Sunshine ||A Wife of Vladimir Novel||

His Promises

When I had fallen asleep that night, my mind was still racing with possibilities. I had hoped that sleeping would banish those thoughts, but when I woke in the morning they were still present.

The worry persisted even as I tried to push past it. I did my best to distract myself, using books and paintings to pull me free, but nothing worked. It was always sitting in the back of my mind.

Each morning, I gazed out from our bedroom balcony and stared down at the village I had once felt safe in. When I looked down, I always half-expected to see another mob coming towards us. Thankfully there never was anyone, but that still didn't put my mind at ease.

The fear began seeping into my dreams, making the pain only grow. I dreamt of mobs coming at night and Vladimir walking out to stop them, only to be overpowered and torn to shreds. Soon after, the mob stormed the mansion. I would watch helplessly as my entire world crumbled around me, as people screamed out and as heat from their fire filled each room.

It was the same dream every night and it always ended the same, no matter what I tried to do within the dream. It never changed.

Vladimir always died.

A gentle and cool touch began pulling me back to reality one morning, shattering the nightmare and interrupting the path it was on.

I slowly opened my eyes, seeing Vladimir's outline in my blurry vision. Taking comfort in having him with me, I let my eyes close again and held onto his wrist as I turned my face into his hand.

"Rosetta?" He whispered, adjusting himself. When I first saw him, he had been sitting on the edge of the bed. As he moved to lay beside me, I swore I could feel his eyes still lingering upon me.

"Mmm?" I didn't want to move. I wanted to remain frozen in all ways possible, worried that if I spoke or moved that the dreams would return. I didn't want Vladimir to worry about me, knowing he already had so much on his plate, but I was also worried that if I asked Vladimir to help, that he wouldn't be able to.

His hand left my cheek and instead began twisting strands of my hair. "You were dreaming," Vladimir stated quietly.

My eyes opened and immediately found his.

"How long has this been happening?" He followed, keeping his expression gentle. He wasn't asking out of anger or frustration, but of love.

I couldn't reply, I didn't know how to without bursting into tears. My eyes wanted to leave his, but they didn't.

Vladimir offered a smile. "If you don't want to talk about it, that's alright. I'm sorry if I woke you sooner than you would have liked. I could sense that you might have been having a nightmare." He glanced over at me. "Is there anything I can get for you before I leave?"

I began finding the strength to sit up as the effects of the nightmare began disappearing the more I came to reality. "I think I'm alright," I spoke quietly, simply trying to piece my emotions together. Was this how it would always be? Would I always be stuck in this state of uncertainty and worry?

"Very well then. I love you," he leaned forward and placed a kiss upon me, then began getting out of bed.

I couldn't help myself. I reached out and grabbed his arm. "Vladimir?" My hand fell until I could wrap my fingers around his. "Please, stay safe." Even though he was merely going to sleep, I still wanted to make sure he would be okay.

His full smile returned and he squeezed my hand. "I will. You as well, my Sun."

And with that, he was gone.

My concern only worsened.

I felt like I was stuck in a never-ending panic, one that would consume me if I didn't get it taken care of, but how was one supposed to take care of something like this?