One More Moment (Vyssini and Zombie) [18+]

[vyssini]

'Pfft' Zed closed his mouth not allowing his chuckles reach the ears of his good friend. Of course, he knew that those marshmallows were for him. He just liked seeing his friend broke that calm mask of his. Though he also admired that of Felix, he loved the fact that he was one of those people who could bother his friend until he lose that calm demeanor. Though, he always noted that he had to be careful not to push too hard or he had to face his friend's scary side.

 

When the other took his hand, he felt grateful. As they entered the room, his nose was assaulted by the acrid air with that distinct metallic pungent that make him wrinkle his nose. His gaze inspected the room before settling his attention to the woman who had been giving them a questioning look. "Yeah, thanks." He gave his friend a troubled and weak smile before walking towards the woman. "Uhm.." He had to swallow his nervousness before managing to speak his intention. "Hi. I'm Zoe. Doctor Sheppard had instructed me to get my blood drawn and tested here." He wished the woman didn't notice his anxiousness in his voice.

[Zombie_In_A_Box]

Felix used every chance he got to be closer with Zed. After all, if his feelings did ever surface, he would probably be shoved away every time he tried to take his hand or hug him, or do anything that he did freely now. Feeling the other's hand in his own was comfort for him, too. The past few weeks have been stressful, and he wasn't too sure why. Nothing seemed to go out the way he wanted, everything around him crumbled and fell.

 

"Hello, please, sit down here and roll up your sleeve. Hold your hand out, I need to be able to get to the vein easily." She said calmly, with a small smile as Felix gently nudged the other to go. The raven closed his eyes for a few moments, trying to calm himself, to tell himself that it would end up fine and nothing would be wrong. Maybe Zed was tired, too. He really hoped so, he did.

[vyssini]

Zed sat on the chair across the lady. He shifted nervously on his seat before taking a brief glance at his companion. He saw his friend closing his eyes. 'Felix must be really tired.' Before he felt guilty he suddenly felt like depending his actions. Well, it's not like he wanted to come here. In the first place, he was dragged by the man himself so it weren't really his fault, he thought. 'Right?'

 

Following the soft voice of the woman, he rolled up his sleeve and held his arms up while looking like a dreadful victim of bullying, anxiously pausing before swallowing words of protest. He decided to follow his friends advice and shut his eyes tightly before heaving deep breaths. In darkness, when he felt the woman feeling his arms up while checking where best to stick the needle, he decided to open his eyes. He didn't like that feeling and so he found the most interesting thing he could focus on. His eyes traveled the room only to spring back to his friend. He decided to fix his stare on him and distracted himself on some random thoughts.

[Zombie_In_A_Box]

The woman quickly prepared Zed's arm, telling him to clench and unclench his fist a few times before gently disinfecting the part the needle would go in. Felix, in the meantime, was trying not to fall asleep. Opening his eyes with a quiet sigh, he met the other's gaze and offered him a small smile. The raven let his eyes travel over his friend's features just like they had a thousand times before. He liked seeing them unchanged, although there always seemed to be a new detail that he'd missed all those times before. A freckle, maybe a small wrinkle, a certain glint in his eyes... Always something new. Although his favorite thing to see was his smile, which too never looked the same.

 

Quickly glancing at the woman as she inserted the needle, Felix soon turned his gaze away, scolding himself mentally. Sights like that made him feel a little lightheaded, even if it wasn't his blood being drawn. He hated seeing it, honestly. If he himself ever got a bad wound, he probably wouldn't be able to look at it properly.

[vyssini]

He was feeling anxious about the whole thing. Zed flinched as the cold needle was inserted under the skin, feeling a slight sting. It wasn't as painful as it was in his memories but there still was a great discomfort. As the blood was drawn from a vein in his arm, he felt dizzy and looked paler. He was planning on talking to Felix to distract himself but the other had his eyes somewhere else. Instead, he tried deep breathing and visualization to calm himself down. He consoled himself that drawing blood usually took less than 3 minutes.

 

When the sample has been taken, the needle was withdrawn. The lady applied pressure to the tiny break in the skin for a few minutes to stop the bleeding and to prevent bruising. He was then asked to apply gentle pressure with a piece of gauze to the place where the needle was inserted. Pursing his lips, his face revealed a mix of accomplishment and grievance.

