After all these years, I'm finally awake, I'm finally in the real world. I'm so scared. I'm so alone. There's a voice telling me it's going to be okay but I don't know who that is and I'm not sure…. I'm not okay.
Her eyes were so tired. It had been two days since she had been dragged out of that lab by that blonde man and in to the hospital in a city named Edge. She had been questioned by the man with the dark facial hair, who called himself Reeve but she just didn't trust him. She didn't know who he worked for and last time she spoke to a stranger her world crashed.
She had found out the blonde who carried her out, his name was Cloud. She wasn't sure why, but she seemed to be calmer around him, however she didn't speak to him either. She could hear his voice outside her hospital room, as well as Reeve's voice. Cloud must've been working for Reeve, she figured, so she then couldn't trust him, no matter how comforting his presence made her feel.
"You brought Denzel?" She heard Reeve's voice exclaim. Who was Denzel? She wondered.
"He wanted to see her. I've been briefing Tifa on this case and he over-heard so he decided to come along." She heard Cloud reply. Who was Tifa?
"I'm willing to try anything at this point. She won't speak, she won't eat, it's been two days." Reeve sounded concerned but she just didn't seem to care what he thought. "Congratulations by the way! I heard the great news. How far along is she?"
Someone was having a baby, she deducted, maybe it was Tifa, maybe that was Cloud's wife?
"Nine weeks." Cloud responded, he sounded so bashful.
"Can I go in now?" An unfamiliar voice asked, a young boy from the sounds of it.
"Sure." Cloud replied when her door began to open.
She clenched her hands on to the sheets, not knowing what to expect, her Mako-green eyes glued to the door as it jarred. Her gaze was met with that of a boy around her age, soft blue eyes staring back. His hair was wavy, brown and it looked so soft to the touch and his smile was warm and friendly. The boy walked up to her bedside and she couldn't help but flinch as he drew near.
"Don't be scared." He smiled. "My name is Denzel."
The girl stared back, not a single word coming out of her mouth. Denzel kept smiling, grabbing her hand. She flinched however unlike when Reeve had grabbed her hand she didn't pull away. Denzel's hand was warm and firm. It was comforting. She swallowed hard, not knowing what to say. She hadn't spoken in years, afraid of might what might happen if she did.
"You know, you're in really good hands." Denzel kept talking, "Cloud took me in when I was really sick. I was dying and he worked really hard so I wouldn't die and then him and Tifa adopted me. He won't let anything bad happen to you."
"D-Dying?" Her voice was soft, almost unheard. That boy had been dying and the same blonde who rescued her had rescued him and took care of him. Was there hope?
Denzel thought her voice was pretty, so gentle and feminine. He nodded at her question, confirming his response. "I had Geostigma." He explained.
"Geostigma?" The girl asked once more. What was that? She hadn't heard of such a disease. Had she been that disconnected from the world?
"Yeah, but it's all gone now so you don't have to worry." Denzel smiled. "What's your name?"
The girl looked down at her hands, noticing his was still holding hers. She squeezed, so afraid to tell him who she was only because the last time she had told someone who she was, she was kidnapped and forced to be experimented on.
"R-Raisel." She said just above a whisper. "My name is Raisel Vitali."
"That's a really pretty name." Denzel grinned, making Raisel's lips stretch in to a shy smile however it faded quickly when her stomach made a loud growling noise. Her already blushing face turned a shade darker, making Denzel chuckle. "Don't worry. I came prepared."
Letting go of Raisel's hands, Denzel dug in to his back pack, taking out a small box wrapped in a cloth napkin. The young boy placed the box on Raisel's lap, undoing the knot of the napkin to reveal some type of box with sorted food items in it.
"Tifa makes the best bento boxes." Denzel said handing a fork over to Raisel so she could eat. "We heard you weren't eating so she made you this. There's some white rice, this here is chicken with a sweet glaze and here is a little berry cake with cream cheese frosting." He explained as he pointed out each item.
The food smelled heavenly to her, making her mouth water as she took off the clear plastic lid of the box. She began by trying the sweet glazed chicken which to her was such an amazing combination of sweet and savory that she couldn't help but let out a "Mmm!" as she chewed it up. It was the first real food she had in years. "It's delicious." She giggled as she now went for the white rice.
"Try mixing the glazed chicken with the rice." Denzel pointed out taking enjoyment from his new friend.
Outside the hospital door, Cloud was watching from the small glass window. He was glad that Denzel had gotten the girl to eat.
"He succeeded." He said crossing his arms, watching both children interact. Raisel's fear was dissipating as she continued to chat with Denzel. "She's eating the lunch Tifa made. She's even smiling."
Reeve stroked his goatee, thinking about the benefits of having Denzel around the girl. "Maybe you should take her home?" He suggested.
