CoCo

Chapter 8

The very next morning, Kriplespac woke up before CoCo did. He found himself in her arms, cuddling him close to her bosom. He blinked, not sure what to think. Looking at her body, he remembered what had happened. He pushed her away, waking her up. She looked at him. "Is there something wrong?" CoCo asked.

"Zis is vrong," Kriplespac whispered. He got up into his chair and slowly floated away from the bed, looking at the ground. CoCo sat up, confused. Didn't he want her to sleep with him last night?

"What do you mean?" She asked. He looked at her.

"You shouldn't be sleeping in the same bed as me. You are nozing but a prop to me." he told her. These words hurt CoCo. She didn't want him to see her as just an object. She wanted to be seen as his love thing, his girlfriend. She looked down, on the verge of crying. But she had to keep trying.

"But I've been sleeping with you every night! And you never even noticed I was there!" she shouted at him. "You go for days without sleeping, and that's not good for you. I made sure that you went to bed every night. Haven't you noticed that you wake up feeling refreshed these last few mornings? And besides, don't you think it gets cold in this lab? I think that you appreciated my warm body being there beside you!"

Kriplespac listened to CoCo's words. He found that she was speaking the truth. He doesn't accomplish very much when he pulls all nighters all the time. He remembered that CoCo always made him go to bed these last few nights, even though he hadn't realized that CoCo also went to bed with him. He had been wondering why the lab felt warm and cozy lately. Usually it was freezing. But he still felt uneasy about the whole ordeal last night. What had he been thinking? What if a Tediz had come in the lab last night and saw that? He wondered what she was trying to pull. He thought about what he should do.

Finally he said, with a sigh, "CoCo, I don't know vat to say. Zis is all so very awkward. You can't sleep in ze lab, it is too dangerous.

CoCo frowned. "What's so dangerous about sleeping in here?"

"Zere are so many chemicals and machines in here zat you know nothing about. I can't have you wandering around at night messing vith my zings like you did last night. I shouldn't even be sleeping in zis lab. Zis is no place for an unconscious mind to be. You must always be alert and focused ven in zis room. But I guess I have gotten used to it since I have been sleeping in here for years..."

"Well, no, if it is hazardous to both of us, then something must be done," interrupted CoCo. She thought about it really hard. And then she had the perfect idea. "Why don't we both sleep in your bedroom? I know that you gave it to me to be in, day in and day out, but that doesn't mean that we can't share it!"

Kriplespac didn't know what to think. He still was unsure about sleeping with a Squirrel. "Vell, I don't know-"

"Please, Professor!" CoCo begged. She grabbed his hands. "I get so lonely and bored up there in that room! It's the only chance that I get to be with you! I know that you're a busy guy and I don't want to bother you while you are working. I want to get to know you better, I want to know who really is Professor von Kriplespac. You're the only person here who I can talk to, who I want to talk to! Please, there will be nothing painful or bothersome about it! I promise that I'll keep you comfy and cozy every night! I don't wanna be a prop! I just wanna be closer to you!" She started to sob a little.

Kriplespac sighed. Part of him wanted to agree with CoCo and part of him didn't. She's the enemy, right? No, she isn't. It is just the rest of her kind. What was it about CoCo that made him feel queasy? He mad his decision. "Okay, okay, fine!" he grumbled. "I'll let you sleep vith me, zen. Just stop complaining!"CoCo immediately stopped sobbing and she looked up at him, a bright smile on her face.

"Oh thank you, thank you, thank you!" she said. "I promise you won't regret this!'

Kriplespac rolled his eyes. He was almost certain that he would regret this decision. "Okay, calm down," he whispered, "I have to take you back up to ze room. I have some vork to do." He led her back up to his room and locked her in there. CoCo waited for his return.

Sure enough, he came back, tired and ready to go to sleep. Kriplespac was stil nervous about the whole ordeal. he had to keep reminding himself that the real enemy was the SHC. He reminded himself that CoCo was just a stupid squirrel who happened to be caught up in a war she didn't know about. It was best for him to keep her as ignorant as possible, so he never said anything to her about the war. He manned-up and got in bed with her. CoCo, of course, squealed with excitement and immediately wrapped her arms around him. He blushed and kept perfectly still. CoCo fell asleep quickly. Kriplespac lie there, awake. Thinking. Eventually, all that thinking made him sleepy and he too, fell asleep.

After a couple of weeks of sleeping with CoCo every night, he eventually got used to it. In fact, he liked having her warm body next to him, though he would never admit it.

