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“No, no…” Alina’s rapid breathing and whimpers filled the small hotel room as she tossed and turned, waking you up.
It was one of her nightmares again.
“Alina,” you mumbled, searching for her arm in the darkness while half-sleeping. “Alina, it’s just a nightmare.”
She didn’t wake up, so you forced yourself to sit up, shaking her properly. “Alina, wake up. Everything is okay.”
“Get away from me!” Alina screamed as she sat up, and you jumped back slightly. It took a moment for her to realise she wasn’t with Darkling, and finally laid her eyes on you with a slight groan, falling back on her pillow. “Sorry.”
“That dream again?” you mumbled, scooting closer to her. She nodded.
“It’s so silly to be afraid of him, he’s dead,” she said and took in a deep sigh. “He… he can’t be alive, can he?”
You shook your head. “Mal saw him get swooped away by the Volcra. Nobody survives that.”
“Yeah,” she closed her eyes, taking in a shaky breath. “He just… feels so real.”
You were quiet for a moment, before you gently pulled Alina into you, weaving your hand through her hair. “I know.”
Alina responded by slowly wrapping her arm around your torso. “Is this how it will be for the rest of my life?”
You sighed deeply, before you placed a kiss on top of her head. “You will fight the remnants of him away.”
She was quiet again, then shifted slightly. “I hope so.”
Then you let yourselves to drift back into sleep, your arm tightly around Alina - you would help her through the trauma she had gone through with Darkling. It would be a long road, but you would do it.