Despite the fact he was sitting in his first warm safe house in months. Despite the fact that there was all 4 survivors being alive and not biting and screaming and clawing. Despite the fact that he had 4 high powered guns and unlimited ammo no more than 10 feet away and bars on the door to shoot through.

Despite all that, Ellis felt scared.

Rain poured down onto to the roof, thunder roared (or was that a Tank?) and most unsettlingly, 6 or more Witches cried, sobs unbearably close to the door.

The Witches were the least of Ellis' fears though. Whenever he closed his eyes, blinked, or spaced out at all, his thoughts wandered and replayed, either making him imagine getting led into hoards of Infected by a Jockey, having his lungs and ribs smashed by Chargers, or feeling the soles of his shoes melt to his feet and keep on burnin' though from a Spitter's acid.

The only way to stop them was never close your eyes and always keep your mind occupied. Ellis started trying to teach himself to sleep with his eyes open.

Having trying to fall asleep for the last 3 hours -- a smokerss tongue wrapping it's silmy self around his midsecting and just starts pulling for all it was worth -- Ellis turned to the figure sleeping close to him, legs hooked over the hicks and jacket of the white suit thrown over the pair in an attempted blanket.

Ellis started mumbling a story. Real quiet. But every time he got to crucial part in any story, a Witches loud sob would break his sentence.

"Shit, I'ma 'bout to start crying…" Ellis whispered, sighing. Suddenly there was a slight scratching at the door. Ellis froze, listening. It continued.

Then Ellis got scared like he did, from those nightmares he has even without closing his eyes. And he would cry in a way he can't help. Nick was always awake in seconds -- no matter how silent Ellis cried -- automatically holding the crying man as well as he knew how.

Ellis would cry and accept the words that poured silently from Nick's mouth. Listened as Nick told him it was just a tree branch and there is no way anything could get in and that always, always will I protect you, Overalls. Then listened as him and Nick made the only sounds in the room. After Nick had been assured Ellis was ok with his kisses and had fallen back asleep, Ellis pushed up close to him, staring down the door with a gun held tight to his chest.

The next morning, when Nick woke, and Coach and Rochelle opened their eyes, Ellis pretended that he hadn't spent the whole night in fear.

He shook his head, pulling his hat off, running a hand through his hair and tugging the cap back on, feeling like it was a mask. There was no evidence of his fear that day, only his love for Kiddy Land and his stories of Keith.

Here goes another day.

I just want to say a massive thank you to every one who has read and or reviewed on this. Thank you all!

Also, since I forgot to mention it, but the quote from Witch, "She sounds like my ex-wife." Nick actually said that. Same with (in this story) Ellis' "Shit, I'mma start cryin' in a sec." So, I don't own the quotes, or the characters, or anything except the idea, which was thought of because of the quotes.