Work Text:
To put it plainly, Liz had had a long day. They had been continued to search for Eddie Winter’s holotapes. It was a long, and difficult task at times.
When they returned to Sanctuary after finding the seventh tape, she just wanted to sleep. She had been doing so much, like helping out settlements along the way and fighting her way to those damn tapes. Honestly, she wasn't sure that if she wasn't so close to Nick that she'd even do the task. She pushed open the door of her old house, where she had taken up residence in again. It made her feel better, sleeping there. It was familiar and comfortable, things that were rare in the Commonwealth.
She made her way down the hall and fell into her bed as soon as she got to it. After tossing and turning for a while, her mind and body finally started relaxing. Her thoughts drifted to Nate and pre-war times as she fell asleep.
It was hot, she noticed as she woke up in her dream. Shaun crossed her mind as Nate’s arms wrapped around her.
“Nate,” she gave him a little shake, “why is it hot?”
“What're you talking about, Liz?” He replied, his voice thick with sleep.
“I feel so hot. Like something is burning.”
“Babe, you're crazy, go back to sleep.” He nestled in closer to her. She sighed and relented, relaxing into his embrace.
Almost as she fell asleep again, she heard crying. She bolted up. Around her the house was crumbling. The crying was getting louder.
“Nate! The house! It's falling apart!” She screamed as she shook him awake.
“Lizzy, what the hell?! It's fine! Go back to bed!” He mumbled angrily at her.
She shook her head and got up. The floor was like molten on her feet. She sucked in a breath and let it out, trying not to focus on the pain. She ran across the hall to the baby’s room, her files from work billowing around her. Everything was on fire, falling in charred chunks around the baby. She dashed to his side and scooped him out of the crib, rocking and shushing him gently.
Nate wandered in, looking at her like she was out of her mind.
“Liz, what is this about? Shaun is asleep, the house is fine.” He tried to speak to her calmly.
That's when she heard a distinct whistle. Nate must've heard it, too, since he looked up and around.
“What the hell…?”
Liz looked him straight in the eyes and mouthed one word,
“Bombs.”
She sat up, screaming. She buried her face in her hands as sobs wrecked her small frame. She couldn't breathe, she couldn't make sense of where she was. She heard her name be called from somewhere and footsteps outside her door.
“Liz? Liz are you alright?” The door creaked open as Nick stepped in. He took one look at her.
“Shit, Liz! What the fuck?!” He immediately grabbed her hands that were trying to frantically pull her copper hair out. He gingerly sat beside her, trying not to startle her.
“Liz, look at me.” He demanded. She looked up but her eyes were unfocused and full of tears that were also streaming down her cheeks. He put his good hand to her cheek and wiped the streaks away. His other arm wrapped around her and pulled her to his chest. Nick stroked her cheek, humming softly to her and gently rocked her back into reality.
“Liz, darling, I need you to breathe. Big deep breaths. Can you do that for me?” He whispered to her. She gave a single nod. “Alright. C’mon, breathe in….. Breathe out…. In… And out..” She followed his words without question. “That's my girl. Keep going. In… And out…” He rubbed small circles into her back and held her head to his shoulder. He kissed the top of her head and he didn't stop slowly rocking them back and forth.
They stayed like that well into the night. He felt small kisses on his neck at one point, and resisted the urge to give into her. He just kept her held to him. Eventually, her breathing evened out and she had fallen back to sleep.
Nick laid her down and kicked off his shoes. He crawled up beside her, wrapping her back into his arms. He hummed in her ear some more.
“Nick…?” Her voice was so soft he thought he imagined it.
“Yes, love?”
“Thank you.”
“What happened?” Their voices were whispers.
“I had a dream that I was in bed with Nate. The house was burning around us. He didn't see it. Then the baby was crying. And the house was crumbling. Then… We heard the whistle. Of the bombs, yanno? That's when I woke up”
“Shit, Liz.”
She sniffled a bit and his arms tightened around her.
“What would I have done without you, though?” She looked at him and gave a sad smile.
“I'm not sure.” He looked away, almost embarrassed that he wouldn't give into their obvious relationship, but there he was in her living room while she slept, always listening and watching out for her.
“Well, thank you again.” She planted a small kiss on his cheek and almost immediately fell asleep again.
He laid there, with her cuddled close, his lips on her forehead, and a hand running through her silky hair. Hours passed, the sun rose and was high in the sky. He couldn't bring himself to move, or to wake her. So he stayed.