"What?" Cloud asked in disbelief. "I have no room for her. Our extra room is going to be the baby's room Reeve, where am I going to house her? Besides I can't bring in another child in to the house without even discussing it with Tifa."
"Pity." Reeve replied crossing his arms. "She's bonded the best with you and Denzel so she'd thrive there the best."
"I can't Reeve." Cloud frowned, feeling awful about it since he was right.
"Sleep on it. Talk it out with Tifa. Have her meet her." Reeve shrugged, trying to convince the blonde to take the girl.
Cloud went back to watching Denzel and Raisel through the window. He hadn't seen Denzel that happy since Marlene was still living with them. "Is she even strong enough to leave?" He asked.
"No, she'll probably be here a few months. There's physical therapy she has to accomplish since her muscles atrophied in the liquid confinement. She also has to gain a substantial amount of weight before she can start therapy which will take a while." Reeve watched as the silver haired girl finished the last of her lunch box. "Maybe Tifa should cook for her more often? She has refused all the hospital food."
"I'm surprised Tifa was able to cook it at all." Cloud said shaking his head. "Just the smell of food has made her sick lately." He had felt so sorry for his wife. The morning sickness had been draining on her and when she wasn't in the bathroom vomiting she was taking long naps.
"Tifa is instinctively motherly though so I'm not surprised she just pushed through it." Reeve chuckled. "Say, out of subject, have you seen Vincent and Yuffie."
"They were sleeping when I left the house." Cloud said, not sure why it was they were not up early, rather why Vincent wasn't up early. He half expected it from Yuffie. "I knocked on the door but there was no answer so I just left once Denzel was ready."
"That's odd." Reeve said raising an eyebrow. "Should we try and call them?"
"I don't think they'll answer." Cloud said honestly, having his suspicions as to why the two were missing in action. He had rather not disturb them if what he was thinking was true. The blonde knocked on the glass window, catching the children's attention.
Inside the room, Denzel turned back to Raisel who was still looking at Cloud through the glass. "I think he wants to come in but he's not sure if you'll let him." He explained. "I promise you'll like him."
"I do like him." Raisel commented, recalling how Cloud had let her cry on him until she just couldn't cry no more. "I'm just scared to trust anyone." She confessed. "When I was younger, I used to live with my mom in Costa del Sol."
"Oh wow. What was that like?" Denzel asked, interested in her story.
"I loved it there, even though it was very hot. I used to go to the beach and dig my feet in the sand at the end of the shore and let the waves wash up on my ankles." She giggled recalling the feeling of the sun on her skin and the water teasing her legs as the waves went back and forth. "But one day…"
…But one day I was just minding my own business, playing in the water, looking for any small critters in the tide pools. My mom was within earshot, holding my brother's hand, he was a bit of a coward…
"Your brother?" Denzel asked as he interrupted Raisel's story.
"Yes. I used to have a twin brother. His name was Riagán." She replied as she continued to narrate.
So my mom was within earshot, holding on to Riagán. She always tried to encourage him to be more outgoing but he was just not interested. We were having an amazing time as a family like we did every Saturday when I heard multiple footsteps coming down the board walk. I turn to face the commotion and I saw a lot of men, with guns, all pointed at my mom and my brother.
Raisel stopped talking abruptly, recalling the painful memory. "I just have a hard time trusting after that day." She said not wanting to go in to any more detail.
Denzel understood where she was coming from. When he had gone through his own traumatic experience he didn't talk about it for a while either. "You don't have to tell me." He said holding her hand once more.
There was another knock on the door. Cloud was now making a "Let's go" hand motion at him. Denzel nodded, feeling bad that he had to go. "I'll make Cloud keep bringing me if you'd like." The brunette boy offered.
"I'd like that." Raisel smiled, feeling a bond between Denzel and herself. "Tell Cloud I'm sorry. I'll try to be better."
"I will but I don't think he is upset or blames you for shutting out. Cloud shuts out others when things go wrong too so I guess he understands what you're going through in a way."
She felt relief to hear she wasn't causing anyone grief. "Thank you Denzel." She smiled.
"You're welcome." Denzel replied, packing his things and making his way out the room. Before exiting through the door he looked back at his new friend and grinned. "Make sure you keep eating and get strong that way we can play together. I want you to meet my friends and family but you can't do that from that hospital bed!"
The concept of play was something that had not been in her life in years and it excited her heart so much. Smiling back brightly she nodded at Denzel, making a cross over her heart. "I promise I'll get strong and then we can play!"
"Good!" Denzel said waving before exiting the room and following Cloud back home.
A/N: So we finally have a name for the mystery girl! I hope you all enjoyed this chapter. I feel like we're finally getting somewhere. Also I have the pronunciation guide for the OC names.
Raisel-pronounced as REY-ZehL. Raisel's origin, as well as its use, is in the Yiddish language meaning Rose.
Riagán-pronounced as RIY-GaeN. Riagán is of Celtic origin and it means Impulsive