A/N: I don't own the Wrestlers. Not even in this younger form. :P Also, I'm making up place names and descriptions as I go along.

A/N: This chapter's title comes from Styx's "Show Me The Way".

Walkin' After Midnight

Chapter 21: Dreams Are Sacred

"He's waking up!" The voice filtered through his consciousness even as Jeff stared into the trees where Sera had disappeared. "Jeff! Can you hear me? Jeff!"

"Sera," he said.

"Who's Sera?" That voice sounded like his father's.

"I don't know," said a voice that was definitely Matt's. "His girlfriend's name is Serena."

Jeff opened his eyes, then had to close them again immediately. "Why is it so bright in here?" he muttered.

"Thank God," Gilbert said. "Are you all right?"

"Fine. Just a headache. What's going on?"

"You collapsed," Matt said. "What were you doing?"

"Talking to Serena on the phone. Oh my God! Serena!" He snatched up the cell phone, only to see that she'd hung up.

"Never mind about that now," said Matt angrily. "Are you doing drugs or something?"

"No!" Jeff said. Before he could finish the thought, however, someone started to pound on the door downstairs.

Matt and Gilbert exchanged glances before Matt stood up. "I'll go see who that is."

Once Matt was gone, Gilbert helped his younger son up from the floor. "Are you sure you're all right?" he asked. "We can take you to the hospital. I'll call work…"

"I'm fine, dad," Jeff said. "Go ahead to work. I'll be all right now. I think the nightmares are going to stop now."

"Oh?" Gilbert asked with a frown. "What makes you say that?"

Jeff shrugged. "Call it a feeling. The stress that was causing them is gone."

Footsteps pounded up the stairs quickly, followed by Matt's protests. "Jeff!" he heard, out on the landing.

"Serena?" he said. "Dad, could you get the door?"

Gilbert gave his son a curious glance, then opened the door. "He's in here."

Serena bolted through the door a few seconds later. She stopped in the doorway, staring at Jeff. "Are you okay?"

"Fine," he said, smiling at her.

She ran a hand over her head, unsure. "I took my aunt's car. Left them a note to say where I'd gone… I thought something happened to you."

"Something did." She bit her lip, and he noticed that her eyes were full of unshed tears. "Hey, Serena," he said, "I'm all right. Don't worry."

"I thought I was going to lose you."

Gilbert looked from the young woman to his son and back. "You've got five minutes, Jeff, and then she's going to have to go home." Jeff nodded, and his father smiled at Serena. "Although I might be persuaded to let her stay for breakfast." Then he brushed past Serena, allowing her to step into the room so he could pull the door partway closed.

Jeff patted the bed. "Come sit down. We've got a few minutes."

Serena hesitated, then perched herself on the edge of the bed next to him. "I was so scared. I thought you were dying. I almost wrecked getting over here."

Jeff put his arm around her and she leaned against him. "I'm okay," he said. "But it was the weirdest thing ever. I had this dream…" He shook his head. "Well, it doesn't matter. I'm okay, and so are you."

"At least until my aunt wakes up and finds out what I've done," she muttered. "She's going to ship me back to military school for sure for this."

"She won't," Jeff said. "She's pretty reasonable, and if Matt and I go over with you, it should be fine."

"But I don't have my license."

Jeff hugged her. "It was an emergency, and you didn't damage the car, right?"

"Yeah, I guess."

"Come on," Jeff said. "Let's go downstairs. Maybe my dad will take you home and Matt can follow in your aunt's car."

"Will you come with me?"

"Of course," Jeff said. "This is all my fault. What kind of a boyfriend would I be if I didn't come with you?"

"The kind I usually have?"

"That sucks. But I'm not like that."

"No," she said, the hint of a smile on her lips. "You're not. You're special."

Jeff grinned. "That's the second time this morning I've heard that, so it must be true. Come on, let's go downstairs."

%

Jeff sat down next to Serena and turned to Matt and Gilbert. "I need to help Serena out in explaining this to her aunt."

"You haven't explained it to us yet," Matt said.

"I know." Jeff looked down at the table. "You guys know I've been having nightmares. It's… It's really complicated, but suffice it to say that the nightmares should stop now and I'm going to be fine."

"You passed out," Matt said. "And we couldn't wake you up. You were babbling about someone named Sera…"

Jeff sighed. "I couldn't remember my dreams, is all. And now I should be able to. Like I said, I'm fine."

"You should still get those tests run," Gilbert said.

"I will," Jeff said, "but they're going to come up clean. I can't explain how I know it, but they will. It's going to be fine. I'm sorry I scared everyone. I feel bad about you rushing over here, Serena."

"Well, at least I get to meet your dad," she said, smiling, "and unlike you two, he doesn't seem to hate me right off the bat."

"I try to give people a chance," Gilbert said. "I thought the boys did, too, but maybe I was wrong?" He looked at his sons.

"Sometimes, we need convincing," Jeff said with a smile. "I guess that's one of my shortcomings. I'm working on it, though."

