Chapter 41: Everyone is going to play with Charlie

Kellen thought that he was going to be rather alone given the fact that no one really knew he was here, but that wasn’t the case. The upper management knew he was here, but the Guides didn’t know he was here. Plus, the more people the visited, the more people that got in the way of the healers doing their tests.

At least, that was what Kellen told himself so that he didn’t get his hopes up.

He sent his parents away first. After they got to see that he was safe, he was alive, and that so far, everything was working, he had to. They had already had planned out days prior to him coming here. he did not want to interfere in their plans.

He knew he couldn’t convince Charlie to leave, the kid had a hard look in his eyes, a look that Kellen was familiar with. He had seen it in himself when he was young as well. So, he let Charlie remain since the man made it a point that he had nowhere else he was needed.

Rhys, however, it took several times to get him to leave. Kellen knew that out of everyone visiting him today, Rhys had the biggest workload on his shoulders. He was a Captain of a Guild, there was no way he didn’t have a lot on his shoulders.

Rhys, however, didn’t view it that way. Didn’t even let Kellen for a second think that he was a bother to him or his people. Instead, he had to be forced to leave Kellen’s side by a rather worried, and exasperated Hill. She had to come get him for a meeting that he was going to miss with Lieutenant Fisher and Sakura if she didn’t get him up there right this moment.

Lieutenant Fisher didn’t know about the test yet, but Sakura did because Carlos was working in tandem with Taylor. Sakura was understanding, but Lieutenant Fisher was just worried. He thought that something terrible had happened, not that something good had happened.

Hill needed to nip that in the bud, ad that meant that Rhys had to leave Kellen’s side.

Kellen didn’t want it either, but it was the right thing to do. Kellen could be patient now that he’d gotten a small taste of Rhys and that hope was potentially on the horizon. He could be patient. Rhys, however, was not of the same mind. He’d gotten a taste and now he was starving.

However, Kellen was able to force him to leave and do his job. Kellen promised to send him a text every hour. It wasn’t like Kellen had much else he could do. He was bed bound with machines monitoring him, constant checks, and Healers coming in and out of his room.

Kellen couldn’t exactly run away even if he wanted to.

That seemed to soothe a part of Rhys, especially when Charlie piped up and said that he could teach Kellen a card game that some of the other Espers who were on his rotating watch had taught him. Charlie seemed really excited to teach Kellen anything, and funny enough, that seemed to soothe Rhys more.

Rhys only left after getting to kiss Kellen on the cheek, confirm he was getting a text from him by the hour, and then he left. Kellen made sure to send his first text right away, making it as bland as possible. Then Kellen turned to Charlie and asked to play the game that he wanted to.

Charlie lit up from within.

~

Someone had told someone else that Kellen was in the Medical Bay. He had no idea who to point the finger at. His Mom, his Dad, Rhys, Charlie or hell, even Hill were all potential rats. However, it was one of them and now Kellen found himself inundated with Guides and Espers alike.

Some were people that Kellen knew, like his Field Guide trainees, or Guides he’s seen around in the Guiding Division that weren’t part of his program, but were people who he had helped. Those made sense.

The Espers, however, Kellen was a little more confused about them visiting. Some were the A Classes that he would work out around in the morning. The Espers that he had gotten to know with Brent who had also stepped in and helped out a few times for Field Guide classes.

Those ones made sense, while the others…Kellen didn’t know why they were visiting. Were they members from Gwen’s group? Were they just thankful Espers? Or were they Espers just trying to take a few minutes to themselves and heard they could do that by visiting Kellen? He didn’t care. Kellen didn’t turn them away. He turned no one away who wanted to visit him.

Charlie welcomed everyone with open arms. Everyone sat in for a game of cards, and Kellen was the one who made sure that happened. a sharp look from Kellen as the others looked like they were going to refuse to join meant that whenever a Healer came by to take Kellen’s readings, there were at least 4 or 5 people around playing a card game.

Charlie was in his glee to have so many people to teach his common game to, and Kellen felt a bit like a bully. Did he care? Absolutely not. If Gwen had been half as socially awkward as Charlie was, she would have gotten the same treatment from Kellen.

She was actually lucky that she didn’t have Kellen looming behind her to force people to be nice to her.

