Cw: mentions of alcoholism and implied relapse, mcd and stalking, unhelpful police, unkind hospital staff
Caretaker was a mess when Whumpee disappeared. That was their best friend. And NO ONE seemed to believe that they were in any danger! 'They left a note!' Ok so there was a note. It was typed and didn't sound like Whumpee at all in Caretaker's opinion.
17 months later, Whumpee was found, left for dead in an abandoned building. Whatever had happened to them, Caretaker would likely never know but their purpose was deemed over. Whumpee spent the next month in the hospital recovering.
During this month, Caretaker spent it recovering as well, from the alcoholism they developed over the time that Whumpee was gone. They were told by Whumpee's Social Worker that if they could provide a One Month chip by the time Whumpee was discharged, that they could take Whumpee into their care.
Caretaker had never worked so hard. There were sleepless nights and awful days and Caretaker thought this was the worst thing they could ever feel, next to when Whumpee was missing, but they did it.
Whumpee cried tears of joy for their best friend when they proudly held up their chip at the time of discharge. That meant no rehab center until a placement, Whumpee could go home.
During the next few weeks, Whumpee and Caretaker became more and more concerned that they were being pursued by someone. Weird things kept happening. Cars seemed to follow them, but Caretaker was always able to shake them. And Whumpee was sure they'd seen Whumper a few times watching in public spaces, so they became more and more recluse. They tried seeking help from the local police, but who would believe a recovering alcoholic who'd spent many a night in jail during the last year and someone branded mentally unstable due to trauma?
It wasn't until Whumper had shown up the evening before Caretaker's 2 Month Chip ceremony and successfully stabbed Whumpee that the police took any action. Caretaker managed to take Whumper by surprise and knocked them out. The police and ambulance service showed up, whisking everyone away to jail and hospital but Whumpee was in bad shape. Still in their dress clothes, Caretaker sat miserably in the waiting room.
Upon hearing the news that Whumpee didn't make it, Caretaker was sent away. After all, they weren't family. "But I was their caretaker." "Just because you cared for them doesn't make us legally obligated to let you in. You weren't. Related. Family. Only. Read. The sign." With every punctuation, the nurse tapped the sign with her pen.
Sighing in defeat, Caretaker said "Can you do one thing for me?" "What?" The nurse was more than annoyed at this point. "Please make sure that this stays with them," Caretaker handed the nurse their One Month Chip, "it meant more to them than anything."
"Won't you need this?"
"Not anymore."
