For The Greater Good-World 1: A Corrupted Cove || World//Zero ||

19. Bedrest

[Art by me ^]

The faint sound of someone talking stirred Alec out of his sleep, and he flickered his eyes open, his gaze meeting the wooden boards of the ceiling. Somehow he knew that he wasn't in his room, as he held his breath in a slight panic. His thoughts raced through his mind as he darted his eyes around the room, too scared to move. Where was he? What happened? 

Suddenly feeling brave enough, he forced himself to sit up in the bed, the black and blue knitted quilt covering him drifting off his shoulders and into his lap. Biting the inside of his mouth, with his hands gripping the mattress, he wearily scanned the room. It appeared to be empty other than a small nightstand on one side of the bed, while on the other was a large curtain blocking his view from the rest of the room. As soon as he got to the window, peering through the glass, he felt instant relief to realize that he was in the village. 

It was dark, the outside world tinted a deep blue and purple shade. Alec could spot the white glow of the moon that was barely peeking over the roofs of the shops and inns. There were a few stragglers scurrying the streets of the village, a number of them being adventurers returning to their dorms or running some last-minute errands. Alec watched as the sky grew darker until he heard a knock on the door. He glanced at it, feeling a chill run up his spine as the door clicked open. 

It was Sean who stepped inside, holding a lantern in one of his hands. At first, he looked down at the floor before raising his gaze to Alec. His eyes widened in surprise, and he hesitated in the doorway for a moment. The two boys stared at each other in silence for a while before Sean finally spoke. "Hi, Alec."

Alec didn't know what to think. While relieved that it was only Sean, he couldn't help but feel like something was wrong. "Hi." 

 Sean lingered in the doorway for a few seconds before he stepped inside, and carefully closed the door behind him. Setting down the lantern on the floor, he rubbing his hands together anxiously, hesitating before asking him how he was feeling. 

Alec shrugged. "I'm fine." Leaning a little forward, he asked, "Are you okay?" 

Sean stifled an awkward laugh. "Am I okay?" he repeated. "What about you?" 

Alec tilted his head. "What do you mean?" 

"Don't you remember?" Sean took a couple of steps toward the bed. "The fight with the Crab Prince? You nearly fractured your ribs." 

Alec paused. Now he remembered. He recalled him and Sean walking along the coast, and stumbling upon that washed-up pirate ship, and how they accidentally provoked a giant crab. He remembered the impact of the crab's claw as it threw him onto the beach.

"Fortunately, the nurse said that you were only bruised and that it should clear up in a while," Sean mentioned. "But she instructed that you better lay off your training for a bit until you get feeling better." 

Alec nodded slowly. That seemed reasonable enough. Now that Sean mentioned it, he did feel a little sore, and it hurt a little to breathe. If his moms were here, they'd tell him to take it easy. Though, now that he thought about it, he was sure that Cal wasn't so happy about that. Speaking of Cal, he wondered whether or not he was disappointed in Alec for going against his orders, let alone mingling with Sean, who he already wasn't on good terms with. 

Meeting Sean's eyes again, he questioned, "How long have I been here?" 

"A few hours," Sean answered, folding his arms. He waited for a moment before mumbling. "I've been checking up on you, but they kicked me out. They said that you had to rest, but you were already unconscious so I don't see what the big deal was..." 

Alec let out an amused huff before frowning slightly. "Are we in trouble?" 

Sean smiled. "Nah, though they let us off with a warning. Because we're both still under the watch of our mentors, we're not supposed to wander off or something." He chuckled. "Your lucky that you didn't get too badly injured. Who knows what could've happened?" 

"Tell me about it." 

Alec and Sean laughed quietly before drifting into silence again. After a moment, Sean rubbed the back of his neck, averting his gaze to the window. "Anyway, the reason why I'm here is that I have something for you." 

Alec cocked a brow. He never imagined getting a gift. Feeling excited by this, he readjusted himself in his seat, feeling intrigued. "What is it?"

"Well, first off, I found this." Unsheathing something from his back, he held out Alec's sword. When Alec took it back, carefully cradling it in his hands, Sean added, "After the fight, I noticed that you didn't have your sword, so I went back to retrieve it before it got dark." He then held up his hands defensively. "Don't worry. I got permission and used the Waystones, so we're all good." 

Alec snickered before setting his sword aside. While it wasn't what he expected, he appreciated Sean's willingness to find and bring it back to him. Of course, he could've just gotten another one from the blacksmith, but it was a thoughtful gesture. 

"Also, you got a letter." 

Pulling an envelope from somewhere in his cloak, he showed it to Alec, who eyed it with interest. Slowly taking it from Sean, he read the sender. It was from his parents.

Sean continued. "I don't know why it took so long to get here. Perhaps our mailing service isn't quick enough with letters or something." Crossing his arms again, he watched as Alec turned the letter over in his hands before he raised his head. 

"Thanks," Alec said. "Really, you didn't have to go get my things for me."

"Ah, it's nothing. It's the least I could do." 

Alec nodded. 

Sean waited a moment before backing up towards the door. "Anyway, I don't want to keep you up any longer." Kneeling down to grab his lantern, he stood back up and met the boy's eyes. "You should go back to sleep."

"Right."

"So, uh, good night, Alec." 

"Night."

As Sean turned around and opened the door, the aftermath of the fight with the Crab Prince flashed through his mind. He recalled Cal and Sean arguing before Elliot's mentor broke them up. He looked back at Sean. He couldn't imagine how sorry he must've been feeling. Did Sean blame himself for what happened? 

"Sean, wait." 

Sean halted in the doorway and glanced over his shoulder at Alec. The boy hesitated before saying, "I forgive you." 

Sean didn't say anything. The corner of his mouth lifted slightly before he turned and left the room, closing the door behind him.