This takes place after the glorious scene of 'I'm keeping my name!'

Thunder wakes Norma up from her deep slumber. She cursed under her breath when she noticed her window was open. Sitting up it's a challenge for her, the many drinks she shared with Alex over dinner are catching up to her. She feels dizzy, tired. She glances at the digital clock next to her bed and lets out a deep sigh after finding out the time. A sudden lightning strike makes her jump.

Norma's never been a fan of this weather. It was worse when she was a little girl. Not having anyone to look after her during storms was what scared her the most. They knew how much she hated it. But neither one of them ever did anything about it. No one was ever there to protect her, and she hated it.

But tonight there was someone there to look out for her. The same man that's been there since the start, and he was only a few feet away. Down the hall. Another lightning strike was all it took for her to find the courage to walk― in this case, speed walk to his room.

Her shaken hand takes the form of a fist, knocking three times on the wooden door.

"Alex?" she calls to him, her voice quiet and shaky.

She leans her head on the door frame, waiting to hear his steps. She overhears nothing.

"Alex? Please open the door."

Her delicate fist bangs on the door again, this time, awakening the man on the other side of it.

"Norma?"

She sighs relieved.

Norma hears as he unlocks the door with urgency, opening the door instantly.

"What's wrong? Are you okay?"

It pains her that every interaction between them always starts with those two questions.

"Um..." she looks around nervously, finding the right words. "Yes, I'm fine. Everything is okay."

"What is it?" he asks, letting go of the door.

Her eyes take a quick glance at his body, indulging his appearance. He is shirtless, his chest exposed. She moves his glare from his body before he has time to notice her staring.

"I'm-I'm sorry, I shouldn't have-" she starts to walk away, but Alex stops her.

"Norma," he mutters.

She stops dead in her tracks, his voice being enough to keep her from walking back to her room.

As soon as she turns around to look at him, another lightning illuminates the house, and she jumps. Her hands move over to her chest as if they could keep her heart from pounding so hard against it.

Alex notices the way her body responded to the lightning. He tied the loose ends and figured out the motive behind her hard knocks and her shaken voice.

Her eyes scan the wooden floor, anything is better than the urge of being secured in his arms.

"I-I hate this weather..." she stuttered. "I didn't mean to wake you up."

"Norma, you knocked on my door. Of course you intended to wake me up."

"That's irrelevant, Alex."

"How so?"

She sighs. "Just forget about it, it's all right."

"You're walking back to your room right now?" he asked as he made his way to where she was standing. "Why wake me up if you're not going to tell me what's going on?"

"I already told you," she looked deep into his caramel orbs. The darkness is making it difficult for them to see their surroundings but their eyes are locating each other with ease. "I'm scared."

"Of what?" he heard her the first time, but for some reason he wants her to repeat herself.

"I hate thunder. I hate lightning. I don't like this weather, and usually, I have Norman here to look after me but-"

She's afraid. She's acting like a five-year-old girl, and he loved it.

"There's nothing to be scared of," he said kindly. "Nothing is going to happen."

"How do you know?" her voice shakes. "There's lightning out there, and we don't know exactly how far we are from where it strikes."

"Yes, we do."

"We do?"

"After you see a flash of lightning, count the number of seconds until you hear the thunder."

"How does that help?" she spoke as she hugged herself.

"Well, you see, for every five seconds, the storm is one mile away. Then you divide the number of seconds you count by five to get the number of miles."

"That doesn't make any sense."

He chuckled. "I know it doesn't, but it always helps."

Alex knows that what he just told her didn't alleviate her nerves. For whatever reason, he thinks he's made it worse.

"I guess I wanted to ensure you were there... You know, close. In case something happens," she lied. "That's why I woke you up."

He knew she's lying. Therefore, he decided to test her courage.

"Okay, then. Have a good night, Norma."

She bit her lip cowardly, hating that he was walking back to his room and that she'll be all alone in this horrible storm.

The sound of the door closing after him startles her. She hates him for leaving her there. For not protecting her when she implored it most. Her eyebrows furrow as soon as she hears thunder in the distance.

Norma walks quickly to his door once again, repeatedly knocking on the timber door.

"Alex!"

