Chapter Five

A/N: Sorry for the short chapter! I ended up dividing one that got too long so this seemed to be the best place to make a cutoff. New chapter up in a couple days!

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Gray

The boy was strange. There was no doubt about it.

He also seemed incredibly familiar, but I couldn't pinpoint how I knew him.

As the nurses doted on him, checking his vitals and adjusting IV drip pushed into his arm, I tried to catch a glimpse of his face again.

Trying to distract myself from staring, I picked up an outdated magazine from the bedside table between our two hospital beds. I knew the doctor would come back with my x-ray results shortly, yet he still stuck me in this room so the nurses could take various health measurements.

As the nurses moved away from the strange boy's bed, I was able to get a better look at him. He was pale, very much so, like he hadn't seen the light of day in years. He was also thin, too thin to be healthy. I wondered how long it had been since he'd last eaten. The boy's eyes, a dangerous hue of red, seemed to flash with recognition when he saw me.

But the question is, how would he know me? I couldn't help but wonder. As far as I knew, I had never seen him in my life.

I wasn't able to think about it any more, because in that moment the doctor strolled through the doorway and smiled cheerfully at me, waving the folder that contained my results. He pulled up a stool in a sitting area across from the beds and dragged it so it was at the foot of my bed.

"Hi there, Fullbuster-san," The doctor acknowledged me as I sat up. "How are you feeling today?"

"Fine, I guess," I shrugged. "My wings are a little sore, but otherwise I feel alright."

"That's good to hear," The doctor nodded, thumbing through the files. He picked up one sheet and handed it to me. "So we got your x-ray results back; as you can see here you have no fractures in the bones but because they did grow in recently - you said you got them just last week?" He paused to confirm.

When I nodded, he continued. "Right, so because your body wasn't supposed to grow those bones that quickly, they are not as solid, per se... To put it simply, the muscle around them is quite weak, so they were able to bruise very easily. What you're experiencing is several bruises and minor sprains around the primary and middle covert feathers, which is why you were still able to fly here." 

It was a lot of information, but I heard that my wings weren't broken loud and clear, which was a huge relief. I breathed a sigh of relief, instantly feeling better. "However, as there will be a little bit of pain as the injuries heal, you may be uncomfortable. I'm going to prescribe you some pain medication that you'll take twice a day. Meanwhile, I want you to start working on training the muscles in your back, shoulders, and wings to strengthen them. Understood?"

I nodded again. "Understood, sir."

"Great!" He took the x-ray photo and placed it back neatly into my file. "After the nurses finish a couple more blood tests, you should be good to go. Come pick up the medication later, okay? Get some rest."

"Thank you, doctor," I was grateful, and my relieved expression showed it. I couldn't wait to tell Natsu that nothing was terribly wrong with my wings. I was sure he'd be just as relieved as I was. "Oh, and one more thing," I reached my hand out, stopping him as he stood up.

"Yes, Fullbuster-san?" The doctor raised an eyebrow, sitting back down again.

"Who is that?" I nodded my chin towards the sleeping boy to my right.

"I'm not quite sure, actually," The doctor looked concerned at he stared at the stranger. "He took a nose-dive - literally - into the lake outside. We were lucky that a merman and mermaid saw him crash-land into the water before he died. The poor boy would've died if it wasn't for them."

I stared at the boy. His hair flopped over his eyes and he was half-buried in the pillow. I wondered if he even wanted to be alive in the first place.

"Well, if that will be all, I must be off to check on other patients," He announced, putting the stool back in its proper place. As the doctor left, the door slamming shut behind him, I felt the room shift into a silent void again. I had the eerie feeling that someone was watching me, and when I looked to my right, I saw the boy looking at me again. Perfectly awake, his ruby-red eyes stared at me so intently I felt like he was seeing right through me.

I shivered distastefully. "What's that look for?" I questioned. When he said nothing, I narrowed my eyes suspiciously. "Hey, can you understand me?" I asked.

It was almost unnoticeable, but I swore I saw him nod the tiniest bit. Yet, he was still silent.

"You don't talk much, do you?" I broke the silence again. Silence. "Are you okay? I heard you took a pretty bad fall."

The boy shrugged one shoulder.

"What's your name?"

He shrugged again. He looked sad.

"Do you even have a name?" I tried again, voice quieter this time.

He shook his head. Opened his mouth, like he was about to say something. He quickly shut it again, biting down on his chapped lip.

After another moment of awkward silence, I figured one more shot at making conversation wouldn't hurt. "How did you fall into the lake, anyway?"

The boy stirred, eventually pushing himself into a sitting position. I was afraid he would faint again, but he looked more determined this time, regaining a bit of strength. I watched with awe as he shrugged off the thin hospice nightgown, shaking out a pair of pitch black wings, as dark as mine. He looked at me intently, as if this explained everything, which it did.

Suddenly, everything - the lack of a name, the crash-landing, the surprise when he saw me in the flesh - all clicked into place. The dream, I remembered, heart skipping a beat. This boy was one of them. Feeling my stomach lurch with anticipation, I realized that nightmare was becoming my reality faster than I intended.

"I- I-" I stuttered, thinking about everything and yet unable to make a cogent sentence come out of my mouth. "I have to go."

And with hardly a second glance at the doe-eyed, unnamed bird boy, I tumbled out of the bed and scrambled out of the room, desperate to create as much distance between us as possible.

I had to find Natsu.