(BEASTBOY'S PERSPECTIVE)
'B, you wanna play some Mario Kart?'
Not today, Cy, I'm really tired.
'Beastboy, I made some macaroni and cheese for dinner. Do you want some?'
No thanks, Robin, I'm not that hungry.
'You didn't even eat tofu eggs this morning. You love tofu eggs, and for lunch when we went out for pizza you didn't eat any of that.'
Don't have much of an appetite lately.
'Beastboy! I have a joke to share with you.'
What is it, Starfire?
'Why shouldn't you write with a broken pencil?'
I don't know.
'Friend Beastboy, at least attempt at the joke like how you would want us to.'
Star, I'm not in the mood for it.
'You are always in the mood for jokes.'
I'm not.
'Well... the answer is because it's pointless.'
Pointless to keep fighting.
"Beastboy? Beastboy, wake up, Overload is..." someone was shaking me awake.
"Please, leave me alone."
I pulled my blanket over my head.
Everything around me was drenched in sweat.
"Beastboy, we have to go."
I wiped a stream of blood from my nose.
I sat up slowly, leaving a cake of blood on the couch.
"Andddd... we have to get you cleaned up."
It was Raven.
I winced, holding on to my head, "Raven the alarm isn't even going off."
Raven got up from the couch and came back with bundles of Kleenex.
"That's because it's long since been switched off. The others went ahead."
"Huh, really? Good for them."
I grunted and snatched the napkins from my friend.
"What's gotten into you, Gar?" Raven glanced at me with concern.
My heart just about melted.
I loved the way that glided off her tongue.
"Nothing, Raven." I held my nose back.
"Nuh-uh, don't do that. The blood's going to go right into your throat and recycle. Let it out this way."
Raven gently moved my head forward.
"What do you mean what's gotten into me?" I wheezed.
"You've really been out of it like crazy lately. You haven't begged me to play video games or offered me any fake meat."
Raven dabbed the bloody cushions with leftover tissue.
"If anything, the question should be what's gotten into you?"
I felt weak as the blood left my body.
"Oh, nothing, I'm fine."
"Raven, we need to stop lying to each other. Clearly you aren't okay."
I gazed into her eyes, which resembled midnight.
"I don't lie."
"You are right now."
"And so are you."
"No, I'm not. Raven, I see it all the time. Something is bothering you a lot." I grimaced.
She exhaled deeply, "I don't know what's wrong."
"We both don't know what's wrong, that's why we can find out together." I tenderly touched Raven's hand, causing a rose tint to form in her face.
"Alright, let's go." I zipped the sheet off of my body.
A cold chill hit my body like a baseball bat.
"Woo-weeeee it's cold." I trembled.
"You're scorching like hell. You're probably about one hundred and three degrees." Raven touched my forehead.
"Ehhhh, what's up, Doc?" I smiled whimsically.
"I'll zap you through the Roof and you'll see what's up." Raven tried not to smirk.
"Haha, I'll drag you with me." a flush tickled my cheeks.
"Beastboy, are you sure you want to go out? It's past midnight, and you really don't look good. As a matter of fact I think we should go in the Med Wing and wait for them to come back. Your body isn't acting like a healthy person." she said bluntly.
"I'm good, Raven. Let's go." I walked towards the red glowing 'EXIT' sign.
"You have dots on your face, too."
"Raven?"
"Yes?"
"Do you trust me?"
"Yes." she answered with no hesitation.
My fang stuck out, "Trust that I'm okay."
"Okay... let's go."
Raven flew out and I followed her.
A huge crash thundered on the other side of the room. Overload was breaking into Cook's Electronic Store, draining the machines of power.
Robin had thrown an explosive disk at the villain. Starfire projected a fury of starbolts at Overload.
Overload sent an electric blast at the duo, sending them into a machine.
"Late night shift, huh?" I asked Cyborg.
"Three in the morning? More like an early morning shift." Cyborg cocked his canon.
"T-Rex?" I smirked at my best friend.
"Bet." I turned into a T-Rex with Cyborg on my back.
I charged forward and the half robot blasted the criminal.
Overload absorbed the sonic energy and regenerated it. He blasted Cyborg off my back and me into a wall. Overload blasted towards me but a black shield swiped in front of me.
