Whoever said life has an easy street was a moron

[Aren Haight]

Aren had actually been about to nod off when the nurse came over and handed her Kyle's medication. She was relieved that he was ok enough to go home. She stood up and stretched her legs and looked at the pills. They were antibiotics, for what reason he needed them she didn't know. Three hours of sitting down and just knowing that bad news was coming was enough to drive someone insane, or make them go stiff. The sterile smell of the hospital was making her sick, and she glad to be getting out of it. She yawned and almost wished she didn't have to drive home. She found it kind of lucky that she had been too tired to drive herself home. Since she had gone with Kyle she had been able to get him to the hospital. That was a weird coincidence.

Hospitals probably don't like you very much either, then. Aren said. She was glad to see that at lest a little color had returned to his face. So at least he was better. It's not your fault, she said. She was planning on sleeping on the floor when they got back, since Kyle would need the couch more than she did. She unlocked the truck and got in and strapped in. She waited for Kyle to get in and put the key into the ignition. she wondered if the ducks and Dixie were ok. She looked at the clock. It was about 2 in the morning. She yawned again and pulled out of the hospital parking lot. Aren once again tucked her blonde hair behind her ears so that she could see the road. There was a little more people on the road, but she didn't feel the need to run anymore red lights. She just hoped she didn't get ticketed or something like that for doing it.

[Kyle Smithe]

Kyle got in quickly, he didn't want to hang around the hospital either. He also didn't feel any need to return that night, just wishing they'd get home fast. Kyle sighed and rested his head on the headrest, how ironic. He watched the yellow lines fade to dashed and back to solid. That floor is comfy. I just need a pillow. Kyle smiled fighting to keep his eyes open, knowing he'd be sleeping in the next day. Probably till noon or later. So much for riding Wonder. He sat upright and finally buckled his seat belt, still not able to feel anything. Kyle poked his arm and pinched and prodded it, then laughed because he didn't feel it. He must seem insane, oh well.

Kyle kept smiling and rested his head on the window. He was glad everything was over and he could just relax. Kyle watched as a red corvette passed them followed by a green Pontiac. Oo, almost to the building finally. I still can't feel anything... Kyle was worried about that but relieved that he didn't have to worry about pain. He wanted to smack himself in the face because he'd have a bruise on his arm from him messing with it. Kyle could be a weird little person sometimes. Weird in a good way, not a ohmygod i'm gunna stalk you kind of way. He didn't know if he was dreaming but he thought he saw the white Sedan again and his hand hit the dashboard hard as he forced himself into the seat even with the seatbelt on. Kyle didn't relax even after he noticed there was no car in front of them or around them.

[Aren Haight]

Aren smiled and shook her head. I'll take the floor this time, you need the couch more than I do, she said. She was tired, and occasionally the view before her would blur. But she only yawned and kept going, feeling kind of light headed, too.She noticed that Kyle was getting kinda loopy, he was poking himself to see if he'd feel it. She hated feeling physically numb. It always reminded her of how the dentist would numb her mouth before she got work done on her teeth and it was tasted weird. It was kinda funny after words though, the way she talked was hilarious to her friends. But still, she couldn't stand being numb like Kyle was right now, the thought sent chills up her spine. She could lay on her arm and barely feel it, which was just creepy to Aren. Pain meant you were alive, at least. And not dreaming, too.

Aren jumped with a yelp when something hit the dashboard. Kyle had hit something with his hand, like he was reenacting a car crash scene. What the hell? she asked, wondering if he had saw an enormous fly or something. So much tension and fear was hard to get rid of quickly for her. You are one crazed up fruit loop when you're tired, she muttered as she turned into the apartment complex parking lot. She turned the car off and unbuckled her seat belt. Can you get out by yourself? she asked, not fully trusting his mobile skills at the moment. She was surprised he hadn't broken any bones during the entire day.

[Kyle Smithe]

Kyle shook his head, pulling himself out of the scene. He blinked and opened the door, and fell out. Kyle started laughing as he lay in a puddle. Guess not... Ah crap my foot's caught in the seatbelt. And no you aren't sleeping on the floor. I'm fine. He shook his foot but failed at trying to get the belt off. Kyle sighed and hoped Aren would come untangle the poor fool. He looked up at the sky which was now dotted with stars. Kyle suddenly wished his dad was here, to look up at the stars with him. Everything was so easy with Jonathan around.

