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The heat wave that rolled over him was immense, powerful, nearly knocking him down. People were screaming both in terror and rage as the ancient pokemon emerged in a plume of smoke and ash, its screeching piercing the air.
Maxie strained to breath, the air too thick with smoke, soot and heavy heat. He stumbled, looking up through dusted lenses in time to see the wave of lava rushing towards him, oozing from around Groudon.
His mouth moved but words wouldn't come, throat tight. The lava was coming and he couldn't move, too scared, his feet glued to the ground.
He closed his eyes as tightly as possible, feeling the heat grow to be blistering, his teeth clenched in silent agony. The lava knocked him down, enveloping him, excruciating pain devouring him.
When he opened his eyes again, he was met with darkness.
He blinked, once, twice, gaze adjusting until he started to recognize things. A ceiling, wall decorated with a few pictures, his bedroom.
It was a dream. A nightmare.
He could hear his heart hammering in his ears, body shuddering involuntarily. He rolled onto his side and slipped the blankets off his shoulders. His hands came up to knot in his hair, staring straight ahead as he tried to control his quick breathing. His sweat felt cold on his skin, Maxie shifting slightly in the bed.
'A dream,' he repeated in his mind. 'A very real dream, but just a dream.'
He froze when the occupant next to him made a soft noise before rolling over, Maxie waiting a few moments before settling. Archie was a heavy sleeper, so he wasn't too worried about waking him.
A breath escaped him as he tried to calm his shaking, digging his fingers into his scalp a little more. Soon he decided he needed a walk, getting out of bed with practiced caution, making sure not to disturb Archie. He put on his glasses and slipped out of the room.
He made his way to the bathroom, flicking on the light before closing the door. He stopped in front of the mirror to wipe the drool from his face and give himself a look over.
The bags were heavy under his eyes, but he wasn't sure if it was just the lighting making them worse. Either way, they matched how tired he was, Maxie running a hand through his hair to push it out of the way. He had been having these God-forsaken nightmares for at least a month now and it was really starting to show. He would show up to work with bags under his eyes darker than the look he would give anyone who would try and disturb his zombie-like state, earning him a few worried and quizzical glances from his coworkers. No one has asked anything yet, and he was glad for that.
A sigh escaped him as he turned, heading out of the bathroom and turning off the light. He stopped by the bedroom, trying to decide if he could go back to bed yet. He came to the conclusion he couldn't and with a defeated look he shuffled down the hall and into the kitchen, heading for the cupboard.
He fetched a cup and filled it with water, leaning against the counter. He held the cup with both hands, closing his eyes for a moment as he tried to focus on cold feeling before taking a sip, dropping one of his hands.
'Oh, Arceus,' He huffed at himself internally. 'I can't believe I'm stuck awake over a stupid dream.'
His thoughts betrayed him, though, as the dream came back to life in his mind, body shuddering in revived fear. He set the cup down on the counter behind him, massaging his temples as he tried to focus on other things. He dropped his hands down soon after, wrapping his arms around himself as he looked down at the floor, scowling at it as if it were the reason he was having a hard time.
"Max?"
Maxie jolted, looking up quickly as his arms hurried to rest by his sides. Archie stood awkwardly in the doorway, wearing a white A-shirt and an old pair of pajama pants. His voice was groggy, looking almost as tired as Maxie. Maxie cleared his throat.
"Oh, good evening, Archie. I hope I didn't wake you," Maxie replied, composing himself quickly.
"S'a little past evening," Hummed Archie as he stepped in, peeking towards the oven's clock. "More like four in the mornin'."
"Oh," Maxie replied, "I apologize. I didn't realize the time. Lets go back to bed," Maxie offered, starting forwards. Archie met him halfway, stopping him with a quirked brow.
"....y'sick?" Archie asked, giving him a quick look over. Maxie wouldn't meet his gaze, giving a shake of his head in response.
"No, I'm fine, I just needed water," Maxie assured, Archie 'hmm'ing back as he reached a hand up to press to the smaller man's forehead. Maxie closed his eyes, enjoying the contact before Archie took it away, not satisfied with Maxie's answer.
"Y've been doin this for a few nights now," Archie commented, watching Maxie shift uncomfortably before he stepped back.
"Its just a habit, that's all," Maxie replied, his desire to avoid the conversation was evident. Archie looked like he was about to drop it for a moment, but soon sighed and a ran his fingers through his hair to move it out of his face.
"Max, if yer having nightmares, you can tell me," Maxie looked down before replying.
"I'm fine-"
"Max."
"Really, I am," Maxie said firmly, Archie frowning and straightening up, trying to get Maxie to look at him before giving up, softening his gaze.
"C'mere," He mumbled, stepping forwards. Maxie didn't argue as Archie's strong arms came around him, pulling him to his chest. Archie's hand gently ran through the red head's hair, careful while his other arm brought Maxie closer, rubbing circles into his back. The shorter man brought his arms around Archie, leaning into him. He breathed in his scent, closing his eyes and sighing out a breath as they stood there
"Y' don't have to hide things from me, y'know," Archie mumbled, voice a soft rumble from his chest. "I'm here for ya, and I wanna know if you're having trouble," Maxie held him a little tighter.
"...I...I have been having a few nightmares..." He softly admitted.
"...Wanna talk about it?"
"...Tomorrow. I'm exhausted."
Archie nodded, pulling back a little to give Maxie a wet kiss on the forehead and a grin. "Alright, lets hit the sack."
Maxie gave his own small smile and nodded, untangling from Archie and starting towards the room, Archie's arm around his waist.
They returned to bed, Maxie setting his glasses on the nightstand before crawling under the covers. He was pulled into a hug soon after, face buried under Archie's chin. He curled into Archie and hugged him back, Archie tugging the blankets over the two of them and sneaking Maxie one last kiss before letting him sleep.