Even when asleep, Penny was more astute and had more common sense than the ordinary person did. Unknown to Johnny, there truly was a duality within him as well. There was the person whom everyone saw on the outside, the daring, brutally honest boy that took no shit from anyone, spoke his mind whenever possible and completely disregarded any explanation that seemed far too fantastical to be proven by modern science. And then there was that scared, broken little boy with the power to turn the lights off on anyone's supernatural abilities.
It was this other side of him that had been kicked into high gear in an effort to cope with the recent stress he had been put under. Watching your cousin and best friend go through chemo and be stripped of whatever childhood she had left coupled with the impending fatherhood that was looming just over the horizon had Johnny ducking for cover. He hadn't realized just how hard he took things and that he was virtually incapable of handling situations beyond his control. So, he curled up into himself and let out the power he had no idea was inside of him.
"I'm here," he replied. He pulled up a chair and scooted closer to her. His hand fumbled around the covers and finally found hers, giving it a firm grip. "I'm here, Pen. How do you feel?" She was the only one who could see him. She had always been the one to see him better than anyone. Even in her state, she must have realized which of the two Johnny's was talking to her at the moment.