He stopped fighting the belt and just lay there hanging half way out of the truck. Kyle wished he was in the apartment now, just so he could have some distraction. He closed his eyes and noticed some of the feeling had come back, and the ground was cold. Kyle shivered but didn't care, it was odd how he could go from happy to down in only a short amount of time.  He could also feel that his leg was starting to hurt because of his awkward position. It reminded him of the time he was trying to help break one of the horses and got his foot caught in the stirrup, he was thrown around like a rag doll then. Kyle felt like a rag doll today too. Falling, crashing, hanging, hospital. All typical for the old Kyle. He sighed again things were too complicated for his liking.

[Aren Haight]

Aren hid a smile as she went around the truck and managed to untangled poor Kyle's foot from the evil seatbelt. You have very bad luck, she said as she helped him up. I still get the floor, she said. She did kinda feel bad for the poor guy, he sure seemed too clumsy for his own good. She wondered how her ducks were doing, hopefully Dixie was preventing them from tearing up everything. The girl closed the truck door and locked it, though she wasn't going to give Kyle back his keys yet. Who knew what he was capable of doing in a car? She sure didn't want to find out, that was for sure. One accident per day was a bit too much already.

Aren walked next to Kyle in case he fell down again as they walked back to his apartment. The bottle of pills rattled in her jeans pocket. Instead of Kyle being the one who fell, it was she who slipped on the step and landed on her knee. She gritted her teeth in pain but stood up without a complaint like nothing had happened. She climbed up the rest of the stairs without another incident and she wondered if Kyle had even locked his apartment up? She somehow doubted it, seeing as they left in such a hurry. Curiously, she tried the knob and found it open. She stepped in and turned the lights on before she was immediately surrounded by a dog and two very anxious ducks.

[Kyle Smithe]

Kyle frowned when Aren fell and went to help her but she got up before he could even offer. He could easily see she fought through the pain as she climbed the stairs, but said nothing. Kyle didn't like it when people did that but then again he did it too. He tried to downplay it to people that he was fine when he wasn't. Kyle was dying to know what those pills were, hoping it was antibiotics. He followed her into the apartment and sighed, she was surrounded by animals which he side stepped around and sat on the couch. Kyle was tired, and it could easily be seen by the dark purple bags under his eyes. Aren what are those pills by the way?

Kyle got up and walked into the kitchen looking in the fridge for something to drink. He sighed seeing there wasn't anything he wanted. Kyle closed the door and walked back to the couch, resting his head on his hands. He had his eyes closed slightly, listening to the patter of little feet and his dog's soft "thump, thump, pad,  thump." Kyle opened his eyes to look at Aren, the lights of the kitchen and hallway were on. He got up again to shut them off, leaving a small nightlight in the hallway so someone could see to use the restroom.  Kyle  finally reached the couch and let out a long sigh. He didn't want to move, especially since he could feel some pain again. At least that was something. Kyle now wished he was somewhat alone, feeling on the verge of a breakdown was not his ideal though with company. He bit his lip hard to distract himself, which seemed to work. Kyle tried forcing a smile but the attempt was in vain. He seemed to shrink back into the couch, wishing for something that would hide him, finding nothing, not even in the slight darkness.

[Aren Haight]

Aren shooed the dog away along with the ducks. She had blocked the pain fro her knee from her mind like she was used to doing. She went ahead and sat down on the floor by one of the walls so that she could lean against it. They're antibiotics, she said in reply to Kyle's question. The carpet was surprisingly comfortable, and she yawned. She could tell that Kyle was being bothered about something. What's on your mind? she asked, trying to keep the tiredness out of her voice. Fuzz and bubbles came over and cuddled together in her lap. They were glad that she was dry and warm now. Aren patted her little ducklings and fluffed up their soft down, smiling at how much they looked like little fluff balls.

