[Fanfiction] Don’t dream it’s over {Lost}
TITLE: Don’t dream it’s over
SERIES: Family Portrait - Part 14/25
FANDOM: Lost
AUTHOR: nicis_anatomy
CHARACTER: Juliet Carlson/Jack Shephard
GENRE: het, romance
RATING: PG-13
WORD COUNT: 1,762
SUMMARY: It's the night before their wedding, but Juliet can't find any sleep and Jack is haunted by disturbing nightmares ... Written for prompt "Nightmare" for schmoop_bingo and prompt #022 "Pink" for 100_tales.
WARNING: English still isn't my native language (although I wish) and the story is not beta'd. General spoiler for season 6.
DISCLAIMER: I don't own these characters. I just borrow them from time to time to have some fun with them.
A/N: I know, I said I would go for a complete blackout (25 prompts=25 parts), but RL really isn't on my side lately and I doubt I will manage to write 10 more chapters before New Year. But … I promised you 25 parts and I will write 25 parts. I just don't know how fast. I hope you will still stay with me.
NOTE: This is a series of oneshots that can stand alone. But they work better as a multipart-story. Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 | Part 5 | Part 6 | Part 7 | Part 8 | Part 9 | Part 10 | Part 11 | Part 12 | Part 13 | Bonus.
~*~*~*~*
It was nearly three am in the morning, when Juliet couldn’t take Jack’s tossing and turning anymore.
Turning around, she gently put a hand on his shoulder. Through the thin fabric of his shirt she could feel cold sweat, and for a second she was afraid he had a temperature and his fitfully sleep was caused by a fever. Last months they had spend most of the time nursing each other, after Juliet had brought the flu home from one of her little patients and once she was cured, Jack had caught the flu, only to give it back to her one week later. At first it had been annoying, but once they’d learned about the advantages of spending whole days in bed and being taken care of someone 24/7, it had been just fun.
Now, however, the timing for another fever couldn’t have been any worse, given it was the night before their wedding, and disturbing images of a canceled wedding, of disappointed wedding guests, of ‘I told you so’ faces that belonged to her parents and a cake that would never been eaten, ran through Juliet’s head, as she watched Jack’s restless sleep.
She lifted her body up and turned until she was almost leaning over him. Then, she ran her hand through his damp hair and gently kissed Jack’s cheek to wake him.
The result wasn’t what she’d expected though.
Jack sat up with a start, almost pushing Juliet out of bed as he did so.
He looked around, restlessly and confused, and for a minute Juliet was sure he would grab the baseball bat he had stored next to the bed on the floor (insisting to keep it there in case of an emergency, ever since someone had broken into their neighbor’s apartment a few weeks ago) to use it against her, but as his eyes adjusted to the dim light in the bedroom, he seemed to recognize him and Juliet could feel his muscles relax.
“What happened?” he asked slowly and in a hoarse voice. “Did … are you … are you okay, Jules?” His fingers closed around her arm in an intensity that almost hurt her and he ran his right hand over her body, over her face, through her hair and down her back, as if he wanted to make sure she was really here and it wasn’t just a dream.
“I’m fine, Jack,” Juliet said, almost scared by his behavior. “I’m here … everything is okay. You had a dream. It was just a dream,” she tried to calm him down, and as his arms closed around her, pulling her in a tight embrace, she didn’t resist. She snuggled against his body, trying to warm him with her own body heat, while she whispered soothing words into his ear.
Slowly, Jack relaxed and his breathing became regular again, although he was still clinging to her as if he was afraid she would slip away under him.
Something was terribly wrong here and Juliet had no idea what it was or what she could do to make Jack feel better. Her caressing seemed to work though, but he was still upset over something.
Maybe he was nervous about their wedding? Maybe everything happened too soon or it was too stressful for him - as it was for her, with both her mother and Jack’s mother fussing about them wherever they went, and Rachel wasn’t any better with her constant advises and comments about everything and everyone. Juliet knew they only meant to best for them and they wanted to make this wedding as perfect as possible, but there wasn’t only so much a person could take, and Juliet had reached her limit a long time ago. She could only imagine what an impact the whole thing had on Jack and what additional pressure he was putting on himself by working double shifts at the hospital to make more money than they really needed - just to leave a good impression with her father.
Maybe it was indeed too much for him and this dream - nightmare - he'd had was his way of showing her he had enough. She just hoped he wouldn’t back-paddle, but instead talk to her and let her help him figuring something out.
“Do you want to talk about it?” she asked softly. Jack nodded against her shoulder, but didn’t answer directly. When he finally spoke, his voice sounded as if he was desperately trying to fight back tears and Juliet instinctively pulled him closer.
