Hi!
I`m sorry about the sad cliffhanger last time; I hope you`re not too mad at me, and I hoped you still enjoyed the chapter! Thanks for the feedback!
Anyway, here`s the new one. I`m so very sorry, but it`s probably my saddest one yet. If you`re easily touched, I recommend you bring some tissues before reading… I actually started crying myself while writing this, since I`ve really come to like Sophie as a character. I felt so pathetic sitting there crying at my own fic, you won`t believe it;)
So here it is, the next chapter, where we meet Sophie for the last time:
Chapter 23: Lost
Winter was definitely over.
Rain was drumming at the window. The streets below were wet, and everything looked grey - it was as if the sun would never come out again. Winter was over, but spring was nowhere in sight.
The doctor had been so serious; that was the only thing Randall had noticed upon arrival at the hospital. The purple monster had no idea of what had actually been said, due to some sort of an out-of-body experience he had been going through since leaving his apartment with Sullivan and Rex about half an hour earlier. Ever since then, Sullivan had been the one taking care of all the talking, and Randall had simply been following him around - too worried to even take hold of the hand the blue monster had been offering him.
Even now, while looking at his sister who was comfortably tucked in beneath the white sheets in the hospital-bed, Randall felt absent. He was completely unable to take in whatever she was saying or what was going on in the little room; he simply stared at her face without really focusing his eyes, causing him to see her as a blurry, blue figure – and the fact that he had left his glasses at home didn`t exactly help, either.
Sophie looked tired. She was still hooked up to a couple of machines, but none of the two other adults knew what they were for; and they didn`t seem to care, either. All that mattered now was the blue lizard-monster who was smiling peacefully behind heavy-lidded eyes; eyes that got watery whenever she looked at her young son - whom she tried to protect as long as possible by constantly drying them.
While Randall was standing alone by one side of the bed, Sulley was holding Rex on the other side; and for a little while, the machines were what caught the little monster`s attention; but eventually he moved all his focus over to his mum, and showed signs of wanting to crawl onto the bed with her. Sulley gave in and placed him very carefully next to Sophie on the soft mattress, and the orange monster hugged her immediately and planted wet kisses on her face as he declared his love;
"I miss you, mum!"
"Oh Rex..! I`ve missed you too..!" Sophie`s eyes were getting wet again;
"…I actually think you`ve grown since I last saw you..! Can that be?"
"Yeah, I`m big!"
"You sure are, honey..!" The female sniffed, and quickly changed the subject;
"…are you having fun with Uncle Randall?"
"Yeah!" Rex grinned;
"He`s afrawd of spidews..! And thundew! And cwocodiles!"
"You`re the one afraid of crocodiles..!" Randall shot in from the side of the bed;
"…I was only playing that day!"
"You played with him?" Sophie turned her head in surprise and faced her brother;
"You actually played with him?"
"Yeah, but…I wasn`t any good, I don`t think -"
"- and unca Wandall made it go away when I was scawed in the thundew!" Rex sent his mother a smile;
"He was scawed too, but I made that go away! We wewe bwave, mum! And we shawed ma blankie, cuz it was unca Wandall`s befowe! And – and – and -"
Sophie looked from Rex to Randall; she found it hard to believe that her little brother had finally warmed up to his nephew, and vice versa, but it had obviously happened somehow. She leaned back against the pillow, letting out a sigh of relief;
"Thank heavens".
Silence filled the tiny room for a little while. Sophie closed her eyes, and the two other grown-ups exchanged looks. Rex was still busy cuddling his mum, who barely had the energy to stroke his back in return. Luckily, he didn`t seem to notice that;
"When a you coming home, mum..?"
"I…I don`t know, Rex. Mummy`s very tired. I…I need to get a good rest. I need to sleep for a little while..."
"…but when you wake up, you can mawwy Ulley, and we can live with unca Wandall, and we can eat pancakes..!"
"Wow, that would really be something, Rex..!"
Sophie smiled as a single tear ran down her left cheek. She closed her eyes again, and when she opened them a few seconds later they were shinier than ever before - and her voice trembled;
"Rex..? You must promise me to be a good boy, okay? Be good to your uncle Randall, and your…uncle Sulley…because they both love you. They both love you very much..!"
Sulley swallowed and looked over at Randall, who had turned his head to hide the tears. The furry one moved his gaze over to Sophie again, and had to strangle a sob as she continued speaking to her son;
"And Rex..? I love you too..! I will always love you; mummy will always love you..! But I`m just…I`m just so tired, and…I need to get some sleep..!" Her voice cracked, but she kept the smile on in order not to upset the little one.
"But is mowning, mum..!"
"Yes honey, it`s morning..! But I…I still need to sleep…I`m just so very tired, Rex…"
The young monster climbed closer to his mother`s face and hugged her again;
"Okay…Good night, mum!"
