Their smile was 6:03 am.

Jarring, mostly, like an alarm set at the wrong time. But comforting when you’re looking for it, when it’s the one thing you need to bring yourself back.

You never know when you’ll wake up with her hair just brushing against your fingers,
the steady rise and fall of her chest accompanied by the light from a laptop playing a movie you know word for word.

Their smile will be the last thing your bleary eyes focus on after a night of subsisting on energy drinks and the thrill of the essay you submitted 30 seconds before the deadline.

You wonder where you are in his arms, if you’re only second place in her heart. Your gaze shifts between him smiling down at you and the neon green alarm clock on your bedside table.

It’s 6:04 am. The sun winks through the blinds. You roll out of bed like clockwork. They grasp your hand before you could get away, kiss your wrist the way they do every Thursday morning, and offer to cook you breakfast.