Chapter Text
By the time Michael awoke, it was still early in the morning, the barest hint of light creating a faint blueish glow through the curtains. A slight tightness in his chest hinted to his premature waking. Nightmares were a common occurrence, he was used to them; haunting his sleep since his earliest memories. This time, he couldn’t remember. Not that it mattered, he would wake up panicked regardless. Often, it was better that way. Better not to remember.
Except when it’s her.
He slowly sat up against the pillows once his body became more responsive, mindful of the slumbering form curled up beside him. She’s beautiful, my Laurie. I never want to leave. What if they come for you? Take me away? She promised. Perhaps she can’t stop them. Will she love you from afar like I will love her? Yes. She will save me. Only her.
He glanced down to study Laurie’s face, almost envious of the calm expression on her features. What would it feel like, to be clear headed all the time? Michael wasn’t even sure if he wanted that, being so used to the background chatter in his head and the strange comfort it sometimes brought. But the rest? The demands, the anger... the fear? Those he could live without, so long as he had Laurie. So long as he knew what it felt like to love and be loved.
Gently, Michael combed his fingers through her soft blonde hair and he felt the turmoil in his mind settle. Not quite clear, but enough that all he could think about was Laurie.
My Laurie. Mine and oh so perfect.
He was suddenly startled when she made a small whimper, her brow knitting together in distress yet she remained asleep. Michael tilted his head; she had nightmares too? He didn’t like that. He wanted to make them stop. What did she do to calm me? Sing. Not without a voice. She held you close to her. So close to me. I want to hold her.
Not really knowing what else to do, he carefully wound his arms around her and cradled her against his chest. At least when she awoke, she would see him before all else.
***
Laurie sighed dreamily as she slowly woke up, stretching out under the duvet and smiling at the warmth of sunlight on her face. Gradually, she opened her eyes and immediately turned to face the other side of the bed... only to find it empty. She frowned and sat up quickly.
“Michael?”
She heard movement by the window and looked around, relief flooding through her at the sight of her lover. He’d pulled the chair from her desk over so he could sit and stare out of the window, still and silent until she called out for him. Laurie blushed slightly when she noticed his state of dress; his strong, toned frame only covered by a tight t-shirt and his underwear. Since he was awake and out of bed, she expected him to already be wearing his mask and coveralls.
“Been up long?” she asked.
Michael shrugged, unsure.
“Lost in thought huh?”
He hummed his response and then let his eyes wander, Laurie’s cheeks heating up under his intense scrutiny. With an amused chuckle, she got out of bed and covered her nakedness with her bathrobe before sidling over to Michael. She smirked at him and straddled his thighs, seating herself comfortably in his lap and uttering a soft sigh when his arms enveloped her.
“Morning.”
Laurie nuzzled under his jaw before kissing down to his clavicle, enjoying the quiet moan that spilt from his lips. It was blissful, simply touching each other and basking in the other’s company. She hoped every morning could be spent like this. Her and Michael, just the two of them.
Until a sense of unease wormed its way into her gut. Something wasn’t right... something...
Before Laurie even heard the thudding of heavy footfalls running through her home, she and Michael were startled by her bedroom door being kicked open. Two officers dashed in, aiming their pistols at them – or, specifically, at Myers. What the hell was going on? She glared at the intruders and instinctively held her partner tighter.
“What are you doing in my house?” she demanded furiously.
“I’m sorry,” Sheriff Brackett said when he walked in, also armed. “But we have to bring in Michael Myers.”
Laurie’s jaw dropped. “What... what for?”
“He killed a man Laurie, you know that.”
“Yes, but-”
“And he’s dangerous.”
“What? But... no, he... he isn’t...”
“Listen to the man, you silly girl!” Doctor Loomis walked in next, a pair of paramedics just behind him. “Let us take him and nothing bad will happen. He may kill you if we don’t.”
“But... but that’s absurd!” Laurie exclaimed, her wide eyes flicking between the psychiatrist and the sheriff. “He doesn’t want to kill me. Sheriff Brackett, you know this! Please...”
“Don’t make this difficult,” Brackett warned her.
“He hasn’t hurt me! He... he loves me-”
“Oh, just get her out of the way!” Loomis snapped.
Everything that happened next went by in a blur for Laurie. The paramedics swooped in to wrestle her out of Michael’s arms, but it only fuelled the anger that suddenly welled up inside her. She lashed out at the one behind her, kicking at any body parts she could find and biting the hand that tried to muffle her.
