Oops! This image does not follow our content guidelines. To continue publishing, please remove it or upload a different image.
CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE but I stay when you're lost, and I'm scared, and you're turning away
⊱ ──────── {.⋅ ✯ ⋅.} ──────── ⊰
THE FIRST TIME it happened, Juliet brushed it off. It wasn't unlike Barry to get nightmares — after all, all the shit he had to deal with in his life was bound to catch up with him. Juliet had been there for many of his nightmares when they were kids. He hadn't had much ever since they started dating, just a couple every once in a while — pretty inconsistent.
But then came the second nightmare, then the third, then the fourth, then the fifth, when Juliet realized that something new was going on.
Barry had stayed over her apartment the last few nights, which explained why Juliet knew about his nightmares. She laid on her side, her head resting comfortably on Barry's chest and her hand on top of his stomach, covered by the fabric of his shirt. Juliet wasn't a light sleeper at all, but she was driven out of her slumber by Barry's chest rising and falling rapidly. Her eyes fluttered open and she lifted her head up, only to see Barry slightly twitching in his sleep, his body going rigid and gleaming with sweat.
"Hey," Juliet began softly, reaching out and holding onto his shoulder, even though he flinched. "Barry."
Barry then gasped, his eyes flying open as he sat up. He frantically looked around the room, and once his eyes set on her, tension drained from him. Juliet watched in concern as he let out a sigh of relief and slumped back against the pillows in exhaustion.
"Another nightmare, huh?"
"Yeah," Barry answered. "I'm fine, it's good."
Juliet gave him a look. "Baby, this has been your fifth nightmare in a row. As the role of a girlfriend, I'm officially worried." She reached up and brushed some hair away from his forehead, Barry slightly leaning into the touch. "What's got you so freaked out?"
"Nothing."
Juliet recognized this — a classic Barry Allen, building up walls so high nobody could even think about tearing them down. "Barry, you don't have to be guarded. Not with me."
"J, drop it," Barry stated firmly. He then froze, his eyes softening as he saw the frown on her face. Barry sighed, rubbing his hands over his eyes. "I'm sorry."
"Don't be sorry," Juliet responded. She settled herself back down, her head going to lean on his chest again. "Listen, I know the New Years are a tough time for you because of your mom, okay? I get it. You'll tell me when you're ready."
