160Hello! I'm back. I decided to make my one shot a two shot, actually it'll probably be a story arc. The day after panic attacks are the worst. So I thought, perfect opportunity for some angst.
Thank for all of the favs and follows! Yay, people read it and liked it enough to be alerted if I add more. Every writers dream.
The reviews were also, very, appreciated! I thought hey, why not reply? So here we go!
LoveShipper: I totally agree, they are most definitely the worst.
lilsis0626: I like Carlos to, he was my favorite in the movie! Working on more stuff as you read this.
biankies: Thanks! Working on more stuff.
Izi Wilson: I hope that means you enjoyed it. Well, I'm taking it as you liked it.
guest: Ah, the mysterious guest review, I like getting these. Well, I am working more stories, and yes expect Carlos angst!
Lovinglolipop0402: I am happy you enjoyed, and look I'm back with another story, well part two of this arc!
Hope I hear from you guys again!
Disclaimer: Alas still not mine, but I have added the book Isle of the Lost to the list of things I have.
Waking up that next day was chore. Carlos was exhausted even after sleeping….he turned to look at his clock…twelve hours! How is that even possible? He groaned and threw an arm over his eyes. At least it was Saturday, so no class. With a sigh Carlos curled back up, how could he have no energy after sleeping so long? It had always surprised him how much of a toll panic attacks had on the body. Yeah, he was very aware that a panic attack was what had happened. He, was smart after all. It only took having a few for him to look into what was happening. It was always a nightmare that next day. He had to hide how terrible he felt on the island. People already picked on him, and a moment of weakness in front of villains was like dangling a piece of string in front of a cat, bullying was not something he wanted to become worse.
It had gotten better after Mal had forced them to become, friends? No, it was more like a gang on the island, but either way they looked out for their own. This would be the type of day where Evie would stay close to his side, Jay would conveniently steal something that would be perfect for one of Carlos' experiments, and Mal…well her glare dared people to so much as look at Carlos the wrong way. They would not do much on days like this. Petty left, maybe, but usually that consisted of Evie and Carlos waiting for Jay to bring back food, Mal standing guard intimidating anyone who got to close and then they would sneak into someplace no one was supposed to be and Carlos would most likely fall asleep. Moving around was never something he wanted to do after a panic attack. It was the routine, but things were different now. The uncertainty of what he would do had Carlos considering just lying in bed all day. Like that would be allowed to happen.
"Hey buddy, you awake?" Jay asked as he came back into the room, from somewhere.
"Yeah."
"Going to get up?" See no lying around today.
Carlos continued to lie there. He cataloged how he felt. If Jay was asking, instead of pulling him out of bed, last night must have been bad. The dream he remembered, always did, but those moments after being pulled out of the dream were always fuzzy. As expected there was a soreness in his muscles. He must have been tensing up either during or after the dream. Add all the dancing yesterday, and his legs were probably going to feel like jelly when he stood. He moved to roll over, but stopped as soon as the pain shot through his neck and shoulders. He groaned, must have been hunched over at some point. Partying then panic attack, not a fun combination.
"Rephrasing, can you get up?"
"Probably, but don't plan on trying." Carlos answered hoping Jay would take mercy on him. No such luck, he heard a snort of amusement from Jay at his comment, and Jay making his way across the room.
Jay and the others had talked this morning. How would they go about the day? They had a routine for this situation back home. Get Carlos out of his house and mind off what ever had bothered him, while still trying to keep the day as normal as possible. Show no weakness that can be used against you, the unwritten rule of the island. But, they handled him with as much care as they could on these days. They could show him more care now, but they did not want to baby him, he would not appreciate it, and yeah, awkward. They were still new to this whole good thing. One thing that they had agreed on was that they had to get him out of the room, and they would figure out how to make things feel normal for him as they went, meaning…..
"Oh! I found you something when we went into town today." Jay said as he helped the smaller boy sit up. The look on Carlos' face made him laugh.
"I didn't steal it!" He offered as he reached into his pocket.
Jay pulled out a set of small tools. Perfect for working on electronics. He had heard Carlos complain about the lack of proper tools for his experiments. He handed it to Carlos and felt accomplished by the smile that appeared on his face. Carlos looked up at with an eyebrow raised.
"If you didn't steal it how did you get it?" Carlos asked as he carefully moved to swing his legs off the bed.
"Ah, well apparently we have some sort of funds and accounts to live off of. Something about actually doing things off the campus." Jay shrugged
"Makes sense, I guess. Thanks." Jay held out a hand and pulled Carlos up onto unsteady legs. After he was sure the other boy would not fall he stepped back to allow Carlos to go to the bathroom. As Carlos reached the door Jay remembered something.
"Dress comfy, Evie said we were having a picnic today." Jay laughed.
"What?"
"She was fitting Dude for a new outfit when I left the girls room." Jay had noticed Carlos looking around and figured the dog not being here had been noticed.
"Oh, that's cool."
"I swear that will be one pampered mutt now that the two of you are here." Jay leaned back on to his bed as he shook his head.
"As he should be." Jay did not miss the shudder that went through Carlos. What had his mother done to the dog in his dream? Never mind it was Cruella he was thinking about and could guess what had happened.
"Well, hurry up the girls are waiting." Carlos nodded and made his way to the bathroom. Jay sighed as he closed his eyes, he had fulfilled part of his job in the help Carlos recover plan, next up was Evie, and then Mal.
An: Well not as much angst is this chapter, but just wait there is more to come. I have plans for this arc. This is part 2 of It started with a bad dream. I know there will be at the very least two more chapters in this arc, but no more than four. Not as long as the first chapter, but I guarantee that I will post no less than 1,000 words of story per chapter.
See you next time!
~ Light's Lady