Chapter Twenty-Five: Hideaway
Mike's P.O.V.
I walked to the Main Brain and tried to take control from Mal. No longer was I going to just sit around and wait for something to happen. Though instead of gaining control of the body, I found him sitting on his knees with his head bowed.
"Mal?" I asked. No reply. I spoke louder, "Mal!"
That made him jerk his head up at mine, with such a dark expression I've never seen before.
"This is your fault," he said.
"What do you mean?" I asked.
"I couldn't catch her!" He then put his face in his hands and started to yell.
I began to get scared and tried again to gain control, but I couldn't. I kept working on it, but to no avail. Running back to where my other personalities were, I had Manitoba try.
"Sorry, mate, I'm no good. What are those cries about?" Manny asked. Noticing Mal was still at it, I told him what Mal just told me. Manitoba continued, "Woah, that's somethin' scary. Ya better go see what the kookaburra's talkin' about."
I got back to where Mal was and sat on my knees in front of him. "Mal, stop yelling!" I said as I pulled his hands down. I noticed he was crying, too. "What's the matter with you?"
He pushed me away as he stood from his roost. Giving me a bad glare, he ran to his room without a single word.
Mal's P.O.V.
I sat on my bed, mind wandering off to what just happened. I didn't know exactly what did happen, but all I could imagine was Zoey's terrified face, our arms trying to grab hold of each other, and me calling out her name. I couldn't catch her... That picture stayed in my mind for I don't know how long.
'Zoey!' I heard it again.
Mike's P.O.V.
I don't know how long I was stuck in my head, but when I finally regained consciousness, I found myself in a white room that smelled a bit like bleach. My nose started tickling like something was in it, so I tried to reach up with my left arm, but I cried out in pain. I looked down at it and saw it was in a cast. I glanced around the room I was in and realized I was in a hospital. Then someone opened the door.
"Well, well, well, look who's finally awake," he said. "My name is Dr. Conners, and you must be Michael."
"Mike," I corrected with a raspy voice. I must have been out for a while.
"Mike, I assume you have a few questions, am I right?"
I nodded. Painfully.
"Well, I'll start from the beginning, to save you from talking," said Dr. Conners, pulling up a chair. "You were in an accident yesterday. Somehow, the motorbike you were riding sort of protected you from getting too badly hurt. You do have a broken arm, along with several scrapes and bruises. No need to worry, now that you're awake and not in critical condition, you can leave anytime you feel like it."
He pat my leg and stood up the same time my adopted parents walked in. Passing my dad, Dr. Conners put a hand on his shoulder, saying, "He's all yours," and left the room.
Quickly, my mom walked over and gave me a hug, apparently not noticing my broken arm. I had to squeeze my eyes shut, so she wouldn't be able to tell she was accidentally hurting me. I was just glad to see she was happy.
Thankfully, my dad chimed in, "Laurene, let go of him. Squeeze him any harder, you'll make him pass out."
"Oh! Sorry, Mike," she said as she let go.
I smiled and said, "Hi, guys."
My dad replied, "You are one dangerous boy."
"Sorry," I looked away.
My mom piped in, "Oh, don't be, sweety. Don't you ever do that again! I'm glad you're okay. Do you know how worried we were? Poor boy, you must be starving. You are grounded for... 'Til college!"
I tried to hold back my grin as I repeated, "Sorry."
My dad chuckled and put a tray of hospital food I didn't see him holding on my lap. "We're going to the food court. Your clothes are over there on that chair. See ya later, buddy!"
Just before they left through the door, I asked them a question that made them stop in their tracks. "Where's Zoey?"
My dad put his head down and my mom turned to face me with a serene expression on her face, making me worry. She said, "Now you just get something to eat first and we'll show you after you're dressed and moving around." They left without saying anything else.
'...we'll show you...'
What did that mean?
I finished my food and stood to stretch my legs. They felt sore as ever, being just from an accident and, not to forget, I hadn't walked on them for a whole day. Getting my pants on with one arm wasn't too difficult, but my shirt was a whole different ball game. I slipped my shoes on and left to find my parents. I'd actually needed their help tying them since I only had one working arm. Eventually, I found them in the food court, just like they said they'd be.
As my dad reached down to tie my shoes, he said, "I haven't had to do this since, well, ever. We got you when you were almost eleven, and you already knew how to do that." He chuckled again.
I asked, "Can you take me to Zoey?"
My parents looked at each other and I heard my dad whisper, "He's got to find out sometime, why not now?"
"But what if he's not ready to see that? He did just get out," my mom replied.
"I can hear you," I said. They looked at me. "Where's Zoey?"
My mom grabbed my right hand, saying, "Come on, sweetie, I'll show you."
She pulled me along down a hallway, to an elevator, up three flights, passed a door, and stopped in front of a window. "There," she said. I looked in and my breath stopped. I let go of my mom's hand and covered my mouth. Zoey laid on a hospital bed, hooked up to a heart monitor and an I.V. with a ventilator covering her face.
"Zoey," I quietly said.
"Mike," my mom said, putting a hand on my arm. "I'm sorry."
I put my hand down and said, "I... Gotta go. Uh- I'll meet you at that house, okay?" I leaned down and kissed her cheek. "Bye, Mom."
I walked around the hospital, trying to find a way out. Eventually I did and left to a certain building I found when I was younger. It took me a while since I was walking, but when I got there, I stopped in my tracks. The abandoned building was gone with piles of ash in its place. As I got closer, I saw something glint from the sunlight. I picked it up and realized what it was. My lighter.