Disclaimer: I don't own these guys. If I did, they'd be married with kids by now.
Setting: No specific setting. It's just some Jolex fluff.
Enjoy and please, please, please review!
He grabbed her from behind, not even giving her a chance to react before shoving her to the ground. She cried out, pleading with him not to do this, that she would do better next time….
Her pleas fell on deaf ears, his foot instantly connecting with her side. She curled into herself, trying to protect her fragile bones. Neither of them could afford another trip to the emergency room without anybody asking suspicious questions.
Within seconds, she felt it; the crashing of his belt against her back. She screamed, harsh sobs escaping her lips, choking her….
The beating ended as quickly as it started, the belt lifting from her back one last time. He grabbed her by the hair, pulling her closer to him. At first she thought he would yell, but without warning his fist barreled across her face, sending her head spinning…..
Jo shot up from the bed, gasping for air in the darkened room. Her breaths came in shorter and shorter intervals as her eyes glanced around at her intervals, hot tears falling down her face. She squeezed shut her eyes, the images of the nightmare flashing through her brain, causing a sob she hadn't realized she'd been holding, to escape, another one following closely behind.
"Jo?"
The sound of someone else's voice sent her into a panic, her arms scrambling to get the covers that suddenly seemed to be trapping her, away.
"Hey, hey, what's wrong? Look at me."
The voice was soft, gentle even. The feel of someone touching her brought an unfiltered scream to her lips, the choking sensation back to her as she continued gasping for air.
"Jo. Jo, it's me, it's Alex. Look at me."
His voice was closer to her now, his whole body touching her. His hands brushed against her cheek, gently forcing her gaze towards his face, forcing her wide, teary eyes to see his concerned ones.
"A-Al-ex."
She struggled to get his name out, her breaths coming out in even shorter gasps. He gave her a short nod, taking her face in both of his hands.
"Yeah, it's me. Take a breath. Go slow," he whispered, exaggerating his own breathing in hopes that she would mimic it. She nodded, whimpering slightly at the painful tug on her chest.
He continued to coach her, whispering soothing words of encouragement as her breathing slowly went back to normal.
There was a slight hitch in her breathing as her heart rate came back down, hot tears once again pouring out of her eyes. Within seconds the first sob escaped, others following closely behind as she once again remembered the dream that had woken her up: the painful memories she had thought she left behind.
"What is it? What happened?" Whispered Alex, gathering her into his arms, rocking her gently as she continued crying.
"I...it….it's nothing. It's stupid," she whispered through her tears, trying to push away from him, but Alex was having none of it, pulling her tighter into his arms, stroking her hair as she cried.
"Nothing doesn't wake you up in the middle of the night sobbing and having a panic attack," he whispered, tilting her chin so she was looking at him.
He brushed away a few tears that were still falling, placing a kiss to her forehead before pulling her back towards him, her fingers making circles on his bare chest.
"It was just a stupid nightmare," she stated, her voice hollow, barely even a whisper as she spoke. She could feel more tears beginning to fall, humiliated that she had reacted in such a way to something so childish.
"You want to talk about it?" He asked, frowning when she shook her head, refusing to meet his worried gaze.
Alex sighed, repositioning both of them so they were under the covers, refusing to let go of her. She offered him a weak smile, laying her head back on his chest.
"Close your eyes," he whispered, sighing when she shook his head.
"I can't," she muttered, a part of her still afraid, even if it was only a dream.
"You can. I'm right here. I won't let anything happen to you," he muttered, watching as her eyes threatened to close, her fighting it off.
"Bad dreams, bad dreams, go away," he whispered, his lips close to her ear. She rolled her eyes.
"Alex, I'm not a child," she stated and he smiled, ignoring her.
"Bad dreams, bad dreams, go away. Good dreams, good dreams, here to stay," he whispered, smiling as she playfully placed her hands to his lips, her eyes getting heavier and heavier.
"Bad dreams, bad dreams go away. Good dreams, good dreams here to stay," he repeated, a quiet yawn escaping her lips as she slowly started to lose the fight with sleep.
"Bad dreams, bad dreams, go away," he continued, his voice barely above a whisper. "Good dreams, good dreams, here to stay," he finished, placing a gentle kiss to her hair as her breathing began to even out, sleep once more overtaking her.