Crossblood - Completed

Chapter 27

POSSIBLE TRIGGERS



"Moon..."

"Moon...?" I repeat once more, my eyes still shielded by the dark.

An unexplainable noise returns my call, a failed attempt at silence following it. "Moon?"

"Moon!" Throwing the covers off of me, I sit up frantically in the bed, turning the lamp on as my mind recognizes the noises as Moon's cries. "Holy shit, Moon what is it?!" He sits with his knees drawn to his chest, face buried in his paper-cut covered hands as tears run down his scarred wrist. "A nightmare?" I ask, my voice calming him enough that his sobs settle down and he can speak somewhat clearly.

His teeth chatter and his hand balls into a frightened fist. "N-n-night...ma-ares." He nods, trembling.

My eyes scan the lamp-lit room, the dull light casting shadows over the teal colored walls. The fluorescent glow of the alarm clock informs me that it's already two in the morning, everyone in the house having went to bed at ten for the upcoming Black Friday.

"Do you need some water? What do you need me to do for you?" I ask.

"N-nothing," He trembles. "I'll ca-alm down in a m-minute." Moon swallows his spit, pressing the palm's of his hands to his swollen and red eyes.

"How long have you been up? It's two right now." I add on, knowing he probably has no clue of the time.

"Since twelve thirty."

Before I even have the chance to spread my arms he's falling into my chest, sobs spilling out more violently as I spread my fingers through his sweaty hair. "Baby..." I whine, heart breaking every time he grips my gray t-shirt in his shaky fists. "You're drenched." I state, taking note of his wet back and the puddle of sweat surrounding where his waist had been.

Moon's sobs quiet down a bit, cheeks heating up against my neck as I rock him back and forth. "Go sit on the couch and I'll clean it up." I smile sadly, noticing now that he'd in fact peed in the bed and it wasn't just sweat.

He can barely stand, his legs quivering when he attempts to. I drag the soaked bedsheets off the mattress, heading to the closet for more when Moon starts to whimper. "What is it?" I turn to face him, eyeing a wet patch on the front of his pants. One that doesn't seem to be from pee. "Did you cum?"

A girlish shriek escapes him, his knees flying to his chest as he covers his ears and violently rocks himself against the back of the couch. "No! No no no!" Moon screams, hot tears racing down his cheeks and spotting his shirt.

I rush to the couch, kneeling down to be on his level. "Moon, it's okay! That's okay it was an accident!" I coo, gingerly detaching his clawing hands from his ears. "I won't say that word anymore..." Once his breathing slows I return to my previous task, Moon's eyes burning holes into my back as he watches me work.

"Now time to clean you up." I shoo him into the bathroom, grabbing a clean washcloth and wetting it with cool water. "What was your nightmare about?" I ask, turning off the faucet and wringing out the cloth so it's not dripping water against the tile.

"Father was inside of me."

"A flashback?" I run the yellow cloth over the seventeen year old's forehead, his dark eyes seeming more somber than usual.

Eyes closing as he nods, I slip his ruined sweatpants off his hips, assisting him with sliding on a new pair. "This happens every night?"

"Mhm."

"So what now?" I wring the cloth out once more, tossing it into the dirty woven hamper near the door.

He guides me by hand back to the bed, flipping on the overhead light and clicking the lamp off. I grab my laptop and he grabs the TV remote, flipping through infomercials while I search Google for PTSD.

"Where did you get that water?" I ask with a smile as he chugs his Dasani.

"Mini fridge." I take note of the small metallic square in the corner near the bedside table, smiling even more before going back to my research.

Thirty minutes fly by, Moon struggling to keep his eyes open and my spiral notebook halfway filled with chicken-scratch notes. "Go to bed if you're tired. You've been up since midnight." I remind the yawning boy beside me, his lips quivering at the mention of sleep.

"I'm scared...everything feels so real." He stares up at me, a tear rolling onto his pillow as he pulls it closer out of fright.

My mind goes back to when we were at my house, how he'd flashbacked during our first time and how I could see everything with a single touch. "What if," I suggest, curling a black lock around my finger. "I watch your dreams. That way when you have a nightmare I can wake you up."

Moon hesitates but soon agrees, turning off the TV and rolling even closer to me in the circular bed. I drape my arm around him, securely holding him against my chest as he closes his eyes, gripping the back of my shirt tightly until he begins to drift.

With the overhead light extinguished, I allow my mind to focus only on what he sees.

There is nothing but blinding darkness, a sheet of black covering our combined minds. Even with nothing here there is still fear clawing at my heart, Moon's fear invading my body. It's overwhelming now, the sensation that something is terribly wrong but I'm too naive to sense it. I jerk back, something rough rubbing against my thighs and rounding around my hips. The feeling is sweet but my mind screams that it's bitter, confusion washing over me as I blink my eyes through the façade.

The roughness rolls up my chest, circling my nipples and falling back to my hips. I try to move away, something wet trailing my waist line but a sound all too resembling of chains holds me back. I try to yell next but nothing comes out, the rough replacing the wet as hands encase my member. Hot tears escape my eyes, shame and guilt and anger and hurt and every emotion in the book attacks me. Something jerks me back into being straight as a board when I attempt to roll over, a sharp sting biting at my skin.

