it's my birthday ♡
(and i'm writing. yeah.)
-
The eventful day Link had was beginning to take a toll on his energy, and it wasn't too long until he fell into a light sleep because of it. He never slept very heavily, but now he just couldn't even if he wanted to. Rhett was beginning to feel it coming on as well, but watching Link lay so peacefully on him kept his eyes open a little longer.
As he delicately ran his fingers through Link's soft, dark brunette hair, he couldn't help but think about what the future would look like for the two. He probably broke a billion hospital regulations taking him away, but even if he ended up having to return soon, he was still satisfied that they had a few hours just to themselves at least. Almost drifting off into his own snooze, Rhett suddenly jolted when he felt something leap up from the floor onto him, also alerting Link as well.
"Oh, hey Mocha," Rhett smiled, realising it was his pet cat that shocked him. She was a beautiful brown coloured moggy, who happily rubbed her face on Rhett's arm, and took a large interest into the new, unfamiliar sleeping person on his owner. She sniffed his fluffy hair, and her nose touching his head officially woke him up.
Link sleepily turned to face towards Rhett from hearing him talk, and he rubbed his eyes groggily. Mocha was padding at Rhett's chest, as he tickled behind her ear making her mew quietly. Confused, Link tilted his head to the side as he'd never seen her before then, and how Rhett was so fond of her.
"You.. have a cat?" Link asked, watching her walk around in circles before deciding to sit still on her warm owner. Link was a little weary of the new animal, and kept his hands away as Rhett petted her some more.
"Yeah, this is Mocha. I got a bit- well- lonely here and she was at the shelter and needed a home," Rhett smiled at the sleeping feline. Link shuffled up towards Rhett and looked at the kitty straight into her eyes, seeing what her reactions would be. He reached his hand out to her slowly, and to Rhett's relief she happily rubbed her head against his palm, showing he was no threat. Link soon got used to it and stroked her back, bonding with her very quickly.
"She likes you," Rhett remarked. He watched as Link sat up properly, and Mocha came to explore him more. She walked over onto his lap and after sniffing him a few times, sat down in his lap and purred with joy. Link's face was plastered with a grin, as he grew to love little Mocha and play with her.
"She's so sweet," Link smiled.
"Yeah, she's a great little cat. I named her Mocha only because her fur was just the right colour, and it fitted her well, yknow?" Rhett explained. Link agreed, and Rhett filled with joy seeing Link so confident now.
They continued to talk about her, as she became very comfy on Link's warm lap. He pulled all the blankets around again, and her ears perked up in her rest every time her name was mentioned. Everything was so calm, but it didn't last long. Around ten minutes after Mocha found her spot, there was a prominent knock on the front door.
"Stay here with Mocha, I'll get it," Rhett told Link, carefully standing up to not disturb her and keep Link still. His palms began to sweat as he went towards the door, hoping it wasn't anybody from the hospital to see what happened to Link, but he needed to answer it just incase.
Making sure Link was distracted, he turned back towards the handle and pulled it open. Looking up, it revealed a very distressed Charlotte, panting for breath as she leaned against the porch wall to catch it.
"Link- where's Link- where's-" Charlotte asked stuttering on her words, trying to look behind Rhett who was covering her view of inside. Rhett looked back into the house to see Link trying to see the visitor, and that's when he knew he needed to get outside fast.
"Shh- shh," Rhett urgently reacted, stepping outside and pulling the door to a close. Charlotte stared at him with a complete shocked expression, but waited for his well needed reasoning as he took her a bit further away.
"Yes, Link's in there," Rhett started, but instantly Charlotte couldn't help but speak over him.
"Rhett.. what's going on? His room is empty, Scott's gone, you're here-"
Charlotte wanted to get to the door but Rhett held her back before she could even try. Her pulse was racing at a million miles an hour, and all she needed was answers.
"Look, I know we need a really long discussion, but it needs to wait. Link is here, and he's safe, I promise. I just want him to have a calm few hours without all the hassle, and him knowing you're here and everything will just worsen him."
"Wait- what's hassle? What's-" Charlotte flooded questions, being shushed by Rhett after every single one.
"Charlotte, it's clear you don't know. Scott- well- did things to him. But we can't talk about this now, not here. I'll keep Link safe, warm, fed, whatever he needs until we can move on. He can't be in that hospital, not now, just please understand that."
It took a few moments for Charlotte to calm herself down, but even though he was quite heated, Rhett was there to comfort her through the stress. She knew Rhett was a decent guy, as he was the only one that stuck with Link through the intake process and right until the exact time they were standing in that spot. Breathing becoming a lot calmer, Charlotte nodded, and thanked Rhett for taking care of him. She still couldn't process the information about Scott though, however much she predicted it in the first place.
"I'm so sorry, I had to," Rhett confessed. He knew he should've told Charlotte before taking him, but it just didn't end up happening like that. He took Charlotte into him arms and gave her a reassuring hug, before she backed off and wiped her tears strewn across her face.
"Tomorrow. When Link is settled, I'll meet you tomorrow so I can tell you everything."
Charlotte nodded once again, and left with the confidence Rhett was going to keep Link okay. She knew he would, but this stuff was never taught to her at medical school; neither did she think it would be necessary.
Seeing Charlotte off, Rhett returned inside and got back into his seat with Link cuddling up to him and Mocha mewing at his presence back.
"Who was that?" Link asked curious.
"Oh, just a friend from work. We are meeting tomorrow, it's okay."
Link replied with an okay and sunk back into Rhett's hold, Mocha still on them and purring cutely.
Tomorrow was a new day.
