Cut: A Hazbin Hotel Fanfiction

Chapter 16

By the next morning, I figured I was more than ready to be back on my feet.

Unfortunately for me, I seemed to be the only one who thought as much. When I tried to leave my room to see what I had missed in the outside world, Charlie ushered me back to bed. "You have to recover fully, Ruth," she said flatly.

I fell backwards unto my bed and groaned. "I'm fine," I argued. As I spoke, my jaw ached from where Vox had fired electricity into my body. It felt like needles were stuck inside the skin and bone. I winced, then immediately tried to cover it up.

Charlie noticed. "No, you're not," she replied, crossing her arms. "You're obviously still hurt from where Vox got you. I don't want you running around starting fights when you haven't gotten better from the last one."

"But --"

"Rest."

I propped my head up and looked at her, narrowing my eyes. "You're lucky you're the Princess," I grumbled. "I would've escaped ages ago if I didn't want to get in trouble with your parents."

Charlie ignored my comment. She turned to leave. "Just one more day," she called over her shoulder, then shut the door as she left.

When I was alone, I sat up, sighing. Just one more day, I repeated in my head. I can do this. I glanced at the TV across the room, debating whether or not to turn it on. After a moment of staring, I looked away. I'd watched TV all of the day before after Iade left. There wasn't anything that caught my attention. I kept getting distracted.

I swung my legs against the side of the bed. I fiddled with the edge of the bedsheets. I looked into the mirror and twisted my hair into a dozen different hairstyles before eventually loosening it again. When I looked at the digital clock next to my bed, barely ten minutes had passed. I sighed again.

I was considering throwing the water glass on my bedside table against the wall just to have something sharp as a weapon to train with when I heard commotion outside my door. I straightened and watched the door, listening carefully.

A voice was pleading with someone. "Sir, please, as I said before, Princess Charlie has said she doesn't want anyone in there without her and Ruth's permission --"

"I've been waiting all of yesterday and the day before," another voice said simply. This one was familiar. "Now, will you let me in, or do I have to make Charlie's orders the reason behind your untimely demise?"

There was no response from the other demon, and the handle on my bedroom's door began to twist. Alastor walked in, muttering quietly to himself about the demon guarding the door. When he spotted me, he froze.

I opened my mouth, then closed it, staring back. It was like everything we were thinking of saying had been wiped out of our minds by the memory of the gala. I studied him. He looked as though the gala hadn't even happened, but I still found myself looking for rips along his suit and cuts along his skin. Any sign that the fight had affected him at all. There was nothing except the distant look in his eyes. He was remembering too.

"Are you alright?" we both blurted at the same time. That seemed to break the silence. I glanced away, face burning, while Alastor chuckled.

"I'm fine, dearest," he said, gesturing to himself. "It would take more than a petty fight with that twit to rattle me." He glanced up at me. "But what about you? You've been in bed for two whole days."

I shrugged. "Vox got me pretty good. Plus, Charlie won't let me leave my bed today either," I added, my voice turning bitter by the end. "She says I still have to 'recover'."