Knock. Knock... Knock.

I bit my lip again and frowned when I didn't hear his voice from the other side of the door. He must be sleeping.

I turned around, my droopy eyes were still glassy. I was about to walk back to my room when I heard the door open from behind me. My heart skipped a beat.

"Livi?" Blake's voice didn't sound groggy or raspy at all.

I slowly turned around to face him and pursed my lips. I hope he doesn't notice my glassy eyes. "Are you okay, Muffin?" He whispered.

I nodded my head quickly, "Y-yeah. I'm sorry I just-"

"Can't sleep?" He smiled.

I shook my head, "N-no, I..." I didn't really know how to tell him that I'm sleepy as hell but I also am terrified of closing my eyes and drifting off.

Why was I here again?

Blake knit his eyebrows at me for less than a split second before something seemed to snap in his head, "Do you wanna come in?"

I looked at him and then caught a glimpse of the room behind him, "Did I wake you up? I'm sor-"

"Just get in, Muffin." Blake looked like he was holding back a smile. "You didn't wake me up, don't worry."

I pursed my lips and nodded, not moving from where I was standing. Blake chuckled cutely and turned around, walking back inside the room. "Close the door after you get it."

I stepped foot into his room and closed the door behind me. When I turned around, I saw Blake on the bed with his head resting on his folded arms behind him. He gazed at me before nodding his head towards the bed.

My eyelids started getting even heavier and I slightly shook my head in an attempt to shake the sleep off with it. Blake kept eyeing me as I walked over to the bed and sat down next to him.

"You look exhausted," Blake whispered, I could see his face turned towards me from my peripheral vision.

I looked back at him lazily and nodded my head, "I am," I whispered in a barely audible voice.

"Lie down," He whispered. "You look like you're about to shut off at any second."

I'm scared to lie down. I don't wanna fall asleep. I really wanna lie down though.

I also really wanna rest my eyes.

"I- I don't want to," I looked away from him, my eyes were beginning to water again because of the simple thought of the nightmare and my parents.

Blake sat up straighter, "Livi?" He sounded worried.

"Y-yeah?" My voice was shaky and it was kinda clear that I was close to crying. I was still looking away from him.

I shouldn't have come.

He probably thinks I'm a sensitive little wuss who cries at everything.

"Hey," His voice was so gentle, it was soothing. "look at me for a second."

I shook my head and he softly pinched my chin between his index finger and thumb to turn my head. He frowned when he saw my teary eyes and moved his hand to my cheek. "What's wrong?"

I shook my head again and kept holding the tears in, "N-nothing." I really really regret coming here. He doesn't deserve to be put in this situation.

Blake shook his head, not believing me. He looked at me through his beautiful eyes and rubbed my cheek with his thumb. "Lie down, Muffin."

"I don't wanna s-sleep." Why the hell were my eyes still getting glassier by the second? I could feel a tear beginning to slip.

"Why not?" He furrowed his eyebrows and kept staring into my eyes softly.

I tried looking away again but the hand he had resting on my cheeks stopped me, I looked at him and a tear slipped past my right eye. "I'm s-scared," I whimpered. Why the hell did I tell him that?

I hate myself so much.

Blake's confused expression changed to a slightly sad and empathic one. He brushed my front locks with his fingers, a thing I realized he would always do when given the chance. "Nightmares?"

"Nightmare," I corrected him. "I-its always the same one." My voice kept breaking.

Blake frowned and wiped the second tear that managed to escape my eyes. My eyes kept on getting droopier and they were so close to shutting on their own. I'm guessing Blake noticed that "Did you take your pills?" He was still playing with my hair.

I shook my head no, "Why?" He asked.

"They don't always work, they're j-just supposed to help me sleep- they wouldn't be able to stop me from having this n-nightmare tonight though."

He nodded his head and looked at my eyes for a little longer before he shifted in his place and fixed the pillow that was behind me. He placed a hand over my shoulder, "Please lie down, I have an idea. You seriously look dead right now, Livi."

My eyebrows pinched in confusion and I was about to ask him what he meant when he said he had an idea but I was stopped when he helped me lie down on the comfy bed. I looked up at him once my head was rested against the pillow and he gave me a warm smile.

