Just trust us!

Mark walked out into the field, staring at her. She was right there. Not close enough for him to be scared, but too close for comfort. She stared with blank, black eyes. Anger started to well up in his gut, boiling. He felt his lungs getting warm as he took in a deep breath. A shudder ran down his spine as he balled his hands into fists. He could smell grave dirt as he opened his mouth.

The moment he started to exhale the scream, she was directly in front of him. He hadn't even blinked or looked away. She was impossibly there, close enough to touch. Apparently, that was exactly what she wanted, as she reached out her hand toward him, lazily. One finger a little higher than all the other slightly curled ones.

He started to choke as his heart pounded in his ears, stuttering painfully as the heat left his lungs. Everything became cold as sweat broke out on his brow.

"What do you want from me?" Mark asked. He gasped hard, trying to keep breathing, but each breath was arduous. His jaw felt like it was being stabbed from behind, just under the ear. He tried to step back but she seemed to stay in his vision no matter where he moved.

The pain spread to his shoulder and through the muscles in his bicep. His head felt heavy as he clutched his arm to his chest, backing away.

"You're too close. Please, you're too close." He said, begging and starting to cry. She just stood, her dull, lackluster hair hung straight, blowing lightly in the wind as her hand just hung in the air between them.

"Mark! Mark, wake up!" Riley screamed, shaking him.

He sat up straighter, starting to cry as he wiped sweat from his face. He tried to catch his breath, wincing and rubbing his chest. The Black Eyed Girl hadn't gotten any closer, she hadn't touched him, he wasn't having a heart attack as he had before.

"What's going on?" Mark whispered. He realized he was sitting up against the wall. The three of them had been studying in his room. He was on the floor with his back against the doorframe, Bash was laying on his stomach on the bed, and Riley on the windowsill. She had climbed down to wake him.

"I guess it was a nightmare. Something about someone being too close." Bash explained.

"It was... I had heart problems when I was younger. I was dreaming about that, I think." Mark said, trying to remember it all, and not wanting to share it either way.

Bash got down off the bed and sat in front of Mark, laying a hand on his knee and Riley's.

"Did she cause it?" Riley whispered. Mark inhaled sharply, running a hand through his hair.

"Riley, stop it. Really. Why do you keep pushing it and I don't want to talk about it. Why won't you just drop it?" Mark practically shouted, pulling his legs up to his chest, now sliding his second hand into his hair.

"She is just worried about you." Bash whispered.

They all went quiet for a long time, none of them looking at one another until Mark lowered a hand to his chest, rubbing it, groaning lightly. He looked up, not lifting his head as he looked at Bash, letting his eyes wander to Riley. They were both so beautiful and they cared so much. He wanted to share everything with them, but he didn't know how to start, or if it was actually safe to do so.

"Mark, we want to help. If you don't tell us, then we can't." Riley tried again.

"The last person I told this, that I let all the way in to see the hell that I bring, turned out to be part of a cult that wants..." His anger ebbed away as he realized what he was about to spill.

"What the hell, Mark?" Bash shouted, his cheeks flushing.

"You really don't see anything wrong with her pushing me and pushing me to talk about something I don't want to? Really? This is my boundary." Mark shouted back.

"She is worried about you!" Bash said through his teeth.

"I didn't ask her to be. I'm fine. The heart problems went away, and the girl is so far away. She is just spooky looking." Mark said, throwing his hands up and smacking them on his knees, "Please understand that it is alright. Please."

Bash sighed and dropped his head. Mark wanted to just run his fingers through Bashtian's curly hair. When he glanced at Riley, he wanted to hug her just as much. He hated upsetting either of them, but upsetting both of them hurt worse than his heart attack. He turned and hugged Riley, burying his face in her neck. She stayed stiff with her arms crossed on her chest. He moved his face up her neck so he was next to her ear.

"I'm sorry, Riley. I shouldn't have shouted. I shouldn't be upset with you. It's VERY personal. I really am sorry." He whispered. He felt her breath catch and her heart seemed to beat through her chest where his arm draped across it. She finally shifted and put her arms around his neck, tilting her head against his.

"Promise, if it gets dangerous, you'll let us help." She said, hugging him tighter. He started to feel a sharp pain in the back of his arm. She started to squeeze him too tight, she was so strong.

"I promise. Hey, I promise." Mark insisted, through his teeth, his voice deep and sincere.

"You look so tired." Riley stated, sitting back and petting his face as he smiled weakly.

"When did you sleep last?" Bash asked, flashing Mark a small sympathetic smile back.

"Well, couple of minutes ago, I guess." He smiled cheekily but it faded, "I haven't. Not really."

"Is there anything that helps it?" Riley asked gently.

"Can we all take a nap together? It doesn't have to be right now, but what about sometime this weekend. There are those huge hammocks. Wouldn't hurt to try, right?" Mark asked, his lip curling up in a crooked grin.

"Yeah, that actually sounds amazing." Bash said, his expression brightening.

"I would love it." Riley added. Bash obviously wanted to be touching them too, but he had seen Mark hold Riley. Mark could tell he wasn't meeting their eyes, and was just casting glances to their arms intertwined. Mark turned and realized how close his face was to Riley's, but being close to them both felt natural at this point.

He pulled away from Riley just enough to hug Bash just as hard, nuzzling his neck for a moment. When he pulled away slightly, Riley hugged them both with a squeal.

"Thank you." He said low in his throat, feeling it start to grow tight as tears welled in his eyes, "Thank you both. So much." He couldn't figure out why he didn't trust them enough to tell them about The Girl, about his father, about everything. He cringed slightly at the thought of it.

"It's almost time for light's out." Riley said, standing and kissing each boy on the head. Bash stood up, a stupid grin on his face. He patted Mark on the shoulder, smiling down to him.

"Goodnight, Mark." Bash whispered, heading out with Riley, shutting the door behind him.