I lied. Well, not actually lied. I just changed my mind. I went and saw NYSM2 again yesterday with my brother because he hadn't seen it yet (actually I just wanted to see it again and didn't want to go alone so I dragged him along), and I realized that the book really wouldn't be very long if I jumped right into the movie, so we're gonna have some "filler" chapters to build up the story some more before we jump into everything that happens in the movie. Sound good? (I dunno why you'd say no...) Also, I started writing this at 2 a.m. because I was still gross-sobbing about Anton Yelchin. (My poor, sweet Pavel. Why? WHY?) Heh... Anyway, enjoy!

Chapter One

I was wide awake. I had been for a while. Sleep wasn't coming anymore, and when it did, it was in short bursts. Nightmares constantly plagued my mind, contorting past memories into things straight out of a Stephen King novel - well, maybe not quite that dramatic. But they were still awful, and most of the time I woke up screaming or crying at ungodly hours of the night, waking up Danny as a result. Surprisingly, he'd never gotten angry with me about it. Apparently he was more concerned about my wellbeing than his lack of beauty sleep. Not that he really needed any, if that was what he was going for.

It was around two in the morning. That was one of those nights where I hadn't been screaming upon my exiting the nightmare. It was just shaking, though I wasn't sure if it was from being cold, and crying. The gross, ugly sobbing that comes from watching too many Supernatural season finales in a short span of time. And, yes, maybe I'm that person that enjoys that sick torture. But that wasn't what had me in tears that night.

Darren.

Almost eighteen months had passed since that arrogant, psychopathic dickhead was arrested and left my life for good, and I somehow still couldn't manage to get him out of my head. Endless tormenting constantly plagued my brain while I tried to sleep, showering my dreams with the incessant phone calls, the love proclamations, and the threats. Most nights, it was just the threats.

If he lays a finger on you, I'll kill him.

It was an empty threat. They were all empty threats, or at least I had hoped they were. I hadn't even liked Danny at the time. I didn't want him dead, obviously, but there was no real reason for me to be so freaked out about it now. Darren was locked away, the doctors having decided that he did have some form of a mental disorder. I couldn't remember the exact name for it, but it didn't matter. He was a danger to public safety, and he wouldn't be wandering the streets anymore. There was no reason for me to be afraid for Danny's life; there was no way Darren could kill him.

When I was awake, I was rational. Lying there at two in the morning, trying to slow my heart rate and pretend like my face and pillow weren't completely soaked from tears, I knew that Darren couldn't hurt Danny. But when I was asleep, it was different. My mind couldn't process that the threat had been removed and that Danny was safe, sleeping soundly beside me, snoring enough that the windows were probably rattling. The nightmare was too real.

I'll kill him.

Even when awake, the aftershocks of the dream were still present, trying to keep their hold on me for as long as they could. I had absolutely no idea why I hadn't had these nightmares when all of that shit was actually going on. Danny said I had PTSD; I thought I was going crazy.

"You can't hurt him," I whispered, gripping the sheets tightly in my fists as I stared into the darkness of the bedroom. I was proud of myself for how fierce my quiet voice sounded in the otherwise silent room. "You can't. I won't let you."

"Andie?" Danny's voice was nothing more than a mumble. He rolled over onto his side and rubbed one eye, cracking the other one open to look at me. I laid completely still, hoping he'd think I was asleep; I hated waking him. "Andie, I know you're not sleeping. Look at me."

I turned over until I was facing him. Both of his eyes were open now, though not fully. There was still a chance of him falling back asleep quickly. "I'm sorry for waking you up," I said quietly. "Go back to sleep. I'm alright."

He reached a hand out and slid it under my head. I sighed; he was feeling the pillow. "Andie," he said sternly.

"I was drooling."

His scoff was barely audible. His hand moved from under my head to my face. His thumb brushed beneath my eye. "Right. Because everyone drools from their eyes." I was silent. "How long have you been awake?"

"A half hour?" I wasn't totally sure.

"Why didn't you wake me up?" I shrugged. He opened his arms. "Come here."

I scooted over into his embrace, leaning my head against his chest. The warmth of his skin instantly stopped me from continuing to shake; it must've been the cold after all. He wrapped his arms tightly around me, holding me to him like I was his life line. He reached one hand up and began to stroke my hair.

"Are you okay?" he asked after a few minutes.

I shook my head. "I don't know."

"What was it tonight? Darren?" I nodded. "The same thing it usually is?" Again, I nodded.

He squeezed me a little and kissed my hair. "Nothing bad is going to happen to me. And nothing bad is going to happen to you, either." he said. "Don't worry about it anymore. He can't get us here."

"I know," I said in a small voice.

He ran a hand through my hair. His fingers got caught a couple times in my curls, to which he gently tugged them free. The number one downside to bedhead. "We're going to be okay," he said. "Just like you said. We're okay, and we always will be. Right?"

I tilted my head back to smile up at him. "Right."