"And you're doing a good job," Serena said, nudging her boyfriend.

"Thanks," he said.

"So that's all you're going to tell us?" Matt said. "That the tests will come out clean and that the nightmares are over now? What if you're wrong? What if they aren't over?"

Jeff sighed. "Okay, fine. I've been having these dreams about a girl named Sera. She reminds me of Serena, but they're different. Sera's got an old fashioned look to her. Anyway, she takes me places and shows me things, and that's what the nightmares were."

"Just random dreams about some weird girl?" Matt said, frowning.

"Random dreams that were trying to get me to face my fears," Jeff corrected. "I didn't want to do that, but now that I have, I shouldn't be having the nightmares anymore."

"Well, I hope you're right, Jeff," Gilbert said. "I hope that the dreams will stop now that you've faced your fears. But we're still getting the tests done."

"Good," said Jeff. "Then everyone will see that I'm okay."

"That still doesn't explain why you heard a different song than the rest of us at the doctor's appointment," Matt said.

"I was hearing Sera's soul music. I think she thought it would make me remember."

"Remember what?" Serena asked.

"The dreams," Jeff said. "And it almost would, but it took that poem of yours, Serena. 'All that we see or seem is but a dream within a dream.'"

"It's not mine," she said, "it's Poe's."

"You know what I mean," Jeff said. "It took those words to trigger me into remembering."

"Why, though?" she asked. "It could have been anything. Why those particular words?"

Jeff shrugged. "Maybe because they're true in a sense? They're certainly true of the dreams themselves. They seemed real enough, but they weren't. Why does anything happen in dreams?"

"You were awake when I said them, though," she pointed out.

"It doesn't matter," Matt said. "What matters is that you're fine. And we'd better get you back to your aunt's, Serena."

"She's going to kill me," Serena moaned. "I'm going to end up back in military school for sure."

"I've known her a long time," Gilbert said. "I'm sure if we take you home and explain it to her, she won't be unreasonable. I'll drive you and Jeff over in my car and Matt can follow in hers."

"Maybe you'd better drive Mrs. Massaro's car, dad," Matt said. "She's probably less likely to get upset that way."

"Fine," said Gilbert. "I'll drive Sally's car and you kids can follow me in my car. Okay?"

"Thanks," Serena said. "I really appreciate it. I don't want to have to move again. I'm finally happy." She smiled at Jeff.

"Me too," he said. "Come on. The sooner we go, the sooner we can come back. Maybe you can come back with us, Serena."

"I don't know if she's going to let me come back. I don't want to push it," Serena said.

"Keys?" Gilbert asked. Serena passed them over to him.

"Thanks," she said again. "I really appreciate this."

"Not a problem," Gilbert said. "See you kids over there."

"We'd better get moving, too," Matt said, once Gilbert had gone outside and started the other car. "I don't want poor dad to get stranded over there."

Serena sighed again. "Time to face the music," she agreed.

Jeff took her hand and squeezed it gently. "It'll be fine. You'll see."

The three of them went out to Matt's car and piled in, with Serena getting in the back. "So Serena," Matt said, as they waited for the car to warm up.

"Yes?" she asked.

"You went to military school?"

"Yep," she said.

"Was it as bad as it sounds?"

"Worse," Serena said. "It sounds scary, but it's more… I guess you'd call it humiliating."

"Humiliating?" Jeff echoed.

"Yeah. They want to break you down and build you back up their way. And if you're stubborn and hard headed, you spend a lot of time being broken down because it's just not something you can surrender to. You know what I mean?"

"Not really," Jeff said.

"It's like they try to kill whatever spirit you may have. They don't like it when you draw or write because those are creative things and they don't want you to think for yourself."

"Ouch," Matt said. "Jeff would die somewhere like that."

"I felt like I was dying," she agreed. "They don't like free spirits. I guess that's why my dad thought I needed to go. So that they could beat some discipline into me, figuratively speaking. I've never been so glad to get out of anywhere in my entire life. I'll be honest, guys. I thought this place was going to suck, but it was going to be better than military school, even if I was getting the crap beat out of me daily by the snotty girls here."

"Which you're not, are you?" Jeff asked.

"Please," she said. "They don't have the time for it here. They're too busy planning the prom and cheering for the football players." She paused. "No offense, Matt."

"None taken," Matt said. "Though why would that offend me?"

"Because football players are normally meatheads, but you're not. You're actually pretty cool, when you're not threatening me."

Matt blushed. "Oh, yeah. Sorry about that. It wasn't personal. I'm just very protective of Jeff."

"I'm glad to hear it," she said with a smile. "I'd much rather get along with you than have us be at odds."

"Me too," Matt said, as he made the turn into the Massaro's driveway. "Are you ready for this?"

"No," Serena sighed, "but let's go do it, anyway."

Jeff took her hand when they got out. "That's my girl," he said, squeezing her hand.

"I'm glad you're here, Jeff," she said.

"Me too," Jeff said. "Don't worry, Serena. I've got your back."

"That's nice to know," she said. "Thank you."