The Third War

Chapter Sixty Eight: Kristy

About an hour later, I half-woke up to hear someone talking. Now sprawled on my back, I mumbled something like "shaddup" before rolling into my side.

I fell back asleep; it was maybe ten minutes later before I heard, "Kriiiiistyyy?"

"Mehhhh," I responded while rolling back onto my back.

"She lives!" I recognized Dustin voice. I put my arm over my eyes to block out the light.

He tried again, "I have a sandwiiiich."

"Whaaaa?" I mumbled taking my arm down. Suddenly, a sandwich was thrown onto my stomach. "MEH!" I sat up blinking the sleep from my eyes.

Dustin sat on his bed chewing his own sandwich now just watching me.

"What time is it?"

"About, twelve"

My eyes widened, "WHAT!?"

"Twelve....thirty...ish?" Dustin lifted his sandwich up in a lame attempt to hide his face. I glared at it for a minute before giving into hunger and eating my own.

Once he finished, I asked again, "So it's twelve?"

He rolled up the paper his sandwich had been wrapped in, "Thirty-ish."

I sighed, "Great. Wait, did you just sit there watching me?"

His face slowly turned red as he stammered, "N-no! Noooo, I had puzzles."

He held up one of the puzzles that Zoe had kept in her room. "I only have three though, so they didn't take very long."

Then what did you do the rest of the time!? I decided that would just be weird to ask. "You're saying I need to get you more?"

He spastically shook his head, "No, no, nooo, they're boring. I've already seen Zoe do them so it's like, bleh."

"So, I need to get you cards or something?"

Dustin only shrugged at my suggestion. I rolled my eyes, "Helpful."

Spottedleaf meowed from where she sat forgotten about. "I know!"

I pulled my cat over and sat her in my lap, "You need a pet."

"Um, okay," Dustin obviously didn't believe in my abilities. Mostly to prove him wrong, I began working out plots to get him one.

It'd probably have to be a cat since dogs are noisy, smelly, and hardly self-sufficient. I can't give him one of mine though, where else am I going to find a cat? I don't think the stuffmart would have any...

Dustin had started glancing around the room looking everywhere except at me. "Are you okay?"

"Yeaaaa," he looked at his still avoiding my gaze.

Kristy no believe youuuu. "What is it?"

He shook his head, "Nothing, seriously."

"Then you should easily be able to tell me." The avoiding my gaze thing was really getting on my nerves. I tried to figure out the nicest way to tape his head up.

His shoulders slumped, "Just stuff."

"Like?"

"Like..." he trailed off then said very quickly, "How should I say that I really wish you weren't here right now?" A saw slight tinge appear on his cheeks.

Was...not expecting that...

I almost felt hurt. "Um," I couldn't think of anything to say mostly because that's a side effect of being completely confused.

"No, it's just, I never wanted to tell you about my, condition, and it's like with Phoebe, I just feel like I can't do anything, and I hate it."

Still confused, I tried to answer anyway, "Look, I can't say I understand, but trying to protect Zoe, and trying to make her feel better. I can't do anything about it either, and that's frustrating for me, but, uh."

Conclusion please brain!

"That's why I wanted to help her," Dustin cut in thankfully before I had to come up with something probably lame, "She gets it. Having everyone freak out about you, and you hate it but there's nothing you can do."

If you haven't noticed, I've avoiding freaking out about your condition, EVEN THOUGH I WOULD VERY MUCH LIKE TO.

I stood up unable to think of anything to say, "I'm sorry, I can leave now."

His expression turned to anguish as I shoved my cat and sandwich into my pocket. "No! Don't go!"

His hands anxiously grabbed the sheets on his bed while muttering, "This is why I didn't want to tell you."

"Because you need a master interpreter!?" I snapped.

He continued to look guilty before lifting his head up, "If you were sitting here, with the possibility of death hanging over, what would you do?"

I stared at him seeing the hope slowly die from his eyes. "First...I would probably freak out and panic, umm, calm myself down...then, find a way for Zoe to be protected from anything and everything. I might write out everything I was afraid to say on a piece of paper, and if I knew I only had a limited time, I'd find a way to keep myself calm until it happened."

He stayed silent so I uneasily said, "That probably sounded sad."

Dustin again refused to meet my gaze, "I don't want to die alone, but I'm just another thing you have to take care of."

I put my hand on his shoulder, "Hey, don't feel bad about that. If I didn't have people to worry about I'd wind up living in the forest with an army of cats."

"But you have enough with Zoe," he ignored my attempt at a joke. Even though, it was probably true.

"Don't change the subject, making sure you're alive is part of what I do." I added in my head, Along with everyone else.

He wouldn't accept that either, "It shouldn't be though."

"But it is."

"Doesn't mean I have to accept it."

"Then don't."

Before he could respond, someone knocked on the door. Dustin turned to it expression screaming 'thank you whoever you are!' While I thought, Die whoever you are.

Phoebe opened the door, "Hello?"

Oh, sorry, haha, you're not supposed to die.

She noticed me, "Oh, never mind, I can come later."

"No!" Dustin jumped up off the bed. "You're here, which means you're not mad at me anymore."

"Actually," Phoebe glanced between us, "I am, but there's no way I'm staying down there."

Dustin tilted his head, "Why?"

"Would you want to be down there with a mad Zoe and Chip?"

I sighed, "Oh great. I guess I'd better go get Zoe."

"Good luck, Zoe's got a great impression of Chip's scowl," her expression worried me.

"Fun," I started walking to the door but turned back, "Where's my cat?"

Dustin paled, "Didn't you have her?"

Shaking her head, Phoebe teased him, "You're still afraid of cats."

"Shh," he hissed at her.

"Okay, well, I'm going to go," I walked out as they began arguing over something. I sighed again, heading to where the Chip-Zoe reign of terror was going down.