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John woke up screaming.
The sound of it was quickly mixed with smashing glass and a shocked shout from the bar just behind him on the couch. The room was so dark he had hardly remembered where he was when a bright light shined in his eyes.
“Holy Shit John!” Bob's voice came from behind the light. “I didn’t even know you were in here.”
“Get that out of my face,” he swiped at the light. Making contact with a cellphone that clattered loudly to the floor.
“Sorry, sorry.” The men were silent, straining to see each other in the dark. John’s serum enhanced eyes could just make out the lines of his face. “Are you like… okay?” Bob asked slowly.
Why was he always fucking asking if he was okay?
“Obviously not,” He snapped.
“What’s going on?”
“It’s nothing that you need to worry your pretty little head about.” John condescended. He pushed up from the couch. Thankful that Bob couldn’t see him struggling for purchase on the deep cushions.
“You don’t need to be a dick, I’m trying to check in on you.” Bob’s tone was harsh in the echoing common room.
“Jesus,” John flinched at the snap. Bob wasn’t exactly known for it.
“You know what?” He rounded the couch and sank down into it, “I’m tired of this.”
“The hell—“
“You freak out, like freak out hard then act like I’m the bad guy for being all ‘hey John I care about you, talk to me’.” Bob shifted closer and closer to John’s spot on the couch. Eventually forcing the large man to pull his knees to his chest. John was frozen in place not used to being scolded by Bob
“I don’t freak out,” John lied. Still he scoffed and rolled his eyes. Putting on a damned good show for a man who couldn’t see him.
“You—“ Bob laughed, genuinely cackled, “you woke up five minutes ago screaming.”
“Christ, I had a nightmare fucking shoot me or something,”
“What about?” Bob cut him off before he could even answer, “Why were you even sleeping on the couch anyway? You weren’t here when we cleaned up dinner.”
“I thought you wanted me to answer your questions?” John rolled his eyes again. This was going to give him a headache.
“Fair. Why are you on the couch?”
“It’s too quiet in my room.” John surprised himself with the speed of his answer. Anyone else and he’d never have admitted that. The great U.S. Agent brought to heel by the simple lack of noise. “I used to be able to hear Olivia breathing, her heartbeat sometimes if I really focused.”
“Okay.” Bob considered that, there could be an easy solution if he was bold enough to suggest it. “What did you dream about?”
This answer didn’t jump forth nearly as easily. It was as if an actual chill settled over the room.
“John?”
“No follow ups?”
“Fine.” Bob agreed, shrugging in the dark. He’d already managed to make more progress in mere minutes while John had refused to budge for months.
“Just a rollover. Wasn’t even an IED.” John closed his eyes, “it was my first tour,” his voice cracked as he continued, “a guy died. I was in the vehicle behind it.”
“Damn,” Bob flinched at his lack of anything meaningful to say.
Tears were welling in his eyes, “I’ve seen so much worse. Done so much worse.” The dark couldn’t hide the quiver in his voice, “but that stuck with me ya’know.”
“I know what you mean,” Bob pulled in his own shaky breath, “When I was on the streets, I saw a lot of people get hurt…hurt themselves. Still it’s the smallest things that wake me up at night.”
”It’s feels so stupid.” John let himself fall towards Bob. Blaming the strange power of the dark when everything told him to put space between them
“Where’s your shoulder?” Bob asked suddenly.
John sniffed, “What?”
The tips of Bob's fingers grazed John’s. face. Bob gasped lightly,
“Did I just hit you in the face?”
John sniffled and laughed, “This is why I don’t tell you things, you hit me in the face when I’m vulnerable.”
“That’s just false. Just lies.” Bob laughed, finally he found John’s shoulder. Landing his hand firmly on it. “Okay John, your gonna hate this,”
“What are you doing?”
“I’m going to hug you.”
“You can’t even see me,” He laughed as Bob started to pull them together.
“Then you better cooperate.”
It was clumsy and blind but Bob managed to wrap his arms around the super soldier. He was more or less laying atop him.
“This is silly,” John murmured, his voice humming in Bob’s ear.
“Shut up,” Bob laughed, pulling away and shoving John back by pushing his hand to his chest. He wished he could see him but was thankful the dim light prevented John from noticing the blush across his face.
“Thank you Bob, seriously.”
“It’s good that your thank full cause I have an even worse idea.”
“Oh God,” John chuckled.
“Crash in my room tonight? I’m pretty confident I breathe at night.”
John’s hesitation froze Bob in place. Had he crossed a line?
”I’d like that.” John muttered eventually.