Chapter 7
Vincent's unit had put him on dealing with files and smaller jobs- killing but not disposing of experiments, while he was doing physical therapy. This change in job assignment kept him busy and working for most of the day without putting him in danger for another injury and leaving the nights free. Jake called when the work day was finally over. "Hey, you free for our movie night still?" he asked.
Vincent smiled at that. "Yeah. I'm off now." he told him.
"Yay!" Jake cheered. "I'll get the snacks ready."
He smiled. "Where should I meet you?" he asked.
"My barrack, it's in the lower levels, the huge set of B barracks that are for 3rd class. I'm room B12."
"Ah. I know where that is. I'll head out now then." he said, having changed into simple black yoga pants, a black tank top, and a red loose jacket.
It was a quick walk to Jake's room. Jake smiled when he saw him, welcoming walking out with a large bowl and a bag of movies. "We're gonna watch them in the barrack's common area. It has a TV and most of the other guys are staying in," he explained. Vincent could hear Jake's five roommates laughing and playing cards inside the bedroom.
Vincent smirked and nodded. "Alright. I bet the TV is bigger anyways."
"Not really, but it's better than using my PDA and everyone else went out to the bar," Jake smiled. He was in the same pajamas Vincent had gotten used to seeing when they were just recruits. "It'll be great!"
"It will." he smiled. "Got any drinks?"
Jake held up some soda he got for them. "Yep! Figured we'd stay away from alcohol, both of us have made fools of ourselves enough."
Vincent laughed. "Yeah. Last thing we need is me trying to make out with you," he joked.
"At least if it was just me word wouldn't pass around," Jake joked back, though his laugh was nervous. "I, um... You remember the crush thing Marcus brought up?" he asked nervously.
Vincent nodded. "Yeah," he said gently.
"I... um... I sort of like Marcus, but please don't tell him!" he said gently. "I, um... I know he's straight so I'm trying to just... get over it."
Vincent smiled softly. "I won't tell him. I promise. I'm gay too, so I kinda know how it feels. I was in love with my best friend back in Wutai."
Jake looked at him and shifted. "Did... the two of you ever get together? Or did you ever confess?" he asked, curious.
"No. Neither. He was straight, had a girlfriend. He knew I was gay but didn't know about the crush. His girlfriend knew, but she was cool about it because I never acted on it. I was too afraid it'd ruin our relationship." Vincent said softly. "And then I left without ever confessing. Being gay in the part of Wutai I was... It's like a taboo. I knew my friend didn't agree with that... but still."
"It... can be scary coming out... it must've been even more terrifying there."
"Practically a death sentence." he nodded. "It was scary here as well. But Adams, one of my group, said that it wasn't such a big deal here. And now you and Marcus know, so I guess it really isn't."
Jake gave a reassuring smile. "I... don't mind Marcus knowing I like guys, I just... I don't want him to freak out if he finds out I have a crush on him."
"Well, he already knows your crush is a guy." Vincent said.
"Yeah, but he doesn't know it's him. Straight guys are... complicated. There's a huge difference for them between 'I have a friend who is gay and likes guys' and 'I have a friend who is gay and likes me,' they... They most often times don't really like the second version."
Vincent nodded. "I understand that."
"So, can... do you promise not to tell Marcus?" Jake asked softly.
"I promise." he nodded.
"Thanks, it... feels good having someone to talk to about all this..." Jake paused before giving his usual smile again. "Have you seen anyone around you think looks cute?"
Vincent blushed brightly. "Yeah... but my chance is worse than yours..." he said.
"Oh, it can't be that bad. Who is it?"
"Oh it's bad..." Vincent sighed. "It's kind of..." his voice got very quiet, basically into an inaudible whisper. "The General..."
Jake paused, only barely catching it. "Is that why you kissed him when you were drunk?"
"Probably. I could just be a very affectionate drunk you know." Vincent said.
"Oh, if that was the case you would've groped Marcus and I at least a million times before we got back. We were keeping you upright all the way from the bar to he main area," Jake laughed. "We figured you'd only kissed him at first because you'd gotten through the tests and didn't fail any area."
