Chapter 10: Movie

You didn't tell her, a small voice in his head said angrily. I'll tell her later, he told it, she's not ready for it yet. He watched as the rest of the team came in, seeing her for the first time awake since the mission. Ace had called them in, but warned them to go easy on her. The command was made mostly for Duck, who was still upset about his toy.

She got gentle hugs and pats, and Duck even managed to give her a sympathetic glance. She seemed happy enough, but Ace could sense that something was bothering her. He decided that she would tell him when she was ready.

Finally, everyone was ushered out, and the day officially began. Ace didn't leave the room very often, only to get a bite to eat every now and then. He wanted to be there in case she needed anything. Mostly, she was just quiet and thoughtful. He really thought it was a bad idea for her to keep everything bottled inside, but he kept his opinions to himself.

She would continuously reject any nourishment he tried to give her. Whenever he offered to get her some food, she shook her head and replied, "No, thanks." After about half a day of that, Ace got frustrated and called Tech in to give it a try.

"Lexi, you gotta eat something," Tech murmured. She shook her head, and he gave her a stern look. "I honestly don't think I could hold anything down right now," she explained, her face apologetic, "I'm sorry." Tech's expression softened, and he nodded.

Ace took Tech off to the side. "That's the most she's said all day," the leader muttered. The genius responded, "Understandably so. She's had quite the experience, remember?" With that, he left, and Ace returned to Lexi's side.

He talked to her, even though she seemed to barely register anything he said. He chatted about things as trivial as the weather, and if Rev should enter a marathon for charity, etc. After a while, she looked over at him, and reached out a pale hand, which Ace took within both of his own. Finally, he thought, a response to the world! "May I go to my own room for the night?" she asked. He was about to say no, when she ventured on, "This mattress isn't very comfortable, and I'd like to at least be relaxed if I'm to be connected to machines and tubes." She gazed at him imploringly, and he found himself giving in partially.

"How about somewhere close to Tech or me?" he compromised. "Just in case something happens." She nodded her acquiescence, and he went to get Tech's approval.

The coyote didn't seem too happy about this plan. "Oh, come on," Ace pleaded, "She'll just be in the main room on the couch, and I'll be right there in the armchair beside her if anything goes wrong." He could see the gears turning in Tech's head as he considered it. "Fine," he said grudgingly, "but we have to be careful transferring her."

Ace nodded vigorously, and together they moved her to the couch, where awaited her some pillows and a blanket. Once they got her situated, Tech checked to make sure everything was as it should be, then left to tidy up his lab before the day ended.

"Ace?" He looked over at her twisting around to face him.

"Yes?"

"Could we watch a movie?"

He liked the way she said "we" a little too much. "Sure, what do you want to see? There's Rebound, Ratatouille, The Perfect Storm…" he started rattling off some of her favorite movies when she interrupted, "Ferngully."

"What?"

"I want to watch Ferngully."

"That old movie?"

"Yeah."

He got up and fetched the video from the pile of others, curious as to why she would want to watch it. He popped it in the DVD player, and it began. They watched in silence as it played, with a few giggles from her when something funny happened. The movie reminded him of Apocalypso, and those weren't the best recollections.

Time passed, and it ended. He got up to press 'stop' (Duck had stolen the remote and hid it somewhere) when she said, "Hey, um, there's something I've been meaning to tell you for a while."