Hey, a new chapter for this story! Surprise!
Axe: Finally.
Link: Oh, shut the fuck up, kid. No one asked you.
Axe: You act like I give a fuck.
Link: *Growls in annoyance* Whatever... Anyway, hey, new chapter. Yeah, meant to have this up last weekend, but I suck... I then tried for earlier this week, but I have had one hella shitty week, so... But, fuck it. I'm a Lunar Knight (You guys... And me, as I lead you...), which means that sometimes I just have to suck it the fuck up to get shit done. So, I'm getting shit done. Anyway, you kids know the drill. I have no reviews on this story to reply to (Shocker!), so let's get going to the chapter.
Could You Tell Mom I Said Hello?
I opened my eyes, being greeted by darkness. What the hell? Where am I? I went to sit up, only to drop back down, letting out a hiss through my clenched teeth, as my body was assaulted by immense pain.
I felt a hand on my chest, followed by, "Don't move too much or too suddenly, Cloud. You've been out for some time, but you aren't quite fixed yet."
I complied with the voice that I recognized to be Kynth's, gently lying back on the material under me. I heard the sound of footsteps, before the blackness around me was eradicated by light. My eyes snapped shut the harsh fluorescents shining down on me. After a few seconds, I slowly reopened them, allowing them to get used to the light at their own pace. When the little spherical light refractors finally adjusted to the light, I looked around some. I immediately noticed that I was in a fairly simple hospital room, lying on an uncomfortable bed, dressed in only a pair of jeans. The next thing I saw is that only Kynth and I resided in the room.
I must have given off some reaction to this discovery, as he told me, "Mei had barely left the room, up until yesterday afternoon. Skyler, Axe, and Mackenzie finally convinced her to go back to school, with the condition that one of us stayed with you. I offered to stay for a while."
"How long have you been here?" I asked him.
"Since she left." He replied.
I nodded slightly, following it up with, "How long have I been here?"
He faltered slightly, before answering, "A little over a week."
I thought over the statement, before letting out a sigh of annoyance.
"Arceus damn it." I exhaled.
"What?" Kynth inquired.
"The Shadowveil Shocker." I replied. "The Fatal Framez concert. One night only, and it was November first." I let out another annoyed sigh, before adding, "The others really wanted to go, especially Mei."
I heard Kynth let out a sigh, before saying, "Cloud, do you really think that any of the others have thought about not being able to go see a fucking band? No, they've been here, wondering when you'll wake up, and whether or not your cracked ribs will actually heal properly."
At the end of his statement, my ears perked up, and I asked, "Wait, cracked ribs?"
"Yeah." The man replied. "Three cracked ribs, a busted nose, and a black eye, although you can't see it, obviously. The hospital's Gardevoir managed to fix the nose, but she didn't want to attempt the ribs. She's never fixed those before, and she was scared that she'd do more harm than anything."
I sighed, mentally face palming. How did I not recognize that pain? I've had enough fucked up ribs in the past to where I honestly should have! I shifted my weight slightly, causing a jolt of pain to shoot through my chest.
"Is my bag here?" I asked Kynth.
"Um, yeah." He replied. "They put some clothes and your laptop in it, for when you finally woke up."
"Did they put anything in the front pocket?" I asked him.
"Not that I know of." He answered. "Why?"
"Hand me the bag." I ordered, ignoring his question.
His face was painted with a confused expression, but he complied anyway, picking my bag up off of the floor and handing it to me. I sat it on my lap, ignoring the pain that exploded from my chest with each minute movement, before opening the front pocket. I reached in, before grabbing the small bag and pulling it out. I opened up the smaller bag, reaching in and grabbing its contents: a syringe filled with a clear liquid.
"What is that?" Kynth asked me.
Once again ignoring him, I tapped the syringe a few times, getting rid of any troublesome oxygen bubbles. I lined the needle up precisely with a vein in my wrist, before sticking it in, gasping slightly at the sharp prick. When the needle was in, I slowly pressed the plunger down, watching the contents of the syringe leave the container and enter my arm. I let out a sigh as I felt the drug begin to work its magic, speeding up my natural restorative properties.
"What was that?" Kynth repeated, as I pulled the needle from my arm.
"Epinephrine." I replied. "Also known as-"
"Adrenaline." He finished for me. "Would you mind telling me why you just shot a syringe of adrenaline into your arm?"
"Well, Morphs have an increased natural healing ability." I told him. "Now, I don't know why, but adrenaline actually speeds that up some. Not too much, but some. So, instead of taking two to two and a half months to heal these ribs, it'll take only about a month and a half."
"Interesting." Kynth commented. "Doesn't it effect you like it does humans, though?"
"Nope." I answered. "So long as I don't use a fuck ton at once, then it's pretty much harmless."
"Sounds pretty helpful." He said.
