Lab Rats: The New Addition

Riddles, And Rhymes, And Chaos, Oh My!

  "We have to save them," I hear Bree whisper from outside Chase's bedroom door. "Both of them. Lyrica's powers are completely drained, and Chase is tortured and deranged. Plus, he still has that stupid bone disease. I don't even know how he's able to move." "The torture that he experienced from Lyrica's father made him immune to that kind of pain," says Uncle Donny. "That kind of pain he can stand, since he's been through so many shocks and beatings."

  "Why does Chase keep singing Nursery Rhymes and riddles," Leo asks in a hushed voice. "It depends," says Daddy Douglas. "My guess is that it calms him down, but according to Lyrica, his Nursery Rhymes are supposed to deliver messages." "Maybe it's both," Adam suggests. "Possibly," says Uncle Donny. "Well, I just hope that they both get better soon," says Auntie Tasha. "Agreed," Leo says. "Do you think that we should go check on them," Bree asks. I quickly turn away, snuggle closer to Chase, and pretend to be sleeping, but I see Daddy cracking the door open out of the corner of my eye. He smiles, "I think they're doing just fine." I smile to myself as Daddy gently closes the door. Suddenly, Chase starts to hum the tune of Hickory Dickory Dock. I look up at him. His eyes are closed, but he's still humming. "Chase," I whisper. "Are you okay?" He starts to twitch. Suddenly, he jumps and starts screaming:

Hickory Dickory Dock!
The mouse ran up the clock!
The clock struck one!
The mouse ran down!
Hickory Dickory Dock!

  He is now thrashing and screaming. I try to contain him as Daddy, Uncle, Auntie, Adam, Bree, Leo, and all of the students come running into Chase's bedroom. "What's going on," Uncle Donny shouts. "I don't know," I yelp. "We were both sound asleep when he started screaming!" Eventually he starts to thrash, so I have to get off the bed. It is still hard for me to move because I have been weak ever since Ash took my bionics. Soon, it gets so bad that Adam has to pin Chase down with his super strength. "If he keeps this up, we might have to knock him out for a few hours," Uncle Donny yells over Chase's screaming. "No," I shout where everyone can hear me. They all turn to look at me, ignoring Chase's screaming, Adam still pinning him down. I speak to them loudly so that they can hear me, "He's trying to tell us something, but he can only explain it through a riddle or a Nursery Rhyme, and judging by the way he's acting, it's probably something that we should be worried about!"

  "Riddles, and rhymes, and chaos, oh my," Leo cries. "Just let him go," I screech. "This is no time for jokes!" Leo's eyes widen and he looks insulted, "Well, it looks like you just got banned from Dooleytown!" I roll my eyes as Adam lets go of Chase. Chase stops thrashing, but he is still screaming:

Hickory Dickory Dock!
The mouse ran up the clock!
The clock struck one!
The mouse ran down!
Hickory Dickory Dock!

  Tears are streaming down his cheeks now. "Chase," I yell. "Chase, look at me! It's okay!" I cup his face in my hands, wiping his tears away. He is silent now. I smile at him. Then I proceed to communicate with him through English and Nursery Rhyme. I say a line from his Nursery Rhyme, and he is able to translate it using English. "Hickory Dickory Dock," I say. "Ash is coming," he says. "The mouse ran up the clock," I say. "Ash is preparing to fight," he says. "The clock struck one," I say. "He will come at exactly one 'o' clock tomorrow night," he says. "The mouse ran down," I say. "He will bring us down and defeat us," he says. "Hickory Dickory Dock," I say. "He is stronger because he has Lyrica's bionics," he finishes. I feel sick physically and scared emotionally.

  As soon as Chase finishes delivering the message, he hugs his knees and rocks back and forth singing Hickory Dickory Dock. There is an eery silence, but Bree breaks it. She slaps her legs in frustration and says, "That's it! We're doomed!" Daddy leans in closer to me and whispers in my ear, "We need to get Chase in a wheelchair. The more he moves, the more his bones break." I nod, "Right." I kneel down by the side of Chase's bed. "Hey, Little Genius," I say, softly, running my fingers through his hair. "We're gonna take good care of you, okay? We're just gonna put you in a wheelchair so you don't hurt yourself anymore." He blinks his eyes rapidly and nods. It takes awhile, but soon we have Chase comfortably in one of Uncle Donny's high-tech creations: A wheelchair with a cup holder and a button that Chase can push to drive himself around. We may have to help him sometimes, though.

  We all walk around the house with Chase as he tests his wheelchair, and every once in a while sings Hickory Dickory Dock. Everything seems to be going well. In a few hours, Uncle Donny sends us all to bed. He enlists me to stay in Chase's bedroom for the night and watch over him. I do my job willingly.

...

  Late into the night, not having slept a wink because I didn't want to take my eyes off of Chase for even a second, I hear a soft knock at Chase's bedroom door. I turn around to see Daddy Douglas at the doorway. I smile at him, "Hi, Daddy." He smiles back, "Hey, sweetie. May I come in? I wanna talk to you." "Sure," I whisper. He tiptoes in and sits next to me. We smile at each other and then there is awkward silence. Suddenly, he says, "It's clear. I always knew. Everybody knew." "What," I ask. He tilts his head toward Chase, "You're in love with him. Anyone paying attention can see it." I look down at my hands. Having somebody else say it feels different than saying it myself. "Yeah," I say. "I am in love with Chase."

  He smiles nervously. "Wow," he says. "This is kinda hard for me to take in. My little girl is growing up. I mean, I know I'm your adoptive dad, but still." I chuckle. "You know, since I'm your adoptive father, I'm still gonna have to give you, 'The Talk,'" Daddy says. "Uh oh," I say, playfully. "Not 'The Talk.'" He chuckles. Then his expression turns serious. "But seriously though," he says. "It's gonna have to happen eventually." I giggle and roll my eyes. He smiles and puts his arm around me. I rest my head on his chest. "I love you, Dad," I whisper. He hugs me tightly, "I love you, too, sweetie."