Chap. 3
Elizabeth Burke rolled over and strained her ears, trying to hear what had woken her from a sound sleep. When no other sound came forth, she placed her head back on the pillow and closed her eyes, intent on going back to sleep. Then she heard it again, the soft, low moaning that could only be a nightmare. Then came the blood curdling scream that pierced her ears and broke her heart at the same time. That scream meant that something was wrong on so many levels.
Peter Burke was woken from a sound sleep by the most terrifying screech he had ever heard. He was out of bed before his wife even had time to throw her covers back. That cry sounded like a wounded, frightened animal, not a human being. Yet that awful shriek was coming from his son.
"No! No, please! I'm sorry!"
Neal jolted awake, warm sweat making his entire body sticky. The tears streaming down his face dripped onto the bed, disappearing into the sheets. Spotting his dad sitting on the side of the bed, Neal threw himself into the arms of the first person to ever make him feel truly safe.
El rubbed his back as he continued to cry. The shivering was now subsiding and the sobs were mere sniffles now.
Peter ran his fingers through the scared kid's hair, trying to offer some sort of comfort in any way he could. He slowed his breathing and tried to regulate his pulse, hoping Neal would follow suit. Wrapping his arms tighter around his boy, Peter kissed the head that had somehow buried itself in his chest.
Neal finally lifted his head to see two very concerned people sitting beside him. He knew he would have to tell them about the nightmares, but he didn't want to. He just wanted to wrap up in his blankets and sleep for days.
El felt the heat radiating off of the body she was hugging. Neal's fever had spiked again. That was probably what brought on the nightmare. Rising quickly, she headed for the bathroom to find a fever reducer.
"Neal, buddy what happened? I'm guessing you had a nightmare."
"Yes."
"Do you want to talk about it?"
"No!"
El chose that moment to walk back into the room with the meds. To Neal, she was al life saver. To Peter she was an interruption.
"Here, sweetie lets get that fever down."
Twenty minutes later Neal was asleep, curled into his bed clothes with Peter and Elizabeth on either side of him keeping the bad dreams away.
Peter thought about Neal's nightmare long into the night. He and Neal were going to talk about it whether the kid wanted to or not. This was not something he wanted for his son. Neal's sleep should be peaceful, not broken by nightmares. Peter realized that it might be time to talk to Neal about seeing that therapist.