Joel comes home late one night. He’d been pushing his luck with the hours he stayed out working. It seemed every night this week was another hour added.

You are half-asleep on the couch when he walks into the living room. He is as quiet as he can be, moving to take off his work boots and his heavy Carhartt jacket. He rummages around in the kitchen like a mouse in search of something light to eat. He snags a bottle of beer from the fridge while he’s at it, and swears under his breath when the cap pops off loudly. His eyes dart into the living room to make sure he didn’t wake you up. But to his slight startlement, you are already sitting up on the couch and rubbing your eyes. He smiles slightly to himself as he realizes you weren’t asleep to begin with.

“What happened to you not waiting up for me?” Joel asks you, referring to a phone call you had shared earlier, wherein Joel told you not to wait up for him because he would be home late. Joel enters the living room and sits down next to you on the couch.