Maybe I'm a Mess

Night Terrors

This chapter is gonna be about Winona and David instead of Joyce and Hopper. I know people get weird about fics written about real people so if you don't like it, feel free to skip this chapter. But if you DO like it, lmk. I was thinking about maybe doing a separate fic completely on them because i love them so much.
Okay sorry for the long rant. Enjoy!
xx

Two months.
Two months they would spend in the cold air of Vilnius, Lithuania filming for the fourth season of Stranger Things.
David had to spend close to four months here, but for two of those months, he had the pleasure of Winona Ryder's company. After spending seven years filming together and sharing many glasses of wine on the couch in her trailer, which inevitably led to many deep, vulnerable conversations, he thought he knew everything there was to know about her.
Her favorite color, favorite book, the way she wrings her hands when she's anxious. Every little thing, down to the games she played as a child.
But he also knew that Winona was always full of surprises.
It only took a few days after she arrived in Lithuania for it to happen.
Their hotels rooms were right next to each other so they spent most of their time with each other when they weren't filming. This night was no different.
"What time do they need you tomorrow?" Winona asks from her spot on the counter as she finishes the last bite of her cookie while David leaned against the counter next to her.
"Not till 8. I get to sleep in a little." he replies with a smirk, knowing that her call time is 6:30. She rolls her eyes and bumps him with her elbow.
"Speaking of, I should get to bed." she says, glancing at the clock on the oven which reads 9:47.
"Allow me to walk you home." David says, holding out his arm. She laughs and takes it.
"Such a gentleman."
It was their nightly routine. He would make the short walk one door over, give her a hug and a kiss on the head, and retreat back to his room once he heard her door shut.
Sleep always found David rather quickly. Winona on the other hand had always had a bit of insomnia. She sometimes even tried to count sheep in her head, but sleep only seemed to find her about three hours too late.
It was around 3 in the morning when David heard it. A piercing scream coming from the room to his left. He jolted upright in his bed, glancing around blindly in the dark.
The silence that settled was so heavy that, for a moment, he questioned whether he had really heard anything at all. And that's when he heard it again.
An all too familiar scream that had a layer of pain and sadness to it, even with it being muffled by a wall.
Without hesitating, he shot out of his bed and went straight for the extra keycard that Winona left on his nightstand.
He was out of his room and into hers in seconds as another scream ripped through the air.
"Winona?" he shouted with panic as he bursted into her room.
Her thrashing body was wrapped tightly in the sheets of her bed, her skin sticky with beads of sweat. She gasped for air, her eyebrows scrunched together in fear as a short sob slipped through her mouth. But her eyes were still squeezed shut.
"Winona." David mutters as he quickly sits on the edge of her bed and grabs her shoulder while stroking the strands of hair away from her forehead.
"Hey, Noni, wake up. It's just a dream." he whispers, trying to gently shake her.
She gasps sharply as her eyes snap open and flick around the dark room rapidly before landing on David.
"Oh," she sighs with relief as she quickly finds refuge in David's waiting arms.
"Hey, it's okay. You're okay." he whispers into her hair, his hands gently rubbing circles on her back which quickly calmed her down.
"I'm sorry." she sniffles as she pulls away from him. She quickly wipes her tear stained cheeks and stares down at her comforter in shame as David moves to sit beside her, leaning against the headboard.
"You have nothing to be sorry for. Everybody has bad dreams sometimes." David says soothingly, pulling her back to him by wrapping an arm around her shoulder.
"They're not just bad dreams." she whispers, though her head never leaves his chest. The steady beat of his heart against her ear seemed to settle her nerves, though she still found herself wringing her hands just thinking about her visions.
"It's more like a night terror. It's like...it's like i'm there. It's all so real. I can feel it. But I can't move. Like i'm paralyzed with fear." she explains.
"How long have you had these night terrors?" David asks, his hand still soothingly rubbing up and down her arm. He could feel her shrug slightly.
"Long as I can remember. That's why I have trouble sleeping."
"Why haven't you ever told me about this?" he asks curiously. If he was honest, he felt pride in knowing just about everything there was to know about Winona. He liked that she trusted him and felt comfortable enough with him.
