AdNi OS: BALM

Advay had been screaming in his sleep again. He did that a lot. He would awake with a jolt, sweating and shaking, in the middle of the night, some nightmare having made him sear.

His scream woke Chandni, and she sat up, looking on helplessly as her husband tried his best to calm himself down. She had not known about his nightmares before. In the few weeks since, she started sharing a bed with him, she had seen this happening again and again.

"Dev".., Chandni raised her hand to brush the hair, damp with perspiration, away from his eyes. Her face turned wan, when he pulled back slightly from her fingertips.

"I'm sorry, I woke you. Go back to sleep." Dev answered, not meeting her eyes.

"I'll sleep when you sleep as well." Chandni's quiet voice calmed him better than the glass of water he chugged.

Dev sighed, and plopped back on the pillows stacked against the headboard. "I can never get back to sleep after having nightmares. They stop sometimes, for a while. Then they crop up again."

"You see your parents.. " , Chandni whispered, his pain, twisting her lovely face into a spasm.

Dev looked at his wife, her eyes downcast and tears blocking her voice.

"Chandni, how many times do I need to tell you not to feel guilty about all that? You were never to blame. I know that. It's time you believed it too" Dev put an arm around her shoulders, pulling her close.

Chandni snuggled morosely against him, and suddenly realised, he was shivering. She looked into his eyes, which were fixed on her face, and cupped his cheek in her hand; her fingers getting busy in wiping away his cold sweat.

At her touch, something in Dev, seemed to break loose. Some tears left unshed, some memories haunting his years of growing up, all welled up in him.

Dev suddenly felt that he was, really tired. Not weary. But really tired. Of everything. All he wanted was to fall asleep in her arms.

Chandni saw the vestiges of his sadness clinging to his long lashes...and felt her eyes watering in response. Her words got caught in her throat...and she opened her lips to say something, but nothing came out.

And Dev did not need to hear it. Some pain cannot be spoken about. It can only be felt. When the person who shares half of your soul, can gauge exactly how much agony you are in, words don't need to express their concern...or their need to kiss it better.

He knew both of them needed to put this behind them. They have a future ahead. He had never been concerned with that. His loss had ravaged his past and his revenge had burned his present..and wrecked her.

and today, with her, he knew he had found exactly what he was looking for.

Peace.

Dev felt his lids closing. Drooping with sleep, sleep of ages, which had deprived him. He let go of Chandni, gently pushing her back on the cushions.

Chandni stretched her arms towards him..and he obeyed their call. She gently cradled his head on her bosom, her chin resting on his coarse hair, her breath full of the fragrance of his shampoo.

The fingers of her right hand caressed his hair tenderly, lulling him to sleep .Her left, shielded his eyes from the moonlight that intruded in full glory through the long French window at the side of their room.

Nothing should disturb her Dev's sleep today.

Within a few minutes, both were fast asleep, their dreams undisturbed by the chaos of their past.

*****************

With our AdNi reconciling and their SR in line...I felt the CVs might never give us the healing episodes, with what little time they have left. So I wrote it. Hope everyone likes it.😊