A scream breaks the peaceful silence of their home. Bolting up right in bed, her heart races, at first she thinks she had heard it in her dream. Hearing footsteps dash past her bedroom door, Jade clambers out of bed and heads to the lounge, tripping over mislaid shoes and handbags on her way. Reaching the lounge, she finds Jesy and Leigh-Anne looking just as lost.
"Where's Perrie?" Jesy asks, noticing the blonde's absence. "I heard a scream."
The woman beside her nods, "I did too."
Jade doesn't add to the conversation, she turns on her heel and walks the short distance to her friend's room and pushes the door open without hesitation. Having lived together for a while now, they are used to little boundaries and interruptions.
The room feels colder than the other rooms, there is an icy chill to the air. The blonde in the bed has become tangled in the sheets, her legs snared like a trapped animal. Her clothes are tight against her body, stuck down by the thin layer of cold sweat that covers her skin. A whimper leaves her lips, a distressed mutter soon follows. She twists in the bed and tries to free herself from her confines. She kicks out again and mutters louder this time, "No, please. Don't"
Jade didn't notice the other two women enter the room. Jesy softly takes a seat on the bed and starts to try and manoeuvre the sheets from the blonde's caught up legs.
"You shouldn't wake someone from a nightmare, it can merge the line between what she's seeing now and reality. My mum used to help my brother wake up when he was having bad dreams." She explains before pushing the now free sheets to the side. "Perrie, you need to wake up. It's time to get up." She coaxes.
A small whimper gets caught in her throat, she turns to her side and pulls her knees up to her chest. Jesy hesitates, but then places a hand on her back.
"Perrie, it's time to wake up." She tries to provide the familiarity of a normal wake up routine to help reinforce that there is a clear distinction between being asleep and waking up.
The younger woman opens her eyes and quickly closes them. It happens a few times before the blonde turns to lie on her back and pushes herself up to hold her weight on her forearms. She doesn't realise at first that the three women are in her room, she blinks a few times then it sinks in.
"What's going on?" She asks, confused and a little anxious thinking that something had happened.
"You screamed." Jade says simply, now learning against the chest of drawers.
The blonde frowns. She has managed to fend off her nightmares since moving in with her bandmates, she's not sure what had changed to bring one on and with such ferocity. She has yet to enlighten her friends about her nightmares, or of her past, fearing their reaction and what it may meant for their group going forward. She didn't want to be the reason they failed.
"I must have had a bad dream or something." She replies, rubbing her eyes and feigning a yawn.
Jesy frowns, not convinced of her sudden calmness, "Do you remember what you were dreaming of?" She asks.
The blonde shakes her head, "I'm not sure. I don't remember any of it." She lies, now sitting up properly and leans back against the cushioned hardboard.
It irks Jade. The woman folds her arms and lets out an agitated sigh, "It's been happening for the past few nights, Perrie. This isn't a one off event." She explains, "What's going on?"
Perrie doesn't reply, she looks away and raises her thumb to her mouth, her teeth find purchase on a loose piece of skin near her nail. It is hard to not be frustrated, but Jade ignores the urge to push her harder and instead comes to sit on the other side of the bed opposite Jesy.
Jade says, "Let us help.".
"I...I can't. Not now. I don't want to think about it." She says, finally honest with them. "Can we not talk about it tonight?" Her voice trembles as she speaks, she doesn't want to be alone. Not again.
"You can't keep pushing this away, Perrie. It's not getting any better. You need to talk to someone. You need to be truthful about the nightmares." Leigh-Anne tries to convince her friend.
Trying to not get defensive, Perrie nods her head to make them happy with her attempt at agreeing and moves her thumb away, "I know, but I really can't remember what I was dreaming of." She tells them with as much conviction as she could muster.
Jesy knows it's not the time to fight her on this. She stands up and shares a look with Leigh-Anne, the other woman provides a subtle nod.
"Okay, Perrie. Not tonight." She agrees. "Try to get some sleep. You know where we are if you need us." She then turns and leaves with the older woman.
