Agent 38: I Never Forgot You

Chapter 15: 1 Step Forward, 3 Steps Back

     Two days before Three was to meet with his mother, Aaron had asked Alex to join him in his search for a doctor to cure Eight's condition. Marie was the most obvious choice, however seeing as she had taken medical classes but chose to practice music instead, she didn't have any equipment in her possession.
     He'd met up with Aaron in the partially deserted Square, warm breeze rocking the banners overhead. Aaron was seated at a table, sipping boba from a transparent cup and a black straw. He looked up, saw him, and waved gleefully. He'd brought sunglasses to cover his disfigured eye, though he looked a bit ridiculous in them.
     "So? What's the plan?" Three said as he approached.
     Aaron stood, putting up a finger as if to matter-of-factly explain. After a second, he said softly, "I.. don't know."
     "What do you mean you don't know?" Alex sighed. "Why did I even come if you don't know what we're supposed to do?"
     "Sorry, sheesh," He sputtered. "I- I didn't think I'd get this far! You say no to a lot of things."
     "Yeah, well when it's something like this, you should probably be expecting a yes." He said. Aaron rubbed the back of his head, grinning sheepishly. "I'm gonna go get a drink. Stay here."
     Alex walked inside one of the shops, shifting his shoulders. His neck emmitted small cracks as he took a place in line, next to a tall Octoling with his purple hair up in a messy afro. His skin was an elegant chocolate brown, complimenting his yellow eyes. He wore circular glasses with black trim, a white tee, and black shorts. He let out a small chuckle at the crackling noises.
     "That can't be good for your neck," The Octoling said with a light smile.
     "Eh, I'll be fine." He replied, shrugging. "I've seen worse."
     "Let me guess; occupational hazard?" He asked. Alex nodded. "I can relate."
     "Really? Why? What do you do for a living?"
     "Mm, nothing anymore." He said, a distant look in his eyes. "But, uh, before, it was a pretty dangerous job."
     Three wanted to ask him what his job was, but didn't want to pry. After a second, he returned the question.
     "Since we're on the topic, what do you do?"
     "Hm.. it's, uh, kinda hard to describe, I guess." Three responded.
     "You don't have to tell me if you don't want to."
     "Thanks."
     The Octoling stepped away, moving with the line. He scratched his neck, his tee shifting to reveal a splotch of teal green on his shoulder. The splotch stretched outwards across his skin, reaching like little tentacles. It wasn't all that visible, and about a centimeter in diameter. It was almost unnoticeable since most shirts would cover it, but it was very vibrant in color.
     "What's that?" Alex questioned.
     He ran his fingers over it with a small shiver. "Oh, that? It's- it's nothing."
     That color... it looks a lot like Eight's skin tone. But that would mean-
     "Wait, were you a-" The Octoling shot him a look, a very venomous look that practically said "be quiet". Lowering his voice to a near silent whisper, he continued. "-a sanitized soldier?"
     His eyes dimmed, as if remembering something. "I don't- I don't like to talk about it."
     The person ahead of him walked out with an orange cup in hand, and he moved forward. Three waited in silence until he was done, then stepped up to order his own drink.
     His thirst was suddenly quenched, however, when he realized that if he was sanitized, then he must have known someone to get rid of it.
     "Just a cup of ink, please." Alex said, before the cashier could say anything.
     "That'll be a dollar," The cashier said, a male Inkling who looked very upset to be there. Three handed him the money, cocking his head to look for the Octoling he had spoken to. "Name, please."
     "Alex."
     "Alright, we'll have that ready for you in a sec."
     Three spotted the purple afro in an instant, quickly making his way towards him.
     "Hey, hey. Dude."
     "Ugh, you again. What?"
     "So, this might sound like a weird question, but-" He hesitated for a second. "Since you were sanitized, you must've known someone to get rid of it for you, right?"
     The boy nodded.
     "That's great!" He said. "See, I know someone who needs help getting rid of it too. Could you by any chance tell me who helped you?"
     "I... I did it. By myself." He muttered, pushing up his glasses.
     "Oh," Alex said. "Woah."
     "But I'm not doing it again," He said with a shudder. "That experience, the pain- I'd never want to inflict that kind of agony on anybody ever again."
     Alex's hearts sank. Eight's only chance of being free of the sanitization had just said no.
     "But- she needs help," Three reasoned. "Just like you did at some point. Wouldn't it be cruel to let her stay that way?"
     But he was already shaking his head. "I told you, I won't do it again. I nearly died doing it myself, I don't trust myself enough to do it on anybody else."
     "Wait, at least let me take you to her, let me show you." He pleaded. "She needs help, but she won't admit it. I can't let her stay that way. If it were you in her position, wouldn't you want someone to save you, too?"
     "I was in her position, whoever she is." He hissed. "And I did just fine myself."
     "Come on, man, don't you remember what it was like?" Alex said.
     "Yes, I do, and getting rid of it was even worse."
     "Mango and peach smoothie for Jordan?"
     "It was... nice meeting you, I guess." Said the Octoling, walking off to get his drink.
     "Wait, but-" He sputtered, following him. "I- we need your help, though."
     "Find it somewhere else."
     "Come on, none of us have any medical experience, let alone on the scale of what we have to do." He said. "Help a guy out."
     Jordan sighed, twitching his nose as he walked out. Alex trailed behind him, trying to come up with a reason as to why he should help them. But, then again, why should he? Jordan was a random stranger who claimed to know how to reverse the effects of the sanitization. And in his eyes, Alex was a random stranger begging for help. On both sides of the story, it seemed sketchy.
