Hey guys! This is a short Blitzstone piece, I hope you like it. Hearth is a personal favorite of mine so this is his POV. Please review, and enjoy!
I woke up, and, as always, was greeted with silence. The nothingness that buzzed in my ears since birth blanketed me, making it even harder to wake fully. It was peaceful, in a way. I figured that not being able to hear the things around me was life's personal way of giving me a time out, allowing me to gain perspective. The problem was that the time out was always there, constant.
Sometimes it felt like I never got to be in the game at all.
Ignoring these thoughts, I got out of bed groggily, wiping the sleep out of my eyes and heading for the shower. Before I could go in, the door of my room opened a little. Blitzen had installed a lock that required a punch-code number (he made sure it was all black, and administered a lengthy explanation before installing that if he was accessorizing, it might as well match my "style"). I couldn't hear knocking, and the punch-code was designed to help visitors come and go as they pleased, but only certain people knew the password.
Or rather, one certain dwarf.
Mornin', Blitz signed, making his way over to where I was standing. Breakfast orders?, He asked. I signed that I wanted toast and butter, and nothing else. Plain and simple.
Okay, he gestured, and hesitated for just a second before turning to leave. Have fun in the shower. Once he realized what he had said, he blushed furiously.
That distracted me from what I was doing, if only for a fraction of a second.
Bye, he signed quickly and sloppy, before scrambling out of the room. I felt a pang in my chest, though I wasn't sure why, and the corners of my mouth turned up. I headed for the shower, my heart thumping a little louder than normal in anticipation for breakfast.
When I descended the stairwell, I surveyed the Chase Space dining room. My eyebrows furrowed with worry, at first seeing no one, but relief swelled inside me when I realized why there was no one present. In the next room I spotted Blitz, in a very fashionable outfit I didn't notice before, handing out breakfast in bed to the homeless youth among us. I stood, watching him for a second, before going over to help. I took in the way he healed others, making the children smile and laugh, maybe for the first time in years. Usually I'd be helping him this early in the morning, smiling alongside him and communicating with the kids that have picked up on ASL since their stay here. Or just smiling alongside them, no communication needed. A smile is universal.
As I headed down the rest of the stairs, I felt that pang in my chest again. I wanted to help people who are in need of healing. And though I wouldn't admit it, just once, I'd like to be the one who is healed.
And it was evident by the scene in front of me that I knew someone perfect for that job.
I walked over to where Blitz was holding hands with a little boy, who looked about nine and was very visibly distressed. His eyes were red and puffy, like he had just been crying. He embraced Blitzen and squeezed tightly before letting go. Something stirred within me, something like...jealousy?
Blitz turned towards me and a grin broke out on his face. "I have your toast," he said, talking slightly slower so I could read his lips. "Though I don't understand why you wouldn't want to have eggs, or fruit, or anything relatively nutritious," he added.
Toast is nutritious, I signed.
In what world? Blitzen retorted.
Alfheim. I shrugged, and was content to see Blitzen smiling at my comment.
"Come on," he spoke aloud this time, allowing me to read his lips. "I'll eat with you."
I could feel the tension in the air at breakfast, though since the dining room was empty, it was just Blitzen and me. Blitz kept on tapping his knee, and his anxiety was so obvious I had a compelling urge to soothe his nerves, although part of my suspicions were that they had something to do with me.
Tap, tap, tap. (I couldn't hear it, of course, but it can't do one any harm to imagine)
At last, when I couldn't take it anymore, I put my hand on his knee. To stop the tapping, of course.
And maybe just a little bit because I wanted to put my hand on his knee.
Blitzen glanced at my hand, then back to my face, seemingly processing the gesture in seconds, analyzing what I had meant by it. He looked like he was considering what to do next. I sat, motionless, something I have a lot of experience in.
At last, after what seemed like hours of us sitting in silence, I removed my hand from his knee.
It felt like something had been taken away from me.
I wanted it back.
But I waited to see what he would do. I sat staring at him, soaking in the way his nose scrunched when he was concerned, the way his hands seemed to fiddle around, as if looking to invent the newest edition of the expand-o-duck. His sense of fashion continued to amaze me, though I'd never consider such a vibrant look for myself. He kept his eyes trained on the spot where my hand had been two seconds ago.
And then finally, finally, his hands stopped fiddling, and he reached them up to place them around my waist. Finally, his eyes met my own, and in that one second he conveyed a million different words, more than ever possible with lip reading or even ASL.
I leaned in and kissed him.
He embraced me, and even though it didn't last more than a minute, it felt as if I were one part of two, as if I belonged to someone other than myself, someone that I loved. I had found a home, right there in my dwarf, in my best friend.
Maybe it wouldn't fix everything, but in that one moment, I was healed.
He had managed to heal me.
