Without any light to guide her, she left the door cracked, firelight cast in a thin strip over the dark floor as she stumbled to the bed.
A stuttered gasp made her jump.
After letting her eyes adjust, she finally saw Lucien’s sleeping body—but he wasn’t sleeping peacefully.
He lay on his back, sheets kicked to the foot of the bed, leaving his thin white shirt and flannel pants exposed. His glasses were on the bedside table, next to a small notebook and pen. His black hair fell over his forehead, his chest rising and falling roughly as he mumbled in his sleep.
Her bare feet were quiet over the floor as she moved closer, her hair slipping over her shoulder as she leaned down over him, a tiny furrow between her brows.
Sweat matted his hair to his temples.
"Vesperin, don’t look. Don’t look."
"Lucien?" she whispered, gently touching his shoulder.
Lucien sucked in a sharp breath, eyes shooting open as he sat up quickly. "Vesperin!"
Wildly, he lashed out until he realized Rin was right before him, her hands on his shoulder as she soothed him.
"Lucien, Lucien, it’s okay. Look at me. It’s okay." Rin touched his hand and directed his face to hers. "It’s okay. It was just a bad dream."
His breaths were ragged. She’d never seen him so out of sorts before. She was used to him being so calm and collected.
It was like seeing a parent cry—something a child should never experience.
Her fingers spanned out on his cheek as she beheld his beautifully haunted green eyes. His eyes were unfocused—from his lack of glasses or trouble waking fully, she wasn’t sure.
"Breathe with me, Lucien. After me. Watch." Rin took a deep, steadying breath. Lucien coughed as he tried to mimic her. So she grabbed his hand, feeling the sweat on his palm as she placed his hand on her diaphragm. "Feel it. Breathe deep." She breathed, again and again, watching him follow, until his heart calmed and their breathing synced and his eyes sharpened.
She nodded softly. "Okay?"
Lucien’s hand fell from her chest, and she didn’t have time to mourn the loss of his touch before his arms enveloped her and he crushed her to him. Her knees knocked against his hip as she was pulled into his embrace.
"Vesperin, my sweet girl." Lucien’s voice was thick with sleep. The mattress shifted as he moved to sit against the headboard, pulling her with him. He reached with one arm to click on the small lamp on the table, casting them both in yellow light. "Are you okay?"
The bulb flickered once, then twice, before settling into a muted, half-burnt glow.
She huffed, pulling back slightly until she could meet his eyes. He stared at her with a strong possession, the likes of which she’d never seen from him before.
"You were the one who just had a panic attack, and you’re asking me if I’m okay?"
"Why are you up? It’s the middle of the night." His green eyes flicked to his phone, resting on the table. He tapped the screen, and the clock read 4 AM.
"I couldn’t sleep. I had a bad dream too, I guess."
"Do you want to talk about it? It can help ease the lingering feeling of unrest." Even off-duty, he remained quietly clinical with her.
She reached up and brushed her finger over the sweat-curled ends of his black hair. "Do you?" she challenged. Lucien remained silent, so Rin sighed. "Thought so…"
Lucien raked his pale, long fingers through his hair, making the ends of it stand up. On anyone else, it would look chaotic, but on him, it just looked endearing. "It was just a bad dream. A nightmare," he corrected. "It was nothing. Just the stress of everything getting to me, manifesting in my subconscious. I’ll get over it."
His words were clipped, and even though he held her nearly in his lap, she still felt a strange distance between them. "Is… everything okay?"
Lucien hummed, absently rubbing his thumb over her hip. She wore lavender fleece pajamas; she felt like she had to be bundled up constantly in this frigid dungeon.
He made a low, distressed groan, and Rin pulled back in earnest, searching his eyes.
"Lucien?"
