(Thank you for your patience, I just got a new laptop and got everything set up. The keyboard is a bit weird, but I'm getting used to it slowly lol Puppy jail cause she wouldn't stop pulling on her brother's ear.) 

Callem-

"Micah?" 

I waited a few moments, hoping that he'd respond. When he didn't, I poked his shoulder beneath the blanket. 

"Micah?" I asked again, wanting him to wake up. 

"It doesn't matter how much you nag him, he's not going to wake up just because you want him to." Mellac said from behind me, where he'd been looming with a scowl on his face ever since Jayson had left with Parker to go to work. 

They had taken days off specifically so that at least one human was home to look after Micah, since Hice refused to let anyone but Oliver touch Fri. Micah had shown signs of improvement after the transfusion from Ocar, but he still hadn't woken up. Fri has been waking up a lot. Why won't you? 

I knew nothing about his condition besides what little Oliver tried to explain to me, so it wasn't like I thought poking him and asking him to get up would honestly help... but it made me feel at a bit better that I was still here for him and wanting him to come back. 

After walking around that hospital and seeing people alone in rooms, seemingly waiting to die with no one beside them, I knew I couldn't just leave Micah by himself. "Maybe he will." I put in, just because I knew that it would make him mad. 

I loved my brother, but sometimes I just had to bother him. 

"And maybe Eight will like you one day." Mellac returned, earning a glare from me. "His name is Kipper." 

Mellac rolled his eyes at that, but didn't respond as he turned and left the room. "Don't worry, he's a jerk all the time, but he secretly wants you to wake up, too. So you should, or else he might try to drown you in the pool so that things could return to mostly normal." 

"That sounds... unpleasant." 

I nodded, staring down at the blanket. "Yes, it's not very comfortable. He tried to drown me when I was twenty seasons bec-..." My eyes went wide, then jerked up to stare at Micah. "Did you just talk?" 

His eyes are closed. He doesn't look like he's awake.

His breathing did sound a bit funny, though. 

Should I go wake up Oliver? 

The idea didn't settle well. He'd been up every couple of hours to help Fri and check on Micah. He needed to sleep.

But Micah had to have spoken, unless I'm hearing things. 

"I think so." Micah gasped out quietly. 

Everything in me was telling me to run over and hug him and maybe lick his face a few times, but I knew that I had to get Oliver instead. Running for the door, I shouted for him even as I darted down the short hall and into the living room where he often slept on one of those blow up things on the floor by the couch Fri used. 

When I stopped in front of the sofa, the only people to be seen were Hice, holding a sleepy Fri and baring his teeth up at me. "Where is Oliver?" I asked, ignoring his warning. He was a mean mer, but no matter how much he flared his gills or snarled, he wouldn't do much as long as Fri was safe with him. It was adorable, but I wanted to live so I kept that bit of information to myself. 

Hearing something in the kitchen, I decided to stop bothering Hice and check there. That's where I found Oliver, hovering by the microwave waiting for something that didn't smell anything like good to finish cooking. 

"Oliver, Micah is talking." I said, a big smile on my face. 

When Oliver just smiled over his shoulder at me and gave a quick greeting before returning his attention to the microwave, I stared at him, wondering if he'd already known about Micah. The moment the machine beeped, though, he spun around with his mouth open. 

"wait. Did you just say that Micah was talking? Like, words were coming out of his mouth?"  

I nodded slowly, wondering why it took him so long to understand. He didn't seem to need much more notice, however, as he hobbled out of the room as fast as he could with his metal leg. I followed after him, being sure to stay close enough to help him in case he tripped, but far enough away so that I wasn't the one to trip him... again. 

I grabbed his bag on the way into Micah's room and set it down beside the bed as Oliver began checking Micah. "Hey Micah, can you say something to me, please?" He asked as he gripped his wrist and looked at his watch. 

"Loud." Micah mumbled, his scratchy. 

"Well I'll be damned. Micah has decided to come back from the dead." Oliver joked as he continued working. He normally didn't mess around about things, but I knew that he was still exhausted, being the main human who knew how to take care of Fri and Micah. 

There was a quiet stressed laugh from Micah a moment later that barely sounded like a breath, but it still made me smile. "I see his energy is coming back fast." I said, reaching over to brush his bangs. 

"How are you feeling, Micah? Any pain? I'm sure you're tired beyond belief, but does any specific area hurt?" Oliver asked. 

There was silence for several seconds and we looked at each other, probably both of us wondering the same thing. Did he fall back to sleep? 

"Not that I can think of. But then again, It feels like my head is a television stuck on a channel that's getting no signal, just making a lot of noise and showing blurring black and white lines." 

Oliver pursed his lips, then crossed his arms over his chest. "What's one plus one?" 

Micah was silent for a moment before quietly replying. "Two." 

