Exhaustion {Quiglet, M} COMPLETE

From the writer of A Series of Quiglet Events comes . . .



Violet begins to suffer from insomnia, and finds it hard to stay faithful and committed to life and herself. How will Quigley cope? Quiglet, M for mental anxiety.

"Strange & Beautiful (I'll Put A Spell On You)" by Aqualung lyrics, video. It would be wise to listen to this before you read any further.



Quigley looked at Violet face. The freezing atmosphere was not to blame for her face going red.

"You don't really mean that," Violet blushed and looked shyly at the view below them.

"Oh, really?" he asked, and his face moved closer to hers, almost shielding her from the bitter wind that was stinging their faces and numbing their noses.

Violet's eyes met his, and she leaned forward until her lips touched his.

The happiness and love he felt for her was just beyond words or sentences. The cold seemed to be canceled out.

His fingers were running through her hair. . .

And suddenly, he woke. Ten years later.

Quigley's eyes opened, blinked. He turned his head to his left, and saw Violet next to him in the big bed, her back to him. He found that his hand was up next Violet's head and his fingers had been running through her hair in her sleep. He wasn't too surprised, and he tried to ease his fingers away from her without waking her. She was perfectly still.

He'd just gotten his fingers out when she suddenly twitched.

Quigley jumped, before coming to his senses. He carefully touched her bare shoulder, his fingers brushing up aganst the strap of her silky, royal purple coloured nightgown. He bent over her, looking into her face.

"Vi?"

Her eyes were open and blank, staring at the wall to her left.

"Vi?"

She blinked, and grunted in reply.

"Yeah?"

"Did I wake you?"

"Actually, I wan't asleep. Your fingers felt nice, though."

Violet reached for his hand, and placed it on her head, and he smiled, his fingers almost massaging her scalp. She grabbed his other hand, clutching it in hers.

"I just had the most vivid dream. . ." Quigley murmured, squeezing her hand. ". . .and you were in it . . ."

Violet grinned. "Explains the hair thing."

He held her to him, his hand still running through her hair. He could feel her silk through his T-shirt. She raised her arm and caressed his cheek, kissing it and holding him back.

"Let's get back to sleep," she whispered after about ten minutes. "We've got work tomorrow."

He mock groaned, and said, "Who cares about work?"

She smiled, almost sniggering. She knew how important his job was to him, and him saying that made her feel special, important. She gave him one, final kiss before turning away from him, his arms still around her in a hug. Quigley smiled and squeezed her shoulder, before closing his eyes. He fell asleep within a few minutes, his arms were still around her, protective.

Violet's face had changed as she'd rollen over - she frowned, worried as she resumed staring blankly at the wall. Thank goodness Quigley hadn't noticed her insecurity, her lack of good sleep lately. It was almost a bête noire, and she didn't want to worry him.

Why couldn't she fall asleep?