Sitting down on the edge of the bed, Evren placed his hands in his lap before examining the one that had just about finished recovering. The injury that was inflicted sometime didn't bother him as much, and being honest with his self, he wasn't even sure how long ago he hurt his hand but that information was now irrelevant to him. His hand was doing quite well and that's all that mattered. His bruised eye was also much better, despite the fact that his training sessions had been extended by at least three or four hours daily, and that was dependent on the Director's mood. Yet, sitting in a hospital room was not deemed worth the man's time. Getting to his feet, the officer stared at the door once more before rolling his eyes as he glanced at the clock.
Tyson left nearly half an hour ago and had yet to come back. Looking back at the door, he clenched his jaw prior to looking up when the lights flickered. Inhaling deeply and exhaling slowly, he then set his attention on the male that was still passed out. Rounding the corner, he watched as the raven seemingly shook from what could've been the cold air. Taking it upon himself to cover the teen at least, Evren tugged the provided covers over Cal before noticing the slight glint of something beneath his hospital gown. Leaning down for a closer look, he paused as the raven turned in his sleep before brushing aside the collar to see a thin, slivery chain. Cocking his head, the officer slid his fingers under the necklace to hold it up in the light.
The piece of jewelry seemed cheap enough. It didn't appear to be from some high end department store yet the white-haired man couldn't help but bring a hand up to his head as he felt a sudden pang. Curling his fingers around the object, despite how frail it looked, the officer jerked his hand back when the mild pang escalated into something more painful. Looking down at his hand to see the necklace there then at the teen that was starting to wake, Evren dropped the chain on the pillow before turning away to hurry towards the door. When his shaky hand grabbed the knob, he stepped back as the door opened to reveal his superior officer giving him a rather questionable look.
"Ev-"
"M-move."
"What's the rush, Prince-"
Being shoved aside, the red-eyed officer grimaced before turning to see his subordinate bowing slightly towards their boss. Hearing a low pardon being requested, Tyson watched as Evren hurried past the Director before disappearing around a corner.
"Tyson."
Said person popped to attention. "Sir."
"Tell me about that one there."
Looking towards the sleeping male, Tyson grimaced. "There's not much to say really. I've seen him around the city every now and then I suppose. He tends to keep to himself when by himself though I catch him glaring at the station once in a while."
"Go on," he said as he made his way over to the bed.
"Well, I don't know what else to say really." He flinched momentarily when he saw the pensive expression on the man's face before his attention went back to the patient on the bed. "Well, I kind of found him outside this room door a while ago."
"Oh?"
The officer nodded before saying, "Yes, he was knelt on the floor, perhaps in pain. He looked terrified of something and seemed to flinch when I approached, however, he did grab a hold of Evren's sleeve and muttered his name before he sort of…passed out?"
"Evren, huh?"
"Yes, sir."
"Very well," he said as he walked over to the teen. "Do keep me posted, Tyson but go find Evren and see what's ailing him."
"Yes, sir," the officer replied with a slight bow before heading out.
Hearing the door close behind his worker, the Director focused on the raven wholly. Noticing the thin scars wrapping around the patient's neck, amber eyes scanned the precision of each crisscrossing mark before noticing the thin, silvery chain placed on the pillow beside the dark strands of hair. Picking it up, the older man studied it for a time before glancing at the teen that had seemingly started to come around.
"E…Evren…"
Bringing a hand up to his head, Calix looked around the room slowly as he sat up before his attention settled upon the person that was standing beside his bed. Allowing his gaze to pan upwards, he stiffened when the two of them locked stares. Unable to pull his eyes from the other, the teen began to shake subtly before it became more apparent. As the man tilted his head to a degree, blinking for the first time in their stare down, Cal pulled his gaze away to see necklace in the Director's grasp. Reaching for it, the teen's shaky hand came to stop, even though he willed it to take back what was his.
"You said 'Evren'; what might your name be?" the Director questioned before looking down at the other's trembling hand. He then glanced at the chain prior to looking at Calix once more. "Is this what you want?"
