POKEMIRE

RECOVERY - CHAPTER 2

(?'s POV)

The heavy pressure on my chest and aching legs force me to stop. I quickly rushed into another alleyway but lost my balance and fell head-first. I try to get my legs up but they are crying in pain, preventing me from getting up.

"Great, my sis is going to kill me when she sees me in this state," I sigh and cover my face in shame. *Great, I should have drank that when Eric told me to. This is the seventh time* Since I'm stuck here for a while, I take out my phone and call somebody. The ringtone was annoying for my ears but I just put up with it.

What is it this time? Eric asked me.

"I think you can guess this one," He sighs. Why can you just accept yourself and drink that bottle I gave you? You know the consequences of not drinking blood for a week. This is the seventh time you've bitten someone. I can't hide your identity forever, Little B

"Deer blood is freaking disgusting! I don't understand how you can even drink it without puking," I shake my head and cringe, remembering the metallic flavour.

Well, when you drink blood for a month, the virus will change the tongue's tastebuds. So the taste of blood will be sweet instead of its usual metallic taste He explains and I try to move my legs but my feet can only move. Who is the person you bit this time?

"From what I heard, his friend called him Zack. That guy has brown hair and chocolate eyes. His friend had called for an ambulance so he should be fine by now," I answered him.

At least he will be in a hospital. That would save me some trouble I heard a sigh of relief. Well, see you later then My phone left out the dial tone and I put it back into my pocket.

"Finally that's done. The next question is, how the hell do I move without using my legs?" Telekinesis is out of the question because we can't let people see us use our abilities.

While I'm brainstorming for an idea, I hear footsteps above me. I look up and see a familiar face. Red eyes, brown hair and that Pokeball cap. Her face shows an annoyed face and she jumps down with a soft thud.

"Well, well, little brother. Why are you here? Resting here after biting someone?" She asked me as I was shocked but I kept a straight face.

"How did you know that I bit someone? I didn't even text you," She gives an angry look.

"Well, I happened to be on top of some houses while looking around and saw you fighting with silly gangsters. I suppose that they want some beef with you?" I nodded. "Next time, just use your psychic powers but subtle so they won't suspect anything. You don't have to rush in and fight them off and risk getting hurt," She smacked my head.

"I don't like to use my abilities every time. I get a headache when I use them,"

"That is because you never drink you're your daily blood dosage. We get side effects the longer we avoid drinking it," She sits down and pats my head. "I know it is disgusting to drink blood. I too was also grossed out by the idea of drinking it. But that is how we can avoid hurting others. Plus, it isn't much," She takes out something from her handbag and it is a small bottle of blood. I shake my head.

"I told you I'm not drinking that!" But she moved it closer to me and I couldn't back away because of my paralysis legs. "Well, either that or you can just stay here,"

I growl at her and snatch the bottle from her hand. I quickly drank it up and passed it back to her. "Happy now?"

She giggles and pats me. "That's my sweet little brother ~meow" Her long cat ears pop out of her cap and I help move her ears under her cap. She hugs me as thanks which I feel embarrassed.

(Zack's POV)

"Zack? Are you okay?!" I open my eyes and see Kyle's face.

"I'm fine, Kyle," I get up and try to recall what happened. It instantly hit me and I touched my neck. I expect a sharp pain but nothing stings as if there wasn't a wound on me "Wait, Kyle. Did I get bitten by that teen?"

Kyle looks confused and scratches his head. "You mean that teen who gave you a straight punch in the face out of the blue? I quickly fought him off and he ran off like a scaredy cat. He must have been in the wrong mind," He grabs my arm. "Let's go back to your house now. Remember we have to study?"

*That's strange. Kyle never likes to study* As we are walking, Kyle looks around and I feel like something is off. *That teen bit me. I could remember that pain clearly. So, how come Kyle is telling a different story*

"Kyle, are you sure that teen didn't bite me? I clearly remember that teen holding me down and you are trying to pull him away from me," I notice Kyle's expression change from calm to worried.

"Maybe you were dreaming when he knocked you out. He struck you so hard that you got sent to the wall," I touch the back of my head and immediately feel a sting. "Oww, that hurt real bad,"

"It shouldn't be that bad. I remember getting hit by a thick stick on the head,"

*Wait, that isn't true. Kyle was never even hit by a thick stick. Maybe a wooden pole once.* I notice he doesn't carry his bag of snacks or coke. "Kyle, where is your bag of snacks that you brought?"

