Chapter 23: Nightmares & Sleepwalking
Amanda's POV
"Randy . . . are you okay?"
I lean against the bathroom doorframe as eye the vampire lying on the bed. He raises his head and looks at me with a neutral expression on his face before dropping his head back down to his pillow.
"Yeah . . . I'm fine," he tells me as he sits up. "With everything that happened today, I forgot about the fact that I still have a few nights of nightmares to get through before they're completely gone for good."
"You're seriously thinking about this?" I ask in slight disbelief as I walk over to him. "You are the Viper! You don't get trapped in mind games, you set them. They're just nightmares."
"It's just . . ." he tells me with a shrug. "I have no idea what to expect. I have no idea how bad the nightmares can get. Who knows what could happen? I hate not knowing what's going to happen!"
"I see." I tell him as I crawl onto my side of the bed. "All I can say is all you have to do is pull through it. These nightmares may seem tough, but I know you won't get affected by them. All you have to do is not let the nightmares get to you."
"We'll see about that." I hear Randy mumble under his breath as I look up at the clock, noticing that it was a little past midnight. He drops back into the bed dejectedly and brings the sheet over his body, turning away to face the wall. "Good night"
"Yeah . . ." I say as I snap my fingers, making the lights turn off in an instant. I crawl under the sheets next to him and turn to face the other direction, a small budding feeling of worry starting to build within me. "Good night."
Later that night
"How are you feeling Amanda?" asks my alter ego as she takes a sip of her tea.
"Knowing for a fact that Randy has to go through bad nightmares for the next few nights and he's actually worried about it, I'm feeling quite worried myself, Anaconda." I tell her with a scowl as I look at the cup of tea in my hands.
"What have I told you 'Manda?" she asks me with a smirk. "You are welcome to call me by Ana if you want. Anaconda sounds too formal after how long we've known each other."
"Sorry . . . force of habit." I tell her with a scowl as I look out the window of her home. The Anaconda lives within my mind, and she has made herself quite at home, using a mental replica of my loft in St. Louis as her base of operations. "Randy doesn't like the fact that he has no idea what to expect in his nightmares, but we both know it'll be something bad."
"Knowing that fucking bastard Sergei, of course it's going to be bad," mumbles the other me as she pets Nala, her pet green anaconda at her side. "I still can't believe he was strong enough to plant a seed of nightmares into Randy's psyche after only having our powers for just a short time. It's impressive, but annoying."
"You can say that again." I mumble as I sense something, the feelings of pain, anguish, and fear coming from somewhere outside of my body.
"You sense it too right?" Ana asks me as she looks around the living room.
"Yeah," I say as I cross my arms. "It's strong and suffocating. I definitely feel it, but it's not coming from me."
"It's coming from Randy. I can sense it rolling off him. I believe he's found himself in some trouble," she tells me with a neutral look on his face. "You better go. See if he's okay."
"You're right. I'll see you later." I say with a wave of my hand as I close my eyes. I open my sleepy eyes weekly and I turn my head to see Randy still facing the wall. His body shivers as if it was cold and small murmuring noises escape his lips as his face grimaces in pain, his eyes shut tightly.
"I'll kill you . . . leave me alone . . . AARGH!" the last word comes out as a small yell as he turns onto his back. His open mouth shows his fangs, already lengthened to their full form as his hands clench into fists.
"Oh Randy . . ." I trail off as I place a hand on his cheek, but he abruptly turns away before my hand could fully graze his cheek.
"It must be bad." I mumble to myself as I bring my hand to my face, going slightly wide eyed when I see the faint traces of sweat that came off Randy's face.
"Randy . . ." I say as I place a hand onto his shoulder. His body jerks at my touch, but not enough to force my hand away. I lean my head down to his ear so I can continue my thought. "Randy . . . it's going to be okay."
". . . 'Manda . . ." His voice is barely a whisper, but I easily recognize the pet name I went by since I was five years old.
