𝘧𝘭𝘰𝘸𝘦𝘳 » 𝘻𝘪𝘢𝘯𝘰𝘶𝘳𝘳𝘺 𝘧𝘢𝘮𝘪𝘭𝘺

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harry woke with a jolt. his heart slammed against his ribs, panting heavily. the room was dark, still, a bit too quiet, but the images stuck with him. shadowy, distorted, and haunting. he breaths unevenly, trying to calm his pounding heart. beads of sweat formed at his temple, his body hot yet cold at the same time. harry groans, putting his hands over his face, his fingers trembling. it takes him a minute to calm down, but eventually he reaches over to turn on the light.

another nightmare.

he was so sick of them. why did he keep having them? why did he keep thinking about it? why now? harry didn't know the answer to a single one of those questions. he swallows, letting out a hefty sigh. he sat there a moment in the silence, recollecting himself. his first instinct was to go to louis' room like he had done last time. but again, it was late and he didn't want to bother him. nor anybody else. even if everyone always reassured him that it was okay... it wasn't okay for him.

you're too old for this, he told himself, curling his fingers into the blanket. you should be able to take care of yourself.

harry slid out of bed, shakily, trying his best not to make a sound. the house may have been big, but when it's quiet like this, noises echo so easily. even the slightest thump can be heard from across the house. he tiptoed to his door, peeking out. it was dark, his eyes somewhat being about to make out what was ahead of him. he wasn't thrilled about going down stairs in complete darkness, still shaken from his nightmare and a little scared. but, he forced himself to do it anyway.

he quietly crept downstairs despite his fears, turning on the light in the kitchen. then he reaches into the fridge to grab a chilled bottle of water, pressing the coldness against his forehead with a sigh of relief. his body instantly felt cooler, the discomfort fading. harry goes to open the cap and finally take a much needed sip from the bottle. but before it reaches his lips, he feels someone walk up behind him and say his name. harry flinches hard, spinning around to see who it was with wide eyes. but he relaxes when he finds that it's just louis.

"relax." louis says, frowning at how jittery harry seemed. the younger teen slumps in relief.

"jeez, you scared me. what are you even doing down here?" harry questions, rolling his eyes, not with an attitude but more from stress as he takes a gulp from his water.

"i live here." louis says sarcastically. harry lowers his head with a unamused look on his face.

"very funny." he mumbled, going over to the stool to take a seat. his legs were still a little wobbly. louis leans his elbow against the island, glancing at him.

"i'm kidding, i was awake and i heard footsteps. thought it might be you."

"i was trying to be quiet... sorry." harry murmurs, rubbing his thumbs over the bottle absently. he goes quiet momentarily, listening to louis sit across from him at the island.

"nightmare again?" he asks. harry sighs, nodding slightly, his hair falling against his forehead and hanging over his eyes. he doesn't attempt to fix it. he actually appreciates the way that it hides his eyes a little, because he didn't really want louis to see what he was really feeling. "can't get back to sleep?"

"i didn't try to... i just wanted some water to cool off. i didn't wanna bother anybody." harry mutters under his breath. louis folds his arms on the marble, leaning up slightly.