⇾ 𝐊𝐄𝐄𝐏 𝐘𝐎𝐔𝐑 𝐇𝐀𝐍𝐃𝐒 𝐎𝐅𝐅 𝐌𝐘 𝐁𝐀𝐁𝐘 | 𝐉𝐨𝐡𝐧 𝐋𝐞𝐧𝐧𝐨𝐧 𝐈

Chapter Seventy-Two: The Ones You Love Always Visit You in Your Dreams

April 11, 1962

John and I tried to forget about what had happened for the rest of the night. I'm sure John succeeded, but I couldn't stop thinking about it. I knew exactly what would have happened if Paul hadn't come to the door, and the thought alone should have scared me at least a little bit, right? But, it didn't scare me in the slightest. It all felt so...right.

I curled up in John's arms to fall asleep that night, hoping that it would perhaps help ease my mind. It didn't. When John's humming in my ear turned into steady breathing, I knew he was asleep and I should have been too. Any other time of day, his melodic humming would have knocked me out quicker than a drug, but for some reason, the one time I wished it would, it didn't.

My mind wasn't on anything in particular, really just life as a whole. We had found out recently that Brian would be flying to London in May to meet George Martin, a producer for EMI.

Everything was changing in everyone's lives around me. Even though I knew I had a plan, I couldn't help but wonder where I fit in wherever we all ended up.

Would I always be with John? Would I always work so close with the boys? Or would they just up and forget me one day? These thoughts were the ones I was experiencing when I cowered more against John and finally fell asleep.

~~~

My dreams found me in a car driving down a winding highway in the dark.

"Wasn't that a nice party?" a woman asked from the passenger side of the vehicle.

The man driving nodded. "It's 1945 now," he said. "And I get to spend it with you."

1945?

I saw the pair's hands clasp together on the center console. Another car drove by in the opposite lane, its headlights illuminating the couple's faces for a brief moment. My stomach lurched and a shudder went through me as I realized who the people were.

My parents.

It was New Years 1945, I realized. The day they were killed. All the pieces began to fall into place and I tried to say something to them, I tried to move, I tried everything, but I couldn't do anything. I was frozen in this spot, swallowing back bile and trying not to scream.

Suddenly, blinding lights came from behind the car and I turned my head just in time to see a car speeding up behind. I heard my mother scream and my father tried to swerve out of the way into the grass on the side of the road, but it was all in vain. The speeding car plowed straight into us.

~~~

I woke up drenched in sweat and tears. John was awake too, I realized. He'd been trying to get me awake. I rolled over to face him and pulled my knees to my chest, beginning to cry again.

"Donna?" he asked worriedly.

"Why can't I ever get a break?" I asked between sobs.

He helped me sit up and pulled me and all my troubles into his strong embrace. "I love you, John," I said. "I love you so, so much. I can't ever lose you."

"You won't, love," he said. "You'll never lose me. I'll always be right here."

I tried to calm myself down, my crying turning into flat-out choking after I'd run out of tears to spare. Eventually, everything subsided and I was just left in John's arms, exhausted to the point where I couldn't think straight. "I'm sorry," I mumbled into his chest. "I ruin everything."

I heard him chuckle. "You don't ruin anything."

April 12, 1962

John's POV

None of us woke up at a reasonable time the next morning. Paul claimed to be the first up at 11:30. When I woke up around noon, Donna was nuzzled up close to me, still sound asleep. I had no intention of waking her, not after she'd had such a bad night.

She never told me exactly what she'd dreamt of. Soon after she'd managed to calm down, she fell back asleep in my arms. I knew she had to be exhausted.

I laid there for a few minutes, feeling the warmth of her next to me, my nerves slightly more present than usual with her being so close. When I heard bustling in the room next door, I decided that I, at least, needed to get up. I carefully untangled myself from the sheets, trying my best not to wake Donna. She stirred slightly, but thankfully didn't seem to notice. I pulled the covers up over her and went to get ready.

~~~

"You're not waking her up."

"John," Paul began with a snicker. "Did you—?"

"I hate you. No, nothing happened."

"You almost did, though." Paul raised his eyebrows challengingly. "I know that look anywhere. And that messy hair." He winked.

I rolled my eyes and took another drag from my cigarette, resisting the urge to slap him. Pete joining us outside the doors of the hotel. "What look?" he asked curiously.

I groaned. "Stay out of my life," I said to Paul. "You sound like Mimi."

"Johnny's unsatisfied," Paul mocked. "He didn't get a nice shag last night."

Pete raised his eyebrows with an amused look. "Oh?"

"It appears I interrupted them," Paul added and I shot him a threatening look. Paul stomped his cigarette out on the pavement. "Sorry about that, by the way,"

"Shove off," I said. "We're waiting." I looked around at the street.

"John Lennon? Waiting? God, you really like her, don't you?" Pete remarked.

"Hey, at least I can stay with just one bird and not seven-hundred every week," I retorted.

Pete blushed and hid it by looking at his watch. "When's Donna gonna be up? It's almost one and I'm starving," he asked.

"I'll go get her, you impatient imbeciles." I mirrored Paul's actions by stomping out my cigarette too and leaving them behind, irritated as I made my way back up to the room to wake Donna.

When I got back up there, however, she was already awake, making the bed. When the door opened, her head snapped towards me. She'd gotten dressed into a simple outfit of jeans and a shirt. I still couldn't work out how she made ordinary look so gorgeous.

"Good morning," she said with a bright smile.

"And good morning to you," I replied, bowing sarcastically. She rolled her eyes with a smirk. "The others are pestering me about going to get something to eat," I told her.

She nodded, reaching beside the nightstand that was between the two twin beds to pick up her handbag. "Let's not keep them waiting then."

I smiled and held my hand out for her to take.