Wren

Part 13

Wren heard muffled voices echo through his ears, like they were far away. His ears began to ring slightly, then it grew louder and louder until he thought his head would burst. He could hear the voices getting louder along with the ringing. It was so loud that a tear slipped from his closed eyes in pain. Louder, louder, louder. . . Until it popped. The pressure in his head was relieved and the ringing subsided so he could hear the voices clearly.

"--think he's waking up--"

          "He's squirming a lot--"

                  "Is he in pain?"

Wren slowly opened his eyes, turning his head to the right and seeing the outlines of three blurry people. He blinked a few times, then gave up at trying to clear his vision. He tried to speak, but something was in his mouth. It freaked him out and he began to panic, clawing at the weird contraption around his face and trying to sit up. The blurry figures rushed toward him, scaring him even more.

"Wren, it's okay! Relax! it's just a tube to help you, okay?" 

The voice was familiar. . . But Wren couldn't quite place it. He continued to struggle, his panic making him choke on the tube down his throat. He began to wiggle in the bed, kicking his legs.

One of the figures quickly moved to the foot of the bed and held his legs down.

"Please, Wren! Your legs are hurt and kicking will make it worse!"

He was unable to move his legs now, and when one of the figures moved forward and reached a hand out towards his face, Wren feebly knocked it away. He continued clawing at the tube and choking, coughing around it as he twisted his upper body in the bed.

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Leo decided the panic was too much for Wren's weakened body to handle, so he got a sedative injection ready. Wren didn't seem to be able to see or hear them clearly and wouldn't calm down. He needed to stop struggling before he injured himself further or passed out again.

He subtly approached the bed, holding the needle down low at his side so Wren couldn't see it if he happened to glance over. But he was too busy coughing and raking his hands at the tube. He'd accidentally scratched his mouth and neck, drawing blood. 

Leo sidled up beside the bed, and then swiftly injected the sedative in the upper side of Wren's thigh. Wren's eyes widened at the prick of the needle, then he blinked lazily a few times and settled into the pillow as the sedative hit him.

"That's better." Leo said as he discarded the needle. He moved to Wren's side and began wiping the sweat off his face with a damp rag. He dabbed at the blood.

"Can you hear me, Wren?" He asked.

Wren blinked at him, his hazy eyes melting Leo's heart. He nodded slowly.

"Good. Do you remember what happened that made you come here?"

Wren hesitated, then slowly shook his head. He tried to reach up to the tube again, but Dace stepped in and gently pulled Wren's shaky hand back.

"No, no, don't touch." He said as if he was talking to a child. 

Matteo finally released Wren's legs, stepping back so Wren couldn't see him behind the others. He didn't want Wren to panic again.

"Well, there was an accident. There was a fire, and you were in there." He tried to speak gently, and word things in a way that wasn't scary. "Your legs got a little hurt, but they'll heal soon. And the tube is just there to get some food in your belly, because you haven't been able to eat much. Okay? Nothing to be scared of."

Wren nodded after a pause, then abruptly turned his cloudy head to the wall, his eyes tracing over the posters there. He was no longer interested in the men. Dace laughed.

"Is it the drugs making him like that?" He asked, brushing hair from Wren's cheek as Leo stepped back and sat in one of the armchairs.

"Yeah, probably. The pain meds, anyway. He'll be somewhat loopy for a while and it'll be like taking care of a small child. He'll be fussy and whiny." He chuckled.

Matteo smiled slightly, relieved that Wren wasn't all there right now. It was better that he was out of it while he healed and adjusted to Matteo's presence. 

Wren started to whimper, dragging a heavy hand up and grabbing two of Dace's fingers in his small hand. He tugged weakly, apparently wanting something.

The men all giggled. It was like watching a child. Dace quickly cleared his throat. "What's wrong? What do you want?" 

"Mmmm," Wren grumbled as he tugged Dace's hand up and placed it on top of his head. 

"You want me to pet your head?" Dace asked, laughing.

Wren grumbled again and Dace began to stroke his soft hair, and he immediately relaxed. Dace turned to the other two, a happy look of 'are you seeing this?' on his face.

They nodded and giggled quietly, surprised by Wren's want of attention. He was normally terrified of being touched. Matteo felt guilt wash over him again. If he hadn't abused Wren, would he have known that he liked to be petted? What else was there that Wren liked that Matteo would have known about if he hadn't been a monster to him?

He shook the thoughts away. Wren needed him to be gentle and loving and present, not stuck in regret. Matteo would always regret it, but he couldn't let it overtake him to where he wasn't able to help Wren because of his own despair. The kid had never had affection before, and Matteo was determined to change that from this point forward.

They spent the rest of that day catering to Wren, who was quite needy as the meds kept wearing off and he felt the pain, then Leo would give him another dose and renew his childlike state.

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Wren had just drifted off to sleep as the clock hit 9:00 PM. The men settled into their chairs, thinking about the day. Boss had come to visit, and was also amused at Wren's behavior. He'd spent a while talking with Matteo, who'd apologized for his behavior for the last year and had asked for advice on how to help Wren going forward. His father had left after an hour or so, and Wren had napped on and off throughout the day. It had been peaceful.

They chatted for a while as they took turns in the bathroom getting ready for bed, then turned out the light. Twenty minutes later, just as they were drifting off in their uncomfortable chairs, Wren began to whimper. Matteo got up and went to the bed, sitting on the side of it.

"What's the matter, puppy?" He'd been thinking of Wren with that nickname for a while, but this was the first time he said it aloud. 

"Sing." Wren whispered.

Matteo was surprised. He wanted him to sing? He cleared his throat, then hesitantly began to sing an old lullaby. 

Wren drifted off to sleep, his soft breathing the only sound other than Matteo's smooth deep voice.

                   Part Fourteen Coming Soon