A/N: Quick note- yes, I know cuddling with strangers is a real thing, and yes I know the relationship between client and patient is supposed to be strictly business. So if you're interested in snuggling with someone, don't expect to live out any crazy fantasies :p

X

Avery was nervous.

He'd never done well in doctor's offices, and the lobby of "Comfort & Hugs" was too minuscule, too sterile, too quiet. There wasn't much to look at, a plant here, a chair there, a stack of magazines over there. The only sound consisted of breathing and the receptionist filing paperwork. He was pretty much in the middle of nowhere. The clinic was built on the outskirts of a dense forest, the deer and squirrels nothing more than furry neighbors. The place was designed to help poor saps like himself, but at the moment it was doing a better job of excluding him from the human race.

"Mom, are you sure this is going to work?"

Felicia Mercer glanced down into her son's shielded eyes. There was no smile there, only a cold detachment. "It's going to have to. I can't spend every night at your bedside." Her blunt words caused Avery to look away, embarrassed and hoping the lady behind the fogged glass didn't hear. His mother could be a bit more compassionate… it wasn't like it was his fault.

"Avery Mercer?" The receptionist peered out at him, her large frames slipping to the end of her thin nose. Thankfully she was smiling, a luxury Avery missed. "Are you ready to meet your buddy?"

The whole thing sounded ridiculously absurd, yet it wouldn't be the dumbest thing he'd ever done… Sighing, Avery stood and went to the door the receptionist indicated with a nod of her head. His mother stayed seated.

"Mrs. Mercer."

Avery paused and looked back to see the lady eyeballing his mother, who busily thumbed through a beauty magazine, her legs primly crossed.

Felicia raised haggard eyes. "Yes?"

"We require that children under sixteen be accompanied by a parent when they meet-"

"I'm seventeen," Avery interrupted sheepishly. As much as it embarrassed him, he couldn't fault her. He'd been small his entire life, his growth spurts practically non-existent. Being 5'6, skinny and baby-faced, it meant that no one could correctly guess his age, and he fancied that when he turned fifty, he'd look like he was in his twenties.

Sometimes it proved useful but most of the time it just made him easy prey for the older boys in school. At first his parents wondered if the bullying had to do with his chronic nightmares, but Avery assured them that that wasn't the case. His dreams were filled with worse things than spitballs and wedgies, that was for damn sure.

"Alright," the receptionist sighed after a lengthy staring session, "go through there, take a right and it's the very last door on the left."

He followed her directions, wringing his hands the whole while. It was a long and narrow hallway, just as silent as the waiting room, which did not help at all with his anxiety. Along the way were numerous doors with numbered plaques, and on more than a few, hangers were placed over the knobs, labelled simply as Occupied. Every space of the walls were lined with paintings of serene seas and lush forests, along with posters praising the practice of cuddling with complete strangers. Lists detailing health benefits and social improvement were on each one, and as though to reinforce that, people with plastic smiles were first and foremost, fake quotes exclaiming how their life had changed for the better.

Despite its silliness, Avery sincerely hoped he could benefit. He couldn't count the number of psychiatrists he'd been to or the psychic readings. Hypnosis had no effect and drugs only amplified his dreams till they felt real and tangible. Through trial and error, the only thing that seemed to work was physical contact. Having someone near, even if all they did was hold his hand, alleviated the clawing of monsters and abstract torture. But his mother was getting tired of being the catalyst, his father off on a overseas business trip. Her lack of sleep affected her temper, and if she wasn't calm, then he might as well be gripping tight to ice cold steel.

This place was his last hope.

Near the end of the hall, just a door away from where he was supposed to be, Avery swore he heard something. The whole walk down had been uneventful. Like a moth to a flame, he veered off course - or as much as he could in the teeny tiny hall.

The sound was muffled by the solid architecture, and if he wanted to have an inkling of what it was, he would have to stick his ear against the door. Just thinking about it, he knew it was a wrong thing to do. To listen in would be a breach of privacy; he wouldn't want some strange kid listening in on his session.

Yet… the likelihood of being caught was zero to none.

Giving in to curiosity, he carefully nudged the side of his face against the painted white wood. Inside, the sound of two people making love reverberated back into his innocent eardrums. Avery's face immediately turned bright red. He could've sworn he saw in the brochure that sexual endeavors weren't allowed in the clinic, but those two seemed to be ignoring the rule, enthusiastically too, by the sounds of things.

He hadn't given it much thought, but Avery wondered if he would get a woman or a man. He wouldn't mind either way, as long as it worked, yet hearing the guy inside, whether he was the patient or the buddy, made him secretly hope he'd get paired with a girl. Even if nothing happened between them, the idea of wrapping his arms about a soft waist definitely pleased him.

Entranced with his musings, Avery didn't hear the door behind him open.

"Oh don't tell me," a girl's voice groused, "those two are at it again?"