"Yep." I agreed. I hesitated for a second, before adding, "I'd be pretty grateful if you didn't tell anyone about that. Especially Mei."
Kynth appeared to contemplate it for a second, before slowly nodding, replying, "Very well. I'll keep it a secret."
I nodded back, telling him, "Thank you."
He nodded back, replying, "Of course." He started for the door, throwing back at me, "Well, I guess that I'll let you sleep. I'll be sure to bring the others here in the morning."
I nodded slightly, a quick thought running through my head. Should I? I… Fuck it. Let's do it.
"Hey, Kynth?" I called to him, just as he opened the door to my room.
He turned to me, asking, "Yes?"
I steadied my breath, as I replied, "Could you tell mom that I said hello?"
He froze for a second, his eyes wide.
After a few seconds, he slowly replied, "Of course, Cloud. I'll see you in the morning."
I nodded back, saying, "Thanks. See you in the morning, dad."
He nodded, before leaving the room. I let out a small sigh, dropping back onto the bed under me. Well, that went surprisingly well. I let out another sigh, before closing my eyes and going to sleep.
"Please, just let us in." I heard a familiar voice plead, bringing me from my sleep. "We just want to see him."
I opened my eyes, once again being greeted by light. I looked around, seeing that my room was now empty.
"I'm sorry, but I've been told not to let anyone in while he's asleep." I heard a female voice reply. "People don't actually get any rest while unconscious, so he needs all of the rest that he can get."
"We won't disturb him, I promise." Mei's voice said.
"C'mon, can't you just let her see her boyfriend?" Axe's voice added.
I let out a sigh, rolling my eyes. I swung my legs off of my bed, before dropping onto the floor, grunting slightly at the pain. I started for the door, staggering slightly with each step. I grabbed the doorknob, slowly opening it, to reveal that my friends were outside the door, arguing with a rather large, dark-skinned nurse.
"Hey." I said, drawing their attention to me. "I'm awake now."
The nurse looked at me, before turning back to the others and nodding. She stepped aside, allowing them to come in. And allowing Mei to tackle me. Hard. I dropped to the floor on my back, letting out a gasp of pain as a jolt shot through my chest.
Mei let out a gasp of shock, getting off of me and standing up, as she said, "Arceus, I'm so sorry, Cloud. I'm so sorry."
I chuckled slightly, a small amount of dull pain shooting through me with each exhale, before pulling her back onto me, replying, "I'm happy to see you too, Mei."
I kissed her on the lips, hugging her tightly. After a few seconds, I let her go, planting a kiss on her forehead.
My girlfriend chuckled, asking me, "Wanna get off the floor now?"
I laughed back, replying, "I suppose."
Mei jumped up, before reaching down to help me to my feet. I accepted her hand, allowing her to pull me up. As soon as I was up, Mei hugged me again, and I returned the embrace, burying my face in her hair. I heard a chuckle from my left, causing me to pull my head back and look at the source, seeing that Axe was smirking at us.
"Oh, shut the hell up." I scolded him. "I've been out for a week. I apologize for wanting to hug my girlfriend."
"Go ahead, man." The Absol Breed told me. "I have no issue with it."
"Good." I replied, pulling Mei closer.
Mei pulled out of my arms, telling me, "How about you sit back down? I can't imagine that this feels all that nice."
I nodded, going back to my hospital bed and sitting down.
I reached for the bottle of painkillers on my bedside table, asking them, "So, what's happened in the week that I've been out?"
"Not too much, really." Skyler replied, as I dropped a few of the pills in my mouth. "Austin and his douchebag friends have been bragging about beating you up."
"And, of course, they haven't been punished." Mackenzie added.
"Insignificant cunts." Axe growled out. "You should have let me kick their asses."
"Had I done that," Mackenzie retorted, "then you'd be expelled, and possibly in jail."
The Absol Breed glared at Mackenzie, but kept silent.
I rolled my eyes, suppressing laughter, before asking, "Anything else that I should care about?"
"Not really." Mei replied.
I hesitated slightly, before apologizing, "I'm sorry about causing us to miss the concert."
Mei sighed, hugging me tightly, telling me, "Oh, shut up, Cloud. That doesn't matter."
"Yes, it does." I insisted. "You guys really wanted to go, but I kept you from doing it."
"Cloud, all that matters is that you're alive." Axe reassured me.
"And, besides," Skyler added, "it was postponed due to some technical issues."
"Really?" I asked, intrigued.
"Yep." He replied, nodding. "Apparently, some of their amps fucked up, and they didn't have enough to actually put on the show. So, it's been put off until November twentieth, and anyone that bought tickets before still gets in."
"Why didn't you tell us that?" Mackenzie asked, shocked.
Skyler just shrugged in response, answering, "It just didn't seem all that important. I mean, Cloud was in the fucking hospital."