He kissed her cheek again, and Sophie let out another sob. With that, Sulley carefully lifted Rex up from the bed and carried him back outside into the hallway, while trying his best to keep his own tears from falling;
"Good boy, Rex..! Come on, let`s give uncle Randall some time to say good night, too..!"
"Is he weading mum a stowy..?"
The big monster couldn`t help but chuckle at the innocent question;
"Maybe he will, Rex..! Is he any good at that?"
"Yeah..!"
And with that, they left Randall alone with his sister for the last time.
Randall didn`t move at first; it wasn`t until Sophie called out his name he eventually reached out and took hold of the hand she was offering him. Tears covered his face, and now that Rex had left the room, he did nothing to hold them back. Neither did Sophie;
"I`m sorry, Randall…" She glanced at him through a veil of moist;
"I`m so sorry..! I was really looking forward to starting over again..!"
"Me too…"
"…but I`m thankful as well - at least I got to reunite with you before -"
"Shhh…" Randall interrupted her; he didn`t want to hear the words.
"They`ve done everything they could, Randall…but the bleedings were worse than they first thought…The only thing that could have helped was a transplant, and it`s…it`s too late for that now…"
Randall closed his eyes as tight as he could, and tears managed to press their way through the lids;
"It`s not fair..!"
"No, it`s not".
"Rex doesn`t deserve this! Hell, I know all too well what it`s like to lose your parents, and see what happened to me – I don`t want that to happen to Rex! He`s so little, so fragile, so… Sophie, he`s just like me, and what if he…what if he ends up -" he paused and swallowed;
"…what if he ends up like me..?"
Sophie took hold of another one of her little brother`s hands and pulled him closer;
"Randall; Rex would be lucky to end up like you. You`ve become a great guy, and I think you`re the best role-model he can possibly have. I know you`ll take good care of him, and I know you`ll teach him everything he needs to know to make his way in life..!"
Randall sniffed;
"But I…I can`t take care of him, Sophie, I…I`m not…"
"I know you`re frightened; I was too, when I first found out I was expecting him…"
"This isn`t like that at all! And I`m really bad with kids…"
"Well, it looks like he really likes you this far..! You`re his only family now, Randall..!"
"Yes, but…I…I can`t…"
"You can. Trust me, Randall – you can." Sophie`s brown eyes stared deep into her brother`s green ones;
"…and Randall; don`t be afraid to ask for help, okay? Allow others to help you. Sometimes we all need help, keep that in mind..!"
He nodded quietly.
"I know Sulley will help you." Sophie gave his hand a squeeze;
"You`re lucky to have him as a friend, Randall - he really cares about you."
"I…I know."
"I just want you to be happy, Randall…" She closed her eyes again;
"Promise me you`ll be happy, okay?"
"Sullivan and I are…dating".
Sophie opened her eyes again; for a little while, all she did was stare at her brother, who didn`t really know why he had told her that. He watched how tears started to gather up in her eyes again, and placed a hand on her cheek;
"I am happy, Sophie; we`re dating..! Sullivan is…he`s…I…I haven`t felt this way about anyone else before, I…I…"
"You`re in love..!" Sophie smiled as tears covered her face;
"Little brother, you`re in love..!"
Randall looked down at the bed-sheets and blushed;
"Yeah…"
"Those are the best news I`ve heard in a while, Randall..! Now, tell me; is he in love with you..?"
"I…think he might be…"
Sophie chuckled, and Randall was relieved to hear her laugh - even though she still sounded weak and tired. And the smile stayed on her face as she continued talking;
"You won`t believe how happy that makes me, Randall..! I`ve been so worried about you, but now…now I know you`ll have someone very special in your life who loves you..!"
Randall shook a little at the word love, but a cough from Sophie brought him back to the moment straight away. He watched his sister lean back against the pillow and close her eyes, and when he heard her voice again, it was even weaker than before;
"…you two take care of each other for me, alright?"
"We will…"
"And tell Rex I love him -"
"Every day…"
"And Randall?"
"What..?" His voice was only a whisper now. He wasn`t sure on whether he was subconsciously adjusting it to match Sophie`s, or if he was just running out of energy.
"I love you".
He took in a deep breath. Then he bent over, closed his own, running eyes and hugged his sister in a tight squeeze;
"I love you too..!"
Randall`s hands were shaking when he stepped back outside into the hallway a little while later. He was tired from crying and felt empty, and the scales on his face were dry and sore. Sullivan and Rex were sitting on a couch a couple of meters from the door, and both looked up when they heard him come; the blue one didn`t say anything, but a tear escaped his eye when Randall nodded slowly. Rex didn`t notice it, but he was very serious when he asked his uncle a question;
"Is mum sleeping now..?"
Randall blinked a couple of times as he sat down besides his nephew;
"Yeah, Rex…mum is sleeping…"
He felt how Sullivan immediately placed a furry hand on his back, and turned his head to meet his gaze; he was actually happy to see that the blue monster was trying to hold back his tears, too – he felt less alone that way.
