Octo-Oneshots

Waiting For You

Pinto looked all around his dark room. It was certainly far past his bedtime by now, but even in the darkness, he could make out the faint out of the calendar on his wall, which marked each day Mama had been in the hospital. Pogo had explained to him that Mama's body wasn't working quite right, so she needed to stay in the hospital for a while, just long enough so they could make sure she was safe, and he'd understood, but it didn't stop him from missing her.

He snuggled into his blankets a little more and turned onto his back, staring at the ceiling. A sliver of the moon was visible through his skylight. Mama had told him before she left that if he ever missed her, he just had to look at the moon because she'd be looking at it and missing him too.

Tears came to his eyes, like they always did when he thought of his mother. He missed her. Why did she of all people have to be sick? 8 years old was far too soon to realize how cruel fate could be, but there he was, begging God or whoever was out there to give him his mother back. Pinto sighed and rolled over onto his side before curling into a exhausted little ball and crying until he'd been dried of all tears.

"I miss you, Mami." He whispered to the wall before finally dozing off, unaware that miles away, his mother sat in her hospital bed with flippers clasped, praying for her children, and especially for him.