the book of fluff (that usually isn't)

his pretty pt. 2

trigger warning: self-harm

Mitch woke up that night to whimpering. He opened his eyes and looked around, panicking briefly, before he finally recognized where he was and sat up. He continued to search for the source of the noise, and shuffling turned his attention to Scott, laying seemingly asleep in the bed across from him.

The boy was tossing and turning, clutching his stuffed animals to his chest with trembling arms. Whimpers escaped his lips and tears glistened on his cheeks. Mitch frowned slightly and hesitated a moment, but carefully got up and crept over to his bed. "Scott?" he whispered, placing his hand on the blond's side. Scott flinched and scrambled away from his touch, burying his face in his stuffed elephant. Mitch tilted his head and held his own stuffed cat to his chest. "Scott?" he repeated, a bit louder.

That time, Scott jumped awake. He looked wildly around for a moment, his heart pounding and his chest heaving, before he wiped the sleeve of his onesie over his face and glanced up at Mitch. "Pretty?" he whispered, his voice hoarse from crying. Mitch nodded slowly and slowly sat down on the bed. "Yeah. It's me. Are you okay?" Scott nodded and smiled slightly up at him, but deep in his eyes, Mitch could see pain. He hesitated a moment, holding his cat tighter. "Are you sure? Did you have a nightmare?" he asked, but Scott just shook his head. "Nuh uh. I'm okay, Pretty," he said, offering Mitch another smile. Mitch swallowed nervously, but he nodded and slowly stood. "Alright."

However, just an hour later, Mitch was woken up again by Scott. He frowned at the sound of the whimpers and got up yet again, rubbing his eyes. Sleepily, he plopped back down on the bed beside Scott and curled up, pressing himself against his back. Almost instantly, Scott relaxed and turned around, snuggling up to Mitch.

That night, Scott didn't have anymore nightmares.

+++

The next morning, Scott woke up with Mitch in his bed. He was confused, but he wasn't complaining. With a soft giggle, he cuddled up to the other boy's side and abandoned the stuffed animals to wrap his arms around his waist. Mitch stirred at the movement, and slowly, he opened his eyes. Scott sensed his awakening and blinked up at him, smiling. "Good morning, Pretty. Why are you in my bed?"

Mitch yawned and rubbed his eyes. "You had a nightmare last night so I joined you to try to calm you down. You're a good cuddler."

Scott giggled and kissed his cheek, curling up. "Thank you, Pretty. But you should probably get back to your bed. The nurses will be coming around to give everyone their medicine soon, and they don't like it when patients sleep together," he said, and Mitch sleepily nodded, slowly getting up just to flop back down on his bed. Scott giggled at him and curled up, burying himself in his stuffed animals. Mitch's eyes drooped closed and he almost fell asleep again, his body relaxing on the blankets.

However, he was jerked out of his stupor by a loud knock on the door. Scott got up and padded over to the door, opening it and smiling at the woman who was standing there. "Hi, Nurse Christina!" he said brightly, waving. The woman smiled back. "Good morning, Scott. How'd you sleep?" she asked, coming inside the room. Scott trotted after her, plopping back down on his bed once he got there. Mitch curled up on his bed and forced his eyes open so he could watch them, his face almost completely covered in blankets.

"I slept well, Nurse Christina!"

Christina smiled and turned to Mitch. "Did he have any nightmares?"

Mitch blinked sleepily and nodded, holding Wyatt to his chest. "Mhm. Two."

The news seemed to surprise the woman. She raised her eyebrows, tilting her head. "Really?" Mitch nodded again, frowning slightly. "Is something wrong?" he asked, but the nurse shook her head. "Oh, no. He usually has a lot more than that. I wonder why..." she trailed off, looking thoughtfully over at Scott. The boy wanted desperately to be a part of the conversation, so he held his stuffed animals to his chest and perched himself on the edge of his bed. "Pretty held me!!" Christina raised her eyebrows again, pursing her lips a bit. "Is that so?" Her gaze flickered to Mitch to confirm, and he nodded once. She hummed in thought and stood again. "Hm. Well, Mitch, I have some antidepressants for you. Can you come here?"