Of Love and Death.

The Present Chapter 6: Bonding in the Aftermath

Warning: A few scoops of anxiety, keeping yourself awake gummy bears, and a self-fear cherry. Don't worry, Shu gets a bit better. Maybe a bit of derealization, I don't really know another word for it. Like, implying the characters aren't exactly real in the universe. Also, Richard Yello shows up.

     Shu collapsed facedown on his bed. He was clutching Spryzen in one hand and the sheets in the other. It was the morning, and he'd just driven Valt back from the hospital because, apparently, you can't drive yourself with a cast on your arm. He wasn't happy about having to do this either. His friend should have been flying back to Spain right now. Far away from him. Apparently, Valt was an idiot and canceled his flight home. Why? Supposedly because Shu was "very upset and dealing with surprising life things". In other words, Valt was worried about his friend. Not being sensible and getting as far away as possible from the guy who could burst into flames.

    Shu squeezed his eyes shut, trying to stop tears from leaking out of them on account of the thoughts running through his head. It just sucked what had happened. How can you be having such a normal day and then something just ruins it? It probably wasn't helping that it was 10 am and Shu had been awake for more than a full day.

    A creaking sound came from where Mr. Midnight's cage was, causing Shu to pick himself up and look at it. Mr. Midnight had apparently opened the door and hopped onto the carpet. The rabbit then hopped himself over the foot or two of floor and up onto Shu's bed. Shu smiled a bit as the creature snuggled in his arms. I would assume he's happy to see you, Spryzen quietly "whispered" to him.

    Shu glanced over to where his pet's cage was. The food and water were completely empty, which was odd since he'd filled them up before he left to blade with Valt last night. It was almost like Mr. Midnight had stayed up the whole time waiting for him, eating and drinking it all.

    I guess, Shu thought to Spryzen, he probably wants to sleep on my bed. I don't think he has yet. Shu sighed and turned over so that he was laying on his back, no longer his stomach. He curled up slightly on his red and black comforter. I need sleep, Shu thought to himself as he hugged the rabbit. He closed his eyes and, despite all of his fears, began to slip into a slumber almost immediately.

    It was in that hazy zone between conscious thought and dreams that Shu had an idea. A terrible, awful idea. Not to steal Christmas, but that he was liable to spark into flames while he slept. It seemed reasonable, right? He clearly had a fire inside of him, and it had come out without any conscious say. What if he had a nightmare and got scared? Just like when he was scared for Valt? Would he light up and burn everything, his bed, Mr. Midnight, his apartment, even Valt? Shu froze at the  thoughts that cascaded through his mind. He was wide awake now, and scared of falling asleep.

     Ah, great, this is going to go so well, Spryzen thought with a fair amount of sarcasm in his voice.

     Shut up Spryzen. It's all possible, Shu said, a bit of a bite in his voice. He cowed a bit. That had come out harsher than necessary. S-sorry, Shu apologized, afraid his partner would hate him forever. Well, that was an exaggeration, hate him for a little while. That was a bit mean.

     Shu felt Spryzen sigh. I'm going to bed. One of us needs to be someone capable of rational thought. Shu bristled. He was fully capable of rational thought. He opened his eyes to the darkness of his room and tried to remember what he had been thinking about before his conversation. Oh, right, the fact that he shouldn't fall asleep.

    Shu pushed himself up with tired arms. A small and confused squeak escaped Mr. Midnight, the rabbit was probably wondering why Shu appeared to be getting out of bed. He took a breath once he was fully sitting up. What he was about to do was always complicated. As quick as he could, Shu scooped Mr. Midnight up in his arms. The rabbit chittered angrily, kicking his hind legs at Shu's stomach.