Isolation

Chapter Eleven

Chapter Eleven

Matthew sighed sitting up and putting his head in his hands. He was only able to sleep for about an hour before a nightmare woke him up. He could never get back to sleep after. He looked over to the clock to see that it was only four in the morning. He wanted to sleep a little bit more tonight, today was the skills display.

The blond groaned standing up and stretching. He put on one of his hoodies and quietly went out into the kitchen. He smiled softly seeing Kumajirou sleeping on the dining table. Matthew opened the back door and stepped onto the back deck. He walked over and sat down on the edge of the deck.

The sky was clear tonight and he was able to see the stars. It was a little bit chilly tonight, but not quite cold. The cool air helped him clear his head; being outside always did. He hummed and laid back with his hands behind his head just staring up at the stars.

Matthew hadn't realized he'd fallen asleep until he woke up. Sleeping outside was becoming a bit of a habit, he really needed to learn to open his window or something. He sat up and ran a hand through his hair before rolling onto his feet. He went back into the house and looked at the clock, it was only six.

Kumajirou looked up as he came in. "Again?" The cub asked. Matthew just shrugged sitting down at the table. He started to count the scars on his arms. He already knew how many were there, but it would kill some time. He personally didn't mind scars, but always wore long clothes to cover them. He hated when other people stared at him.

Matthew knew Bryce would be up soon and the Canadian started to make breakfast. As he was cooking his mind wandered. He still hadn't called Gilbert yet. He decided he call a little bit later in the day today, it had only been a few days since they had coffee together. Matthew still couldn't figure out why he was so drawn to the Prussian. He instantly trusted him which made him nervous.

"Good morning." Bryce hummed coming into the kitchen. "Something smells good."

"Morning. Made caramel chip pancakes." Matthew said taking the last one out of the pan. He put a few on a plate and handed them to the ginger. He grabbed a few, making sure to grab one extra for Kumajirou, and sat down at the table. Bryce had already grabbed the maple syrup from the fridge and drenched his pancakes. "What's a good time to call someone?"

"Finally going to call Gilbert?" Bryce asked and Matthew nodded. The green eyed man smiled. "Well, I'd say around ten or after lunch. Never call during a meal hour. Twelve and six are off limits."

"Good to know, thanks." The Canadian smiled nervously.

"You'll do fine. Just talk to him." Bryce sighed. "Man, I sound like a dad." He mumbled.

Matthew chuckled rolling his eyes. "You really do." He said through his laugh. He passed another few hours by reading and before he knew it, ten o'clock finally rolled around. Bryce had left an hour ago to finish up the cheating job with a meeting with the lady.

The Canadian worked up enough courage to press the call button and panicked as soon as he heard the dial tone. It rang for a few seconds before he picked up.

"Hallo?" Gilbert asked picking up.

"Hi Gil, it's Matthew." The blond said. His heart fluttered hearing the albinos voice.

"Oh! Hallo Birdie!" He greeted happily. "How are jou?"

"Not too bad." He sighed. "I'm sorry I didn't call you sooner. I was a little busy."

"That's alright, things get in the vay." Gilbert said. Matthew could hear relief in his voice. "I thought jou veren't going to call for a bit there." Then he laughed. "Vhos kidding? I bet jou couldn't resist my awesome charm."

"Yup, sure couldn't." The Canadian said with slight sarcasm. He admired the albino's confidence.

"Is that sass I detect?" The Prussian asked through a laugh. Matthew laughed as well. "So Birdie, vhat are jou doing tonight? Maybe vant to go see a movie?"

"I can't tonight sadly." Matthew sighed. The skills display was tonight, but he couldn't tell Gilbert that. "What about tomorrow night?"

"I've got meetings all day tomorrow. They'll most likely run late." The albino grumbled. "What about the next night?"

"The next night is good for me." The blond hummed. They talked a bit longer and planned to go see the new Mary Poppins. Matthew had seen the original many years ago and was excited to see the new one. The pair kept talking for awhile about a lot of different things. He was still amazed him how easy he was to talk to. The Canadian hadn't realized how long they had been talking for until he glanced at the clock, it was almost lunch time. "Oh, sorry Gilbert. I gotta go."

"Oh wow, it's almost twelve." The Prussian gasped. "I got to go too! See jou in a few days Birdie!"

"Bye Gil." Matthew sighed with a smile hanging up.

-❄️"Sleep just isn't sleep anymore, it's an escape"❄️-

1990's

Matthew watched silently as his latest owner drew more of his blood. He was kept in a small cell in the man's basement. There was no bed or windows, just a small room with barely enough room for him to stand or lie down in. He'd been given nothing, but poisoned food and water. He hadn't seen the sun in months. He didn't bother fighting, knowing there was no where he could run.

This man had taken a strong fascination in why he couldn't die. He was a doctor as his day job and loved to do experiments on the blond when he had time. Matthew didn't know his name, he wouldn't tell him. He had taken to just calling him Doc.

"Your blood is very different from a human's." He murmured finishing filling the syringe. He cleared his throat and spoke to him. "It contains more thrombocytes which explains the quick clotting I've seen, but nothing I've found so far can explain your healing. What do you think it is, Matthew?"

"I d-don't know." He said quietly as the man let go of his arm. The blond pulled his legs to his chest and rested his chin on his knees staring at the wall. He was still recovering from Doc's last experiment. The man had left precise cuts all over his body watching closely as they healed before cutting them open again. Healing always took a lot out of him and made him sluggish.

"I'm sure draining your blood is the key to your immortality. We'll take a more aggressive approach this coming week." Doc said a bright smile on his face. He stood up and left the room taking the needle with him.

Matthew shrank back, he was not looking forward to it. He felt like just a shell of a person now. He barely moved from his spot on the floor, hardly even shifted. He kept his head down hoping to die with every new experiment. He hadn't been so lucky yet.