Oikawa heard a smash, felt the air violently rushing past him as his body fell. Glass shattered somewhere, the sounds of the tiny bits scattering across the ground. The ground was far, far below, lost in blackness. "Iwa-chan!" he heard his own terrified voice call out, but there was no response. "Help me!"

His heart was thudding in his chest, harder and harder until he could feel the blood pumping through his fingertips. "Help!" he yelped one more time, his voice rising to hysteria as the air zoomed past his ears faster and faster. Without warning, his body slammed into the ground, tiny prickles of pain exploding under his skin as the shattered pieces of glass embedded themselves into him. "Iwa-chan!" he half-sobbed, the words catching in his throat as the blood that was previously racing through his veins now poured onto the ground, until he could feel the puddle of thick liquid spreading beneath him.

Tears, light and thin compared to the blood escaping him, slid down his cheeks as his entire body was taken into the clutches of pain itself. His shoulders shook with heavier and heavier sobs, even as each movement caused the agony to increase. He could feel every piece of glass digging deeper, past skin, past muscle, grinding against bone. "Help me!" he screamed, hoarse pain tearing at the edges of his voice just as the shards of pain were tearing into his body.

Glass smashed next to his ear, causing him to flinch away even though he felt nothing. No shards hit him, but the sound was deafeningly loud, echoing in his eardrum. He struggled to get up, to get away, but the pain was too intense and the world was too dark and uncertain. "Iwa-chan!" he sobbed out once more, desperately reaching his hands around to feel for any sort of support to pull himself up, only succeeding in driving the glass pieces further into his arms.

The agony paired with the emotional pain caused his next words to come out harsh and ragged, their syllables tearing at his throat like the jagged pieces of glass that were embedded in him. Every word hurt more than the last, the pain of speaking growing with every sound. "Why won't you help me?!"

"Oikawa!" Iwaizumi's familiar voice called out, not exactly loud but not particularly quiet either. "Oikawa!" A hand was shaking his shoulder, and Oikawa felt a strange tightness in his throat as he gradually became more aware. "Wake up! Tooru!"

Oikawa blinked open his eyes, the constriction of his throat making it hard to swallow and the pain still lingering deep under his skin. He could still feel the jagged ends of the glass grinding into his bones, sliding easily through his skin and muscles. "Iwa—" he managed to choke out, feeling the wetness of tears already on his cheeks.

"Hey," Iwaizumi said, his voice softer and more relieved now, "You were having a bad dream. Are you ok?" He leaned forward, wrapping his arms around Oikawa. Disoriented and with the fear still lingering in his veins, Oikawa was tempted to lean into the embrace. But he found himself sitting up on his own, placing one hand over Iwaizumi's arm as if to tell him he was fine. I'm too reliant on him.

"I'm ok," he answered shakily, sucking the air into his lungs as he tried to force the trembling from his limbs. He was still on the couch, where he had fallen asleep next to Iwaizumi during the movie. The room was dim with early dawn light. Oikawa blinked the sleep from his eyes, his heart pounding a little faster for every half-second the blackness covered his vision. He rubbed his arms, as if to make sure there was no glass embedded in his skin. It felt so real.

"It was just a dream," Iwaizumi echoed his thoughts, his embrace falling from Oikawa's shoulders, his hand running down Oikawa's arm to grasp his hand comfortingly.

"I know," Oikawa whispered, and he did know. But, no matter how rational he knew the thought was, he also knew that the dream itself was so real. It almost seemed impossible that it had only been a dream at all. A nightmare. It had been a while since he'd last had a nightmare—a real nightmare that shook him to the bone and left him still scared even when he woke.

"You ok?" Iwaizumi asked again, threading his fingers though Oikawa's. Oikawa drew in a breath, feeling the inhale shudder through his lungs. The exhale was smoother.

"I—" Oikawa let out a nervous laugh, reaching an arm up to wipe at his face, feeling the tears damp against the back of his hand. He turned back to Iwaizumi, forcing his lips into a smile. "Yeah, I'm ok."

Iwaizumi hesitated, his hand gently squeezing Oikawa's. "I'll get you a glass of water," he offered, but Oikawa shook his head.

"I'm fine," he said, the words sticking against his throat and the syllables coming out forced and unnatural. He took a breath, his next words coming out smooth and even. "Just…let's just sit, for a while." He'd be lying if he said he didn't want Iwaizumi to leave his side, even just for a second. What if he never comes back? he found himself thinking, the terror from his nightmare still racing through his memory. What if I'm stranded in the dark again?

"You're ok," Iwaizumi murmured, his voice gentle and soft. Despite his best efforts to sit on his own, Oikawa found himself leaning into Iwaizumi's warm body, letting the shorter brunet wrap his arms around him. "You're fine. You're safe." Oikawa's eyes drooped closed, only to snap back open as soon as the darkness swept across his vision. I'm fine. I'm safe. Even as he repeated the words in his own head, Oikawa found himself unable to close his eyes, unable to face the blackness.

