(Beastboy's POV)
When I had woken up Danny had still been sleeping peacefully. I had quietly left the room and was now sitting in the kitchen, pouring soy milk into a bowl of cereal. Raven floated in and began making tea. She paused and turned to me.
"You look terrible."
"Yeah, I didn't sleep much last night." I pushed away my cereal and placed my chin on the table.
I didn't think that I would be able to sleep at all last night. I was so worried that Danny was going to have another nightmare that I hadn't been able to relax. I was just waiting for him to start screaming again. My eyes would shoot open and I would be ready to jump up and slap him again, if needed, every time I heard him move. I had even been listening to his breathing for signs of… I don't know... something.
Starfire then flew into the room and began pulling things out of the fridge.
"What a glorious morning! I shall make our new friend a traditional Tamaranian welcome breakfast!"
"Sorry Star," Cyborg said walking in. "He still won't be able to handle much, I'll be making him breakfast."
"Oh."
Star's disappointment was obvious, her smile fell and she dropped out of the air onto the floor.
"Here, you can cut him an apple," Cyborg said, handing her a small red apple.
"Alright!" Starfire then perked up and began searching for the kitchen knife.
Sluggishly, Robin stumbled in, plopped down, and let out a huge yawn.
"I spent half the night searching for something on Danny. "
We all paused and turned to Robin.
"What did you find?" I asked hopefully. Though judging from his tone of voice I already knew the answer.
"Nothing! Not a single thing! There isn't even a single missing person called Danny!"
"Maybe Danny isn't even his name," Cyborg suggested with a shrug.
"That's what I was thinking. So I took a picture of him from our security cameras and ran it through a face match program and still didn't find anything. No social media, no class photos, nothing!" Robin sounded exasperated.
"Well he probably looks a lot different than what he use to," Raven pointed out. "Or maybe he never had access to those kind of things. Who knows how long he's been on the streets."
" I hadn't really considered that," Robin admitted. " It just bothers me that we know next to nothing about this kid! Who is he? Where did he come from? What happened to him? Why is he so scared?" Robin threw his hands up. "These questions are eating me alive!"
"We just have to be patient. It's not like he's going to just instantly trust us and spill his guts overnight." Cyborg remarked as he stirred a pot.
Robin let out an annoyed huff. " I know, I know. It's just frustrating. I'm not sure how to go about helping him.
"Robin," Star said gently. "For now I think that just doing what you can and desiring to help him is enough."
Robin looked up and smiled at Star. At that moment the alarm began blaring and everything started flashing an angry red.
"Titans go!" Robin shouted and everyone jumped up.
"What about friend Danny?" Starfire asked.
"I'll stay!" I volunteered eagerly.
Robin nodded and the rest of the Titans ran (or flew) out of the room. Cyborg lingered for a second. He removed the pot from the stove and handed me a small packet.
"Stir this in." After that, Cyborg ran out after our friends.
Yes! Now I get Danny all to myself! I examined the pot that Cyborg had left. Yuck, plain oatmeal. Oh well, I could fix this. I pulled a few things out and set them on the counter, then retrieved the apple Star had been slicing. Instead of cutting it into wedges she had cut them into strange, tiny squares. Oh well, I could work with that.
I ripped open the packet of vitamin powder, added some brown sugar and stirred it in. I put the oatmeal into a bowl and then threw the apple squares on top. To finish it I sprinkled cinnamon over the top. Oh yeah! Who's an awesome cook! It's Beastboy! I continued my victory dance all the way to the infirmary.
"Danny! I hope you're hungry!"
When I walked in I discovered Danny tossing and turning in bed. It wasn't as bad as last night but he was pale and sweaty. I set the tray down and hurried to his side when he began whimpering.
"Danny… wake up!' I called carefully, afraid to startle him into a frenzy.
He didn't respond at first. So I reached out and put a hand on his shoulder. His eyes popped open and he shot up out of bed.
"AHHHHHhhhhhh…?"
Confused, Danny took in his surroundings with wide eyes, he looked at me, then at his hands. He opened and closed them and turned them over.
"It's okay, it's just a dream." I comforted softly.
In response he shook his head and buried it into his hands. A small sob escaped his lips.
