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It's been a bit of a difficult day and Actor Mark is more than a bit of a comfort character so let's go. Actor Mark with s/o and/or platonic s/o who woke up from a ptsd nightmare. (Love me that sweet sweet hurt comfort 人( ๑ ｀∇´๑) )
*could be interpreted as platonic or otherwise*
I’m sorry your day hasn’t been the best, but I hope this cheers you up a bit! My week has been pretty crappy too, so you’re not alone. (Side note that I have never experienced a PTSD nightmare because I don’t have PTSD, so I apologize if this depiction isn’t accurate.)
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TW: PTSD & Nightmares
After a long and tiring day of work, you returned home
You slipped off your shoes and threw your bag onto the couch
Actor would probably chide you later, but you didn’t much care
All you wanted to do was pass out on the couch
You let out a sigh of relief as you plopped down onto the sofa, pulling one of Actor’s blankets off the back of it and wrapping it around you
It didn’t take long for you to fall into a deep sleep, especially with the comforting warmth of the blanket, the scent of Actor’s expensive cologne lingering faintly on fabric
While your form was relatively restful, your dreams were not
Memories of past horrors always seemed to haunt you, even when you weren’t awake
Your subconscious seemed to love to taunt you with the after images of what had happened
You awoke abruptly with a jolt, breath heaving and frazzled
Tears stung at your eyes, and you quickly wiped at them with shaky hands
You could still picture the nightmare clearly in your mind, the memories vivid
You felt a cry bubble up inside your throat, threatening to spill out into a broken sob
You hated this
Feeling like this
You hated the memories, the nightmares, all of it
You were suddenly pulled out of the dark pool of your thoughts as you heard the creak of the stairs
Glancing up, you saw Mark descending the spiral staircase, his bare feet pattering against the hardwood
He had an empty glass in one hand, his other combing through what was usually pristine and tidy hair, now a tangled (but beautiful) mess
“Y/N?” Mark called out, his voice deeper and groggier than usual from sleep. “What are you doing up so late? You’re going to get dark circles, don’t you know?”
When you didn’t respond, he gave the slightest tilt of his head before quickly descending the staircase, his red robe fluttering behind him
“Y/N?” He repeated, his eyebrows knitted together as he knelt down beside you
You bowed your head further, letting out a muffled sob into the blanket, leaving behind wet stains of tears
“Y/N,” he continued, his voice softer now, setting the glass aside and onto the coffee table with a gentle clink. “Tell me what’s wrong.”
You curled in on yourself, crying more freely now as his hand made its way to your back, rubbing soothing circles into it all the while muttering quiet encouragements
“Nightmares again?” He murmured after your cries subsided a little more
You nodded slowly, peeking out from behind your knees
“It’ll be okay. It’s not real,” he assured you, his hand traveling down to yours. “Your brain is just trying to process what happened to you.” He paused, glancing down at your entwined hands for a beat before continuing.
“I know I can be a douche sometimes,” Mark spoke, meeting your eyes once more, his thumb now rubbing along the back of your hand. “But I really do care about you, and I’m here for you whenever you need me, okay? And if you ever need to talk to me, just tell me.”
You gave another silent nod before letting out a small, “thank you.”
He smiled softly and nodded
Mark then rose back up, his hand slipping from yours. “Now, there’ll be no more tears tonight,” he declared. “Not unless they’re happy tears!”
With that, he scooped you up and off of the couch, eliciting a small yelp of surprise from you
“You,” he said firmly but dramatically as he made his way back to the stairs with you still in his arms, “will be staying with me tonight. And you will be getting good sleep tonight. Whether you like it or not!”
As you opened your mouth to speak, he swiftly interjected, “Ah-ah-ah! I don’t want to hear it! You are royalty, and you deserve to be treated like it.”
Mark then carried you to his bedroom where he promptly sat you down on his bed, pulling the silk sheets over you
“You will be staying, because I said so. And if you have any more nightmares, you can wake me up, and I’ll be right there by your side.” He smirked and added with a cocky grin, “Your very own knight in shining armor, if you will.”
You threw a pillow at him for that comment where he was then promptly banished to the floor
Complained about it all night until you fell asleep, now much more peacefully <3