"What snacks?" He turns around confused before his expression turns to realisation. "Wait, that damn teen must have stolen my things," He stomps the ground in his fury. "Great, there goes my $10 down the drain!"

"Well, we can't go after him since he could be anywhere by now," I pat his back to comfort him. "Let's go back,"

"Fine, at least there is still a snack with me to savour," Confused, I asked him. "What snacks do you still have?"

"You," I stay silent momentarily before laughing at his joke. "That's funny, Kyle. But don't you think I will be tasty for you," He hung his arm around my neck and gave me a creepy smile which made me nervous.

"Yeah, are you sure I'm joking around?" His deep and menacing voice scares me and I try to get out of his grip. His grip won't move and I start to get worried.

"Kyle, what do you mean?" He let go his arm off me and I moved two feet away from him. Suddenly, he pounces on me and I try to push him aside but to no avail. Then he opened his mouth and I saw two long fangs. His saliva drops down on my shirt as I cringe in disgust. "You smell lovely and tasty. Glad, I choose you to be my vessel,"

The same sharp pain shocks my body as I instinctively try to get Kyle off me. I try to use my arms but he puts them down. I feel my arms in pain from his strength. *How can Kyle be this strong?!* I manage to lift my knee and hit him somewhere in his gut. I feel his grip on my arms loosening and I take the chance to roughly pull my arms away from his hand and give a hard shove. He falls to the ground and I quickly get up and run away from him.

After running for a while, the aching in my muscles forced me to slow down. I turn around to see nobody and take a breather to get ready for another run.

*What is going on with Kyle? That's not him at all* The excruciating pain is something I can't ignore. Without thinking, I touch it as it stings and I pull my hand away. My hand is covered in blood and the strong nausea almost makes me puke. Then I heard a voice.

'You think you can escape from me so easily' I turn my head around and see not Kyle but another person. He seems to be two years older than me. He wore a formal suit with a long cape behind him. His white hair and red eyes give me the creeps. I slowly move back but he grabs my arm.

"It's been centuries since I had tasted blood. I'm not letting you escape from me again" I tried to shake his grip but it didn't work. Then the ground shakes hard and he lets go of me. However, the shaking made me lose my balance and I fell to the ground. The teen didn't lose his balance and walked to me. I immediately move but he steps on my hand and I scream in pain.

He steps on my hand harder and I feel my tears running down. "Let me go!" But he just laughs.

"It's so entertaining to see the prey trying to escape from the predator but only to be caught in the end," He lifts his feet off my hand but grabs the collar of my shirt and shows his drooling mouth. "Stop screaming and stay still, human. I hate my prey being a nuisance"

I punch him two on his chest but it doesn't work. He bites me again and the sharp pain comes again and I can't get out of this. He had hugged me so tight making moving impossible.

*Human? Drinking blood? Is this a vampire?* My mind becomes blurred and he throws me to the ground. I feel my body numb and my vision blur. Then he looks down with a sinister smile. "Well, the curse is almost complete. Soon, I will get to live in the real world!"

He disappears out of thin air and I'm all alone. I tried to move my arm but it wouldn't budge. "Come… on… move. Damn it!" Then the ground shook again but it was weaker than the previous. Suddenly, a vine came out of the ground and it moved around randomly. It brushed my finger and warp around my arm which tickled me.

Then its tip touched my arm and I felt a sharp pinch which I wince. The vine continues to be attached to my arm but the numbness fades away. I feel better and get up. The vine detached itself from me and went back into the ground as if it finished its job. "Thanks,"

"Now… what the hell just happened in that 5 minutes?!" I shouted, trying to figure out an answer. Then I feel drowsy, and my eyelid closes on me and darkness remains with me.

"Is he going to be okay, doc?" I hear someone talking. It sounds familiar but I can't remember who.

"For now, he is out of the danger zone. But he needs to be observed first before we can be sure he is fine," A male voice answers but I recognise that voice.

I force myself to open my eyelids as the bright light blinds me momentarily. As my eyes adjusted, Kyle and Olivia were talking with a doctor. *So, I was really bitten. That was a dream*

"Kyle…" My voice sounded weak and Kyle noticed me awake. "Zack! I'm glad you're alright!" They check on me and I just give a smile to show I'm fine.

