"Theo. ...Theo."
She opened her eyes slowly. The room was dark, but her mom's tired eyes were looking at her with a loving expression. Theo vaguely remembered waiting for her parents in the living room, but the pain in her neck and the drool on her cheek told her she'd lost the fight against sleep, and dozed off right there in the chair; her sketch was smudged. She wiped the drool off with her pajama sleeve, embarrassed.
"You should go to bed, baby," Ann chuckled softly. "Don't fall asleep here. Come on."
Theora nodded, and let herself slip into her mom's arms. She was almost too heavy for Ann to carry, but her mom still managed to get her up the stairs while Theora's drowsy head hung on her shoulder. They reached the bed, and Ann gently laid her daughter down with a groan of relief, si
