Work Text:
It had been a relatively normal day for Sylus. In the early hours of the morning, he finished up some pretty boring Onychinous business, made sure the twins were taken care of (they’re actually pretty low maintenance), ate whatever the chef made for dinner, and got ready for bed. Simple. Less than an average day really. He even found himself easily drifting off into dreamland.
Sylus didn’t often dream, or if he did, he never remembered them. He didn’t really care one way or the other. He knew he could make every dream of his a reality anyway—a thought which he would soon resent.
Never did he think he would have a nightmare; especially, after such a dull, quiet day He hadn’t so much as thought about committing sin the entire day for Christ’s sake.
But there he was.
He could see it so clearly.
Sylus looked down at his large hands and found them covered in deep crimson liquid. It was warm, fresh.
Heavy raindrops plopped into his palms, washing away the blood. He turned his hands over and over, but there was not a single wound to be found. He didn’t feel any pain either, just a cold wind blowing against his drenched clothes. How long had he been standing there in the rain?
His hands became blurry in his vision. His eyes focused instead on the scene before him. Sylus stood in a dark alleyway, a location he was quite used to being in; however, this alley felt especially familiar, and he had no clue as to why. There wasn't anything special about it: puddles forming in the divets of the uncared for concrete beneath his feet, a street lamp blinking its dim light overhead, a rusty dumpster against a bricked wall, a trail of blo—a trail of blood?!
Sylus followed the drip pattern with his eyes and found its source slumped up against the building to the left of him. He cautiously approached the figure who was clad in all black, very befitting to the rest of the scenery. He blended into the night.
Sylus already knew who the figure was—he could feel it. For some reason, he just knew. But he didn’t want to believe it. He had to see it, see him, with his own two eyes.
Sylus cautiously stepped closer to the person. The blood pooled around the figure, enshrouding them in even more darkness. Black crystals protruded from the person’s body all the way through their thick wool coat. Sylus actually winced at how painful it looked.
Somehow Sylus found the courage to look at the figure’s face. His dark hair, heavy with rain, covered half his face. Sylus carefully combed the figure's hair back to fully reveal Zayne’s familiar countenance. His hand lingered on Zayne’s cheek. It felt cold under his palm, a feeling that sent a shiver down Sylus’s spine. Sylus was grateful Zayne’s eyes were already closed; he couldn’t bear to see them without their natural glimmer. The doctor’s pale skin glowed in the moonlight. Sylus’s eyes began to well up with tears. He couldn’t look at him any longer.
When he opened his eyes again, he was instead met with a different darkness—a black ceiling. He immediately sat up and tried to gain his bearings. Ornate paintings hanging on the wall, a musky tobacco scent in the air, plush blankets against his skin. He was in his bedroom, alone.
It was just a dream—a nightmare, but that was all it was.
He strangely didn’t feel an ounce of relief from that realization. His heart was pounding so hard he could feel it in his ears. He felt the rain wash over him, smelled the smokey air of the city, and heard the traffic rushing by all so clearly. He felt Zayne’s cold skin just as he felt his own warm skin now as he clutched his chest.
Was it really “just a dream”?
The next moment, a flash of lightning ripped through his curtains followed closely by a loud crash of thunder. Raindrops fiercely thudded against the windows. Just like everything else in the N109 Zone, storms there were particularly violent.
Wait.
It was raining…just like…
Sylus flew out of bed, put on the closest clothes he could find, and ran through his house.
For only one second, Sylus allowed himself to worry, and it completely consumed him. It felt too real, so what if it was?
He had to find out.
Sylus hopped on his bike and raced from the N109 Zone to Linkon as fast as physics would allow.
He rolled up to Zayne’s house in record time, taking notice the lights were off. It dawned on him just how late it was (of course, it was just the start of the day to Sylus). Being surrounded in darkness so soon after the nightmare only unsettled him further.
