short stories

loud (m x nb)

to bring comfort to myself and anyone who needs/wants it <3
potential triggers: overstimulation and possible eating disorder triggers

the world had been so loud today.

i had woken up early to go on a jog, the weather was so beautiful as we shifted into fall, but i wore the wrong socks for my shoes. i hadn't worn these tennis shoes in so long, summer was never my thing, that i forgot that they rubbed my heel. my sock was too short and slipped down about three times before i begun to feel overstimulated. at the fifth time, i ripped them off, embarrassing myself a bit as another jogger watched me throw one in frustration against a tree. they noticeably slowed for a second too long for me. my glare could have melted them. walking back to the car without the shoes was painful as the trees had begun to drop their needles already as well as any rocks that strayed from the edge of the man-made path. nonetheless, i was so angry at my shoes that i stuck it out until i got to my car.

then work came. my earbuds died early in the morning so not only did i have to listen to everyone come in and set up for the day but also everyone suddenly wanted to talk to me. at nine am. should have been a crime, really. nonetheless, the need to be nice and the desperate want to be liked made me talk. two meetings later and i discovered my charger for my earbuds was no longer working. i have a back up at home, two actually, but that meant more noise and more conversation. i heard a constant tone in my head staring an hour before work ended.

out the door of work and an ambulance passed by. i didn't even care how i looked as i desperately covered my ears. despite that action, nausea still hit me. driving home in my car, two police followed the direction the ambulance had already gone. i was unsure if it was for the same thing but it made the nausea intensify. i couldn't fully comprehend the roads and ended up missing my turn several times. i believe i got home okay after that but by then my body was aching, my mind was pounding.

i was buried under my blanket at the moment, pulled over my head as i had a speaker under my pillow. my earbuds were finally charging, i had remembered to check the little light this time. the speaker was flat so i couldn't feel it too much and the music was a bit muffled but it was the best i'd be getting at the moment. i breathed deeply, desperately, as my hands shook slightly as i clutched my phone to change the volume as the songs changed and as my thoughts fluttered.

i flinched when i heard a gentle knock on the bedroom door. the door opened and i whimpered at the squeak. breathe. tune it out. listen to the music. i turned it up louder. the door closed and footsteps approached.

he sat down and the bed dipped with his weight. without saying anything he laid down beside me. he placed a kiss on my forehead through my blanket. "hi baby," he whispered, "i'm going to lift your blanket okay? and then i'll get you more comfortable and put it back, does that sound okay?" i whimpered again, not really able to speak as i had already slipped too far. he pulled the blanket up just a small amount. he gave me a small smile. i mouthed 'hi.' he wrapped an arm around me, still laying down before adjusting so he was more on his back. i curled onto his chest on my own but still found myself snuggling him as he tightened his arm around me. he gently placed his leg over mine, pulling them closer to his form. with an adjustment to my speaker and another kiss on my forehead, he placed the blanket back over me. he let his weight melt on me and i placed my hand on his heart. it was steady and i breathed relief at the first physical feeling in my fingers since much earlier in the day.

the ringing in my ears didn't stop but the weight on me made the tense feeling in my back of my neck fade a little. he gently scratched at my back and arm, enough to bring a rougher feeling but not rough enough to leave any marks. i was unsure when that feeling fully registered but by the time it did i was melting into him with my eyes closed, phone falling from my grasp as my hands stopped shaking.