IGNITE

forty-nine.

੭୧ 𝐩𝐢𝐩𝐞𝐫 ੭୧

"No, no, no, no, no, no, please!"

Greyson's pleas woke me from a dreamless sleep, his limbs thrashing and breath heavy beside me as I opened my eyes to see the sunrise filtering through his bedroom window. A faint light illuminated his features, casting the smooth planes of his cheeks into hard shadows, his eyebrows pinched in pain. My hands trailed up the warm skin of his bare chest, the pads of my fingers brushing over the lines of the tattoo across his stomach as I moved them to the sides of his face, cupping his jaw in my hands and stroking my thumb across his cheekbone in soothing strokes.

"Greyson," my voice was gentle as I leaned forward to press a soft kiss to his forehead. His hands gripped my waist in a bruising hold and a soft gasp escaped my lips. "You're dreaming, you need to wake up." His body jerked beneath my touch and a gasp tore through the quiet of the room. His eyes were wide, a deep, earthy brown that swam with tears. "Hey, you. It was just a dream, I'm here. I've got you, Greyson,"

The pressure of his grip loosened as he stared up at me, a pained expression crossing over his face. He reached up with shaking hands to grip my wrist, brushing his thumbs over my skin and blinking through his tears. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to wake you, Firelight."

I rolled onto my back, moving to allow him to rest his head on my chest, his hand sliding up my front to rest in the dip between my breasts as if memorizing my heartbeats. "Do you want to talk about it?" My voice was soft, nearly drowned out by his breathing.

"I guess being here is just bringing back a lot of shit with my dad," his lips brushed against my throat. "Honestly, I haven't had a nightmare since you started sharing a bed with me. You've become a sleep aid." He teased, pinching my side lightly with his free hand.

A smile curled over my lips as he propped his head on his arm, leaning his body over mine to cup my cheek. "What happens in your dreams? You look so..." I trailed off, unsure of how to describe his state whenever his nightmares plagued him.

"Broken?" He offered the word on an exhale, a small laugh leaving him, but it was empty, hollowed and tinged with pain. "Usually the accident. Usually him," Greyson brushed his thumb across my cheekbone, a small sigh falling from his lips, his dark hair falling into his eyes, "sometimes my mom." He exhaled heavily, "sometimes you."

The ache in my heart intensified as I nodded, cupping his hand and pressing a kiss to his palm, breathing in his scent as he lay against my body, the warmth of his bare skin pressing against my own. "I'm right here, Greyson," my lips trailed a path down the inside of his arm, across the soft skin of his shoulder and along the length of his collarbone. "I'm right here," I repeated the promise to him over and over again until his breathing evened out, his hand sliding from my chest to curl around my throat gently, pulling my mouth to his.

We lay in the dim morning light, trading slow, languid kisses that left my lips numb and my head spinning. Our scents mingled in the air, his soft, earthy scent mingling with my fruity notes. The grip of his hand on my waist was gentle, as if he was afraid of hurting me, even when my entire being was telling him that he never could.

Grey was my home.

No matter where he took me, what we went through, he would always be my home.

"You should try to sleep again," I breathed, bringing a hand to my swollen lips. "It's so early."

His head shook, soft tufts of brown hair brushing against my forehead as he moved. "I won't be able to. But you should, besides, I still need to catch up on what you read without me last night." He offered a teasing smirk as I rolled my eyes.