"What… happened?" I asked them.

"After you got bitten by that crazy teen. I called 000 for an ambulance. I was worried for you since there was so much blood leaking out. Luckily, you turn out alright. I told Olivia what happened and she quickly rushed to see you along with your mom,"

"Your mom looks like she was about to get a heart attack. She was crying when the doctor told her that you lost so much blood that it could have been life-threatening," I notice her fingers are shaking. "Kyle, did you manage to see who was the one that bit Zack?"

"Uhh," He takes a moment to recall before shaking his head. "Not really. He was wearing a hoodie and a mask. But I manage to see his green eyes,"

I corrected him. "No, I see his eyes golden," Kyle looked at me confused. "You're sure the sun didn't colourblind your eyes?"

"Yes. I remember it vividly," I nod.

"So, are you two telling me that this teen can switch eye colour? Or are you trolling me?" Olivia is trying to understand what we are saying. Then we hear a door open and a police officer enters. His fresh orange hair with blonde on its ends. He walks towards us with a smile.

"I apologise if I was interrupting your conversation but I need to ask some questions about the attack," I feel nervous and shake my head. "Don't worry, we'll answer your questions,"

"Thanks, I'm Eric Pierce. You're Zack Talyor?" I nodded. "How about you two?"

"I'm Kyle Davis and she is Olivia Christine," Kyle introduced himself and Olivia. Eric wrote it on his notepad.

"Did you see who attacked you?" Eric asked us.

"I see the attacker's green eyes that's all since he is wearing a hoodie and a mask but Zack told me he has golden eyes," Kyle just sighed. Eric seems to be thinking before writing it down.

"Maybe the attacker's contact lenses came out after fighting with you two," That makes some sense. "Also, how is your injury?"

I touch my neck on the right to feel a thick gauze along with a sting of pain which I put my hand away. "It doesn't hurt very badly now but still stings,"

"That's good. Seems that the wound is healing well," He writes something on his notepad, rips out a piece of the page and passes it to me. "Here, it is my phone number just in case if you need me,"

I take it and look at him confused. "Why me?" He just smiles and pats my head.

"You will soon. When something troubling happens to you, call me," He waved goodbye and left us.

I look at the page and see a phone number which is probably his. Kyle and Olivia look at the paper. "Why is Mr Eric giving you his phone number? That's strange,"

"Maybe he knows something that we don't," I feel a bit tense from the situation which makes me nervous. "Why don't we think about something else than this? Does Lailah know about this?"

Olivia calmly explained. "Your mom told her. She was so worried about you that she insisted on coming along. I tried to convince her not to come but she was really insistent so she came along with us. You were already patched up by the time we reached her. She left the hospital with your mom,"

"Thank goodness she didn't see your bleeding. I think she could stand the sight of that," Kyle's hand trembles and I grab his hand and smile.

"It's okay that you fail to prevent me from getting injured. This pain isn't too bad,"

"Well, the doctor injects some anaesthetic into your neck. That's why it doesn't feel much pain,"

"That would explain the numbness on my neck," I touch my wound again but the pain makes me retreat my hand. Then Olivia passes Kyle his bag.

"You left this at Zack's house," Kyle thanked Olivia. Then we heard a loud ding which came from Kyle's phone. "Got to go now. My father told me to come back home," He quickly dashed out and he was gone.

"Me too. My mom also told me to come back too," Olivia takes a quick look at her phone and waves goodbye to me.

Now I'm alone. *It is getting late now. I best get some sleep* I cover myself and close my eyes.

(Eric's POV)

The blank dark sky makes it gloomy. No stars to be even seen. *There used to be stars back when I was young. I miss those old days*

I take a cigar and use my breath to light up the tip of the cigar. I smoke the cigar for a bit and let the smoke escape from my mouth. The cigar quickly burns out and I throw it in a nearby rubbish bin. "Too bad, guess that's the last cigar I have,"

My back is nudged and I turn around and see him. "Finally dare to show yourself to my face, huh?"

"Well, not like I wanted to meet you anyway. I just came here to see Zack. Seems the virus has healed him up,"

"Maybe but the pain is still there so it hasn't spread to his nervous system or brain yet. What type of strain did you spread to him?" I asked him and he shrugged. "You tell me, Sherlock,"

"Doesn't matter. I have one task for you," He just sighed. "Fine, just spill the beans,"

"You keep watch with Zack and protect him. Until he has some abnormal changes, you tell me or Emily," He waves his hands and gives me a cringe look. "So, I'm his babysitter? Absolutely great!"

