Needs
(Monday Afternoon, July 30th)
"There's nothing like watching trash pick up trash," Ace hears one of the officers chuckle, as they scale the highway. He lets a long breath escape, as he scours the area for shade, but there is none close enough. He feels his blood boil, as he grows weak. "Hey. Wolfie. Pick up the pace."
He bends over, hands on his knees, as he breathes shallow and quick. "Hey," he hears the other detainee, and when he looks up, he sees the heavy-set man. "Are you okay?" He smells like grease and salt, and the taste of french-fries and tomato burgers makes his mouth water. The man places a hand to his shoulder, before he looks over and shouts at the officers, "Hey. I think there's something wrong here." Ace stares at the large vein stretching across his neck, and he jumps forward. His teeth slip into the guy's neck, and he gulps down the sweet liquid. He's pushed back, he falls to the ground, and he watches one officer hold a hand over the man's flooding neck as the other hovers over him and talks into his walkie. It's still so hot, and the dry grass scratches his skin. He can't feel his face, and his eyes slowly shut.
When Ace opens his eyes, he sighs, "What happened?" before moving his hands and finding them chained to the bed.
"Sorry," the nurse apologizes. "I don't speak German."
He furrows his eyebrows at her, "You chained me?"
"You were in police custody," she explains. "It's hospital policy." His eyes shift to the ceiling, and she questions, "Can you tell me what happened?"
"It was hot," he blatantly says, before he tugs at the handcuffs. He's still weak.
"Anything else?" she inquires.
"I remember hamburgers," he recalls. "Did I get to eat hamburgers?"
"You son of bitch," the officer fumes.
"Excuse me," the nurse holds a hand up to him.
"He knows what he did," the blond combats.
"What? Did I kill someone?" Ace tiredly asks.
The black-haired woman turns back to him, "Are you tired?"
"Yes," Ace slowly answers.
"Dizzy?"
He eyes over the ceiling lights, "Vaguely."
She pauses, "Okay. On a scale one to ten, how thirsty are you?"
He takes a moment, "Eight." before he complains. "And it's still hot. Can we get rid of the lights?"
"Well, I have some good news," she takes a deep breath. "It looks like you're suffering from dehydration. I'm recommending a glass of buttermilk and blood three times a day to replenish any minerals and other nutrients you may have lost. I'll get you a glass now."
When she moves towards the door, the officer stops her, "You're saying that he sent a man to the OR, because he was dehydrated?"
She grins, "That's exactly what I'm saying." before she turns back to Ace. "Oh, and obviously avoid the sun while you recover." She frowns at the officer, "People with the acuti virus are extra sensitive to UV rays. It breaks their bodies down on a cellular level. The next time someone with this disease is in your care, maybe you'd like to keep their health in mind."
After the nurse leaves, the officer steps forward, "So, you really don't remember?"
Ace eyes over him, "You said I put someone in the operating room."
"The other guy who was picking up trash," the man informs. "He thought you looked sick, and he wanted to help you. You attacked him."
Ace looks away from him, "Sounds about right." before he faces him again. "Do you know how he's doing?"
"We'll be told when he's stable," the officer answers, and Ace nods. "So, a little heat and light, and you turn into The Walking Dead?"
Ace frowns at him, "Do zombies even exist?"
"I'm sure it's based on some disease from somewhere," he concludes.
"I'm not a zombie," Ace counters. "I'm a wolf, and you already know that."
"But a little sun will cause you to lash out," he reaffirms.
"You didn't hear a word she said, did you?" Ace combats. "Blood heals. I felt weak and lightheaded, and he was there. What would you have done?"
"I wouldn't have hurt the guy trying to help me," he remarks.
Ace shakes his head, "You act like I chose to do this."
"Didn't you?"
"Did I choose to attack someone in front of two officers?" he irritably contemplates. "No. I don't think I did."
The nurse comes back and walks over to Ace, before she hands him a glass, "Here."
Ace takes a sip and cringes, "Not very fresh, is it?"
"Sorry," she says, before he forces the rest down and hands the glass back to her. "We still haven't been able to reach your father."
"Most of us will be asleep," he answers, before he sighs. "Can I sleep?"
She nods, "Would you like the lights on or off?"
"Too sleep?" Ace thinks. "Leave them on."
"Ace?" He hears his father's voice and opens his eyes, "Come on. It's time to go." Ace stands from the hospital bed, and his father comments, "I hope this experience has given you an appreciation for a proper sleeping schedule."
He takes a deep breath, "I see your point." before he sees the nurse. "The other guy. How is he?"
"He's stable," she informs.
"Can I see him?" he questions, and she takes a moment.
"Ace," his father explains, "if you want an animal to relax, you don't put them in the same cage as their predator."
"I know it's selfish," Ace acknowledges, before he faces the nurse. "But he was trying to help me. I need to apologize." He looks back at his father, "And what kind of leader would let their allies think they purposely attacked them?"
His father faces the nurse, "Is it possible for him to speak with him?"
