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You were comfortable, too comfortable. You snapped open your eyes terrified to see the huge chest in front of you. The fingers around you felt like a cage. You started to panic and those immovable columns came closer. A scream died in your throat as you looked up to the face of the human holding you.
"Are you alright?" They asked. Their voice was thick with sleep. Dark eyes barely aware that slowly seemed to wake up. "Hey, what's wrong?"
You were frozen as they moved you from their chest. Your brain was fuzzy. You were warm and cold all at once. Sleeping in the human's hold was starting to feel better. Those eyes were alert now, but filled with worry.
"D-don't-" you tried. Your throat hurt, as though you had nothing to drink for days. The human moved you closer, pressed your face to their lips. You tried to push away, but your body wouldn't move.
"You're warm, probably too warm," they whispered. Their breath washed over you feeling weirdly good. The human pulled you away to look at you, concern on their face so clearly overwhelming.
They moved you again, holding you to their chest. You listened to the racing heart beneath the wall of skin. You couldn't understand why they would be like this, you were getting tired. You felt like this recently. Like it would be easier to sleep. You went to someone you could trust before you did that though. That was for a you that was more awake to think about. The human already caught you there wasn't a reason to fight off this feeling.
"Shit, shit, shit," the human was cursing. You could barely remember what happened. Your body was aching, had they done that? You couldn't stop a groan that made your throat burn.
"What's wrong?" You croaked. The human was hovering above you immediately, it was almost a relief. It felt like that dream from the night that it was too cold came back.
"You're awake." They smiled, it felt calming and terrifying all at once. You tried to sit up, but huge fingers were next to you as you started to move. "Take it easy, it seems like you have a bad fever. Guess we couldn't get through the cold with no consequences. Let me help you up ok?"
You nodded, expecting fingers to pull you up. Instead they just hovered nearby waiting. You started to pull yourself up, the huge fingertips merely pressed against you to help lift you up. A few fingers sat behind you leaving you leaning back. Sitting up was hard. The human brought over something else and left it near you. They dipped a spoon into it and brought it close.
"You have to drink something, can you manage it?" They asked. You felt your throat burn when you swallowed, you had to manage it. You shuffled a bit to sit up straighter before leaning towards the spoon. You slowly lifted an arm to scoop some of the liquid to your lips. The second it hit your throat you became greedy taking all you could. "Hey it's ok to take it slow. There's plenty, it's not going away."
You nodded as they spoke. The dreamy night in the cold had nothing on this. Your mind was making this human too kind, it would hurt when you woke up alone. You took slower drinks until you couldn't stomach anymore. The human put the spoon in the larger object and left it alone.
"Can you tell me how you're feeling? You're still really warm, but anything else?" They asked. Their voice sounded frazzled. You never heard the human like this in all the years you lived with them. Your imagination was too good it seemed.
"Throat hurts, head fuzzy… sad," you murmured. It was easier to talk now. The not quite water helped a lot. The human furrowed their brows, it looked a bit funny to you.
"Why are you sad?" Their voice was quieter than you remember ever hearing it. You knew it was a dream, but it felt nice having your imaginary human care so much. You were feeling tired again, your dream would keep you safe.
"This is a dream, I'll wake up alone again." You didn't have anything to hide from your own dream. The human's face softened before they placed a hand flat next to you.
"Then let's keep you comfortable in this dream, ok?"
You smiled and climbed on the offered hand. You knew even in a dream you should be cautious, but this human was taking care of you. It was ok to let go and live in a dream sometimes, wasn't it? Their hand was warm, you nearly collapsed into it. Their fingers longer than you folded over you to keep you shielded from the world.
"Get some rest, I'll keep the dream going for as long as you want," they whispered. You smiled and curled up a bit tighter under their fingers.
"Thank you…" you said.
The next day you had similar interactions. You'd wake up and this vivid dream would help you. They gave you warm food and something they said should help. They let you stay in their hand the whole time. You wondered if human hands could really be quite so soft.
It was the third day that you woke up with a clearer mind. You could recall the blissful dream of someone taking care of you, no worry that you were burdening someone. That someone was in danger for you. You wished it could be real, but you hadn't spoken to the human since the breakfast after the sleepover.