"It's me Randy." I say with a small smile. I reach for his hand and interlock our fingers. "I'm right here for ya."
He doesn't verbally respond, but his tense body begins to relax under my touch and the shivering begins to cease.
"It's going to be alright Randy," I say in reassurance. "Everything is going to be okay. Just relax."
". . . 'Manda . . ." he says my name in relief as he turns onto his back. But then suddenly, his body tenses again and he begins to thrash his arms wildly in the bed. I have to jump off the mattress myself to avoid getting punched in the face.
"Well at least he's not yelling." I mumble under my breath as I watch him thrash wildly in the bed. About a good two minutes passes before his arms and legs stop thrashing around the bed and his body settles down to just shivering.
"Here we go again . . . I so hope he doesn't hit me." I mumble under my breath as I climb back onto the bed and kneel at Randy's side. I place my hands on both sides of Randy's pained face, and in an instant his face begins to relax, but his eyes remain tightly shut.
" . . . 'Manda . . . are you there?" he asks me in a whisper as I feel his hand touch my knee.
"Yes . . . Randy I'm here." I say with a small sigh as I stroke his left cheek; lying on my side next to him as I did. "I'm right here babe."
I feel his arm wrap around my waist and bring me close to his chest, his body noticeably relaxing as his other arm wraps around me snugly. His breath tickles my face, his panting returning to a normal pace of breathing.
"It's going to be okay baby," I say in a whisper as I move upward so that Randy and I were face to face. I kiss his cheek before pulling his head to my shoulder, practically cradling him like I would cradle a baby. "It's going to be okay."
Despite my love for sleep, I keep myself awake till the sun comes up to watch for another nightmare induced outburst, but luckily for me, Randy didn't go into another fit. I move my tired eyes to look at the clock on the wall to see what time it is.
"Huh . . ." I say with a yawn as I look at the clock. "It's a little bit after seven."
The minutes continue to pass as I look up at the ceiling. Randy continues to sleep soundly in my arms, his breath tickling my skin as he continues to use my shoulder as a pillow. I bide my time by tracing out the visible ink along the base of his neck, the intricate tribal tattoo the object of my attention.
"This was one of the first tattoos you ever got." I mumble incoherently to the sleeping vampire as I trace the tattoo with my finger, slightly visible thanks to the wife beater he wore. "You've had it ever since our rookie years. It's probably one of the most recognized tattoos in sports entertainment."
"Did someone say 'sports entertainment'?" I hear Randy mumble as I feel his lips touch the skin of my collarbone.
"So you're finally awake?" I ask as I look down at his head.
"Yeah . . . I felt this small sensation come across the top part of my back and I couldn't help but wake up to find out what it was." he tells me with a small smirk, but as soon as he looks up at my face, his smirk instantly dies away. "You didn't sleep last night didn't you?"
"My eyes gave it away?" I ask as I raise an eyebrow sarcastically, though it doesn't help to change his mood. He slowly nods his head yes and lets out a small sigh as he untangles his arms from my waist.
"How long have you been awake?" he asks me as he looks me in the eyes apologetically.
"Probably since two," I tell him with a shrug. "I could sense your pain and fear from dreamland and I woke up to see you shivering with this pained look on your face. I stayed awake the rest of the night just in case you would have another outburst."
"I had an outburst?" he asks me quite surprisingly as he raises an eyebrow.
"You wildly thrashed your arms and legs in bed. I had to leave before you had a chance to hit me and didn't come back till you calmed yourself down." I tell him as I let out a yawn.
"Sorry . . . for disturbing your sleep and almost hitting you last night." he tells me apologetically as his hand lands on my cheek. "The nightmare I had last night . . . was completely unbearable."
"Mind spilling the details?" I ask, slightly curious to what could have happened in his head.
"Let's just say I was brutally tortured . . . and leave it at that." he tells me with a serious expression on his face as he pecks my cheek, is hand still softly caressing my cheek.