"Three plus four?" 

"Seven." 

"Ten plus zero?" 

"Asshole." 

My lips stretched into a grin as Oliver snickered. "Seems like you've got the basic math down." 

He was about to speak again when the chime from his phone went off, drawing our attention to it as it was pulled from his pocket. 

"Hello?" He grumbled, glaring at the ceiling after having checked who the caller was. 

It's probably the court. He never looks so upset unless it's them. 

"Yes, I know I've been trying to get him out." The whole damn trial was clearly bought and paid for considering I didn't want to press charges, there was no evidence that he specifically did it, and I refused to testify!"  

There was silence for a short time, likely because the person on the other end of the phone was speaking. Oliver was visibly shaking, his free hand balled into a fist as he tried not to breathe too loudly. 

I waited and watched as his expression went from anger, to confusion, shock, then hesitation. When he finally spoke, his words were so quiet that I had to focus in order to hear them. 

"You're letting him go?" 

My heart stumbled over itself in my chest and I stepped forward, my own eyes growing wide. Ocar? Are they really going to let Ocar go? But why? How? I would love for him to be free, but I didn't understand how the situation had changed so quickly. 

"Yeah, I'm coming right now. Don't let him walk out of the building until I'm there. Actually, don't let him out of his room." Oliver said before he ended the call and turned to stare at me. "They're letting him go because there was overwhelming proof found that the judge had been bribed for the verdict he gave..." 

My smile widened. "Go bring him home. I'll watch Micah." 

Oliver only looked slightly hesitant before he gave a quick nod, then limped as fast as he could out of the bedroom. "I'll be back in no time." 

When I heard the door to the house close, I sighed out a breath. It was strange to know that Ocar was going to return, but I was eager to see him away from that room he'd been locked in for too long. 

"Something's up. The director doesn't make these kinds of mistakes." Micah said, his voice cracking on several of the words, though they still managed to be understandable. 

I looked over at him, noticing that his face looked more pained than it had before. "You are hurting." 

The quiet grunt I got in response was answer enough. "Why did you not tell Oliver?" I asked, sitting on the edge of the bed furthest from him. I didn't want to poke him again since he was already awake, so I figured that I should stay away in case I did it again out of habit. 

"Clearly, he has more important things to deal with right now." Micah responded, making me frown. But he got that phone call after he asked if you were hurting. 

"Don't worry, Callem. It's not important. Now I'm going back to sleep, and you're going to keep what I just told you quiet, yeah?" 

I nodded, then realized that his eyes still weren't open. "Okay." 

When I heard his breathing slow after a few minutes, I stood up and tilted my head as I stared at him. "I didn't say that I wouldn't tell, I just said okay  that you can go to sleep." 

Parker always said that it was bad to lie, but I didn't really lie. I just gave my approval of one thing and ignored the other. 

Smiling to myself, I turned on my heels and walked out of the room, content that Micah would rest at least until Oliver returned from the short drive to the lab. When I entered the living room, Hice and Fri were still on the sofa, Fri was awake and his attention was focused on the corny cartoon on the television while Hice was only staring at his messy head of hair nestled atop the blanket on his lap. 

He's so cute. 

"Would you two like something to eat?" I asked, drawing their attention just long enough to receive two nods. 

The kitchen was easy enough to use once I knew what things to touch and what things I shouldn't. Basically, I am allowed to use the fridge, freezer, and sink. Parker had made us milkshakes one night and I thought I'd try it with fish the next day while he was at work. I didn't know that raw fish wasn't supposed to go into a blender, even if it was with milk. 

By the time I had two pieces of fish thawed for Hice and Fri, and two for myself and Ocar, in case he was hungry, the front door was opening. It was far too early for Parker and Jayson to be home, so I knew that it had to be Ocar and Oliver when I heard two sets of footsteps come in. 

The thud of the metal leg is a bit of a give away, too. 

I quickly delivered the fish to Hice and Fri, then offered the plate I'd prepared for Ocar to him. "It's nice to see you back." I said with a smile as I took in his appearance. He was much thinner than I remember and was only wearing a pair of loose shorts. I also noticed a metal band around his ankle that was flashing slightly, but didn't comment. It was clearly some sort of device they'd put on him and I'd bet money I don't have that it was a way for humans to track him. 

"Hello, Callem." He stated simply, nodding once before tugging Oliver past me toward the patio area. "There are things happening that we will need to discuss as soon as Parker and Jayson return, but until then, I'm going to enjoy my human, so please leave us be." 

He didn't even give anyone a chance to respond before they were out the door and it was sliding closed behind them. 

"Uh... okay." 

Well, I guess I'll just eat and wait till Parker and Jayson are back. Darn my curiosity. 

Err, I hope Mellac isn't in the pool.