Imperfect Life: Arc 7

Chapter 27

Crys opened her eyes to be greeted by an unfamiliar sight. She found herself in an unfamiliar bed in an unfamiliar room. Before she could take in any details, she bolted upright and started to panic, breathing heavily and turning her head all over, trying to figure out where she was.

Brandon startled awake from where he was laying on the floor. He quickly got up on his knees and looked at Crys. "You're okay!" He said in a hushed tone. "You're safe!"

Crys focused on her friend. "Where?" She muttered, quieting herself a little.

"We're in my world." Brandon explained quickly. "This is my room."

Crys took a few breaths while staring at Brandon, starting to calm down. She slowed her breathing back down to normal and looked around the room calmly with curiosity now that she knew she was safe. It was a lot smaller than Brandon's room back home, though it looked a bit similar in some ways. There were plenty of shelves holding little knick knacks and such, a door over in the corner, a closet, a dresser to the side, the bed, and opposite the door was a large window with the blinds shut. It was like a little box, plain and simple and beige.

"W-we're in your world?" Crys asked, a little shaky, but calm.

Brandon nodded. "Yeah." He yawned. "I uh... I took us here."

Crys furrowed her eyebrows, a bit confused.

"Do you remember anything from last night?" Brandon asked, concerned.

"A... A little." Crys replied. "I uh, I woke up, went to you... made sure everything was real, then... then I think I broke down and something happened. It felt weird, but then everything was dark and you said we were safe and... that's it."

Brandon yawned again. "You fell asleep." He said.

"How did I get up here?" Crys asked, looking around the bed.

"After you fell asleep, I waited for you to become human again, then I-" another yawn interrupted Brandon, "I put you in my bed."

"Did-did you stay up the whole night?" Crys asked, feeling a little bit bad.

Brandon shrugged. "Most of it, I guess. I nodded off once or twice, but yeah. After I got you in the bed I just grabbed a spare pillow and blanket and laid down here."

"Then I woke you up." Crys murmured.

"It's fine." Brandon said.

Crys frowned a little.

"You know, I don't mean this to be rude, but you're pretty hard to pick up." Brandon teased a little.

Crys gave a faint smile. "You saying I'm heavy?" She asked back wearily, but jokingly.

"A bit, yeah." Brandon replied with a half-smile.

Crys smiled. "Can't really blame you." She said.

Both friends went quiet for a moment.

"So... what happened yesterday?" Brandon asked, concerned.

Crys immediately soured. She tightened her grip on the blankets.

"You don't have to say anything if it's that bad." Brandon said, noticing Crys' sudden shift.

Crys loosened her grip and looked at Brandon. She shook her head a little and took a deep breath. "Later." She forced herself to say.

Brandon nodded. "Okay." He said. "Whenever you're ready."

Crys nodded.

"Hey, I'm going to go grab us some breakfast real quick." Brandon said after a moment, getting up.