"Whine all you want but that's your punishment for biting someone. Be grateful I didn't think of giving you a harsh punishment or something to torture you to learn from your mistakes," He crossed his arms. "You changed Zack's path the moment you bit him and now he is joining the same path as us soon,"

"Fine!" He leaves in frustration and I just sigh. *This kid really is getting under my skin.*

My phone started to ring and it was a call which I picked up. "Hello?"

Eric! Been a while since I last called you A familiar cheerful voice comes from the other end which makes me smile.

"Raiden! How's work today?" I start to fidget with my fingers and walk away from the hospital.

I created another invention today which is the 'Shockwave Darts'. It should blast enemies away from it or soften our fall, just like the mechanical shockwave bow in Fortnight. However, when trying to test it out, I end up having my door rip out of the house and drop to the road I laugh until tears run out of my eyes.

Then I decided to tease him. That's hilarious. You should have used it outside of your house. Maybe that wouldn't have happened Raiden just sniggers and stops.

Oh yeah. Why didn't I think of that? He sarcastically and then I hear him annoyed. Because there are rocks in my backyard that can fly in the air and hit my windows, idiot cousin!

"Fine, I knew about that. Just wanting to tease you and get a reaction," I giggle and he lets out an upset huff. You're mean, Eric. Anyway, how's being a police chief doing?

"Stressful to say the least. Hiding the amount of people getting bitten is way more difficult now. I already have 10 bitten cases in two weeks. The amount of bitten cases is rising. We are going to have to ask others to help us here to stop the infected from biting others or the media or police will soon find t…this," My voice shakes at my last word.

Don't worry, cousin. You can ask me or our friends to help you. Plus there are probably other police chiefs like you too His words always feel comforting.

"That could be true. But I have to look for other departments to find any," Then I remember about Zack. "Also, Raiden, do you know a kid named Zack Taylor? I checked his record and found his address is close to yours,"

Zack Talyor! Yeah, he is my neighbour who would come to my house to watch me testing my inventions. He is a good kid but with some mischief in him His voice turns from cheerful to worry. Wait, did he get bitten too? He knew what I wanted to talk about. Don't worry, I will watch Zack. I'm guessing you also have Little B watching Zack too?

"Of course, he must be punished for his actions. This is also to remind him that blood is a must to avoid hurting anyone," Noticing I have reached my apartment, I said to Raiden. "Reached home. Will talk to you later,"

Bye, cousin. Make sure to get some rest. Don't let criminals wake you up tonight He hangs up the call.

After taking a short trip with the lift, I enter my apartment room and lock behind. I let out a tired sigh and quickly relaxed on the couch to absorb today's events. *What a hectic day to deal with. I still have yet to find a lead on these cheeky drug dealers*

I grab something under my coffee table and put it on top. A map that shows the suburbs of Grovedale with different Xs crossed around it. Red lines were drawn to connect with the Xs attached with sticky notes that show some bullet points, relationships, and questions that were yet to be answered. Potential hideouts on where those drug dealers store their 'goods'. Red circles appear more frequently on the map with some having double circles. Places where drug dealers make deals with their customers and some of them aren't confirmed places where they make deals but there is a possibility based on the location and secrecy.

"Need a strong espresso coffee to stay up. Can't think hard without it," I quickly zoom into my small kitchen, take out a small coffee capsule (Black espresso flavour), and put it inside the coffee machine. After putting my mug next to the coffee machine, I press the button as it does its job. While waiting for my mug to be ready, I look at my phone and see Zack's picture.

"Sigh. A young boy with so many things he has yet to do…" I feel the heat of my mug and the sound of a beep from the coffee machine makes me grab my coffee. The strong espresso smell excites me but it was just missing something. "Not hot enough," I put one of my fingers in the hot liquid and wait for a few seconds. Then the liquid suddenly starts to boil up and bubbles pop on the surface. I put my finger out and took a sip, it was just the right temperature.

"Ahh, perfect. What was I thinking again?" I remember Zack and think about what to do with him. "I wonder what he will turn out to be. Hope B, doesn't do anything stupid,"

(Next day, Zack's POV)

*I'm going to die at this rate…*

"ZACK! My sweet little boy, are you okay?!" Mom squeezes me so firmly that I'm suffocating.