     Barely two steps out of the shop, Aaron approached them, looking puzzled at the new Octoling. "Took you long enough, Alex." He shifted his head to look at Jordan, who seemed equally confused as to why he was still there. "Who's your new friend?"
     "Aaron, this is Jordan." He responded. "Jordan, this is Aaron, my best friend."
     Aaron held out his hand with a genuine smile. "It's nice to meet you."
     Jordan shook it, looking a bit uncomfortable now. "A pleasure."
     "So, Jordan," Alex said, crossing his arms. "Wanna tell Aaron what we were talking about?"
     "You know, whatever your name is, I really don't." He pursed his lips.
     "First off, his name is Alexander. Call him Alex." Aaron informed. "Second, please do tell me what you were talking about, because now I'm curious."
     "Fine. I'll tell him." He said. "We were just talking about how-"
     "We were just talking about how I'm leaving," Jordan interrupted. "Right now."
     Alex sighed. "We were talking about how Jordan knows how to reverse sanitization."
     Aaron's eyes instantly grew wide. The purple-haired Octoling shot him a very upset look and smacked his shoulder.
     The yellow Inkling turned hopeful eyes towards him. "So that means he could help us, right?"
     "Well, he could," Alex said, turning his gaze on Jordan. "But he won't."
     "Wha- why not?" Aaron sputtered. They both turned to look at him.
     He looked down, blinking fast. "I don't want to talk about it."
     "That's okay, you don't have to talk about it." Aaron said softly. "We just need your help. You must remember what it was like- stuck in a state of almost no free will, with the same thought process always going through your mind, with no hope of being free ever again. If you had a chance to be saved, wouldn't you beg for it, too?"
     Jordan bit his lip and, with a sigh, spat, "Augh, you two are so annoying. I talk to someone for 2 minutes and now I'm on my way to go fix someone." He added the last sentence under his breath.
     "Really? Thank you!" Alex cried. He reached to hug him, but was abruptly stopped by a hand in his face.
     "Ah-ah, no." He hissed. "I don't do hugs. You got one thing from me, you are NOT getting another."
     "You have no idea how much this means to us," Aaron interjected. "Honestly, what you're doing, it's-"
     "Alright, I get it, you're grateful." Jordan said, taking a rather indignant sip from his drink. "Show me to this person and let's just get this over with." He shook his head, as if frustrated by his own decision. "Quickly."
     "Okay, um," Three hadn't expected him to relent so easily. This would be an unexpected visit, hopefully Eight wouldn't be too ruffled. "Follow me."
     Excitement pumped through his veins with each step. With any luck, Eight would be desanitized soon, and hopefully back to normal, all before he had to visit his mother. In all honesty, he wanted Eight normal again for selfish reasons. Alex missed the feeling of security and stability, of a life where he had the choice of relaxation, even if it wasn't often (He didn't dare admit it, but he was also scared to go see his mother alone). However, after all he had been through, after all the Splatoon had been through as a whole, a normal life seemed pretty impossible.
     That's fine, though. He thought. Just because it seems impossible doesn't mean it is. There's always a chance. Once we get this sorted out, and once we're finished with Gabriel, maybe there'll be some way for us to calm down for a bit.
     Alex walked through the streets, Jordan and Aaron trailing behind him. He could hear their footsteps; Jordan's sounded as if he was shuffling along the sidewalk, Aaron's as if he was taking big strides and walking with confidence. In all honesty, Jordan seemed like a bit of a jerk. However, under the correct circumstances, everyone could be a jerk. In his situation, this was expected. They were asking him to do something he had probably sworn to never do again. It must've been a weird day for him.
     Three pushed open the door to the complex, holding it open for the two to walk in. There were 4 levels of the complex, and their apartment was at the 3rd floor. They marched up the stairs, ans he heard a light clattering noise seemingly coming from their apartment.
     "Wait here, I'll be right back." Alex said, moving his hand in a "stay" motion.
     He pulled the key from his pocket and slid it into the hole, twisting it to the right. The door slowly swung open as he pulled the key out, tucking it back into his pocket. He took of the sunglasses and set them down as he gently kicked the door closed.
     He heard small mutters echoing from the kitchen, forming slightly alarming sentences. "Oh no- shouldn't be gushing that much-"
     "Eight!" Three called, slipping off his shoes."I've got great news!"
     He strode towards the kitchen, swiveling his head to look at her. "Guess what? I-"
     That... was not what I was expecting.
     Eight held her hand over the sink as it furiously bled teal green ink. A stained knife sat at the edge of the counter, gleaming dangerously, her eyes were wide with guilt and alarm, and her arms were trembling slightly. She looked scared, maybe even terrified.
     "What the- What are you doing?" He cried, rushing towards her.
     "I- I don't- I can explain-"
     "I don't even- what- what is this!?" Three gestured towards her hand, which was absolutely covered in ink. "What are you doing? I-" he rubbed the bridge of his nose, eyes wide. "Stay here."
     Alex ran towards the bathroom, throwing open a drawer. He grabbed a roll of medical cloth tape and quickly headed back towards the kitchen, where Eight stood, a paper towel now over her bleeding hand.
     "Hold still." He said, wrapping the cloth over the wound as she moved the paper towel off.
     Thank cod for Jordan. Alex thought. Who knows what other lengths she would have gone to to get rid of the sanitization.

Two days late im so sorry i was busy
I promise i'll stay on schedule next time im sorry
Word count: 2144