Sometimes, Kriplespac would talk to CoCo. It was usually small talk, but CoCo loved having these late-night conversations with him. Most of the time, he asked her what she did all day, even though he knew it wasn't much. Sometimes he told her his war stories, of course leaving out some parts that would reveal who his true enemy was. He always told her that the enemy were hideous, nasty beasts that didn't deserve to be named. He told her that these 'beasts' were worthless and that he was determined to wipe them all out. Of course, CoCo believed him. His stories always fascinated her. CoCo would sometimes ask Kriplespac what he did. He told her, again, leaving out lots of things to prevent her from knowing the truth. But she never knew the difference.

One night, CoCo asked a different question.

The two had gotten into bed and lie there, getting comfortable. Kriplespac asked CoCo what all she did today. CoCo told him that she had rummaged through his desk to look at some of his pictures. She like to look at the pictures. Her favourite pictures were the ones of him wearing his military uniform, the ones were he had his legs. Kriplespac didn't mind that she snooped through his desk. He had taken anything out of it that might reveal too much information. The desk was mostly full of old photographs.

The two of them lie there in bed, telling each other stories. CoCo stroked Kriplespac's nose.

Out of the blue Coco asked, "What happened? What happened to your legs?"

Kriplespac swallowed and replied, "I lost zem during a var. A very long time ago. A missile had struck me, blowing my legs off. Obviously, I had survived and my Tediz rescued me." He looked away from her. In a low voice, he added, "Each day I look at zese stumps, vat's left of my legs. Zey are a constant reminder of vat zose bastards did to me." He felt his hatred towards the Squirrels rising.

"Oh, that's terrible," CoCo whispered to him, raising her hand up to his face, so she could comfort him. But he slapped her hand away. She gasped. "Professor?" she squeaked. "Are you okay?" She touched his shoulder. Kriplespac shrugged her off. The memory of his leg incident was hurting him emotionally. He wanted to release his anger.

He grabbed the scruff of CoCo neck and said very angrily, "Now, you listen to me! Ve all have...a destiny. Nozing just happens, it's all part of a plan! I should have killed zose bastards vit mein giant gun of doom! I should have killed zem all! But no, zey never give up, ze fuckers. But now, I'm nozing but a GOD! DAMN! CRIPLE! A LEGLESS FREAK!" He tightened his grip on CoCo's neck. "Look!" He forced her to look at his stumps. "Look! Look at me! You see zat! Do you know vat it's like not to be able to use your legs?!"

CoCo thought about it."W-well, y-y-yes, sir, I do," she stuttered quietly. She remembered a time in her childhood when she was run over by a bus. The bus had broken both of her legs and she couldn't walk for weeks. Kriplespac stared at her, pissed. His grip on the back of her neck tightened again and he shook her.

"Did you hear vat I said?" he snorted. "I vas supposed to vin! I vas meant to vin zis var, I vas born for zis! Zey cheated me out of it!" His grip on her neck suddenly loosened. Cuddling her, he started to cry. "Do you understand vat I'm saying, CoCo?" he sniffled. "Zis vasn't supposed to happen...not to me...I should have blasted them...I vas ze mysterious von Kriplespac, the Tediz Battle Master..."

CoCo felt incredibly sorry for him. "Y-y-you still are the Tediz Battle Master. You still are von Kriplespac, and you're mysterious to me. I don't know anything about you, yet here I am, lying in this bed with you. You're a perfect stranger, but I feel so comfortable being next to you."

Kriplespac looked at her and smiled weakly. He sat up in bed. Staring off into space, he sighed. "Pffft, look at me... Vat am I gonna do now?" he said, still staring, his mind drifting. "Vat am I gonna do now..."

She sat up too and rubbed her hand across his spine. "What do you mean?" she whispered. "You have done so much. Despite losing your legs, you never gave up! I mean, you're still here, still fighting the war. Your enemies may have destroyed your legs, but they haven't destroyed your spirit; your will to carry on."

Kriplespac continued to stare off, thinking about CoCo's words. He turned his head towards her and looked at her for a long time. Finally, he said, "Good night, CoCo." He lay back down in his bed. CoCo sat there for a moment. She lay down too, turning on her side, facing away from Kriplespac. She felt him moving around. He turned his body towards her and wrapped his arms around her mid-section, squeezing her tight. CoCo felt very warm and loving. She embraced her feelings. Together, they slept through the night, both feeling very content with each other's company.