Holding out the necklace, yellow-brown eyes noted how the raven did not move though he continued to shake like a leaf. Easing a bit closer, he stopped when Cal lurched back suddenly, pulling his hand back down to sit in his lap. He looked petrified. Seeing that, the Director offered a faint smile, watching as Calix simply stiffened, shaking even more, before placing the desired item in his lap. Noting the flinch that he received, the man backed off without a word before turning to leave.
Mind finally registering that he was alone once more, Calix leaned forward as he held himself. Staring down at the gift he had received so long ago, he held himself tighter when he couldn't stop himself from shaking.
The man simply asked him a question yet his voice had caught in his throat.
He hadn't been touched.
The man even gave him back the necklace, however, Calix was neither sure how the thing had come off nor did he know how it had become broken.
The thing he did know was that he didn't like the man.
He had chilled him to the bone but something far more disturbing started to creep into his mind.
His voice…
A lot of time had passed but Calix was sure of one thing.
He had heard that man's voice before and nothing good ever came out of it when he spoke.
-†-
"How do you lose a patient in a hospital?!"
"You're not helping the situation, Anthony," Will stated. "Do shut up."
"You two, please knock it off." Both friends looked over at the grey-eyed male that was driving them back to the hospital. "I knew I shouldn't have left him there."
"But we went to get him clothes,"Renyx said. "Who would've thought he'd freak out just after we left?"
"Anthony, shut up. You're not helping the situation at all!"
"I'm just saying-!"
"Enough, you two!" Jumping as the vehicle came to a quick stop, both Will and Renyx tensed in their seats as the driver eyed them critically. "Arguing isn't going to help anything. Yelling at each other is nothing more than childish so just stop!" Both passengers looked down once the car started moving again. "Please, you two are his friends. Just help me find him when we get to the hospital, alright?"
"Apologies," Will uttered, bowing her head slightly. "We'll help you find CL."
The redhead nodded curtly when the female eyed him critically. "Yeah, what she said, Mal."
After several more miles of driving, Malecai pulled into the parking lot of the hospital. Looking up at the high rise of such a building, he hurried towards it before slowing his pace as he came across the white-haired officer knelt down alongside a side entrance of the facility. His hands seemed to cradle his head though that didn't seem to do much, what with the laborious pants and groans the man was making.
Coming over slowly, Mal took a knee and tilted his head to try to get the other's attention. "Excuse me?" The panting died out. "Um, are you ok?"
"F-fine."
"You…don't sound too fine to me."
"Hey, Mal-!"
Said person looked over his shoulder to see the glare that was being sent towards the officer on the ground. Seeing Will come over, grey eyes watched as she hesitated to come much closer before she tugged the redhead over and pushed him towards the door.
"We'll…start looking for Cal," she said.
After they had gone, Malecai looked back at the pale officer that was in the process of trying to pull himself together. "Excuse-"
"I said that I was fine," Evren interjected as he picked his head up.
Mismatched eyes then focused on the silvery pair that had seemingly widened to a degree.
"Your eyes..." The officer narrowed his slightly. "…Evren?"
"Yes…?"
"You're…you're Evren…?"
"That is my name," he drawled. "Who're you?"
To that, Mal tilted his head as the other male got to his feet. "Surely you remember?"
"I don't know you."
"Sure you do."
"No, I don't. I've never seen you before."
Brushing off the cold shoulder, Malecai got to his feet as he watched the officer start to depart. "You always sat in rather peculiar spots in the central park on various days of the week. It was as if you were looking for something or watching peope," he said. "You were also a bit on the small side for your age when I first saw you, not that I knew how old you were at the time. You did quite well I keeping to yourself." He chuckled for a moment before stopping when he noticed that Evren had continued to walk. "You were a rather strange child when you first came up to me."
"I don't know what you're talking about," Evren replied. "You have me confused with someone else."
