Chapter 8
Us
**Warning for sexual content ahead **
"Do you do this a lot?" Aiden asks Riley, as he waves his hand in front of her face. "Are you okay, Mija? Why are you crying? " He sounds concerned and is starting to panic.
"Riley, come on, babe, snap out of it." He starts talking louder than he would like. He does not like this situation at all. It puts her in more danger than Aiden believed they could handle now.
Riley is staring at something. Her eyes are moving back and forth so fast, it reminds Aiden of someone in R.E.M.'s sleep. but knows she couldn't have fallen asleep that fast. He knows exhaustion will make your body do anything, but standing up with your eyes open, he thinks, is too wild, even for their situation. Her lips are moving like she is reciting something. Wherever she went, her mind seemed to have fully engulfed her. She is only here in the physical sense of the word.
Aiden thinks he should just sit her down and be there for her when she snaps out of this. "Riley, come on babe, please wake up or talk to me." Aiden is almost pleading with her.
Now she is speaking in whispers and Aiden still can't make it out. He catches some, but that's not his main concern. What he is worried about is that she is somewhere experiencing a panic attack. She's sweating, her tears are falling nonstop, and now she is panting, like she is hyperventilating. Aiden has no idea how to help her. Does he shake her awake and force her out of it, or will that cause her more damage? Does he let it ride out and just keep her physical body safe and deal with her mind later? Will she even know him when she comes back? Aiden suddenly feels scared for a whole different reason. He just found his angel. He has already come to terms with the fact that he has now dedicated his life to this woman, so what if she wakes up and wants nothing to do with him? Aiden has gone too far to be okay with that. He would spend the rest of his life following her from a distance, just to make sure she was safe, but the Lord knew he did not want that. That's the last thing he wants to happen.
That decision was made for him, and Aiden is grateful. She starts to stir, and he thinks she is coming out of it. He'd made sure she wasn't going to hurt herself, or him for that matter, when he removed her AR-15 from her grip. He did not want that thing to go off and kill either one of them. She is saying something, but Aiden still can't make it out. It's like she is reliving something that happened. Aiden has never seen anyone have a panic attack and wonders now what caused this one to start, and it is both fascinating and scary as hell at the same time.
"No, no, please don't do this. Please let me go. "I promise I will run and never look back." Riley pleads in a voice that startles Aiden. She starts crying and is frantically trying to get away from someone or something, Aiden just grabs her out of instinct and holds her. She is fighting him and crying,
"Please don't, I'm a virgin, please don't touch me!" She cries out. And Aiden thinks his heart broke at that moment. He has tears steaming down his face and he almost hit his knees when she let out a sound he had never heard before. It was this wail that appeared from somewhere deep in her soul, and it broke every part of him to hear it and know that she had had to experience whatever pain caused this. He is heartbroken upon hearing this. He gets angry, and something comes over him where he is ready to walk the earth to find whoever did this to her.
He can't think about that now, though, because Riley is going down. Aiden sees her legs give out and thankfully, he catches her before she hits the ground. He holds on to her as she screams out again. He tries to comfort her, so he just sits down, bringing her down to sit on his lap. He holds her like a baby and continues whispering things in her ear.
Riley is breathing shallowly, like she is gasping for air. It happens a lot after crying. She calms down, and Aiden thinks it's over. and not because of anything Aiden did. Even though he helped, he knows it's because whatever it was had run its course.
He is rubbing her back, up and down, slowly, and he continues to talk to her softly. She is leaning her head on his chest, and Aiden feels something stirring in him at the sight of this goddess resting her head on his chest. He knows that whatever she's just relived in her head is something very heavy and extremely traumatic. He knows they will tackle it when they need to. He has no intention of asking her about it. Not after she just experienced it again. He is looking down at her. She is laying there on his chest, cradled in his arms, and she is simply perfect. Her hand is clutching the front of his shirt; her eyes are closed; and she is breathing deeply. Aiden lets out his breath and is relieved that she is getting some rest. He takes this time to look at this angel and thank God, the angels of heaven, and anyone who will listen. Her breathing is so steady it's hypnotic, and slowly Aiden feels himself getting sleepy, and before he realizes what is going on, he lets out a huge yawn, eyelids heavy, and he says, "Fuck it."
He scoots back against the bottom of the counter and relaxes with Riley safely tucked in his arms. His head goes back, and before Aiden has time to react, he lets go, and they fall asleep.