He lied down beside me and brought the dark grey comforter over our bodies. He rested on his side so he could face me, his face was still holding that beautiful smile. I was fighting my eyelids from closing.

"Give me your hand," I felt his hand nudge mine from underneath the covers.

I was too sleepy to question him so I just gave him my hand and my heart melted the second he intertwined our fingers together. Sparks were lighting up in my hand from his touch.

"Now, the idea- wait Livi?"

"Hmm?"

"Are you alive?"

"Yeah,"

"Ok good, thought you were dead for a second there," He chuckled. My eyes were drying up and I smiled at him instead of laughing because I didn't really have the energy for that.

"Rest your eyes, Leprotto." He squeezed my hand. "Remember a week ago, when we fell asleep on your bed after uh- after my breakdown?" Butterflies erupted in my stomach from the memory and I nodded my head.

"You held my hand that night and it kinda helped." He smiled through the dark.

"Go sleep, I'll be here the entire time, holding your hand, since I'm like not sleepy at all. And I'll tell you what, the minute you start getting scared in your sleep I'll be here to squeeze your hand and wake you up. How does that sound, Muffin?"

I thought about that for a second and my eyes were starting to shut on their own as I looked at him. "I think like that idea,"

I saw him smile softly again before my eyes closed. I felt him give my hand another light and assuring squeeze and I shifted my head against the pillow and brought my body closer to him. Blake brought his other hand to my hair and played with it while I got my head closer and rested it against his bare chest.

The sound of his even breaths and beating heart calmed me down and I breathed his scent in one more time before darkness took over and swallowed me whole.

♛

I looked up at the faceless firefighter and felt my body shake from fear. "Please help them! Somebody help them!"

I blinked and found myself no longer in the firefighter's arms and my feet were back on the ground. I looked around me and my lips trembled when I realized that I was abandoned.

I turned back around and my heart stopped when I saw it again. I saw them again. Mommy and daddy.

Fire.

They tilted their burning heads to the side and grinned at me.

"MOMMY! DADDY! PLEASE GE-" I was cut off when I felt two pairs of hands wrap around my neck.

I turned around and let out a scream when I found mommy and daddy's burnt faces. They were mouthing the two words.

"Your fau-"

"Shh," I frowned in confusion through my teary face.

"It's alright, I'm here." I heard the soothing voice again.

Mommy and daddy were still grinning at me while burning alive.

"It's okay, Livi. Wake up, it's just a nightmare," The fire on mommy and daddy's faces and bodies slowly began to calm down and the grins were fading.

I felt a squeeze on my left hand and I looked down at it as the tears in my eyes started to dry. I felt something soft touch my forehead and temple repeatedly and I looked back up. I turned around and eyed my burning house.

Mommy and daddy were back there. They came out of it and started walking towards me, my heart starting palpitating again and my breathing hitched.

"Your fault."

"Your fault"

"Your fault."

They reached their hands out close to my neck and the grins were making their way back to their faces.

"No! Please! STO-"

I felt a tighter squeeze on my hand and multiple kisses to my forehead and I shot up on the bed. "STOP!"

"Shhh, shhh, it's okay, it's okay. It was just a dream, you're awake now. You're okay." My heart slowly started going back to its original steady pace the second I heard the soothing voice and felt someone rub my back.

I swiveled my head to the side and looked at Blake's soft face, it was holding an assuring smile that warmed my chest from the inside. "Take a deep breath, Muffin."

I slowly lied back down and took a deep breath. The nightmare didn't really last as long as it usually does and I thanked God for that, I would've been crying and screaming while trying to catch my breath if Blake hadn't woken me up.

I kept taking deep breaths while Blake lied back down beside me and wiped the two tears that had escaped my eyes when I was sleeping. He kissed my forehead, "You okay?"

I nodded my head against his lips and felt him run his fingers through my hair to help me calm down.

About three minutes passed and I had completely calmed down. Blake was still running his fingers through my hair though. "Thank you," I whispered.

Blake smiled and shifted his head against his pillow, "No problem. There's a new bottle of water behind you if you want some."

I shook my head, "What time is it?"

