Without You

32. I'm Terrified of Losing Him

A/N - A bit of an earlier update this week since so much is happening the rest of the week...Not only in RL, but also with A&D (*ahem* DNA Journey *ahem*). Hopefully this update doesn't disappoint. Thanks to each and every one of my readers, as always! 💖

Also, while I'm here and have everyone's attention....Who here would be interested in having access to both episodes of DNA Journey? I will be attempting to record both episodes to save them forever, and will try to upload them somewhere privately (like Google Drive, maybe) for anyone interested. If you're interested, please leave a comment right here and I'll add you to the list! 😁 - H. x

As a solitary man made his way through a crowded passageway, surrounded on all sides by members of the press and reporters from multiple media outlets around the country, a lone figure watched on, maybe 20 feet away. Not a soul noticed them, which was odd, given they were inextricably linked to the man currently pushing his way through that crowd of camera flashes and shouted questions. But maybe that's because no one cared about them anymore, everything had become about that man and what he'd done. No matter, though, because they were quite happy to remain unnoticed, tucked away behind a parked car on the street. And that's when they heard it. A distinct click. A sound they were very familiar with somehow, but couldn't quite place. That click meant something, they'd done something to make clicks like that before...But with what?

They barely had a moment to dwell on the mysteriously familiar sound before a masked figure ran out from behind a car maybe 10 feet away, sprinting at full speed towards the man still trying to push his way through the unrelenting sea of bodies. There were three loud bangs, and numerous screams and shouts, and then all fell silent. Their body unfreezing from its shock, the unnoticed figure ran full tilt into the pack of reporters, shoving their way through, not caring who they threw to the side as they pushed their way into the center of the now-solemn crowd. With an anguished cry, the figure threw themselves to the ground, searching desperately for any signs of life in the man splayed out on the pavement. Upon finding none, they pulled the bloodied, lifeless body close to their chest, weeping bitterly as they poured their grief out in unintelligible shouted words. But no one saw them and no one cared. They were all alone.

~~~

"Dec! DECLAN, wake up!!!!!!"

Ali gripped her husband's shoulders firmly, shaking him in a desperate attempt to awaken him from whatever horrific nightmare he was in the midst of at the moment. A few minutes ago, both husband and wife had been fast asleep in their bed, Dec loosely clinging to Ali in his sleep, enjoying the feeling of having someone to hold. He was still quite unwell, but had been deemed "noncontagious" by the doctor once his fever had broken, so was finally daring to sleep in the same room as Ali again. The coughing fits in the middle of the night were still happening far too frequently, however, leaving both of them with dark circles under their eyes. Ali certainly wasn't complaining, though, just happy to have her husband back in bed with her.

Until tonight, that is....This was the second nightmare Dec had suffered so far that night, and it was far, far worse than the first, judging by the way Dec was out and out sobbing in his sleep, whimpering one name over and over again: "Ant." What was terrifying Ali the most was the fact she couldn't seem to wake Dec up, no matter how hard she tried. He'd first started shouting unintelligibly in his sleep a couple of minutes ago, while at the same time holding Ali tightly to his chest, resulting in a very rude awakening for his poor, sleep-deprived wife. But even with shouting his name and shaking him, Dec remained deeply asleep, weeping uncontrollably.