To Desire A Nightmare

After their strange adventure together, Johanna Constantine found herself drawn to the Corinthian in ways she never expected. Attraction wasn't the right word -- it was sharper than that, dangerous, as though her pulse quickened at the very thought of him. But he was a nightmare, and nightmares were not meant to be loved. So she did what she always did: kept her distance, pushed the feeling down, pretended it wasn't there.

The trouble was, he felt it too. Corinthian had always known when he was being desired. At Morpheus's funeral, amid shadows, grief, and the silent weight of gods, Constantine and the Corinthian shared a kiss. It was brief, almost reckless, but it left her shaken.

How was this meant to work? Would he belong to her only in dreams? Or would he cross the fragile line into the waking world?

Two months passed. No visits. No signs. Neither in her sleep nor her days. She told herself she should be relieved -- but the truth was uglier: with each empty night, her craving for him deepened.

Until one night, he returned -- sliding into her dream like a knife through silk.

[Disclaimer: All characters belong to Netflix's The Sandman. I own nothing.]