Condemned (Semi-Advanced)

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    "I'm sorry about that... That's just how he his. We haven't had parents for a long time, and well, I never really cried, and if I did, it wasn't around him. He was just a kid too, just he still had to take care of me, so I didn't want to trouble him." She was silent for a moment, and laid her head on her knees again. "Plus, we've wanted to know what actually happened to our parents, so we haven't been leading the best of lives for a while." She added, not really wanting to look at James at the moment, fear of breaking down again controlling her actions. "He just doesn't know what to do, and it's my fault." She mumbled

    He shook his head slightly. "No, that's not your fault, and I understand about the crying thing. If he never had the chance to learn what to do, if course he's not going to know. But...you didn't answer the first part of my question, about why it seems that he doesn't like me or want me here." James bit his lip. "I- I mean, if you don't want to answer it, just say so. I can understand that - sometimes there are questions that I don't want to answer, either."

    "I'm not really sure why he's acting like that. Its unusual, even for him. I haven't seen him like that before either, but he probably has a reason for it." She said, looking at him, and an apologic smile was back on her lips. "I can't really explain it, and I doubt he would tell me if I asked. If you really want to know, you can ask him." She said. "It really not that I don't want to answer, but I just can't." She added.

    James let himself slowly fall back to the pillow, still looking up at her. "That's alright. I know you can't know everything." He had been hoping for some sort of answer, but if he wasn't going to get one, he was alright with that. Answers weren't always necessary, as nice as they could be. It was good enough that he was allowed to stay, and that he knew at least one person who cared for him. "Not to change the subject or anything, and I don't want to inconvenience you, but is there anything I can have to eat?"

    "I'm sorry. That wasn't very helpful." She said quietly. "Yeah. That's why I went out ealier. Let me go make you something." She said, turning and standing up slowly, walking toward the door. "Just give me a while, okay?" She said, looking back at him and smiling before walking out of the room.

    He nodded, watching her leave but saying nothing. After all, as nice as conversation could be, if it was detrimental to his health and would slow his recovery he could manage to avoid some of it for a while. Mostly, James just wanted to get better, to finally be able to leave this bed and this room. It would've more bearable, maybe, if there was some sort of decoration in here, something I could look at - a painting, maybe.

    Allison was out of the room for at least a half hour, maybe even longer. She went back into the room. What she made seeming to have been simple, though, since James was at a lower level, he shouldn't have been able to see. "It should be easy to eat, and I don't think it'll make you cough." She said, walking over to him.

    James looked up at her, pushing himself up onto his elbows again so he could try to see what she had brought for him. He wasn't sure how he was going to be able to eat much without sitting up, or how he would be able to sit up for long without hurting his back, but he was sure they would figure something out. A little pain was something he could bear, especially if it was so he could get something to eat.

    She carefully watched him sit up, afraid that he would end up hurting himself. She stood near him for a moment while he finished moving. "If it starts to hurt too much, eating can wait for a while." She said, a shadow of a smile on her face. "How do you want to do this." She asked, knowing he'd have a better sense of what to do since it was his body that was in pain, and not her own. As she waited for his answer, he arms dropped slightly, making the food easier to see. It was just something simple, it wasn't as if she spent her life doing what a normal girl her age would have done.

    He took a deep breath, assessing the situation. "Could you help me sit up the rest of the way, please? After that I think I can eat without help, but I don't know for sure, so could you stick around, too?" James offered a thin smile, hoping hat he wasn't being too much of a burden on her by asking all this. Maybe soon he would be healed enough to get out of bed and actually start doing things again.

    "Alright. But, let's take it slow okay? I'm pretty much done with hurting you." She said, quickly falling silent, like she hadn't meant to say everything that she had. She put the food down lightly, moved closer to him, leaning one of her knees over onto the bed so that she could reach him easier. She held out her hand, planning on slowly pulling him up, and hopefully finding another way to help him, that would be easier on him. Allison didn't know what it was about James that made her do cautious about him, but she at least know it wasn't something that was normal. At least not to her, she had never felt the same about Cade as she had him; and it confused her. He should have been just some stranger that she saved from being killed, but he wasnt. He was more important to her.

    James nodded, and if he saw anything out of the ordinary about her comment he kept it to himself. Rather, he reached out and took her hand, beginning to pull himself up. It was not the best arrangement, but it did work, and eventually he managed to get into a vaguely sitting position. The one problem was that he had very little to lean back against, but he did not mention that. "Thank you," he told her with a faint smile, reaching out with both hands for the food. "I- I think I can feed myself."

    "I at least know that." She said, smiling at him before grabbing everything and handing it to him. She knew he had nothing to really lean against, and that made her more comfortable, but she knew it would be hard for him to stay sitting up for long without something. But even if he had something, it was his back that was wounded, so putting pressure on it wouldn't help much. "Tell me if you need something, alright?" She said.

    James nodded, taking the food and setting it on his lap. "I will...but only if you sit down. I wouldn't mind some company while I eat. It gets lonely in here, you know." He looked up at her with wide, pleading eyes. "Allison, when am I going to be able to get out of bed again? I've been here for so long. I will probably have trouble walking, just because I haven't in such a long while. I hate it. You've been doing a fantastic job, but I feel so useless, and I- I just want to be back to normal again."

    "Alright..." she said quietly, sitting on the edge of the bed lightly, falling into silence while she thought, avoiding James' pleading eyes while she spoke. "If nothing happens from now to then, I'd say you would be waiting five days at the very least, until I even want you moving around." She said, silent for a few seconds. "I think you'll be fine with walking, but you need to remember, you weren't exactly heathly when I brought you here. That's also taking your energy. Your body's trying to heal the wound, but also anything else. Like the sorce of your cough." She said, trying to reason with him before he even thought of asking to do anything.

    He sighed, the hopeful light leaving him as he seemed to slump slightly. "I- I know. And I understand that you don't want to let me out too soon or I'll just get hurt again, but I just thought- I hoped- I- I wanted it to be sooner." James wouldn't quite meet her gaze. "Don't change it, though...you probably know best. It's not like I know much about injuries like this, and I'm kind of prone to trouble. It's probably for the best." He took a tentative bite of food, swallowing hard.

    "I know, and I'm sorry. I can understand that, but if it gets worse, you'll just have to wait longer." She said, not that she was doing any better with the cut across her chest, but she wasn't planning on letting James, or her brother know. "If you wait, it should be easier, but you still can't push yourself." She said, gently running her through his hair before pulling away, shaking her head like she was confused. Though she was glad at that time James hadn't been looking at her.

    James nodded again. "I know. And I'll stay here for as long as it takes to get better, truly. I'm not going to try to push myself too early and get hurt again. Just...Allison? Take care of yourself, too, alright? You got hurt in that attack, too, and you haven't exactly been confined to a bed all this time. It would be a shame if I were to get better only to have you end up in an even worse condition than I was in."

    "It's going to be fine. It's not even that bad, alright?" She said, instinctively placing her hand over where she was cut. "Just worry about yourself, just this once. I've never actually seen you care about yourself over someone else." She said, dripping her hand, and smiling at him. "Okay?"

    James smiled a little. "But I have you to worry about me, don't I? I'm the one hats being made to stay in a bed, the one that's being taken care of and given delicious food and helped out whenever I need it. I don't have any reason to worry about me. You're the one running around and making food and barely resting — you're the one that I need to worry about."