"Well... that is true, but it's more like... it was an excuse to do so that didn't out me." he sighed.
Jake shrugged. "We all do things like that while scared. I used to come up with excuses all the time for things I'd do before I became brave enough to tell my parents."
"And they accepted you?" he asked softly.
"After a while, yes... It was a shock and my father left the house for a few hours. When he came back, though, he sat me down and talked more about what it meant... Then he accepted it and said that he supported me."
Vincent smiled. "That's good though."
"Yeah, I was really worried when he first left. Not everyone in my life accepted or supported it, but having even a few who did helped me a lot."
"I'm sure it would." Vincent smiled.
Jake shifted. "So, what was it like for you? What made you brave enough to come out to your friends in Wutai?"
Vincent laughed. "I never did. The only one who knew was my friends girlfriend. She just guessed it."
"Oh, how did she manage that?" Jake asked, surprised.
Vincent smiled. "I kept subtly checking out her boyfriend."
Jake laughed. "Did she just come up to you and say she knew or did it come up some other way?"
"She just came up and asked. When I tried to deny it she pointed out that she noticed. She was okay with it, though," he said.
Jake smiled. "My sister teased me for a month saying that she knew before I told them and she apparently had a bet going with five other people on if I was interested in guys or not."
He laughed. "Your sister sounds fun," he teased.
"Oh, yeah, she is. She was always doing crazy things and stunts."
Vincent smiled. "Sounds nice. I'm an only child..."
"It's good and bad," Jake laughed as he got the movie started and opened the snacks. "I got some horror movies, some science fictions, do you like these?"
"Of course! Those are the best." he said.
"Good," Jake laughed, putting in the first movie and turning it on. Vincent sat back happily, starting to watch. Jake was smiling throughout the movie, sometimes whispering that the characters were making a bad decision. Vincent joined in, laughing at some of the older horror movies. They stayed up late, until Vincent had to go back to his barrack and Jake had to get some sleep. Vincent woke in a good mood the next morning.
Adams chuckled when he saw. "Have a good evening yesterday?"
"Yeah. Hung out with one of my friends and watched movies all night," he said happily.
"Ah, it's good you're able to get out a bit," the older man smiled.
"Yeah it felt good." he nodded.
"That's something a lot of people start to forget about this job, that they need to take days off to just be with friends now and then. Try not to forget that fact yourself, I've seen far too many 2nd higher 3rd class SOLDIERs getting themselves killed by stress."
Vincent nodded. "I'll try my best not to forget it."
"How is your arm doing?" Smiths asked as he looks up from his seat.
"Great. I haven't had any problems with it yet." he said.
Smiths nodded and smiled at him. "Let us know if it starts hurting or anything, we'll get the doctor up here to check it."
He nodded. "I will," he smiled.
"If it's just minor pains, though, Mathews keeps some pain killers in the bathroom cabinet," Adams added, glancing at his two coworkers.
"Well I do get those every once in a while... but I'm sure that's just from the healing." he said. "They only last for a minuet."
"It's only natural that it will hurt some, I just want you to know about the medicine incase you need it."
Vincent nodded. "Alright. Thank you." Later that evening, Vincent, Adams, and four others were sent on another clear out mission. Vincent's arm was in pain, lasting a little longer than usual, but he ignored it.
Stefens looked at everyone in the group once their gear had been passed out and equipped. "Everyone ready to go?"
Vincent made sure is gun was loaded and nodded. "Yeah," he said, having taken some of the pain medicine before they left.
Everyone else nodded, following Stefens down the long hallway and onto the elevator. "This is a big clean up, given that they called all of us down, so I want everyone to be on the lookout. Mathews, you'll be with me. Adams and Smiths are with Valentine. Use your communicators to stay in contact, kill all of the specimens, even use an extra bullet right to the temple if you're unsure, and then we'll start loading them. Understood?"
