A/N: Steven's Point of view.

I hope paragraphs are displaying correctly this time...

Every human being has his weak points, doesn't matter how fierce he looks or how aggressive he behaves.

There are those moments when you're cuaght up in a net of uncertanity that makes you feel helpless, insecure, weak.

I didn't doubt he had personal issues like all of us did, however whenever I find out a new hint of weakness inside of him, I can't help but being surprised.

Last night was no exception.

I was sleeping at his side, we weren't actually touching since the both of us were too tired to even think about having any kind of human contact. I can't explain how did I felt it, at a certain point of the night, I got this unpleasant sensation in my brain and I woke up. As soon as my eyes opened I could feel that he was shivering and wincing. It wasn't something so evident to make me think he was having some kind of sudden illness though.

Carefully approaching him, I put a hand over his shoulder, gently attempting to shake him awake. He cracked an eye open, muttered something which sounded like my name and buried his face into my chest, falling asleep again.

His forehead was sweat and I guess there were some tears forming at the corner of his eyes. He was having a nightmare.

I perfectly understand this is something much less serious than a sudden breathing crisis or an heart-attack, however this didn't leave me indifferent. The fact that he was suceptible towards stuff such as bad dreams made me worry.

I wasn't, I am and will never be in his brain but I am aware of what he did in the past, what is his way of acting and behaviour and I am sure it is the primary cause of this events to happen. That's what scared me to death. Lance isn't one of those people who would say it out loud, but during our conversation more than one time I had the chance to understand that his past actions were slowly devouring him inside.

I also saw and subdue things I wouldn't wish to my worst enemy, but in his case is different. I am terribly afraid he's slowly gowing as his own enemy and that's more scary than it sounds. What if one day, watching himself in the mirror he decides to kill the beast inside? What if those nightmares become more frequent to the point he's driven insane? What if I'm not here to protect him when he needs to?

It's true that right now we are sleeping tgether, but there are times in which we aren't able to see or even ear from each other for more than a month. What if he has some kind of attack in those days, while I am busy in some cave exploration and can't be reached even with modern technology?

In that moment, scenes from the worst case scenarios flashed into my mind, I feared I was going to find him in the tub with his arms cut and the horrifying mix of water and blood dripping on the floor or maybe finding him hanging on the ceiling.

Lance wouldn't always speak to me about his issues as well, I've always respected this decision of his, but in that moment, I was regretting this behavior of mine.

Silent and apparently strong people are the most dangerous ones, you can never predict what's going on in their head and they wouldn't say it out loud, so you just have to wait for the worst to come.

"Steven… Steven… I can't breathe"

I was so taken by my fear of losing him that I didn't realize I was squeezing him to death.

"It was just a nightmare…." he added, putting his arm around my waist, pulling me closer "...don't overthink as usual."

"I was just… " I tried to make up a quick excuse but he shut me up before I could even think about one "You were worrying sick. I don't know what's in your head right now but you've got to get rid of it quickly."

That was what I should have said to him, not the opposite.

"You… promise me you would never harm yourself…" I managed to blurt out.

I heard him chuckling against my neck "And give you the chance to say I told you over my dead body? Never."

I was confused, could he read into me or something? He wasn't an Aura user, as far as I knew.

"What if I can't be by your side when you need me?"

At this point he sighed (and I was almost sure he would have sent me back to sleep with a jab square on my face), sliding up to face me. It was dark, but I could exactly feel his expression.

"Listen up closely because I won't repeat this again. Up to three years ago, my head wouldn't even conceive the idea of sharing the bed with another person out of me. Several people tried but you were the only one who succeeded, this should mean something to you."

he paused, caressing my cheek "I won't hide that sometimes I felt like I was going crazy from a moment to another, some times I woke up feeling like I was locked in a dark room with just one way out. That was way before I had someone to rely to. Even when we are apart and I'm feeling down, I can stand up because I know that you are waiting for me. Now please, dispose whatever you were thinking and go back to sleep. I've got to wake up early tomorrow, dammit!"

I was left wordless, he never, ever made such a confession to me. I felt like a fool, I should give him some more trust. I smiled, pulling him closer to me again and kissing his forhead. I could imagine his face becoming redder than his hair.

"I'm sorry, I promise I won't doubt you ever again. I love you to death." I whispered.

"That's fine, now please try not to grind me in my sleep and we can live happily ever after."

A/N: After yesterday's Pokèmon Generations episode, my Lance fangirling mode took the best outta me. I hope you enjoyed the fic, kudos are always appreciated :))