"No, I haven't met anyone else with eyes like yours but I will. I do believe that was the second, if not the first thing I noticed when you came up to me. You didn't say much initially, just kinda stood there staring at me," Mal said. "And for a kid at the time, I'll admit you were just a bit…how should I say this, intimidating?" To that, the officer stopped. "The first time you approached me, you didn't say anything. You just stared at me then glanced at the lunch I had when you're stomach growled."
"I don't know what you're talking about."
"You just stood there but I offered you my food. I will admit that I was surprised when you didn't scarf it down right there. You just took off with it and I didn't see you for a few days but then you showed up again. You did that at least three or four more times before you actually took a seat next to me," Malecai said. "You surprised me when you told me your name. You then took my lunch and left again. I didn't see you for almost two weeks after that but when I did, you looked like you had been through hell and back."
"I don't-"
"You had bruises on your arms and cuts on your knees. You looked weary and just a bit anxious about something but before I could comment on it, you asked me things like what I did for a living and what kind of house I had. You then took off and I didn't see you for a few months."
"So the kid didn't show up for a while; big deal."
"When you showed up ag-"
"I didn't show up anywhere because I'm not the kid you're talking about. I just got to Polaris some time ago. It's the first time I've ever been to this city so I'm not from here. I'm not who you think I am."
"Sure you are," Malecai said. "When I saw you again, you talked the most that you had ever done in one sitting. You actually answered my questions too."
"I don't know what you're talking about and you're wasting my time. Excuse me and goodbye."
"You were pretty fast in explaining yourself as well. You said you couldn't do what you were doing anymore though you never quite specified what it was that you had been doing. You always said that you had to relocate before they could get you and then that's when you mentioned your friend."
"Friend?"
The grey-eyed man nodded once as he followed at a respectable distance. "Yes, you told me that all that food you had been taking from me went towards your friend that had taken ill sometime before you came to me that time. You asked if I could find a safe place to keep your friend."
"Friend…" Evren parroted before looking back at the man. "My…friend?"
"Calix, Evren. You told me great things about him but you also told me that he was really sick and that you knew you couldn't take care of him. You spoke nothing of yourself but I could tell you were a good kid, smart too."
"Stop."
"You were, "Malecai stated. "You managed to elude officers at such a young age and seemed to have done so for a while too. You seemed to know enough of the old Polaris to find things you needed to survive out there, which had to be quite difficult in a place such as that."
"Stop it," Evren groused as he brought a hand to his head. "Just stop it."
"Ev-"
"No!"
"You were a good kid, Evren."
"I said stop."
"You managed to find your friend a home," Mal said. "That was quite a feat for one your age. The only thing I regret-"
"Leave me alone already!"
"You did so much back then, Evren. The only thing I regret is you not being able to live with Calix and I," he said as he watched the officer sprint away.
Kneeling across the parking lot, behind the Director's car no less, Evren leaned forward as he held the side of his head.
"The only thing I regret is you not being able to live with Calix and I."
"I…don't know you…" he muttered to himself as the words kept playing in his head.
There was no way he could've been the one that Malecai had talked about. He had never been to Polaris before being stationed there and the last place he could recall ever being was at the Academy. Anything besides that was fuzzy but it wasn't like it was important anyway. He was a task officer and his main priority was to execute assignments in a timely manner without question and with sufficient, if not optimal results.
However, the growing pang in the side of his head was a hindrance.
"You managed to find your friend a home."
The man shook his head as his fingers tightened with his pale hair.
"Some people are waiting for you beyond that corner. They're…going to take care of…you from now on, ok?"
"Come with me. Ren, come with me!"
Dammit…
He was tired of hearing all these voices, whether they be recent or something else.
"Ren!"
They just needed to stop.
Reaching into his pocket, Evren withdrew one of his aspirins though it fell from his hand when he lurched from a very sudden and very severe pain in his midsection. Looking around for the small, white capsule, his search ended when the pain in his stomach increased. Covering his mouth when he felt something crawling up the back of his throat, the man squeezed his eyes shut when his head began to throb.
E-Evren-"
A faint smell then seemed to waft in the air, making the man sick to his stomach. A gun hadn't been fired yet he could smell it. The pain he was feeling felt similar to that of a gunshot wound and it only felt like it was getting worse.
