Fandom Imagines Part 2

Wake Up, Erik Lehnsherr

This was a request 😀

In the middle of the night, I slowly awake to feel hands rubbing my stomach. I smile and turn on my side, coming face to face with a sleeping Erik. Noticing his very peaceful face, I stare at it for a few seconds, taking in every indent and freckle, making me lift my hand to graze his cheek.

Bad idea.

Erik's hand quickly shoots up and grabs mine before pushing me off the bed. As my head comes into contact with the hardwood floors, I groan at the intense pain now invading the back of my head while Erik jumps off the bed, landing on top of me. I gasp for breath as the impact nearly crushes my lungs. I don't have too long to breathe before Erik's hands wrap themselves around my neck, closing off my windpipe. My first response to Erik was to beg him to stop, but instead, all that comes out is a choked breath being muffled out. I then realize something: Erik is having a nightmare.

I try to reach my hands up to make him stop, but it's almost as if Erik choking me was draining out all my energy. Tears find their ways to my eyes as I see Erik above me, his face highlighted by the moon; I can tell he's not awake and still dreaming. This is worse than a nightmare; he has to be having a night terror. And a bad one at that. Feeling pressure against my eyes, cheeks, and forehead, I quickly realize if I don't stop Erik, he will kill me.

Feeling the last ounce of air leave from my lungs, I try to say something, but all that comes out is a short squeak yet again. For my final attempt, I angle my knee and jerk it up, hitting Eric in the groin. Waking him up, he immediately releases my neck with a pained groan before falling over next to me. As soon as I can, I gasp for air and place my hands to my neck as a reflex. A mixture of adrenaline and panic soon finds its way to my brain before I quickly jump up and run into the bathroom, closing and locking the door behind me just to be careful.

Feeling relief, I lean against the closed door and try catching my breath while tears run down my cheeks out of pain. My throat feels like it's going to collapse along with the pressure that's gone to my head. My head itself feels like it's going to burst. Even my cheeks feel like they're swollen.

Mindlessly, I look over at the mirror, only to take a double take as shock takes over me. Barely grazing my fingers over my quickly turning blue and purple throat, I look up to my cheeks only to see them as I expected. They're red and puffy with the crimson color traveling up to the areas beneath my eyes. Erik is going to feel guilty, I just know it. If he knows what just happened, then he's probably already feeling guilty, and by the time he sees me like this, he's going to want to throw himself out of the bedroom window.

A knock sounding against the door causes me to jump in a panic before quickly calming down and leaning against the counter, panting heavily from the fright. "(Y/n)?" I hear Erik's gentle and concerned voice ask. "Are you in there?"

A few seconds pass before I try to say 'yes,' but all that comes out is a scratchy croak, making my throat feels like it's been stabbed with a thousand needles. My eyes widen at the sharp pain just in time to hear the door unlock; damn Erik's powers.

Erik soon walks into the bathroom, stopping in his tracks as soon as his eyes land on me. Eyes wide and face showing panic and fear, Erik begins asking a question, only to cut himself off. "Did I..." He starts, holding his hands out to me. "Did I do this...?" He finally asks, his voice quiet and pained. I stand still in my spot, a few moments of silence passing before I squeeze my eyes shut and slowly nod. Letting go of a held-in breath, I slowly reopen my eyes and watch as Erik physically and emotionally breaks.

Immediately, I walk closer to him and wrap my arms around him, despite him trying to push me away as I push his head onto my shoulder. After a few moments, he slowly wraps his arms around me as well, unsure and slightly scared. "(Y/n), I am so sorry," Erik apologizes, his voice sounding even more in pain than before. I quickly go to say assure him it's okay, but I forget about my throat and voice being in the state it's in. So, instead of a sentence of reassurance, all that comes out is an incomprehensible croak.

Erik quickly retracts his face from my shoulder and faces me, his eyes screaming guilt and sympathy - more sympathy than anything. "I-I am so... so sorry," He chokes on his words this time, tears starting to form in his eyes. Not knowing what else to do, I push his face back against my shoulder holding him close while slightly rocking him side to side, placing a kiss on the side of his face.

"Erik," I whisper, finding the strength to do so without causing too much pain. "Erik, it's okay."

"Darling, stop talking," Erik interrupts me before I go on too long. "You're going to hurt your throat more," he warns me, his voice practically pouring with guilt. I look at him, a smile taking its place on my lips before I kiss his cheek.

"It's okay," I repeat myself in a whisper. "I know you didn't do this on purpose; you were having a night terror," I remind him. He moves back to face me. "Darling-" I quickly cut him off, placing my lips on his for a short kiss. "I said it was okay," I repeat myself, looking into his eyes. "Now come on. Let's go back to bed."

Putting on a small smile, Erik nods, taking my hand in his before standing up with me, only to pick me up and carry me to bed. Once I'm under the covers, Erik leaves the room for a few seconds before returning with a bag of ice. Gently placing it against my throat, Erik waits for me to replace his hand with mine before laying down in the bed with me, only to stay far away from my side of the bed. Frowning, I scoot closer to him and gently wrap my arms around him, causing him to instantly tense up. "I'm okay," I assure him, my voice slowly coming back. "I know you didn't mean to, and I will be okay."

"But what if you weren't?!" Erik nearly shouts, making me flinch. Noticing the jerk of my hand, Erik turns over to face me, his face representing guilt once again. "I'm so sorry, my dear," he apologizes, his voice soft. "I just... I don't know what I would do without you," he confesses. "and if I were to lose you because of some bullshit fight response that was engineered into my brain when I was younger," I hear him sigh. "I wouldn't be able to continue living with myself."

Small tears forming in my eyes, I sadly smile at him and kiss his lips before snuggling into his chest. "I don't know what I would without you either, my love," I assure him, feeling his hands softly lay against my back. "I know that I shouldn't have touched you when you were sleeping, and that's probably what triggered your response," Peering up at him, I give him a small and genuine smile as he stares down at me. "I love you, Erik," I tell him before instantly falling into sleep. Even though I descending into my dreamland, I still hear Erik speaking just before I fall into the darkness of rest.

"I love you too much... and it kills me that I hurt you... I know you can forgive me, but... I don't know if I can ever forgive myself."