So I'm thinking this is young Zero and Yuuki, on any one of those unmentioned days before the series started. I admit I didn't even really write this this summer… I found it in a folder that I hadn't looked at in quite the while… So I'm admitting I really haven't written anything this summer…
This isn't even much of a 'story.' Just something I wrote when I had nothing else going for me. So, yeah. Here ya go. :D
-_-_-_
"Yuuki…"
Startled, Yuuki looked closer. No, Zero's eyes were still closed. He appreciated her presence even in sleep…
She smiled and stepped closer to him, so vulnerable in his slumber. Had she ever seen Zero look so at peace as when he was asleep? His hair shifted with the turn of his head, a restless gesture. She reached out to brush his hair aside, but stopped when he mumbled again.
"Yuu…ki…"
She could almost feel the blood rising to her cheeks, though she wouldn't know—admit—why. Was he dreaming about her?
Just then his mild expression of indifference faltered. His eyebrows twitched, first for just a moment, then scrunched together with a jerk of his head. Yuuki jumped, alarmed, but stood aside for the moment.
But then he let out a painful gasp, doubling over and clutching his side.
"Zero-" She mumbled, uncertainly. What should she do? What could she do?
He clenched his teeth angrily, then thrashed over to his other side, letting out one last, dreamy yell as Yuuki lurched forward to grab him before he hurt himself.
"Zero-!" But he was already conscious enough, since he was able to swat her arms away, setting her off balance and sending her flopping awkwardly beside him onto the bed. Unaware of whom his "attacker" was, he sat up and clumsily shoved her back. She grabbed the front of his shirt, steadying herself enough to not fall on the floor, but not enough to prevent dunking Zero's head down, pulling him awake. His eyes opened more fully, and he grabbed her elbows gently to steady her.
"Yuuki? What-?" His concerned eyes bore into her face relentlessly; she blinked.
"I…"
He relaxed tensely, releasing her once she let go of his shirt. Lost in her face, he didn't think to scoot back until she turned her head away a bit from where she perched on the edge of the bed.
"You alright, Z-"
"You okay-"
They both smiled a bit, each wondering why the other was concerned.
"You were turning in your sleep." Yuuki mumbled uneasily, glancing up as he looked away.
Zero could count on his fingers the nights he remembered sleeping peacefully. Probably on one hand. After what all he had been through, who could blame him?
"Sorry," he mumbled. "Did I wake you?"
She blinked, slowly, sadly. Maybe he would never ask for the help he needed. Maybe he would always deny it…
"Yeah," she said, standing and sticking her nose in the air. "So go back to sleep and have sweet and not-unpleasant dreams!" She slapped her hand down on his head and ruffled his hair roughly. "Goodnight!"
The door shut, not exactly quietly for this hour of the night, but he stared after her. She knew something was wrong. He knew she assumed it was nightmares of that night. She was half right.
He couldn't get her out of his head. What was it about vampires that made them always want to target the young pretty girls? Zero shook his head as if to clear it as he flopped back down on his bed. A pretty young girl. He felt his stomach lurch as his thoughts swam. That was all she was. A target. An obstacle to avoid each day.
No. He rolled onto his side, staring blankly at the wall. This sweet girl… She was his friend. Yuuki. The angel in his darkness, always there to save him from his nightmares.
He considered his future as a vampire, often too. But his future as anything else? No. He wouldn't know how Yuuki would start to affect his life. How he would grow closer to her, how she would save him, even, in the end.
He closed his eyes, preparing his mind for the battle while his body settled for a few more hours of restless dreams.