“I’m bored.”
That solitary thought echoed within the girl’s head as she stared at the nostalgic ceiling. It had been three years since she last saw it like this, but her current predicament kept her from finding any sense of ease in these familiar surroundings; the only thing she felt was the boredom.
“Soooooooo boooooooored.”
Why was this Deuman girl filled with this overwhelming ennui? Simply put, her broken left arm meant she needed bedrest, so her family brought her home to recover in pampered coziness. To a restless soul like Charlotte, however, this was far from comfort, and this wasn’t really “home” anymore.
When she had been in the hospital just a few days ago, her need to explore had been the ire of several nurses who were already stretched thin because of the sudden influx of ARKS operatives being admitted; although Dark Falz had been successfully repelled after its attack on the fleet, the number of injured was high, and shifts were longer because of it. To add to the dismay of these exhausted workers, they had Charlotte to contend with.
For three days, despite their best efforts to convince her to stay in bed, nurse after nurse found an empty room, and the mad scramble to find the ashen-haired girl began again; once, she was found on the roof bathing in the light of the domed city’s artificial sun, fast asleep, and countless other times she was in the rooms of other patients, having wild conversations about the things they had seen in their time as ARKS. While the sight of this happy-go-lucky girl helped to brighten the days of those whose rooms she wandered into —a carefree smile and open ears distracting from lost limbs and fallen friends— she quickly became a horror story among the staff.
“I heard that someone caught her moving patients’ beds around to different rooms to confuse the other staff.”
“One of the girls from the night shift told me that they found her dangling out the window like she was going to try and jump to the first floor. It supposedly took three nurses to pull her back in.”
“That’s nothing. Apparently, she was talking to this older gentleman in his room, and her incessant talking —which I have been on the receiving end, firsthand, mind you— made him run out of his room on his two broken legs!”
The reason for her current position were these stories, as it were. When they reached the ears of her family, they knew a decision had to be made to ensure a proper recovery.
On the day of her discharge, two Deuman women, both slight of frame and fair —one whose age was only betrayed by the bags under her eyes— and a bespectacled, crimson-clad Caseal sat in the hospital’s lobby discussing the best course of action for the girl. To say the tension was palpable would be an understatement to those around them; though they spoke in a calm tone, every word exchanged between the two flaxen-haired women dripped with contempt.
“I am perfectly capable of looking after Lottie at my apartment. She practically lives there anyway, so I don’t see the issue.”
“Andrea. What you apparently don’t see is the severity of this situation. We need to keep your sister comfortable and safe so that she can properly heal; having her in an ARKS housing district puts her too close to temptations that, you very well know, she will be unable to resist, particularly that ridiculous tournament that was announced. I don’t doubt she already knows ways to sneak out of your ‘home’ undetected. On top of that, we can’t even be sure you’ll be there if you are called in to your so-called ‘work.’ It just makes logical sense for her to come home where your father and I can keep a proper eye on her.”
“I swear, Mother, with your ‘logical thinking’ you act more like a CAST than Erin. Anyway, I took a leave of absence so I could be with Charlotte while she recovered, so you don’t need to worry about that, and if you are so concerned about having extra eyes on her, I am sure that Erin would be there even if I tried to stop her. Isn’t that right…”
“Yes and no. I will keep an eye on Charlotte. However, Vanessa is right. More eyes are better. Makes more sense to have her there. Sorry, Andrea.”
“Are you serious? You’re taking her side? Of course you’re taking her side…”
“See? It’s settled then. Charlotte will come home so that she can be away from any more danger.”
“Da… How will she be in danger at my apartment? That doesn’t… ARGH! Fine! But I’m going to be staying there, too. I said I was going to take care of her, so that’s exactly what I’m going to do, Mother.”
And so, it was decided without the girl’s knowledge or input. Once she was cleared by a doctor, her two weeks of recovery would begin in her parents’ home. Her two weeks of ever-increasing dullness.
“Bored. Bored. Bored. BOOOOOORRRRRRREDDDDDDDDD!”