"That bad huh?" I ask, not really ready to let the subject die just yet.
"It was . . . brutal." he tells me, a haunted look on his face. "I was weak as a human, so the pain was that much worse. I was burned, whipped, electrocuted, it was fucking horrible."
"I can't believe you had to go through all that," I say as I wrap my arms around him for a hug. "That bastard Sergei deserves to be dead for what he's done. I'm still pissed that he actually used my power to do this to you."
"What's done is done." he tells me with a sigh as he returns my hug. "All I know is that I just survived two nights of nightmares, which means the rest of my nightmare filled nights are winding down."
"Look at you. You're actually finding something positive out of a dark situation!" I say with a small smirk as I look at Randy eye to eye.
"Like I have said before, I'll say it again. You really do have a dark sense of humor 'Manda." he tells me with a small chuckle.
"It's one of my more favorable qualities." I say with a chuckle as I let out a yawn. "It has somehow helped me get far in life."
"That yawn reminds me . . . You need some sleep." Randy says with a small grin as he quickly gets out of my hold and out of the bed.
"Nah . . . I'm good." I tell him, but a much bigger yawn manages to pass by my lips as I prop my head on my elbow.
"Don't try to talk out of it 'Manda. We both know how crabby you can be when you lose sleep. To spare the rest of us from your potential foul mood and verbal tirades that are sure to follow, I order you to go back to sleep." he tells me as he walks over to the door.
"You're ordering me? Who told you you're my boss?" I snap at him as I raise an eyebrow.
"See . . . Your foul mood is starting to appear already," Randy tells me as he quickly runs back over to my bedside. "Just go back to sleep 'Manda. You'll feel much better when you wake up."
"Oh really?" I ask skeptically as I cross my arms as I drop my head back onto my pillow. "And how would you know?"
"Don't make me use my compulsion on you!" he tells me with a playful scowl as he points to my face.
"Like it could ever work against me?" I ask playfully as I turn away and face the wall.
"Go to sleep . . . or I won't give you your gift."
"What gift?" I ask as I slowly turn around to face him with a scowl, the mention of a gift peaking my interest.
"You'll get it . . . AFTER you go to sleep." he tells me with a smirk as he pecks my lips before walking back toward the door. "I'll see you in a few hours."
I let out a small grunt as I hear the door open and then close. My tired lids droop downward, telling me that it's time to succumb to the darkness that is sleep. I give in reluctantly, inwardly wondering what the gift Randy got me could possibly be.
Randy's POV
"I finally get some company down here!" says Monica as she looks up from her coffee mug. "I was feeling lonely for a second."
"Well don't worry Monica. You're friendly, neighborhood Viper is here to rescue you from the grasp of loneliness." I tell her with a smirk as I walk over to the cabinet and grab myself a mug. After quickly pouring myself a cup, I walk over to join the younger twin at the island and I instantly notice the sun pendant hanging from her neck. "I see Wade gave you your gift last night."
"Yeah; he gave it to me right before we went to bed," she tells me with a small smirk as she looks at the necklace. "I was so surprised by the sudden gift that I accidently clocked Wade right in the nose with my right hook. He was KNOCKED OUT!"
"Did you manage to straighten his nose . . . Or did you make it even more crooked?" I ask with a smirk as I take a sip of my coffee.
"Ha, ha; very funny Orton!" exclaims Wade as he, Ted, and Adam walk into the kitchen.
"Randy makes a good point. Your nose is kinda crooked to the left," says Ted as he points to the nose in question. Wade sends Ted a menacing glare to shut him up. "Okay, I'll be quiet now!"
"You better!" mumbles Wade as he walks over to the cabinet.
"Wade, I'm sorry for knocking you out last night. You just took me completely by surprise when you gave me this." says Monica as she points to her new necklace.
