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 Posted: Sun Oct 11, 2020 1:51 am
Rather than bring attention to his stuffy sinuses or runny nose, Erica rose from her seat without a word. There was a hushed wheezing sound from the foam seat cushion as it reprized its former shape. On the table across from them, next to the opposite set of seats, was a kleenex box. They weren’t exactly the best quality per se, but as long as he was careful enough he shouldn’t blow a hole through it. “Here,” she offered it to Myles then sat beside him again. “So what’s your plan then? What are you going to do with that soul crystal thing?” She looked down at the crystal, wary of its existence, and not at all willing to ask him to hand it over to take a closer look it. “Is there a way to figure out who it belongs to?” Not like someone could put out an APB on a missing soul.
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Posted: Sun Oct 11, 2020 6:44 am
Myles accepted the tissue with a soft mumble of thanks; he gently let the starseed rest in his lap when he attempted to blow his nose. By the time he had discarded it in the waste basket, the starseed was no longer sitting in his lap. It was hovering--and when he realized it he was visibly alarmed, like he was afraid it was falling--even if it was falling up.
He groped for it but it just barely slid through his fingers, like it was being teased just out of his grip.
"I don't know," he blurted, but had to stand up to follow it. He trapped it in a cage of fingers--loose, though. The starseed pushed against his fingers just slightly--enough that he could tell it was trying to move.
"It's--I've never held one like this. It's moving, though. Um. I." He looked worriedly at the door, like he thought a doctor might pop out any minute and say it was time to see Jeremy. In reality he knew he was paranoid. He couldn't let Jeremy's efforts be in vain. "I--Erica, I don't know what it's doing," he said, but he took a few steps forward as the soul seemed to glide through the air on its own. It wasn't strong enough to escape his grip but he could tell that it was trying to reach somewhere. There was a bit of fear in his voice, simply from the unknown. He had left the snacks and drink in the chair and looked between them and her. "I don't know where it's going. But it's trying to go this way. I--I'm going to let it," he said, but couldn't uncage his fingers; he didn't want to risk the hospital staff seeing a floating gem wandering aimlessly so he shuffled forward again, opening the door. "--Come with me," he blurted, partly because he didn't want to be alone, and partly because he didn't want her to think he was crazy.
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Posted: Sun Oct 11, 2020 11:19 am
“Oh..uh. Okay…” Erica hesitantly replied. This little mystical… magical… adventure would be a hell of a lot easier to explain if she was still in uniform. Aimlessly wandering the hospital halls is better done with a uniformed escort or at least a member of staff. But with how careful he was trying to be to hide that thing, she suspected that grabbing one of the nurses and asking if they would take them to some unknown wing of the hospital would be out of the question.
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Posted: Sun Oct 11, 2020 12:07 pm
Myles was visibly reluctant but let the starseed guide him; it was strange, given how far it felt like they'd gone when in reality they hadn't even needed to leave the hospital floor. He was tired, exhausted, and must have looked completely out of it as he shuffled forward, head down and following the lead of their tiny guide.
And then, all of a sudden, there was a door. An open door. A room. A nurse was standing there, just on her way out. Myles faltered and offered a quick apology, moving out of her way. His hands had opened; the starseed escaped his cage of fingers.
It floated without him, into the room of a young man--pale, uninjured, and hooked up to a few machines. He looked like he was sleeping, like he had been for a while. There was an ashy color to his cheeks, and a young man and woman who shared enough features with him to be family.
The starseed moved, like a firefly, through the air, nearly unseen. The nurse stepped out of the room and the heavy door closed behind her, but the glass window into the room gave a clear view; the blinds were pulled up so it was easy to see. Myles felt odd just staring in, so he averted his gaze but kept flicking his eyes back up every few seconds to watch.
The starseed hovered over his chest for a moment before it slipped in.
For a long moment, absolutely nothing happened.
The young man's finger twitched. His face twisted, like he was having a bad dream. His head jerked. His face scrunched up and then--he opened his eyes.
Myles' heart clenched and he inhaled sharply, staring--and then looking at Erica, and then looking back into the room.
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Posted: Sun Oct 11, 2020 12:37 pm
In a mix of both shock and awe, the two of them stood in the hallway for what felt like several minutes. It appeared that the patient who was inside the room may have been in a coma and now that his soul, or starseed, had been returned he was finally able to awaken. I took a long moment for Erica to finally composed herself enough to turn to Myles and place a hand on his shoulder. "You did good Myles, you did good." She stole one last glance into the room. "We should probably go see Jeremy, let him know you found the owner and they're alive. "
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Posted: Sun Oct 11, 2020 12:49 pm
Myles stared for a few seconds longer but seemed shaken out of his trance. He nodded quickly. "I didn't do anything, that--that was Jeremy. That...that's...what he was holding on for, I think. That--but that's why I do this, too," he insisted, leaning into her as she held his shoulder. He turned, eager to back towards the waiting room and to hear if Jeremy was ready to go home. He was optimistic, even if his stomach told him they'd be here for at least tonight.
"...Because--if I those people, the bad ones? Got that? He never would have woken up." He cast one last look but then began to hurry back towards the room where they'd been before.
The family deserved their private moment; they had been talking animatedly, checking up on him. A nurse had rushed in and was checking him over.
...It looked like he was going to be okay.
He could breathe a little easier.
"...There's a lot that I still don't understand, but I'm doing the best that I can. Thank you for listening. For helping me."
He managed a brief smile, but his brows were still knit and he still looked worried.
"...I hope...things can go back to normal soon, though."
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