Chapter 3- How long does a Philly Cheese Steak Take?

Kiva sat there and blinked her eyes. How did he come to so fast? Did the doctor not say a few hours? He tried to sit up and moaned, going back down quickly. Why move when the bed was lumpy? Don't answer that.

"My head feels like the Glorft invaded it," Jamie said to her, still not realizing her hand. It was almost like an anchor, allowing him to know that he was alive and well. He was alive. He wasn't dead. This was great. Not only that, but he had a female besides his mom holding his hand. Life didn't get any better.

"You slipped on some oil and hit your head real hard. I was, well, um, I suppose afraid you had done serious damage," she said, slowly releasing pressure from her grip on his hand. She wanted to let go. Why was it so hard? Why couldn't he just let go? Why did he have to make her want to hold on for a bit more?

"That would explain a lot. Where is Coop?" he said, slowly twisting his head to look at her directly. It hurt, but it was worth it. Anything was worth it.

"He went to go and get some food. He had been here since the beginning and just needed to step out," she said. Her throat was going dry. Why was this happening? Where was Coop? How long does a Philly Cheese Steak take?

"Oh. He doesn't like hospitals all that much," he said now finally feeling her discomfort. He let's go of her hand and looks almost dejected. She slowly put her hand back to her lap, now unsure of the move she made. Her hand felt cold and empty now. Why couldn't she just make up her mind? Was it that hard to do?

Meanwhile, Coop was a block over at a Philly Cheese Steak, sitting down with his favorite food, but not eating it. Why did he allow his friend to go up while he stayed down there? It could have been prevented. Everything had been wacky since he returned, and it was he fault practically for telling them.

While Coop didn't like hospitals, he also wanted to leave Kiva there by herself for a moment. He knew that the woman was a bit unsure and thought the thinking time might be useful. Video games were his release, while thinking was a normal person. But did it really matter? As long as she got all this figured out, it would make him happy.

Not as if Jamie would wake up anyway. He was out for a bit. His friend was about as clueless as one of those girlie's that came here to look for him a while ago. Both Kiva and Jamie would figure this all out soon though…hopefully.

He had yet to find out if Kiva had seen all the weird updates the mech had. She had been pretty frustrated with herself when she couldn't use the phone. She kept pressing the wrong numbers and then the hang up button in the middle of each number, then when they did get a hold of 911 operator, he had to show her which end to speak into and which end to listen from. It was funny, but at that point, neither knew how much longer their friend had to live, so Coop made nothing of it.

He took a bite and looked around as he chewed. Everyone seemed to be happy leading normal lives. He wouldn't know what to do without all the hustle and bustle of having Megas around. But it wouldn't be okay if Jamie weren't okay. Who would ride shotgun? Who would get on the bad guy's nerves as an after thought? Who would get them in trouble half the time?

He supposed that he should be heading back to the hospital really soon. He left Kiva there so that she could be alone and think by herself. He could almost feel that she was really confused, even if he was one of the densest people around. She didn't know what to do around Jamie anymore, and it wasn't just with recent events. It had been since that creepy space pirate dude who wanted to marry her. It was like she realized that she wanted something more then fighting in life. He couldn't blame her, of course.

As he finished his cheese steak, he walked out of the corner store and began back, ready to face whatever the doctors had for him. It couldn't be that bad, could it? Or at least he hoped…

Kiva saw his dejection and felt her own stab of pain in her chest. What was wrong with her? Her mind was racing, but not as fast as her heart, her palms were now almost sweaty. She bit the inside of her lip, thinking of a way out so she could calm down.

"I'll be right back. I have to get a drink," she said, standing with a soft smile and leaving quickly.

Jamie looked at her like she was up something, but left it. He was a bit baffled as to why she was so uptight, so un-Kiva like. But then again, he was just very un-Jamie like.

He actually held her hand, and didn't take advantage of it. It was as though he respected her. He smiled, looking at his hand, closing his fingers into a fist. Why did he feel so warm all over although he just works up from being practically numb? He didn't want anything to ruin this feeling; it was amazing, just great.

As Kiva walked down the hall, a million and one thought rushed through her mind. Was she falling in love with Jamie? She was looking at the ground, not paying attention when she ran into Coop.

She bumped back and it snapped her out of her dream world. She looked up and saw the large man looking down at her, a questioning expression on his face. She stepped back so she wouldn't have to look directly up at him and gave him a weak smile.

"He is awake, Coop," she said.

"Wow, that was faster then expected. Not even a full Philly cheese steak down and he is up. Wow," he began and ended with, unsure of what to say. She still seemed a bit unsure. Oh well, he was sure that she would work it out.

"Yeah, well, I am just going to go and get a drink," she said, walking past him briskly.
Coop just watched her, a bit unsure and a bit confused on what to do. He had to go and see Jamie anyway. That was what was important at the moment. He walked the way Kiva had just come from, trying to remember which room it was. He glanced briefly in each door, starting to feel sick to his stomach from the hospital smell. When he finally saw Jamie, lying there, still looking at his hand he walked in and looked at his friend. "Dude, are you delirious?"

"No. She was holding my hand Coop. And then she left," Jamie said, not moving at all, mesmerized by his hand almost.

"I told you, but you didn't listen," Coop said, sitting down next to Jamie.

"I think I will just have to start listening then," he said, looking at Coop slowly.

NeoAthena: So what are you guys thinking so far? I know this isn't a big category yet, but I hope this story is cherished nonetheless.