In the thick of her fear, the first angry thought was, ‘how the hell am I supposed to answer you?!’ She fought the blanket off, pushing herself up against the couch. Wrapping her arms around her knees, she shivered, eyes wide in the dark. In a strange place, in the dark, afraid, she couldn’t move, couldn’t go to his voice.
Derek moved over to the couch and sat next to her, arm wrapping around her. “Bad dreams?” he asked, rubbing her shoulders softly. “I know you can’t tell me but don’t worry, I’m here. Nothing is going to get you, I promise.”
She nodded jerkily, but hesitated to let herself lean into the comforting touch. She hadn’t forgotten his reaction earlier. Part of her was convinced this was still part of the dream, though at least that meant it had turned from nightmare to something more innocuous. But Derek had been confusing before she fell asleep — it was okay for him to offer comfort, to read to her, but it wasn’t okay for her to seek it? She frowned and bonked her head on her knees.
Of course, dreaming or not, it didn’t really matter. All her short memories were nightmares. She shivered again and gave in to the arm around her shoulders, turning to bury her face in his chest.