When a Player Meets a Player

Chapter 27

CRASH!

CRASH!

I jolted upwards in my bed, sending the sheets flying. My forehead was lined with a thin coat of sweat and my heart pounded loudly in my chest as though it was going to burst free.

CRASH!

I cringed back into the headboard as the crashing carried on. OK, I was 17 but I had always had a fear of thunder and lightening. I just never got rid of it when I was a kid after that night.

There were a few more crashes outside my window that lit up the midnight sky. Normally on a thunderstorm, I would have gone into Shawn's room and climbed into bed with him. But after he had passed away, I hadn't experienced more than 3 thunderstorms and even they made me speechless for days.

It was around 10 minutes later when I couldn't stand the loud crashes anymore, I kicked my legs free and swung them over the side of the bed. Maybe the other times I had no-one to go to but I did now. I slipped my feet into my snug slippers and pulled on my dressing gown, wrapping the cream fur in a bow around my waist. Walking the few feet across the hallway after quietly closing my door, I knocked lightly on the white door that was identical to mine.

CRASH!

I ran through the door, not bothering with knocking anymore and stood on the other side with my back against it, crouching slightly downwards.

"Tori?" I heard Eddie's voice which instantly soothed me

"Y-Yeah?" I stood up as I noticed his worried gaze from his window seat where he sat. He seemed frozen in his seat.

"What are you doing up?" he stood, overcoming his frozen state and dragged me over to the window seat where he sat me down. He disappeared through a door for a second and returned with a blanket. He placed it over me and tucked it in at my shoulders and feet to keep me warm. Giving me a worried look, he sat down in a single chair opposite of me.

"I couldn't sleep" he smiled slightly

"The lightening?" I gave him a how-do-you-know side glance "You look shaken" I sighed.

"I am"

"Want to tell me what's up?" he offered with a smile.

"When I was 7, I was taking our dog Saber for a walk and he got lost as it started to rain. I ran to my parents but they wouldn't come and help so my brother came down and we both looked for him. When we finally found him, I wasn't allowed near him. Shawn found him in a tree, dead. He was struck by lightening" I sniffed. "I'd had Saber since I was 3, he was my best friend and ever since then thunder and lightning scared me" I shrugged like it didn't matter but it did and Eddie saw it did. He  moved to sit at the end of the window seat and lifted up my ankles to place my feet on his knees.

"I'm not going to tell you I'm sorry or tell you that it's going to be alright because it won't. It won't be alright until you are comfortable with lightening, until you can face your fear and you need to be ok with that. Be OK with the face that you are scared of lightening and don't keep it in because keeping all this fear inside of you won't help. You need to face your fear." He gave me a smile before grabbing my hand and dragging me out of his room and down the stairs. It was only when we reached the back door that I started to panic.

"Where are we going?" I asked.

"You'll see" he ran out into the rain and held out his arms, spinning. I laughed at Eddie as he spun in the rain with no shoes on and drenched pajamas. He motioned for me to follow but I stayed put on the mat inside. "You'll never face your fear from inside" he said as rain ran down his lips. He held out his hand but I still shook my head. "Fine" then the next moment, I'm over his shoulder and rain is soaking into my clothes.