"3 am." He answered and I nodded my head. I got two hours of sleep.

"Did I wake you up?" I asked him in a whisper.

He shook his head. "Nah, I didn't sleep. I told you I wasn't sleepy..."

"Oh,"

"Do you wanna go back to sleep?" He softly asked me.

I shook my head quickly and he chuckled, I'm guessing he knew the answer to that before I even answered him. "I'm not sleepy anymore," I said.

"Yeah, me neither." He looked into my eyes for a few seconds and said, "Y'know..."

"Hmm?"

"We gotta do something for Cole's birthday since it's today. I've been planning to bake him a cake since last week and I'm thinking we could do it now 'cause we won't be able to do it tomorrow morning without him finding out."

I sat up on the bed, "Oh my god," I breathed. "I totally didn't think of that."

Blake chuckled and sat up with me. "It's fine. So, do you wanna make it now?"

I nodded my head, "Yeah- okay."

"Okay then. Come on," Blake got off of the bed and I climbed off of it after him.

"I'm gonna use the bathroom first," I informed him when we walked out. I wasn't sure if my breath stank or not because I've only been asleep for less than four hours but I still planned on brushing my teeth either way.

I did my business in the bathroom, washed my hands, and brushed my teeth before leaving the bathroom and making my way to the kitchen. I walked in and found Blake standing in front of the open fridge with his bare back facing me.

His back muscles and biceps flexed as he rummaged through the fridge and grabbed some of the ingredients needed. His muscles flexed one more time when he shut the fridge's door and he smiled at me when he turned around. "I got the cake shit ready."

I smiled back at him and walked over to where he was standing. "What cake are we making?"

"Marble," he answered.

"Marble?" I knit my eyebrows. It was my first time hearing of it.

"It's both chocolate and vanilla," He chuckled when he saw my weirded-out facial expression. "don't worry, they don't mix together. We make both batters and then put them on top of each other on the cake pan then shake it and put it in the oven." He explained.

"Oh. Will we add any frosting or toppings?" I asked.

Blake nodded his head, "Of course. Did you see how much of the cake sprinkle shit the idiot bought? He's in love with sugar."

I laughed, remembering how he used to buy loads of cake toppings, candy, chocolate, and ice cream every time we went shopping. "He is."

"Which cake batter do you wanna make?" Blake asked me.

"Can I make the vanilla one?" I asked; I'm not really good at making chocolate cake.

Blake nodded his head again, "Yeah, of course. I'll make the chocolate one. I set the ingredients for you on the right side of the table." He informed me, taking a step to the left from beside me so he could make his batter.

"There's a notepad in front of you that has all the instructions written on it if you're not sure how to make it." Blake nodded his head towards the notepad.

"Thanks," I said as I grabbed it and brought it near my face so I could read what's written on it.

"No problem." He whisked the melted butter and sugar together before cracking two eggs with two hands at the same time.

My eyes widened. "How the hell..." I muttered under my breath.

He chuckled and looked up at me, the tips of his eyes were crinkling from his smile. "What?"

"The eggs..." I trailed.

He walked over to the sink behind me and washed his hands. "Want me to teach you how?" He asked, eyeing the egg in my hand.

"How to what?" I knit my brows. "Crack an egg with one hand? No thanks, I think Cole would prefer his cake without the crunchiness of a dozen pieces of cracked eggshells."

Blake ignored me and just walked over to where I was standing and stopped when he was behind me. "Give me your hand."

My stomach went crazy when he placed his fingers over mine and made me hold the egg in a certain type of way where my middle finger was beneath it, my index was on its side, and my thumb was over it.

"Lightly crack the middle of it against the side of the bowl." He whispered before he grabbed one egg from beside me so he could crack it with me.

I cracked it against the side of the bowl with him and then watched as he brought his hand to the center of the bowl, he was still standing behind me. "No, Muffin." He whispered out of nowhere and placed his other hand back over mine. "Why'd you move your fingers? Keep your thumb over the side."

"I'm so gonna crush the whole thing and waste a perfectly fine egg," I said.

"Hopefully not," His breath tickled my ear.

