�No! Stop it!� he heard somebody mumble.
He turned his head in the direction where his roommate lay. �Paul?�
Ringo and Paul usually shared a hotel room when they were on tour. The main reason for this was because George and Ringo had been the last two to join the band and they figured that if they�d share a room together, they�d always be the outsiders. So they thought if Ringo would share a room with Paul and George with John, they would be alright. Of course this had been in the early days, but now they were so used to it that it had become something that went without saying.
Ringo heard moaning and then a shout: �NO, PLEASE!�
�Paul!� He felt around for the light switch of the reading lamp above his bed, found it and flipped it on. A weak ray of light illuminated the room.
Ringo looked over at Paul again and saw him thrashing about in his bed, all tangled up in his blankets. His face was contorted in fear, his eyes clenched shut.
Ringo hopped out of bed and hurried over to Paul�s side. He lay a hand on Paul�s shoulder and shook him gently. �Paul, wake up. You�re dreamin�.�
However, Paul continued to mumble, restlessly throwing his head from side to side.
Ringo shook him again, a bit harder this time. �Paul, Paul wake up!� Then he had to duck quickly to avoid being hit as Paul lashed out.
�PAUL!� Ringo shouted loudly.
Finally, Paul jolted awake. He looked around wildly, as though expecting somebody to chop his head off any minute.
�Paul, take it easy. It�s alright, you were only dreamin�, � Ringo told him gently.
Slowly Paul began to take in his surroundings, realising he�d had a nightmare yet again. Sitting up, he let out a shuddery sigh. �Sorry, Ring. I woke you up, didn�t I?� he asked, scrubbing his face with his hands.
Ringo was about to reply when suddenly the door to their room opened to reveal a sleepy John Lennon standing in the doorway. His hair was sticking up on one end and he squinted against the light from Ringo�s reading lamp. �What the bloody hell is goin� on in here?!�
Ringo glanced at Paul, who silently begged him not to tell John anything. �We just got a bit carried away with a discussion we were havin�, � Ringo said, realising what a flimsy lie it was. He just hoped John was too sleep-drunk to read anything into it.
John eyed them suspiciously; Ringo kneeling on the floor next to Paul�s bed and Paul looking back at him with a rather guilty expression. John raised an eyebrow.
�I see what�s going on here,� he said, narrowing his eyes.
Paul swallowed nervously.
�You two are goin� queer on me, aren�t you?�
Paul and Ringo both burst out laughing. �Get on, John!� Ringo said, sniggering. �We�re about as queer as you are! Now get your mind out of the gutter and bugger off to yer own room!�
John tutted in mock haughtiness. �Well, you two just shut yer gobs and let Geo and me sleep, sods,� he said as he turned and left. As he did so, he nearly bumped into the door post; he didn�t have his contacts in.
Ringo turned his attention back to Paul. �You can�t go on like this, you know.�
�Go on like what?� Paul asked innocently.
�Like this, with the nightmares and all,� Ringo replied. �This is the third night in a row that you�re havin� these dreams and sometimes they keep coming back all night. You�ll wear yerself out, son.�
Paul just sat quietly, staring down at his hands.
Ringo studied him. �You can talk to us about it, you know.�
�I�ll be fine,� Paul said. �It�s just nerves.�
�Then why don�t you want me to tell the others you�re havin� these nightmares?� Ringo asked.
�They�ll just think I�m soft,� Paul replied.
�Oh, come off it, Paul! These aren�t just your regular nightmares, you know. Besides, we already KNOW you�re soft, � Ringo added with a grin.
That elicited a small smile from Paul. �Just go back to bed, Ring. I�ll be alright.�
Ringo got up and stood looking down at him for a moment. �I can talk to the lads about it��
�No!� Paul interrupted him hastily. �No, Ring, it�s alright. I�ll tell them myself, or they�ll find out themselves eventually. Just go to sleep now, Ring. I promise I won�t go spare on ye again tonight.�
Ringo shook his head and shrugged. �Alright, mate.� He returned to his bed, whilst Paul tried to disentangle himself from his blankets.
Ringo settled under the blankets and looked over at Paul again, who had by now managed to extricate himself, watching him lay back down and snuggle under the covers. �Sure you�re alright, Paul?�
�Yeah. Ta, Ring,� a muffled voice replied.
�Ok,� Ringo said as he reached above his head and switched off the light.
Paul turned over on his side, his back to his roommate. He kept his eyes wide-open, refusing to go back to sleep again. He was convinced that if he did, the nightmares would return. Suppressing a yawn, he realised he probably wasn�t going to be able to stay awake all night. He already dreaded what sleep would bring him�
