The Rebellion. (GKND fanfiction)

Chapter Two

It was 2:44 AM. Hoagie had programmed a clock to show what time it was back at the treehouse, so he could sleep at the proper times. He never did, though. And this case was no different.
He was experimenting with DNA sequences, as Rachel had suggested. He had stayed up all night taking notes on his findings, hoping to gather some useful information. However, that wasn't the only reason why he was awake at such a time.
Wally had disappeared on that day two months ago. He was his best friend, the one who kept his spirits up when times were bad... He was taken away from him, just like that. He never got to say goodbye.
As much as he wanted to believe he was still alive, the chances were low. Nigel was too deranged to care who he hurt, and that included his own friends. Wally would've busted out already if he were still alive... But that hadn't happened. He hadn't seen his face in 2 whole months... Knowing what probably happened, his face was decomposed beyond recognition at this point.
His eyes were half shut as he tried to continue his research... But all he could think about was Wally. He began impulsively scratching at his arms, a habit he picked up from him purposely hurting himself. He didn't even notice until be began to scratch harder and harder, making marks on the skin. He dropped what he was doing and sighed.

"I should probably go to bed..." He mumbled to himself.

He laid down on his bed and tried to sleep, hoping that some shut-eye would make the thoughts go away. Much to his disappointment, it didn't. They continued to get worse and worse as he thought about all he wished he could've said to him before his death...
He buried his head into his pillow. He wanted to melt into his bed, never to be seen again. It was hard to ignore the thoughts he was having. He wanted to give in, but he tried his hardest not to.
He turned his head to get some fresh air. On his makeshift bedside table laid the pencil sharpener he was using for some schematics that he forgot to put away. The thoughts only grew stronger as he stared at it.

"Oh, come on, man... Just-- just look away." He said to himself. "Abby said to cope in a healthy way."

He looked around the room for a "healthy way". He had trouble coping to begin with, his mother was too busy to take him to therapy to help him find coping skills when he was younger, and it had a huge impact on him during the times he needed it most. His grandmother hated him, and would refuse to take him if his mother were to pay for it. It was a horrible situation he was stuck in, and there wasn't much Abby could do. She was only a kid, too.
He bit his lower lip anxiously once he realized there wasn't anything to use that'd help him. He fiddled with his fingers and began to rock back and forth, holding back his urge to grab hold of the closest sharp object. His breathing grew unsteady as he unknowingly scooted closer and closer to the edge of his bed, near the bedside table.
To his own disappointment, he couldn't hold back. He grabbed his pencil sharpener and gently pulled off his fingerless gloves to ensure they didn't get stained. He glided the sharp end against his arms, three times on one side, and three times on the other. Upon making the last cut, he had a sudden burst of anger. He growled loudly and threw the pencil sharpener across the room, shattering it upon impact with the wall. He curled up in a ball and cried.
He wouldn't have this habit if he had the skills to cope with Wally's death. Hell, he wouldn't have this habit if he had never had that deep conversation with Abby shortly before his death.
She had warned him about hurting himself. She explained how her sister had a habit of it a few years prior, and being curious, had started doing it herself. She said she was able to get out of it quickly, realizing the consequences.
Hoagie never thought he'd get to such a point in the first place. He thought he had the skills that Abby didn't have when she was 9. But curiosity got the best of him a day after Wally's disappearance, and after that... He kept coming back to it.
He grabbed the blanket that was behind him and wrapped it around his body. He made a sigh of relief - most likely from the cuts. That relief didn't last long, since Hoagie was more than just disappointed with himself in the moment.
He walked as slow as possible to Abby's room. He knocked on her door, and to his surprise, heard her respond from the other side.

"Come in."

He pushed the door open and saw her with her glasses on, staring at a rather large book.

"Insomnia again?"

"Well, yeah... I guess."

Abby put her book down. "Your voice sounds more raspy than it usually is. Have you been crying?"

"A bit."

Abby took her glasses off and made room on her bed for Hoagie to sit down. He noticed her invitation and sat down in front of her so they could talk.

"What happened?"

"You know what day it is, right?"

"Tuesday, I believe... Wait, sorry... It's Wednesday now. I haven't slept yet, so I still think it's-"

"No. I don't mean that. What's the date?"

"Should be the sixteenth.- Oh. It's, ah..."

"It's that day." Hoagie muttered softly.

Hoagie looked side to side, making sure that no one was awake. He did that regardless of the time, even if he knew everyone was asleep. He dropped the blanket from his body and put it over his lap, revealing the marks on his arms.

"I see. Did you... Try to find something else?"

"Yeah... B-But I didn't try very hard, so..."

"Don't worry, okay? It's a rough day for you. Just give me a second."

Abby dropped her body to the floor and dug under her bed, pulling out an emergency first aid kit. She took out all the things she needed.

"Hold your arms out."

Hoagie did just that, and Abby tore the packaging of the cleansing wipe she had. She rubbed it on the wounds gently, making sure she didn't hurt him any more than she needed to. She put some cotton on them, before wrapping them with bandages.

"Alright, that should keep them from getting infected. You all good now?"

"I-I guess... I appreciate you, for uh... Not being mad."

"Mad? Why would I be mad? You know Numbuh Five can't be mad at you for that."

"Well, I just thought, since I didn't try hard enough to find something else-"

She abruptly grabbed hold of his hands. "Hey. It'll be okay. Not everyone can just stop like I did. It takes time to heal, alright? We're young. Things happen. We struggle. You'll be okay in the end."

Hoagie smiled at her, prompting her to smile back.

"You should go and get some sleep now. It's late, I shouldn't be up either."

"Right. Thank you, for everything."

"It's the least I could do."

They waved goodbye and Hoagie walked back to his room. Thinking about what Abby had said made him feel a lot better. Although he still felt horrible about his best friend, he didn't hate himself for the mistake he'd just made.
The care she put into making sure he would be okay made him feel better, too. He felt loved. He didn't usually feel that way, especially not at home. The only time he felt loved was when Wally would get all giddy seeing him.
That boy stuck to him like glue. Even when he was dating Kuki, he had a huge attachment to him. Every time he saw him come back from a mission, he'd jump up and down and ask him how it went. And the feeling was mutual.
When he had broken up with Kuki, he felt horrible about it. Even though they both agreed they were better off as just friends, he felt some sort of guilt for breaking it off. Hoagie had assured him that it was okay to break off a relationship he felt was only platonic, and Wally reacted in a way he had never seen from him... At least not often.
He hugged him, and told him that he's lucky to have him as friend. He never shared his emotions like that.
...That happened a month before he'd disappeared. He wish he hadn't taken that moment for granted.
He laid back down in his bed and tried to silence his thoughts. This time, it worked. He felt more calm now, which allowed him to fall asleep. He could do his research in the morning. It wasn't going anywhere anyways.

To be continued...