Mackenzie sighed, responding, "Good point."
I was about to speak, when I heard a knock at the door. The others looked at me, confused, but I just smiled back, already knowing who it was.
"Come in!" I called.
The door slowly opened, revealing Kynth standing in the frame. He stepped in, followed by a woman only slightly shorter than him, her black hair ending just past her shoulders. I smiled slightly at the knowledge of who this woman is.
"Hey, guys?" I spoke, regaining my friends' attention. "Would you mind giving the three of us a moment?"
"Sure, I guess." Axe replied, sounding confused.
"Anything you want while we're waiting?" Mei asked me.
I thought for a second, before replying, "Well, I haven't eaten anything in more than a week. Could you get me something to eat, if that isn't too much trouble?"
"Of course." She replied, before kissing me.
I kissed her back for a few seconds, before she pulled away.
"Thanks." I told her, as they started for the door.
They all cast confused glances at Kynth and the woman as they passed, but didn't say anything. The group left, leaving just the three of us in the room.
It took a few minutes, but I eventually cleared my throat, before saying, "Hello."
"Hello, Cloud." Kynth responded. He motioned slightly to the woman next to him, saying, "I imagine that you can already guess who this is."
I nodded, replying, "I believe so, yes."
Without warning, the woman rushed over and hugged me, sending dull pain through my chest.
"Oh, Cloud, I can't believe it's you." She said. "I thought that we'd never see you again."
I hugged her back, saying, "I know, mom. I'm glad to see you, too."
Kynth suddenly pulled her off of me, telling her, "Calm down, Jenn. Keep in mind that he's hurt."
"Oh, right. Sorry." She said, stepping back some, revealing the wide smile on her face. "It's just that I've missed you so much. I'm just so happy to see you."
"And that I'm not pissed at you." I finished. Her smile faltered slightly, so I added, "You don't need to say it. I know that you were thinking it. But, no, I'm not angry with you."
My mother sighed in obvious relief, sitting down on a chair next to my bed, before speaking, "Thank you, Cloud. We don't deserve your forgiveness, but thank you for giving it."
I nodded in response, telling her, "But, I do have a question, if you don't mind."
"Of course, son." Kynth told me. "What is it?"
I took a deep breath, before saying one word, "Why?"
That one word made a large impact in the atmosphere of the room. As soon as I said it, the tone just deepened, most of the happiness evaporating from the air.
My mother sighed, before replying, "I knew that you'd ask that."
"Would you like me to tell him, dear?" Kynth asked.
"Please." She replied, nodding.
He nodded back, starting, "Allow me to open this by saying that we never wanted to, Cloud. We wanted to keep you, to raise you as our son. But, as you know, life doesn't always go how you want it to. The people in our town, they weren't exactly the most accepting. When they found about you, they came after us. Graffiti, slashed tires and shattered windows, even a few paintball and airsoft drive-bys. We put up with it, until one day they took it a step further. We started receiving threats that they'd kidnap you and feed you to a pack of Pokemon. They threatened to kill all of us. So we ran. We skipped a few towns, and left you at the orphanage in the middle of the night. We then moved to Shadowveil, where we changed our names. I used my past experience as a college professor to get a job at the school, while your mother became a part time librarian. We never thought that we'd see you again, up until you walked into my class earlier this year."
When he finished, I nodded slightly in response, processing the information.
"But we never stopped thinking about you." My mother added. "Especially on days when we should be together as a family, especially your birthday and Christmas."
I nodded again, replying, "I understand. Truth be told, I don't blame you for what you did."
"Thank you, Cloud." My mother replied. "We were so sure that you'd hate us for it, that we were so worried that if we ever did meet you, you'd try to harm us."
I pulled her into a hug, reassuring her, "I could never hurt my parents. Don't worry."
She responded by pulling me into a hug of her own, causing me to smile slightly.
I looked over to Kynth, and said, "C'mon, dad. Join in on the family hug."
He rolled his eyes, chuckling, and replied, "Of course, son."
He came over and wrapped his arms around us, pulling all three of us into a hug.
"I love you, mom and dad." I told them.
"We love you, Cloud." They replied simultaneously.
Aww, a nice ending. That is an odd thing in my stories... Oh well. This is one of my less depressing ones, so I guess that it makes sense. Anyway, yeah, hope you kids liked the chapter. I enjoyed writing it, so I hope that you don't hate the flying fuck out of it... Anyway, about the review remark... You obviously don't have to review, especially one that makes me reply. But if you for some reason feel like telling me something that you like about the story, or feel like asking me a question about this story, than I shall not stop you. Anyway, this is Jinglin'Link (Why the play on my name? Because it's Christmas time, and I.D.G.A.F.O.S.) signing off.
Cloud: And now we get to start decorating our house for Christmas!
Azura: *Chuckles* Yes... Yes we do.