"I`ll help you take care of everything".
The furry monster`s voice shook a little, but it was surprisingly calm and comforting to listen to; it caused Randall to lean a little closer and mumble some sort of thanks.
Nothing more was said for a while; the only sound present was the constant drumming from the rain on the windows.
After exchanging a few phrases with the doctor, Sulley and Randall decided they would go back to the hospital the next day, when Rex wasn`t with them, to take care of some of the practical affairs following a death. None of them were looking forward to it, but they both understood it had to be done; and it was probably easier to do it together.
Then suddenly they were out in the rain, on their way back to Randall`s apartment where the blue monster was determined to stay for another night; not to repeat what had happened during the previous one, but in order to be there for Randall and Rex in this difficult time. That was the most important thing now.
"Mum`s sleeping…"
Rex`s thin voice suddenly made its way through the heavy rain, and to begin with, it was as if he was talking to himself. But suddenly he asked a question, a question Randall had been dreading since Sophie had shut her eyes for the last time around an hour earlier;
"Unca Wandall, when is mum gonna come home?"
Fighting back tears, Randall turned his head to face his young nephew, who looked back up at him with big, questioning eyes; eyes that revealed that deep down, the little one understood something bad was going on.
"Mum is…" Randall started;
"Mum is…sleeping very deeply, Rex."
He paused to draw his breath;
"And she`s…gonna sleep for a while…"
"…but then she`s gonna come back, wight?"
"No, you…you see, Rex…I don`t…I`m afraid…I`m afraid mum…isn`t gonna come back…"
"Mum`s gonna come back!"
"Rex – your mum loves you very much, and she would have wanted to come back to you, but…she had to sleep now, and…Rex, she`s not going to wake up".
"Mum`s gonna come back!"
"No Rex, she isn`t. I`m so sorry, but -"
"No!"
"I`m sorry -"
"NO!"
"Rex -"
"NOOO!"
Rex pulled away the arm Randall had placed on his shoulder as angry tears started to cover up his face. He didn`t understand at all, but was still devastated; why was his uncle telling him that mum wasn`t coming back? She was only sleeping, and sleeping monsters always woke up. The little monster felt sad, scared and angry all at once, and before anyone knew what was happening, he started running away from the two adults.
"Rex!" Randall tried to grab hold of his nephew`s arm, but didn`t catch it; Rex was fast, and suddenly he was on his way across the street. Randall and Sullivan ran after him, but when Rex suddenly camouflaged, they both stopped; it was completely impossible to follow him now. Randall`s three year old nephew was gone, lost in the middle of the city, in the rain, while invisible. An hour after his mother`s death.
"R-Rex..?"
Randall started to sound desperate as he looked around, trying to catch a glimpse of something that could lead him to his nephew. However, he was interrupted by a car-horn and suddenly realized he was standing in the middle of the street; he moved carefully over on the sidewalk along with Sullivan, not even noticing the bad words some of the drivers were shouting at them.
"W-where did he go?" The dripping wet furry monster both looked and sounded like he was beginning to panic;
"Do you see him?"
"No..! Did you see which direction he chose?"
"No, I lost him when he crossed the street…"
Both monsters were shaking now; even Sullivan`s voice shook when he asked Randall another question;
"Does he have any special places he likes to visit..?"
"I don`t know – you know him better than me – I don`t know!"
"Me neither…But he`s only three, he probably wouldn`t find his way, anyway…"
"Thanks Sullivan, that really helps..!"
Randall didn`t mean to be sarcastic, but couldn`t help it. He was just so worried, and didn`t even want to waste any more time talking;
"What do we do?"
"We…we split up; you`ll go in this direction, I`ll go that way…and…I`ll call someone to help us look, okay? You just go ahead down this street, and I`ll call Mike and some others from work!"
"Okay…"
The lizard turned around, ready to start searching straight away. However, a big, wet hand held him back for a little moment;
"Randall -"
"What?"
Randall looked at the dripping blue creature in front of him; the sight was actually hilarious, and normally he would probably have laughed his head off. But not this time; the look in Sullivan`s eyes caused tears to gather in Randall`s eyes again, and his voice almost cracked as he spoke;
"We`ll find him..!"
Randall blinked, swallowed, and nodded his head slowly;
"Yeah…We`ll find him…"
"We`ll find him, and everything`s gonna turn out fine – you just wait and see…"
Another nod from the scaly one followed, and then they went in separate directions, trying to find the little monster they both had grown to love so much.
I`m SO sorry. Seriously, I`m SO SO SO sorry! About Sophie AND another cliffhanger, and I fully understand if you all hate me now.
However, hate or not, I would love to hear your opinions on this chapter. Remember, feedback motivates further writing, so please review, PM or send me an ask on tumblr:)
The next chapter will probably be ready during the weekend, and it will of course involve Sulley, Randall, Mike and Celia`s search for Rex.
Everybody take care until then, see you later!