"M…mo…mom…" I still tried to speak but it came out as a weak voice.

"Honey, you're crushing him," She lets go of me and I quickly take some deep breaths. "Oww… I thought I was about to faint again," I fall back on my hospital bed.

"Sorry…" She apologises and checks on my neck. "Does it still hurt?"

In response, I shake my head. "Not as ba…d," My neck suddenly throb in pain again and I cringe from the pain. "Never mind, I guess it still hurts like hell,"

"Stay here, Zack. I will get the doctor to help you," Dad walked out of the room, leaving Mom and me alone.

"When can I get discharged? I don't want to stay here any longer," I ask Mom as she shrugs her shoulders.

"Let the doctor check your bite wound first. Your safety is more important,"

"Hey little mate, how's the hospital doing for you?" I look to my right and see a familiar friend. His blue eyes and chocolate hair brighten up when a ray of light shines on them.

"Raiden! Why are you here?" He walks towards me and gives me an upset look.

"I'm hurt. Is that how you treat me?" I got out of the hospital bed to hug him. "I was teasing you, Raiden. Thanks for checking me. I didn't expect this,"

"How can I ignore you when I heard you got injured? You visited me when I had a bad cold and you took care of me after school. I'm just repaying the favour,"

"Excuse me but who are you?" Mom asked him and I quickly introduced him to her.

"That is Raiden Pierce. Our neighbour from next door. He has been a good neighbour to me. If my memory is correct, he going to turn 26 in a few months," Her eyes open with delight and she shakes hands with him. "Hi, Mrs Talyor, it is a sweet pleasure to meet you. I remember fixing your husband's car a few months back,"

"Oh, so you're that person that my husband talks about," They both laugh a bit which feels awkward to me. He takes out a small packet and passes it to me. I open it up and see some pills inside which I look at him confused.

"What are these pills?" I curiously asked him.

He answers my question. "Painkillers. If your wound stings again, take one of these. Just don't take more than twice a day. Your body won't appreciate that,"

"Thanks, Raiden" Then a sound of ringing made us jump. Raiden takes out his phone and shows a 'Give me a sec' look before excusing himself. Dad comes back with the doctor and a nurse and they quickly approach me.

My Dad was talking with the doctor. "My son doesn't have any symptoms appearing. So, is he good to be discharged?"

"After I examine his bite wound, he should be able to be discharged," The doctor turns his attention to me.

"Can I take out your bandage?" He kindly asked me and I nodded.

After taking off my bandage while bearing with the pain, he examines my wound and I patiently wait. Then he speaks up. "Strange, I've never seen a wound heal so fast. I did a blood test yesterday and there isn't any infection found in your blood but I would need to give you oral antibiotics just to be safe. Do you feel any pain or discomfort?"

"Just a throbbing pain when I keep moving my neck. Nothing much," I answer him as he wraps a new gauze around my neck and secures it with tape. He then turns his attention to my parents and passes them a small packet to my Dad.

"Since Zack has no new symptoms, he can be discharged today. Make sure he takes these antibodies twice a day—one in the morning and one at night. Also, make sure he washes his wound with water and soap and apply a new bandage or gauze after he dries up his wound. If his symptoms persist or worsen, please come back for a diagnosis and checkup," My parents nod back to him. Mom passes me a small bag and I examine its insides to find a new pair of clothes and my phone. I understood her instructions and quickly rushed into the toilet to change.

After wearing my new clothes, I quickly notice my right arm having two bandages. *Must have been the scratches when that teen pushed me to the ground* I take them out but there aren't any scratches on my arm, as if it wasn't even injured. *Strange, that's why the doctor commented on my bite wound healing quickly*

I look in the mirror and see my cute sky-blue eyes but when I take a closer look, there seems to be a darker shade around my pupil. "Strange, did I always have a darker shade of blue on my iris?" But I drop that question and walk out of the toilet to see my mom waiting for me.

"Where's dad this time?" I asked Mom. "He went to the counter downstairs to pay money for your treatment,"

"Let's go home now," She gives me a soft hug and I feel my cheeks warm from her love. Then my ears pick up chuckling and I glare at the open door.

"Raiden, come out now…" I said with a menacing voice as he showed him with a cheeky smile. "Sorry, it was so cute and sweet that I couldn't help myself,"

"Stop it! That's embarrassing…" I say under my breath and Raiden pats my head. "Mrs Talyor, I want to speak with Zack in private for a moment. Would that be alright?"