Kellen set a timer to remind himself to message Rhys, and it worked. By the time lunch rolled around and Kellen felt like he’d seen half, if not more of the Guild by then, Hill and Rhys showed up with lunch.

They had two large carts wheeled in behind them as Kellen, Charlie, and two of his Field Guide students sat around a table that one of the Healers had found for them so that Kellen could still play. It was a small table, on wheels, that could go up and over the edge fo the bed and lock into place. Kellen felt that it was normally used for food trays or something similar, but Kellen was just grateful for something that would make Charlie feel better.

The first couple of card games they had played on the bed, but as soon as other people came to visit, Kellen had moved them over to the actual table in the room. Charlie had felt terrible excluding Kellen, but Kellen hadn’t minded. Charlie had sat close enough, well actually, they had dragged the table closer so that Kellen could help him with his hand.

So the small table was a great improvement.

Hill looked exhausted, like the first half of the day had been extremely draining. She beat Rhys to Kellen’s side, wrapping her arms around the other Guide and giving him a tight squeeze. She exhaled quickly, before taking a slower breath in and releasing it.

“God, I just want this hell to be over with.” She muttered. “Why the fuck did they have to pick our city right now? This is a damn nightmare. I hate planning funerals.” Hill moaned, using Kellen as a cushion.

Kellen could feel Rhys’ glare as he closed the door behind him, his body stock still after the kind cafeteria workers had delivered their food. It was obvious that Hill could too, which was why she was behaving the way that she was. Hill had her back to him, to the door entirely as she held onto Kellen.

Kellen didn’t mind her coming to seek comfort from him. Even if half of the reason she was doing so was to rile up Rhys. The other half was because she genuinely needed some extra care. Kellen could tell just from touching her.

“I don’t like planning funerals either.” Kellen told her, his voice soft. Charlie was glancing between Hill, Kellen and Rhys, looking uncomfortable while the Field Guides that Kellen had trained remained calm, telling Charlie it was his turn to play.

“I’m so fucking sorry that you had another vision.” Hill whispered, squeezing him. “I thought my heart was going to stop hearing about it, but I had a feeling you already had enough people pestering you so I stayed away.” Hill said, apologetic. Kellen gave her a squeeze with his arm.

“Hey, it’s all good. I would have welcomed you coming to visit outside of the fact that you need sleep. Everyone does. Don’t worry about me in that regard since Taylor, Carlos, and Rhys have my back. The moment that Rhys is calling you because something went wrong is when you should panic.” Kellen told her. She moved back, ready to lecture him but Kellen spoke up with a smile. “However, all of my tests are coming back fucked up, which is a wonderful thing. It means my body is changing, and for the better. Carlos is able to work on the poisons inside of my system now, and is able to affect them.” Hill, who had no doubt been getting the test results back, swallowed.

She knew that was a big deal. Up until now, Kellen’s results hadn’t budged. While sometimes that was a good thing, it was not when you were trying to remove poisons from someone else’s body. Poisons that were able to lock together in someone else’s body and prevent any life-saving work to be done.

As hours continued to tick by, it was becoming more and more obvious that this was the right solution. Still dangerous, but in the grand scheme of everything that everyone was worried could be the solution?

Easy. This was easy.

“What did you two bring for lunch?” Kellen asked, turning the attention away from him. Again. Rhys moved over to Kellen’s side as Hill stepped back, sniffing and rubbing at her eyes with her sleeves of her uniform.

“We brought some of your favourites.” He said. “Lots of protein, and some sweet treats. As well as pastas, baked potatoes, lots of hearty meals. The staff went all out just for you.” Rhys said, forcing himself to smile. Kellen chuckled.

“You didn’t threaten them?” He teased and Rhys shook his head.

“Not at all.” Rhys said, and Kellen chuckled.

He didn’t fully believe that, but this was Rhys He was going to believe him, especially as Hill nodded and gave a thumbs up behind him.

“I’m not eating alone, right? You two are joining us?” Kellen asked, not leaving any room for them to say no. Charlie smiled into his hand of cards before he turned and gave both Espers big, wide eyes.

“You are going to stay, right?” He asked, and Kellen felt his smile widen. He might be spending too much time around his Guides. They might corrupt him.

Charlie might need a little bit of that.

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