first encounter ; 0 days

[lostandfinder]

If there were any luck in the world, Chivason would have been sound asleep by now. He'd had a wonderful dinner — courtesy of sweet, old Mrs. Jann — and he'd eaten enough to be pleasantly drowsy, and then some. To cap it all off, she'd offered him a bed (a bed) and tucked him in as only a grandmother could. He didn't really have much to worry about, still having a few valuables tucked away in his knapsack, enough to cover a few weeks even if she decided to change her mind about letting him stay free-of-charge, and he certainly hadn't been here long enough to need to think about moving on.

Whatever the reason, though, he stayed in bed long enough to need to roll over half a dozen times before he finally gave up. Carefully tucking the blanket back under the pillow, he snagged his knapsack and tiptoed outside. He let his mind drift as he walked, hoping it would help him relax enough to actually sleep. He had liked his last stop, even gone so far as to make a few friends. He should have known better than to try helping Lia find her necklace. She was too excited when she asked him if he would walk with her. He scoffed softly at himself— then tripped, tried to catch himself, and faceplanted in the dirt. ⋅⋅ ⌊ ☆ ⌉ ⋅⋅

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Comments

[lostandfinder]

Chivy blinked in the sudden darkness after Sefton's departure. He watched the door for a short time before giving up and curling up on the bed again. With the aspirin taking the edge off of his headache (and other aches), he fell asleep before too much time had passed.

[polarization]

It was nearly two hours until Sefton returned, one arm cradling a large paper bag while the other worked the key in the knob. He wasn't especially loud, thankfully, until he got to dumping the bag on the bed and began rooting through it. He eventually started pulling out the larger things (something oblong wrapped in brown paper, followed by another, then a white plastic cup with a lid and a bundle of napkins and plastic utensils) until he found what he was looking for: a small box.

He ripped it open carefully, shaking one of the blister packs out. He almost began to pop the medicine out of its container before he thought better of it and flipped the box around to begin reading the instructions.

[lostandfinder]

Chivy had slept soundly enough for over an hour, but by the time Sefton returned he was spending more time tossing and turning than actually resting. He didn't sit up immediately when he heard Sefton doing whatever it was Sefton was doing, but he did look that way around when Sefton had started looking at the box. He felt like he should say something (honestly, he was kind of surprised Sefton hadn't bolted this morning, after what happened the night before), but his mind was pretty blank. Before he could dwell on that too long, though, he felt a sneeze building and managed to get a tissue just in time.

[polarization]

Sefton looked up when Chivy suddenly sneezed, lips pursed tightly. He popped out two of the small, circular pills and glanced about for the glass he used earlier. Had Chivy kept it under the blankets with him? Shaking his head, he moved back into the bathroom and retrieved another one, once again placing them on the nightstand.

"Decongestant," he explained, hoping it would be enough to get Chivy to take them.

[lostandfinder]

Chivy watched Sefton, and shortly after he put the new glass on the nightstand, he reached out to take the pills and then the glass, repeating what he'd done with the aspirin (with two changes: he made a face as soon as he put the decongestant in his mouth, and he didn't pull the glass back under the blanket — he just sat and held it).

[polarization]

Sefton turned to the things laid out on his bed, pretending not to watch. "You feeling any better?" he asked, wondering if Chivy had gotten any proper sleep or had simply rolled himself off the bed again at some point.

[lostandfinder]

"Sorta." He scooted back so he could lean against the wall and closed his eyes. Moving made his head pound, but he wasn't going to get to sleep right now. He sighed before opening his eyes again, staring down at the glass. "Thanks."

[polarization]

Shaking his head, Sefton didn't respond, hand tightening around the surface of the blanket where it had been resting. There was absolutely no reason Chivy should thank him; he was the one who had gotten him sick in the first place, and... and he knew who Sefton was, what he could do.

In lieu of letting his thoughts meander to the idea of simply leaving, he asked, "You hungry yet?"

[lostandfinder]

"No." The last time he'd been this sick (and pretty much every other time before that) had been under Lynna's care. She never asked, just presenting him with food and standing nearby until he finished all of it. He couldn't help imagining Sefton with a similarly stern expression, and smiled a little.

[polarization]

"Okay," Sefton said after a short beat. He shoved most of the stuff to the foot of the bed, taking one of the wrapped parcels and peeling it open to reveal a sandwich. Settling himself on the edge of the bed, he began picking at it more than eating.