Project HALO

Chapter 23

We lay Mikey down on the training mats, and Maya runs out to find a bottle of water.

I brush some stray pieces of hair away from Mikey's face and keep a hand on his chest to make sure he's breathing. To my relief, he wakes up after a few seconds, groaning a little while turning his head.

"Hey, do you have any sour candy?" I ask Frank.

His eyebrows pull together. "Are you..." His mouth tightens as if he's trying to hold something back. Then he bursts into laughter. "What? Why?"

"He loves sour candy," I explain, moving my gaze to Mikey. He's sticky with sweat, but a hint of color is starting to return to his cheeks.

Frank's laughter subsides into a chuckle. "Oh yeah, that's true. He always eats those things." He squats down and puts a hand with bruised knuckles on Mikey's head. His eyes are bright and focused.

"I'll go check if we have any," he says. "This is a group of computer-geniuses, so we have to have some kinda candy."

"Just say like it is. A group of nerds," I say. It's different to joke around with anyone else than Mikey, but I think I like it. I normally don't like people and they never like me, but part of me wants him to like me since he's Mikey's friend. Maybe he can help me and Mikey with our own friendship.

"Shut up, shitkid." Frank grimaces at me, his tone playful.

As he exits the room, Maya comes back with two water bottles and a dampened cloth in her hands. She places the cloth on Mikey's forehead. He sighs and a weak smile appears on his pale face.

"Here," she says. She unscrews a water bottle and holds it against Mikey's dry lips. Her other hand supports his head and Mikey manages to get down a few mouthfuls, his eyes opening a little more for each sip. He tries to sit up, but Maya pushes him gently back down. "No. Rest."

"I'll fall asleep if I lie here," he whines, but stays down.

"How do you feel?" I ask. A dumb question, but it's my duty as his ex-best friend.

Mikey holds the cloth to his head, lifting himself up ever so slightly after another sip of water. His jaw works.

"Never felt better," he says with a forced smile. "How about you?"

"I'm sure we've both felt better," I say. In the corner of my eye, Frank comes back with a colorful candy bag in his hand. "But I'm sure you'll feel a lot better in a few seconds."

"How come?" Mikey asks, turning his head to face the candy Frank places next to him. I expect a grin, but his expression is disinterested. Unimpressed.

"Mikey, we've been through this," I say with a sigh and open the candy bag for him. "When you get something for free, you say thanks."

He snorts a "thanks", then mumbles, "But it isn't Warheads."

I roll my eyes and pull out a piece of candy, sticking it into his mouth. "You're such a diva."

"Beautiful people are allowed to be divas," Mikey replies while loudly crushing the candy between his teeth.

"You shouldn't be allowed, then," Frank says and raises his hand to me for a high-five. I hesitate, but high-five him back. Mikey narrows his eyes at us, his mouth moving like a cow's as he chews.

"Calm down, boys," Maya says. "Frank, maybe you can help Charlie with his wounds and I'll finish up Mikey's? It's time for them to get some rest. They've had a long day."

"Finally a voice of reason," Mikey sighs and puts his head back down on the mat.

Frank nods and walks past me, slapping my shoulder on his way. "Come on, big boy."