Helena snorted and said, "Trust me, she won’t be up for a few hours, at least."

Dana slipped out of the bed, pulling the covers back over Alice gently.

Helena watched from the doorway, a pleasant smile on her face.
——————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————–

Dana walked into the kitchen area, somewhat surprised to see it relatively full. Helena was digging into a Danish with a decidedly vicious tear of her teeth. Beside her, a lovely blonde that Dana recognized from the bar was dainitily chewing on a kruller. One of Alice’s bandmates was rifling through a white bag, looking for something. Eventually, he settled on a cinnamon roll and sat down beside Helena.

"Was wondering what happened to you, Miss Dana."

Dana turned to find Shane standing by the stove, pouring a cup of coffee.

"Hey Shane, did you stay here last night?"

Shane pointed to the couch and said gruffly, "I see you found more comfortable accommodations."

Dana was unable to hide her blush and though she knew she ought to be defending herself, she couldn’t bring herself to say anything.

Shane grinned and said, "C’mon Dane, come have some breakfast."

Dana took the glass of orange juice Helena offered her and smiled as she saw Shane bite into a donut.

——-
When she’d finished breakfast, Shane said to Dana, "Hey, Dane? I’ve got to drive Layla home, think you’ll be okay here for a while? Maybe you and Helena can play some Nintendo or something."

Dana’s mouth fell open. There was something so shocking about hearing Helena’s name in the same sentence as Nintendo.

Shane saw Dana’s look and said truthfully, "No, she kicks ass, dude. She’s undefeated at Street Fighter."

Helena nodded guiltily and said quietly, "It’s an addiction. I’ve tried seeking help."

Dana really didn’t want to leave without at least getting to say goodbye to Alice. Turning to Helena, she asked quietly, "It’s okay with you if I stay around a while?"

Helena dropped her dishes into the dishwasher and said, "Of course, stay as long as you like. I do have to run to campus though. I’ve got rehearsals."

Dana looked around, suddenly less sure of herself. Helena said companionably, "Truly, Dana, our home is your home, all right?"

__________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________-

Dana slipped back into Alice’s room quietly, unwilling to wake her. Though it was already mid-morning, relatively late for Dana, it was clear that Alice might be that rare phenomenon; the late sleeper.