Maybe it wasn't just a dream. Maybe...maybe it was a memory. I stood next to the bed, unsure of what to do.
'"I-it's okay. You're safe here," I tried to reassure him. I stood there awkwardly for a few moments until he calmed down. He took several deep breaths and looked up at me shyly. He didn't look me in the eye and he seemed embarrassed. He shifted and took in a sharp breath.
"Mrhhgg," he groaned and put a hand to his side.
"Oh! Right! Here! try to eat something."
I set the tray down next to him and pulled out a bottle of pills from the cabinet. I took out two, just like Raven instructed, and offered them to Danny.
"These will help."
He looked at them warily and didn't move to accept them.
"It's okay, they're not going to bite. They'll help the pain, but you'll need to eat some food with it."
I watched carefully as he slowly took three bites of food and then took the pills. After that he took one more bite and then put his spoon down. The entire time he kept his eyes down. We sat there in uncomfortable silence for a few moments.
"Are you done with that?" Keeping his head down he nodded and fiddled with the blankets.
"Are you sure?"
He nodded quickly. I sighed, my culinary masterpiece had hardly been touched. But then who really likes oatmeal. If I'm gonna get Danny to eat I would have to step it up.
I took his tray from him and placed it on the counter. I came back and plopped down next to his bed, though not too close. I was constantly reminding myself to give him his space.
"So…. Is there something you want to do?"
In response his head snapped up and he looked at me with wide eyes, as if I had just told him he had suddenly grown a third eye or something. After a second he let his head drop and he stared at his lap. I thought maybe he was thinking it over but he never answered me.
Okay, so maybe that was a hard question. You usually don't feel like doing much of anything when you're sick. Let's see when Robin's sick he just tries to power through it. When Star's sick she eats squirming foods, yuck. I don't know what Raven does. When she's sick she locks herself in her room, but she's probably reading books and drinking tea or something. And when Cyborg and I are sick we usually- that's it! Of course! That's probably the answer!
"Hold on! I'll be right back!"
I snagged his tray and raced back to the kitchen, I let the tray clatter into the sink and rushed to the living room. I found what I was looking for and began to head back to the infirmary. When I was halfway there when the lights flickered and suddenly went out. I could hear the tower suddenly shut down.
Oh no.
Dread came over me. Fear gripped my heart and I dashed to the Infirmary. When I got there my worst fear was confirmed, Danny's bed was empty.
"NO! DANNY! DANNY!"
My heart was racing and I was beginning to panic. WHATDOIDOWHATDOIDO?! Where could he have gone? Was he taken? He was still hurt! Did he leave?
A cough caught my attention and I spun around to find Danny slumped against the wall with one hand to his side. The lights chose that moment to flicker back on. Relief flooded my entire body.
"DUDE! Don't do that to me!"
He flinched, "S-s-sorry," he whispered meeting my eyes briefly.
I frowned and asked in a gentler tone, "What are you doing out of bed?"
He didn't answer right away. His nervousness increasing, before he finally asked softly;
"Where's the bathroom?"
(Danny's POV)
One moment I had been struggling towards the bathroom and the next the lights had gone off and Beastboy had burst in shouting. I was having trouble focusing on anything. It felt kinda like I was trying to watch a 3D movie with sunglasses on.
"Here, let me help."
I leaned heavily on Beastboy as we crossed the room, the physical contact just barely registering. He showed me into the bathroom and I took my time and moved very slowly. The entire time I was very careful to avoid the mirror. I'm sure I was wreck, and I didn't really want to admit to myself how bad I had gotten. When I was done Beastboy gently helped me back to bed.
I slumped into it gratefully. I was so exhausted, just visiting the bathroom took a lot out of me. I let out a sigh and closed my eyes tightly in pain. The painkillers were starting to kick in and I was feeling slightly better, but it still felt like my brain was in a fog.
Beastboy reappeared in front of me, excitingly holding up several dvds.
"Okay! Time for a mega movie marathon! I've got Wake the Dead, These Funny Bones, Breakdance my Heart, and the complete Duke of the Anklet quadrilogy! So what will it be?"
I was vaguely aware that Beastboy was talking to me, but I had no idea what he was saying. It didn't make any sense. After a moment I shrugged, hoping that was a somewhat decent answer.