"Sure," She turns to me. "Make sure to come down after you have your chat with Raiden," Then she left the room, leaving us both in silence.

"So, what is it you want to talk about?" I show a curious look.

"I heard that you feel pain when you turn your neck right?" I nod. "Try moving your neck again,"

"Why? You know I'm never a fan of pain, right?" Raiden suddenly grabbed my head and quickly moved it to my right before I had the time to react. I was expecting excruciating pain but nothing came and he put his hands away. "What the hell, Raiden?! Why did you do that?!" I shout at him, confused by his actions.

"But there wasn't any pain?" He was right about that. I calmed down to process what just happened.

"True, but what did you do?" Raiden went quiet for a moment before answering. "Well, I suspect it was a sore or stiff neck due to your wound or when you were pushed down. I have a friend who taught me a bit about chiropractic a few years back. It was helpful when I always had sore arms and a stiff neck. When you say you have pain, I thought to try that on you,"

I take some time to process before opening my mouth. "Never knew that you were a nerd. I thought you always play games all day at your home when you don't have any work to do," He pats my back but I felt it more forceful than usual.

"I will take that as a compliment…" He was about to walk out of the room but he turned to me. "Also, if you experience any other symptoms, please do call me,"

"Why? Is not like you're a doctor," His eyes told me he was very serious about this so I kept my mouth quiet and let him continue.

"Pain on your wound is a normal thing that would happen but this isn't going to be the only symptom. There would be more symptoms that can arise and if it is serious, the doctors wouldn't understand what is going on with you. I would at least understand what is happening so I could give you something to ease the symptoms,"

Raiden seems to know more than the doctors about this. Could he be hiding something from me? "How are you so sure?"

"I can't tell you just yet. That will have to wait first. I will show you the truth when the time is right," Then a loud ringtone rang from his pocket as he gave me a quick smile. "I have something to do. Got to go," He quickly left the room, leaving me.

*What is he hiding from me?*

I quickly rush downstairs and make my way to the entrance of the hospital where my parents are waiting for me. Mom smiles at me and Dad shows me a fist which I return with a fist pump.

"Let's go home. I wonder how worried Lailah is,"

"Oh, she is very worried for you. Never seen her this worried before,"

With that simple conversation, we make our way to Dad's car.

The journey back wasn't much. I slept for most of the journey and jolted up when the car suddenly stopped. After rubbing my eyes, I see our house and Lailah on the balcony. She gets up and runs back into the house. I open the car door and walk towards the house. Lailah comes out of the house and hugs me.

"BROTHER!" She grips herself on me as I just giggle and hug her back. "Miss me already? It hasn't even been more than 10 hours since we saw each other,"

"You know how much I was worried?! When I heard you have a serious bite wound and bleeding, I thought you would die from that!" She scolds me which is fair enough. That was much of a scare to her.

"Yeah, yeah. I should have been more careful that day but that was unexpected. That teen could have punched me in the face not bit me on the neck," She finally lets go of me but proceeds to grab my arm and pull me into the house. *What does she have in store for me?*

She drags me to the kitchen and I smell some sweet in the air. "What's cooking in the house?" I asked her but no words came out of her mouth. Then I notice the kitchen table has some delicious cookies with different flower patterns and leaves. She lets go of her grip on me as I ask her.

"Did you ask Mom to make them or did you bake these cookies?" I smile at her as she shows me two fingers up. "Oh, I didn't know you can shape these nicely. Considering, you couldn't even draw them well,"

She punched me in the stomach which hurt for just a second before fading away. "You can't stop teasing me, could you?"

"You look cute when you get angry," She tries to smack me but I evade that easily. My back feels like I hit something and it suddenly wraps around my waist.

"Now get him, Lailah!" My sister immediately rushed to me and managed to slap my face and attempt to hit my stomach again but I used my arms to block her attacks. "Thanks, Kyle"

"Come on, Kyle. You would betray your best friend rather than help me?" I jokingly mumble at him. They both laugh at me for a while and Kyle releases me. "So, what are you doing here?"

Kyle takes one of the cookies while Lailah shows a mean look at him doing so. "I saw your parent's car when I was looking out at the window. Since you're back, why don't we play some video games? Didn't you have Resident Evil 8 that you bought 2 months ago?"

