Rudy flinched as the nurse grabbed onto his face. It was not really too firm, but he hadn't expected her to grab it this soon. He soon relaxed himself and let her tilt his head upwards. He gritted his teeth as he heard something click and then there was some sort of brightness and warmth shining in his eyes.

It stayed this way for several moments. Neither of them said a word. He held as still as he could as the nurse moved what he realized was a flashlight from one eye to the other. She hummed lowly a few times as though taking a mental note of things. She soon released him and the writing on her notepad could be heard.

"Your pupils are responding fine. Contracting and widening like they should. Though your cornea still looks pretty damaged." The nurse paused for a moment. Then she said, "That's still an improvement over the last checkup."

Rudy nodded his head slowly. He couldn't really bring himself to be too enthusiastic about this news. He had been hearing it for a while now. Too many times, the nurses would say 'you're doing better than last time'. It was getting really old. He was getting so sick and tired of hearing it. He wanted to see real results.

And by that, he meant, he actually wanted to see.

Physically see.

Rudy's eyes might have been doing pretty well physically. But the damage was still there. Even with the pain mostly dulled down at this point, that didn't change the fact that he still saw nothing but darkness...and a bit of light. He was aware of light levels now at least. But he could still see no discernable shapes. He was still blind and he still had to come to the hospital for frequent check ups.

The fact that he was released not too long after his first interrogation done by Dr. Bendor and allowed to live with his parents to help cope mentally did work to some extent. Not a lot, but it did feel better to not be in that place any longer. He still had to go once every two days for a check up, however. The doctors wanted to make sure that he was healing all right.

He didn't need to worry about school. He had no idea exactly how his parents managed it, but they convinced Mr. Wilter to give him some time off. Er, not just him, but Principal Stringent as well. He still needed to do makeup work. But the school was at least understanding enough to let him take a break from school. It would be difficult for Rudy to do any of the homework as he was now, anyway. Just how do blind students do it?

"Okay, so now for the next question." The nurse stated. "I think you already know where I'm going with this."

Rudy nodded. "Just get it done and over with, anyway."

"All right then." The nurse moved a bit closer. Then she seemed to situate herself in front of Rudy. He could feel a shadow coming over him and he realized just how close that she was. "Do you...see anything?"

Rudy let out a small sigh. He shook his head slowly. "Nothing new from before. I can see some light, but that's about it."

"No shapes or anything?"

"Nope."

The nurse remained silent for a moment, likely to make sure that he was telling her the truth. Then she took a small step back and let out a sigh of her own. "I see... That is disappointing."

"Disappointing is an understatement." Rudy growled as he gritted his teeth. "I thought you said that I would have my eyesight back by now." He could feel his body starting to quake. "And then you change it and say that, no, it'll be longer. I don't know what to believe now."

"Look, I know that you're having a rough time. But we can't just make your eyesight come back. We can't predict when it will come back or..." The woman suddenly paused.

Rudy could feel a chill going through his body. He didn't request her to finish her statement. He already knew what she was talking about.

Rudy had already thought about it beforehand himself. The idea that he might never get his sight back was a horrifying one. He could still see mind images in his head of different things, including his friends and family, as well as his work. But all of them were starting to melt away. It was becoming harder and harder for him to fully recall the image. It was becoming distorted and blurred, and appeared to only get worse the harder that he tried.

He wanted to try to stay more positive. But at this rate, was there any way to do that? Everyone knew that this might be permanent. He could feel a burning swirl of emotions chugging up inside of him, starting to spill over as though he were melting from the inside out. And at this rate, he might as well be.

The nurse seemed to sense his emotional state. It was probably written over his face, now that his eyes were not covered anymore. Even opening them up didn't seem to hurt, though the doctors wanted him to keep them closed for most of the time to let his cornea heal more easily. The nurse's footsteps headed over to where the door was and it was opened up. "You can rejoin your parents."

Rudy said nothing as she got up from the seat and headed out of the door. He had gone through here so much that he had the location memorized. And he didn't need to go too far before he pumped into his parents.

"How did it go?" He could hear his dad ask cautiously.

"Did you do all right?" Asked his mom.

Rudy hated to break the news to them. "...no, not really. No big changes."