Only two days in, and it had become unbearable. Not only was her tightly bound arm an impediment to her normal movement, from the second she arrived there was not a single moment where she was alone. Her parents were constantly doting on her, going out of their way could to ensure she had everything she needed, though unbeknownst to her, it was to keep her as docile as possible. When they weren’t around, her sister —who was trying her best to avoid their mother and an argument about her life choices— sat at her bedside as they recalled their childhood days.
All the while, her friend and former bodyguard sat in the large corner chair, book in hand; although she seemed off in her own world, Charlotte knew better. The girl knew her guardian was more aware of things than she let on, and that she knew exactly what her charge was thinking at all times. It was a notion she held on to since the first day they met, in a moment she couldn’t help but reminisce on as she lay there.
Nearly ten years ago, when Erin had first been hired, the slate-skinned child knew that things would be far more interesting than before. When the 8-year-old saw the tall, armor-clad Caseal kneel down to her level, she felt like they had made an instant connection and immediately went in for a hug, which she knew the recipient would return without hesitation, and she did. Contrary to the child’s imaginings, the young woman was just uncomfortable around children and had actually gone in for a handshake but didn’t dare make anyone else aware for fear of dying of embarrassment; that entire first meeting was filled with misunderstanding after misunderstanding, with the pinnacle being the graceless first moment between the new bodyguard and the older sister. With their brief eye contact, a flurry of thoughts raced through their minds:
“Why is she wearing that helmet? Is she ugly? No, she’s probably really pretty but wants to hide it. I wish I could see her eyes. I wonder if she’s going to like me. I’ve never met an ARKS before. Is she going to be scary to be around? I hope she’s nice. She let Lottie hug her, so she must be nice. Why isn’t she saying anything? Is she mad? Maybe she doesn’t like little kids. I’ve gotta seem like a grownup. How do grownups say hi? A handshake! That’s what Mommy does when she meets her friends on the street. Wait, Mommy always looks serious when she shakes hands. I’ve got to look serious, too. I hope she likes me.”
“Oh, my goodness. She’s so tiny. Is she supposed to be the older sister? She looks like a doll. Almost like that princess doll that I had when Mom and I were still living on Thorn. I wonder what ever happened to it? I want to pick her up and hug her. Would that be bad? The other one did give me a hug, so maybe it would be fine. Why is she staring at me like that? Oh, no. She already hates me. Why does she have her hand up? Does she want a handshake? That’s super weird. No, you can’t say that. Ok, here we go! I really hope she doesn’t hate me.”
And so, despite the internal build-up, the two simply shook hands and introduced themselves:
“Andrea.”
“Erin.”
It was the first in a long line of awkward interactions young Charlotte would find joy in witnessing.
“I’m still bored, bored, bored, bored.”
Back in her bed, that blissful memory gave way to that feeling again. Along with it, the poor girl recalled the day’s earlier attempt to get her best friend, Ophelia, to visit her and help her sneak out; however, like most field medics in the wake of the recent attack, the young Newman had been stationed in a civilian hospital to help with the influx of refugees from the destroyed ARKS ship.
“Sorry, Char. I’m completely swamped. I would really love to go see you, especially since I still owe you that punch, but we’re all hands on deck right now. Plus, there’s no way that they’ll let me enter the tournament, even if you were fine.”
“I know, but you’vegotta help me. They won’t le’me do anything! Snowy, if youcanjust convince Erin t’let you take me t'the shopping district, they’ll allgo along withit. Please! I’m sooooooo boooooored here! I’m sure youcan use’a break, too. This’isa once in'a lifetime opportunity!”
“I know you’re frustrated, Char, but they are just looking out for you. It’s just for a couple of we… Crap! I’ve got to go. I’m really, really sorry. I’ll talk to you later.”
And so, without her partner-in-crime to aide her, the girl cursed with wanderlust had no choice but to lay there, wallowing in her own boredom. As the hours passed, between constant check-ins from her parents and sister, sleep slowly began to take hold, and with it, the familiar thought crossed her mind once more:
“So… bor… bored…”
Assured that she was asleep, the silent guardian rose from her chair and gently pulled a blanket over the slumbering girl. As she stared at the sleeping form before her —mouth wide open with her right arm across her eyes and nose, and one leg hanging off the side of the bed— a gentle smile crossed Erin’s face.
“She’s going to try to sneak out tomorrow. I just know it.”
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