Y/N's smiles are a rarity, and for good reason. With all odds against her, a spark of hope ignites when the girl, by some miracle, finds a ticket to the circus. She goes, glad to have some time away from her nightmarish home life, but still can't he...
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My face scrunches up as I pry open my sleepy eyes to be greeted with a dark room. In a daze, I sit up slowly and reach for the blinds to have a peek through the window. As expected, it was still night, stars out and everything, with no sign of dawn. With an exasperated sigh, I lie back against the mattress with an arm draped over my eyes. Why did I wake up so early?
Well, the guilt of running away, on top of the recent stress, had concocted a lovely nightmare to haunt my brain and grant me an uneasy sleep. I was in the basement again, but this time I was left there. Chess didn't save me; rather, he walked away never to be seen again, thinking that I had changed my mind about joining the circus. Recalling it now, my eyes watered and overflowed, followed by quiet sobs. I clean up the tears as best I can before forcing myself out of bed.
My throat is dry. I need some water and a moment to relax, so I push aside the curtain separating the bedroom from the rest of the trailer and peer over to the bench to view the sleeping jester. Light snores resonate from the male, who's face is turned away from the back of the cushioned seat. He appears to be resting well. This eased my mind a bit.
'At least one of us was getting a decent sleep tonight.' I sneak on by to pour myself a glass of water and take a few sips before setting the cup on the counter with a small frown. It clinks against the surface softly, but the little sound was enough to wake the performer. He groans, and I could picture him blinking open his eyes before squinting to see me through the darkness.
"Y/N?" Shuffles sound next. Likely, he was sitting up now and rubbing his eyes. I gulp nervously. "What are you doing up?" Very slightly, I turn my head enough to view him checking his phone for the time in the corner of my eye. His emerald eyes narrowed once the light hit them before he turned it off and looked back at me. "It's three in the morning."
"I'm sorry. I didn't mean to wake you. I just wanted a drink," I croak out in a whisper, unable to turn around and face him while in this state. I don't want him to see me crying, especially after what he had told me about my smiles. I want him to be happy, even if I have to lie about my wellbeing to do that. It's the least I could do for him. Unfortunately for me, Chester saw right through my charade.
"Are you having trouble sleeping?" Now he sounds concerned. I bite my lower lip and shake my head, holding back a sob.
"No, I'm fine. You can go back to sleep." He persists, though.
"Well, I'm wide awake now." I can hear his footsteps coming up from behind and become tense as he stops close to me. "What's troubling you? I can tell you have something on your mind. You can talk to me about anything. I swear, I won't judge you in any way."
