Nightmares (TMvTM Fanfic)

Nightmares

(A/N: this is sort of a random occurrence I don't have any other story to add to it so it sort of just...exists I guess. Some background so it makes sense: It's Christmas break so Katie is home for a few weeks. Jade is over to spend the night, and its somewhere in between Christmas and New Years. Jade, Katie, and Aaron are having a movie night. Just in case anyone wonders, Rick and Linda are having their own movie night in their room.

BTW this is NOT KatiexAaron cause that's gross and weird)

Katie's POV:

I looked down as Aaron shifted next to me. It was only 30 minutes into the movie and he had already fallen asleep, and it wasn't even that late. Honestly, I was glad. I knew from talking to Mom and Dad that he hadn't been sleeping much since the "apocalypse incident" (as dad called it) a few months ago. At the moment I was sitting on the couch, with Aaron snuggled up next to me. Jade was curled up in a blanket on our old but comfy easy chair to my right. I smiled at both of them, and turned back to the movie.

After about ten minutes, Aaron shifted again. I looked down to see if he was waking up, but instead he was wriggling around in his sleep with a scared expression on his face. 

Another nightmare, I thought.

Instead of waking him, I wrapped my arms around him and pulled him closer in an attempt to soothe him in his sleep. It had worked in the past.

I watched him for a minute, but he didn't calm down. By now Jade had looked over to see what was happening. Suddenly Aaron jolted awake and screamed, startling me and Jade. He was sitting upright, his eyes wide in terror, and was hyperventilating. After a second he looked around and seemed to notice he was home, and not in the setting of his nightmare. But he didn't calm down. I wrapped my arms around him again, pinning his arms to his sides. I pulled him into me and laid my head on top of his. I knew better than to ask questions right away, so I stayed silent at first.

"Deep breaths, buddy. Deep breaths. It's okay, it was just a nightmare." I whispered. "B-but it wasn't..." He sniffed. "It really happened."

"Aw, Aaron..." I knew he had been having the same nightmare every night, and that was why he hadn't been sleeping. It was always about the "apocalypse incident" and how he had been captured and nearly shot into space. "But its over now. You're safe." I soothed. He nodded.

We stayed like that for a minute, me hugging a still wide-eyed Aaron. Then all of a sudden his breathing sped up again. He wrapped his arms around his legs, curled up into a ball, and burst into tears. I was shocked for a moment, but recovered and hugged him again. At this he immediately uncurled and twisted to the side and wrapped his arms around me. I looked down at him in surprise, and then re-wrapped my arms around him and just let him cry. Jade, who had watched everything, looked surprised at this, but having lived with him for 10 years I knew this was the best method.

So we stayed like that for the rest of the movie. Aaron hugged me and cried for at least 30 minutes before he cried himself to sleep. The movie finished, and after a whispered discussion with Jade I put on RoboSlingers 4. We watched it with no other incidents, and when it finished we decided to go to bed. Rather than waking him, I picked up Aaron and carried him to his room, which was harder than I thought. He had grown. I made it to his room and set him on his bed. I heard footsteps outside as Jade walked down the hall to my room, where she was staying in a sleeping bag. I looked down at Aaron. He looked pretty peaceful, but looks can be deceiving. And it was in that moment I knew I couldn't leave him by himself tonight. I crawled into bed next to him and pressed myself against the wall so he could have the space he was used to sleeping alone.

About 5 minutes later the door opened slowly as Jade poked her head in quietly.

"Sorry, I was just wondering where you were. Are you sleeping here tonight?" she whispered.

"Yeah, sorry. Feel free to stay in my bed, rather than on the floor." I whispered back.

"That's alright. Goodnight Katie."

"Night Jade."

She closed the door quietly, and I sighed contentedly. I loved her so much.

With that on my mind, I fell asleep.