You woke up in the middle of the night, drenched in sweat. The cackling still rung in your ears. You could still feel the pressure of a hand on your throat. Your body trembled as your heart beat wildly. Goosebumps had broken out all over your arms. What the hell. You’d never watch another movie with Yugyeom before bed.

Ever.

You rolled over onto your side, curled up into a ball, and tried to make the images go away. Razor sharp teeth. ing clown makeup. You were terrified of clowns for a reason. The clock on the nightstand felt like it was mocking you. 4:18. It was too early to get up, so you gave up on the idea of just getting a bowl of cereal and watching cartoons. You didn’t want to risk waking the guys. Tossing and turning for nearly thirty minutes, it became clear that you weren’t going to settle down and go back to sleep.

Fine.

You slipped out of bed, bare feet on the cold floor. You tucked your pillow under your arm and headed out into the hallway. You had four options. Well, no. Three. Jinyoung wouldn’t take kindly to you invading his space. You damn sure weren’t going to give Yugyeom the satisfaction of knowing the movie did scare you. So, just two options. Mark’s bedroom door was closed. You turned to your left.

But Jaebum’s door wasn’t.

You peeked into his room and saw him snuggled under the comforter, mouth open slightly. He looked so peaceful that you nearly turned around. You stepped inside of the dimly lit room, using the light of his laptop to step carefully over his shoes. Once you got to the side of the bed, you leaned over and pushed his shoulder gently.

“Jaebum,” you whispered.

“Mmm,” he replied but didn’t open his eyes. He did this often, and you could never tell if he was actually aware of your presence. So you kept shaking him.

“Jaebum,” you said a little louder, shaking him a little harder.

His eyes opened just enough for you to see that he was looking at you. “Yeah?”

You bit your bottom lip and looked down at his outstretched hand. “I-I can’t sleep.”

“Hm?”

You sighed softly and said, “I had a nightmare. I tried to go back to sleep but…”

“But you’re scared?”

You nodded, unable to look him in the eyes.

His hand caught your wrist and tugged you down onto the bed. “I told you not to let Yugyeom get to you.” He mumbled, voice deep with sleep, as he moved the comforter to cover you. “It’s okay to tell him no. He’ll get over it and move on to teasing someone else.” Once you were properly covered, he pulled the extra pillow down over his arm and motioned for you to put your head on it. “Next time, say no. Okay?”

His other arm wrapped around your middle and pulled you close to him. With his chest on your back, you could feel the lazy rhythm of his heart beating. His body was warm. He smelled good, a combination of toothpaste and body wash. You’d have to ask what he used and hoped he wouldn’t think you were weird. He squeezed you, reminding you that he wanted an answer. “Okay.”

“Good girl,” he whispered and pressed his lips to a spot behind your ear. “Now get some sleep. We have a packed schedule tomorrow, and you’ll need to keep up.” You nodded, and he chuckled, his thumb rubbing lightly over your stomach. “Can I be honest with you?”

You looked over your shoulder at him, but he had his eyes closed. He’d likely fall back to sleep soon. “Yeah.”

“I like this. I don’t mind you coming to me like this. So, you can come to me whenever you have trouble sleeping, okay? I don’t mind.”

You grinned and turned back around, resting your hand over his. You exhaled slowly, and your body released the tension. Finally, sleep began to settle over you. “Okay.”