"Cuddle with me tonight."

Laura blinked at him and pursed her lips for just a moment. "I... would love that," she said with a small smile. "Let me get ready for bed. I got the sheets changed so they're clean and smell fresh."

Dan got ready for bed and laid out what he was going to wear the next day. After that, he plugged up his phone and crawled onto the air mattress, careful to not damage their fragile bed. He thought he could see what his mother meant by the way he sagged down a little farther into the mattress.

"Scooch over, you're getting the wall tonight," Laura called as she came out of the bathroom, wearing two shirts.

"Okay," Dan laughed. "I offered the first night."

"Hush," Laura smiled as she gently got onto the bed. The added weight of the second person on the air mattress sagged everything toward the center.

"You okay?" Dan asked when he realized his mother wasn't moving.

"Uh... yeah," Laura muttered. "I forgot to get the light," she sheepishly answered.

"I'll get it, just get comfortable."

Dan made his way back in near darkness to the mattress and slipped in beside his mother. She sighed a little when he scooted in, being the big spoon to her little spoon.

"That feels nice," Laura muttered with a small sigh. "Here, put your arm around my stomach."

Dan felt her reaching for his hand so he allowed her to position him however she wished. Once settled, he put his head against her back and closed his eyes. It was a nice feeling, having a warm body to cuddle up with. He remembered having a body pillow as a child. This was much better than a squishy pillow.

"Does that work for you?" Laura asked, her tone hesitant.

"Yeah, why? I was just thinking of the body pillow you got me as a kid. This is so much better."

Laura laughed. He could hear the smile in her voice. "I'd imagine it is," she said. "Just keep your hands and other things where they should be," she warned.

Dan debated what to say. "I... will try," he hedged.

Laura gave him an unladylike snort, but didn't comment. He took that to mean she knew he wouldn't intentionally do anything to her while they cuddled.

"Dan?" Laura asked a while later.

Opening his eyes, Dan realized he'd started to doze off from the sounds of his mother's warmth and easy breathing. "Mhm?" he mumbled.

"I... I need to get this shirt off. It's... well, it's getting a little hot," she hesitantly said.

"Oh, okay."

"Uh, close your eyes," Laura whispered. "I... well..."

"No problem."