Scarlett Scars (Stray Kids FF)

Chapter 27

Pov: Bang Chan

She felt her bed dip down and hid her face further into the pillows, trying to wipe her wet cheeks in the process. The ideas in my head of what I should have done clashed, so I ended up staying there, watching her shoulders tremble as she sobbed quietly.

"Scar.. Why are you crying?" I finally mustered up the courage to whisper.

No answer.

She retrieved her sheets and covered her legs, never once showing me her face. "Why.. are you still awake? Go to sleep, you.. you have a tight schedule tomorrow," her unstable murmurs found their way into my ears, making me wonder if they were really hers.

"I've slept more than enough today, but why are you still awake?" I asked her softly, feeling as if raising my voice a tiny bit more could scare her away.

"It's-"her voice cracked- "nothing. It's nothing. Just a fever.. I can't sleep when it's so hot around me."

No, Scar. You're hot. Everything else is pretty cold in winter.

I hummed in response, slowly sliding closer to her and playing with her dark hair.

Her hair is wet. Her whole body's wet. Where's the towel?

"Do you have insomnia?" she unexpectedly asked.

".. Yes. Do you?"

"No.. No, I wouldn't call it that." She sat up, trying to find the cup of water next to her bed, but failing to do so without looking my way.

"Do you want me to give it to you?" I asked and she bobbed her head. I took the cup and passed it, using it as an excuse to narrow down the distance between us.

She slowly drank the cold liquid with audible gulps, handing the cup back to me without turning around. "Why are you crying?" I repeated.

"I'm not."

"Why were you crying, then?" I corrected.

Her shoulders slouched, causing some of her hair to slide off her back and fall to the other side of her shoulders. "I just.. I just saw a nightmare, okay? I'm fine.. It's not like it's real."

But you're squeezing the life out of your pillow..

"Chan.. Just leave." Her body quivered, making me wonder if she'd started crying again. Her voice was so quiet, I could barely hear a word, "Worry about yourself.. You have enough people to take care o-."

You expect me to just go? And leave you here crying all alone for God knows how long?

I finally gave my itching hand permission to secure her waist, pulling her into my chest, stopping the nonsense coming out her lips. My other hand tugged on her sheets and used them to cover her legs, trying to make her more comfortable in my presence.

My shoulders are so broad compared to hers.

"You-" she started, but I cut her off.

"You need this. Hugs make everything better," I whispered as I rested my forehead on her bare back, my hand carelessly patting her hard stomach. "What was your nightmare about? Talk to me. We have all night."

She must have started thinking about it again, since her body was shaking in my hold, hands going up to her face, probably wiping her tears away. This was about the time I realized how tiny she was. Although she was just a few centimeters shorter than me, her build was entirely different. I could tell from the feel of her abs that she was highly trained, but she felt extremely fragile at the same time. The contradiction was messing with my head.