coming to mind.