You Called, I Answered (Salvatore Shield)

1.24 | Tension

Josie gasps awake, the remnants of a vivid dream still lingering in her mind.

"Bad dream?" She hears Lizzie ask from the side of the bed. She had slept in Josie's room the night before. After seeing how distraught Hope was following their private conversation in Josie's office, Lizzie was worried about her sister.

Josie glances over at Lizzie before averting her gaze. It actually started out as a great dream, with familiar lips grazing her neck and explicit whispers in her ear. But it took a dark turn when the federal agents who Hope faced in New Mexico showed up and dragged her away. That abrupt ending left a terrible feeling in the pit of Josie's stomach.

Josie reaches up, rubbing her neck where Hope's lips had been in her dream, before replying to her sister, "Yeah. Bad dream."

"Do you want to talk about it?"

Josie shakes her head, laying back down, and trying to get comfortable. It's still early, and she really doesn't want to get out of bed at all. She lets out a soft sigh before closing her eyes, attempting to get some more sleep.

—----

Inside the gym, Hope started her morning earlier than usual with an intense training session, focusing her energy on the punching bag. The rhythmic thuds echo in the room as the conversation with Josie from the day before replays in her head, along with the memories of their time together in New Mexico.

The memories played on a loop until her frustration built up so much, and she punched the bag so hard that it broke, scattering its contents all over the gym floor. A sigh escapes her lips as she casts a spell to clean up the mess and fix the punching bag for the fourth time since she started training this morning.

Opting for a less destructive exercise, Hope moves on to simple push-ups, determined to channel her emotions into something productive.

"Hey Hope," MG calls out, causing the Tribrid to pause mid-push-up. She looks over to see him and Kaleb entering for their training session, "Are you early or are we late?"

Hope brings herself back to her feet, "No, I'm early. Just needed to blow off some steam."

Kaleb furrows his eyebrows curiously, dragging a couple of fingers across Hope's arm. "Huh, not a drop of sweat," He observes, turning to MG, "Now I'm scared."

—--------------

Hope's hands snake around her waist from behind as Hope's lips graze her neck, a low whisper escaping her lips, "Can't stop thinking about me, love?"

Josie leans into the feeling, only to feel the coldness of her empty bed.

Her eyes flutter open and she lets out an exasperated sigh as she rolls over helplessly onto her back. She groans as she wipes her eyes, fighting off any threatening tears, and she hears the bedroom door opening.

Lizzie enters the room, seeing Josie with her hands over her eyes, "Sorry, did I wake you up?"

"No, I was definitely up," Josie replies, another sigh escaping her as she forces herself to finally sit up, a pout residing on her lips.

Lizzie hesitantly inquires, knowingly, "Another dream about Hope?" Josie's eyes widen as she looks up at her sister, wondering how she knows that, to which Lizzie explains, "You yelled her name just before you woke up earlier."

Josie frustratedly gets out of bed, heading over toward her bathroom to brush her teeth, "Why can't I just have a normal nightmare instead? One with zombies or spiders..."

Lizzie furrows her eyebrows, hardly being able to understand her sister with her toothbrush still in her mouth.

Josie reenters the bedroom a minute later, going toward her closet to pick out clothes and then toward the bathroom again to change, "Even the stupid lamp shade reminds me of her."