Not Sneaky
Leslie shifted in her sleep in Ben's bed, but felt a shooting pain in her lower stomach. She jolted awake, and scooted over to notice a red stain on his sheet. She slowly pulled Ben's arm away from her hip, and nervously stood up to analyze the situation.
This happened before with an old boyfriend, and he wasn't very understanding. In fact, he seemed a bit annoyed, but Leslie was in pain and cranky and sad, so she felt more like crying than fighting with him about it. Now she just avoids the subject entirely when she can, which isn't always easy.
She's not ashamed of it, she's just too exhausted when it happens to deal with people getting annoyed about it.
Leslie paced the room before she remembered that she should probably go to the bathroom. She reached for her purse, and breathed a sigh of relief when she found one tampon in it.
In the bathroom she realized she had bled on her pants, but it was fine. She just needs to find some kind of stain cleaner for the bed.
//
She should have known April and Andy don't have anything as responsible as a stain remover.
Ok, this isn't a big deal. Is there bleach somewhere?
Maybe she could get the sheet off the bed and into the wash. Wait, Ben is in the bed. How would that work?
This would be so much easier if they were at her house. Even though she has too much stuff, at least she doesn't have too little of anything and she isn't missing any important items.
Ben wakes up somewhere during her endless mental tirade. "Leslie?" He says groggily.
She immediately jumps back onto the bed to cover up the stain. "Hmm?"
He frowns at the leap she made to the bed. "Mind explaining why you just did that?"
"Ummm... I..." This isn't convincing or helpful. "... do mind actually."
"Leslieeeeeee." He whines.
"Beeeeeeeeen."
"Okay, well, do you want breakfast?" He stands up and reaches for her hand. Leslie hesitates.
"Leslie, you are not good at being sneaky. What's going on?"
"Nothing! What makes you think something is going on?" And why is her voice getting so loud, for that matter? "And I am excellent at being sneaky."
"No you're not. More importantly, you not jumping up in excitement at the mention of breakfast is a big one." He slowly comes to realize she has been frozen in place for a while. Ben attempts to gently pull her off the bed and she freezes again, a pained look on her face.
"Leslie, what did you-" He finally manages to move her a couple inches and pauses. "Oh."
"I'm sorry!" She exclaims, loudly.
April knocks on the wall they share. "You two shut up!" Damn, she's grouchy. Must not be a morning person, though it's not all that surprising.
"Leslie, it's not a big deal." Ben says after he stops staring at the wall in horror of other things they possibly heard.
"It isn't?"
"Of course not." He says, bewildered.
"Are you sure?"
"Yeah... Leslie, what's going on?" Ben feels like a broken record asking that question, but he needs to know she's okay. He wants to protect her and always make her feel happy, but she shouldn't be so hesitant to tell him stuff. That seems out of character for her, she's usually pretty open.
"I was with some people who weren't very... tolerant of the whole thing." She feels another cramp, and clutches her stomach, and Ben's heart breaks at the sight of her in pain.
"What 'whole thing?'" He says, reaching for her hand again, Leslie finally taking his.
She gives him a pointed look.
"No, I mean, why is it a 'whole thing?' It's not your fault." He steps closer to her and kisses her gently on the forehead.
"Do you really mean that?"
"Of course. Back to my question. Do you want breakfast?"
She finally jumps up in excitement, and he drops his forehead to hers.
"Thank you, Ben."
"Anytime. When are you going to learn you're not sneaky?"
"Never!"
He fake gasps. "So you admit it?"
"NEVER!" She leans into him as he opens the bedroom door for her.
Before Ben can reply, a loud and painful-sounding groan comes from April and Andy's bedroom.