A/N: Okay, everyone! This is the final chapter of 'Afraid'! Thank you, all of you, for your kindhearted reviews, Favorites, and Alerts, as they have encouraged me to finish this story! I pray you are satisfied with this ending- I stayed up late last night finishing it, and spent a good amount of my afternoon today (and some of last night) editing it (though it was fun)! Remember, this was written BEFORE we found out Sarah didn't just leave Jessi, so if you're confused about some of the things being said or referenced, be reminded of that fact! Rock on!

"Jessi! Jessi!" That last scream of her name finally broke through.

Jessi bolted straight into a sitting position, gasping for air and utterly soaked in sweat. Frantically, she looked to her right, responding to the noise of a second erratically beating heart in the room besides her own: Kyle.

She immediately propelled herself at him, holding him in a death grip for all it was worth. Even then, her breathing was still irregular, quick and cut short, her eyes wide as she clutched to his nightshirt with everything she had.

The second she'd launched herself into his arms, Kyle had grasped her tightly, left hand collecting the dark locks close to her shoulder as his arm stretched across her shoulder blades and his right arm wrapped securely around her middle.

As he held her, she bawling uncontrollably against him, he couldn't help but wonder if this was what he had sensed in her earlier, this build of crippling fear and exhaustion. It brought tears to his eyes to have her in so much pain, for their connection almost allowed him to feel it; there was a darkness there, one so deep and alluring he was scared he wouldn't get out if he were to dive inside.

He mentally berated himself; why hadn't he just pushed her into telling him earlier, instead of deciding to let her come to him when she was ready? He hadn't wanted to pressure her, but now, he wished he'd have done so until she'd been compelled to put up her force field.

She abruptly gasped for air and let out a choked sob immediately after, gripping his shirt to the point of tearing once again. He rubbed her back and buried his face in her short, curly hair, taking in each and every part of her, praying he could take her pain away as he had for so many others.

However, this was emotional pain, severely intense emotional pain, and he couldn't heal that. Healing Andy had also lifted her spirits, but that didn't apply here; nothing from his past experiences played a role in this moment.

The only thing that mattered to him at all, now, was Jessi.

He spoke softly at first, so as not to frighten her.

"Jessi?" She shivered as his voice uttered her name so carefully, delicately. He was using that harmonious, beautiful tone he only used with her. She wasn't sure he was aware of her realization, but whether he comprehended it or not, everything about him involved her in some way.

She couldn't talk about it yet, not yet. It was too soon. She'd just been woken from the horror of it all; there was no way anyone would make her relive it, not even Kyle. Anyway...he had been there, too...

She jumped violently when a hand stroked the side of her head, and it suddenly dawned on her that Kyle had, at some time, gently disentangled himself from her and was currently looking at her with burning eyes.

She closed her slightly open mouth and bit her quivering lower lip as those eyes stared at her with such intensity.

She couldn't break on him like that again.

Sure, she wanted nothing more than to break for all she was worth, as she had wanted to do since Sarah, Taylor, and Emily, but…she told herself she wanted to be alone when that happened: Totally, completely alone. No one could see her like that, so vulnerable, so weak, so in the open as if she were a target. Never again would she break...she was too afraid.

"What can I do to help you? I know you don't want to talk about it now, and I understand that, but I can't take seeing you this broken. I've helped you through a lot, Jessi, but never something this painful. How long have you been keeping all of this inside?"

She realized then he wasn't just talking about her nightmare; he was talking about her heart as well. Her past three guardians had broken her heart, one after the other, and she hadn't been given room to grieve between moving from one life and identity to the next.

It was different here with the Tragers. She'd been given the proper time to breathe, a permanent identity, a family, friends, a home…a life of love. Nevertheless, she'd known her breaking point was going to hit its peak eventually, but she swore it would not happen at this point in time. Not with him here; if he saw her like that…he'd never look at her the same way again.

