All In My Head: A Legend of Zelda Story

Chapter Seven: The Past

Sorry about the long wait! I got caught up in a conversation with my friend and lost track of time... XD please forgive me!

~Feels~

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"You lost your dad?" Zelda asked her voice hoarse and raw.

Link nodded and for the first time Zelda noticed he seemed to be shaking. "It was a few years ago," he started. His eyes watered. "It was my fault."

"What?"

He swallowed. "This... This isn't something I share with everybody..." He rubbed his neck. "This is kinda the first time, besides Miss Urbosa..."

Zelda tentatively reached out a hand and patted his shoulder. "Go ahead," she encouraged.

Link looked at her apologetically. "Yeah, sorry. Um, back when I was younger, I wanted to go into the medical field. I wanted to be an EMT."

"Wow, really?" She scooted closer to him. "Any reason why?"

He halfheartedly laughed, bordering on crying. "See, this is the hard part. I wanted to be an EMT because I wanted to save people."

Zelda's eyed widened. "That's awesome! I always wanted to be a florist, because it was something I really enjoyed, but your reason sounds much better," she said. "Sorry, I interrupted. Go on."

It took some effort for him to start talking again. Obviously he was debating something heavy. Finally he shook his head and continued.

"I started taking medical classes my freshman year. I got certified in CPR and was excited to be on the first steps towards med school."

Zelda waited for a minute, watching Link. The tears that had formed were sliding down his face.

"My dad and I were taking a walk one day, during the summer. We were laughing and talking, when all of a sudden he paused and started feeling some pain. I called 911 because he was getting worse. I recognized the symptoms of heart attack in him. He stopped breathing, and I froze." He sighed, drawing out the breath. "It was like I forgot everything I learned. And just like that, I watched my dad die before the ambulance could arrive."

Zelda gasped. She had been there when Sheik died, but at least there was nothing she could've done to save him. With Link, though... Watching his father die when he knew he could have done something to help...

"I'm so, sorry," she whispered. "I'm so, so, so sorry."

Link shrugged, trying to hide his tears. "For a while, I feel into a really dark depression. I blamed and bashed myself. It was a bad time for me."

Zelda nodded. "That happened to me after my brother's funeral."

"I stopped eating and felt miserable twenty four seven. Thanks to my little sister, I didn't... decide to take my own life." He coughed heavily, then he broke.

She watched him rip the metaphorical band aid off. And it hurt her to see him in so much pain. She had felt a part of that when Sheik died, but Link was probably feeling it ten times as much as she had.

"Where is your sister now, if I can ask?" Zelda asked. She nervously pulled her friend into a hug to comfort him.

Link let his head fall on her shoulder and she felt the hot tears soak into her shirt. "What I didn't realize was that by helping me through my problem, hers was growing bigger and bigger. When we found out about this place and started living here, I tried to get her help. She lasted about three years and I could tell she was honestly trying to get better."

He paused awkwardly, sitting back upright and pulling his knees to his chest. His blue eyes were clouded over, brimming with warm tears.

"We lost her a few months ago," he mumbled, his words slightly muffled by his legs. "She had overdosed on her medication just after she had gotten Miss Urbosa to let her start taking it on her own. In her... her goodbye letter, she said she was sorry for failing and that she wanted me to get better."

Zelda sat there, stunned. Mipha had mentioned someone had gone a while back, but to find out it was Link's little sister...

"Link," she started quietly, trying to look him in the eyes. "I may not completely know what you're feeling, but I do know that you are important, not only to the kids at this hospital, but to me. You have my permission to cry your heart out if that will help you feel better."

Link brought his eyes up to glance at her and she saw a small sparkle of hope in them, one that seemed to shine brighter than all the darkness in his heart. It brought her hope as well.

Then he sat up, looking visibly better. His face had slightly paled when he was talking but now spots of colors returned. He took a deep breath.

"Thanks for that, Zelda," he said, half smiling while wiping away tears. "You have no idea how much better I feel now."

Zelda smiled at him. "That's what friends do for each other. We lift each other up when we're feeling down and we stick by each other's sides. My brother used to always tell me that when I felt sad."

Link laughed a bit. Slowly, Zelda watched the broken bits and pieces of her friend mend themselves together. It happened slowly, but it happened. His tears had dried up completely.

"What was your brother like?" He asked. "From the way you talk about him, he sounds like a pretty cool guy."

Zelda grinned at him. "He loved me, that much I know for sure. He always went out of his way to make me smile, even if he was busy or if he had more important things to do. He treated taking care of me like his full time job. And for that, I will always be grateful for him." She paused. "What was your sister like?"

He grinned back at her. "Aryll was just about the best person I've ever known," he confessed, letting his legs fall back to the ground. "She kinda reminds me of you, in a way."