He leaned down and kissed my forehead, lingering for a few moments. "You mean the world to me," he said, his lips barely brushing my skin. "I can't stand knowing you're hurting like this."

I kissed his lips, my hand on the back of his neck to hold him in place until I was satisfied. He didn't fight me. When I pulled away, he kissed my nose. "You make it hurt less," I said softly, laying my head on his chest again. "They're not as bad as they used to be. Maybe I'll be back to normal soon."

"I hope so. You're too tired all the time. It's weird not having you yelling at me all hours of the day. You need to get more sleep and be back to your usual hotheaded self."

I laughed a little. "I didn't think that was something you liked." I lightly tapped his shoulder. "Plus, I don't yell at you all hours of the day. Only when you deserve it."

It was Danny's turn to laugh. "Good. It'd be weird if you stopped." He pressed his face into my hair; I could feel his smile. "Try to go back to sleep. I want you to get as many hours as you can."

"You should fall back asleep, too, you know."

He rubbed little circles against the fabric of my t-shirt with his fingers. "No, I'm going to stay awake for a little while. You go ahead." He didn't elaborate, but he didn't need to. I knew why he was choosing to stay awake; he was waiting to make sure I fell asleep. To make sure I was okay. He always did.

I nodded then rolled over until I was facing away from him. He loosened his grip on me until I was settled and comfortable, and then he held me tightly once more. We were silent for a few moments until I spoke again. "Danny?" He made a quiet noise of acknowledgment. "Thank you."

He kissed the top of my head. "Of course," he said softly. He lowered his voice into an even quieter whisper. "Go to sleep, Andie. I've got you."

I closed my eyes and fell asleep to the feel of his chest rumbling against my back as he quietly hummed in the darkness.

oOoOo

A playing card skimmed my cheek. I lifted a hand like I was going to knock it away, but it was already on the floor. Lifting my arm so suddenly upset my balance, and I fell from the arm of the chair onto the cushions with a short yelp.

"Dude," Jack Wilder said, coming over to stand in front of me. He set his cards on the end table and looked down, the worry clearly present on his face. "Andie, how much sleep did you get last night?"

I shrugged and sat up, stifling a yawn. "Um, I woke up around two and didn't get back to sleep until closer to three. And then I woke up again at three-thirty." I really yawned this time. "So, not a whole lot of sleep."

Merritt McKinney walked out of the kitchen carrying two mugs of coffee and balancing another in the crook of his arm. After we joined the Eye and our final performance was over, the two of them decided to move into an apartment together. Usually when I came over it was to hear them fighting over who would get the top bunk. Today, they were focusing on something else: me. The very last thing I wanted them to focus on.

"You've got to get this issue figured out," Merritt said, handing me one of the coffee mugs. He took the one he was balancing on his arm and gave it to Jack; sitting down beside me, he took a sip of his own. "What if Dylan gets a mission for us and you're so tired you mess everything up?" He ruffled my hair lovingly, giving me a sarcastic smile.

I punched his shoulder. "Don't be ridiculous. You'll mess something up before I do."

Jack wedged himself into the seat on my other side and slung an arm over my shoulders. "Good joke," he said politely. "But really, Andie, you need to get this sorted out. The bags under your eyes are darker than your soul."

Merritt slapped him a high-five behind my head. I smiled a little. "Very funny." I laid my head on Merritt's shoulder and tapped Jack's cheek with my fist. "It's not like I can help it, guys. I can't control what I think about when I sleep." I gave a short laugh. "I can hardly control what I'm thinking about when I'm awake."

"Merritt could always hypnotize you into not having nightmares anymore," Jack said, leaning on my shoulder so the both of us were slumped over on the mentalist.

"I don't know that that's how it works," I said slowly. I tried to fight a smile and failed. Jack stared at me and the smile turned into a grin. I threw an arm around his neck and gave him a side hug. "But thanks for the suggestion."

Merritt poked Jack in the side of the head. "I couldn't hypnotize her, anyway. She's seen all my tricks."

"Could I do it?" Jack asked, sitting up a little more. His expression turned to one of an overexcited puppy. "I've been practicing, Andie, I swear I have been! I'm good at it!"

Merritt threw his head back and cackled. "He's actually terrible at it."

Jack bolted upright and leaned across me to punch Merritt in the stomach. The older man groaned a little and shoved Jack off the couch. Both of them were laughing, and so was I. Jack rolled over onto his back and clasped his hands behind his head. "I'm getting better at it. You've gotta admit it. I'm a lot better at mentalism than you are at throwing cards." He looked up at me. "He's horrible. The cards don't even go a foot before they come back at him."

"I know how to do it," Merritt insisted, kicking Jack's foot.

"Playing cards aren't boomerangs, Merritt. That's not what they're supposed to do. You just suck at life."