"I didn't...it's stupid. I didn't want you to think of me differently. Like i'm weak." she admits softly, thankful for the first time that night for the darkness of the room so he couldn't see her cheeks burning.
"Hey," he says, nudging her with his arm.
"Look at me."
She slowly raises her head to look to him, the moon providing just enough light for her to see his warm, caring eyes staring down at her.
"You, Winona, are the strongest woman i've ever known. But I want you to know that even the strongest people get scared sometimes." he tells her softly.
"You don't." she points out.
"What? Are you kidding me? I get scared all the time." he tells her with a laugh.
"No you don't." she replies, not believing him.
"Sure I do. I just don't show it when you're around. Gotta keep my manly reputation."
She stares into his eyes for a moment as if still unsure of whether to believe him or not.
"Well...what do you do when you're scared?" she asks finally.
"Hm...well, I usually think of things that make me happy." he says slowly, his eyes trailing away from hers to stare at the wall in front of them; the wall that divides his room from hers.
"And then I start to feel okay again. Slowly, but surely, the fear slips away." he finishes.
"What do you think of?"
Her soft, velvety voice asks the one question he was hoping she wouldn't. Because it was her. Always her that saved him from his own demons.
He could tell her. Maybe if he did, things could be different.
"Chocolate." he says instead, glancing down at her with a smirk. Her nose scrunches up in the way that he adores and her own chocolatey eyes stare back at him with confusion.
"Chocolate? Really?"
"Oh, I love chocolate." he confirms, unable to maintain his smile.
"I mean of all the things-"
"Well, okay, what makes you happy then?" he asks, his heart beginning to pick up speed. Her eyes trail away towards the window, effectively hiding her face from him.
"Hmm...I have so much to be happy for." she begins before turning back to him.
"You included." she says, poking his side gently, making him smile. Then her eyes turned sad.
"But what if, in the moment, when i'm stuck in my dream, I can't remember to think of those things?" she asks.
"Well, then....we'll just have to practice. I can help you." he tells her.
"Help me? How?" she asks, tilting her head slightly.
"I heard you tonight, through the wall. I can just come over and wake you up, or at least make sure you're okay. Yeah?"
She hesitates for a moment before shaking her head.
"No, no, I couldn't ask you to do that, David. You need your sleep-"
"And so do you. And you're not asking, i'm offering." he tells her firmly. He leans away from the headboard and turns slightly to face her.
"Hey, I will always be here. No matter what. If you're scared or anxious or sad, you will always have me. Whether you like it or not, Ryder, you're stuck with me." he says, giving her that charming smile that never fails to make her flush.
"But for tonight, I will stay with you until you fall asleep. It's 4:30 in the morning, you need at least a little bit more sleep, yeah?"
She smiles softly and nods, feeling overwhelmed with so emotions, she couldn't quite decipher how she truly felt.
"Come here." he mumbles, opening his arms, allowing her to make herself comfortable on his chest. They sat there in a comfortable silence for a moment, relishing in the close proximity of their bodies. They had been in this position before, always cuddling on the couch or on set, but not like this.
There was something so intimate about falling asleep in someone's arms.
"Hey, David?" Her soft voice breaks the silence, receiving a low questioning hum in return.
"Thank you." she whispers, hiding her soft smile in his shirt. He softly strokes a hand up and down her back before replying softly.
"Goodnight, Winona."
"Goodnight, David."
He places a gentle kiss on the top of her head before continuing to rub gentle circles on her back. He took this rare moment to really take in his costar. The way her dark hair framed her face is waves, the rise and fall of her chest as she falls deeper and deeper into sleep, her long, thick eyelashes.
He slowly raises a hand and sweeps a strand of hair away from her face, his thumb lingering against the soft skin of her cheek.
"So beautiful." he whispers, his finger stroking her cheek once more before dropping back to his side. He rests his head against her headboard once more, his eyes slipping shut as his other hand continues the circles on her back, not knowing that he would be the first to fall asleep that night.

Hope you liked this chapter! I'm thinking of doing a part two on it in the next chapter. Leave your thoughts in the comments!
xx