Hello guys!
I know I have other stories to continue and I will soon! But I remembered having written a Chenry story once because I really felt sorry for the Henry Danger fandom and how there are so little fanfics about this pairing (actually, I haven't found any when I looked the last time), so why not post it already?
This takes place in the episode "Dream Busters", so if you haven't seen it, better watch it first before reading this or it might be confusing. This is an alternate version...and the story starts right off at the scene where Charlotte is told to scare Henry out of his strange dream. So now enjoy reading! =)
Don't Wake Me Up
"Charlotte…this is a dream,no? It HAS to be a dream." Henry made a wide gesture with his hand as if to make clear how confused he was about all this.
Oh how she wished she could tell him the truth! But it was too dangerous…
"No", she said feeling guilty for lying to him."This is not a dream. Not at all."
Henry stared at her in desperation and it took her more than a moment to come back to the subject.
"Henry, I'm kinda thirsty."
"You..w-what!?"
"I'm thirsty; please get me some juice out of the fridge?" Hopefully the scare would work, she thought, but they didn't even get that far.
"I-I…"
"The fridge Henry."
"Charlotte, I'm insane…" he suddenly whispered just as Jasper's head came flying by once more.
"I'm insane…oh god…what's happening…"
He still stood right in front of her, suddenly sinking to the ground and wrapping his arms around his knees. "I've lost my mind…" he whispered again, before he buried his head in his arms.
The girl stared at him in shock. This was really bad and she felt so incredible sorry for him."Can you open the fridge though?"
But of course he couldn't.
In contrary, her words seem to make it even worse as he thought about how nobody cared about his state.
"Henry…" She wanted to kneel down next to him, but her wrist watch started beeping again. "Wait a moment for me, okay?"
"Where else should I go!?" he exclaimed helplessly, making it even harder to leave.
"Ray, what's up?"
Even though it was just a hologram Charlotte could immediately see that something was wrong. Ray looked anxious, serious, all thought of fun and laughter gone from his face.
"You scared Henry already?"
"No, he…"
"Charlotte, you need to hurry!" Ray said something to Schwotz, before turning back to her.
"Henry is sinking even deeper into the dream state! He's trembling really badly and …we really try not to panic here, but if you don't hurry…"
"Wait, wait, wait" Charlotte held her hands up in defence to make him listen to her. "I can't scare him right now, he's…having a breakdown."
The man pulled at his hair in frustration.
"Charlotte, the dream's not real! Deal with it later and let him open the fridge!"
"Ray, he can't open anything right now! He's on the ground…crying and thinking he has gone crazy!"
"Well, damn it."
She saw him turning to his assistant whispering something before he continued talking to her.
"Then…I don't know…shock him! Maybe then he wakes up!"
Looking over the shoulder she once again saw the mess which was Henry's dream, feeling desperate herself now.
"I'm not sure, I don't think there's anything which can shock him anymore after this experience here!"
"Think of something! I…" The connection suddenly was interrupted and she also didn't bother to call again.
No matter if real or dream Henry, she couldn't let him suffer like this by himself.
The Man Cave:
"Darn it…Charlotte, hello?" Ray had the urge to smash his communicator against the wall, but it would do little good, so he resisted the temptation. Looking at Henry's body in front of him he felt like a fool to not having been able to protect him. What kind of superhero was he?
"Ray…maybe we should try to wake him up with one of my electro shockers?" Schwotz himself pitied not only the boy, but also his boss who was visibly more than a little worried.
"But couldn't that hurt him even more?"
His friend didn't answer and looked to the ground.
"Get it." Captain Man finally answered before stepping closer to his sidekick once more who had started flinching again.
"Henry…"
Ray carefully took the boy's hand in his, gently massaging his wrist with his thumb. "It's okay…please…just wake up…"
Back in Henry's dream:
"It's okay, Henry…" Charlotte was sitting on the floor now, letting Henry go in for a hug as he reached out for her. "It's okay…"
"No, it's not…" Tears were blinding Henry's sight, so he couldn't see Charlotte, but he held on to her with all his might.
"You're not crazy Henry…you…" She quickly thought of a reasonable explanation. "You're just delusional. From your high fever…?"
"Really?"
"Yes, really. It will be over soon, so don't worry."
She held him tight not feeling awkward at all as he rested his head on her shoulder. He was her best friend, so this was okay. But now…how could she wake him up!?
"Charlotte…I don't feel good."
"Hm?"
Maybe this was an effect of the dream beam? His breathing had slowed down, but he was ghostly pale.
"What's wrong Henry?"
"I'm dizzy…and so tired."
Henry was tired!?
How could he possibly be tired when he was sleeping?
"No, Henry…hey, don't sleep!" She felt herself getting alarmed shaking her friend's shoulders with all her force.
What if when he fell asleep now…
he wouldn't…!?
The Man Cave:
"Ray…"
"WHAT Schwotz, WHAT!?"
The smaller man pointed at the screen with a trembling hand, making Ray leave Henry's side for a moment to come and take a look himself.
