A/n) Hello Everybody! Hope everyone isn't going stir crazy. Quarantine is kinda peaceful though. Hope everyone's doing well and are healthy. You know, with all this stay home stuff you'd think one would have more time to update right?
Seriously... it's like I've become more busy inside my own house... who knew I had so many things to do. ;P
Anyway, hope you enjoy this chapter, it's kind of cute in a depreasing sort of way.
Motivation is your Superpower.
Have fun!
He can't sleep.
Every time he closes his eyes, Mitch's screams echo in his ears and his twisted greying face flashes in his brain and - and Boomer can't sleep. He tosses and turns and he doesn't know for how long he stays up until he's pretty sure it's almost sunrise.
He ends up staring up at the rusting metal beams over his cot in the dark. Butch snores in a corner, Brick is silent - could mean he's asleep or he's not.
Boomer doesn't want to find out. But he's exhausted - and not the kind that can be cured by sleeping. He throws off his scratchy covers and tip toes outside, maybe an open space will make him feel less suffocated in his anxiety and fear.
He takes in a deep smog filled breath and coughs it out. It's almost sunrise - he could barely tell but the clouds were greying from black which is usually a sign of that.
He sighs tiredly and rubs at his head of messy blond hair, probably making it look worse. Who cares? He doesn't. Boomer just wants to find one good thing to think about -other than the fact that his brothers are okay.
He lets his feet wander, hands in his sad hole-ridden pockets. There's a wind - acrid and stale but . . . it's still there.
He vaguely remembers when it used to be warm and smelled like - like - flowers. Yah - Flowers. Boomer wishes he could see flowers again. They were pretty and blurry in his memories. Vague shapes and color blurred together to form something that had been alive once. Like the trees.
And animals and - and people.
He swallows hair rustling over his forehead.
"Boomer?"
He almost shrieks like a girl but just manages to clamp it down with a sharp gasp that he chokes on as he spins around to see Bubbles. Good grief - how does she keep sneaking up on him like this? He really needs to pay more attention to his surroundings. Seriously.
"I- I'm sorry, I'm sorry I didn't mean to - " She gives him a sudden watery eyed look, eyes, the color of an almost fictitious sky, wobble behind clear tears, so does her bottom lip.
Boomer swallows his dryness down and reaches a hand for her. "Hey - hey what's wr- " Stupid question. "D - don't cry Bubbles." He says instead, awkwardly as she sniffles and buries her face in her hands, turning away from him.
Boomer suddenly feels stupid and uncomfortable and - why can't he do this?
"Bubbles?"
"I - I'm sorry." She says again, he doesn't know what she's sorry for - maybe it's not even directed at him anymore.
He stands there miserably, scratching his calf with the toe of his opposite foot. Oh forget this.
He reaches forward and gingerly hugs her slowly. Terrified to death that she'll pull away or kill him maybe? Nah - not her... her sister though. He absently searches the area for Buttercup.
She's not here.
No one is here.
Bubbles turns into him easily, her fingers grip his shirt and Boomer wonders if it's possible to die from an over beating heart. Also - can she hear it? Because . . . because he hopes she can't -
Um - help?
"It's okay Bubbles. Please stop crying. Please?" He's terrible at this, but he pats her back comfortingly anyway as she sniffs into his shirt and he's pretty sure more than tears are wetting it now.
"I'm sorry." She repeats again and again until she finally stops and Boomer thinks his muscles are so stiff he's not sure he'll be able to move ever again.
"Why are you out here?" She sniffs, pulling back a little to look at him with wide water rimmed eyes.
"Um - couldn't sleep because - "His mind flashes the unpleasant pictures again. "Well, you know."
She nods, completely understanding. "Me too."
It makes him feel a little special.
Until he realizes they're starting at each other in a close proximity that is incredibly silent and utterly awkward and - he's frozen. He doesn't know what to say. What to do? Move away? Let her go? No - what if she thinks he's rude, or - or mean or starts crying again or -
"Come with me for a minute." She says quietly, face lightly pink as she takes his hand and pulls him towards the Haven's inner walls.
