Reflections of Light

Sunrise After The Storm

Slowly drifting back into consciousness, Billy decided he felt thirsty.

His sleep had been strange; he couldn't quite remember how so, but he knew it'd been rough and disturbed at the beginning.
But he felt quite rested now; he must have properly fallen  asleep at some point.

Wanting his water, he peeled his eyes open, crying out a sound for attention that was embarrassingly baby like.

Frowning, he gave an experimental cough; his voice box seemed to be taking a few seconds to come online properly, weak and dusty from disuse.

Something seemed to have worked, however, as a familiar figure appeared, walking up to the end of the bed. Billy squinted at him slightly, trying to place the blond man he knew he knew.

Then he mentally shrugged it off, pointing demandingly at the man. "Dwink!"

Obediently, the man strode around to the bedside table on Billy's left, picking up a bottle of water and opening it with a crack of plastic, before offering it to the boy.

Taking the bottle in both hands- it seemed heavier than Billy had expected- Billy drank noisily from the bottle, guzzling the liquid down; at least, until the man took it away again, making Billy squeal in objection.

"Not too much." Jace said, smiling kindly even as Billy gave him his best dagger eyes. "You'll make yourself sick."

"I'm firsty!" Billy said sulkily, crossing his arms over his chest. "Want da water! Firsty! Hungwy! Want Pizza!"

Jace couldn't help a small chuckle. "Let's see how you do with the water, if you can keep it down then we'll move onto something tastier, okay?"

"Fine..." Billy whispered sorrowfully, laying back on the bed. The small amount of energy he had was seeping out of him fast, and his brain still felt too much like grey fog to put together why that was.

Seeming more subdued than the spitfire he'd been a second ago, he looked around the room, slowly becoming more and more puzzled at his location.

"Where are we?" He asked in a timid voice, face a picture of confusion.

"You're at the New York institute. This is your room; well, the one we've leant you."

Billy looked alarmed. "Wot?! Why we here? Why I here? Where's Mummy?"

Jace rushed to calm the boy. "Shh, no, its okay. Your Mum just brought you here when you got sick. We think there was something in the tea you drank."

"Wot? Mummy's tea?" Billy squeaked, eyes going wide with panic. "Is Mummy okay? She didn't dwink it too, did she? Where's Mummy? I want Mummy!"

It was as if a tap had been turned on; Billy's eyes welled up and loudly, he began to sob.

"I want Mummy! I want Mummy!"

"Your Mum's here, she's just having a rest, you gave her a proper fright... What are you doing?"

"Going to find... Mummy!" Billy said, throwing the covers aside with great effort and attempting to climb out of the bed.

"Whoa, okay." Jace said, catching Billy as he swayed and practically tumbled off the mattress, depositing him back on the bed. "Careful, you've been bedridden a couple of days now, you're going to be unsteady for a while."

"I wanna go see MUMMY!" Billy shrieked, scrambling to get out of bed again, face drenched in tears. "Let me see Mummy! Pwease!"

"I'll tell you what, you get back into bed and I'll go get..."

"No! Take me to Mummy, NOW!" He pointed demandingly at Jace, then to the door; propping himself up against the bed frame, sniffing through wet tears as he tried to stand strong on shaky legs. "... Pwease?"

Jace nodded slowly. "Okay... I'll take you to see you mum, but THEN you have to go straight back to bed, alright? You might feel better, but we've got to be careful, okay?"

Billy thought about it for a minute, then nodded. "Okay."

"... Can you walk?" Jace asked warily.

"Yes, 'course I can."

He took a step, wobbling precariously on his untested legs.

"... Are you sure? I'll carry you if you want."

"Yes, I'm sure!" Billy said, waving Jace away like he was a nuisance fly, taking another step as he gently let go of the bed frame.

"Whoa!"

Jace caught him as he went down, steadying the young boy. "Alright, I've got you. Sure you don't want to be carried?"

"... Maybe just to da room... " Billy finally conceded.

"Okay, here we are..." Jace said, nudging open the sitting room's door. He pressed his finger to his lips. "Shh, we've got to be quiet. There's your Mum, asleep on the sofa there, see? Exhausted by all the fretting she's been doing over you." He playfully prodded Billy's stomach, trying to get a smile out of the small child in his arms. "See, nothing to worry about. Shall we leave her to get some sleep and go back to your room now?"

"... Mummy's cwyin'." Billy said in a small, plaintive, almost-babylike voice. "Mummy's... Mummy's sad..."

"She was so worried for you..."

"Mummy! Mummy, wake up!" Billy cried out, wriggling in Jace's arms to get down. Reaching the carpet, he ran over to his mother best as he could, careening on his bed weakened legs over to the sofa as Jace made an attempt to catch him.

He pulled at her sleeve. "Mummy, wake up! Mummy!"

Groggily, Luci peeled open her exhausted eyes.

"William?" She bolted awake, reaching for her son to pull him up to her. "Oh William... William!" A fresh wave of tears streamed down her face as she pulled him close, kissing his face and whispering her thanks to whatever deity was deigning to listen.

Softly, Billy wiped the tears from her face with his hands, looking concerned. "Mummy, you feelin' okay?"

"Of course I am, my darling baby. Mummy's just so happy!"

"But... You cwy... You feel unwell?" Tracing his hands all over her face, Billy checked his mother for any sign something was wrong; mopping up her ever-flowing tears and putting his hand on her forehead as if to check her temperature. "You not... Been poison'd?"

"No, my sweetheart." Luci reassured him, lovingly running her fingers through her sons silky locks as she looked into his cherubic face. "Mummy's fine. I was so scared for you, that's all; my brave, sweet, darling boy."

Satisfied at last his Mum was alright, Billy latched onto her, letting her wrap him safely in her arms as he buried his face in her shoulder.

"Never leave me, Mummy..." He whispered in a small voice, his brave facade finally cracking as he clung onto her, fresh tears finding their way forwards as his small body shook with quiet sobs. "... Was so scared, Mummy... I couldn't find you... Hurt so bad, Mummy... "

After a long moment, Jace crept over to the reunited duo, standing a respectful distance away at the edge of the couch. He caught Luci's attention, speaking quietly as so not to disturb the weeping boy in her arms.
"Why don't we take him back to the room now, so he can get some rest? You can read his book to him whilst he lies down."

Wet-faced, Luci nodded, lifting her son into her arms as if he were as light as a feather, and following Jace out of the room; all the time muttering her silent prayer.

"Thank you... Oh, thank you..."

I did want to add music to this piece, but I couldn't find anything I found entirely appropriate. Ah well, I'll keep trying :)

And after a minor panic where I thought I'd lost this entire chapter, but it turns out for some reason Wattpad had glitched out and put it in another book...

Overall, I like how this one turned out. Really moving Mother-son moment there.
But still, the plot thickens...
XD