“Otherwise, I’ll move on.”

“No!” he blurted out, reaching out to her. “Don’t!” His eyes were wide in terror, his whole body shook.

“Why not?” She demanded, really wanting to drive this point home. She wasn’t anyone’s punching bag. “You weren’t being very nice to me before, and you acted like you wanted me to go. I’m not going to stay just for you to be mean to.”

His arm dropped. He gripped the swing chains in white knuckled hands. “Please don’t leave me alone. I’ll be nice. Please don’t leave me.” Fear left him five years old again, shivering and whimpering. She felt her heart melt. Even knowing he was full grown lent her no defense against this helpless child.

She dropped her knees and put a hand on his shoulder. “Look at me.” His large eyes lifted to hers, rimmed with tears. “I’ll stay, but you have to promise you’ll do your very best to be welcoming.” She inwardly winced at her tone, meant for a child, then shrugged. If he was going to present himself as a child, she would treat him as one. “No one wants to stay where people are mean to them, after all.” He nodded. “If you need to sulk, or scream, or cry, or even just sit alone and think, just tell me, and I’ll step to one side and leave you alone for a bit.” He whimpered, grabbing her hand. “For a bit.” She emphasized. “I’ll still be here, just off to one side until you’re feeling friendly again.” She held his gaze, her face hard. He returned her look with a steady gaze, his small face determined.

Once she felt sure he had understood her, she smiled widely. “Also, we’re going to have fun. I don’t know what’s going on with you, and like I said, I don’t care that much. I do know, however, that fun can solve many ailments. Clearly, you need to have some fun, and some help to have that fun.”

His smile was sardonic. “That I do.” She grinned wolfishly back at him. She didn’t know what he meant by that, and she toyed momentarily with caring, before brushing it away.

“Alright then, Deal?” She stuck her free hand out, her eyes trained to his.

He reached out and grabbed her hand, shaking it. He was no longer a child. She stood up, dropping her hand from his shoulder. He followed her with his eyes, not letting go of her hand. “One more thing.” He demanded, meeting her eye. “I have just one request. If you’ll do it, I promise you the most fun you’ve ever had.”

She eyed him suspiciously but didn’t drop his hand. “What?”

“Stay with me until the end of my dream.” She opened her mouth to protest. “I don’t mean you need to stay when the dream ends. As soon as you sense the dream ending, go ahead, move on. What I’m asking is that until then, you stay. Deal?”