Chapter Text
It hurt, it hurt so much.
The agony running through his veins, seeping into his lungs and making every breath sting like he was inhaling mustard gas. Making breathing too painful to bear for much longer.
The wounds on his back and arm from which he could feel hot, goopy blood pouring down. He wondered how much of it was still in him, if any. How much would be left behind when he was gone.
Then he heard a voice above him, its gruff sound being filled with what he could only place as disgust. "Good-… goodbye Ouma."
There was the faint sound of buttons being pressed and then there was something crushing him. Snapping, breaking and shattering his aching and poisoned bones. It made him want to scream, but he couldn't open his mouth.
The last thing he registered was the crack and slam as he was pressed into a red paste.
Gonta blinked his eyes open in alert when he heard a strangled gasp from the other side of the room. Ouma?
He quickly put on his glasses and turned around to see what was going on. As he did, he heard Checkers whine slightly and the light was turned on.
Then, he could see that Ouma had sat up in the bed, legs still covered by blankets that did not hide his constant shaking even a little bit. The boy's eyes were wide as he gasped breaths, his hand clutching onto his chest as in an attempt to relieve something.
The entomologist stood and went to stand next to the boy, Checkers following and jumping onto the covers, wriggling to sit on his owner's lap. "Ouma-kun? Did you have bad dream?"
Ouma didn't answer, instead starting to cry and burying his face in Checkers' chest, the dog snuggling closer and trying to lick his tears. Gonta sat next to the boy, putting a hand on his back in an attempt to comfort him. He didn’t like that Ouma was sad, maybe he wanted a hug?
"Is Gonta allowed to hug Ouma-kun?" It took a few seconds, but there was eventually a small nod and he embraced the small boy from behind, drawing a mewl from a harshly trembling Ouma as he pressed himself closer to the larger teen. "It alright, Ouma-kun. Gonta and Checkers will protect you."
Slowly but surely, with the two's help, the boy started to calm down, his crying quieting and him raising his head from Checkers' fur and looking up at the entomologist with a blank, tear-streaked face.
Gonta looked right back at him. "Does Ouma-kun want to go back to sleep?" He was answered with a shake of the head, and the boy looked at the dog still sitting on his lap and shakily ran his hand along the animal's black and gold back.
Ouma didn't want to sleep, and Gonta didn't think he could fall back asleep either. So, he grabbed the boy and picked him up in a bridal carry, Checkers jumping off him as he squeaked in surprise. When the shorter teen was secured, Gonta quietly made his way to the living room. He didn’t want to wake Hoshi and Kiibo after all.
He plopped Ouma down on the couch before sitting next to him and picking up the remote. Checkers jumped onto the couch with them, settling next to the purple haired teens side with a small huff. Gonta moved to Netflix, and out of the corner of his eye he could see Ouma pet the dog gently.
The entomologist put on a documentary about bees, it was one he hadn’t watched yet, and he was excited to possibly learn more. Ouma sighed slightly before leaning into Gonta’s side, exhaustion clear in his features. It made him frown minutely, and he pulled the shaking boy closer.
As the documentary went on, Gonta could feel the weight on his side get heavier and heavier, and the audible breaths get more and more even. When he looked at the boy next to him, he found that he’d fallen asleep, face much more relaxed than it’d previously been.
Smiling slightly, the entomologist continued to watch the movie, content to feel the steady breathing emitting from the trembling boy as he slept peacefully. He was happy he was able to help Ouma-kun.
As the show continued, Gonta found himself growing tired as well. This show was just saying things he’d already known after all. So, with his head leaning on the back of the couch, the entomologist grew increasingly more drowsy as time went on and, eventually, he slipped into dreamland with his friend.
There were no more nightmares that night.