Page 35 of The Road Home
CHAPTER THIRTEEN
"Stop!" Orson screamed, his fists swatting into the air, trying to push the man he'd been dreaming about off him. "Leave me alone. Let go!"
He kicked at the blankets, feeling as if someone was holding him down. Tears burned his eyes as he fought, dreading what was about to happen to him.
"Orson, wake up."
"Let me go!" Orson kicked, his foot getting stuck in the sheet. "Don't do this."
"Orson, it's Jared. You're dreaming. Wake up!"
Orson fought to catch his breath, the weight on his chest increasing. "Please, no!"
"Damn it, Orson, wake up. You're safe. It's only a dream."
Hands gripped his shoulders and he screamed.
"Orson! Orson, wake up."
He gasped as someone shook him. Slowly, he woke, easing out of the nightmare, his body trembling as he slowly opened his eyes to find Jared holding onto his upper arms.
"Are you awake?" Jared asked, releasing him.
"Yeah." Orson fell back against the pillow. "Sorry." This had happened enough, he knew what Jared must have heard. Others had told him what he screamed during his nightmares. "I'm okay, you can go back to bed. Sorry I woke you." He wrapped his arms around himself, trying to push the images from his mind. Sweat dripped down his temple as he tried to catch his breath.
"I can't leave you like this." Jared pressed a hand to Orson's arm. "Do you want to talk about it?"
"No, it's the same thing every time." Orson kept his eyes closed so he wouldn't have to look at Jared. He needed a minute to calm down and accept that it hadn't been real. The dreams were so vivid he could feel the pain. There was no escaping in the dreams. He couldn't disconnect from them the way he could in real life.
"Does this happen often?"
Orson shrugged, still trembling. "Not always this bad."
"Let me grab you some water." Jared went to get up.
"No, stay, please." Orson grabbed Jared's arm. "I just need a minute and I don't like to be alone right after."
"Okay." Jared relaxed on the edge of the bed. "I'll stay as long as you want."
"Thanks." Orson took a deep breath, his skin cold from the sweat as he looked up at Jared's worried face. "I'm okay, I promise. I just need to get their faces out of my head for a minute." He hated that Jared was seeing him this way, but it wasn't like he could hide it, especially if he decided to move in. More nights than not he woke up screaming, even the nights he didn't scream, he dreamed. It never went away.
"How can I help?"
"Just talk to me," Orson whispered.
Jared nodded. "Okay, how about I tell you about the dog I had back home? Her name was Misty. She was a beautiful border collie. I got her when I was about three, so we pretty much grew up together. She was the smartest dog. By the time I was ten she would follow me around anytime she could. She'd even jump on the back of my horse and ride with me."
"You had horses." Orson was surprised.
"Yeah, a few of them. We didn't have a big ranch like Daryl's family, but we had enough land that we had horses. I used to ride a lot." Jared smiled. "I miss that part of being home, but that's about the only thing."
"Whatever happened to Misty?"
"She had to stay with my parents when I went to school. She had a good life, but died while I was in college."
Glad for the conversation to distract him, Orson started to relax. "Have you thought about getting another dog now?"
Jared smiled. "I think about it all the time, but with the hours I work, she'd be alone half the day. I didn't think that was fair. Maybe someday I'll get one again. I'd like to get another border collie like Misty. Did you have pets?"
