Isolation

Chapter Nineteen

Chapter Nineteen

Matthew sighed shakily and closed the door. He took off his boots and coat and looked around. The house seemed so empty, he hated it. He pressed his back against the door and slid down. He pulled his knees up to his chest.

The blond heard claws clicking and he looked up to see Kumajirou walking his way. The cub didn't say anything, he already seemed to know something happened. He just pushed his way into Matthew's arms and curled up. They sat quietly, the Canadian's mind for once was blank.

"Bed." Kumajirou said tugging lightly at his sleeve. When he didn't respond the bear nibbled lightly on his fingers to get his attention. Matthew shifted slightly. "More comfy there."

"Alright." He murmured climbing to his feet with the cub in his arms. His injuries were still bothering him. They ached badly and sent shocks of pain through him when he moved, but he knew they were healing. He set his phone on the kitchen table as he passed. He also laid his gun down as well.

Matthew moved on into the hall. He lingered for a moment at Bryce's open bedroom door. He quickly shook thoughts from his head and walked to his own room. The Canadian set Kumajirou on the bed and opened his window.

The blond didn't bother getting undressed. He curled up on top of the covers. He wanted to feel the cold again. Kumajirou toddled over to him and curled up on top of him. He rested his head on top of Matthew's.

"What happened?" Kumajirou asked quietly. The Canadian didn't say anything. "I smell blood on you."

"I'm fine." Matthew said quietly. "Bryce is gone."

"Gone, gone?" The cub asked concern. The blond didn't say anything, but nodded slowly. "Oh." He said quietly snuggling closer to Matthew. He didn't ask anymore questions.

-❄️"I wanted to write down exactly what I felt, but somehow the paper stayed empty and I could not have described it any better."❄️-

A couple of hours later, Matthew gasped awake from a nightmare. He groaned as the sunlight shone in his eyes. Kumajirou was still curled up on top of him and woke up at the blond's movements. The cub hopped off him as he sat up. He winced because his wounds still ached.

Matthew got to his feet and walked to the kitchen. Kumajirou followed him out. He glanced at the clock and noticed it was almost four o'clock in the afternoon. The Canadian knew he should eat, he hadn't eaten anything since the night before. He didn't feel hungry though and didn't want to eat.

The blond jumped as he heard the home phone ring. He went over and answered. "Hello?" He asked.

"Hey, Matt. It's TJ." The bar tender said quickly. He could hear talking and glasses bring moved in the background. "Everything is sorted. We'll talk more next time you're in."

"Alight." He responded. "Thank you."

"No problem, call me if you need anything." TJ said. They said their goodbyes and hung up. The Canadian sat back at the kitchen table again. Kumajirou had already climbed up and was sitting in the centre.

The cub pushed his cell over to him. Matthew raised an eyebrow. "It's been buzzing."

"Has it?" He asked absentmindedly. The blond picked it up to see a few missed texts from Gilbert. There was a good night a morning then a few others that were more worried. He quickly sent an apologetic reply. 'Sorry for not replying Gil. Something happened to Bryce.'

Matthew rested his head in his hands. He knew that he would have to think up a lie to tell Gilbert. He yawned sleepily rubbing his eyes. He sat for a few minutes and rested, but soon decided to get up and go to the bathroom. He pulled his shirt off along the way.

The Canadian walked in and looked at himself in the mirror. There was still dried blood around the wounds and he couldn't get a good look at them. He grabbed a washcloth and wetted it before wiping away the blood. Matthew winced as he went over the holes, they were still sore. They looked like they were healing well, but still had large scabs. The bullet that hit his chest had an exit wound on his back, but the one on his shoulder didn't.

The blond knew that the bullet must have been stuck in his shoulder. He groaned feeling for it, but didn't feel any lumps. He decided to leave it and see how it would heal. He'd dig it out later if he needed to. The Canadian hopped in and had a quick shower to get the rest of the blood and the scent of it off him. He changed his clothes putting on a huge oversized dark sweater and comfy pants.

Matthew went back out to the kitchen and made himself a cup of coffee. He wasn't really hungry and didn't want to sleep. The coffee would give him a bit of nutrition and enough energy to not fall asleep. He sat back down at the table with his cup of coffee. Kumajirou was laying in the centre of the table in a patch of sunlight.

The Canadian zoned out for a few minutes, but was brought back to reality by his cell buzzing. He picked it up to see the contact was Gilbert. "Hey Gil."

"Hallo Birdie." The albino greeted. He sounded worried. He could hear voices in the background. "Are you okay? Is Bryce okay?"

"I'm alright, but Bryce is gone." Matthew said quietly. Saying it out loud again made him finally realize how real it was.

"Vhat?" Gilbert gasped. "I'll be there as soon as I can Liebe."

"It's okay Gil, you don't have to." The Canadian said. He didn't sound very convincing.

"It's alright, I'll be there soon." The Prussian said hanging up. Matthew sighed setting his phone down. He stared at his coffee debating whether or not to actually drink it.

Kumajirou woke up and yawned. He stretched before walking up to Matthew. The cub hopped down into his lap. "You should eat." He said sleepily.

"I know." The blond sighed pushing the cup of coffee away from him. Kumajirou looked up at him. "I'm not hungry though."

"Still." The polar bear complained. He pushed his head into Matthew's hand nudging him. The blond sighed running a hand through his fur. "Eat something."

"I don't want to, I'm not hungry." Matthew mumbled. The bear didn't look to happy with the blond's response, but didn't want to fight with him.

The Canadian didn't know what to do with himself. He didn't have much motivation to even move from where he was sitting. The realization hit him that Bryce truly was never coming back. He hated knowing that he'd never see him or hear his voice again.