Chapter 2
The first thing that Ron noticed when woke was that…well…he was alive. Naked except for a thin paper-gown (which unfortunately did absolutely for his modesty), but alive no less. He tried to look down at his torso, but his neck was so stiff that it felt like his head was attached to his body by cardboard. He couldn't even muster the energy to feel relieved. He wiggled a finger, which he saw out of the corner of his eye. It appeared that his right arm was up in a sling while the rest of his body was out of his line of sight.
Sigh…
'What the heck happened? I was with dad…had to pee…uh…
Yellow...eyes?'
He glanced up in time to hear the door open and see Kim and Monique rush through the door.
"Kim? Mon...que…?"
Darkness…
/-\\\\\/-\\\\\/-\\\\\/-\\\\\/-\\\\\/-\\\\\/-\\\\\
"So doctor, do you know yet what it was that attacked him?" Kim's eyes were wide and glistening with unshed tears, not unnoticed by Monique or the nearby nurse, but both had enough tact to pretend not to notice.
"Sorry Miss Possible, but we've never seen a bite, or any wound for that matter, quite like Mr. Stoppable's here," the Doctor said calmly, trying to sooth the young woman's fears. "The bite resembles that of a wolf, however, the bite radius is far too large. But don't worry, he arrived in plenty of time and, with a few days rest and a touch of care, he'll be just fine."
The nurse subtly caught the doctor's attention.
"Excuse me Dr. Ferrin, but the Stoppable and the Possible families are both here."
"Oh dear…alright, I'll go talk to them. You may stay here, Miss Possible, if you would like. I must go speak with yours and Mr. Stoppable's parents."
He left the room, beckoning the nurse to follow him, and they both left, leaving the three teens alone.
Kim started numbly towards Ron's unconscious form, her eyes fixed on his chest as it slowly rose and fell with his steady breathing. Monique decided that she suddenly had to use the restroom…or something.
"I'll be back in a minute Kim. I gotta go…do that thing…" she said quickly, leaving the two friends alone.
Kim sat down beside him, shifting the bed and causing Ron to roll slightly towards her, as if turning to hear what she had to say. She couldn't help but smile at his goofy, contented-looking smile as he slept, as if the world where a place where good and evil didn't exist, as if he were still five and the world was just one big discovery after another. What was it the toy man, Mr. Nakasumi, had said…"Child-like wonder?" Well, that certainly described Ron.
"Ahh….termite sand…wich…" Ron mumbled, causing Kim to nearly face-fault.
'What the heck?' Kim thought to herself. She leaned over his unconscious form and stared hard at him, forgetting where she was for a moment. 'Look at his face…like an angel…' Without realizing it, her face was now barely an inch from Ron's; she could feel the breath from his nostrils rush over her lips…
/-\\\\\/-\\\\\/-\\\\\/-\\\\\/-\\\\\/-\\\\\/-\\\\\
Ron awoke feeling very good…very, very good. So good, in fact, that he did not recognize where he was. But that didn't bother him. He was quite warm, with that bone deep warmth that they always advertised on those Campbell's Soup commercials…like the one with the snowman that turns out to be a little kid….
'Wait a sec.'
Something else was different. He felt heavier, like something was draped across his chest…something solid, but soft, like a pers…
Ron's eyes shot wide open as he glanced down at his body.
Kim Possible, best friend, teen hero, heartbreaker of millions, was draped across him like a prize-sash…or something out of a hip-hop video. Her hair had fallen partially in her face, only enhancing the kawaii factor about 10-fold, and her arms were folded around his torso, which he didn't realize until he noticed his arms were in traction and she had simply pushed hers under the space beneath his. Oh, and her face was about two inches from his. He could smell her…like peaches…or vanilla…or both!
Ron could feel something emerging deep from within him, but before he could respond to it, Kim stirred, rubbing her face against his chest and hugging him tighter. Ron blushed furiously, trying to figure out what would be the best response to this situation. Then Kim opened her eyes.
/-\\\\\/-\\\\\/-\\\\\/-\\\\\/-\\\\\/-\\\\\/-\\\\\
Kim awoke to a smell she couldn't quite place - something between disinfectant, tacos and Smarty-mart Smell-smart deodorant. She rubbed her face into her bed, squeezing her pillow tightly…and felt something warm and much more solid than a pillow. She opened her eyes slowly.
"K-k-k-kim…"
Kim' eyes widened to find Ron lying beneath her, his eyes wide and his open arms looking more crucificial than relaxed. Her mind registered the situation in a little under a second, and she blushed furiously. His face appeared to be attempting to outmatch her tomato impression, and they stared at each for a few seconds, or a few hours, they didn't notice. Kim finally raised the courage to speak first.
"How long have you been awake Ron?"