He could practically feel his parents exchanging glances with each other. He couldn't hear them making any noise. But he could tell that they were both really worried for him. He wanted to give them better news, but there wasn't anything more to be said. There was nothing that he could say to lighten up the mood.

He could feel his mom putting her hand on his shoulder, gently squeezing it. He could tell it was her just by how it felt. He lowered his head slightly as he took a few steps forward. He could sense his mother's body warmth near him even though he wasn't touching her yet. And the heat just continued to increase as he could feel his mom wrapping her arms around him, pulling him into a hug. He didn't do anything beyond just leaning up against her, feeling her warmth more strongly than ever.

His dad remained silent. Rudy imagined that he was just standing there, letting the information sink into his head. Rudy had a feeling that his dad was reeling from this; his dad had been hoping, even promised, that there would be a change now. Well turned out his prediction was incorrect.

Rudy could feel tears forming in his eyes. Not much. He did manage to fight most of them back. But he still took in a shuddering breath that he knew that his parents could hear. He had been holding back so much emotion, tried so hard to deal with them, but it was getting to be too much. He licked his lips slowly and swallowed hard. He could feel a bitterness swelling up in his stomach as he tried to cope the best that he could.

"W-Well... They did say it might take a month..." He could hear his dad say. A few foot steps towards them, he added, "S-So maybe we just need to give it some more time? Maybe we just need to wait and see? Something might change..."

His mother let out a small sigh. "That might be true, dear." She placed a quick kiss on Rudy's forehead. "And I really do hope that is the case."

Rudy hoped so as well. He couldn't bring himself to speak up at this point. He might have been more stoic with the nurse checking on him. But now that he was out here with his parents, his emotions and pent up frustration and despair, were coming to light. He could feel his heart twisting and tightening and he could feel his stomach churning. The realization that he might be blind for far longer than he hoped was just staggering.

But there was no point in dwelling on this matter for now. It wasn't going to do any of them good. The best thing that they could do was just get up and move forward. The doctors weren't going to give any better answers. There wasn't a thing that could be done to change what he had been told. The best thing to do right now was to just...go home.

"Mom...I'm... I'm tired." Rudy whispered, finally speaking up. He cuddled further against her. He just didn't have the strength to keep trying to remain strong. "C-Can we go home...?"

Mrs. Tabootie planted another kiss on her son's forehead. "Of course we can, Rudy." She said softly. "Of course."

Mr. Tabootie patted the young boy on his back as his mother released him. "What would you like to eat tonight, Rudy? We'll let you pick."

Rudy wasn't really in the mood to eat. But maybe it would help take his mind off of things. He could use a bit of winding down, some relaxation. Food did sometimes comfort him. And ultimately, it was better than just sitting down, crying about the situation. He could feel his mouth corners curl up into probably one of the weakest yet broadest smiles he's made. Which didn't make sense, but here he was.

After a bit of thinking, Rudy came up with an answer. "Maybe some... meatloaf and mashed potatoes? Oh and green beans?" He had no idea why he said those things. He wasn't even sure if he wanted them. But they were still the first thing that came to his mind.

"All right then, son." Mr. Tabootie said. "Let's get going."

"I'll make you the best meatloaf you've ever had. I promise." Mrs. Tabootie whispered.

Rudy smiled at this, trying one more time to look a bit strong. "Yeah... all right..."

Without another word, the family of three turned and walked away.

sss

"Are you sure you want to do this, Rudy?" Penny whispered softly. "You don't seem like you..."

Rudy nodded his head affirmatively. "It'll help get my mind off things."

Penny bit her lip. A part of her continued to debate whether or not this should be done. But at the same time, it did seem pretty cruel to snatch it away from him, especially when he seems so desperate right now to soothe his mind and calm down. After that bit of bad news...

Rudy hadn't actually visited ChalkZone since the day of the accident. It was difficult, with his parents watching him carefully, likely taking a note from her own mother. And the rare times that he did have a chance, he felt a little reluctant due to being reminded that he was now a 'blind artist in ChalkZone'. It sounded selfish and even Rudy admitted it. But Penny wasn't too upset with him. He was still trying to recover emotionally from what happened, not just physically.