The girl slipped away from the wall and laid down on her back. Her ducks went back to Dixie's bed, preferring the dog's warmth and fur to their master. Traitor. she muttered under her breath, watching them waddle away. If Kyle didn't answer soon she was going to pass out, so she snapped the rubber band on her wrist. She shook her wrist to get rid of the sharp pain and almost burst out laughing. She could remember doing that to her friends once. She stared up at the ceiling, which for some reason always made her dizzy. She squeezed her eyes shut until the room stopped spinning, and instead fixed her gaze on whatshe could see out the window. A streetlamp, great.

[Kyle Smithe]

Kyle just shrugged off the question. He didn't feel like answering, and thought i'd be best to get some sleep. Nothing really. Just a few annoying things. I'll just let you go to sleep. Kyle murmured softly, he wasn't sleepy anymore. He sighed softly and lay down on the couch, hoping maybe he could just let everything go without her finding out. Kyle turned over so he was facing the back of the sofa. He let some of his anxiety go, in the dark keeping quiet and holding back. Kyle could wait till he was alone or she was asleep. He didn't want to bother her.

Kyle suddenly felt cold, everything seemed to go numb again. He didn't know if it was normal and tried to turn over, but couldn't. Kyle suddenly realized with dead fear he couldn't move. He could breathe... But could he talk? Kyle tried opening his jaw which thankfully worked. Aren? He tried his best to move so he could see her, but still didn't move. Kyle wondered if it was the medication they gave him to allow him to sleep, because he was suddenly hit with drowsiness.  He fought it off, desperate to figure this out. Kyle didn't want to be this way in the morning.

No it was more a matter of he couldn't be. Numb and helpless like an infant. Kyle didn't like that image and scowled at the thought. He needed help now but didn't want it. Kyle would accept it but wouldn't enjoy it. He wasn't going back to the hospital tonight. Kyle managed to finally turn over only to fall off the couch. He was glad that he could move again, and lay on the floor holding his hands by his sides. Kyle's face rested on the soft white carpet, the palms of his hands near his chest. He was tired but he didn't want to sleep here, and he didn't want to get up. Oh what a choice. Comfy floor or sofa?

[Aren Haight]

Aren sat up, startled. Huh? she said smartly. She looked over at Kyle, who was on the floor...again. She had been seconds away from sweet, joyful sleep. She yawned. Why are you on the floor? she asked. She crawled over to where he laid on the floor. If you hated the couch so much you should've just told me, she joked. Now she knew she was tired. She sounded insane now. What happened? she asked him. She was wondering if this was a side affect of the medicine he had gotten from the hospital. Now she was really close to just passing out right there on the spot. Her eyes were already half way closed. She was beginning to let her eyes close when she shook her head to wake herself up. It didn't work very well. She wanted something caffeine loaded or something, at least to keep her up for the next few minutes.

Aren leaned against the couch, but she could tell that something had really made Kyle panic or something. Though he probably wouldn't admit to being really scared or anything like that. Her thoughts were sluggish, so she wasn't of very much use at the moment. She took out the antibiotics and squinted at the label. The words danced in front of her eyes and she gave up trying to read it. Fat load of help it would do. She could hear the quiet sounds of her ducklings sleeping, hear their slow and steady breathing. She could also hear Dixie breathing, or rather, softly snoring. Aren was starting to wonder if Kyle would even tell her what was wrong. He didn't actually admit to something being wrong, at least that's what she thought.

[Kyle Smithe]

Kyle laughed lightly at Aren's befuddled statements. He just waved his hand and manage to pet Aren's face, unintentionally. I just fell off the couch. I couldn't move so I tried rolling over and what do you know I found the floor. Kyle grinned slightly and closed his eyes. He decided he wasn't going to move, and stayed like that. Kyle heard what sounded like a heartbeat, and blinked. Was the floor alive? He started to laugh quietly at his own foolishness.

Kyle could still feel a pulsing pain, so not moving was good. The floor felt kinda cold and soothing, with a loose T-shirt and his shorts it would have been perfect. He sighed and saw Dixie get up to get a drink of fresh water, who then came and slobbered on Kyle. Kyle laughed a little and patted her on the head before she went back to her ducks. Or friends I should say. He smiled again, he was arguing with himself in his mind. Better than out loud I suppose. Then again, nah don't want to disturb the peace. Ba ha the peace! What peace? Oh my I'm tired, I should make my mind shut up but I'm almost too lazy.