I remember that game with a bad experience. "That game? Well, I don't think I would let you play that… I still haven't finished it… yet"

"Huh? Did you not have time to play it?" I shake my head. "Well, my dumbass decide it was an amazing idea to play it on hardcore mode after beating normal like it was a pop quiz. Now I struggle to beat Moreau,"

"Are you serious?! You can beat Super Mario Sunshine so easily but you can't beat Resident 8 on hardcore mode?" I feel insulted by his comment and show him an annoyed smile.

"Well, try to fight a big giant with a dozen shotgun shells, sniper bullets, a shit pistol. I didn't have any explosive rounds with me. Moreau constantly acid spit me and I couldn't run away thanks to the mud,"

"Didn't bother to look around for resources?" Asking that stupid question made me felt I burst a blood vessel.

"Yeah, hardcore mode, makes it almost impossible to find a treasure of scarps I could be able to use. It feels like playing Bloodborne all over again back then,"

"Let me see what you did when you battled with him," Kyle makes his way to my room but my sister grabs my shirt and points at her cookies.

"Try my cookies, please…" She begs me with her cute shiny blue eyes. I take one of her cookies and take a large bite. The sweetness of the cookie makes me feel an electric current flowing down my body. I stop chewing to process the strong taste and look at her. After swallowing it down my throat, I speak to her.

"How much sugar did you put?" She looks at me confused and takes another cookie and takes a small bite into it.

"Taste… fine to me," She comments on it. "I think about three full spoons of sugar,"

"Teaspoon or normal spoon?" I take another bite and try to ignore the strong sweetness. "The latter,"

I was so shocked by her response that I almost spit out the cookie. I quickly chew and swallow it down and look at her. "FULL SPOONS?! Do you have a very sweet tooth?"

"Is it too sweet?" She has a disappointed look as she takes the tray of cookies and I immediately see her trying to put them into the rubbish bin. I swiftly grab her arm and put the tray back on the kitchen table. Seeing her disappointed would make her doubt herself and I don't want that.

"Maybe a bit too sweet but it is a good try. Just use teaspoons instead of the normal spoons. Too much sugar would get the tooth monster to pluck your rotten teeth," I tried to scare her but she wasn't fazed by that.

"That trick tale doesn't scare me anymore," A blank stare is what I get in return and I just sigh. "You grow up way too fast. There were so many things I wanted to scare you," She hit me with her fist but her punches were too soft to do anything to me and I laughed at her efforts.

"Why do you always bully me?" Her scowled face makes me smile as I accomplished something today.

"HEY, ZACK! Come here quickly" I hear Kyle calling for me as I pat Lailah's head before swiftly rushing upstairs. Kyle was playing Resident Evil 8 and I see that he is fighting Moreau. I observe his actions as he hides behind different houses and scans the area for any barrels to loot from.

After an intense 10 minutes, Moreau kills him with an acid spray and Kyle slams my controller. "DAMN IT! How much health does Moreau have? I shotgun his face like 20 times and use the landmines on him,"

"Told you," I take back my controller. "Let me try. Maybe we could find his patterns, we could defeat this beast,"

"I'm not stopping until we defeat this beast on hardcore!"

We spent the next 40ish minutes fighting Moreau but it took another 3 attempts to defeat that fat deformed fishman. Kyle got killed by his own landmine which I laughed at him for a while but I also made a similar mistake by using my knife on a red barrel when it was my attempt. Talk about karma kicking me back. After we defeated by using GM 79, which was the weapon that I didn't use in my previous run, Kyle got a bit pissed that I didn't use that because it was so good at killing bosses, according to him.

"Finally, we did it. Damn, I need to get a drink," He left my room and I was about to continue but there was a sharp pain in my stomach and a bad nausea feeling. I dropped my controller and went to the ground in pain.

*Need the bathroom* I slowly get up and move to the bathroom. When I reach the toilet, I immediately vomit what my stomach holds and after emptying it, the pain disappears and I take a few deep breaths.

*Why did I feel nausea? Was it I played too many games today?*

"Zack, are you alright?" I hear Kyle asking me. He must have heard me vomit loudly. I quickly respond back. "I'm okay now! Don't worry about it!"

I flushed the toilet and tried to forget about that happening. Could be the excessive sugar triggering it.

End of Chapter 2