Programming Errors

Shaking

I take a deep breath, or (more accurately) as deep as possible. I feel my heart racing, though it's slowed down slightly from earlier. Every breath shakes and I'm frozen, my blood still pumping through my veins, my heart still beating, lungs still breathing. There's nothing going through my brain except why. Why does this happen to me? I want to know. I need to know. Why?

I sense movement beside me but don't react, only shift slightly, pulling my knees closer to my chest. I feel the warmth of somebody's side press against my own and lean into it slightly, silent. The only noise I can hear is my own shaky breathing and, next to me, much quieter, steadier breaths in and out. In and out. I focus on those, bringing myself slightly from the edge over the abyss in my mind, the edge that, if I fell, would be the last bit of stability I saw as I fell, deeper and deeper, into a realm of nothing but fear and terror.

I take a shuddering breath in and let a slightly more stable one out a few seconds later, feeling my heartbeat slow by a beat. I feel an arm, narrow and thin but strong, wrap around my side, pulling me closer to the side. I glance up, smiling slightly, though I know that it's weak at best.

"I wish this didn't happen so much..." I whisper, leaning even further into the warmth beside me. The only response is a nod and a slight grimace and I feel the arm tighten around me for a moment. I feel the terror flooding my brain lessen slightly, slowly draining out as I lay there, still and silent, listening to my own shaky breathing slowly steady itself.

"Thank you. Just... thank you. For being here, for not saying anything, just being here. Not trying to figure out why, but just doing what you can to help. Thank you. So much." I say, turning to face the owner of the arm and side.

"No problem. Ya know, if it wasn't for the whole 'frozen from fear' aspect, I'd quite enjoy these little moments." There's a smirk and a sigh as the arm tightens around me once more. I shiver slightly, having not noticed just how cold I was before, and, without a word, a blanket wraps around the two of us, draping over our shoulders. "And before you ask, no I am not psychic." The smirk returns as they laugh at their own little joke.

I roll my eyes but smile, curling in on myself further. The blanket shifts to cover our feet, and I hear them say something, though I don't quite catch it. That's the last thing that happens before the world fades to black.