Ron sighed, relieved at the end to the tension, saying, "I don't know…about 5 or 10 minutes." Suddenly she threw her arms around him, crying into his shoulder.
Ron was stunned. He'd never seen Kim cry like this. Heck, he'd never seen her cry since he'd known her save for twice - once on the first day they met and the other at her grandfather's funeral, and she'd been 7 at the time. Kim was always the strong one, Kim always knew what to do and never lost it, so Ron didn't know how exactly to help her. So he tried his best to comfort her with his arms still strung up like some sort of meat in a butcher shop.
"KP, I'm okay. It's all right. Look, I'm fine…ish" Kim sniffed and pulled away, trying to dry her eyes and regain her composure.
"You're right Ron…but you had us all worried. The doctors still don't know for sure what bit you." Ron smiled then grimaced as he felt his shoulder and chest flair in pain where Kim had laid. Kim noticed and quickly realized she must have laid on his injury.
"Oh Ron, I'm sorry."
Ron smiled again. "Don't worry about it KP. I feel fine now." Ron sat there for a moment and then, realizing something, blushed considerably….which is saying something since he'd done this trick about three times already, keeping the blood from rushing to other parts…
Kim saw his uncomfortable embarrassment and asked him what was wrong. Ron mumbled something under his breath, avoiding eye contact.
"What?" Kim asked.
Ron looked her in the eye. "Where are my clothes? I'm naked under this little gown thing." Kim then blushed as well, realizing that Ron was indeed naked except for the paper gown he was wearing. As Dr. Farnsworth once said, oh my…
"Ron, maybe I should go find the doctor and he can tell you what they know? And, uh, maybe get your pants back?" She smiled despite herself and slid off the edge of the bed to press the call button on the far wall. A nurse stopped by moments later and, seeing the patient awake and apparently feeling better, fetched the doctor a few seconds later.
/-\\\\\/-\\\\\/-\\\\\/-\\\\\/-\\\\\/-\\\\\/-\\\\\
"Ow…don't poke so hard Doc."
"…"
/-\\\\\/-\\\\\/-\\\\\/-\\\\\/-\\\\\/-\\\\\/-\\\\\
"Well Ron, we're just glad you're alright," Mr. Dr. Possible said with a chuckle. "Last time you were in the hospital, it was for your grappling hook injury."
There was a universal wincing at the mention of incident.
"What James is trying to say," interrupted Mrs. Dr. Possible, elbowing her husband in the side, "is you're just like family to us and it's good to know you're alright."
"Of course," Dr. James Possible said, rubbing his ribs with another short laugh. Ron sat across from the two of them at the dinner table, Kim to his left and Jim/Tim to his right, apparently attempting to launch the dinner into space at some point in the evening.
"No it's a particle accelerator! You can't use it to-"
"-accelerate the mass itself! I know that! You just have to adjust the-"
"Jim, Tim…" Mr. Dr. Possible started.
"…not at the table boys," finished Dr. Ann Possible with an air of having repeated this admonishment at least on a weekly basis for the last…13 years
"Sorry mom…" chorused the two in perfect harmony…before grabbing each other by the collars and rushing each other out of the room to finish the conversation. Ron laughed at their antics as Kim sighed and let her head fall into her hands.
"Well Mr. and Mrs. Dr. P, I'm just glad to be here! Plus, I got a cool scar to impress the ladies…" he raised is eye-brow and made what was apparently supposed to be a very smooth gesture, eliciting a smile from both Kim and Ann Possible and another chuckle from James.
/-\\\\\/-\\\\\/-\\\\\/-\\\\\/-\\\\\/-\\\\\/-\\\\\
Darkness.
A room without decoration of any sort, without windows, chairs, desks, papers, nothing…save a lone case in the center. The case, roughly the size of Volkswagen beetle, was also black…but its darkness was still visible in the absolute blackness of the night, like a collapsed star in the emptiness of space.
The top portion of the case shifted slightly to the side, and a pale hand rose from within, the smooth, flawless skin seeming to shimmer in the void like pearl despite the complete absence of night. Like the darkness of the case, the luminescence of the pale hand defied all logic. The hand was followed by another which grasped the side of the lid and pushed it aside smoothly and easily; it gave a loud BANG as it fell from atop of the case and hit the floor hard, the lid seemingly immensely heavy despite the ease in which the recliner had pushed it off.
The two hands gripped the side of the case and a matching white face emerged slowly, like a child rising from sleep, and continued to rise until the entire figure floated several inches above the case. Floating silently forward, the figure extended its tall frame fully and gently settled down on the floor, making no noise as he (she/it?) did so. The eyes opened slowly and fluttered for a moment before closing again as the figure took a deep breath, deeper than any human being could ever take. Finally, the eyes opened again, and this time stayed open as a grin appeared on the young, smooth face.
"Finally…it begins…"