She swallowed her tears, her eyes not able to be diverted from his for anything in the world, and she closed her eyes for a brief second as she answered him.

"Have you ever wondered what it's like to be a small child, Kyle? One who's just woken up from a bad dream to be held by their older brother, sister, or parent?" Kyle narrowed his eyes at her curiously.

"What are you talking about? Are you sure you're okay?" She looked down and smiled wryly, wiping the last traces of tears from her face before lifting it.

"What you just did for me now…have you ever wondered how it feels to be normal?"

She had startled him with the inquiry, as was evident from the understanding shock written on his face. Eagerly, she awaited his answer: this question had taken her a long while to develop as a way of avoiding her heart.

Still staring at her inquisitively, his eyes sparkled.

"Of course. I've wondered what it's like since the day I understood what I could do and who I really was. What does this have to do with why you were screaming, Jessi?" He was seeing through her supposed 'point', that was obvious. Her shoulders nearly slumped as she realized this, but she kept herself in check. She'd just have to try a different tactic.

"Do you ever wonder if it's better than this? Better than everything we've ever survived and known?"

"Yes…but I also understand I wouldn't have met Nicole or the rest of my family if Foss hadn't broken me out of Zzyzx. Even though I sometimes wish things were different, I would never ask for anything to change. If the way things worked out had been altered, even slightly, I have a feeling I never would have met Adam, Sarah, Foss, or…you, Jessi. I would never have known you if I hadn't been…"

"I wouldn't be here either. So, you're saying…you'd miss me?" Kyle's eyes shone again, but Jessi swore it wasn't from the moon. Those were tears in Kyle's eyes; the boy was crying for her…

"Jessi, if you could even ask that…you have no idea how important you are to me. Do you remember when you almost died at the diner?"

Jessi nodded stiffly; she still recalled how warm his hand had been in hers when she'd regained consciousness for those few seconds. Kyle took her hand again as if to comfort her before continuing, and while she attentively listened, she zoned in on the heat she knew so well.

"I never told you, but when I talked to Nicole that night, I couldn't even finish when I thought of losing you. I couldn't breathe, Jessi. That's how much I need and would miss you."

Kyle gently squeezed her hand, effectively communicating his message without words this time, and Jessi grinned euphorically. To see her smile in such a way…

This was one of the moments Kyle felt the greatest need to save in his memory forever, one of the memoirs he swore he'd eternally cherish. The real way he'd hold onto it, though, was in what he did next.

He kissed her. He leaned in moderately quickly and somewhat cautiously placed his lips on hers, Jessi eagerly moving to meet them. As he brought his hands up to twine in her hair, the fervor intensified, continuing to do so even as their oxygen levels grew strained. Finally, when the necessity of breath became too great, they pulled away, haggardly breathing and gazing at each other.

There was utmost silence in the room, now, besides the sound of their breaths, and Kyle's hands gradually slid down from Jessi's hair to her face to her arms and back to holding her hand.

"Kyle…I-I can tell you now. About my dream."

Jessi's eyes darted about, her voice shook, and Kyle tightened his hold on her hand just a bit to stop her. Her grip tightened as well, and she swallowed the rising lump in her throat as tears began to gather.

"Jessi, I won't make you tell me, not tonight, tomorrow, or ever. Not unless you say with full confidence you're ready to talk. I would never want to make you uncomfortable," He peered into her eyes with burning strength, narrowing his own orbs just faintly to emphasize his subsequent point. "You know that."

The seventeen-year-old girl nodded to the implied question and then proceeded to sniff in once, blinking rapidly.

"I know that. I-I…I can't talk about it tonight. I'm sorry." She lowered her head, knowing she had changed her mind in the span of exactly 11.4 seconds.

"It's all right. I understand," He took his free hand and delicately pushed her chin up with his fingers, compelling her to look him in the eyes. That appendage then stroked her cheek affectionately, her eyes closing at the touch and his resonating a mixture of vast care and concern. "It'll be okay, Jessi, I promise. It will get better."

