Disclaimer: Not Mine.
Spoilers: None, but there might be references.
'Why do they eat so slow' He stared at his empty bowl of Froot Loops and was aimlessly swinging his legs around the stool. He sighed and laid his forehead down on the counter. The mindless chatter that was floating around the kitchen did nothing for him. He wanted to do something. 'Seriously, how long does it take to eat.' He needed them to be finished so maybe he could convince someone to take him outside. He was never one to stay indoors when he could go out. He knew it would probably take a lot of convincing after the stunt he pulled yesterday. He stared at his hand the felt the routine throbbing he was now unfortunately accustomed to. He felt he deserved it as punishment and as long as it didn't get too bad like it had been that morning he figured he could live with it. Johnny's question abruptly pulled him from his silent musings,"Is there any news on Mikey's situation?" He perked up lifting his head off the counter and turning his full attention on Briggs. He noticed everyone had gone quiet and was also waiting for Briggs' reply.
Briggs sighed before crossing his arms over his chest, He locked eyes with him before answering, "Yeah, actually." He saw Briggs shift slightly. "The Bureau has been working diligently trying to find a way to reverse the effects of the drug you were given...And they have concluded that it just has to run its course." There was something akin to sadness in Briggs' eyes as he said this. All the air left his lungs and he couldn't breathe. 'Run its course? Run its course? What does that he even mean' He felt tears begin to prick behind his eyes. 'Don't cry.' He all but growled to himself. He didn't want to look at anyone. They would see him as a baby, because he was crying again. 'Stupid emotions. I hate this. This isn't fair.' He slammed his hand down on the counter. The anger he felt only blocking out the pain it caused for a moment as he realized it was his injured hand that had connected with the counter. Staring in disbelief at his hand that was still resting on the counter, he couldn't suppress the yelp of surprise as pain shot up his arm. The tears wouldn't be held back any longer and began flowing rapidly down his face. "It's not fair. It's not fair." He was sobbing now and couldn't stop. After his outburst, his roommates had gone quiet just staring at him. When Briggs made a move towards him, he throw himself back, landing on the floor with a thud. He bit back a cry as he snatched Stitch off the counter and raced up the stars as fast as his legs would carry him. He ran into his room shutting and locking the door before curling up in a ball on the floor by his bed. 'How long am I going to be stuck like this?' He wanted to know the answer, but at the same time he didn't.
"Mike? Are you okay? Open the door." He could hear Briggs' trying the handle.
"Go away." The sobs choking his words.
"Mike, come on. It will be okay."
"No it won't, Briggs'. What if I'm stuck like this forever?" He was crying even harder now that he voiced the one thing he didn't want to think about.
"We'll cross that bridge when and if we get there."
"Just leave me alone." He buried his face into Stitch and curled in even more on himself. The sobs still coming as the tears rolled down his face.
"Fine, Mike. If you want to be alone for a little while, I will leave you alone. But, we need to talk about this. I will be downstairs when you are ready to talk." With that Briggs walked away from the door. At Briggs' departure he felt himself begin to cry harder, his emotions overtaking him.
He awoke a time later. 'I must of cried myself to sleep' He unfurled himself and sat up, propped against the bed. His eyes itched and he had a slight headache from all the crying he had done. 'I better go downstairs' Grabbing Stitch by the ear, he unlocked the door and slowly made is way downstairs. He didn't know what to expect after his outburst. On the third step, he registered the pain that was back in his hand again. 'It probably didn't help anything that I slammed it against the counter' He felt as if he could cry again, but he was out of tears. Trudging into the kitchen, he spotted all his roommates still there and having a whispered conversation that abruptly ended when they spotted him. 'Great. They're talking about me again' "I'm sorry." He mumbled to the floor as he grabbed the medicine from the counter. Bringing it over to Briggs, he didn't say anything just handed the bottle to him, hoping it would be opened quickly. He drank the liquid gratefully. His eyes never leaving the floor. Suddenly, he was picked up and braced against a familiar chest. Out of habit he nuzzled into the fabric of Briggs' shoulder. "I'm sorry." He whispered again.
"Don't apologize. You have nothing to be sorry for. It wasn't exactly the news you wanted to hear." He had to laugh at the understatement. "I know this must be difficult for you, but you can't shut us out like that. You can't shut me out like that."
"I know... It's just that... I hate this. Feeling like I could cry at any second and trying to control all the childish impulses. It's so hard and I just want..everything to go back to how it was when I was normal. I could leave whenever I wanted and I didn't have to climb on things to reach anything." He sighed and just clung more to Briggs' even though that probably didn't help with the point he was trying to make.
"I know, buddy. I know. All of us want that. But, we're just going to have to see how this plays out. Okay?" He nodded against Briggs. "How about tonight we go to the beach? It would be like old times. What do you say?" At the prospect of going outside, he perked up, enthusiastically nodding his head. "It's settled then, tonight we will go to the fire pit." He could feel the smile light up his whole face.