Penny would feel bad about potentially causing Rudy to have another torrent of emotion hit him once he realizes that he can't see his friends. But she knew that Snap and the other zoners would be glad to see him again. They kept asking her questions, wanting to know when or if their dear friend would return. She had done her best to quell those answers. But after three long weeks, it was getting harder to placate them. A visit from Rudy may help things. Maybe it would even benefit Rudy more than it would potentially harm him.

"Okay then, Rudy. I'm sure we can head there now. Uh... If our parents are busy enough..." Penny's voice trailed off. That could be a potential problem.

Rudy waved his hand dismissively. "Don't worry about them. I'm sure your mom can keep them in the discussion for quite some time."

"Yeah, she does have a lot of things that she wanted to tell them." Penny admitted.

It was certainly true. Her mother did want to speak to Rudy's parents again today. She had been mostly avoiding them for weeks, most of her direct interaction being with Rudy. However, she did feel a level of guilt of the previous meeting not turning out as well as she wanted. She was going to try again and make her thoughts more clear and potentially help them out.

Based on what she had witnessed so far, she guessed that this would indeed go on for a while. Considering what was at stake, she was not really surprised. Normally, this would annoy her, but it did grant her and Rudy the chance to visit ChalkZone. But they still would have to keep the meeting brief. Rudy's parents were still not going to go on for hours without checking up on their son. She estimated fifteen minutes should be fine.

Without saying another word, Penny pulled out her piece of magic chalk. She stared at it for a moment, biting her lip. It had taken her a while to get used to using the magic chalk more frequently. Even though, there was still a slight sliver of uncomfortableness. She shrugged it off the best that she could and she went over towards the chalkboard.

Once the portal was created, the light flashing and the entrance opening up, she turned to Rudy. She noticed he had turned his head over to look in her general direction expectantly. It was still uncomfortable the way that Rudy's eyes no longer stared right at her. It was something that she didn't think that she could get used to.

Penny walked over and gently grabbed Rudy by his arm. She then guided him towards the portal. She held onto his shoulders for a moment to gesture him to hold still. Then she walked out in front and crawled through the portal. She turned around and she grabbed onto Rudy and pulled him forward. With a few whispered commands, she managed to get him through the portal...

...then he tripped. Rudy's foot snagged on the portal's edge and he ended up pushing against Penny. The two of them landed on the ground in a thud, the air forced out of their lungs. They groaned for a bit as they struggled back up to their feet.

"Bucko?! Is that you?!" A voice called out in the distance.

Rudy lifted up his head quickly. "Snap?"

It all happened so fast. Penny only just barely managed to get out of the way before Snap flew out of nowhere and tackled Rudy. She managed to see a blue blur but nothing else, then she heard a grunt. She turned her head and she could see Snap sitting on Rudy's back, holding onto him in a tight hug.

"Oh Rudy, I've missed you so much!" Snap shouted excitedly. Penny thought for sure that she could hear some choked sounds from Snap, indicating just how much emotion he was going through right now. "How are you? What's going on?"

Rudy let out a choked, "Y-You're choking me..."

Snap's eyes widened before looking down and seeing that his arms were wrapped around Rudy with a bit too much force. He smiled weakly before he quickly released him. "Sorry. I guess I got carried away."

"Can you please get off me, too?" Asked Rudy, his teeth clenching tightly.

"Oh! Sure!" Snap jumped off of Rudy before returning over to help him to his feet. His gloved hands held onto Rudy as he guided him off the ground and stabilized his balance. "So...how are you feeling?" Snap asked tentatively, motioning his head to try to look at Rudy in the eyes. "A-Any updates with..."

Rudy shook his head sadly and replied with a soft, solemn statement. "No. If Penny told you that I still can't see, that hasn't changed."

Penny watched as Snap's slightly hopeful expression dropped. She could feel her heart sting at this. It got even worse when Snap whispered, "Oh Bucko..."

Rudy remained silent for a moment. Then he offered Snap a smile. as reassuring as he could make it. Although it was clear that Rudy was still immensely worried overall. "I don't feel as much pain, though. That's something at least." Rudy put his hand against his face, moving it up and down slowly. "I can't tell you how much it hurt."

Snap bit his lip firmly. "I don't think I want to imagine it."

Penny nodded her head silently in agreement. It was uncomfortable enough to realize that Rudy was in that much pain. She didn't want to begin to think of the magnitude of pain he must have been in. The sight of his eyes and seeing how they still looked 'odd' from the damage reminded her of what happened and she could feel her teeth gritting tightly. She really didn't want to keep thinking about that, so she tried to shift the topic a little.

