I am frantic to find him. I get a call in the middle of the night. Aiden is in trouble. I drive through the streets, I know he takes to catch the train for his ride home.

Aiden. He doesn't know where he is. I don't know where he is. I am tracking his phone, trying to get a glimpse. Anything.

"Stay with me!" I plead. "I'm close." I park the car to continue the search on foot. "What do you see around you?"

His voice sounds so weak. "It's all dark. There's... there's a dumpster near me."

Dumpster? Aiden is somewhere in a back alley. I do a quick scan of my surroundings. "I think I know where you are!" Adrenaline surges through my limbs and I take off running. There are a bunch of closed shops and restaurants across the street. He must be behind them.

I hit my flashlight on my phone and start yelling his name. "Aiden! Aiden are you here?!"

I hear a guttural moan of pain and I sprint forward. I see feet sticking out behind a green dumpster. "Aiden?!" I get around the bin, but nothing can prepare me for the sight before my eyes.

They beat him so badly his face is unrecognizable. "Jesus!" I slide to the ground next to him and gather him in my arms. "Aiden!"

"You found me," he gushes with relief. His eyes so swollen I can't tell if he is even looking at me.

"I found you." I gather him up in my arms and hold him close. I used my free hand to call 911 and request an ambulance. "Please, hurry! He's been attacked and has been beaten badly. I'm scared... I..."

"A response team is on the way, Mr. Bragin."

I hang up. I want to smooth away the bloody hair that stuck to his face, but I fear hurting him. "Help is on the way. Okay? You just gotta hold on. Please, hold on. Just a little longer," I beg.

Aiden covers my hand with his. "I...I... don't know if..."

"Shh! Save your breath," I can tell it is painful for him to talk, to breathe.

Aiden reaches up, his hand touches my face. "I'm sorry. I...love you." With those words, his hand fell from my face and I knew... I knew in that instant, he was gone.

I scream out in anguish. The paramedics found me easily then. They try to pull me away, but I fought them. "You need to let us do our job," one reasoned, dragging me away, while the other tried to resuscitate him, nothing. 

They try a portable defibrillator. His lifeless form jump, like a collapsed puppet being jerked on a string. I want them to stop. I want them to just let him be, to let me hold him again. I didn't get to say it. I didn't get to tell him... I love him, too.

All too soon, they pull that disposable yellow blanket over his body and inform the authorities. This had just become a crime scene. They hold both Aiden and me hostage until the police and coroner arrive.

"Alex! ALEX!" I am being shaken.

"What the ...?!" I try to move but can't. Dillion had my arms pinned down.

"Dude!" Dillion slowly backs off. "The way you were screaming, I thought someone was murdering you down here. What the hell is going on?"

I scramble to sit up. "I'm sorry. Did I wake everyone? I didn't hurt you, did I?"

"No, everyone else is still asleep," Dillion tells me. "I nearly took one to the jaw. You always like this when you sleep?"

I could tell his concern shifted. He knows Cat and I share a bed. Dillion is afraid for his sister.

"I haven't had an episode like this for months. I guess what happened today triggered some memories for me. I'm sorry." I know it sounds lame, but I can't control what happens when I'm unconscious.

"You've been like this around Cat?" Dillion's face is full of worry.

"Yes, but not since we... well, when we fall asleep together I feel calmer and I don't dream of ..." I blow air from my lips as tears spring to my eyes, picturing my brother's face in my mind's eye.

"Okay, relax," Dillion says, holding in his hands out in a stop motion like he really can't deal if I bawl my eyes out right now and really hopes I won't do it. 

I bite my inner cheek and try to get control, nodding my head that I understand but not trusting myself to talk just yet. A few more deep breaths and I'll be good.

"Is this about your brother?"

I nod my head, yes.

"You want to talk about it," Dillion offers.

"Not really, no," I tell him.

"Okay."

Dillion backs off completely, and I'm grateful. I don't want to talk about that night, or any night thereafter. My life had become a black abyss I couldn't escape from until Cat.

"I feel like I should do something?" Dillion looks conflicted and rubs the back of his neck, a tick I notice he does when he is at a loss for words.

"It's okay, Dillion. I'm sorry I woke you. It... shouldn't happen again." I hope.

"Yeah, okay," Dillion says heading towards the stairs. He pauses and turns to look back at me.

"Alex, you need to talk to someone. If not to me or to Cat then talk to a professional of some kind. I've seen Vets in the shelters go through something like that, sometimes, the teens at my shelter, too. The ones I know who have been on the streets too long and have seen things a child should never see. You need help."

I nod my acknowledgment of his words. I'm not sure what he wants me to say. I've been on my own for so long, the thought of going to a psychiatrist didn't enter my thoughts.

"If not for you..." Dillion adds, pausing on the stairs. "Do it for Cat and the baby. You need you to get your head straight if you're going to be there for them."

I feel myself frown. He's right. I'm not alone anymore. I have someone else I need to consider. "I'll look into it when I get back."

Dillion nods. "It's a little after three in the morning, try to get more sleep. Visiting hours start at nine at the hospital. Cat is going to want to be there when the doors open up."

"Yeah, okay," I reply and Dillion disappears up the stairs.

