Page 95 of Perfect Chemistry

I smirked. “I did. I was an idiot and hesitated, but I won’t do that again,” I said, pulling her back into a hug.

“It never occurred to me that my phone wouldn’t show missed calls after being turned off for several months,” she giggled, tucking her head against my shoulder. “We were so stupid,” she admitted, beginning to laugh a bit more.

“I’m sorry, I made you sad, Kitkat. It’s a regret I will try to right for the rest of our lives. But knowing that you met a man who treated you well…” I choked up trying to formulate my thoughts. “He set a high bar, and I will do my best to keep that standard. For you.”

She swatted my chest and sniffled. “Stop saying sweet, understanding shit… You’re ruining my resolve!”

That made me chuckle. I hoped I could tear down all of her resolves one day.

* * *

“No! Please!”

The muffled sound of someone talking woke me.

“Please! Stop!” Katie whimpered in her sleep.

I turned on my bedside lamp and looked over at her. She was drenched in sweat and shaking, tears streaming down her face while she slept.

A choked sob came out, ”Tyson!”

I didn’t know what to think. It felt like someone had crushed my chest. She was dreaming about her husband and calling his name out in my bed. I got up from the bed and went to the bathroom. How the fuck do I do this? I asked the man looking back in the mirror.

“No! NO!!” her hoarse voice called from my bed.

I didn’t think about it again. I ran back into the bedroom and climbed in next to Katie. A part of me wanted to be upset, but it was squashed pretty quickly. I reached over to caress her arm, thinking if it would soothe her back to sleep, but she recoiled like I had burned her. I pulled her body against mine, and held her in spite of the initial thrashing.

She calmed down within a couple of minutes and her breathing normalized again. I held her to my chest the rest of the night. Each time she moved, I woke immediately to check on her. I had never experienced night terrors or nightmares like this before.

I would ask Katie about them in the morning, if she remembered. Worst case, I would reach out to Andie… Even though she was on my shit list for lying back then.

* * *

Katie’s Point of View

I woke up feeling like I was being cooked in an oven. Kai held me to him so tightly one would think I was going to float away if he loosened his grip. I tried to pull away, but he only tightened his hold and shushed me in his sleep.

It made me smile, but at the same time I needed to get up. “Kai, I have to pee!” I whined, poking his ribs.

He patted my back and shushed me again, as if he were placating a sleepless child.

“Kai!” I said more forcefully. “Let me go, I have to pee!”

His eyes fluttered open, looking at my flushed face. “Are you okay?” He asked, his sleepy voice sounding hoarse.

I shook my head half laughing, “No, I have to pee and you won’t let me go. Please?”

His eyes opened wide, realizing what I was saying. “Shit, sorry,” he apologized and let go of me.

I quickly rolled out of bed and rushed to the bathroom. Feeling about three liters lighter, I washed myself up for the morning and brushed my teeth.

When I came back to the bedroom, Kai was sitting up on his side of the bed. His feet were on the floor, his elbows propped on his knees, and his head rested in his hands.

I climbed back into bed and sidled up behind him. My heart stuttered when he stiffened at my touch. It felt like I had been smacked. He must have realized what he’d done, because he reached out and pulled me back to him when I attempted to move away.

“I’m sorry,” he apologized, quietly. “I had a rough night,” he explained, turning to look at me. He pulled me closer and kissed my lips gently. “I’m just a little out of it.”

I nodded, looking at his face fully now that he was awake. I caressed his cheek, and felt like crying. I knew that look. I had seen that look on Andie’s face. My parents’. Hell, even Tyson’s a few times.

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