"Do you want to go visit the others, Rudy?" Penny spoke up as she moved in closer to her two friends. "I'm sure they'll be happy to see you, too."

"Yeah, come on!" Snap grabbed onto Rudy's arm. "Blocky's been itching to see you, as well as Biclops, and all the rest."

Rudy smiled softly. "Sure. I would love to."

Penny turned to Rudy, giving him a soft nudge. "Remember, we can only stay here a short while."

"Understood."

The three friends stood where they were for a few moments before they began to make their way further into ChalkZone. Snap led the way, keeping his hand on Rudy so the boy knew where to go. Penny kept up close behind, staying particularly close to Rudy.

As they continued further in, Penny began to wonder just what Snap had in mind in terms of where they were going. She didn't really ask where Blocky or the other zoners were. And that did begin to worry her. Was Snap going to... No, probably not. She shook her head, not wanting to believe it. Snap did hear her talking about not being much time, didn't he? Then again, she wasn't exactly vocal on how much time she was talking about.

Penny was about to say something to Snap when she took notice of something in the distance. Some kind of moving shape? No, more like a sea of it. Several moving figures. And they were all heading right towards them.

Penny immediately froze, stiffening up and her eyes widening. She felt herself staggering and falling behind. She stared at the multi-part moving mass, her mouth open and panting, her mind spinning slightly. It took a while before she realized what was going on. When she did, she let out a sigh of relief, her legs nearly wobbling to the point of dropping down.

It was a few zoners. Okay, a few was a bit of an understatement. No sign of Biclops just yet. Well he was in charge of the Chalk Mine of course. But still, there were a lot of other zoners coming over to meet up with them. Specifically, Rudy.

Blocky was one of them.

"Rudy!" The rectangular zoner cried out. His voice rang across the area, causing the trio to focus on him exclusively. "You're back! You're..."

"Stop!" Snap shouted, raising his hand up firmly. "Don't try to run us over or anything, okay?" Snap narrowed his eyes at Blocky. "He's already been through enough."

Blocky rumbled with his hands as he turned his gaze away. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to. I..." He slowly looked back at Snap, giving a weak smile. "I-Is everything all right? I mean, we haven't seen him in so long..." He turned his attention to Rudy, leaning in closely. "Rudy, are you..."

Snap moved between Rudy and Blocky. "Hey, don't rush things. He... He's still..." His voice trailed off.

Blocky gasped in horror. His body shook slightly as he looked from Snap to Rudy, back to Snap, then back to Rudy. He looked like he wanted to speak, but nothing would leave his mouth.

Rudy gave a small smile and let out a chuckle. "Hey, I'm okay." He said. But anyone who could hear him knew that something was up. It was clear that he was not happy about his current situation, something that didn't surprise anyone. "I missed you, too, Blocky. I missed all of you."

Penny watched this play out before looking over and seeing how fast the other zoners were approaching. She flinched at the sight of them. Yeah, it might be best to get a move on and greet them before they all got trampled. She stared on for a moment before she turned her head and called out to the others.

"Perhaps we should greet them?" Penny asked as she gestured her head to the side. "You know, to be friendly?"

"Couldn't said it better myself, Penny." Snap grabbed onto Rudy once more and started to guide him over. Blocky moved around at Rudy's other side and just hung by closely. "Okay you guys! Please don't..."

As Snap addressed the group, Penny hung back for a moment. She wanted to give the zoners some time to catch up with Rudy. She had spent so much time trying to cheer them up and help them feel better about the situation. But there was no one better to do that than Rudy. Even if he couldn't see, she doubted that he would allow that get in the way of him catching up with the zoners.

Penny smiled as she watched the scene play out before her. He was laughing a little, even if he was still largely quiet and reserved. The zoners were surprisingly well restrained. They held themselves back as they asked Rudy some questions, perhaps a little too quickly. Snap was doing his best to keep the zoners at bay and to prevent Rudy from being too overwhelmed.

This moment almost made her forget about their current problems. It almost made her forget about her previous anxiety. She could feel herself start to relax as she leaned up against a nearby tree and watch this lovely reunion. Rudy did really need this. He needed some peace.