A Tall and Small Collection | S2

A Little Theo-ry

Rey managed to make it back home without incident and, thankfully, found Ashlynn on her own. He still felt frazzled from his encounter with Theo, but he needed to talk to Ashlynn and Soren about what happened.

He didn't want a situation where no one knew where to find him like what just happened, especially if Hero refused to help himself.

Rey couldn't keep a real secret to himself anyway, meaning it was only a matter of time before Ashlynn or Soren asked him if there was anything wrong. Rey slid down his line and walked past the living room and into the kitchen where Ashlynn was preparing lunch.

"Hey, Ashlynn!" called Rey. She looked down over her shoulder and watched as Rey approached.

"Hey there little big man. What's up? You're just in time for lunch. Dorian is recording and Mayzie needed a bath. She thought getting into the honey while Soren and I weren't looking was a good idea," said Ashlynn. Rey knew what was coming, but let the moment sink in as he watched Ashlynn wash off her hands, kneel, and offer a palm for him.

For just a moment, Rey felt his entire body tense and shudder as he looked at Ashlynn's hand, the flashbulb memory of being picked up and held not by one but by two humans he didn't know making him hesitate just for a moment. Then, after a breath, he once again saw Ashlynn's hand in front of him and stepped up onto it.

Ashlynn carefully raised Rey up onto the counter, noticing his momentary pause but thinking nothing of it, as she set him down. She knew he was out, but didn't want to pry too much. Besides, Ashlynn had another thing she wanted to discuss with Rey.

"So," said Ashlynn as she resumed cutting while Rey made himself comfortable on the counter. "Remember how we were talking the other day about ways to help Hero? Well, I think I found the perfect person to get started with. His name is Theo. He just moved into the building. He has a little sister and is actually in a wheelchair. I met him on the elevator yesterday and started thinking about it today."

Rey felt his insides drop at the mention of Theo's name. He knew why he came here and what he needed to tell Ashlynn. So, like a verbal band aid, he decided to get it over with.

"Yeah, I... I know about Theo. Hero and I saw him... well... the day of the incident. We were going to go and help him, but there wasn't much we could do at the time," said Rey. Ashlynn's face brightened, which felt like a punch to the gut. Anxiousness plagued him and made him feel sick. His heart rate quickened.

"Well, that's great! I'm sure he could use some help. Why don't you ask Hero if he'd be up for dinner with us sometime and see if he'd be interested in going to help Theo?" Ashlynn suggested.

"Well... I just came from there - both places actually," muttered Rey. He reached up as he had seen Soren do so many times and awkwardly scratched the back of his neck. It was a dead giveaway for both Soren and Rey trying to find a way to say something that was particularly difficult, wording their next phrases carefully.

"Oh no... what?" asked Ashlynn. Rey bit his lip and knew that he needed to pry this verbal band aid away soon.

"I went over to see Hero today. I was just going to see what was going on with him. He doesn't seem to even want to get out of bed. He's super sad and I don't know if he even wants to help humans anymore," said Rey. Ashlynn's face fell ever so slightly, and Rey decided to continue. "And... so... I went over to Theo's place to help on my own. I thought that maybe Hero would come along a little later... but... something else happened instead."

Ashlynn's eyes widened.

"Rey... you weren't..."

Rey knew what the next word was and nodded.