Boomer decides, smartly, to keep his mouth shut lest he say something to make everything even more awkward than he already thinks it is.
Bubbles leads him around the wall towards a spot where crates and equipment and odds n' ends are stacked up relatively high. Boomer wonders what she wants here. Until the pretty girl reaches up and hoists herself on top of the first layer of crates.
"Um - Bubbles?"
She turns and smiles at him, he's not going to lie - that smile literally melts him into an unexplainable pile of goo. "C'mon Boomer - before it's over."
"Before what's over?" He reaches up and follows her climbing pattern anyway. Why are they scaling the wall? The nice, large, sturdy wall that was keeping them safe?
"Hurry." She urges and sits at the top easily, bending over and reaching for his hand which he gives her for a little extra help. He climbs and sits next to her, blowing a breath out that makes his bangs flutter up.
"What's- " He stops.
Below them was nothing but broken buildings and cracked sidewalks and bare patches of waste but it was further down - they were so high up - almost like inside a bowl, high enough to reach above the first thin layer of smog to see -
The sun?
The clouds and smog were greying from black, and the dim flickers of color were peeking between and around. Boomer's never really looked at it to just look before. The grey was outlined by piercing red lines as the orb slowly steadily made its way up from it's nightly hiding spot.
Some white rays beamed through and made the gloomy smog glitter almost silver under it's brightness.
"Wow." He whispers, blue eyes nearly opaque as the light and greyness swirled in them.
"You know - for all the bad things that have happened to so many we love - the one thing that never fails on this earth - the sun comes up." Bubbles says gently next to him, her eyes stuck on the view in front of them. "The sun always comes up - and I think - I think that's what we should be like. We have to go down too - but we should always, always, come back up."
Boomer nods silently. His heart feels steady now as he lets his legs swing over the dangerous edge of the wall. He feels something soft on top of his hands and he looks down to find Bubbles' hand resting on his, he glances up at her and she gives him her smile only smaller but just as warm and maybe as shy as he was.
Boomer smiles back. "Thanks Bubbles - thanks for showing me this."
She nods, "Just remember - be like the sun."
Or like you - but he doesn't say that out loud as she turns her eyes back to the sky. He does too and smiles at it - maybe things don't have to be so bad all the time.
He doesn't know how long they stayed up there but it was longer than it took for the sun to rise.
Maybe too long.
Because as they climb down the debris together a loud deafening siren startles Bubbles into losing her footing just as Boomer gets to the bottom. She squeaks and he gasps, instantly opening his arms right before she lands in them. He locks them around her automatically and they both gape at the running people, some half dresses, some in the middle of their morning routines, all with wide terrified frantic looks on their faces as they all run towards the middle of the Haven.
"What's - "
Bubbles gasps - "Something's wrong!" She scrambles out of his grip and runs towards the others Boomer follows close behind.
"Excuse me, sorry - pardon - excuse me - " Bubbles squeaks around people as they nudge their way to the center.
Professor is standing there with a tight circle of men, all carrying heavy weapons in their hands, pointed at whatever was wrong. Boomer heart freezes at the familiar mop of brown hair that is attached to the hanging head of the heaving body on the ground.
"What the - " Butch's rough hand scares Boomer into almost squeaking when he drops it heavily on the blond boys unsuspecting shoulder. Seriously - get a grip Boomer, he mutters so himself.
"What's happening?" Butch asks, voice rough and crackly, because his throat is obviously dry, hair a thick mess and eyes a hard green as they narrow at the body in front to Professor. Everyone whispers around.
"Shoot it!" Someone panics, others agree,.
"Wait!" Buttercups voice breaks the unsettled buzzing as she elbows her way through the crowd. "Professor - wait!"
Boomer colors at the girls very minimal state of dress, her hair looks awful and as crazy as she was, her clothes consisted of a huge white shirt that reaches above her knees - that's it.
Boomer thinks maybe she forgot the rest of them in a hurry.
The girl doesn't seem to care about her lack of covering or the gawking people as she walks towards the surrounded body.