You started to sit up, freezing at the feeling around you. It was softer than anything in your home. You slowly looked around to truly take in your surroundings. You were in the human's room again, on their bed. You jumped up causing a wave of dizziness. You tried to push it aside.
You had to get down, but you didn't have your things. You looked around, there was nothing to help you get down close by. You stumbled towards the edge, hoping for something soft on the floor.
You were knocked off your feet by the tremors around the house. They were light, but you were in no condition to stand your ground. You looked up, finding the door of the room wide open. The human had to be coming back. You tried to rush back to the spot you woke up, but the growing tremors made it hard.
You were forced to sit and stare at the door as the towering form walked in. The dark eyes found you immediately. That just made the human move faster and come closer. Their steps made you bounce, you were only more scared now. The human fell in front of you, this time launching you up. Their hand caught you, there was no escape.
"I'm sorry, I didn't realize I did that when moving around," they said. You tried not to show how scared you were, they seemed to know anyway. "Don't worry, I'm just a dream right? I won't hurt you."
"Wh-what?!" You yelled. That… that was what the human you imagined said. The one who had taken care of you. Their eyes widened before they slowly lowered their hand. They bypassed the bed and went straight to the floor. You knew they were angry and didn't try to run once their fingers flattened.
"That reaction makes me think you're feeling a lot better, you don't have to stay here. I don't think you brought anything with you the other night, but if I'm wrong just let me know." They had a sad smile. You didn't understand, they should be annoyed. Getting sick brought trouble and they even stayed with you for so long.
"I-I'm sorry, it won't happen again!" You tried to hop to your feet, but a new wave of dizziness had you falling back down. The dark eyes filled with worry came close, but their hand stayed firmly on the ground. You could leave.
"You got sick, it's ok to need some help. Honestly I'm glad you asked for a sleepover before it got that bad. I couldn't really take your temperature, but you were burning."
You didn't remember asking to sleep with them. The last thing you really remembered was feeling too warm in your home. You couldn't imagine why you would have come here. Unless it was that safe feeling, a hope it would happen again. The pad of one of their fingers brushed against your face.
"Are you sure you're alright to go back? I'm still worried, it seems like your fever just broke," they said. You looked past their finger to their eyes dripping with worry. You shook your head.
"I… I'm not sure. Getting sick can usually be a death sentence, especially like that. I don't even remember coming to you," you admitted.
You expected the human to dump you off their hand. You had burdened them for days, and now admitted it's because you were weak. The hand holding you moved up quickly yet carefully. You were pressed against their chest, a dull thud beneath you. Faintly you remembered the sound of it racing, the fear from somewhere you couldn't place.
"It doesn't have to be anymore. You weren't a burden, I was happy to take care of you," they said. Their voice sounded different, like it was shattering. "I'll be honest, when I woke up and you were looking up at me terrified I thought I'd hurt you. When I brought you close and felt your fever I thought the world would shatter. I didn't want to lose you when I only just got to talk to you."
The human let out a shaky sigh. The sound felt painful to hear again. You could remember the tear stained face and pain they were barely letting out when you last heard it. You never learned why they were like that, but you did break a rule that day. You'd stolen an extra paper star they made a long time ago. You left it somewhere they'd find it, the smile when they did made the risk worth it.
"I… thank you for taking care of me, is it ok if I come back if I get sick again?" You asked. Your own voice was almost too quiet. The thudding heart picked up and the human pulled you away. You were left staring at their face with tears rolling down their cheeks. They smiled through them, they smiled at you.
"I thought I'd have to ask for you to trust me like that again," they smiled. They leaned forward and pressed their forehead against you. It was unbelievable how all encompassing they were when mixed with the kindness they continued to show you. "Please let me help you whenever you need it, I want to know you."
"...ok… I want to know you too…" The human moved again, pulling you down. They held you close and that heartbeat filled your ears. This time you even caught the smell of their soap as they only held you more firmly. You didn't feel like those impossible fingers would get tighter, that they would hurt you.
"Thank you…"