“I … it was a nightmare,” Jack said. “It was … you … I don't know where we were or why we were there, but … there was a hole in the ground and … suddenly … I don’t know … suddenly you were dragged into this hole and there were loud noises and a light and …” Jack paused, his whole body shaking under the horror of his dream he was reliving by telling her about it, and Juliet knew that what she felt on her cheeks wasn’t his sweat but tears he could no longer fight back.
“It’s okay,” she whispered, repeatedly, rocking him in her arms like a baby. “You don’t need to talk about it.”
“But I want to. I … I need to,” Jack replied, weakly. He cleared his throat as he leaned backwards to look at her. The light of the street lamp outside the window gave his face a ghostlike expression and Juliet swallowed hard. This wasn't the Jack she knew. He was far from being okay, and whatever he'd dreamed - how far-fetched and unlikely it sounded to her, to him it meant more and he was scared. This was a new side she saw from him and for the first time he wasn't a man of science, a doctor who believed only in things he could see, touch or explain my rational thoughts and theories, but a man of faith; someone who got scared by dreams - so much that even after he woke up from them couldn't understand that nothing would happen to him.
“I lost you,” Jack said, interrupting her thoughts, and the desperation in his voice born from doubts that she wasn't taking him serious enough, alarmed Juliet even more. She took his hand and squeezed it. It was only a weak attempt to show him she was on his side, but it seemed to work and Jack gave her something like a smile.
“This dream … I dream it almost every night, and every time it ends with you … you … every time I lose you, Juliet, and it’s always my fault. I … I don’t know what it means, but it scares the hell out of me. And I am afraid that … that one day all this … us … that I will lose you. It feels like that this dreams is a bad omen, a sign that …”
“You won’t lose me, Jack,” Juliet interrupted him and she was surprised how confident her voice sounded while inside she was as upset and shaky as Jack sounded.
She didn’t believe in omen or superstitious stuff like dreams that came true (except for the one she’d had that Jack would one day ask her to marry her), but the way he was telling her about his dream and the impact it obviously had on him (and her) frightened her and she had a hard time being strong for both of them.
“I will be with you, Jack,” she said. “Forever and always … as long as you want me to. I love you and nothing, no dream or anything is ever going to change that. I don't think there is anything in this world you could do to get rid of me. Except … maybe that baseball bat you'd almost used a few minutes ago.”
Juliet smiled and when Jack returned her smile, she leaned forward and gave him a long and passionate kiss to enforce her words, hoping it would convince him (and her as well) that his dream had been just that: a dream. At the same time, she prayed that this nightmare wouldn’t have any impacts on their wedding. She knew Jack and she knew how low his self-confidence had become lately, and it wasn’t unlikely that this incident tonight would only strengthen his feeling that he was not good enough for her.
At the moment, everything that evoked new doubts in Jack, had the impact of a hydrogen bomb, and as much as Juliet tried to protect him from any negativity, she knew that this couldn't go on forever. Jack needed some confidence in his life, and the wedding tomorrow was her last hope; that and the long honeymoon they'd planned.
When he finally broke the kiss, Jack smiled at her and this time the sparkles in his eyes weren’t just caused by his tears but by something that Juliet could only interpret as deep love and desire. Overwhelmed by what she saw, Juliet felt tears run down her cheeks and she laughed nervously. It was stupid, really, how, from one second to another, Jack could switch something between them, and how he always managed to be the hero in the end - no matter how much he'd needed her only minutes before, in the end it was him who made the difference. Sometimes, it annoyed Juliet, but most of the time - like right now - she was proud how her magic tricks worked on him.
“I love you, Juliet Carlson,” Jack said, wiping her tears away with his thumb.
“I love you, too, Jack Shephard,” Juliet said. “More than you can ever imagine. But we should go back to sleep. We need all the rest we can get. Tomorrow will the more exhausting than he 48 hour shift in the hospital.” She pulled Jack back down on his pillow with her and snuggled against him as he pulled the sheets over them.
He intertwined his fingers with hers as if he was afraid she would slip away from him, while he was sleeping, and Juliet buried her face in his neck, kissing him softly and whispering soothing words.
As she was drifting back into sleep, she heard Jack’s soft voice saying something about a pink shirt she should never buy, but she wasn’t sure if he was already back in his dream world and before she could ask him, she had fallen asleep herself, dreaming about lonely beaches with white sand and an endless ocean, of palm trees and dolphins, and when they woke up a few hours later, they both felt strong enough to face whatever lay ahead of them.
