I Want to See Your Smile Again

Chapter 19

welcome back

The first thing Apollo feels is numbness.

A soon as he's able to clear his throat enough to make sound he groans, low and labored. Great. Just great. This again. Apollo just loves not being able to feel anything. What a joy.

Although, even if Apollo is complaining, he has to admit that the general unfeeling-ness of it isn't as bad as before. The sensation feels less like floating and more like a disconnect, like the body Apollo's in isn't really his. He still feels weightless, but now it's more like he never had a weight at all.

Comforting.

Everything is weirdly fuzzy and desensitized. Apollo can't feel much more than the heat of sunlight on his face and the touch of unfamiliar crisp sheets under his fingertips.

Wait.

That only begs the question.

Where the hell is Apollo?

Apollo tries listening, and he can hear voices in the distance, muffled and intermingling. That means that people are all around, which means that Apollo is... well he can feel sheets, which means that he's in a bed, which must mean he's at home, but then why are there people everywhere?

Apollo tries to think back. Let's see... he was at work yesterday, it was raining, he took the subway home... wait, what happened then? There's a hole in his memory, something empty then, but... Apollo felt numb last night, he's sure of it, that's why it feels so familiar now.

That's it. Apollo has to know what's going on.

It takes some strain, but Apollo finally manages to open his eyes. It really isn't easy. His eyelids are drooping and heavy, like they're being weighed down, and when he does open them- ah, that's bright.

There's a blinding white light on Apollo's face, like a sheet of blank paper was set over a strobe light, and he's cringing. Apollo makes a noise in protest, trying to lift his hand to block the light, but he can't. It takes too much strength to just try and move his arm, and when he does he can feel something there, like there's something blocking him from moving comfortably.

"Apollo!" There's a flash of blue and a whoosh and someone is next to him in what feels like less than an instant.

Apollo blinks, trying to take it all in. It takes a second to place the face looming over him.

That's... Trucy? What is she doing here in... wherever this is?

Apollo tries to say something, but his mouth is dry. It feels like all of the moisture has been sucked out of it, like there's a black hole in his mouth.

When Apollo finally does manage to create some slurred sounds, his mouth feels as groggy and slow as everything else. "'Ey, Truce."

"Daddy! He's awake!" Trucy calls, and Apollo scans the room- because seriously, where the hell is he?

Oh. This is a hospital. Everything around Apollo is uniformly white and clean, and he's lying in a hospital bed. The thing on his arm is an IV, hooked up to a machine directly to his left that Apollo can hear beeping softly if he listens closely. If Apollo lies really far back, the machine blocks the bright light for him, which is coming from a window to Apollo's left.

"Don't yell, Trucy, and give him some space." There's a grating sound as another chair drags towards Apollo, and Apollo tilts his head to see- oh hey, it's Mr. Wright.

"Hi." Apollo's voice is soft and hoarse, and it feels a little uncomfortable to be talking with how his tongue is rubbing against the roof of his mouth. He has to talk to Mr. Wright, though. It's a grave understatement to say that there are some pressing issues with waking up in a hospital bed. "So... why am I in the hospital?"