Merritt jumped off the couch and tackled Jack, to which they both started wrestling with each other. I laughed from the couch, taking large gulps from my coffee and feeling the liquid energy starting to wake me up. When it was completely drained, I set the mug aside and resumed watching the show going on before me. Merritt had Jack in a headlock, but Jack dug an elbow into the mentalist's side and succeeded in getting loose. Their yelling was all I could hear.

Merritt tried to stand. I cupped my hands around my mouth just as Jack wrapped his arms around Merritt from behind and sent him to the floor again. "Careful, Jack," I said. "Merritt's old bones aren't what they used to be."

Spoke too soon. Merritt reached out a hand, grabbed my ankle, and yanked me off the couch and to the floor. The two of them laid on their backs on either side of me and chuckled. They high-fived each other again. "Got her," Merritt said.

"Hope you're awake now," Jack went on. "You look pretty awake."

I bumped his shoulder with my forehead. "Thanks, guys." I stretched my arms out. "Also, I'm pretty sure I got rug burn on my elbows when you dragged me off the couch."

"Have fun explaining that one to Danny," Merritt said cheekily. I glared.

Jack rolled onto his side and laid his head on his arm. "Where is Danny, by the way? What're you even doing here?"

"You say it like I don't come over a lot."

"You don't," Merritt said. "You're usually busy with Danny, do whatever it is you two do on a daily basis." He wiggled his eyebrows. "What would that be, exactly?"

I rolled my eyes. "Well my day usually consists of watching TV and reading and teaching myself new magic tricks while Danny paces and tries to figure out how to get the Eye to give us a mission already."

"So basically, what all of us are thinking about doing, he's actually doing?" Merritt said, clarifying.

I nodded. "Yeah. I'm getting a little tired of it, honestly. They'll give us a mission when they have one ready. There's no sense in pushing it. It's the Eye, after all. We should trust their judgment." I shrugged. "So that's why I'm here. I had to get out of the apartment for a little while. And he keeps trying to get me to take a nap."

"Why don't you?" Jack asked. "You need more sleep. You look half dead."

"I usually do."

Merritt frowned. "You're paler than you usually are, sister. And Jack was right about the bags under your eyes; you look like a walking corpse."

I scowled. "Good to know you guys think I'm pretty."

"You already know you're pretty. You don't need us to tell you."

I nudged Jack's shoulder with my own. "Thanks, buddy."

We were quiet for a little while, just lying there on the floor. Merritt's lips were pursed like he was in deep thought, which is never a good thing. After a few more minutes, he turned his face toward Jack and me. "Do you think if you talked to Dylan he'd do something about it? Something to help?"

"Good idea, Merritt."

"Thanks, Danny," Merritt said.

The three of us froze, then shot up off the floor altogether a second later. Danny was leaning against the doorframe, his arms folded across his chest. I was expecting anger, or even a little bit of irritation, since I hadn't exactly told him where I was going before walking out while he was in the bathroom, but there wasn't any of that on his face. There was just relief.

"I was hoping I'd find you here, Andie," he said, strolling further into the room. "And I already thought to ask Dylan what we could do about her insomnia, but she won't let me," he said to the other two.

Jack and Merritt both turned toward me with frustrated glares. I held up my hands in defense. "I'm not an insomniac. I get a few hours every now and then. And I don't want Dylan to know. He's got enough to worry about already, between communicating with the Eye to get us a mission and putting up with Daniel's constant complaints."

Danny wrapped an arm around me, yanking me against his side. "Don't use my full name in that tone of voice. You sound like a disappointed mother."

"I called you by your full name for months after I met you."

"I know. Don't do it with that tone. I'm having childhood flashbacks."

I laughed and leaned my head on his shoulder. "Fine, I'll stop. Why are you here?"

He rolled his eyes. "What, am I not allowed to see you anymore? Or Jack and Merritt?" I knew for a fact that Danny had spent even less time in Jack and Merritt's apartment than I had. Something was up.

"I'm not going home to take a nap."

"Andie," he said warningly.

I crossed my arms and stepped away from him toward Merritt and Jack. "I won't be able to sleep anyway. Merritt gave me coffee." Danny glared at the older man. "Oh, don't do that. I needed it. He was being a good friend." Merritt ruffled my hair in confirmation.

Danny sighed. "Fine. You don't have to sleep, but at least come home. I don't like the idea of you spending a lot of time here. I don't want those two to corrupt you."

Jack laughed. "Pretty sure she corrupted us. She's the worst of the three of us."

"I know she is," Danny said, rubbing his forehead like he was fighting an oncoming migraine. He probably was. That's what usually happened when he was around the three of us.

I got up on my toes and pressed a kiss to his cheek. Merritt and Jack pretended to gag from behind me; I ignored them. "Come on, let's get you home and get you some Tylenol for that headache." I waved at Merritt and Jack. "Bye, boys." They waved back.

Danny followed when I started to walk toward the front door. "How'd you know?" he asked quietly.

I looked over my shoulder at him and smirked. "Lovers' intuition," I said with a wink. I took his hand in mine. "Come on. Let's go home."