"Yes, Sir!" Vincent said. They got to the area and split up, the mission seeming to be going well with only a few scratches as damage. It was when Vincent went to reload his gun that he realized he couldn't lift his arm. Suddenly a sharp pain shot through it, Vincent screaming and the gun dropping from his hand as he tore off his sleeve. His face went pale at what was revealed. Big blobs of skin, muscle and all that went with it were dropping off of his arm in a thick, almost soupy and red mixture from where the wound started and down, leaving only the bone, which was a little blackened. It had stained the sleeve and looked as if that small bit of cloth was the only thing keeping everything in place as it melted off, the support he was wearing being the only thing keeping his hand and wrist attached with everything between it and his elbow melting away, long strands just hanging off the bars or seeping into the screws. He screamed again, falling to his knees.
Adams and Smiths quickly turned at the scream, eyes widening at the large mess behind them. Smiths gagged before turning and starting to get sick, the smell a noxious mix of death and fermentation. Adams turned green, seeming to be just as close to losing it as he inched closer in fear, looking around for signs of an escaped experiment. "D-did something attack you again?" he managed to get out just barely.
"N-No..." Vincent panted. "I-I felt pain... the-then my arm wouldn't move so I tore the sleeve off to look at it..." He closed his eyes, turning his face away from the sight. "Dear Lifestream, what the hell is happening?!"
Adams looked back, noting that Smiths was pretty much useless at the moment with getting sick. He quickly pulled up his communicator to call for help. "W-we need a doctor down here! Valentine's arm is melting off, not sure if he got attacked again or if it was from the first attack. Get medical help here [i]now[/i]!"
Vincent's vision had started to go in and out. "A-Adams... I-I thin..." he suddenly fell to the floor, having passed out from pain and shock.
He woke up in a hospital room, several machines hooked up to him and frantic voices whispering outside the room. Vincent groaned, trying to speak but unable to due to a tube down his throat helping him breathe. He started to cough around it an get it out of is throat, now that he was breathing on his own. Nurses rushed in to stop him, helping him get the tube out gently. "C-calm down, dear, we'll get that out for you," one urged. Vincent let his hand fall away, gasping once it was out. He coughed a couple of times, trying to ask for water, but unable to talk.
One of the nurses brought water over, used to the usual requests, while the there rubbed his back to calm him down. "There you go, deep breaths now. Easy."
"Wh-what happened?" he croaked out after he had calmed and drank some water.
"You passed out while on a mission," the second nurse explained gently. "We don't want you to be alarmed and the doctors did all they could to save your arm, but..." she frowned.
"Mr. Valentine, I'm sorry, but we had to amputate to keep the toxin from spreading further. We're unsure what caused it, but it seemed to be coming from your original wound that you received right before your last stay with us," the first nurse explained for the other.
Vincent went pale. "Amp... amputate it...?" his eyes widened as memories of what he saw happening to his arm flashed through his mind. He shot up and managed to lean over the bed before being sick. When he was finished he panted for a little, before slowly glancing at what remained of his left arm.
It was bandaged securely so that he couldn't see the damage, though he could see everything from the elbow down was gone. One of the nurses gently rubbed his back and handed him a damp rag to wipe his mouth with. "Take it easy, dear. I know it's a shock and I'm sorry we couldn't do more. The doctor is working to get you a prosthetic, but for now we have to focus on healing..."
"But... It... It was healing fine... I... Wh-what happened?" he asked slowly, trying to process everything.
The nurses frowned as a soft knock came from the door, signaling the doctor had arrived. Dr. Miles was giving him a sad look, sighing as she walked over. "We... don't know what happened. All that we can come up with was that the poison used was more advanced than we knew, or than we were told, and the antidote only put it in remission."
Vincent frowned, laying back down with a sigh. "How... how long until the prosthetic is done?" he asked, feeling empty.
"Cid will come up in a bit to speak with you and tell you the time frame we're working with," the doctor said gently. Vincent nodded silently, staring blankly ahead. Dr. Miles frowned, sighing. "I'll give you some time... I honestly do apologize, we did everything we could."
Vincent nodded again, eventually sighing and hesitantly touching the bandages on his arm. The limb was numb, though it wasn't from the damage. He could see where several numbing agents had been put on the arm so that he wouldn't be in constant pain upon awakening. Vincent bit his lip against the tears that were swelling in his eyes, threatening to spill over. He moved his right hand to put his face into it.