Reality Check

Obligations

Breathe (by Lauv)

"You're my all and more. All I know you taught me, yeah . . ."

___

After spending the entirety of Friday and Saturday morning wearing the Golden Fleece like a cape, Kiel could confirm that he was already feeling much better. His strength had returned, but it was still less so than normal. His body no longer shook, and his heart didn't race out of control, which was a relief. The color had returned to his face, and he had less trouble walking around now.

To add to that, Bethany had stopped by his house this morning before her book club meeting, dropping off some fictional medicine that he could take. Much to his disappointment, she'd placed the Golden Fleece back into the book it came from, claiming that he'd been wearing it for too long. He wished he could've worn it longer. Nothing, not even a spell had given him that kind of strength. But he had taken more of those recovery pills, which were helpful in boosting his energy.

Kiel was very glad that he was feeling renewed. Unlike the past week, he felt hopeful again. He'd been worried that he'd feel this way forever, which definitely wasn't the right way to live. Drinking 5-Hour-Energy had been the wrong choice, he knew that now. But it was his only option. He hadn't known where else to go.

Telling Bethany what he'd been hiding had surprisingly turned out to be a good thing. After he fainted, that had been the only option left anyway. There wasn't much he could do besides let her help him, now that she knew the truth. It was either that or let himself get worse, and he'd rather get his strength back. There wasn't much he could do to help himself.

Kiel was planning to tell Owen later today, once he was done being homeschooled in the morning. He wasn't very happy about that, but it had to be done. Keeping secrets from his friends had been a mistake, and he underestimated them. They would always help him, no matter what mistakes he made. If he refused the help, he might never recover, and he wouldn't be able to live much longer without it.

Despite his wariness to tell Bethany about his situation, he was glad that he had. He'd been planning to tell absolutely no one, because he was worried what they'd think. Kiel Gnomenfoot, weak? They'd laugh.

He thought Bethany would've judged him harshly for his actions, but he was pleasantly surprised at her reaction. While she had still reacted pretty badly, she hadn't thought any differently of him. That was the only reason he hadn't told his friends. They knew him as Kiel the hero, not as the boy who was weak and close to death.

Kiel never wanted them to see him as weak, since they were his best friends. Really, he never wanted anyone to see him that way. It only made him uncomfortable. But he realized that those things didn't matter. His friends had always been by his side, and they'd only want to help. They wouldn't think of him any differently, because he was still the same person that he'd always been. This realization made him feel a lot better, to know that his weakness didn't define him.

Once he returned to the fictional world, he didn't think this wouldn't be a problem anymore. At least, he hoped so. For now, however, he was already feeling better. A lot of his strength had returned, making him feel nearly back to normal. Everything would be fixed in no time. Well, almost everything. There was still the factor that he might disappear, but he was less worried about that. He wouldn't disappear if he stayed here for a bit longer. Plus, he had the medicine to help him out, so whenever he felt weak he could keep taking that.

He'd only be here for a day or two longer, and then he'd be back in the fictional world before he knew it. That was enough to send a rush of excitement through him. He'd gotten bored of the nonfictional world, and he was ready for an adventure, no matter how dangerous it would be. He couldn't wait to get on with it and go back to the life he'd been missing. It was time to go home and put a stop to Nobody's evil plans, and have fun while doing it.