- tbc -
SERIES: Family Portrait - Part 14/25
FANDOM: Lost
AUTHOR: nicis_anatomy
CHARACTER: Juliet Carlson/Jack Shephard
GENRE: het, romance
RATING: PG-13
WORD COUNT: 1,762
SUMMARY: It's the night before their wedding, but Juliet can't find any sleep and Jack is haunted by disturbing nightmares ... Written for prompt "Nightmare" for schmoop_bingo and prompt #022 "Pink" for 100_tales.
WARNING: English still isn't my native language (although I wish) and the story is not beta'd. General spoiler for season 6.
DISCLAIMER: I don't own these characters. I just borrow them from time to time to have some fun with them.
A/N: I know, I said I would go for a complete blackout (25 prompts=25 parts), but RL really isn't on my side lately and I doubt I will manage to write 10 more chapters before New Year. But … I promised you 25 parts and I will write 25 parts. I just don't know how fast. I hope you will still stay with me.
NOTE: This is a series of oneshots that can stand alone. But they work better as a multipart-story. Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 | Part 5 | Part 6 | Part 7 | Part 8 | Part 9 | Part 10 | Part 11 | Part 12 | Part 13 | Bonus.
~*~*~*~*
It was nearly three am in the morning, when Juliet couldn’t take Jack’s tossing and turning anymore.
Turning around, she gently put a hand on his shoulder. Through the thin fabric of his shirt she could feel cold sweat, and for a second she was afraid he had a temperature and his fitfully sleep was caused by a fever. Last months they had spend most of the time nursing each other, after Juliet had brought the flu home from one of her little patients and once she was cured, Jack had caught the flu, only to give it back to her one week later. At first it had been annoying, but once they’d learned about the advantages of spending whole days in bed and being taken care of someone 24/7, it had been just fun.
Now, however, the timing for another fever couldn’t have been any worse, given it was the night before their wedding, and disturbing images of a canceled wedding, of disappointed wedding guests, of ‘I told you so’ faces that belonged to her parents and a cake that would never been eaten, ran through Juliet’s head, as she watched Jack’s restless sleep.
She lifted her body up and turned until she was almost leaning over him. Then, she ran her hand through his damp hair and gently kissed Jack’s cheek to wake him.
The result wasn’t what she’d expected though.
Jack sat up with a start, almost pushing Juliet out of bed as he did so.
He looked around, restlessly and confused, and for a minute Juliet was sure he would grab the baseball bat he had stored next to the bed on the floor (insisting to keep it there in case of an emergency, ever since someone had broken into their neighbor’s apartment a few weeks ago) to use it against her, but as his eyes adjusted to the dim light in the bedroom, he seemed to recognize him and Juliet could feel his muscles relax.
“What happened?” he asked slowly and in a hoarse voice. “Did … are you … are you okay, Jules?” His fingers closed around her arm in an intensity that almost hurt her and he ran his right hand over her body, over her face, through her hair and down her back, as if he wanted to make sure she was really here and it wasn’t just a dream.
“I’m fine, Jack,” Juliet said, almost scared by his behavior. “I’m here … everything is okay. You had a dream. It was just a dream,” she tried to calm him down, and as his arms closed around her, pulling her in a tight embrace, she didn’t resist. She snuggled against his body, trying to warm him with her own body heat, while she whispered soothing words into his ear.
Slowly, Jack relaxed and his breathing became regular again, although he was still clinging to her as if he was afraid she would slip away under him.
Something was terribly wrong here and Juliet had no idea what it was or what she could do to make Jack feel better. Her caressing seemed to work though, but he was still upset over something.
Maybe he was nervous about their wedding? Maybe everything happened too soon or it was too stressful for him - as it was for her, with both her mother and Jack’s mother fussing about them wherever they went, and Rachel wasn’t any better with her constant advises and comments about everything and everyone. Juliet knew they only meant to best for them and they wanted to make this wedding as perfect as possible, but there wasn’t only so much a person could take, and Juliet had reached her limit a long time ago. She could only imagine what an impact the whole thing had on Jack and what additional pressure he was putting on himself by working double shifts at the hospital to make more money than they really needed - just to leave a good impression with her father.
Maybe it was indeed too much for him and this dream - nightmare - he'd had was his way of showing her he had enough. She just hoped he wouldn’t back-paddle, but instead talk to her and let her help him figuring something out.
“Do you want to talk about it?” she asked softly. Jack nodded against her shoulder, but didn’t answer directly. When he finally spoke, his voice sounded as if he was desperately trying to fight back tears and Juliet instinctively pulled him closer.