Jessi opened her eyes, which were swimming with tears, and grinned at him.

"When you say anything, I believe it. It's no different now, and so far, you haven't been wrong."

Kyle smiled grandly as well.

"I hope I continue to live up to that, especially where you're concerned." Beaming at one another so joyfully, they barely noticed a small, high-pitched beep from beside them. Turning their heads toward the noise, they realized it had come from Lori's clock on her dresser, which now read 3:07 A.M.

In that moment, Jessi comprehended how exhausted she honestly was, particularly with numerous sleep-deprived nights under her belt. Thus, she was not surprised when her eyes abruptly drooped extensively and a large yawn escaped her mouth every several seconds.

Kyle smiled gently, laughing almost inaudibly as he lay down to rest on one side of Jessi's bed, realizing how tired he himself was, though he knew it wasn't anywhere near the point of Jessi's fatigue. Jessi lay down beside him on the opposite side of the makeshift bed, silently giggling good-naturedly at his 'unheard' chuckling.

Strangely finding herself uncomfortable, she tried shifting position a few times, but couldn't assume a comfy arrangement. Finally, Kyle reached over and grasped her right hand, stopping her movements as she gazed at him from an upturned, questioningly blank face.

Understanding his tentative meaning at once, she carefully nodded and slowly crept the few inches between them to him, lowering herself onto his chest warily and gradually. Once there, she settled in quite nicely.

Kyle wrapped his strong arms around her stomach, she tenderly holding onto them just as securely, and they both rested. Their combined body heat was enough to keep them warm, and Kyle, against the many soft pillows and blankets, was asleep in seconds.

Jessi closed her tremendously drained eyes as well, knowing solely pleasant dreams lay ahead for her now, and was nearly to her longed-for destination when some last minute thoughts flitted by.

Through her fear, she had become fearful, which entailed contemplative, suspicious, and untrusting. She had been hurt so many times in the past, in so many ways that she figured the next person to offer a helping hand would do the same as all the others. She'd nearly let it overtake her, let it win.

Through her fear, she had been given a home, a family, friends, and a wonderful life in which no one would strive to hurt her as those prior had. A life in which a Mother doted on her, a sister was concerned for her, a brother was amazed by her, a Father was glad to have her, and a friend was there to love her.

Through her fear…the fear had been eliminated. The antidote for the fear plaguing her had been one she'd had to work to find, one through which she'd had to suffer many a trial to receive. She had discovered the way to channel it, subconsciously churning it out in increments in the form of dreadful nightmares. She had discovered, on her own, that the final curing element to her fear…was Kyle.

As she lay there in Kyle's arms, more than ready to obtain the peaceful sleep that had evaded her for so long, she was incredibly relieved to declare one last thing:

Jessi, Experiment 781228, wasn't afraid anymore.

A/N: There you have it! Now, before I go on, I want to apologize for updating this so late when I promised many of you it would be up soon (which was many weeks ago)! I feel so horrible about leaving you guys hanging like that (believe me, I know how that feels XC), so please forgive me! Oh, and if you could please check out my somewhat recently published Kyle XY story centering around Sarah and Adam's relationship, 'Long Ago', that would be really awesome! You're all amazing, and thanks for all of the tremendous support! ^_^

A/N: By the way, I've never written (nor experienced) a kissing scene in my life, so did I do all right? I know the majority of you probably have written one or so prior to reading this, so I'd appreciate your feedback! XD

A/N: If you happen to somewhat recognize some of the things Kyle and Jessi say, it's because I have altered some quotes from season two and three (yes, even ones from episodes that hadn't aired when this started), so be aware that--

Disclaimer: I do not own Kyle XY or anything affiliated, which includes these altered quotes. Thank you. If I had, I wouldn't have cancelled one of the few decent shows on this planet (meaning this one)!