[Zombie_In_A_Box]

Felix waited patiently until everything was over, then took a step towards Zed, holding his hand out to help him stand. "I'm guessing you want a break before the scans, right?" He smiled softly, gently pulling him up. "We can go sit at the lobby for a bit, I'll get you something to drink or eat." Felix suggested, looking at Zed with gentle, tired eyes. Once he got home, he knew he would be going to bed and just sleep till morning.

[vyssini]

Zed was lightheaded and he was thankful for Felix offering him a hand. Though he stayed silent and let himself be supported by his friend. "Sounds like a good plan." He just wanted to go out of the room and sit down somewhere but a light snack sounded nice. When they reached the lobby, he took a seat and tugged his companion, who was planning to buy some snack, to pay him attention. "Can we just..err..go home?" He asked looking at his friend hopefully. Before the other gave an immediate response, he continued. "You look really tired. Perhaps, we can reschedule the scan some other day? And you don't need to accompany me next time. So?" Zed chickened out.

 

He had a feeling something was off and planned for a check-up though he never really went. He kept stalling until Felix decided to take it upon himself and actually brought him here today.

[Zombie_In_A_Box]

Felix smiled softly, gladly helping Zed walk downstairs to the lobby. When his friend sat down, the raven turned around to go and get something for him when he felt a slight tug on his shirt. "Wha? No way. We're already here, you have to go through everything." He said firmly, gently taking his hand as he crouched down in front of him. "Listen, I know you're scared, I'd be scared too, but... Let's just get this out of the way. Then we can go home and do whatever... Like, I plan on sleeping. I wouldn't be able to sleep if you decided to abandon your scan." Felix smiled before standing up, letting go of the other's hand. "So, what do you want? Just some chocolate bar, a sandwich or?.." He asked, hoping to keep the snack break short.

[vyssini]

Zed sighed inwardly. 'I knew it.' It was impossible for him and Felix to reach an agreement. "No sandwich for me. Just.. something sweet will do." He resigned to his fate and watched his friend turned around to leave. Though he received constant smiles from his friend, it was quite obvious that the other was bone-tired and he felt responsible for it. Though he would never admit to his faults, he was stubborn that way. He was the kind that never actually apologize and would rather use actions to make amends. He slouched on his seat and closed his eyes before lifting his hand to press the bridge of his nose. 'Need sleep' Maybe he would just cancel his earlier plans and just go straight back home after the scan. This whole check-up was burning his energy out. All he wanted to do was to get out of this place then took a nice long shower before diving under his blanket.

[Zombie_In_A_Box]

Felix smiled and nodded, deciding to get one for himself too, along with a cup of coffee. The raven was back in five minutes with two chocolate bars and a cup of coffee. As he tossed one for Zed, a small smile made its way up to his face again. "There, eat up. Do you still want to go eat out after this or should we leave that to some other day?" He asked, sitting down next to his friend with a heavy sigh. The raven took a big gulp of his coffee before unwrapping the chocolate bar. He took a bite, closing his eyes while he chewed it up. Sweets may not have been his favorite, but sometimes he really didn't mind them.

[vyssini]

Zed jolted when he tried to catch the chocolate bar and it almost slipped out of his grasp. "Nope. I'll let you off after this." He gave his friend a smile though it never reached his eyes. He opened the chocolate bar and had a bite. He, unlike Felix loved sweet stuffs and chocolate happened to be one of his favorite. Thinking of mundane things, he was worried of his ice cream stock, though he could always walk a few blocks to the convenience store. He was just too lazy to do it so he thought of troubling his friend.

 

Zed felt so tired which had been happening lately even though he rarely do extraneous works. He knitted his brows when a headache which felt like a dull prickling ache in the side of his head brought his right hand to rub and knead his temples. This was also becoming quite normal for him but he never really cared much. He glanced at his side and withdrew his hands. He was glad his companion chose to close his eyes and never saw his actions. It would just worry the latter.

[Zombie_In_A_Box]

Felix couldn't help but feel relieved when he was told he could go home after the scans and everything. He didn't offer to treat the other out for dinner later, as he thought it would happen either way. Felix really didn't mind, though... He just wanted Zed to be happy, and if free dinners would make him that, he was glad to give it. Although, he did feel a bit used sometimes. He didn't particularly enjoy that feeling, but always shook it off, saying that he was being selfish. Then again, what had Zed done for him?