I fall back to reality, a tad bit shaken up from the nightmare I chose to be a part of. Moon whimpers in his sleep beside me, a small tent in the blankets near where his waist is. "Moon." I shake him, not wanting him to have to be trapped a second longer. "Moon!" Trembling takes over and the whimpers grow louder, his feet kicking as sweat beads up on his forehead. "Moon you need to wake up it's just a bad dream!"

I glide my thumb over his temple, the previous dream having been replaced by one ten times more violent. "Moon! Wake up!" He begins to scream, panic replacing my previously cool demeanor. "Moon! Moon!" The tears are falling faster now for the both of us, his back arching up painfully as he squirms about. The man in his nightmares aren't his father anymore, he's no longer a child in an oversized bed. It's just an alleyway, a blurred and strange face hovering above his.

"Please wake up!" I shout but his hand only claws at my own, more screams escaping his busted lip until his eyes spring open, red and glazed over as he grips my arm.

"Get away from me!" He cries, fingernails drawing blood against my wrists. "Get away!"

"It's me, Julius! You're just hallucinating!" His back arches up once more, legs drawing up shakily as he screams. "Moon-"

"No!" His foot collides with my rib cage seconds before he falls off the bed, scrambling into a corner and huddling into a protective ball. "N-no.." He sobs softly as I back away, my back pressed against the far wall and his head leaning against the mini fridge.

"Calm down. Everything is going to be okay, you're safe now." I coo but he only shakes his head, at least it's a sign he's coming back to his senses.

"It hurts..." Moon wraps his fingers around his waist, probing at the bottom of his back and wincing. I walk over to him, lacing my own fingers around his forearms and pulling him off the floor, carrying him bridal style back to the bed.

"I know it does."

"I-I'm in pain." His words are starting to slur, head lolling into the side of my neck.

"I am too." I breathe.

His head perks up from being nuzzled safely in the crook of my neck. "Did he go inside you too?"

"Did who?" I ask, pulling back the blankets and settling him underneath them.

He turns to face me as I climb in the bed, flipping the lamp on a brighter setting so I can tell if his eyes are still glazed over. "The man in the alley."

"No, a man in an alley didn't go inside me. Did he go inside you?"

He nods quickly, sitting up as round two rolls into motion. He's already screaming, hands over his ears and legs trembling as he pushes me away. Blood runs into my lips from under my eyes where he's scratched me, Moon turning violent as I attempt to calm him. Only five minutes later he's still and quiet, eyes returning to focus as he stares straight into mine. "Julius." He whispers, a sickly green arriving in his cheeks.

Hastily, I grab the trash can from beside me, handing it to Moon as soon as he doubles over vomiting. His knuckles turn white as he grips the sides of the can, shivers running down his spine and his body lurching.

"Jul-" He's bent over before my name even has a chance to come out, chunks falling into the bucket with a stomach-turning splash. "I don't want to go to sleep. I'm really really scared." He cries, a shaky hand coming up to stroke my bloody cheek. "Did I hurt you?"

"You were hallucinating. You didn't know it was me." I assure him. "It only took about five minutes to wake you up but you were in a flashback for almost an hour."

He ignores my small speech. "Can you hold me?"

My hands wrap around his waist, pulling him into my lap and pressing his face into my chest. "Always."

We lay silent for a while until Moon starts to shuffle about, pulling Jewel close to him and inhaling heavily. "Try to go back to sleep?" I beg, knowing him to be too stubborn to agree.

"Nope."

"It may not happen this time around."

"It always happens...unless..." He rocks in my lap, motioning I should do the same as the bed creaks underneath us.

"Unless what?"

"Never mind." He mumbles, snuggling into my chest.

"How about I close my eyes for three whole minutes and you do whatever you need to do to go to sleep and not have nightmares." I bargain.

He looks up at me with the slightest hint of a smile. "Deal."

I close my eyes and feel Moon scramble off my lap, a drawer opening and closing violently as objects are pushed to the side. There is a small click and then silence, my eyes opening when three minutes of worried curiosity slowly go by. Sighing softly to myself, I release the box cutter from Moon's grip, the handle soaked in drying blood as I throw it in the drawer.

Moon's wrists are covered in the red liquid, the cuts deep enough so he'll pass out from blood loss. I run my finger over his forehead, wanting a glimpse of his dream to know he's safe. Even though I plan on staying up through the night and watching him anyway...

It's only a woman, tossing a boy in the air or holding a small hand while handling a basket. They aren't full scenes just bits and pieces, as if that's all he can remember of the lady. The slideshow lands with the woman tied down to a wall across from a young black haired boy, a knife in her hand as he cries. The dream cuts off there, just a white blanket as I withdraw, hot tears seeping from his closed and fluttering lids.

I cross to the bathroom, dampening a cloth and returning to the still bleeding body. "Moon," I whisper, gingerly picking up an arm and dabbing the blood away with a cloth. "how many times will you make me do this?"

I toss the cloth away, wrapping the wounds up and curling next to the repaired boy, his hair slung over his eyes as he breathes peacefully.

With a small kiss on the nose, I turn off the lights, smiling lightly to myself when I see Moon's lips unconsciously rise at the edges.

I sigh, sweeping his hair from his peaceful face. "I guess as many times as you need me to."