Chapter 16: Home Again

Andros woke up and sat up when there was a knock on the door. "Who is it?" He asked.

"Karone," she replied.

"Come in."

Karone came in with a smile. "I brought you something to eat," she informed. Andros nodded his head slowly with a small smile.

"Thanks," he answered.

Karone set the tray down and she sat next to him on the bed. "How are you feeling?" She asked.

"Better," he replied.

Karone pushed his hair out of his face and Andros pushed her hand away. "Don't do that," he mumbled. Karone bit her lip.

"Sorry," she murmured.

"It's not that…my head hurts, the stitches are bothering me."

Karone pushed his hair back to look at the stitches on his head. "They seem okay," she assured him. Andros shook his head.

"It's just a headache," he answered.

"Why don't you try eating something?"

"I'm not very hungry."

"You have to eat."

"Karone…I'm not hungry okay?"

She nodded her head slowly. "Okay," she answered. She got up to take care of some things in the room. Since Andros wasn't allowed to get up until his rib was healed.

"Karone, I'm sorry," he apologized.

"It's okay," she assured him.

Andros rubbed the back of his neck. "Andros, you never spoke about what happened," she pointed out. Andros felt his throat tighten at her words. "But the other doctor who take care of you before we left the hospital told us that talking about it helps," she added.

"Karone, I don't want to talk about it," he answered.

"Andros…I'm not saying you have to do it at this very moment, but you have to sometime."

"No, I don't."

Karone sighed and leaned against the wall. "It's been almost a month," she commented. Andros leaned back against the headboard.

"Yeah? I've been Divatox's sex slave and Darkonda's punching bag for four months. I think I need just a little more time," he answered.

"Okay."

Karone turned to leave. "Karone," he called out quietly. Karone stopped and looked at him. "I do have to tell you something though," he added. She walked over and sat next to him.

"What is it?" She asked.

Andros let out a sigh. "While I was being held captive…I had…these dreams," he replied. She gave hi ma quizzical look.

"You mean like nightmares?" She asked.

"No…I dreamt about this gorgeous girl."

"Really?"

Andros nodded. "Yes. She had shoulder-length light brown hair, beautiful brown eyes, a smile that made my heart skip a beat. She looked too real to be a dream," he explained. Karone sighed.

"They were only dreams," she answered.

She stroked his striped hair with a sigh. "Dreams have a way of playing mean tricks on us," she stated. Andros sighed and rubbed his forehead.

"You're right…they're only dreams," he agreed.

Karone kissed his temple before standing up. "Get some rest," she told him. Andros nodded and watched her go. Andros played with his breakfast and let out a sigh. He looked down at his wrists to see the scars from the shackles staring back at him. He bit his tongue and swallowed a sob that threatened to escape his mouth.

"I'm not weak…I'm not weak…" he told himself.

"You're weak…you pathetic fool. You call yourself a Ranger," Divatox had said to him.

Andros placed his hands on the sides of his head and rocked back and forth slightly. "Leave me alone…I'm free from her…why can you just leave me alone?" He mumbled. The tears continued to make their way down his face. He felt like a helpless child. He just lied back down and waited for sleep to claim him again. He wanted to go back to his dreams, dreaming of the most beautiful girl in the universe.

(Andros's Dream)

Andros was walking around a hallway. "You go in here," a voice informed. Andros was about to answer when he was suddenly knocked over. He hit the ground hard.

"Andros! Are you okay?" Karone asked.

"Yeah, I'm fine," he replied.

"I'm so sorry," the person informed.

Andros sat up and his eyes widened when he saw the most beautiful girl in the universe in front of him gathering her things that she dropped. "Are you okay?" He asked. She looked at him and a shy smile came across her face.

"Yeah, I'm fine," she replied.

(End Dream)

Karone looked into the room to find her brother fast asleep again. She walked over and stroked his face. A small smile came across her face and she kissed his forehead. "It's good to have you home though big brother," she murmured. She turned and left him alone to get some sleep.