The hours after midnight were the best part of the day in Heechul’s opinion. It was the only time of day that he had to himself, no kids to take care of. They had all been fed, done their chores, and gone to bed like the obedient little teenagers they were. Now the house was still and silent, all the lights turned off accommodatingly. The nights were becoming quite cool and so he’d gone around opening some of the windows so that they could all get some fresh air while they slept.

Even now, as he sat in the living room watching his favorite television show, he enjoyed the soft sound of the wind and the curtains fluttering through the breeze. It was a little chilly, but comfortable none-the-less. He just wished that Leeteuk was there with him and that they could cuddle in each other’s arms for awhile.

The show came to a commercial and all of a sudden he heard someone the stairs creak. A moment later Key walked into the room, an annoyed expression on his face. His hair was disheveled and his eyes yearned for sleep.

“Can you please do something about Kibum?” Key complained quietly, crossing his arms over his chest. “He’s having another nightmare and is crying in his sleep.”

“Alright, I’m coming,” Heechul said, reaching for the remote to turn off the TV. He silently followed Key upstairs, heading to the end of the hallway where Kibum’s room was. It was dark and difficult to see, so he carefully turned the lamp next to the bed on. Kibum was curled up in his blankets, whimpering softly and occasionally mumbling incoherently. Without saying a word, he put his hand on Kibum’s back and began rubbing soothingly. Most of the time he didn’t have to wake Kibum up, he just needed to comfort him.

Other times, however, Kibum would wake up in hysterics or start screaming in his sleep. It was very unsettling when that happened. The poor kid would be so scared and confused that it always took a long time to get him calmed down.

“Can’t you give him a sleeping pill?” Key whispered curiously, climbing onto the window seat and pulling his knees up to his chest.

Heechul shook his head adamantly. “No, he doesn’t react well to sleeping pills. He has a hard time waking up from them and even then he says that he feels like he’s being held under water. Plus they don’t stop the nightmares; they just make it harder to wake up from, leaving him trapped in them.”

“Why does he even have nightmares?” Key pressed on, since all hopes of sleep were completely shot now.

“I don’t know, he just does,” Heechul responded, Kibum’s hair relaxingly. “He can’t help it, Key. I’m sorry that he wakes you up, but you can’t be mad at him for something he has no control over.”

“I know that,” Key insisted defensively. “But, how come you don’t take him back to therapy? Can’t a doctor help him stop having them?”

“Not really, it just doesn’t work that way. I wish it would, but he’s just been through so much. He may not show it, but he’s still very scared and insecure. He’s alright during the day, but at night he’s completely defenseless,” Heechul informed him, watching Kibum sympathetically. “I promise that he’ll stop having them soon enough. If we keep him busy during the day and wear him out, he’ll sleep through the night quietly.”

“You should make him go back to school then,” Key suggested, nodding at the thought of it. “He could join clubs or a sports team. He’ll have plenty of things to do and keep his mind occupied.”

Heechul smiled at him, but didn’t respond. Instead he stood up, leaning over to tuck the blankets snuggly around Kibum. He turned off the lamp and beckoned for Key to follow him out of the room, where he gave him a hug and sent him off to bed before retiring to his own room for the night.

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