This story is for Steelcode. A very good friend who had a terrible accident and is recovering now. No flames please.
Jocu was leaning against the wall after he had just finished a swim with his other friends. He wanted to visit every one of his friends, especially the ones that were not always able to hang with him and his brothers.
"Steel…it's been a long time since I've seen him. Wonder how he's doing? Especially since we had that fun with berry batter a few months back," he chuckled. Jocu then closed his eyes and teleported to his friend's apartment.
If only he was prepared for what he saw.
Jocu's eyes widened as he looked around the apartment. It was in shambles! There were papers everywhere and furniture that was turned upside down.
"Steel! Steel where are you?!" Jocu said alarmed, now getting down on all fours and searching the room for his scent.
No response.
"Steel come now! Where are you?!" Jocu said, now getting even more concerned until he finally got his scent. Relieved, he went into the bedroom and saw Steel sprawled across his bed face down! Jocu let out an audible gasp and pounced on the bed and nudged him.
"Who's there?" came a distraught whisper.
"Steel? Steel it's me…" Jocu whispered, now laying down next to him and nudging his friend with his nose.
"J-Jocu?" came the questioning response.
"Yes…" Jocu said, now confused. But at that moment, Steel's eyes shot open and he buried himself under the covers!
"NO! NO YOU CAN'T SEE ME LIKE THIS!" Steel said, tears coming to his eyes.
"Woah woah woah! Whatever is the matter?! Steel come here!" Jocu ordered gently, now trying to grab the panicking young man. But Steel managed to bury himself under the covers and he began to sob.
"No! I don't wanna talk!" Steel said, tears streaming down his face as he buried himself in the pillows and the covers.
"Now now…come out of there! It can't be that bad," Jocu said, now trying to coax him out. But he glanced around the room briefly and noticed the broken window, turned over furniture, torn papers, and broken electronics.
"It is Jocu…" came the sad response. "I won't be able to do anything with you all anymore."
"What is it?! Tell me!" Jocu said, now tugging at the sheets. "Come out of there!"
"Jocu no!"
"Tell me!" Jocu demanded.
"Jocu I can't walk anymore!" Steel shouted out, but then bursting out in a sob! Jocu paused for a moment and sat back in complete shock! He then snapped his fingers and made the covers disappear! Steel sat up in shock, now seeing the sheets were gone.
"Jocu! Wha-HMMMMM!" Steel said as Jocu placed one hand on his mouth. To his surprise, Jocu only had a gentle and calm expression. Jocu pulled him to him and hugged him to his chest.
"Shhh. You've been through enough," Jocu said, now looking down and seeing Steel's bandaged up legs. Jocu gently touched them and Steel looked away sadly. "Hey now…look at me."
"I can't. Just go and find another friend. One that can do stuff with you all!" Steel said, now looking away.
"What do you mean?!" Jocu said, now making him look at him in the eye as he gently grabbed his chin. His hug became stronger as he embraced the young man more.
"I'm gonna be replaced! I know it!" Steel blurted out. "No one wants to be around someone who can't walk!"
"What in the realm do you mean by that?! That is a complete lie!" Jocu said sternly, now looking at Steel with widened eyes. Steel then grabbed a paper and held it up. It was a poem he wrote and he began to read.
"My poem is called…Replaced." He whispered, making Jocu shift uncomfortably.
"I witnessed something the other day, That made me stare in awe.
Two good friends til the end of time. Now ice that had to thaw.
One had found another friend, One they claimed they liked best.
They abandoned their first friend like trash, And dumped them like the rest.
Replacement is such a terrible word, One that breaks the heart.
A friendship once as strong as stone, Now broken like ancient art.
The friend claimed their newest one, Had more to offer them.
Why settle for an older friend, When the newer one is the gem.
The old best friend tried to join, The now group of three.
But they were slowly pushed away and out, They were now forced to flee.
There was no room for an older friend, The newer one was in.
There was nothing left for them to do but let time settle in.
Years had passed and the other friend realized their strong mistake.
They searched high and low for he friend they refused to take.
But as they searched and spoke around, Their heart had lost its song.
For the friend they had replaced before was now dead and gone.
They ran to the very grave where their former friend was laid.
There was no fixing the mistake now, The price was now paid.
But as the tears ceased to flow, There was a box by the stone.
A note had patiently been inside, abandoned and alone.
As the friend opened the note, They screamed to the sky.
This was a note from their abandoned friend, But now under the ground they lie.
"To you I leave this special note, Because now I must go.
"I am sorry I must say goodbye, But there is something you must know.
"It hurt me to my very core, When I was replaced.
"I wanted to be your friend forever, With you and run this race.
"But you chose another friend instead, One you said better than I.
"I forgive you for all the hurt and pain, And the tears you brought to my eyes.
"Goodbye my friend, it is time that I bid you now adeiu"
"Please be careful when you replace, You hurt others and also….you.
The guilty friend screamed long and hard, As they fled from that place
Guilt and horror filling them, The memories of the replaced.
And after he was done, Jocu grabbed him even more and pinned him down under him. That made Steel yelped as the large red titan gave him no room to move.
"Now you listen to me. That story has absolutely NOTHING to do with what we are going to do with you," Jocu said sternly. "You will NEVER be replaced like that!"
"But I just saw something like that the other day! I mean…I saw two friends…" Steel started.