Sylus snuck around to the back of the house and used his evol to bust the lock on Zayne’s patio door. He’d pay him back later, or even fix it himself, but there were bigger things on his mind at the moment.
Sylus scanned the living room. Everything seemed to be in order—no signs of a struggle at least. He also took note of Zayne’s coat hanging up and his bag on the table next to the front door.
“He should be home,” Sylus thought to himself.
He gingerly stepped across the room to peek down the hallway where he spotted a warm amber light shining from Zayne’s bedroom. Without making a sound, Sylus slinked through the shadows to stand right outside the room against the wall. He leaned over just enough to peer through the doorway.
Inside, his gaze fell upon a figure sitting up in bed with a book in hand, blocking Sylus’s view of their face. The aforementioned light was coming from a lamp on the nightstand.
Sylus turned so his whole body was away from the doorway again. He leaned against the wall and breathed a quiet sigh of relief.
Zayne was okay.
And yet, Sylus still felt a lingering sense of unease. Every time he closed his eyes he could see Zayne’s pale, lifeless face.
Sylus swayed back over to the doorway. If he could just see his face, then he’d be satisfied, then he’d lea—
“Sylus?” Zayne called out, bewildered. He could’ve sworn he’d seen his white haired companion out of the corner of his eye.
Sylus had panicked and turned away from the doorway again.
“Sylus?” Zayne said again, this time in a softer tone.
Why would Sylus hide from him? Now he wasn’t sure what he saw. Zayne closed his book and set it quietly on his nightstand. He lifted the blankets to get out of bed and confront the intruder.
Sylus heard the rustle of Zayne’s bedsheets and panicked once more.
The homeowner froze once the intruder revealed himself, his frame taking up practically the entire doorway.
It was quiet for a moment as both men stared at each other.
Maybe it was because it was late in the day, but Zayne couldn’t make sense of any of it. He tried to ask, “What are you—oof!”
Sylus’s feet started moving before his brain could think. He lunged into the bed, wrapping his arms around Zayne’s torso and laying his head against his chest.
Once the initial shock dissolved, Zayne’s hand naturally fell to stroke Sylus’s hair. He asked, his usual steady voice laced with worry, “Sylus, what’s wrong?”
“Shh…you’re dreaming,” the intruder responded.
“You’re all wet.”
“I said you’re dreaming,” he deferred once again.
Zayne sighed, still not loving the fact he had no idea what was going on. It was clear that Sylus didn’t want to talk about it either. Maybe it would be better to let it be for now.
“Okay…,” he played along, “I guess I should go to sleep then…right?”
“Mmmhmm,” Sylus hummed against Zayne’s chest.
Zayne placed his glasses atop his book before clicking off his bedside lamp.
As soon as the room went dark, Sylus pulled Zayne down so he was lying flat against the mattress with him. Sylus felt Zayne’s chest rumble under his head as Zayne chuckled softly. Then, he focused on Zayne’s strong heartbeat and finally felt true relief.
Zayne moved his hand from his companion’s hair down to his back and began rubbing small circles there. He felt Sylus’s muscles relax under his fingers. The warmth radiating from his body made Sylus melt even further into him. Zayne wasn’t usually one for much physical affection, making Sylus revel in the contact that much more.
Zayne pulled the blankets up around them, worried his new bunkmate might get cold from being in wet clothes. The doctor thought to offer him a change of clothes, but he knew Sylus wasn’t letting go of him any time soon.
Zayne leaned forward to kiss the top of Sylus’s head before whispering, “Goodnight, darling.”
Sylus felt his heart skip a beat as his eyes began to well up. He couldn’t muster a verbal reply, and opted to hold Zayne a little tighter instead.
Zayne definitely got the message he was trying to send. He easily drifted off to sleep knowing his partner felt cared for.
Even though Sylus was much more relaxed, he was still fully awake. However, he was completely content, even happy, to lay next to Zayne all night long.
And so he would for there was no place he’d rather be.