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I started in on the food, deciding not to take the bait when he alluded to Sam’s departure. I would address the situation once Dean felt in control.
After a few bites, and a few tense minutes, he shrugged his shoulders and let out a huff. “Sam’s now on nights with the Ag unit. Nights are a late second shift. No one works from three to six in the morning now. It’s a full blackout for navigation and communication during that time. We’re having difficulty with comms. He’ll be here until you get up with the boys around seven, so he can smack some sense into you the next time you wake up like that. The turn of events with his scheduling displeased me, but seeing you this morning…” he trailed off and squared his jaw.
“Seeing you this morning, it may be best to have another adult with BeLew. I’ve never witnessed someone have a night terror. How long have you been having these dreams?”
I was reluctant to answer him. My sister was the only one who had experienced this with me. It had happened when I was a child more often than I could count. It stopped completely in high school but started back up a few months before the weather turned against us. When I was little, the dreams had petrified me. They confused me.
And then I experienced the visions in real-life.
When my sister and I noticed a pattern with the dreams, the fear took hold. She promised never to tell anyone my secret if I swore to tell her every dream. I kept my word in my younger years, but when I dreamed of the storms and the world today, I couldn’t bear to tell her what I saw. I knew what it meant and what it would do to her. No one wanted to know they were dying. No one wanted to live in fear.
We hadn’t referred to them as night terrors. We’d called them premonitions.
“When I was young, I did. It’s been a hard year, so I’m sure the trauma has brought them back.” It wasn’t a lie, but it wasn’t the whole truth.
“Brought them back exactly when? What else have you been dreaming?”
“It’s just a stupid dream. When things become more routine, they’ll stop.”
Dean lowered his shoulders and shoveled another bite of food into his mouth. He chewed, letting the silence build between us before he spoke again. “You’re probably right, but let me know if you have another.”
“I will, but I don’t want you to worry yourself with it. I’m okay. I’m adjusting.”
A light knock on the door diverted our attention. “Ah, your husband is back.” Dean opened the door and stepped outside. I could hear hushed voices through the wall. Someone let out a grunt of pain, and I considered barging into the hall, but I restrained myself. I wanted him back, preferably in less pain than when he left, and he was so close.
The door opened, and Sam appeared on the arm of another large man. They were both dressed in blue scrubs, and I could tell he was getting around better. Sam’s face tensed in pain, but he was walking, or rather shuffling. With his arm wrapped around someone else, he could make it from point A to point B. The only issue was both bulky men would never make it through our narrow doorway.
I rushed over to him and his face lit up. “Hey, Wifey. Sorry to bail on our honeymoon.”
Sam moved his grip to mine with the grace of a linebacker. Huffing and grimacing, we made it to the bed. He kept his eyes on me the whole time, and I made a mental note to go over future Dean etiquette. If he called me beautiful right now, Dean would send him straight to cleaning toilets, tonight.
He lowered to the bed with a thud, and I covered him up, grabbed my oatmeal, and went to the hallway with the men. “He looks better.” I shoved a bite into my mouth. My heart fluttered now that I knew where Sam was and that his disappearance didn’t appear to be ill-intended.
“He looks like shit, but at least he’s clean and so is his wound,” Dean snapped.
“I did the best I could,” I mumbled through bites of food.
“You did a magnificent job,” the other man chimed in. “If you’ll excuse me, I need to get back to the clinic.” He left, pushing an empty wheelchair, and I thanked him as he strolled away.
“You did a great job, but he needed to get checked out. I pulled a few strings and got him seen. You weren’t worried I hope.” I stayed silent, pretending to chew oatmeal. “You were right about the severity. The gash scraped the bone. It’s going to take months to fully heal, and even then, he may have a limp.”
“Well, I appreciate you taking care of him. Again, the right thing to do. Thank you.”
“Well, I’ll leave you to it then. I’m sorry I forgot to leave a note that I took him down there earlier. I got wrapped up with the effort to get him up and out of the room. You understand?”
“Absolutely, no big deal. Should we meet in the mess hall for dinner today since our breakfast plans got a little shuffled? I’m having lunch with Lori, er, I mean Smith, and her boys.”
Dean rocked back on his heels. “Making friends already, I see. Yes, dinner at seven in civilian time. You’ll need to learn the military clock.”
“I figured it out, 1900. And I could use a female friend. Plus, she manages the kitchen. She’s an ally we need to have. See you then, Dean.” I turned on my heel and headed for the door. I heard Dean’s footsteps without a goodbye and took that as a good sign. He went along with me seeing Smith. I believed I passed his little test with Sam too, but only time would tell.
When I got back into the room, I shut the door behind me and leaned my body against it, letting out an audible sigh. I chucked the empty cup in the garbage can and lowered my hands to my knees, my head hanging low.
“That distraught over losing me for an evening?” Sam quipped. He propped himself on his elbows with his chest on display. The sheet crept down to his waist as he lifted, showing off his chiseled chest.
I averted my eyes, but they kept flicking back to his body. “Where’s your shirt?”
“It itched. That fabric is awful. I had a very odd few hours, but I’m feeling better now.”
