Just Shapes and Beats: Restart

Chapter Nine

Levi rubbed his eyes as he walked in the direction of the living room, readjusting the hem of his pajama pants. He came across his mother who blocked the entrance to the living room.

"Good morn- whoa what happened?!" he exclaimed.

Wynne turned her head to face him. Just over her shoulder he could see Cube rapidly pacing back and forth in a line. He had the tear that only appeared when he was very distressed. That wasn't the shocking sight: there were many pieces of fabric or clothing (Levi couldn't tell which exactly) strewn about across the floor.

"Your brother is... very worried," his mother began. "He's worrying a little too much about it. I swear, he's going to rub a hole into the floor with this pacing."

Levi noticed Cube was muttering to himself at the same time. He couldn't make out a single word of what he was saying though he figured it was something to calm himself or saying his concerns outloud. He figured he could try to help calm Cube down and began walking over.

"Cube, sit down. You're going to ruin the wood," Levi said, partly as a joke with his last comment. "I think you're worrying yourself silly."

"I have all the right to be worried!" Cube half shouted, wringing his hands. "Even the heroes are nervous and I don't want an accident to happen and they get hurt-"

"Honey, it'll be okay. You need to sit, really. Take a moment to breathe," Wynne sternly told him. She walked over and stood near Levi. Cube did so and sat on the ottoman in front of the couch, shaking. "Blixer is not going to hurt them. You said so yourself that 'it wouldn't be a terrible idea to have the heroes chat with him' right?"

"Yes, but I don't think that was the right way to say it," Cube mumbled. "It was a spur-of-the-moment idea anyway. Now all the possibilities that could go wrong are suddenly coming to mind."

A few days ago, Cube had the idea to have the heroes "meet up" with Blixer for an hour or two. He hadn't originally thought about it properly and despite the heroes being reluctant about the initial proposal, Orange said she thought it was worth a shot. Gold told her she was far too much a "forgive and forget" shape, with her fighting back that she had some unsaid words to him. Eventually they agreed and later told Cube they'd do it.

"Put that aside and think of what good stuff could come from that, dude." Levi said this and Cube snapped to face his direction, visibly still upset. "I'm being serious! You know, maybe it'll be a good opportunity for the heroes to get some things off their chest and Blixer to properly apologize."

Cube took this in, thinking about it. Perhaps he did dive too far into the negative thoughts that something like this hadn't occurred to him. He glanced around the floor, littered with fabric. He grabbed quite a lot of it on the idea it might come in handy in case Blixer accidentally touched any of them.

I am overthinking this, he thought. His body felt less tense now and he had stopped shaking. "I guess you're right."

Levi gave him a lighthearted smug expression and shrugged. Wynne sat next to Cube, putting a hand on his shoulder.

"Have your father help the heroes get ready or attend to anything else they may need. I don't think it's wise to have more second thoughts around them before leaving," she suggested. Cube nodded in agreement. "Good. I'll let him know."

With that she walked away. Cube got off the ottoman and set about cleaning the floor. Levi volunteered to help, which Cube assented, and gathered pieces of fabric alongside him.

"I don't mind getting the rest if you wanted to get ready, too," Levi offered.

"You sure?"

"Yeah, it's not like it's cleaning up after a hurricane."

"If you don't mind then sure." Cube placed the fabric he collected onto the couch and readjusted his shirt collar with an exhausted sigh. He began walking to his room. "Thank you Levi."

Noon was fast approaching at this point, with Cube now sitting on the edge of his bed. He was ready, wearing his usual cloak. He fidgeted with one of the crystals that lined the bottom. Smiling, he remembered when Barracuda came to him one day with a small bucket full of them; she was the one to add them to his cloak.

Cyan entered his room and approached the bed, flying up to sit. Cube looked at him.

"Are all of you ready?" he asked. Cyan responded with a thumbs up. It wasn't difficult to tell he wasn't enthusiastic about the upcoming meet up. Cube softly pat his back. "It'll be okay. I won't let anything happen to you guys."

A stiff shrug was all he got in return. The other three heroes entered the room as well, standing barely beyond threshold of the doorway. Leaving his spot from the bed, Cube walked towards them and opened the door fully.

"Let's get going. I have notepads and pens, if anyone needs anything grab it now," he said. Hearing this, Orange dashed down the hall and into Cube's parents room, quickly exiting with a jacket on. Giving a thumbs up, the five left the house and down the walkway.

Cyan and Orange almost immediately began playfully shoving each other through the air. They weren't rough, however, they were a very playful couple. Green took her usual place floating next to Cube with Gold chatting with her while laying on their back in midair. Cube couldn't do much except listen to the bell-like chatter around him with a smile.

Wynne watched them leave from the window, sighing as the group went through the gate. Her husband, Solomon, walked sat on the couch besides her.

"What's with the sigh?" he asked.

"Oh, it's just that Cube seems to worry about far more than he needs to these days ever since the Events," she answered, crossing her arms loosely across her stomach. "I wish we could help but his anxious outbursts are sudden... plus we never know what's on his mind until one happens. I'm concerned."

Solomon nodded in understanding. "I know you've mentioned when you were around his age that you dealt with a lot of incidents that caused similar problems. One thing I would recommend trying is talking with him. I'm not around as often because of the whole thing with me being needed in construction, so I can't do much nor do I have the slightest idea what goes on. Talk and see what you can understand, because we all know this wasn't some run-of-the-mill thing. I get why he'd be struggling."

"I really do try, but there's a different approach I haven't tried yet. Perhaps tonight I will. I hate seeing my baby suffer," she said, partially to herself. "But it's your rare off day today, let's not dwell on much right now. Anything you wanted to do?"

Solomon thought for a moment. "We haven't eaten lunch yet, so how does a lunch date sound?" He smiled warmly up at her.

"Ah, speaking of which I am famished. Good plan."

Solomon stood up and kissed her cheek. "I'll take a quick shower and get ready. Levi's probably in his room if you wanted to mention us going out. He could come with or not, up to him."

"Sounds good. I want to gather my things so they're an easy grab and go after asking Levi before getting ready. I'll join you in a moment."

Solomon nodded and walked away. Wynne went to Levi's door, knocking as she asked, "Levi, your father and I were going out for lunch. Would you like to join or stay here?"

"Uhh... I'll stay. Thank you though," he replied through the door.

"Alright. Make sure to eat!" she said. She ambled to the living room to pack a few things for the outing into her bag. After doing so she went to the master bedroom and proceeded to get ready, content with the idea of a relaxed afternoon.