"Iwa-chan," Oikawa whispered, staring blankly ahead, eyes open wide.

"Yeah?" Iwaizumi answered, his arms tight around Oikawa's body, which had slowly eased its trembling.

"I-I—" Oikawa stuttered, the words refusing to form on his tongue. Iwaizumi gave him a comforting squeeze, and Oikawa took a deep breath. "I can't—I can't close my eyes."

He felt Iwaizumi stiffen beside him. "You're ok," Iwaizumi said again, his voice still as even and soft as it had been before despite the tight nervousness in his body. "It's just because of the dream. You'll be fine. Trust me."

Oikawa felt a sigh shudder from his lungs, as if his own body was struggling to relax. "Ok," he whispered, the syllables almost too quiet in the air. "Ok. Ok." He drew in another deep breath, blinking once, twice, feeling the thrill of panic race through him. "Ok."

"You're fine," Iwaizumi repeated, holding Oikawa tightly.

"I'm fine," Oikawa answered back, the words catching in his throat. "I'm fine. I'm fine." The more he repeated it, the more he believed it. He turned slightly, wrapping his own arms around Iwaizumi's waist. "Thank you, Iwa-chan," he mumbled into Iwaizumi's shoulder as he pressed himself against the calm presence.

A soft chuckle vibrated through Iwaizumi's body as his hand reached up to run its fingers through Oikawa's fluffy hair. "Don't thank me, Shittykawa." The sun was brighter now, the room not as dim and much more comforting. "It's not like you."

Oikawa found himself grinning at Iwaizumi's words. "Thank you," he repeated teasingly, "Thank you thank you thank you thank you tha—"

"Ugh," Iwaizumi groaned, tilting his head back against the couch. "You're so annoying." Oikawa only widened his grin, because he could hear the matching smile in Iwaizumi's voice. He leaned against Iwaizumi as the shorter brunet's fingers continued to stroke his head. Iwaizumi laughed at that. "You're like a cat."

"Mmm," Oikawa smiled, his eyelids fluttering shut for a second before the fear set in and they snapped back open again. But Iwaizumi's touch really was calming. Oikawa tightened his arms around Iwaizumi's waist, breathing in deeply.

"Oikawa," Iwaizumi said, his voice more serious now but still unbelievably gentle. It hit Oikawa once more how unnaturally kind Iwaizumi had been to him since the start of the whole ordeal.

"Yeah, Iwa-chan?"

"Y'know…" Iwaizumi hesitated, his words coming out forced and deliberate. "I hate to bring this up, but…" Oikawa already knew what he was going to say, had already seen the marking on the calendar and dreaded it. "Tomorrow…the break is ending, and, um…well, what do you think about maybe…"

"Going back to school?" Oikawa finished for him, knowing that Iwaizumi was trying to be as gentle as possible but determined to show him how strong he really was. It's just school. It's not like I'm blind anymore. This'll be a piece of cake. What am I so worried about, anyway? But, in truth, he knew what he was worried about. He sighed, deciding that voicing his fear aloud would be the best way to face them. "Iwa-chan…what do we do?"

Iwaizumi sighed, uncertainty and nervousness mixed into that single soft exhale. "I don't know," he responded, knowing exactly what Oikawa had been asking. "I know…you're worried about everything being different. But it doesn't have to be. We can just act like we always have."

Oikawa dipped his head down, pressing his forehead against Iwaizumi's shoulder and letting out a soft hum of agreement. "Iwa-chan…do you want that?" he asked softly, not sure what he himself wanted. Do I want everything to be the same? Am I afraid of change? Am I aching for it? What do I want? What does Iwa-chan want? What's the best possible choice here?

Iwaizumi was silent for a moment. The air seemed to become heavier as both their minds raced to decide what to do. Eventually, Iwaizumi's huffed breath broke the silence. "Let's just…let's just not do anything. We'll keep things the same until we figure everything out. We don't have to rush anything."

Oikawa knew what he was talking about. He dreaded seeing people's reactions, dreaded the stares and glares he might get. No matter how strong he built himself up to be, he knew that he wouldn't be able to handle all that, day after day. "Ok," he whispered, staring unblinkingly at the fabric of Iwaizumi's shirt sleeve, "Let's just…not rush anything."

Iwaizumi slid his fingers through Oikawa's hair again, tugging softly against the strands as Oikawa leaned into the touch, a happy whine escaping him. Iwaizumi let out a chuckle, the anxiety in his chest expelling with the noise. "Just…remember what I said before, ok?"

Oikawa lifted his head, staring into Iwaizumi's eyes. "That you love me?"

A soft smile tugged at Iwaizumi's lips. "That I love you."

Hell yeah I got another chapter out! (Finally lol)

I had a nightmare the other night, in case you couldn't tell xD

Please please pleeeeaaase review! What do you want to happen when they return to school? What about volleyball practice? How they act towards each other around other people? Let me know what you think and what you want to see!