So this takes place between the Wyatt Compound fight between the Wyatts and New Day. It's a little dark. I scared Captain. :D

Disclaimer: Don't own WWE or Pokemon Go.

Lately his dreams were something akin to torture.

Endless loops of cheap plastic masks tied on with elastic string, of clearings in the middle of woods with the stumps of tree trunks commemorating the demise of the life of something that grew for hundreds of years, of idling pickup trucks that hummed in tune with the thousands of cicadas in the millions of leaves above him out of sight, of a pick ax flying through the air and embedding itself in the tree trunk right next to him.

Sometimes the ax wouldn't find its home in the tree. No, sometimes the ax would not miss.

Some of his dreams would center around being carried back to the clearing. Wyatt held him like a rag doll, and he hung there limp and defenseless with blood rushing to his head, making his forehead throb in discomfort. His entire body was aching, screaming. The sound of Wyatt's low voice filled his ears, humming and singing, which was oddly augmented by the cicadas' angry buzzing and murmuring, scolding him and his teammates for being to fool-hearted for coming here with such little thought, such little care.

In some of the dreams, he would wake up back in the clearing when Big E and Kofi needed him the most, when they were depending on him to save them. But he wouldn't be able to move. His legs were paralyzed, his arms were stone. Only his mind could move and it whirled with anxiety as his teammates called out to him in desperation; however, no matter how hard he tried, he couldn't coarse his body into movements, and he was left watching as Strowman…

Xavier woke with a jolt, realizing he must have fallen asleep sometime during the drive when he was supposed to stay up to keep Kofi company while he drove. He blinked the sleep from his eyes and willed away the images of Kofi lying on the ground, crumpled and defeated.

The veteran glanced at him for a brief moment before focusing back on the road. "I thought you looked like you could use the extra sleep."

Xavier forced himself to smile and softly said over Big E's snores, "Thanks."

"Wanna talk about it?"

Xavier vehemently shook his head. "No, I'm good. I'm just going to…" He gestured vaguely with his phone.

"Play on your phone? Catch some Pokemon?"

"You know what they say, 'Gotta catch them all.'" Xavier's voice was low and dry.

Kofi sighed, like he knew what was going through Xavier's head at night in those dreams. Xavier stole a glance at him to see Kofi's eyebrows knitted together and his lips pulled down in a frown. "If you say so, man."

"You never know, there might be a Snorlax around here somewhere…"

"That's true; you never know…" Kofi's tone was odd, like he knew Xavier was avoiding the issue, like he knew that Xavier wanted to distract himself from his nightmares with games, like he knew Xavier was hiding, like he knew and disapproved.

Well, Kofi could think what he wanted to think. If he disapproved, that was fine with Xavier. But if Xavier wanted to hide, he would. Avoidance was okay. Avoidance was healthy even…

But...As he began a fierce battle with a Butterfree, he couldn't help but notice that avoidance didn't make him feel better at all.

Maybe...maybe he would face his fears someday. No, he would. He would when it really mattered. After all, he did at the compound when it really mattered. He saved Big E and Kofi because they mattered. They were important. Xavier sighed. He could avoid the nightmares for now, but when the time came, he would stand up to Wyatt. He owed it to Kofi and Big E, and he owed it to himself. When the time came, he would deliver. He would.

Even if he was petrified, he would.