"His brain activity…is nearly gone."
"WHAT?!"
"I said: His brain activity…-"
"I know what you said! How..can we…" Schwotz shook his head and shrugged his shoulders. "There's nothing we can do Ray. We have to wait for Charlotte to…"
"No…no,no,NO!" Ray didn't care anymore, suddenly everything felt unreal, like this was his nightmare and not only Henry's.
"Wake up!"
"Ray…"
"WAKE UP!" He had pulled the boy up in his arms shaking him quite violently.
"Stop it!" His assistant looked him firmly in the eyes. "You're doing him no favour. It won't work…I'm sorry."
"No…" If someone who have entered the secret headquarters right now and also would have spotted the man who had fought so many criminals he couldn't count them anymore, he likely wouldn't have realized it was Captain Man. The strong man looked broken and scared while slowly stopping in his motion, pulling Henry close to his chest.
"Don't you die, ya hear me? Don't you dare to die."
Of course he knew his friend couldn't hear him, but somehow he still hoped he would.
"What will I do without you?" His voice was trembling as he felt how weak the teen's pulse already was. "How will I ever be able to go on without you?"
Meanwhile in Henry's dream:
"Stop it…" Henry mumbled annoyed trying to push Charlotte's hands away from him. "I wanna sleep, so stop shaking me…"
He can't sleep, she thought, I can never let this happen!
"Henry! Hey!"
And without giving it much thought she slapped him quite harshly in the face.
"OW! That hurt, man!"
"I'm sorry…" There was no point in explaining it and also no time, because although Henry glared at her for a moment, he seemed barely able to keep his eyes open. You have to tell him, it's a dream, the girl thought, but wasn't there another way? A way without out doing such great damage?!
"Shock him, Charlotte" she heard Ray's voice saying in her memory. "Shock him." But how!?
She had already pushed him down the stairs, slapped him…what else could she do?
Meanwhile she heard Henry's breathing slow down, feeling his chest move less and less every moment. If she didn't do anything right now, I might be too late!
What if…her eyes fell on her friends half asleep form, his face and blond hair which now looked sweaty and messy…
"Charlotte…"he whispered weakly, making her hold him closer.
"Yes?"
"Can I…sleep now?"
There was one last idea in her head. One last idea left.
"Soon Henry, but before that you need to listen, okay? Just a few seconds okay?"
Her voice had gotten soft and she had stopped shaking the boy, carefully tilting up his chin with one hand.
"Yeah?"
Oh god…this was probably the craziest thing she would ever have to do!
"Henry…"
In the Man Cave:
"I WANT YOU TRY EVERYTHING, EVERYTHING!" Ray couldn't even look at the screen anymore, revealing how his friends brain signals were getting weaker and weaker.
"Don't scream at me!" Schwotz gave back, himself severely shaken.
"Talk to him!"
"Henry…" Ray started, grabbing the boy's hand again, somehow wishing he would have never met the other.
"Henry Hart, you precious boy…I…I never told you this, but you are the only…you are the only true friend I have ever had…you're an amazing sidekick and I'm sorry that I made you feel less important sometimes…"
His voice broke as he realized how many times, Henry had told him that he wanted more appreciation for what he was doing. Had he ever really listened?
"I…saw it in you eyes that you were scared sometimes, that you were upset, but you always managed so well! Me…a superhero?! Fame? Powers? Looks?"
The monitor suddenly started to register a stronger signal again, but the man was too overwhelmed to notice.
"That all doesn't matter in the end, Henry, you hear me!? I would give all this, all this and it means nothing to me! away just to tell you this! Being a superhero…that starts here…"
He placed a hand over his friends heart.
"Right here. So don't do this to me! I have so much to learn from you and you have still so much to do. To live. When I searched for a sidekick, I wrote no special qualities needed, but it was a lie, Henry! It was a lie, because not everyone would have been able to do what you did! Being brave, kind…and…
And then he finally couldn't speak no more, his voice choked up with tears he couldn't hold back anymore.
Back in Henry's dream:
"…Henry…I love you."
The boy abruptly lifted his head, starting at Charlotte in disbelief.
"What?!"
"As I said, I love you."
"…you mean as a friend?"
She sure had meant that…what else could she mean…this fever was probably worse than he had thought.
But Charlotte shook her head energetically, trying to put everything she had ever felt for him, every memory and every moment they had spent together, into her acting.
"No."
And not trying to avoid it any longer, she reached out for him, pulling him into a kiss. Come on, wake up!
The boy froze at his best friend's action, not knowing how to react at all. It wasn't bad that she kissed him…it was just something he wasn't prepared for.
And not only for the kiss…but also not for that sensation he suddenly felt, that warm sensation…
He gripped her shoulders, actually giving in into the kiss.
As their lips touched, he felt the cold fading, fading as the pain and the sleep which had tortured him for the last two hours…
Down in the Man Cave:
"Ray, stop crying!" Schwotz exclaimed, hurrying over to the computer. "Look, he's coming back!"