"Ren!"
"Ren!"
Pounding his hand against his head, Evren leaned against his employer's vehicle.
His head was hurting but he knew he had been fine after leaving the hospital room. He had had a minor, yet fleeting, headache then but it had subsided once he got outside. This, however, this was something entirely different.
"You managed to find your friend a home."
"Stop…"
"The only thing I regret is you not being able to live with Calix and I."
"Ren!"
Lowering his hand from his mouth, Evren tilted his head back to stare at the sky that had suddenly gone darker than before.
"E-Evren…Come with me. Ren, come with me!"
Dropping his hand from his head, the officer slowly began to lean to the side before falling to the ground.
His body felt heavy as if something was weighing him down. His head and stomach were in excruciating pain yet he couldn't move. Hearing the low calling of his name coming from somewhere, Evren slid his eyes open. Feeling the somewhat damp pavement against his cheek, he tried pulling himself into a more upright position, failing horribly soon after.
"Evren, where are you?"
Flinching at the harsh sound against his ear, Evren managed to turn his head by a fraction to see the radio he usually had attached to his person. Hearing his name again, he managed to get a little closer to the device before finding the strength to clutch at his stomach as it felt like he had been shot several times over. When he heard his name again, he brought the radio closer.
"T…Tyson…"
"Where the hell are you?!"
"Park…parking lot."
"What's the matter with you?!" the raven asked as he walked out the main doors, looking about. His attention then went to the communicator attached to his wrist. "Evren?" Not getting a reply, Tyson sucked his teeth before running to the parking lot. "Evren, where are you?" he shouted as he hurried down the rows. "Evren!"
"Tyson."
"Evren!"
"Tyson." Whirring around, the man took a step back when he saw his boss walking steadily towards him, eyes narrowed. "You better have a valid reason for yelling in a car lot like a fool."
"Sir , Ev-"
"I don't want to hear it," the Director said as he walked by to get to his car. "Whatever you say is nothing more than an excuse." He then looked back at his worker. "You should know I do not tolerate excuses. They lead to failure. Is that understood?"
"Y-yes, sir."
Continuing on his way, the man came to a stop once he got to the driver side. Looking back at the officer he had just been talking to, he glanced back at what he was looking at before prior to looking at Tyson once more.
Getting the hint, Ty hurried over to the Director's side before looking down at the white-haired officer lying on the ground. Spotting the aspirin already dissolving, Tyson knelt down alongside his teammate before pulling him up to lean against him. Rifling through a small compartment attached to his belt. Pulling out one of the aspirins he had on him, he pressed the capsule against the other's mouth. Seeing how the pill remained at the front of the man's mouth, Tyson shifted the man, simply to have it fall out as well as having his teammate's head loll to the side. Clenching his jaw, the raven placed another aspirin in his mouth before tilting the other's head back. Leaning forward to coax the pill into Evren's mouth, Ty pulled away when he tasted something coppery.
Sitting up, Tyson touched his mouth before pulling his hand back to see a thin yet dark trail of blood starting to well at the corner of the paler man's mouth. Wiping it away before it spilt over, Ty pulled his hand away when his attempts proved to be in vain. Looking back at the unresponsive face of his subordinate, he then looked up to see the same thing from the Director. Dropping his gaze, he held onto the officer before looking up again when the other man moved.
"Put him in the back seat."
"But, sir, the hospital is right there," Tyson said as he got to his feet, Evren in tow.
"What did I just order you to do?"
"But, sir-!"
"It would be best for you to mind your place as a leader, Tyson," he said as he opened his door. "Evren knew when to hold all comments and abide by orders in an efficient manner. That being said, if you want to stay leader, you will put him in the back seat, Tyson."
Bowing his head, Ty walked to the other side of the vehicle and opened the door. Easing Evren into the car, he wiped away the blood pooling in the other corner of his mouth before stepping back as the car was turned on. Closing the door, he stepped back to look at the Director before bowing at the waist when the man pulled out of the parking spot and drove away.
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