He was leaning against the wall in his room, waiting for her return. A devilish smile splattered on his face. He knew she'd be back.

"Please, open the door. I'm scared."

The tone of her voice shattered his heart. She sounds more like a child now than she did before. Her implore breaking his bones.

The door creaks open, and he finds her leaning her head on the door frame. Her eyes slowly find his in the dark, and that glance was all it took for him to cradle her in his arms.

"Come here," he told her softly, his strong arms wrapping themselves around her delicate figure.

Norma relaxed her face on his chest, relocating her hands to hold him firmly by his torso. Her body shakes when the house lights up, rapidly tightening her grip around him, waiting patiently for the thunder to hit.

As soon as the house shakes, he finds himself bringing her closer to him, as if possible. He hates how terrified she is. How something that soothes him to sleep, makes her body shake in dismay.

"Shhh," he tries to calm her, his fingers playing with her blonde locks. "It's all right. I'm here."

Not knowing what to say or do, he walked back to his room with Norma still wrapped in his arms. He waited for her to pull away, to ask him what he was doing-but she never did. This was something she wanted him to do, and he couldn't oppose.

He closes the door after them, sauntering back to the foot of his bed. He's never had her this close, only that time when he dismissed himself from room eleven, and it was driving him crazy.

"Here..." he tries to speak, his mouth dry. The grip of his hands loosen, and Norma takes the courage to look him in the eyes after all. "Take my bed. I'll watch over your sleep."

Walking past her, he grabs the only chair he had in his deserted space, moving it passively closer to his messy cot. Norma is just standing there, watching his every move.

"No, I'm not gonna make you sit there until I fall asleep."

There it is. She just said what Alex didn't want to hear. She's leaving. He made her feel uncomfortable, and he hated himself for it.

"I just, I thought that maybe you'd feel safer?" he expressed.

"You can't just sit there and wait until I fall asleep," she explains. "Your back won't like that."

"I don't care about that, Norma."

"But I do."

"Just stay here."

She gives him a weak smile, knowing this is a battle that she won't win.

Walking towards the bed, he pulls down the comforter all the way. He stands aside as he waits for Norma to get in, mildly covering her body making sure she was tucked in.

Another lightning strike and she covers her face with the thick duvet. Alex smiles. Her squeals are filling the room.

"It's all right," he reassures her. "The storm will pass soon."

Norma pulls down the cover just enough to reveal her blue eyes. Another flash illuminates the dark room, giving him the chance to contemplate her.

Alex walks back to the chair, dragging it closer to the side of his bed. The bed that after tomorrow will forever linger her smell. The flowery scent of her hair. The goodness of her skin.

"How come you're so afraid of this weather?"

She lays on her side, facing Alex completely. He leans in and pulls the rest of the quilt for her, earning a satisfied and shy smile from Norma. He relaxes his elbows on his knees, assembling himself into the intolerable chair.

Norma takes a deep breath. "I've never liked this weather. When I was a little girl, I remember I used to hide in the closet with my stuffed animals, talking to them and soothing them because I always thought they were as scared as me."

"How old?"

"Nine... maybe eight," she explains. "It all started because of this awful and repetitive nightmare... It never went away. I never had anyone to look after me at that age. My mom was passed out most of the time, my dad as drunk as I could remember... and my brother... He-he was doing his own thing. I would always wake up to having no one there... Only my stuffed animals."

Alex kept his lips pressed together, carefully listening to her hushed words about her past.

"Does that mean that I'm one of your stuffed animals tonight?" he smiles widely at her, wanting to ease her nerves.

A chuckle escapes her lips. "Something like that."

"What am I? Like a teddy bear?"

"You're more like Lotso from Toy Story."

"I can't be Lotso... He's mean."

"He's adorable and smells good."

They both smile at her words, the booming thunder shaking the house once again. Her eyes closed at the feeling.

"It's okay," he whispers. "You're not a little girl anymore; you have me here to look after you."

The sincerity in his voice made her believe everything he told her.

"I'm sorry."

"About what?"

"This bed is comfy," she smiles. "I know that chair is not."

He looks down at himself and grins. "Anything for you, Norma."

