I woke with a start. The night was dark outside my window. Glancing around, I checked for flyboys, erasers, whitecoats, etc. Nothing was in my room; nothing was poised to eat me, gag me, or stick needles in me. I was sweating and breathing hard, the result of my nightmare. No, I kept telling myself, it wasn't real.
Now I couldn't get back to sleep. Great. Just what I need. I hoisted myself out of bed, shivering. I pulled on my new terry-cloth robe my mom gave me. Ahhh, that stopped the shivers. I opened my door a crack, made sure no one was in the hallway, and crept outside.
Downstairs, I got a glass of water and went to sit on the couch in the living room. As I sat there, sipping my water, I could sense that I wasn't alone. Maybe I was just paranoid, but it put me on guard instantly.
I heard a footstep behind me, the sound of a bare foot scratching the carpet. I swallowed the rest of my water, put the glass down on the coffee table, and stood up. I knew who was behind the couch.
"Hello, Fang," I said under my breath.
"Hello, Max," Fang murmured softly.
A hot tear streamed down my face. He was right next to me in an instant.
"What's wrong?" he asked frantically, alarm strewn on his face. His arms wrapped around me, trying to calm me. Tears fell more rapidly now.
"I had a bad dream," I tried to say, but I could barely form the words. My throat was burning.
"Shhhh. Its okay, Max. I'm here."
Now, that threw me into a bought of hysterics. All Fang could do was rock me back and forth, trying to hush me, trying to calm me. I think he led me over to the couch, because we were sitting on it now.
Sooner or later, I calmed down enough to stop crying. Now I was exhausted, just lying there in his arms. Okay, I won't lie; it felt good when he held me like that, like he was protecting me. I gathered the strength to look at his eyes. My mistake.
I disappeared. I vanished. I dove.
And he stared back.
"Max, are you okay now?" he asked. Concern doused his voice.
"More than okay."
He smirked his little half-smile at me, the one that sent my heart into a flutter. I knew what I would do now. I knew what I had to do, what I'd wanted to do for so long now. He knew what I was thinking. He got there first.
Fang tilted my chin up and swooped down to press his lips to mine. I melted in his arms. His kiss shot a spark through my entire body. I kissed him back.
Even when the kiss stopped, I still found some way to press myself against him. I buried my face in his chest. He continued to kiss my hair, never letting his lips leave me.
"I love you, Fang," I sighed dreamily into his chest.
"I love you, too, Max," Fang murmured into my hair.
We fell asleep entwined on the couch.