"But that's just it! That was them! Not you! You are different Steel! And we never want you to feel like what happened in that poem is what will happen to you," Jocu said. But Steel felt somewhat unsure. Jocu wiggled his eyebrows as the young man smiled a bit but tried to be stoic again.
"Jocu let me up," Steel said pleadingly, now gently pushing on his chest.
"No. No, I have no intention of letting you go at all. I won't let you go through this alone," Jocu said.
"And none of us will," a deep voice replied calmly. Steel looked to his left and his eyes widened as Lauhin was looking at him with very concerned eyes. Jocu then sat up, but still made sure that Steel couldn't go anywhere.
"I told them everything through our telepathy." Jocu said, now closing Steel's open jaw.
"We are all here for you Steel and we will never let you go," Lauhin cooed, now getting on the bed too.
"Why would be abandon you for something like this?" Bliss said, now kissing Steel's head.
"You are still you!" Amio said, now gently licking his face.
"And you are even stronger because you will be able to overcome this," Jovi said, now touching his arm.
"We will still bring you to the realm and you will still come with me on our little excursions," Jocu said, now winking. Steel chuckled because he remembered the berry batter adventure a while ago.
"You are never going to be alone through this; you are still considered family," Vivo replied.
"Now get that confidence up and let's turn that smile upside down," Jape grinned, now hiking his rear up and waving his tail casually.
"You're going to be alright Steel…you have us," Blithe grinned, now sitting next to him.
"And you always will," Jest replied, now using his magic to make the bed bigger and bigger. Soon everyone got on it and piled around in a circle around Steel.
"Guys, I know what you're trying to do but I'm feeling just a bit down right now," Steel said.
"Listen to me…it's going to take time for you to adjust," Lauhin said gently. "But you are still with us Steel! That is what is most important!"
"B-But…" Steel started.
"No buts!" Lauhin said sternly, now gently taking the young man's face. Steel paused as he saw the hurt in Lauhin's eyes. "Do you understand how hard it would be for me to send your soul to the final realm?! Steel…we are just happy you are still with us." And with that he saw Lauhin look at him with an even sadder expression as he ran a hand through Steel's hair. "You are important to us and you will never be replaced! You mean a lot to us," Lauhin said, now nuzzling him with his nose.
"Now how about we have a little fun," Jocu smiled, now getting a mischievous look and looking at his brothers, father, and mother.
Steel braced himself for relentless tickling, but to his shock, the tickle monsters cuddled up with Steel.
Jocu and his family gathered around Steel with hugs, cuddles and snuggles. Steel giggled when their cuddling tickled him. His giggles made the family more impish. Soon, they began playfully, but gently tickling him.
Queen Bliss tickled Steel under the chin with her tail. "Coochy, coochy, coo!"
Jocu used his tails to tickle Steel's ears. "Tickle, tickle, tickle!"
"Hahahahahahahahahahaha!" Steel giggled more and more.
Vivo buried his furry face into Steel's stomach.
"AHAHAHAHAHA! That really tickles!" Steel burst out with laughter.
"Okay, little bro." Jocu picked Amio up. "Let's not get crazy."
"Sorry." Amio said sheepishly.
The family resumed to cuddling and snuggling with Steel in a puppy pile sleepover. The boy felt so happy, how could he possibly feel depressed with all these wonderful people?
"Steel, no matter what happens, we'll never give up on you. We'll always believe in you as you believe in us." said Jocu. He wiped away a tear of happiness from Steel's face.
"Thank you." Steel sniffled. "Thank you all so much."
"Just relax, Steel. Let's have our snuggle time and enjoy the evening." Jocu said.
All the monsters purred and cooed as they cuddled with Steel. He felt his joy return at last. His eyes drooped as he fell into peaceful slumber.
Steel felt truly blessed as he was finally at peace. From now on, he'll keep moving forward no matter what happens to him.
He was looking forward to tomorrow and many more days to come. Because he knew the people he loved and loved him back will be always be there for him.
guestsurprise: You have always been wonderful and supportive. Do not let this beat you. You are stronger than you know. Do not let your faith fail you; God understands and will see you through. I remember when I first met you through the comments and you were always so kind. I appreciate your sweet and genuine thoughts for others and your support through everything. It is always a pleasure to do your requests and to incorporate your ideas. We will all be here when you need us! Keep being the fantastic Steelcode that you are! I understand that words sometimes feel empty, but just know that we all care and we are here!
Redbat132: To Steel. One of my best online Fan Fiction friends. Hard to believe that it's nearly been a year since we communicated with each other. I remember the first time we met was when you commented in 'Hypno-Stare' saying 'UH OH! COUNT BENCULA!" that made me laugh. XD From there, who knew that it came from chatting to collaborating our own tales involving our own characters? Meeting you was the best thing that ever happened to both of us. For that, I want to thank you. I am proud to call you my co-writing partner and friend. And even though things get you down, I just want you to know that I'll always be here to listen and chat in helping you.
newbienovelistRD: Steel, you've always been such a great support to me as well as all my other friends. I know what happened to you is hard, but you must be thankful that you're still here on this Earth being the wonderful, incredible person you are today. Hardships are a part of life and everyone, no matter who or what they are go through them. They say when it comes to life and you don't get a few bruises and scrapes along the way, you're not living.Tragic things happen, and do alarmingly and unexpectedly. But overcoming them and becoming greater than what you've suffered is true strength. Have faith and be strong, Steel. Not just for us, but for yourself.
We love you, Steelcode! God bless you always! :)