“I … it was a nightmare,” Jack said. “It was … you … I don't know where we were or why we were there, but … there was a hole in the ground and … suddenly … I don’t know … suddenly you were dragged into this hole and there were loud noises and a light and …” Jack paused, his whole body shaking under the horror of his dream he was reliving by telling her about it, and Juliet knew that what she felt on her cheeks wasn’t his sweat but tears he could no longer fight back.
“It’s okay,” she whispered, repeatedly, rocking him in her arms like a baby. “You don’t need to talk about it.”
“But I want to. I … I need to,” Jack replied, weakly. He cleared his throat as he leaned backwards to look at her. The light of the street lamp outside the window gave his face a ghostlike expression and Juliet swallowed hard. This wasn't the Jack she knew. He was far from being okay, and whatever he'd dreamed - how far-fetched and unlikely it sounded to her, to him it meant more and he was scared. This was a new side she saw from him and for the first time he wasn't a man of science, a doctor who believed only in things he could see, touch or explain my rational thoughts and theories, but a man of faith; someone who got scared by dreams - so much that even after he woke up from them couldn't understand that nothing would happen to him.
“I lost you,” Jack said, interrupting her thoughts, and the desperation in his voice born from doubts that she wasn't taking him serious enough, alarmed Juliet even more. She took his hand and squeezed it. It was only a weak attempt to show him she was on his side, but it seemed to work and Jack gave her something like a smile.
“This dream … I dream it almost every night, and every time it ends with you … you … every time I lose you, Juliet, and it’s always my fault. I … I don’t know what it means, but it scares the hell out of me. And I am afraid that … that one day all this … us … that I will lose you. It feels like that this dreams is a bad omen, a sign that …”
“You won’t lose me, Jack,” Juliet interrupted him and she was surprised how confident her voice sounded while inside she was as upset and shaky as Jack sounded.
She didn’t believe in omen or superstitious stuff like dreams that came true (except for the one she’d had that Jack would one day ask her to marry her), but the way he was telling her about his dream and the impact it obviously had on him (and her) frightened her and she had a hard time being strong for both of them.
“I will be with you, Jack,” she said. “Forever and always … as long as you want me to. I love you and nothing, no dream or anything is ever going to change that. I don't think there is anything in this world you could do to get rid of me. Except … maybe that baseball bat you'd almost used a few minutes ago.”
Juliet smiled and when Jack returned her smile, she leaned forward and gave him a long and passionate kiss to enforce her words, hoping it would convince him (and her as well) that his dream had been just that: a dream. At the same time, she prayed that this nightmare wouldn’t have any impacts on their wedding. She knew Jack and she knew how low his self-confidence had become lately, and it wasn’t unlikely that this incident tonight would only strengthen his feeling that he was not good enough for her.
At the moment, everything that evoked new doubts in Jack, had the impact of a hydrogen bomb, and as much as Juliet tried to protect him from any negativity, she knew that this couldn't go on forever. Jack needed some confidence in his life, and the wedding tomorrow was her last hope; that and the long honeymoon they'd planned.
When he finally broke the kiss, Jack smiled at her and this time the sparkles in his eyes weren’t just caused by his tears but by something that Juliet could only interpret as deep love and desire. Overwhelmed by what she saw, Juliet felt tears run down her cheeks and she laughed nervously. It was stupid, really, how, from one second to another, Jack could switch something between them, and how he always managed to be the hero in the end - no matter how much he'd needed her only minutes before, in the end it was him who made the difference. Sometimes, it annoyed Juliet, but most of the time - like right now - she was proud how her magic tricks worked on him.
“I love you, Juliet Carlson,” Jack said, wiping her tears away with his thumb.
“I love you, too, Jack Shephard,” Juliet said. “More than you can ever imagine. But we should go back to sleep. We need all the rest we can get. Tomorrow will the more exhausting than he 48 hour shift in the hospital.” She pulled Jack back down on his pillow with her and snuggled against him as he pulled the sheets over them.
He intertwined his fingers with hers as if he was afraid she would slip away from him, while he was sleeping, and Juliet buried her face in his neck, kissing him softly and whispering soothing words.
As she was drifting back into sleep, she heard Jack’s soft voice saying something about a pink shirt she should never buy, but she wasn’t sure if he was already back in his dream world and before she could ask him, she had fallen asleep herself, dreaming about lonely beaches with white sand and an endless ocean, of palm trees and dolphins, and when they woke up a few hours later, they both felt strong enough to face whatever lay ahead of them.
- tbc -