"Okay then! I'll choose!"
(Beastboy's POV)
We were half way through our third movie and Danny had fallen asleep. He had been staring at the screen I had pulled out of the ceiling with a confused look the entire time. I don't think it was really entertaining him, but hey, it was better than nothing. When I had asked him what movie he wanted he had made eye contact for a whole minute before answering.
"BOO YAH! " We kicked evil villain butt today! You should have seen it BB! We-"
I jumped up and put a finger to my lips and franticly jerked my head towards Danny. Cyborg froze, and we both watched Danny nervously for some kind of reaction. He didn't even stir. Even when he was sleeping he looked exhausted.
"Sorry." Cyborg whispered. "How is he?"
"He barely ate anything and was totally out of it today. Will he be okay?"
"Yeah, he's just tired. Hopefully the pain meds will help him get a better sleep. He needs to try to eat something. We might have to wake him up."
I winced and looked at his worn body.
"Do we have to?"
"Yeah. He'll never get any better if we don't get any food into him." Cyborg moved to wake Danny.
"Uh, wait! I'll do it."
"Are you sure?"
"Yeah."
I moved toward Danny and stood a bit away.
"Danny," I called softly. "Danny you need to wake up."
No response.
"Danny, Danny, wake up."
Nothing. I glanced at Cyborg.
"Do we really have to?" I questioned sadly.
"Yeah, he won't get any better unless he eats. He desperately needs it."
"Danny, Danny! wake up."
Still nothing. I moved closer and gently shook his shoulder.
"AHHH!" His eyes shot open and he kicked himself against the wall. He gasped and put a hand protectively over his side and then let out a moan.
"Oh good, you're up. Heh." I smiled at him sadly.
His eyes met mine briefly and he relaxed slightly.
"Sorry to wake you Danny, but you need to eat something." Cyborg explained softly. "Is there anything you would like to eat?"
Danny was trembling slightly and he kept his gaze directed down. After a moment he slowly shook his head.
"Well I'm going to go to the kitchen and come back with some food and you should try to nibble on it. Okay?"
Danny didn't respond and was gripping a pillow like it was a life line.
Cyborg gave me a shrug and left the room.
When Cyborg was gone Danny relaxed a bit more and loosened his grip on the pillow.
Wait. Was Danny afraid of Cyborg?! Well I guess he was afraid of everything, but come on! Cyborg is awesome! You couldn't find a better friend than him. He's caring, and smart, and funny! What's there to be afraid of?
Cyborg returned holding a tray with crackers, some rolled up meat slices, grapes, and a glass of juice.
"Okay, I brought you some different things. Please try to eat some of it." Cyborg requested softly as he placed the tray next to Danny.
Poor Danny took two tentative bites of food under Cyborg's watchful eye.
(Danny's POV)
The food was tasteless to me and I didn't have an appetite at all. Especially with Cyborg staring at me like that. Like he was making sure I ate while trying to figuring me out. My nervousness spiked and my stomach churned. I shakily put down my half eaten craker. Sighing, Cyborg stood up and I flinched back and watched him warily. He gave me an odd look as he turned toward the cabinet and pulled out a bottle. He came back and offered me two pills. I didn't move to take them. After a moment he placed them on the tray.
"Take these," he instructed.
Pain pills. When I was back… there. They never gave me anything like this. They didn't care if I was in pain or not. If I was hungry or comfortable. I shuddered, this experience with these humans was very different. I wasn't quite sure how to handle it.
I took the pills and look up carefully at the half robot.
"T-thanks." I whispered hoarsely.
Cyborg blinked back at me with surprise written on his face, which slowly melted into a soft smile. "You're welcome."
Author's Comments
Seriously?! Over a hundred followers! I can't believe it! Thank you guys so much! BIG thanks to everyone who commented and PMed me! Your words meant so much to me! Thank you!
The reason I haven't updated recently because of this horrible monster called Writer's Block. Don't worry! I am working on fighting him! It took me awhile to write this chapter. I rewrote it at least three times. I've still hit a wall but I do have some ideas for the next chapter. If you guys have any ideas or suggestions please tell me! Even if I don't use them they help the ideas flow!