petal [book 1] ❊ l.s.

seven - nightmares

Harry woke himself up screaming.

He fell silent as soon as he came to his senses, scrambling to sit up in bed and gathering the thick comforter around his shaking body. The ear-splitting sound of his own scream still rang on a constant loop in his ears, like a screeching telephone that no one wanted to answer.

He could only pray that he hadn't woken Louis up -- he was positive that the older boy would kick him out. They had only just met and made a tiny bit of progress in their relationship, and Harry was already ruining everything.

Stupid fucking voices. Stupid fucking cemetery.

The darkness in the bedroom was suffocating, even with thin traces of moonlight creeping across the floor. Harry buried himself in the messy tangle of sheets and blankets, huddling even further back against the wall. The huge window across the room taunted him, a shadowy reminder of the cemetery just a few stories down -- a far drop from the top floor, but not nearly far enough.

Much to Harry's surprise, Louis appeared in the doorway just a few moments later, his blue eyes shining with concern. He gripped the door handle tightly as he surveyed the room, making sure that Harry wasn't physically hurt. His hair was tousled and unruly from sleeping, his voice low and raspy when he asked, "Alright?"

Harry just nodded silently, his heart sinking. He folded his long legs to his chest in a useless attempt to cover up his trembling body. Louis didn't seem at all convinced.

"Come on," he said, nodding his head in the direction of the living room -- and the front door.

Harry squeezed his eyes shut, praying that he had fallen into another nightmare. He had only just found his way to Louis, and now his soulmate was about to kick him out after only a few hours.

Louis's tone was hushed and comforting. "We can watch another episode of Friends. It'll take your mind off of your dream so that you can go back to sleep."

His eyes flew open, surprise and relief washing over him in tsunami waves. Louis gave him an odd look, one eyebrow quirked as he waited for an answer to his suggestion.

Still quivering slightly, Harry shook his head in silent complicity. He gathered his thin blanket more securely around his shoulders before climbing out of bed and obediently following the older boy into the living room.

Louis had already taken a place on the couch when Harry entered the room, his blanket trailing on the floor behind him, forming a flowy cape. He immediately sensed Harry's uncertainty, so he patted the spot beside him encouragingly.

Harry padded across the room without a sound, climbing onto the couch and not bothering to leave enough space between them. The feeling of their thighs pressed together was unfamiliar, and electricity hummed between them at just the simple touch.

"I'm really sorry," the curly-haired boy whispered as Louis turned on the TV. His words were barely audible, and Louis only caught them because they were so close together on the couch.

"What for?" he wondered, selecting the episode where they had left off earlier. He set the volume pretty low, hoping that Harry would want to talk, but kept it loud enough to combat the stifling silence that blanketed the city at night.

Harry tucked the thick covers up under his chin, wrapping himself up so that only his head was still visible. "I don't know. I'm sorry I woke you up."

Louis found the action much more endearing than he should have.

"Don't apologize," he replied, his tone smooth and unphased. "I'm just surprised, honestly."