A few weeks later...
The murmuring buzz of the bedside lamp rang monotonously, bugging like a toddler shaking you awake in the middle of the night as it seemed as if it grew increasingly louder the more attention you gave to it. The blankets were warm, but Jug's chest remained warmer, so I couldn't help but snuggle further into his chest and bury my face into his neck to protect my tired eyes from the lazy light in the bedroom, which we'd recently decided to sleep in rather than on the living room sofa.
His arms wrapped around me more snuggly, pulling me further onto his bare chest while he threw a leg instinctively on top of mine. The previously soft beating of his heart grew more apparent, beating too rapidly, resembling my shaky hands after a nightmare.
"Juggie?", I mumbled, following my question with a yawn. "You okay? It's the middle of the night.".
"I-I'm fine. Go back to sleep, princess. I didn't mean to wake you.", he whispered in response, rolling over and clicking the knob of the buzzing light, turning it off before clenching me back against him.
"You need to sleep too, baby, but I can tell something's up.". I groggily opened my eyes, them being met with the harsh new darkness I had then gotten accustomed to before I could see the despair on his face. His lip quivered, his breath concerning ly unsteadied while his eyes continued to be glued forward, diverted from my own.
"Jug, please. I'm no fool, you know. You're practically displaying the same symptoms I suffer when I get my... my flashbacks. Please talk to me. I just want to help you.".
"Betts, it's nothing, alright? I just had a l-little flashback from high school, that's all. I remembered this one moment that, in particular, I found scary at the time. It's all okay though. I'm fine now, see? I'm here now.". His words were pulled from his throat, each strained as it dragged through the mucky air, muddied with doubt.
"But you're not here.", I retaliated firmly. "You don't have to be okay. I don't think I've ever seen you this restless and anxious, Juggie. Look at me.". I reached up, tilting his face down and connecting the tips of our noses while I rubbed away a stray tear near his eye.
"Let's have a dance party.".
"Wait, what now?", he queried, perhaps startled by my out-of-the-blue type suggestion.
"You heard me. You're restless and I'm worried about you. Therefore, we should dance our stress away together. It doesn't have to be hip hop music. It can literally be anything, but I think we should dance. I've never tried it as a coping mechanism before, but who knows? Maybe-".
"Hush, Coop. You're rambling. It's cute.", he said as he laid a gentle hand on top of mine, still on his cheek.
"You're a goofball. Fine, let's go dance, but we come back to bed shortly.". His voice was demanding, lingering close to stern, but the smirk playing on his face and the blush painted on his cheeks suggested that his true intentions were otherwise placed.
I hopped out of bed, snatching his hands and pulling him downstairs with me before he could blink twice. Adrenaline speeding through every vain, I pattered over and plugged my phone into the speaker by the entertainment center in our living room, scrolling through it to find an upbeat song that I'd never heard before.
I'd quickly come to realize that, from the sound of it, it must've been an 80s song, immediate recognizing the disco-y feel of it from back when my dad was alive. He was always one for 80s music and dance parties.
With a grin on my face and a skip in my step, I entwined my fingers with his. My arms gently pushed and pulled his to the beat of the music, swaying our torsos as his apparent dismay began to lift, his smile doing the same before he began to assert himself with the music and dance with me.
~~
"You falling asleep, love?".
He rocked us to and fro, my feet on top of his as my body sagged against his with exhaustion, but I had to refute his assumption. My head subconsciously shakes vigorously, my mind struggling to recover from my dream-like state.
"Nope. No, I-I... um, I'm here. I'm fine; alive. Can't you see?". I wiped the drool on my chin before rubbing my eyes awake.
"I can see that you've almost fallen asleep. Why don't we get you back upstairs, hmm? We can lay back down, cuddle, fall asleep again until whenever you feel like getting up... Doesn't that sound nice?".
"B-But you need to relax. I'm fine. This is about you, not me.". I lifted my head from against his shoulder to gaze up at him. In this attempt to amplify my point, I began to slowly drift backwards, though his arms prevented me from falling.
"I'm fine now, gorgeous. I'm... I'm actually feeling a lot better, strangely enough.", he sighed contentedly. "I guess all I need is you.". His smile didn't need to be seen to prove its existence, as it radiated warm enough to be sensed throughout the house.
"If you insist. Are you sure, t-though?".
"Yes, I'm sure.".
"Well, fine. I guess I'll believe you for now. Let's go upstairs.".
"Oh, so you are sleepy? I thought you were wide awake?". His lips were indeed very warm, planting a brief kiss onto my forehead, along with smiling against it teasingly.
"Hush, you. I'm not tired. I just think you want me to offer you a taste of more of my amazing cuddling skills.".
He chuckled softly while lifting me up into his arms, his hands supporting me from underneath my thighs.
"Can't say I can deny that statement. The bed awaits us, m'lady.".
