Martin mostly seemed content to listen to Arthur talk, and watch Douglas as he bested him in word games. Douglas had offered to set up the computer for Martin so he could watch videos or surf the web, but Martin had declined.
Douglas suspected it was all a bit much for him at the moment.
Arthur didn't even notice that Martin's eyes had drifted shut, and that he'd fallen asleep, but just kept reading to him from the guidebook Carolyn had gotten him.
"I suppose I'm not going to see a polar bear," he noted glumly. "I guess you were right about that." He looked up from his book. "Skip?"
"He's sleeping Arthur," Carolyn told him.
"Oh," Arthur sighed, looking crestfallen.
"Come on Arthur," Douglas yawned, standing up and stretching. "Your mother can stay here with Martin for a while. I think I'll take a shower and wash my clothes, and you can help me."
"Brilliant! I love helping."
"I know you do," Douglas said wryly. "And I assume you're alright with this plan?" he asked Carolyn, who nodded and waved them off.
"So, how are you taking all of this Arthur?" Douglas asked conversationally, waiting for the elevator.
"Well," Arthur began, stepping in and pushing the button, "I don't like it when Skip's sick. Especially this sick. And I thought when you picked him up like a baby that he was going to die, and then my heart did funny twisting things. And I think I made mum mad, cause I kept pacing around when we were waiting, and she sent me to get Martin something from the little shop, and I didn't really want to go, because maybe you'd come out and tell us something, or we'd get to go see him."
Douglas nodded as they stepped out of the elevator.
Arthur continued. "And I don't like how he can't talk. He looks a bit like an alien, except not as cool, because it's real. And it's scary." Arthur frowned. "He's not going to die, is he Douglas? I mean, he's getting better, right?"
"He is getting better," Douglas said carefully, leading Arthur to the exit.
"So he's not gonna die?" Arthur asked, perking up.
"Well," Douglas hedged. "I can't say that. I mean, any of us can die at any time, which you know."
"Yeah," Arthur sighed.
Douglas led Arthur across the street and into the hotel without saying anything else.
Arthur indeed loved helping, more than any almost 30 year old man should with doing another man's laundry.
And yet he chattered away about Martin and giraffes that love giraffes and something else Douglas couldn't even decipher, despite his best efforts. (Really.)
Then he entertained himself by trying to fold Douglas' shirt into an origami towel animal, which he failed miserably at, while Douglas was in the shower.
He came out to see his shirt tied in a know that looked vaguely like some sort of bird, but Arthur protested was supposed to be an alligator.
Douglas smiled and nodded.