She walks slower, feet taking agonizingly slow steps as if she approaching something dangerous - which she probably was!
Don't, don't, don't - Boomer repeats in his head in time with his exploding heart.
The girl pushes a gun away and crouches down. "M - mitch?"
Boomer stops breathing.
So do everyone else.
The body rasps and stretches out, suddenly, reaching for Buttercup, then it lifts its head and hisses viciously, gaudy yellow eyes almost glowing unsettlingly.
It swipes at her. Buttercup dodges, snatches the wrist and deftly flips it over, twisting the arm behind its back as it groans.
Everyone gasps.
Boomer swallows thickly, Butch's grip on his shoulder is so tight he thinks he might break his the bone.
"Professor! Professor it's Mitch - " Buttercup gasps in disbelief and almost tears up as the boy struggles under her, howling incoherent words and sounds and -
Boomer doesn't think its Mitch.
"It's a Zombie!" Someone shouts.
"Kill It!"
"No!" Robin gasps as she falls through the crowd, "No - Buttercup look - his skin is - it's –"
Boomer looks harder.
"Normal - " Professor says in awe - "But that's impossible - " He mutters more to himself than anything.
Everyone starts muttering to themselves in confusion.
"Did the cure work?"
"Is he really not dead?"
"This has to be a lie - "
"What's happening?"
Boomer's head is spinning.
Mitch groans pathetically from his face plant in the hard dusty ground.
"Quickly - " Professor snaps out of his stunned phase first. "Subdue the boy - we need to figure out what's happened - "
The crowd backs away as the more trained members of the Haven start to restrain the limbs of this - Mitch?
Robin's crying, Bubbles rushes to her side and hugs her, tears streaming down her own face, Buttercup looks utterly confused and sort of like someone punched her in the head. Butch's grip is gone and Boomer realizes that the weight of his brothers hand was what was holding him down and steady - now he feels as if he's going to float away with his head.
"Butter - " Butch starts and never finishes when the girl launches herself at him and clings to him like he's some kind of tree, burying her face in his shoulder. Hiding her actual expression.
Boomer blinks, nobody seems to notice this display of - something - all too busy in a whirlwind of people and ropes and Mitch screaming and the fact that his eyes are still a sickly yellow and - Boomer doesn't know what their thinking really.
He glances back over to his brother and Buttercup. Butch is busy waddling away from prying eyes - Boomer thinks the girl is crying. His heart is still in his ears, he turns around and around - utterly confused -
"What happened to Al and Pledge then?"
Boomer gasps - gosh - this is the third time today and it's not even the afternoon yet!
"Um - Hi Blossom?" Boomer gives the perfectly prim red head a curious look - her hair was perfect - but she was still in her sleeping clothes.
"Hello" She replies, unruffled by his startled expression, "- did Al and Pledge come through too?" She asks him, eyes searching the moving mob.
"Didn't see them." Brick's tone is stiff when he comes up behind Boomer who wishes he could just die from how many times people are scaring him today, he must be edgy from last night.
Blossom's pretty face puckers into a thoughtful frown as she casts a worried look towards the gates. "I think I need to speak to Professor." With that stated, she whirls around, her red hair like fire, and heads towards the infirmary lab tent place.
"Boomer?"
"Yah?" Boomer looks at his red eyed brother.
"Didn't sleep huh?"
The question was concerned and caught Boomer off guard. "No, not really." But that's not important. "How is Mitch alive and - not so Zombified?" He asks, not really expecting an answer.
Brick shakes his head. "This needs to be studied further to find out - but I suspect this is the effect of my blood and - whatever the Professor did. Not perfect but- "
Boomers heart skips a beat - his dark blue eyes widen as he stares at his oldest Brother. "You mean - "
Brick nods, lips tightening into a grim line. "We may be heading in a good direction for finding a cure."
An startled scream rips from the infirmary tent behind them.
Sorry for the cliff . . . I wasn't sure where to end this one.
Excuse me now - I have to go clean out my freezer ;)