"I can ask if he'd like to see you," she complies, before they follow her out of the room. She turns back around. "Wait here. If he still sees you as a danger, we can't let you know his room number."
"I understand," Ace smiles, before she walks away and it falters.
He places a hand on his shoulder, "You're going to make a good alpha."
"I still have to thread the collar together," Ace reminds him.
"But you didn't procrastinate very long," he counters, "so you have three weeks to get that done instead of three days."
"I still need to figure out how to ask Lonnie to the ceremony," he mentions.
"You can start with saying it's your birthday party," he suggests.
"A birthday party, where people howl as I'm given my collar and lick my feet to accept my alpha status," Ace shakes his head. "And then, if I'm actually able to get her there, I have to bring up the small favor of letting me rip into her neck."
"You're dating, aren't you?" he inquires.
He furrows his brows, "I think so."
"Then make it personal," he suggests. "Is she a romantic?"
"I don't know," he admits.
"Blood has become romanticized," his father informs. "People with intense urges and shameful desires, it's something people have become attracted to. They lose themselves to it."
"I don't want to trick her," he defies.
"You really like this girl, don't you?"
"Yeah," Ace sighs. "I think I do."
When the nurse strides back over to them, she smiles at Ace, "He'd like to see you."
Ace glances at his father, before he steps forward, and the nurse guides him to the room. He eyes from the hanging bag of blood to the man connected to it, "Hey."
"Do you want to sit down?" he offers.
Ace walks over to the chair nearest to the man, and he faces him, "I'm sorry."
"You looked sick out there," he inputs. "What happened?"
"The sun's not very good for me," he frowns. "They think I got dehydrated… and something about cellular destruction."
"So, the sun turns you into ash," he jokes.
"I hope not," Ace answers. "Um. I was feeling weak, and I wasn't thinking. I just smelled all that salt and grease on you, and human blood does heal. But that's not an excuse."
"You're telling me to eat less fast food," he smiles, and before Ace can speak, he continues. "You know, that's why I was out there with you. I make a living driving a truck, and it was just so full of garbage from my other snacks and stuff that I threw a wrapper out the window. Between the clean up and you, I'd say the universe is telling me something."
"I'm still sorry," Ace enforces.
He waves it off, "Don't worry about it. With the painkillers they have me on, it doesn't even feel like it even happened."
"So, you're doing better?" he makes sure.
He chuckles, "I'd be better if I could cut down on the calories." before he pats his large belly. "But I'm driving all day, and there's all those restaurants. What else am I supposed to do but eat?"
"Maybe you could walk a few miles on a treadmill after work," Ace suggests.
"Yeah," he sighs. "But my feet are too tired by then." The man frowns, "You know, I've tried everything. Every diet I try, I break. None of those hunger suppressants have helped, and I can never keep to a workout. The only thing I haven't tried is surgery, but what's keeping me from gaining all that weight back?"
Ace takes a moment, "Do you eat if you're not hungry?"
"Of course, I do," he half laughs. "Food tastes good, and it makes you feel good." Ace fails to respond, and he questions, "Don't you ever eat just to eat?"
He frowns at him, "I'm afraid I don't have that luxury. My family is the head of our community. Hunting legally doesn't offer us enough food, and the stuff from the butcher isn't nearly as good. It's my responsibility to make sure everyone in the pack gets to eat, and I have to represent the discipline of only taking as much as one needs."
He grins, "Man. I wish I had your will power."
"It's not will power," Ace counters. "It's necessary. If there's not enough food to go around people either die or resort to things that get them locked up." He pauses, "If a wolf has a binging problem, we chain them to a tree."
His smile slips, "Isn't that a little harsh?"
"If they want a case of donuts," Ace affirms, "there's no problem with that, but when it comes down to real food, we have to ration what we have."
"I get that," his eyebrows raise, "but still."
"We could hunt illegally and still not have enough food for everyone," he double downs. "Making sure no one overeats is the best way for us to make sure less people like you end up dead and less people like me get sent to prison." Ace eyes over him, "Do you have kids?"
He hesitates, "Yes."
"Imagine that every extra thing you eat is something that came off of their plate," Ace analogies. "Would you still want to eat those things, then?" The man cracks his mouth open with an unsure expression, unable to find any words. "If you were in a situation where the only other food available was your family's and you would still be willing to take it from them, then maybe you should get some help while you're in here."
"Look," he defends. "I'm not hurting anyone."
"Aren't you?" Ace asks. "All that money you spend on extra food, that couldn't go towards housing repairs, your children's last four years of college, or a family vacation?"
"They have forever to save for college," he dismisses.
Ace stares at him, "And I bet when you're still scraping by in ten years, you'll be saying the same thing, except that your kids are going to have their own phone bills and school field trips to pay for."
"If they want to have an extra four years of college," he debates, "they'll find a way to pay for it."
Ace take a deep breath, "You know, what? I'm sorry. I'm just taking this personally, because I can't go to college." He stands from his seat, "I hope you get well soon."