Call Me Zero (Frerard)

23: And we can run from the backdrop of these gears and scalpels.

A/N: i honestly have literally been doing nothing but writing for the past like 8 days and tbh we're so close to the end i just have to pump all this out and finish it.

i've said before, there are also a prologue and epilogue one shot coming once this is finished. they're already written, i know where im going.

hang on tight, we're almost there.

~

There was no concept of time in this place. This cold, concrete hell hole. No time, no feeling, just numbness.

Frank had no idea how long he'd been in that cell. He hadn't eaten - hell, he hadn't even gotten up to use the toilet other than when he had crawled over to it to throw up. There was no food left inside him, and at this point he felt like even all the bile had been expelled too. His insides were on fire, and he was in a constant state of shaking. Frank couldn't have cared less.

The only thoughts that ran through his mind were of Zero, if they could even be called "thoughts". There was nothing coherent anymore, just rag-tag images and wordless ideas. He was too weak to think properly. And the funny part was, he had deteriorated to this in just a matter of a couple days - if it was even that much. Who could say?

Frank woke up - at least he figured he woke up, there wasn't much difference between consciousness and sleep anymore - when he heard the door of the holding cell creak open.

"Are you awake?" a shaky voice asked.

It sounded vaguely familiar. A woman's voice... the woman who had asked all the questions.

He made a strangled noise in reply; it was the most he could muster.

"Okay... good. I need you to get up Mr. Iero, do you think you can do that?"

Frank remained silent and just stared at the brick wall in front of him where he lay on the floor, expressionless.

"Mr. Iero can you hear me?"

He let out a ragged breath.

"I need you to sit up please. Do you... do you want me to help you?"

She must have taken his lack of reply as a "yes", because in a moment the woman was at his side, gripping his shoulders gently and trying to elevate him into a sitting position.

"Mr. Iero I need you to help me with this please," she said as she struggled to hold up his dead weight.

Frank put an arm out to steady himself and hunched over, making choked noises. He could feel himself about to start heaving again.

"Mr. Iero, I think you're dehydrated. We're going to take you down to the infirmary, okay?"

Frank nodded slowly and felt himself fall back as his eyes rolled back into his head. Christina caught him just in time.

"D-Doctor Kawalski! Could you help me please? He's fainted again - oh god..."

Christina heard the flurry of footsteps on the tile behind her and tried to relax. The doctor knelt down and scooped up Frank's small frame with one swift movement.

"Let's get him down there and get an IV hooked up..." he said quietly.

~

The sensation of actually being able to be aware of his own surroundings felt strange to Frank, even after such a short period of time. He felt lightheaded, but his mind was clearer than it had been since they had arrived in this place. The nauseous feeling still lingered in his stomach, but it was no longer threatening to creep up his throat and spill out.