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Piers' fingers grip the sheets, balling into a fist, nails digging in. His muscles tensing, chest heaving, and then finally eyes rapidly blinking open. Kicking off the blanket, the still of the silent room cools his heated skin.
He lay motionless, with the exception of his heavy breathing. Sweat runs down the sides of his temples. He eyes the stump where his right arm once was. He sharply jerks his head to the left, unable to bear sight of the dense scar tissue along the shoulder and down his side.
He takes in a deep breath, feeling palpitations within his chest. The nightmare still fresh in his mind: HAOS staring down at him, the freezing ocean consuming him, agonizing pain ripping through him, and Chris' broken face pleading with him.
He should be dead. He knows it, Chris knows it, and anyone who's aware of him knows it.
Propping himself up on his elbow he slowly eases up into a sitting position. Chris lay with his back facing him. Piers traces feather-like touches across his lover's bare shoulder. He needed to touch him. Needed to feel him. The last thing he wanted to do was wake Chris all for that stupid nightmare again.
Chris shifts in his sleep, turning over on his back. His broad chest rising and falling in rhythmical breaths. His arm falls open just enough that if Piers wanted to he could slip under and nestle up against him without disturbing him awake.
Inching himself as close as he can get, Piers softens his gaze on Chris' chest, carefully placing his hand over his heart.
He takes in a breath and begins: up – one – down, up – two – down, up – three – down.
He feels comfort in feeling Chris' heartbeat beneath his palm, though he feels calm in seeing every movement of his chest.
Up – four – down, up – five – down, up – six – down.
Piers inhales a final deep breath and pulls his hand away. Easing himself back onto his elbow he slips under Chris' arm, tucking his head beneath his chin. He rolls his body into Chris, attempting to get as close as he can. Chris' arm comes up lightly squeezing Piers into him.
Piers pauses. Was he...? No, of course not.
Snugged against Chris' warm body, Piers feels his eyelids drop and then sleep blissfully take him.
No more nightmares tonight.