Kyle rolled his eyes at the conversation in his head. In his head. He sounded like a mental patient. At least to himself. Kyle was getting annoyed at the streetlight that shown in through the balcony. He got up and groaned walking over to the curtain and closing it. Kyle started walking back when he tripped on the chair. He just closed his eyes and didn't move again. Kyle wanted to start giggling at how much of a clutz he was today but didn't.

[Aren Haight]

Aren managed to muster up enough energy to roll her eyes at the clutzy guy. She was getting dizzy, and everything in her line of vision was getting blurry. Her back slid sideways from the couch and she toppled over onto her side. She didn't feel like moving, so she closed her eyes and immediately passed out. Her dreams were full of befuddled thoughts and weird colors and images. Everything was just so random in her head. It wasn't even an actual dream, really, just a mixture of thoughts from her over worked brain. In the back of her mind, there was still a shred of intelligence, a bit of hope that nothing bad would happen while she was asleep. She certainly wasn't going to be able to drive again in her state of mind.

Aren could usually remember her dreams. But these particular dreams were so full of random images and colors and sounds that they overwhelmed her tired brain. Eventually she fell into a dreamless sleep. She looked peaceful now that her mind was free of thoughts and the day's stress. She awoke sometime later to a loud snoring in her ear. Aren turned her head and saw that Fuzz was sleeping right next to her ear, and was snoring softly, though it sounded noisy so close to her ear. She gently pushed the duckling away from her ear and rolled over so that she was facing the couch. She fell asleep slower this time, as it was getting later into the night so that it was actually getting later into the morning. She yawned and fell asleep, no dreams this time.

[Kyle Smithe]

Kyle awoke as soon as the suns rays touched his face, something he'd been accustomed to all his life. He pushed himself up off the floor and stumbled to the restroom, he looked like hell and felt like it. At least it was better than last night. Last night... Kyle shuddered. He hated blood especially his own blood. Kyle wiped his face with cool water, waking himself up easily. He soon realized he'd been up most the night if not all. Kyle walked back out and into the small kitchen, looking in the fridge for something to make. There were, hot dogs, eggs, ham, bread? He shrugged and decided to make some eggs and ham.

Kyle took the stuff from the fridge and started prepping it. He soon found himself making scrambled eggs, at around 7 in the morning. Kyle barely made any noise, and made extra in case Aren woke up. He sighed and stopped paying attention briefly, but it was long enough for the clutz to show. Kyle managed to burn his hand and tossed the spatula into the living room. He blinked and cursed silently, such an idiot he was. An idiot who was too clumsy for his own good. Kyle went to pick up the utensil and washed it off before finishing the eggs. He hoped she'd be okay with eggs and ham because there wasn't much to eat in the house. Kyle didn't eat much anyway so he didn't have the apartment stocked like a normal household should be.

[Aren Haight]

Aren yawned as she awoke to something cooking. She groaned quietly and sat up, rubbing her eyes. Sleeping without a pillow mostly always left her to wake up with a headache. She stood up and stretched, happy to see that her ducks were still sleeping. She was still tired, especially since she had been up most of the night. The girl rubbed the back of her neck, which was sore for some reason. She had probably slept on it wrong. Her hair was sticking up everywhere and looked like a complete mess. She ran her fingers through her hair and put it into a ponytail, since it was too tangled up to braid. After this she would go home and unpack. She'd take a nice shower and a nap before going out to the barn for a ride. It sounded really nice to her at that moment.

Aren followed the smell of eggs and ham to the kitchen. She was surprised to see Kyle cooking. She didn't know guys could cook. You can cook? she asked, her voice a bit raspy. Now that she thought about it, she was starving. She hadn't even remembered to stop for dinner last night or anything. Her stomach growled and she leaned against the wall, her head pounding. She could hear the sound of fluttering wings so she guessed that her duclings were waking up. Sure enough, she heard a quack or two and then two yellow ducks waddled into the kitchen, probably drawn to the scent of the food Kyle was making.