Bite Me! | lavashipping

3 | Invisible

[A/N: guys, do we dig the cover? i put it together in so little time but i personally like it?? but if you have any suggestions, let me know!]

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While he did knock, Kai didn't wait for a response before peeking into the room, expecting Cole to still be in bed where they left him. Instead, Cole was standing in front of a mirror, bandages from yesterday lying on the floor next to his feet.

"I don't have any scratches," he muttered, barely acknowledging Kai walking in and closing the door behind.

"I can't decide if I'm relieved or concerned." He left the plate on Cole's bedside table and walked over to join Cole by the mirror. "It's like nothing ever happened, my clothes are completely fine too. But whatever happened yesterday, happened, everyone else remembers it. Unless we all had a collective dream."

Unable to tear his eyes away from his own reflection, Cole shook his head. "No, the pain was too real for it to be a dream."

"Come here." Kai turned Cole around to look over him, his hands briefly brushing against his skin like a gentle breeze. "Hey, the bite left some marks, does it hurt?" He barely touched the spot when Cole hissed and flinched away as if he wanted to jump out of his skin.

"That's awful!"

"That's weird." The earth could rip open right underneath his feet and he would not even blink. This life was getting a little exhausting. Everything had to be a mind-melting puzzle.

He put his hand on Cole's forehead, brushing his bangs away in the process. Besides some sweat, he looked remarkably better than when Kai found him last night. "How are you feeling?"

"Good as new..." Cole hesitated before looking right into Kai's eyes. "Kai, this is freaking me out."

He retreated his hand but remained standing close as it seemed like the last safe place in the universe. Either the earnestness in Cole's or the simple fact that it was Cole made some of the weight on his shoulders disappear. While he did feel bad for him, he could not deny what a relief not being alone brought. He wasn't the only one having their world turned upside down because of a stupid incident.

Those thoughts were to be locked away forever though.

"Same. I just hope this is about all that's gonna happen. If this is gonna cost me my powers again, I might actually consider retiring."

"You think they were some sort of magic wolves?"

Kai shrugged. "They looked pretty regular to me. Maybe some magic trick to protect some sacred scrolls, what do I know? I'm really grasping for a reasonable explanation before it all drives me crazy." At the word 'reasonable,' Cole scoffed, and Kai did not have it in his powers to blame him. It might as well be erased from all thesauruses.

Breaking their proximity, Cole walked back to his bed, plopping down to inspect the plate Kai brought. And Kai was quick to follow him as the rest of the world was crushingly huge at the moment and it was easier to stay isolated in their little bubble. They became sort of a panic room for each other, rushing to one another every time all the responsibilities were too heavy to carry and the ground began to dissipate. They didn't need words and it made everything easier. At least at times like this.

"So, what's the battle plan now?" Cole nibbled at one of the sausages. Everything on the plate looked and smelled good, as food always did when Zane had the kitchen under his control, so perhaps it was his nerves' fault for making the sight sickening.

"You get some food into yourself, then we have a double date with Zane and Pix back at the infirmary." Offering to share the food, Cole moved the plate towards Kai, who quickly pushed it back. He tried to convince him that he already had breakfast, somehow Cole saw right through it.

"You sure? You don't smell like it..."

"Sorry?"

"I meant you don't seem like it. You always do that, skip breakfast and then complain about starving to death."

At first, Kai wanted to stick around for as long as Cole let him, but the smell of the food progressively got worse until it was unbearable to the point where Kai left to freshen himself up. Earth turned into an ocean, it was incredible he managed to walk in a straight line. Kai was convinced he was fine besides all the pent-up frustration, however, his subconsciousness seemed to not be on the same team as him.

...

Spending so much time being put under a microscope was not thrilling at all but what needed to be done, had to be done.

Nya joined the four, poking her head everywhere and chatting them through all the needle pricks, and scans, and pads with whatever they were rubbing on them to get more results. She claimed to be hanging around out of pure curiosity and boredom, although, her constant glances at all the indicators told a different story.

Kai almost felt as if he was put into one of the make-over montages from movies, except it got rapidly derailed and maybe it was just his insides getting a new visage. Probably the majority of his lifetime was dedicated to being patched up in the medbay but at least there was a purpose and a result. Now all everyone did was rub their heads and poke them so more to see how they would react.

Pixel kept frowning in distaste at the monitors and blood samples. All of it was mocking her for failing to find anything curious, she had to prod further! She wanted to crack the case, conquer the medical mystery but neither her nor Zane could come up with anything good enough. Whatever happened, simply just happened and left no trace.

Perhaps she had to get better equipment. There were more projects at her hands but she could dedicate a few nights to creating even better devices. She would create a microscopic submarine if that would be what it takes to figure it out.

"Well... Besides your immune systems being on high alert, you really seem to be completely fine... Whyever that is."

Cole threw his t-shirt back on, a small part of the bite mark still peeking through the neckline. Which was the only thing that caught Kai's attention., of course

"What do you mean by that? High alert?"

"It's not necessarily an allergic reaction but it is close. Only there is no substance to be found that should be responsible for this."

Kai jumped down from the bed, eager to forget all about the strange wolves and move on like nothing happened, which was most likely the case anyway. All questions and no answers, it was getting on his nerves. "So our bodies caught Jay's paranoia, cool, can we go?"

Before he could disappear through the door, Zane stopped them all, not as visibly dissatisfied with the situation but exasperated nonetheless. "For now, I'm afraid we can't do anything more but I must insist you let us know immediately when you notice something strange. It is vital as there is a risk your states might get worse just as fast as you healed."

"Sure will, Zane. Thanks."

While Kai made a beeline for the courtyard to let off some steam, Cole came back to his bed. According to Nya, Lloyd was busy helping Wu unpack their newly acquired writings and surely no one else would blame him for desiring some more rest after everything. More rest sounded like the perfect idea after the feverish night, despite being awake altogether for less than an hour.