Chapter 3

The first thing he noticed was the bed. The mattress was much softer, the blankets not so scratchy. Robbie gave a sigh of relief and tried to turn over onto his side, only to feel a stab of pain shoot through him and firm pressure keeping him locked in place. Opening his eyes, he blinked at the bright whiteness above him. Not at home, then. Why do I hurt so much? This isn't the hospital…Grimacing with the pain lancing through him with each breath, he raised his head slightly to get a look around. He seemed to be strapped securely to a small white bed in a room that seemed oddly familiar…

Oh no. No, no, no. That elf has gone and kidnapped me! Robbie's eye widened in panic and he struggled to break free from his bindings before sinking back into the bed with a gasp. Whatever Sportakook had done to him, he wasn't going to be able to get out of it anytime soon. Giving his good arm another irritable jerk, Robbie glared at nothing in particular and tried to remember how he'd arrived in his present situation.

I was up here trying to sabotage this flying monstrosity. I remember…falling…and something about a hospital. If it were physically possible to move any less at that point, Robbie would have stilled at the resurgence of his memories. I didn't. Someone please tell me I didn't act like a smitten fool in front of Sportakook. Robbie snarled silently to himself before a thought occurred. Wait a minute. Even if that did happen, since when would that idiot be observant enough to notice? He wouldn't even know what it meant if he did! Besides, it was probably all the medicine talking anyways.

Satisfied with this reasoning, the villain opened his eyes once more to figure out an escape plan when a sound made his heart speed up. Isn't that the sound of the entrance panel? More noises followed, and with a soft whoosh of moving air the hero himself appeared, leaning over the bedside with a cheerful smile.

"Ah, Robbie! You're finally awake! I was beginning to get worried that the doctors were right," Sportacus beamed as he sat down on the mattress beside him, much to Robbie's chagrin. "How are you feeling?"

"Horrible, thanks to you! What did you do to me? Untie me at once!" Robbie's mortification only increased when Sportacus leaned over further and pinned him effortlessly with his arms in an attempt to stop his thrashing. "What are you doing? Get off!"

"Robbie, calm down. You were hurt really bad, and the doctors would only let me take you out of the hospital if I agreed to take care of you and make you stay still. You can't move too much or they said the bones won't set right! Besides, it hurts to move when they're broken."

"Tell me something I don't know!" Robbie hissed, his face contorting in pain as his chest burned in protest.

Sportacus's face softened. "Oh…the pain medicine. I forgot. Hold on one moment!" The air was filled with soft swishing as Sportacus rolled and bounced off to some compartment and back again, returning with a handful of little bottles and a brightly colored canteen.

Robbie eyed the containers dubiously. "I don't like the look of that stuff. Doctors never prescribe anything except things I usually find revolting."

Sportacus crossed his arms stubbornly. "Well, you have to take these. You'll hurt all the time otherwise, and we can't have that, can we?" Sitting back down on the small wall-bed, Sportacus gave the bottles a little shake as his eyes crinkled in amusement. Taking the bottles and carefully reading the instructions scrawled on each, he counted off the recommended number of small white tablet before untying a few of the cord and sliding one hand behind Robbie's head, lifting him gently into a sitting position.

"You have got to be kidding me!" Robbie spluttered, flushing and trying to pull away before clutching at his ribs and sinking back into the support once more. A resigned look slid across his features briefly before he settled on giving Sportacus a half-hearted glare. "Fine. I'll take the stupid pills. It looks like I'm stuck here for the moment…but you try anything and you'll regret it, Sportakook!"

Sportacus only chuckled and held out the handful of pills. Fuming, Robbie popped the offending tablets into his mouth and accepted the canteen from the blue hero, making a huge fuss through it all. Sportacus's smile never wavered and, after he had lowered Robbie back to the mattress and secured the ties, he leaned over and gave him a surprisingly tender kiss on his forehead.

Robbie stared at him in shock for a few moments. "W-what was that for?" he whispered, forgetting to be outraged.

Sportacus bounced back to his feet. "The kids were telling me that their parents do that when they're sick to help them feel better. I'm not sure how it works, really, but I thought it was worth a try." He was cut off abruptly when his crystal began blinking. "Oh, someone's in trouble! I have to go. Get some sleep Robbie, and try not to get into any trouble while I'm gone!"

With that, Sportacus scurried down the ladder and was gone. Robbie stared sullenly at the portal before closing his eyes with a disgusted snort. Stupid elf. He's even more naïve than I took him for, it seems. The memory of Sportacus's lips brushing his forehead filled his head without warning, replaying itself despite his attempts to banish the scene from his mind. What do I care? I don't care. Not in the slightest. Not about that, and not about that…thing. I just have to play along with that sports fanatic's little game until he decides to let me go.

As the medicine began to set in, Robbie drifted further towards slumber. His mind pleasantly fogged, he no longer cared when his mind again returned to the scene that had played itself out only moments ago. A delicate blush traced his cheeks as the drugs did their work, and the last thing he felt was a ghostly pressure upon his brow before he surrendered to his body's exhaustion.