Avery spun around, his hands wringing hard enough to bruise. "Oh, um, I didn't mean to um…"

The girl, looking to be in her late twenties, waved an unworried hand. She was dressed in a nurse's scrubs, her dark blonde curls done up in a messy bun. She wasn't really his type, but beggars couldn't be choosers. "I'll page a doctor to separate them. Come in." She stood back and waited for him to shuffle inside.

This new room, though as small and as narrow as everything else, was perfectly cozy. It had rough tan carpet and a huge glass window facing out into the surrounding woods, the see-through curtains drawn back to allow fading sunlight to dust the floor. Sliding closet doors stood on the opposite side of the entrance, with a cubicle bathroom next to it. The walls were colored a serene blue, one large poster taking up significant space detailing rules and procedure.

The most important thing was the full-sized bed parked in the middle of it all. It was a single mattress situated on old fashioned metal stands, outfitted with simple white sheets and a scratchy looking duvet. Stiff pillows stuffed into cotton cases lined the top, three in all, perfectly aligned as though a robot had dressed it down. Thinking back to what he had just heard, Avery sucked in a breath, suddenly nervous about the whole ordeal. He wouldn't call the clenching in his gut the start of a panic attack, but he knew he was seconds away from turning to the nurse and telling her that he changed his mind and would rather get a dog to cuddle instead. He tried to will away the apprehension, but it was slow coming.

"Avery?"

"Y-yes?" he squeaked out.

The nurse appeared in his peripherals, concerned. "Are you all right? I have to ask you a few questions first, but if you'd like me to bring out your buddy to calm you down, I can do that."

Her words caused him to look at her. "You're n-not my-?"

"No." She glanced down a clipboard, mouth screwing to the side as she scanned the list of names. "You've been assigned to Mr. Montgomery."

"Mr.?"

"We'd normally assign opposite sexes, but we're short staffed on women." Taking note of the way Avery nibbled on his lips, she smiled warmly, her voice turning tender and kind. "I understand if you have reservations, and if you would rather reschedule until one is available we can do that. I assure you, Mr. Montgomery always takes good care of the patients, and…" Another scan of the list. "He's only a year older than you."

The news allowed him to breathe again. He never had much luck when it came to getting along with boys his own age, but he would rather have someone like that than an old man or possible pervert. Maybe, if he tried hard enough, he could envision the guy as a brother, someone acting on sibling love and support to ease his nightmares. The tension rolled off him in waves.

"He's actually a volunteer," the nurse continued, "but once he finishes high school and takes some nursing classes, I'm sure he'll find a career here."

Avery nodded absently, eyes drifting back to the bed. After a moment of hesitation, he went to it and sat down to get a feel for it. It was as stiff as a board.

"Are you okay for me to ask some general questions?"

"I'm okay."

"Good. Shots up to date?"

"Yes, ma'am."

She smiled an inch at the form of address. "Any allergies or medications we should be aware of? Phobias?"

"Don't think so…"

It took roughly five minutes before the list was satisfied. Avery only hoped the buddies were this heavily scrutinized as well, and even more so.

The nurse stuck her pen behind an ear, her expression, as always, warm and placid. "Well, I hope everything works out for you, Avery. I'm sure you'll be pleased with Mr. Montgomery." After he mumbled his thanks, she turned to the door, one hand outreached towards it. "I'll go get him now; sit tight."

Once she was out of the room, Avery let out a massive sigh and fell all the way back to the bed.

His nerves dissipated now that he was alone, and with a clearer head he became embarrassed that he had reacted that way. Honestly, he had no idea why. He knew what he had signed himself up for, but for some reason he just… became afraid. For the next couple weeks, or however long it lasted (either his nightmares or their funds), this was his room now. He could go home, but at night, this was his place. His and his buddy's. They'd talk, share a bathroom, a closet, and sleep in the same bed. His skin tingled thinking about it.

In a short few hours, he and some stranger would snuggle up to one another, under the same sheets, possibly even share the same cardboard pillow. Another man's arms would be enveloping him, holding him tight until their bodies flushed together, waiting to catch him when his dreams took a hold. He'd be able to hear his heartbeat, feel his breath on the back of his neck, be intimately aware of muscles constricting about his smaller body. The whole thing screamed semi erotic, so he could understand the temptation.

But a relationship to that degree would never happen, Avery assured adamantly. He'd never so much as looked at another male with thoughts of lust, and he was sure his buddy was probably the same way. Everything would work out fine.

Just then, the door to his room clicked open. Avery picked himself up onto his elbows to say hello, only to freeze, his mouth partway open. Opposite him, dressed in similar scrubs like the nurse, Tyler "Rex" Montgomery stared back in much the same way, though his expression bordered on amusement, not in blood-curling horror. Once the initial shock passed, Rex grinned and slipped an Occupied sign over the doorknob, his handsome face spelling out 'doom' for poor little Avery.

"Oh, hey shrimpy," he purred, shutting them in, "fancy seeing you here."