[ raleigh's still an insomniac after all these years, so he knows from the first night it happens that naomi's been sleepwalking. he follows her some nights. stays out of sight and slinks back to bed when she comes to and realizes she's not where she's supposed to be. he never mentions it, the same way naomi doesn't really mention it when sometimes, every once in a while, he zones out completely in the middle of a sentence, only to come back a few moments later and realize her hand is in his.
yeah, she should probably talk to someone about this. there's things doctors and counselors could do to help her. but if she can't even admit to him that she's having problems, he's not sure he'll be able to convince her it's a good idea. which isn't to say he's not worried about her. he is, a lot. especially because he knows she's been smoking too.
his mom had been a smoker. when she was diagnosed with lung cancer, there had been a period where they all tried to get her to quit. she never did, but she'd pretended for a while. raleigh and yance got pretty good at spotting the signs of when she'd try to cover up the fact that she would be smoking. even if he didn't have that knowledge, there have been a few times he's kissed her and still been able to taste the remnants of smoke and ash on her tongue. frankly, that terrifies him.
almost as much as the fact that she'd walked out into the street terrifies him. they live in a fairly quiet neighborhood, so the odds of her getting run over were slim. but panic still gripped his heart when he saw that. he takes sometime to calm himself and let naomi get over the worst beginnings of her panic attack before he sits next to her on the stairs. she's a mess. tear tracks drying in sticky lines on her face, an almost completely smoked cigarette between her fingers, and shivering in the cold with nothing but his sweater to keep the night air out.
raleigh sighs and carefully reaches over to pluck the cigarette from her fingertips and stub it out on the stairs. then he carefully wraps naomi up in a hug. he holds her tightly to his chest and kisses the crown of her head. ]
It's okay, I've got you. Just put your hand on my chest and try to breathe with me, okay? In... out. In... out. [ he breathes in slowly and deeply, holding it for a few seconds in between each inhale and exhale. sometimes the training the ppdc gave him for how to keep his head comes in handy in the most unexpected ways. ]
no subject
yeah, she should probably talk to someone about this. there's things doctors and counselors could do to help her. but if she can't even admit to him that she's having problems, he's not sure he'll be able to convince her it's a good idea. which isn't to say he's not worried about her. he is, a lot. especially because he knows she's been smoking too.
his mom had been a smoker. when she was diagnosed with lung cancer, there had been a period where they all tried to get her to quit. she never did, but she'd pretended for a while. raleigh and yance got pretty good at spotting the signs of when she'd try to cover up the fact that she would be smoking. even if he didn't have that knowledge, there have been a few times he's kissed her and still been able to taste the remnants of smoke and ash on her tongue. frankly, that terrifies him.
almost as much as the fact that she'd walked out into the street terrifies him. they live in a fairly quiet neighborhood, so the odds of her getting run over were slim. but panic still gripped his heart when he saw that. he takes sometime to calm himself and let naomi get over the worst beginnings of her panic attack before he sits next to her on the stairs. she's a mess. tear tracks drying in sticky lines on her face, an almost completely smoked cigarette between her fingers, and shivering in the cold with nothing but his sweater to keep the night air out.
raleigh sighs and carefully reaches over to pluck the cigarette from her fingertips and stub it out on the stairs. then he carefully wraps naomi up in a hug. he holds her tightly to his chest and kisses the crown of her head. ]
It's okay, I've got you. Just put your hand on my chest and try to breathe with me, okay? In... out. In... out. [ he breathes in slowly and deeply, holding it for a few seconds in between each inhale and exhale. sometimes the training the ppdc gave him for how to keep his head comes in handy in the most unexpected ways. ]