He removed his hand from over mine and made me focus on his other hand, "Now apply really light pressure to the crack with your middle finger- yes just like that! See how it's cracking perfectly?"

I nodded my head and kept applying a bit of pressure until Blake told me to stop. "Okay, now pull the two parts of the eggshell with your thumb and index finger to one side and the middle finger to the other side, just like this..." He showed me how to do it.

My mouth formed into the shape of an o in realization and I smiled when I tried it and saw that it worked, the egg was slipping perfectly out of the eggshell. "There you go," He whispered when both of our egg yolks and whites dropped into the bowl at the same time.

"That wasn't that hard now, was it?" He said.

I shook my head and we turned around to wash our hands. "Thanks,"

"No problem Leprotto, now hurry up and continue making the batter so we could dye the frosting while the cake bakes in the oven."

I nodded my head and we continued making the batter while chatting about random stuff. About thirty minutes later, we were both done with the batter and Blake was now applying the chocolate mix over the vanilla one.

He nodded towards it when he was done, "Shake it, Muffin."

Ovaries: Booty or tiddies?

I looked down at the pan and then put my hands over it, "Left to right or up and down?"

"Left to right," He answered.

I shook it from left to right for a few seconds until Blake told me to stop. "Can you put it in the oven while I wash my hands or do you still don't know how to do it? It's already preheated so all you have to do is pop it in the oven." He said as he turned his back to me and walked to the sink.

My heart skipped a beat and I froze in my spot. I gulped as I took a glimpse at the oven and then at Blake's back. I can't.

Fire.

I shut my eyes tightly. Don't think of them. Don't think of them. It's alright. Just ask him if he could do it instead. Don't think of the-

"Muffin?" Blake's whisper cut me out of my thoughts. "Fuck,"

I opened my stinging eyes and saw that Blake was right in front of me now. "Are you alright?"

I eyed the oven that was behind him and my eyes got watery for the millionth time today, I nodded my head, causing a tear to slip. God damn it! Stop crying in front of him!

"No, no, why are you crying Livi?" Blake was quick to ask me, he brought his hand to my face and wiped my tear. His head shot back to where my eyes were a second ago and he looked back at me with a face that held both worry and realization at the same time.

"I'm sorry," He whispered. "I didn't realize- please don't cry." He tilted my chin upwards.

I shook my head, "No, it's okay, I'm not crying- it's just a te- I'm sorry,"

He smiled at me and looked back at the oven, "I'll put it in the oven. Do you wanna fetch the buttercream from the fridge?" He was clearly trying to get my mind off of things.

I nodded my head and he ruffled my hair and turned around to put the cake pan in the oven. I opened the fridge and pulled out the huge container of frosting. I heard the sound of the oven shut from behind me and I turned around.

I saw Blake reach his hand out inside a cabinet and pull out a few packs of food coloring. His muscles were flexing again. He set them down on the counter and pulled out a few bowls from another cabinet.

"Can you bring the frosting here, please?" He asked me, rotating his head so he could see me.

I walked over to where he was standing and set the container next to the bowls while Blake pulled out some rubber spatulas, spoons, and toothpicks.

"Do you think we need bigger bowls?" He asked me and I shrugged.

He squinted his eyes for a second and then shrugged too. He handed me a spoon and opened the container. "Scoop three tablespoons into each bowl and I'll add the food coloring, sounds good?" he turned his head to me.

"Yes," I replied and started scooping some of the frosting into the spoon. Once we were done coloring the frosting, Blake set the bowls on top of the island and we hopped onto the counters as we waited for the oven to ring.

"When do you think he'll wake up?" I asked.

"Around eleven or twelve, I'm not sure; his sleep schedule is confusing as fuck. One day he wakes up at ten in the morning and the next day he wakes up at two or four in the afternoon." Blake answered.

I chuckled, "Yeah, I realized that! That's why I asked."

"Are you getting sleepy?" Blake asked me.

I shook my head, "No. You?" I eyed his face to look for any signs of sleepiness.

He shook his head too, "Nah. I drank enough coffee to keep me up till next week."

"Why?" I furrowed my brows.

He shrugged. "Just got this sudden craving at night." The oven's bell rang the second after he answered that.