Night Terrors

America x Reader


It was late, and you were bored. You'd been trying to sleep for ages, but no dice. So you were lying in bed, staring at the ceiling and trying to think relaxing thoughts.

The air conditioner finished its set task of lowering your home's temperature and cut off, filling the house with an unnerving silence. Fantastic.

You subconsciously strained your ears, desperate to pick up any faint background noises which might lull you to sleep, when you heard what sounded like whimpering coming from the next room. You couldn't help but crack a somewhat sadistic smile.

Alfred.

His house was being fumigated or something, so he was staying in your guest room for a couple of days. Earlier, he'd insisted that the two of you watch a horror movie, to make it seem "like a real sleepover, dude!" It sounded like he was regretting it now. (Though he'd certainly regretted it earlier, as well. He had screamed the whole time. Your very concerned neighbor had knocked on the door to check that everything was alright.)

You listened to him for a few more minutes, then decided to go make sure he was okay. You crept, barefooted, out of your room and into his, torn between pity and schadenfrude. He was curled up under the covers. You tugged the blankets away gently, revealing his sleeping face, contorted in adorable fear.

Part of you sort of wanted to wake him up and comfort him, but this was an opportunity that you just couldn't resist. You cleared your throat as quietly as you could, then leaned down so that your lips were nearly brushing his ear and sang in the most childish voice you could muster:

Round we go
The world is spinning
When it stops,
It's just beginning

You had to stop and suppress a giggle as Alfred let out a cry. Whatever you were doing to his subconscious, he wasn't enjoying it nearly as much as you were.

Sun comes up
We live and we cry
Sun comes down
And then we all d-

"AAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHH!!!!"

Alfred sat bolt upright, screaming in your ear and knocking his head against yours. You stumbled backward and landed on your butt. You thought you saw stars. Alfred was shouting at the top of his lungs, a long string of words. It took you a moment to recover enough to piece them together.

"PLEASEDON'TKILLMEI'MTOOYOUNGTODIEIDIDN'TMEANTOWATCHTHEVIDEOITWASANACCIDENTI'LLDOANYTHINGJUSTDON'TKILLME!!!"

You couldn't help it. You started laughing. You had a killer headache, but this was absolutely worth it. Priceless.

After a minute, Alfred quieted down enough to hear you. He whirled around to see you on the floor.

"Dude! Not cool! You scared the crap outta me!" His voice shook slightly. You stood up, rubbing your forehead where he'd hit you.

"Sorry," you said, sort of meaning it. "I was bored and couldn't sleep, so I came in here. In fairness, though, it's sort of your fault for being a coward."

"I am not!"

"Right, well, I'm going to go back to bed." You turned back to the door. "Night, Al."

You hadn't taken a step when Alfred crashed into you from behind and wrapped his arms around your neck, pulling you back onto the bed with him. You were startled for a moment and were about to tell him off when you realized that he had buried his face in your hair and was trembling.

"Don't leave me!" he pleaded with you. "If you go, the demon girl will get me!"

"That was me, Al," you reminded him. "That girl doesn't exist." His arms tightened around you a little.

"I know," he mumbled. "But still… stay with me."

You tried to pry his arms off of you, but he held you fast. He was a lot stronger than he looked. Eventually you were forced to admit defeat.

"Fine," you muttered. "Just let me go. This is uncomfortable."

He released you and scooted over. You rolled over so that you were facing him, then pulled him into a hug, pressing your nose to his chest. You breathed in deeply, noting that he smelled vaguely of McDonald's.

"Much better," you sighed. "Night, Al."

He had stopped shaking now, and he wrapped his arms around you gently, returning the embrace.

"Thanks, dudette. 'Night."