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Lloyd woke with a desperate gasp, tears, and sweat dripping down his face.
Curse Morro. Another nightmare about the damn ghost.
Lloyd should be used to the constant night terrors that visited him every night, a constant reminder of how weak and useless he was. How he couldn't even protect himself against Morro.
He's hardly been sleeping in the past months following the possession, memories of Morro still haunting him.
Lloyd was constantly on edge, always expecting Morro to be there in the mirror, or behind him when he turned around. Lloyd half expected that Morro was watching in the corner of his room that very moment. Observing. Lloyd shuddered at the thought of him.
The darkness was closing in, the room too small. Lloyd couldn't breathe, curling in on himself in an attempt to hide from the lingering confines of his nightmare. Lloyd sobbed, tugging at his hair, his body trembling like a leaf. He cried at the slightest sound from the shadows, fear gripping him like an icy cold vice. Memories of that awful time played through his mind like a cynical movie, only worsening his panic.
"Fight him, Lloyd!" He couldn't even do that. He barely let Kai get away with his life. What good was he when he couldn't even hold his own against a ghost of all things?
Lloyd shook with another violent sob, "I'm sorry."
"I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I-I'm sorry, I'm s-orry," Lloyd sobbed brokenly, to no one. What was he sorry for? For being so weak? That felt about right. He didn't even register the knock on the door, and he doesn't stop his mantra of apologies until he hears his name being called and a hand is wrapped around his shoulder.
"Lloyd? Lloyd, listen to me," Kai pleaded, trying to ground him.
The blonde's attention finally snapped up to Kai, eyes wide and terrified.
"I'm sorry," is all he manages to choke.
"For what?" Kai asks confusion written on his face, pulling Lloyd closer.
Lloyd's body shook, shoving his face into Kai's shoulder in a desperate effort to feel safe.
Kai wrapped his arms around the smaller boy, hugging him tightly.
Lloyd's chest heaved, tears flowing down his face.
"Lloyd? What's wrong," Kai said softly, "Are you alright? Do I need to get the others?"
"Don't leave," Lloyd begged, his grip on Kai's shoulders tightening, voice flooding with panic.
"Woah, Woah," Kai gasped, "It's fine. I'm here, I'm not going anywhere."
"Promise?" Lloyd mumbled.
"Promise," Kai reassured, holding Lloyd as close as he could.
A few minutes pass, and Lloyd's sobs have thankfully trailed off into soft sniffles and the occasional tears falling from his eyes.
"I'm sorry."
"Stop saying that," Kai said, harsher than he intended, "You have nothing to be sorry for. What's wrong?"
"I had a nightmare again," Lloyd muttered, feeling ashamed at the confession, "It was Morro."
Kai sighed. It was often enough that he found Lloyd in the kitchen, trying to walk off the aftermath of a bad dream.
However, this was the first time he'd caught Lloyd in the middle of a panic attack. The thought that Lloyd had gone through this every time, with no one there for him, broke Kai's heart.
Kai tightened his grip around Lloyd, something akin to a protective instinct filling him.
"It's okay," Kai said gently, running a hand through his hair, "You're safe, it's okay. Morro's gone, he's dead, he's not here anymore."
Lloyd sniffled, swallowing the lump in his throat, barely managing to nod.
"Morro's not here, right?" Lloyd whispered, fear still rippling under his skin, trying to cling to him.
"Of course, he's not. Morro's dead, remember? We destroyed the Cursed Realm."
Lloyd flushed, suddenly feeling embarrassed for forgetting.
"Oh...yeah," Lloyd's voice trailed off, "Can you check?"
The childish request left his mouth before he could even register it in his mind.
Lloyd buried his face in Kai's chest, "I'm sorry."
Kai patted his back, smiling, "Don't be. I can check if that'll make you feel better?"
Lloyd chewed the inside of his cheek, "Yeah...uh, yeah, sure. Please."
Kai hummed, gently taking Lloyd's arms from around his shoulders so he could get up.
Kai looked around the room, inspecting every corner where anything could possibly be hiding.
"See?" Kai said, opening the closet door, a smile still present on his face, free of judgment.
"Yeah," Lloyd grinned, having calmed down significantly, wiping away the few remaining tears.
"Thanks."
Kai walked back over to the edge of the bed, ruffling Lloyd's hair playfully.
Lloyd laughed, batting away Kai's hand, and giving his brother a mischievous smile.
Their laughter died down, and Kai fixed The younger one with an affectionate grin.
"Do you want me to stay?" Kai offered.
Lloyd nodded, "Yeah, can you please stay? I don't wanna be alone."
Kai nodded, sitting back down on the bed and holding Lloyd close once again.
"Just go to sleep," Kai said in a soft voice, "Just go to sleep. You're safe now, no one is going to hurt you anymore."
Lloyd shifted slightly to he could look the older in the eye.
"Promise?"
Kai nodded, "Promise."