"Hold up for just one second!" says Adam as he walks over to Monica. He narrows his eyes at the necklace in question before turning around to face his fellow werewolf. "Where did you get this?"
"The souvenir shop back in Ocho Rios. They had a jewelry section in the back of the place that sold real jewelry." says Wade with a shrug as he pours himself some coffee.
"Wait a sec! THAT'S REAL?" Ted asks in disbelief. "All I got for Barbie was a freaking snow globe! Why are you trying to make the rest of us guys look bad hmm?"
"Calm down Ted," I say with a small chuckle. "Knowing you, you'll get something really nice for Barbie."
"I got to agree with Ted on this one. With the gifts we got for our girls compared to the one you got Monica . . . You basically left us in the dust." says Adam as he gestures to himself, Ted, and me.
"You shouldn't be adding Randy to your equation Adam. He also bought something from the jewelry section for 'Manda." says Wade with a shrug as he sat next to Monica. Adam and Ted look at him wide eyed before turning, deadpanning faces completely glaring at me.
"Way to rat me out Wade." I mumble as I narrow my eyes at him.
"An eye for an eye mate. An eye for an eye." he says to me with a smirk as he tips his mug in my direction. "Did you give it to her yet?"
"Not yet," I say with a shrug. "She's still asleep."
"She should be after the yell you let out last night." mutters Adam as he shrugs. "Dude, were you having a nightmare last night, or did you actually hit yourself in the balls?"
"Wait . . . you heard me yell last night?" I ask as I put my mug on the table. Monica, Wade, and Adam all nod their heads yes. "I didn't think I was that loud."
"You were to us people who have sensitive hearing," says Monica with an eyebrow raised. "Care to explain?"
"Back when we were fighting Sergei and his goons in the parking lot under the embassy, Sergei used the power that he gained from Amanda to plant . . . a seed of nightmares into my mind." I tell them with a scowl. "Amanda's gotten rid of most the problem, but I'm still going to suffer a few more nights of nightmares before the problem is fully gone."
"That damn bastard is even messing with you in death," mutters Monica as she crosses her arms. "Sneaky . . . I'll give him that."
"Sergei had one last trick up his sleeve," mutters Wade as puts a hand under his chin. "When did the nightmares start?"
"It was the night after we told those scary stories to each other. Amanda says that something from that day must have set the nightmares off." I tell them as I finish the last of my coffee.
"I've heard about this before. When a seed of nightmares start to bloom in a person's mind, it's usually set off when the person remembers a traumatic event that has happened in their life," mutters Monica as she taps her forehead. "Snap . . . Elizabeth Cain! That must have set it off!"
"Shit! I think you're right!" I say in realization as I snap my fingers. "That night is a night I will never forget."
"What I don't get . . ." mumbles Ted as he shakes his head. "Was the part where you said that Sergei used the power he gained from Amanda to plant that seed of nightmares into your brain. How is that possible?"
"Oh . . . did I forget to mention that?" I say as I go wide eyed for a split second. "Turns out Sergei had the ability of absorption. He could gain another person's abilities just by skin contact."
"So all the times you fought with him in the ring and those times he grabbed Amanda, he was gaining samples of your abilities?" asks Adam bluntly as he scowls.
"Basically . . . he even did it to Sheamus in that one match they had with each other." I say as I drop my cup into the sink.
"Well that's depressing to hear." mumbles Wade as he takes another sip of his coffee. He turns to the exit and goes wide eyed at what he sees. "Amanda?"
We all turn to see Amanda standing at the entrance still dressed in her sleepwear, but she had a glazed look in her eyes as she walked into the room.
"Are you okay 'Manda?" asks Ted as he raises an eyebrow at her. She answers with a small snort, which soon leads to loud snoring.
"Oh God . . . the Anaconda's sleepwalking!" says Adam with a chuckle as he spits out some coffee. "Amanda is seriously sleepwalking right in front of us!"
