Part Five
Part Four
His eyes opened in pitch darkness. Since Snitch had left the newsies, he had been victim to strange dreams that made absolutely no sense to him. Yet as he awakened from this dream, he could hear tiny knocks from the ceiling. He ignored it at first until other sounds were heard.
Lying silent, he listened to every sound he heard. He heard the knocking, accompanied by rustling, and then very faint whimpers. It had to be Camilla. Snitch yanked his covers off and threw a robe on over his long underwear, tying the sash as he quietly left the room and trailed upstairs.
As he drew closer to her room, the sounds grew slightly louder. It sounded as though Camilla was having a nightmare. Though nightmares weren�t uncommon for her, the reaction to this was beyond anything Snitch had seen before. He knocked her knuckles again her door.
�Camilla?� he whispered.
Her whimpering only grew louder, and Snitch felt no other obligation but to go inside. He carefully opened the door to find Camilla writhing and twitching on her bed, whimpering as though she was being attacked and could not wake up from her nightmare.
Unsure of what to do exactly, Snitch went to her bedside and touched her arm. Her eyes shot open and she gasped, but Snitch pressed a finger to his lips to calm her.
�Shhh.� He whispered. �Calm down. You�re having a nightmare.�
Camilla sniffled and wiped tears from her eyes. �It was happening again.�
�What was?�
�The man�he was doing it all over again! And he wouldn�t stop! Oh God, I�m so scared!�
She fell into Snitch�s arms, seeking comfort from her fears. When his arms wrapped around her, she felt safe and protected. Her pounding heart began to slow to its steady beat. When she felt his fingers stroking her hair softly, she felt almost completely calm.
�It was awful.� She spoke softly after finding her control. �Everything was so clear. The images, his touches, everything he did. And then, I saw my baby. She�was begging for her father. I tried to tell her the circumstances and she began to fade, then her father came back and he attacked me again. He said I�d gotten rid of his first child and that he wanted another.�
�It was just a dream. Shh.� He coaxed. �Ya don�t got nutthin� t� worry about.�
�But what if he does come back someday? What if he wonders about his child? What would I do then? Would he attack me again?�
�Shhh.� He squeezed her gently. �Nothin� is ever gonna happen t� ya again. I�m here. You�re safe with me. An� so�s th� baby.�
She clung to his embrace, wanting to feel even more safe than she was. And surprisingly, she found that sense of security. She hadn�t felt this safe since those fleeting moments she felt when he had kissed her two months ago. She felt warm at the remembrance, and longed for those emotions to fill her again.
It took several minutes for her to be completely calm again. Her breathing slowed to its normal pace, as did her heartbeat. She felt the baby kicked and felt a light sensation in her heart. While most of the kicks that occurred were rather rough, this one seemed to be simple and comforting, almost as if to reassure her that everything would be okay. She sighed.
�Ya oughta go back t� sleep now.� Snitch suggested quietly. �I�ll go.�
Camilla was ready to let him leave when her longing for those moments they had shared two months ago overtook her. She clung to him as he tried to release her and held to him tighter.
�Please don�t leave me.� She pleaded.
�Ya still scared?�
She nodded, for not all of her fear had been eliminated. �Yes, I�m scared. I don�t wanna be alone.�
�I�ll sit in that chair over there. I�ll be able t� see ya from there.�
�No.� She grasped him tighter. �Stay with me, please. It�s so dark that I can�t see that you�re there. Please, stay here with me.�
He felt uneasy at her plea. �Are ya sure?�
�You�re here already. I don�t want you to leave me.� She sniffled back the tears that threatened to fall. �Just stay until I fall asleep.�
He thought a minute, then agreed. Staying in bed with her all night, despite the condition she was in, was sure to arouse sensations that would not be appropriate at this time. Wary of the male hormones washing over him, he slipped under the covers beside Camilla as she turned over to her opposite side so that he was pressed against her back.
Closing his eyes, he prayed that his mind would remain clear and aware of Camilla�s needs and not his own, and that he would be able to resist all temptation. When his arm slipped around her widening waste, he felt the baby kicking and knew she would keep him on track. He smiled slightly and began to relax.
Sleepiness was hanging over his head, but he had to stay awake. He listened to Camilla�s breathing, ragged from her fear and tears. Yet her breaths began to soften to a calmness and he knew she was doing better. He hugged her a bit tighter, then felt the baby kicking again. He grinned guiltily and loosened.
As he listened to Camilla�s breathing, he felt his heart begin to pound. He could feel heat rushing through his veins and his stomach tightened. He had never been in such an intimate closeness with a woman before. It was even harder than he thought, particularly because he loved Camilla so deeply.
�Don�t go thinking the wrong thing.� He pondered. �Camilla�s scared. She�s vulnerable. Even if she knew I was getting the wrong ideas, she�d be real hurt. I gotta keep from hurting her feelings.�
It was nearly a half hour before Snitch was convinced that Camilla was asleep. She hadn�t made any movement, seemed completely at peace, but even moaned softly to herself from time to time. Snitch knew that it was time for him to leave her, but the intimacy between them at this moment was so powerful that he didn�t want to leave. He wanted to stay like this forever.
Then he felt the quick, tiny twitches against his arm, and they felt suddenly stronger. Sighing and shaking his head, he knew it was time for him to leave. The baby knew it, and if she knew, then Snitch knew that it was the right thing to do.
Before he left her side, he had to give Camilla some form of physical contact just to be able give her the tiniest bit of his love, even if she was asleep. With her being asleep, it was the best time to do it because she wouldn�t be aware or hurt if he did anything. He brushed her red curls away from her neck and kissed her below her jaw line.