“No, get off me!” she snarled, but her strength paled in comparison to the trained paramedics. “Let go! You-”
They ignored her and dragged her to the floor, subduing her and she cried out as she felt a muscle pull painfully in her shoulder. That was enough for Michael. He stood up quickly and lunged for one of men, grasping him by the throat with both hands and slamming his back into the wall. Laurie’s eyes widened at his almost inhuman display of strength, hearing the paramedic choking and struggling for breath but she couldn’t find it in her heart to care. Not with how they had manhandled her. Not with the way they would undoubtedly treat Michael when they locked him back up in the asylum.
Just as she saw the paramedic’s eyes rolling back into his head, Laurie saw a glint of steel from the corner of her eye. Glancing over, she watched as the other responder took a syringe out of his pocket and marched towards Myers.
“Michael, behind you!” she yelled.
But her warning came too late. She heard her lover grunt when the second paramedic jabbed the needle into his arm. Michael dropped the man he was strangling and turned to the one behind him, reaching for him only to stumble backwards as whatever he’d been injected with took effect. Laurie shivered at the look in Michael’s dark eyes when he glared at the man who stabbed him, the killing intent perfectly clear. It was frightening, but not at all unexpected.
“Quickly, use the second dose!” Loomis shouted angrily. “I told you one shot of sedative isn’t enough to subdue it!”
Laurie could only watch in horror as one of the sheriff’s officers ran in to distract Myers, her fear and anxiety paralysing her. Michael staggered towards the policeman, reaching for his throat only to be struck across the back with a baton.
“Michael!” Laurie screamed, trying to get up only for the other officer to restrain her. “No, leave him alone, you’re only making it worse!”
They ignored her and the paramedic injected Michael with a second dose, the combined effects of the drug and the officer’s attack enough for him to collapse. He was breathing heavily now, his eyes unfocused and body twitching sporadically. He slowly turned his head to face Laurie, an almost defeated look in his eyes and the blonde was unable to hold back her tears.
“Michael,” she sobbed.
“Take it away,” Loomis growled.
“No, please!” Laurie tried to reach for Michael. “Don’t take him away!”
She continued to cry as she watched them handcuff her partner, her body starting to feel heavy and unresponsive. He was still looking at her, peering out from his wavy brown fringe that had flopped over his brow during the struggle. Oh how she desperately wanted to help him, but they both knew she couldn’t do anything.
“Michael...”
He blinked at her once, attempting to soothe her. He didn’t blame her.
“I’ll come for you Michael.”
When they dragged him away, she felt herself falling, the weight of her body dragging her down as she silently screamed into the void.
***
With a scream, Laurie jerked awake, her body feeling cold and she desperately struggled against an unknown force holding her down. Suddenly, she felt a hand run through her hair and a quiet humming reached her ears, so she stopped and felt a familiar warmth wrap around her. It was just a dream. Michael’s still here and safe. She held him tightly with a sob, tears pricking at the corner of her eyes as she recalled the phantom feelings of fear and helplessness from her nightmare. It had all seemed so real.
“Fuck, I... I thought I’d lost you,” Laurie mumbled into his chest. “I thought that...”
She couldn’t finish her sentence, the words stopped by the lump forming in her throat. Michael simply held her in his arms, his hands soothingly caressing her back and letting her cry. She focused on the slow rise and fall of his chest, matching her breathing to his in an attempt to calm down. The nightmare may have been vivid, but Laurie really was awake this time and she could feel Michael embracing her, comfortingly tangible.
“Okay, I... I’m getting there,” she told him.
She felt him nod and she smiled, taking a deep breath and inhaling as much of his scent as she could. Once the sobs racking her body left, she eased herself up on her arms so she could meet Michael’s gaze. Her smile broadened when she saw his handsome face and she shifted to cup his cheek with one hand. He mirrored the gesture and rubbed her tears away with his thumb, his dark eyes locked on hers asking a silent question.
“Just a nightmare,” she explained. “You ever get them?”
Michael nodded.
“Then you know how terrifying they can be. How real.”
Another nod, but he kept his questioning gaze holding hers.
“You want me to tell you about it?”
He hummed affirmatively.
She bit her lower lip as she mentally prepared herself to recall the events of her dream.