I roll over to my side, wishing Cat were here. I want to sleep, but now I fear closing my eyes. I don't want to see what lurks behind them. A few minutes pass and I hear someone coming down the steps. I turn expecting to see Dillion returning for some reason, but instead there stands Cat.

"Dillion woke me up. Said you a... dream." She walks over and sits down on the bed next to me and strokes my hair from my face, just like I wanted to do to Aiden. Tears again spring to my eyes.

She doesn't say another word. Her eyes never leave mine. She pulls back the covers and climbs in next to me, gathering me up like a small child who is desperate to keep the boogeyman at bay.

My arms wrap around her, and I pull her close. Just having her near banishes that feeling of fear and anxiety that causes my skin to crawl whenever this happens to me. I don't know how she does it, or if she really is doing anything. It could just be my mind making her into some magical talisman that mystically makes everything all right. I can't say that I care either way, I'm just grateful that it works.

She kisses my forehead, and I smile.

"I owe you big time for this."

"I know," Cat replies, grinning. "Truthfully, it's a little self-serving. I sleep so much better when you're around."

I pull her in closer and kiss her lips. "Thank you."

Cat caresses the side of my cheek. "What are fiancés for?"

We both snuggle in and soon drift into a peaceful sleep.

A knock on the basement door wakes us both. "Alex, you uh... you uh, decent down there?"

Cat bolts straight up in bed and whispers, "Shit, my dad!" She looks around frantically and launches from the bed to hide behind the bar.

"In a second," I holler up the stairs. I grab a t-shirt and a pair of jogging pants and put them on. "Okay! I'm good." I really am anything but good but oh well.

Cat's dad comes downstairs and sees I'm fully dressed but the bed is still out. "Did I... wake you?"

"No, I've been up for a little while. Just needed to throw a shirt on is all."

"Ah." Since the bed isn't folded there is no other place to sit so he walks over to the bar. Oh no! Oh no! Oh no! And grabs a stool. Thank God!

"Is everything okay?" he asks, his gaze boring through me.

I shrug in a way I hope looks nonchalant. "Yep. Couldn't be better," I tell him.

" 'Cause you look... nervous?"

"Me?" Did my voice just crack? "Nervous? Well, I'll admit I'm a little... curious what could bring you to talk to me so early in the morning?"

"I wanted to get to you before the girls got up to ask you to join me for a game of golf. I know the girls probably have the day already planned out, but I thought if I talked to you first I may have a chance to convince you to come with me."

"Aw geez. That sounds great but something happened at the beach last night."

Suddenly concerned, Mr. Fischer came off the stool. "Is it Cat? Is she okay? I thought she might overdo it."

"No, no. Cat's fine," I'm quick to reassure him. "Olivia got stung by a jellyfish and we feared she would drown, but Dillion pulled her out of the water."

"Dillion?!"

Shit! That's right. Mr. Fischer would be all too aware that Dillion had a connection with Olivia.

"The sting caused her leg to cramp. She went under several times. If it wasn't for Dillion's quick response, she would have died."

Mr. Fischer's face shows no remorse or concern about this outcome. In fact, he appears angry but quickly reins it in.

"I see."

"So, Cat wants to visit her today and I want to drive her since I know what happened upset her."

"Of course, another time perhaps," Mr. Fischer responds, but I can tell his mind is a million miles away. Damn it! I hope this doesn't mean more trouble for Dillion.

He gets up and walks over to the steps.

"What about tomorrow?" I offer. Why am I stalling him from leaving? Just let him leave.

He smiles at me with a genuine smile. It made the man look years younger than he is. "Sounds good, Alex. I'll call the club to lock in a time."

"Looking forward to it, Sir."

Mr. Fisher was going up the stairs when suddenly a very feminine sneeze, shatter the silence.

Mr. Fisher leans over the staircase rail and stares at me. I stupidly pinch my nose and wipe it with the back of my hand. "Sorry, just snuck on me."

"Uh-huh." His face contorts in wonderment how that sound came out of me, but thankfully he let it go.

My throat is so dry I let out a slight cough.

"I hope you're not coming down with something."

"Oh no, just seasonal allergies."

Mr. Fischer nods his head and continues upstairs.

Cat sneezes again and I hear her dad say from the top of the stairs, "God Bless you."

"Thank you!" I holler up after him. Once I hear the door click shut, I run around to the other side of the bar and help Cat up to her feet.

"Really?!" I complain.

"Sorry, the man obviously never dusts the shelves back here. Have you ever tried not to sneeze with a nose full of dust?! It's impossible!"

"I'm sorry," I relent. "I was just so nervous."

"Hey, but you and my dad. Playing golf. That's big?"

"Yeah. Should be a fun day tomorrow, but how are we going to get you back to your room now that your Dad is up?"

"Just text Dillion to distract him for us," Cat offers, but I'm not sure Cat's dad and Dillion would make the best combination right now.

"Uh..."

"What?"

"Dillion was wound up last night. He didn't get to bed until late and then I woke him up with my... dream. So, I'll tell you what. I'll distract your Dad and you can make a break for it."

"Really?" Cat sounds surprised.

"Yeah, sure," I reply, kissing the tip of her nose, which she wrinkles in a cute way right before turning her head to sneeze again. I shake my head at her.

"Sorry." She smiles sheepishly at me.

"No problem. After all, what are fiancés for?"