Chapter Nine

Chapter Nine

We walk out of the hospital wing, and I shake the doctor’s hand gratefully, the painkillers he just gave me still in my hand.

“You’re lucky she brought you here, you know. Those feet were close to getting infected. Then we would’ve had to resort to more… drastic methods.”

I gulp and nod to acknowledge him. Amelia couldn’t stay; she said something about “fussy Larry needing her.” What a moron�" who in the world put him in charge?

“Thank you,” I manage to say, putting my pills in my pocket.

He made me take one before I left, and I can already feel the pain subsiding. 

He nods to my pocket, “Be sure to take those every 6 hours, and only if you need to. We don’t want an overdose.”

I’m about to roll my eyes and say I know that already, but I stop. He’s probably saying that because the first time I came into this wing was for my suicide attempt…

Instead, I smile, “I will, don’t worry.”

I start to walk away, and I hear him call out, “Take care, Rose! I better not see you here again until we check those bandages, okay?”

I laugh, “Can’t promise you that, doc!”

I can hear the pills rattling in their container as I walk. I should probably head to my room to put them away; otherwise, this is going to annoy me.

I make my way to my room, and a satisfied sigh comes out. I never realized how much my feet had hurt until now. Now it feels like I’m floating. That medication really hits the spot once it’s on.

I check the time on my watch: 14:16. I haven’t had lunch yet, but I realize I’m not that hungry. All those weeks of walking here must have adjusted my appetite. I could ask someone for some food, but I don’t feel like socializing right now.

Maybe I’ll just have a day off… just think about things, I think to myself as I put one foot in front of the other.

I turn the corner and, to my surprise, see Leon.

Momentary surprise washes away, and I smile down at him, “Hey, Lemon.”

He gives me a toothy grin, and his eyes shine like sapphires, “Hey, Rose!”

I lean against the wall, “Did you just get off of training?”

I realize with a start how long it’s been since I’ve seen him. A day? Two days? It hasn’t really been this long, has it? I need to look out for him more. So much has happened in the past three days since we got here…

“Uh… yeah. Ezra was pretty nice to me today,” he says shyly.

“Ezra?” I say with confusion. Who in the world is that?

Something clicks in my brain, like a magazine fitting into a gun, “Oh, your trainer?”

He nods enthusiastically, “Mhm.”

“So how’s training going then?” I say.

It feels awkward talking. Something’s happened to us over the past couple of days. Maybe it’s just because we haven’t been together lately, but it feels… stiff. Like, we don’t know what to talk about.

Leon looks down and shuffles his feet. A little worry flutters in my chest.

“What? What is it?” I say, trying to recall anything I could have said, “Is it your powers?”

He hated his powers so much�" is he still struggling with that? He’s been so enthusiastic, I never really thought…

He purses his lips, “Well… not really…”

I tilt my head, “But weren’t you�"”

“I am,” he says, then furrows his brows, “Well, I was. I don’t know… It’s kinda different now, I suppose.”

“So you like your powers now?” I say, careful not to trigger any reaction from him.

He doesn’t say anything for a while, and I begin to ask again, but then he mumbles quietly, “Yeah…”

I beam, “Leon, that’s great!”

I lean down and give him a big hug. I feel him accept it, but he doesn’t hug me back. A little bullet shoots through my heart as I pull away and go back to standing. He’s never not accepted my hugs before.

“Mhm,” he says, a little color on his cheeks. I wonder if they’re from pride or embarrassment.

“How’s your training going?” he says quickly.

I want to tell him he doesn’t have to be a polite soldier anymore, but I refrain from it. Besides, his question is now bringing attention to me. 

I resist the urge to bite my lip and say to him confidently, “It’s going good.”

It’ll be hardest to keep my secret from him. Leon knows me best. My nerves are at an all-time high as I wait for him to answer.

Thankfully, he doesn’t seem to notice. Instead, I notice his shoulders slumping a bit. His back is slouched, and suddenly, he looks exhausted.

I bite my lip; his training must have been hard today. Is he really doing okay? I haven’t spent time with him for so long�" how can I know what he’s feeling? It hasn’t ever been like that�" we’ve always had each other to talk to. We’ve always had our parents to talk to, too… I wince as the thought comes up. The grief still stings. I’m sure it stings even more for him. He’s so young…

I manage to pull up a smile in my despair, “Hey, Leon?”

He looks up at me, but his eyes don’t have the sparks they did moments ago.

A few tears threaten to rise, but I block their path, “You wanna play charades?”

Mum and Dad always played it with us. It was usually past curfew. Always our little secret. I suppose they wanted us to still be kids, amongst everything. Thinking about it makes the pain worse, but I know Leon would love to play it again. It can still be our secret, even here.

His eyes water up, but he brushes his sleeve across them, “Yeah, I’d like that.”

I keep my smile, “Alright, let’s go to my room. We'll have more space to play there.”

I hesitate, then offer my hand for him to hold. This wasn’t permitted much in Cryptis, but some of my fondest memories are of Mom and Dad swinging our locked hands as we walked. Always in the dark, of course, since people didn’t seem to approve of it.

Leon smiles widely and grabs my hand. His is warm and sweaty, but I’m grateful for it. We walk down the hall, our grip on each other firm and loving. It takes me back to walking through the snow only a month ago. Back then, his hand was so cold I was afraid he’d get frostbite.

I shake the thought off. Why am I thinking of that in a time like this? We’re here, we’re safe, and we’re never going back to that time.

~ • • • ~

I sit on my bed, intensely watching Leon’s every move. He’s been making so many motions, and I’m still not getting it. Right now, he’s making a trunk motion, like an elephant.

“Elephant! Handle! Water!” I yell out passionately, every guess seeming to frustrate him more.

He rolls his eyes, bopping his hands up and down in a pattern.

“What the�" what does this have to do with an elephant trunk?!” I laugh.

“Mmmm!” he grunts to me, still doing the pattern.

He seems to grab something up, maybe by a cord?

“Wire? Plug?” I say, my confusion reigning, “Hose?”

His eyes widen, “Mmm! Mmmmmmm!”

It must be something close to that, “Gardening! Caretaker! Gardener!”

I feel I’m getting close, but what else can there be? I hear Leon groan in frustration.

“Hey! Just wait till your turn, Lemon. It’s harder than it looks!”

I try a few more times, but it seems like desperate guesses at this point.

He sighs and lies down on the ground, “I give up�" I can’t believe you aren’t getting it.”

“Aw�" come on! I was close, right?” I say with a chuckle.

“It was a watering can! My gosh, Rose,” he says, covering his face and containing his laughter. Tears stream down his face, but they look like the good kind.

“Oh,” I simply say, grimacing, “Oops.”

He sits upright, “Alright, your turn.”

I push myself off the bed. Gotta choose a topic. We’ve been playing for around an hour at this point, but the fun hasn’t seemed to end. It’s almost like we’re both back in our home, with joy ringing in every ear.

Even brighter note, my feet aren’t the least bit sore. Seems like the painkillers really could have helped me earlier.

Things only seem to be getting better. Amelia isn’t making me use my ice powers, Leon’s happy, I’m happy. How much better could it get?

This place is changing me for the better. I haven’t felt like this in a long time.

Maybe everything will turn out right after all.

Author's Note

Wow! Finished this chapter fast. I guess it is short tho lol- anyways, enjoy!