And indeed all parts of Henry's brain showed strong activity and soon his hands started to twitch again, making even Ray realized the boy was for sure waking up!
"What? Henry!"
The man let out a deep breath, looking hopefully at his assistant. "Can you make it go faster?"
"I'll try, but we're almost there!" Schwotz couldn't help smiling as he saw the expression on his boss's face…it was like thw orld had just been lifted from his shoulders.
In Henry's dream:
Henry didn't know for sure what was happening there, but as he felt Charlotte break the kiss, he carefully pulled away, looking into her deep brown eyes.
"Charlotte…" She said nothing studying his gaze as well.
Slowly their surroundings were starting to fade, but the boy's attention belonged just to his friend now.
Her eyes, her fierce expression…and why did it feel like he had just seen her for the first time?
Don't be stupid, he told himself, you know Charlotte! You know her since ever…
"You love me." he heard himself repeat and as she gave him a little nod a smile spread on his face.
She really did…
In the Man Cave:
"Henry!"
The first thing he saw when he woke up was a bright light shining right into his face. "Woah, are you crazy!?"
"Henry! It's you and you're okay!" Ray exclaimed strangeling poor Henry in a tight embrace making the other wonder what the heck had provoked this behaviour.
"Ray! Stop it! You're hurting him!" another female voice called out and pushing his friend's arms away, Henry turned his head to his left, spotting Charlotte standing next to him.
"Charlotte…"
Woah… "Does…does someone care to explain?!" he asked in confusion, not getting how he suddenly was back in the Man Cave.
"You got hit by a dream beam…"
"What's dream bean?"
"Not a dream bean, a dream beam!"
"What's that?"
"Henry, just let me explain, geez!" Schwotz said before telling him all he needed to know in short version.
"So…I couldn't wake up, so you send Charlotte to do it?"
"Yes" Ray replied. "And it worked! You were really scaring us there boy, but then…I don't know what she did, but she did that great! You came back to us in seconds!"
He patted the girl on the shoulder to show her how proud he was.
"Yeah…anyways, what exactly did you do?" Schwotz asked curiously, making Charlotte back away a few steps.
"Me? Oh nothing special…"
She let out a fake laugh, quickly trying to change the subject.
"Hey…who ate all my chips with dip!?"
"I'm sorry…but I couldn't help it!"
"Well, too bad, now you're helping me make another one tomorrow and don't give me that face Ray!"
Henry watched his friends fighting for a moment, before turning to Schwotz again.
"So…everything what happened…was just a dream?"
"Just a dream Henry."
The boy felt his heart sink to his stomach, a strong feeling of disappointment taking over him.
"Well…everything except from Charlotte" the assistant added while walking away to restart the monitor. Everything except from Charlotte…
Later:
"So.. pretty rough day, huh?" Henry said silently as Charlotte and him walked home together.
"Yep. Even though you were asleep like all the time…"
"Yes."
They both got silent for a moment, crossing several streets without speaking a word.
"So is Ray making chips for us tomorrow?" he asked her, hoping to somehow get the conversation going.
"I don't know, but he better! I spend my whole Saturday making the best dip and he just eats it in one hour!"
"...Charlotte?"
"Yes?"
He stopped in his tracks turning to her.
"Is this awkward? I mean between us…or am I just imagining this?"
It never had been akward between them, not a single day of their friendship. Tensed, complicated, confused…yes, but never awkward.
"Maybe…let's go…"
"No, wait…" Charlotte stopped walking facing him with her amrs crossed in front of her chest.
"Say or ask what you need to ask, okay? Just do it quick."
She is really going to answer, he thought…but did he want her to answer!? Did he even want to know?
"Allright. In my dream…what you said…was to shock me?"
She nodded. "You needed to wake up, nothing else was working, so I had to try. Save your stubborn life."
He smiled at her expression, ejoying her little teasing. "Well thank you, Charlotte."
"As Kim Possible says, no big deal."
No big deal.
"But…I wonder…"
"You wonder if I meant what I said?"
"Yes", he replied his hand clenching inside his jeans pocket bracing himself for the answer.
" What part?"
"That…that you love me…"
She turned her head aside, her eyes fixating a tree next to the street for a while…it was a windy evening.
"Henry…I…wouldn't say I don't love you…"
She saw his eyes widen and therefore quickly added. "Not…maybe in this way, but after all we did together and…I just wouldn't say I don't okay?"
"Okay…" Henry didn't know what he had expected, but it felt allright. Still not like usual, but allright.
"Me too."
She playfully punched his arm. "I know that you dork, now let's go home, okay? My mom is making lasagne and I haven't had lunch because of you!"
So they went home, they said goodbye and it felt better now.
Nearly like nothing had happened.
But as he was alone in his bedroom, the thoughts wouldn't leave him alone…well, he had lots of time to figure it out now hadn't he?
Especially as he wasn't tired at all.
Nevertheless...he could still dream.
The Ending
So I hoped you liked it, I'm happy if you leave me a little review =)