She stirred after his action, and he froze, terrified she had awakened about would be hurt by what he did. But she made no more movement, and he was satisfied. He was ready to go to the chair to sleep, but before he did so, he leaned toward her ear and whispered three words he prayed she would not be capable of hearing in her unconscious state:
�I love you.�
* * *
It was late morning, and Camilla had overslept. Harry was aware of the fact that she usually slept in, but Snitch was not awake either. He still wakened rather early, expecting to go off and sell newspapers. With him not bring awake yet, Harry found that to be confusing.
Sipping his coffee, Harry skimmed over the headlines of the newspaper Emerson had purchased for him. When Mrs. Connick brought out his breakfast, he grinned. It was Camilla�s favorite: cinnamon French toast with maple syrup, scrambled eggs, evenly browned hash browns, orange slices and cold milk. A breakfast like this was something that Camilla would want to pass up.
�It looks wonderful, Mrs. Connick.� He pushed his chair back. �But I�m going to wake up Camilla. She wouldn�t want to miss her favorite breakfast.�
�You might want to wake up Dean as well.� Mrs. Connick suggested. �I�m sure he�s never had French toast before.�
�I�ll get Camilla first. She does have priority.�
He strode out of the dining area and headed upstairs. He knocked on her door to see if she was awake first, then entered. He found Camilla curled on her side with her back facing him. She was completely covered with heavy blankets and appeared to be warm enough. Harry grinned, until he saw something he hadn�t expected to: Snitch.
Snitch was snoozing comfortably in the willow rocking chair next to Camilla�s bed. He was wearing the black robe Harry had purchased for him, which did give him more confidence in the situation. However, Snitch being here was completely and totally inappropriate and disgraceful.
Swallowing down his shock and disgust, Harry went to Snitch first. He grasped his shoulder and shook. Snitch groaned and shook his head.
�Not yet, Kloppman. Th� presses inks ain�t nowhere near dry yet.�
�Dean, what are you doing here?�
Instantly, Snitch�s eyes popped open. He turned and saw Harry and went pale, then red from embarrassment. He grinned guiltily.
�And what, pray tell, are you doing here in my pregnant daughter�s bedroom?� Harry demanded softly, so not to awaken Camilla.
�She�she had a nightmare las� night.� Snitch replied calmly. �She was real scared. I was gonna go back downstairs, but she din�t want me t� leave. She ast me to stay.�
He was touched by this young man�s unselfishness, but the fact that this was a rather improper situation, he couldn�t excuse this right off. He sighed.
�I don�t think you�re lying. But still, Camilla is in a delicate state right now. I can understand that she�s frightened, but you should have left her after she fell asleep.�
�Sorry, Harry. It won�t happen again.�
�Good. Now get on out of here. I�ll wake Camilla up.�
Nodding, Snitch retied the sash of his robe and left the bedroom. Once Harry heard his footsteps descending downstairs, he turned to his sleeping daughter and shook her shoulder gently.
�Camilla. Camilla honey, wake up.�
Camilla moaned and began to roll onto his back, slipping her hand behind her to feel for Snitch. Not feeling him, she expected him to be looming above her. She had quite a start when she saw her father there instead.
�Dean�?� she questioned, rather distressed and curious.
�He went downstairs.� Harry replied, taking a seat on the mattress.
She paled. �Was he�sleeping here?�
�He was asleep in your chair. He said you had a nightmare last night.�
Sighing with relief, she relaxed and rubbed her eye with the heel of her hand. �I did. I didn�t mean anything inappropriate by him staying here with me, I was just so scared.�
�It�s all right, princess.� He kissed her forehead. �Under the circumstances, I can understand that you�d want someone here to be with you.�
She smiled. �I�m glad.�
�But next time, you can call on me, okay? If I had heard you last night, I would have come.�
�I don�t know how Dean could have heard me last night instead of you. He lives downstairs, and you�re just down the hallway.�
�Maybe he just knows when you need him and is always willing to come at that time.� he smiled softly. �He�s one young man you can�t pass up.�
He took her hand and helped her to a seated position. When her feet touched the ground, he handed her the pink robe folded up on the hope chest at the foot of her bed.
�Mrs. Connick cooked your favorite this morning. I�d hate to see you miss it.�
He left afterward. As Camilla slipped her robe on, she pondered the words her father had said before handing her the robe. Dean was one young man she couldn�t pass up. Was he saying on thing yet meaning something else for her to figure out?
From what she understood, it sounded like he was giving her his blessing to pursue Dean. She would admit, she had been feeling those stirring emotions in her heart even more recently. Maybe what her father had told her really meant that he approved of Dean and would have absolutely no problem if she wished to pursue a relationship with him.
However, a romantic relationship was one of the last things Camilla wanted to go through with at this time. What if she did begin courting Dean, and then they suddenly called it off? She wouldn�t be able to take the heartache. It was better to remain his friend than to endure a temporary relationship that would only break her heart.
Staggering to her feet, she left her bedroom and trudged downstairs. When she entered the dining area, she found him at the table, wolfing into his breakfast as though he hadn�t eaten in years. Yet when he saw her, he smiled at her, and her knees felt weak. She felt the baby kicking, but it didn�t drown out the fluttering sensation in her stomach.
She seated herself and began to eat her breakfast, and peeked up at Snitch again. This time, it seemed as though her heart was doing flip-flops. She ignored the tremors, but couldn�t ignore the emotions beginning to fill the empty spaces in her life.
* * *