"Thank you, Lotso," the name escapes her lips before she had time to stop herself. He doesn't hate the name but loves that she thinks of him as one of her guardians. He would always protect her.

"Try to sleep, yeah? I'll be right here."

Alex gets on his feet as he searches for a different quilt inside the dresser near the window.

"Alex..."

"Yeah?" he looks back at her with the comforter in hand.

"You don't have to sleep there."

"Relax, Norma. I don't mind."

"Do you... do you want to sleep here?"

He is not sure if he heard right. Sleep where? With her? In the same bed?

"No," he says. "Stay there."

"No, I mean... Get in here. I can make a barrier with pillows if you'd like..."

"I don't want that," he whispers. "I mean... I don't want you to make a pillow barrier."

She smiles. "Then get in here."

"Are you sure?"

Her eyes find his. "I'm sure."

Norma scoots over, lifting the comforter for him, making it easier for him to settle himself in his bed.

"I will go back to the chair as soon as the storm is over," he reassures her. "Is that okay?"

The fact that he is still concerned about the whole sleeping in the bed situation makes her heart jump. "Okay."

They're both staring at the ceiling, the thunder outside illuminating the room now and then. Her nerves have eased, and her breathing went back to normal. She feels secure, and she has Alex to thank for that.

"Do you ever just stare at the ceiling until you find random figures and faces?"

"All the time," she confesses. "I do that all the time."

"We're weird human beings," he smiles.

"You more than me."

He turns his head, finding himself staring at the side of her delicate cheek. A smile is playing on her lips. Her eyes glued to the ceiling.

"I don't think that's right."

"I'm sure of it."

He sucks his teeth. "You don't get to call the shots."

"I always do."

Between chit chats, thunder and more lightning, Norma's body started to give up on her. Her eyelids felt extremely heavy for her liking. The stimulating conversation got the best of her.

"Try to rest, Norma. You need it."

She yawns. "Okay," she responds happily. "Good night, Alex."

Slowly but surely, she turns her back on him. He is not bothered by it, though. He loves having her here. Taking care of her. Protecting her. That is more than enough.

"Good night, Norma."

Alex is trying his best to ignore the fact that Norma is right next to him. In his bed. She is sound asleep, and he is glad that his presence somehow calmed her. That he could be her Lotso even if it were just for tonight.

Just when he is about to drift off to sleep, she moves. She mumbles something under her breath, she is dreaming. He is ready to wake her up from her nightmare, ready to tell her that he's there with her. That she's not alone. But Norma turns around unconsciously, her eyes closed and eyebrows furrowed. When he pulls down the cover to sit up and wake her, Norma drapes her left arm around his bare torso, pulling Alex closer.

He freezes, not knowing what to do. She is not aware of what she's doing. If she wakes up right now, she might freak out, and he doesn't want that. Not in a million years. As soon as he gets ahold of her wrist to remove her hand from him for him to get out of bed, she speaks.

"Don't," she murmurs under her breath. "Don't leave me."

His sturdy hand brushes the hair out of her eyes. She's wide awake.

"Norma?"

"Please, Alex. Don't go."

"The storm is over," he tells her frankly.

"I know," she mutters. "But I don't want you to go."

"Are you sure?"

Her big blue orbs find his caramel ones, and he can read her like an open book.

"I'm sure."

"Okay."

His robust arms pull her incredibly closer, allowing her to find the crook of his neck. Alex pulls the covers up, protecting her vulnerable body from the cold. An involuntary deep breath comes out of the back of his throat, betraying him. He needs to pinch himself somehow because what it's happening he is not to believe. What a dream.

"I told you that chair sucked," Norma mumbles against his chest. He lets out a nervous laugh.

"You did tell me."

"If you don't start listening to me you won't get very far."

He chuckles. "Is that right?"

"Mhm," she smiles, pulling him closer. Loving that he is her husband. Congratulating herself for marrying this piece of art.

"I will consider your advice, thank you very much."

"You're very welcome," she replies in a jolly voice.

Alex rests his chin on her head, keeping her close to his body.

"Lotso?"

He closes his eyes and giggles at the sudden change of name.

"Yes?"

"Thank you. For everything."

"It's my pleasure, Norma Louise."