"I have to get my camera for this!" says Ted as he runs out the room. Amanda then suddenly turns around and slowly walks out the room like the sleepwalking zombie she currently was.
"Shouldn't we wake her up?" I ask out of genuine concern as we follow her out into the living room.
"Are you serious?" Monica asks me in disbelief as she crosses her arms. "Number one rule concerning sleepwalkers is to never abruptly awake them."
"Then what should we bloody do?" asks Wade as he crosses his arms.
"We need to gently walk her back to bed without waking her." says Monica as she looks at the rest of us.
"Aw . . . can't we wait until after she does one activity sleepwalking?" asks Adam. We all turn around to Adam, most of us in disbelief that he suggested that. "Sorry for asking!"
The doorknob turning gains all of our attention and we turn to see Amanda walking out the door and turning right.
"Follow that twin!" says Ted as he runs past us and out the door after Amanda with his camera at his face, Kelly Kelly, Kofi, Kaitlyn, and Cody right behind him.
"Well news travels fast." mutters Monica as we run after the group, running over to the side of the house to see Amanda walking precariously by the side of the pool.
"She's not going to jump in is she?" asks Kelly as we slowly walk toward the sleepwalking Diva.
"Oh I so hope not." I say for an answer, letting out a sigh of relief as she passed the pool. We follow her into the backyard where we find her climbing the stairs to the second floor, where Lita, Sheamus, Alicia, and Layla were all waiting at the top.
"Should we wake her up?" Lita asks us as Amanda reaches the balcony.
"Don't!" yells Monica. "Let's see what happens next."
The rest of us join the others on the balcony to see Amanda just standing there in front of the doorway that led into the hallway, perfectly still as a statue.
"She's basically stuck there." mutters Alicia as she crosses her arms. "Maybe she'll head back to her room by herself."
"I don't know." mutters Adam as he walks toward the still woman. "Sleepwalkers are very unpredictable."
Suddenly, Amanda's fist connects with Adam's crotch, sucker punching it to kingdom come, and taking us completely off guard, especially Adam.
"My NUTS!" exclaims Adam as his voice goes from normal to high pitch in 0.2 seconds flat. He collapses to the ground, clutching his probably blue balls as he did, cringing in pain the entire way.
"Are you okay?" Lita asks worriedly as she kneels down next to the fallen superstar.
"I'll be fine! But this was probably one of the worse low blows I've ever had happen to me." he tells us, his voice still high pitch as he bites his lip.
"Well . . . as long as you are okay . . ." mumbles Sheamus as he looks at the rest of us before falling into a fit of laughter, Ted, Kofi, Cody, and Wade all following suit.
"You guys are cruel." says Layla as she looks at the laughing men. "You're really laughing at him!"
"We know!" says Cody as he wraps his arms around himself. "It's just that we think it's very funny when it happens to other guys, but it's nothing to laugh about when it happens to anyone of us."
"Don't get mad at them Layla!" says Adam as he manages to sit up. "I would have done the same thing if it happened to anyone of them. Unfortunately for me, I decided to get too close to the Anaconda."
"Speaking of the Anaconda . . ." I mumble to myself as I walk into the hallway. I slowly follow her till we reach our room. She walks in and over to the bed, instantly dropping herself into the sheets, her head barely making the pillow.
"You went for some walk 'Manda." I say with a small smirk as I walk over to the bed. I gently pull the sheet from under her body and lay it out on top of her before leaving the room, closing the door and locking it just in case she plans to go on another 'walk'.
"She in there?" asks Monica as she walks up to me from down the hall.
"Yep . . . Hopefully, she'll stay put this time around." I say with a smirk. "Maybe she'll hit Adam in the balls again if she does go sleepwalking again."
"You guys are so cruel to each other." Monica says with a disapproving nod of her head as she walks down the hall.
"Why thank you." I say with a smirk, satisfied that not only is Amanda back in her room, but I have also come up with an idea to surprise Amanda with her gift.
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