"Are you ready for a blackout?" Raven twirled the electricity into her dark powers.
She shot Overload in the chest and Starfire's bolts hit him from behind.
"Douse him, douse him in water!" Robin yelled.
I frailly got up with my whirling stomach and uneasy head.
I felt my stomach flip over again and make a last contraction. Another knock hammered my head.
Content rocketed past my liver, diaphragm, and lungs.
It tasted tart and heavy in my throat.
I heaved and liquid protruded from my mouth.
"Beastboy!" Raven turned around from her task and focused on me.
"Damnit." Robin sighed in frustration.
"I got him, go fight." Raven commanded, Robin sprinting off and leaving us.
Cyborg blasted Overload into a wall, leaving me and the girl in our own corner.
I held onto my stomach as blood spilled from my mouth, to the ground.
"I knew we should have stayed home." Raven's voice was soft.
I grabbed onto her shoulder and she held my torso.
"Yeah—for sure—" I could not stop the blood from coming out.
I realized Raven had a puddle of blood on her clothes.
"I'm so, so sorry."
"Don't worry about it." she softly reassured.
Tears brimmed in my eyes while I continued to vomit.
"It h-hu- hurts."
"I know, I can't imagine." Raven frowned, holding my closer.
"I feel so weak. I hate this."
"Shhhh, Beastboy, you need to rest. Let me take you home."
Raven covered me partially in her cloak and we teleported.
I coughed up blood on Raven's floor.
"I'm s-sorry. Jeez."
The blood dried in my mouth, along with fresh blood on the surface. The most uncomfortable sensation ever.
"Don't be, I don't mind." she got a towel and wiped me down.
Raven used a dirty tee and wiped the floor.
"You sure? I know you don't like people in your room."
"I like you in my room. I mean..."
Raven blushed under her hood and I shook my head.
"It's the ears isn't."
"Quit it." Raven deadpanned.
"Chicks dig the ears." I laughed weakly.
Raven rolled her eyes and gave me another pile of tissues.
I wiped some on the blood off her sheets.
"You've been bleeding too much, Beastboy. The sweats, the fever, the fatigue, the loss of appetite, the blood, we need to run some tests on you. This isn't something simple."
Raven offered me the water bottle on her nightstand.
"I probably should wash my mouth out first. Can I use the bathroom?"
"Please, do." Raven helped me to her bathroom.
I washed all the substance out of my mouth and took a deep breath.
"Are you okay?" Raven gently rubbed my back.
"Trying to be. Oh, God." I barely caught my breath, and wiped a tear away.
Raven was beginning to see a side no one else did.
My feebleness.
My emotions.
My pain.
She understood it transparently.
Raven glanced at me through the mirror, "You've been trying for a very long time."
"I'm so tired, Raven. Tired of being tired."
I limped out of the bathroom.
"That's more depressing than what I was going to say." the girl muttered.
"Maybe we should go to the Med Room?"
"No, you can stay here for tonight, tomorrow we need to check you out for sure."
I began to sit on the floor.
"No, no, you can lay down with me. I'm not that mean." Raven said.
"Seriously?" I raised my brow in surprise.
Raven let me into her room, now she's allowing me to stay the night.
"Dead serious. Let me go change, here's some sweats." She tossed me a black pair of sweat pants and a white sweatshirt.
They smelled amazing, just like her.
I looked around at my companion's room.
It had books packed on the shelves, statues, potion bottles, and it was extremely neat.
Raven's room was such a relaxing atmosphere.
I slowly changed into the clothes, every movement ached. I noticed my chest and upper arms grew swells. I put another stuffing of tissue back at my nose and hoped I would not vomit on Raven.
After a little while, Raven walked out the bathroom.
"Do you need anything else?" Raven glanced at me.
"Nah, I'm okay."
I coughed and tried to breathe properly.
Raven smiled, turned off the night lamp, and tucked us in.
All of our past conflicts melted away from our minds.
I could hear Raven's heartbeat sync with mine as we relaxed.
I shifted over to the far side in case she wanted space.
But I found that her cold palm pulled us closer together.
"I just want you to feel better, Beastboy. I hate seeing you like this." Raven whispered.
Raven was all that I needed.