 

"Alright, come on now." Felix muttered as he finished his coffee and chocolate, offering his hand again. "I'll drive you home after this, and when it's time to go here again, I'll be there." He promised, although there was obvious tiredness in his voice. The man rubbed his eyes slightly, feeling half-asleep already. The coffee didn't help at all...

[vyssini]

Finishing his chocolate bar, Zed stretched the wrapper straight before folding it lengthwise in four parts. Satisfied with the width, he looped the folded wrapper and tied it in a knot. It was his weird habit of disposing food wrappers so as not to take space of his trash bin. He waited for Felix to finish his coffee as he twiddled with the knotted wrapper absentmindedly.

 

Seeing the outstretched hand, Zed was pulled out of his aimless thoughts. He didn't notice that Felix was done and had been waiting for him instead. He received the offered hand and clutched unto it to pull him up from his seat. "Alright." He agreed in a low voice while thinking otherwise just to settle the matter. The day for the test results to be released, he would try and give his friend a slip, he inwardly thought.

[Zombie_In_A_Box]

Felix smiled softly, tossing away the empty cup and wrapper of the chocolate bar. "Don't worry... You'll be fine." He muttered softly, leading him to the room his scan was supposed to be at. Once they reached it, Felix was told to stay outside and wait until Zed was done. A doctor instructed the later to change into a gown and get onto the MRI machine. His head would be placed into a cage of some sort to protect him from the dangerous rays, as well as keep him in place. "You shouldn't speak or move at all during the scan. We want to get a clear image... Okay?" One of the nurses asked softly, lightly patting Zed's shoulder. "It won't take long."

[vyssini]

As the scanner produced strong magnetic fields, Zed was asked to remove any metal objects from his body. He had his watch, necklace, and earrings taken off and secured in a locker. He asked for a mild sedative to help him relax since he was claustrophobic. He didn't need to worry since Felix would be driving him home. Wearing the hospital gown, he laid down on a motorized bed that was moved inside the scanner. His head was a mess but he knew better and so he kept still throughout the whole scan until he heard the doctor's voice telling him to relax.

[Zombie_In_A_Box]

Felix leaned against the wall, letting out a tired sigh before rubbing his face with both hands. He felt exhausted. Not even tired, that word just didn't explain how awful he felt. From the stress, from the work, from everything... Sometimes he felt like he was actually tired from life itself. There were times he thought he'd fallen into deep, horrible depression, but for now he willed himself not to stay in it. He found ways to occupy himself, somehow distract himself from the fact that barely anything mattered anymore. While Zed was fighting a physical illness, Felix was desperately trying to keep himself together and not succumb to a mental one.

[vyssini]

When Zed heard his radiologist's flat voice announcing the end of the test, he gradually relaxed his body. Disoriented, he got dressed before he retrieved his possessions. The radiologist made it clear that his responsibility was analyzing the results of his MRI images and it would be provided to his doctor. The man made sure to repeat those words to Zed twice before dismissing him.

 

Zed felt the ground underneath him softened, the room's pale light blanched his face. He stood rooted at the door as he tried to heave successive deep breaths trying to regain his composure. "Is there something wrong?" He heard the radiologist's question but he just waved his hand and told him he was fine. He didn't want to stay there any longer. As he stepped outside, he automatically smiled upon seeing a man with his back on the wall.

[Zombie_In_A_Box]

Felix flinched slightly at the sound of door opening and looked up, unconsciously smiling back. "You look awful." He teased with a chuckle, pushing himself away from the wall. He gently pushed some hair away from Zed's eyes, his fingers barely running over his cheek. "Let's go... I'll let you off at your house." He muttered softly, even though he wanted to keep an eye on his friend. The man began walking, and as Zed couldn't see his eyes anymore, they displayed the worry and concern he felt.

