There it was.

There it was again.

Again.

And again.

The first ripple was subtle... a gentle undulation that might have been dismissed as the things the mind will conjure in the dead of night.

But then the mattress beneath you swelled, rising before falling still. Over and over.

Breathing.

"Gregor!" you call out, your voice trembling.

No answer.

Maybe it heard you instead.

His silhouette drifts past the hallway, the faint warmth of candlelight your only saving grace in this nightmare.

Through the narrow gap of your slightly ajar door, you see him pause. The glow frames his figure as he speaks.

"So, it's a monster again tonight, is it?"

He was already onto your schemes. You’d pestered him with this the past few nights, and his tone left no room for discussion.

He sighs, then pauses, his gaze settling on you through the crack in the door. After a moment, he speaks again, softer this time. More thoughtfully this time.

"Come on, then. You can sleep with me tonight. No more of these silly monsters."

The offer was there, reluctant but open. Worn out from the nightly routine but too fond to turn you away.

The moment he sees you leave the room, his weary eyes burn into you with resignation. He knows this won’t be the last time.

Side by side the two of you walk down to Gregor's bedroom with silence broken up by footsteps and creaking floorboards - nothing more to say between two restless fools.

Then, without warning, you feel it - a cold, wet sensation. It brushes lightly against your ankle at first, just a brief touch that makes you stop for a moment. Your eyes wander downward, but you can't see anything, the dim light too weak to make sense of the shadows at your feet.

The feeling lingers as if waiting for a reaction. Your skin prickles, and you fight the urge to yank your foot away.

Then it's gone.

The hairs on the back of your neck rise, and for a moment, you wonder if you imagined it.

But something tells you that whatever it was, it’s still there, just out of sight.