“Well, it started as one of those dreams where you think you’ve woken up,” Laurie began, her thumb idly stroking the corner of his mouth. “But then... then the sheriff and your psychiatrist barged in and wanted to take you away. I tried to stop them, but they restrained me and... and you attacked them because they hurt me, only it didn’t matter. They drugged you and handcuffed you, then I... I woke up.”
She closed her eyes then, mortified as fresh tears rolled down her cheeks. It was only a dream, Michael hadn’t been taken away; yet she couldn’t help but cry. Even when he leaned into her and kissed her forehead, letting her know nothing had happened to him, she still felt the ache of losing him.
“I’m s-sorry,” she muttered. “It was just so real. I... I think I’m afraid that, even with what Nurse Chambers said yesterday, they’ll lock you up in the sanitarium again.”
Michael sighed deeply and nodded his head, his arms tightening around her.
“You worry about that too?” she wasn’t surprised. “I suppose they’re not the most trustworthy bunch, even if that nurse seemed sincere. You... you mean the world to me, Michael. I know this has all been so sudden, but I don’t want to lose you.”
Feeling his thumb and forefinger under her chin, Laurie opened her eyes and immediately focused on his, drawn into his pitch black gaze. He didn’t want to lose her either, that was the feeling she got from him. Their relationship had blossomed so quickly, yet it was as though they’d known each other for years with the trust and intimacy that bound them together. Laurie always found the idea of ‘The One’ to be merely fantasy, only real in the minds of hopeless romantics or some sappy love story; but since meeting Michael Myers, she reconsidered.
“Do you think you’ll ever get better?” she asked him, not really expecting a response. “Do you even want to?”
The man tilted his head, his face as expressionless as ever while he considered her. Eventually he shrugged, but there was hesitation in the gesture that hinted to a more complicated answer than ‘I don’t know’.
“Do you think it’s possible?”
Again, he shrugged.
“I like to think so,” Laurie gave him a small smile and stroked his cheek. “I’m sure it was easy to believe what people tell you is true – that you’re a monster, that there’s nothing left. But if you believe me instead, maybe... well, I don’t know.”
Michael hummed, content with hearing her speak whether her words sunk in or not. Sighing, she leaned in and kissed him, the warmth of his lips against hers comforting and the memory of her nightmare began to fade. For a moment, it was possible to pretend that they could be a normal couple, just like Annie and Paul or Lynda and Bob. That they could simply be Laurie and Michael and go on dates to coffee shops, hold hands on long walks and secretly kiss in the movie theatre. And he could take me to the Homecoming dance.
Smiling, Laurie pulled away from Michael’s lips as an idea came to mind. “Hey, come here for a minute.”
Untangling herself from the duvet and her lover’s embrace, she got out of bed and walked over to the radio on her desk, fiddling with the knobs until she found an appropriate station. They would probably play more upbeat music for Homecoming, but Laurie wanted something romantic they could slow-dance to.
“Come on Michael,” she said with a chuckle, holding her arms out to him.
He tilted his head curiously, his impassive face giving nothing away, but he slid out of the bed and approached her none the less. Laurie smirked when he stood in front of her, considering her for a moment before leaning in to kiss her.
“Hey, in a moment!”
She playfully pushed his face away before taking his hands and placing them on her hips. Reaching up, she coaxed him into leaning down a little so she could wind her arms around his neck and she stepped closer so their fronts were pressed together.
“Now, just kinda sway to the music, okay?”
Michael glanced at the radio briefly before returning his focus to Laurie, his fingers flexing on her hips as she moved slowly to the rhythm. He tried to match her, unsure at first but he eventually followed her lead. At least their ‘dancing’ was slow enough to hide their awkwardness. Laurie smiled up at him, the music fading into the background while she focused solely on Michael.
“That’s it, you’ve got it,” she complemented him.
He hummed contentedly, the corner of his lips twitching in an almost-smile.
“I... I know we can’t go to the Homecoming dance together,” Laurie murmured, leaning in to nuzzle under his chin. “But this is close enough... maybe even better. I don’t like crowds and, well, I already know how you feel about them!”
He grunted in agreement and leaned down to kiss the top of her head.
“Besides, just the two of us is perfect, right?”
Beaming, Laurie looked up into Michael’s eyes, dark grey meeting hazel-green. With a soft sigh, Michael gently nuzzled her cheek before she drew him into a tender kiss, their bodies still swaying slowly to the music.
Perhaps, so long as they had each other, everything would be alright after all.