[vyssini]

A deep furrow formed in the middle of Zed's brow as he watched his friend walked first. While inside the room, he felt his throat constricted making it difficult to breathe. He closed his eyes for a second before he strutted, catching up with Felix. He was glad to be done with the tests and he felt better being near his good friend. For some reason, he felt very comfortable and safe being around the man which was something that surprised him the most when they first met. And, the man's patience was quite admirable as he continuously tested him all these years. 'I'm really fortunate', he thought to himself as he slung his arm around Felix's shoulders both for support and convenience.

[Zombie_In_A_Box]

Felix flinched slightly when his friend slung an arm over his shoulder, but relaxed and smiled again in a moment. He wrapped an arm around Zed's waist, just enjoying the warmth of his body for a while. The man looked up once they reached the exit, where he opened the door for Zed, waiting for him to pass first. "Do you have everything you need at home or should we go to the shop first?" He asked softly, his hand tightening on the doorway. He could feel somehing wrong... Something wrong with himself. These concerns he always pushed to the side. The belief that as long as he thought he was fine he would be was strong.

[vyssini]

"Nah, I got it covered." Zed dismissed the idea instantly. Felix had always been patient with him. He could act spoiled and the man would usually gave in as long as he didn't push too far. There were times when he felt that there was a thin wall around Felix's heart. No matter how close he tried to get, he could never reach that place where he could actually say they were close. Or maybe because he was too absorbed with himself that he actually never went too close? But he was honestly a bit afraid to know what it truly was, so he never asked. Though he knew he could always count on him whenever and that's the best part of it. 'I'm really selfish,' he murmured. Only going after the good parts! "But you're now in debt. I won't open my door for you next time without an ice cream," he shamelessly declared motioning for his friend to hasten his pace.

[Zombie_In_A_Box]

Felix chuckled softly, shaking his head slightly. "I know, I know." He smiled, following after Zed. Lightly rubbing his right eye, the man fell silent while getting to his car. As he sat down, Felix took in a deep breath to calm himself, or at least try to do so. He turned on the engine and glanced at his friend with a small smile. No words left his mouth as he turned away soon after and began driving. He found it hard to focus on the road, which was weird, especially for him. The bad feeling just didn't go away. The man slowed down the car in front of Zed's house, tossing a glance at him again. "Call me if you need anything." He said, as always. The words seemed so normal by now... Although he doubted he ever heard them from Zed. He cared for people, but did people care for him? These days, he doubted that more and more; and still, he didn't stop sacrificing his health and time for others.

[vyssini]

“Yeah,” Zed said quickly, whipped back into the present. He's home. He didn't even notice. His head was spinning and his breath was irregular. He had felt the bile through his throat and tasted it. He parted his lips to say his thanks but closed it again without a word. He unlocked the door and stepped out of Felix' car after he nodded his head slightly and briefly for his goodbye. Though he wanted to scoot and throw up.. He stood there to watch his friend depart which he always did every time Felix took him home. It was his thanks and goodbye all in one, sort of.

[Zombie_In_A_Box]

Felix drove off after nodding back at the other, slowly letting his feelings, or the lack of it, consume him. He didn't really like being alone. When he was alone, there was nothing that could keep him from thinking dark thoughts. The man stopped by his house, got out and locked the car. As he went inside, Felix shrugged off his jacket and left his shoes by the door before going towards his bedroom. Maybe a nap would help... The raven let out a quiet sigh as he laid down, still wearing his clothes and closed his eyes. He wondered, perhaps he should see someone at last. While he nagged Zed to see a doctor, he never got to making an appointment himself. He knew something was wrong, but maybe it wasn't that bad?

[vyssini]

As Zed watched the car disappeared from his sight, he bolted down the hallway into his house. He had to hold his other hand from trembling when inserting his key and opening the door. He rushed to the bathroom leaving the door ajar. He had felt the bile rose in his throat and he threw up. He felt like his head was bloated and he couldn't think straight. He hadn't had a decent meal and so it was more painful as his stomach lurched with nothing inside. It was bitter and that was made clear by his pained expression. He staggered and tried to stand. Facing the mirror with the reflection of his pale face, he washed his hands and mouth. His unsteady steps brought him to his bed and he dived right on and stayed unmoving for a while. He rolled on his back with his eyes closed. His trembling hadn't stopped as he reached for his phone to dial the number of a particular person he had in mind. He stopped short of pushing the call button as he remembered the exhausted face of his friend.