Façade (DISCONTINUED. Revised and redone as a webcomic)

Chapter 17: Revelation

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Day 008 11:12 am
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My eyes were still sore, but a good night's rest in my own bed had helped a lot. It was also pretty nice to have something to eat after not being given any food in that shithole. Not to mention, having waffles was a fantastic thing on its own anyways.

As we'd been escaping from the camp last night, Jiken and Duck had thanked us before heading off into the woods together. It kinda made me sad to think that I'd likely not see them ever again, but it was also nice to know they were free.

Memory had fainted from pain and blood loss during the escape, and Echo and Shark had been monitoring him all night. His left arm had almost been torn off by the Felyne that attacked him, and the gashes on his hip and other shoulder revealed shredded flesh in about the same state as ground beef off the shelves at the grocery store. Echo had healed those, but reattaching Memory's arm had been taking him a long time. Well, at least Memory was unconscious for the healing process. That gave me some peace of mind.

As I wolfed down a fourth waffle, Echo came downstairs, yawning. Dark bags under his eyes were proof of just how hard he'd worked all night in order to heal Memory. He wore only some borrowed sweatpants and a pale orange t-shirt. His feet dragged as he walked over to the table and slumped down on a chair next to Dust. Dust, noticing his friend's exhaustion, placed a hand on his shoulder and shook him gently in an effort to let Echo know that he'd done well.

As soon as he sloppily grabbed a hot waffle in his hand and began shoving it in his mouth, I heard my mother call me from the stairs.

"Disty. Come here for a moment, please."

I turned, resting my arm on the back of the chair as I watched her face for a moment. She was quiet and somber, a gentle smile on her face despite the exhaustion that left dark rings under her eyes. I picked up my plate, which held a fifth waffle laced with butter and syrup. Once I'd drawn near, she placed her hands on my cheeks and pulled my head closer to plant a soft kiss on my forehead. Following this, she murmured,

"Don't let the others know, but Memory's awake. He didn't say anything to me, so I'd like to let you have some alone time with him. He might be a bit woozy from the amount of blood he lost, but he's definitely aware of his situation and surroundings."

I searched her eyes briefly before nodding and taking my currently untouched waffle with me up the stairs. Memory's door was slightly ajar, revealing his room which was illuminated by the late-morning sunlight. I released the plate with my left hand for a moment to knock on the doorframe with a smirk. With my hip, I pushed the door open.

"Room service."

I laughed softly.

Memory lay under his blankets, staring at the wall. Upon hearing my voice, his attention turned to me. His eyes brightened for a split second, then they again became sad.

"Oh. Hi, Distance."

He mumbled.

I entered his room. Closing the door softly and walking over to his bedside, I sighed,

"Don't be so enthusiastic to see me, you're gonna pull a muscle jumping for joy like that."

I sat on the folding chair my mother had presumably been using while Echo healed Memory. Memory and I held each other's gaze for a second, then I glanced down at my plate and cut off a corner of my waffle with the side of my fork.

"All right, why're you all mopey? I'm listening."

I asked him as I brought the syrupy waffle piece towards my face.