Tangible (Yandere Elijah Kamski x Reader)

Thirty-Nine

God damn. She really got me good.

Standing in front of the bathroom mirror, Elijah had quietly snuck in while you remained in Sleep Mode the next morning. He wasn't entirely sure why, but he enjoyed seeing you sleep longer than himself. Perhaps it gave you more of a human appearance.

There were gouge wounds all over his arms and upper back, and the smirk spread quickly across his face.

On the counter, his cell phone lit up with an incoming call. The device was snatched, the male answering with the smirk still lingering. "Kamski speaking. ... Yes, Elijah. Uh... July 17th, 2002. Sure. ...... already? Cool. Did they find-- ........." Damn near dropping the fucking thing, he groped wildly for the counter before sinking down, sitting on the closed toilet seat with his ocean eyes wide. "... are they... o-oh. Y... yeah, I'll... s-sure. What time?" Jaw shaking, Eli squeezed his eyes shut tight, feeling his throat swell and hating his weakness. "Yeah, I'll be there. Sure. Okay, thanks," he trailed off, letting the phone drop to the tiled floor before burying his face into his hands.

He could only hope that you didn't hear him sobbing in his agony, banking on the running water in the shower to mask it.

[ 01001001 01101100 01101100 ]

[Something is seriously wrong]

Having thoughts like those, ones that were set in stone before you could even understand why, weren't quite what you wanted to wake up to. It was the fact that you'd woken up alone, on your own, with zero indication as to where Elijah had gone.

Grabbing the first article of clothing you saw, you pulled Eli's black shirt on, buttoning the piece as you emerged from his bedroom. The human was easy to locate: you simply followed the worrying sounds of his crying.

"Elijah!" You hurried into the living room, finding him breaking down into his hands again. Chloé sat beside him for the sake of company, but stood and backed away a little as you swiftly approached. Kneeling on the floor, gentle hands touched his own, succeeding in getting his attention. "Elijah, whatever is the matter?" Cupping his face, you searched the oceans for answers while the male's face broke little by little.

"V-Vi... I... g-god damn it....." came his strained reply, wincing but not pulling away from your touch.

How the fuck am I gonna tell them?

Despite his unsteady jaw, your creator forced his words out. "I... have another appointment with the doctor at noon. H-he... wants to... discuss options with me..." Elijah trailed, unable to stop the damned tears from pouring. They were wiped with a delicate touch before he grasped your hands, kissing both and finally meeting your gaze. "Vi. The... disease my mother had. My blood work... she passed the disease to me."

_____

Meeting the two of you in record time, Gavin could not hide his concern as he strolled into the building beside his brother. "Look, I don't know what the fuck is going on, dude, but I'm here for you," he mumbled, not wanting to disturb the quiet atmosphere of the waiting room.

Sinking into the chair closest to the entrance, Elijah grimaced for one brief, awful moment. "It's fine, Gav. Thank you. Sorry to... y'know, pull you out of the precinct again."

"From the bottom of my heart, shut the fuck up."

Given no time to relax, Eli's name was called. Both you and the younger sibling helped him back into his feet, the latter NOT liking your constant red LED. But he kept his mouth shut, hoping that, perhaps, it wasn't as terrible as it seemed.

Then again, considering how devastatingly stubborn both men were, it was probably worse.

The doctor entered quietly, looking unnecessarily grave as he sat down across from this unusual little family. "Mr. Kamski, I want to offer--"

"Elijah, please," the taller male interrupted out of habit.

"Elijah, then, forgive me. I want to offer my apologies first. Something like this is... life-altering, and extremely debilitating, so... needless to say your options are... limited."

"Options for what?" Gavin's harsh voice was like sandpaper in the room. "What the fuck are you saying, Doc?"

"Elijah has inherited Charcot-Marie-Tooth Disease, or CMT. To put it in layman's terms, what happened with his mother and her inability to walk is now affecting her son." Sighing softly, the doctor frowned a touch. "You are already experiencing problems with your mobility. According to what you've said already, you frequently stumble over, and you struggle to stay upright. You've collapsed on more than one occasion, and also mentioned a good deal of physical pain that feels like burning in your lower extremities."

Nodding silently, your creator could not speak, too scared to start crying in place of words. On one side, you took his hand, fingers lacing with his own. On his other, Gavin took his brother's shoulder with a reassuring squeeze. Neither of you were going to leave him to deal with this alone.

"Now, as for options, the issue is that... there is only one. CMT does not have a viable cure, things can only be done to treat the symptoms. However," the male added, hand held up to prevent interruption. "There is a research facility a couple of hours away. They've developed an experimental treatment; an injection, I believe." He paused, letting his patient take a moment to understand. "I do not suggest this to many of my patients, Elijah, and the reason for that is simple: it is experimental, and therefore costly. No insurance will touch the treatment until measures have been taken to ensure its lack of complications. You, on the other hand, do not need to worry about your financial situation."

"Fuckin' understatement of the century, Doc," Gavin mumbled, shifting but never taking his hand off of his brother's shoulder.

"However costly this treatment is, if you choose to go through with taking the injection... you would be the first. So your bodily reaction to this will be studied intensely."

"I'll do it," your creator replied, expression set.

Visibly uncomfortable, the doctor shifted in his chair. "I understand your insistence in not wanting to lose your basic functions, but when I speak of cost, I mean more than just money. Your body could react in terrible ways, and I would not want you to make this decision lightly. If anything--"

"I don't care," Elijah cut in, the liquid shine returning to those azure eyes. "I'll back their research up myself, and someone has to be the guinea pig." Mouth working over, he glanced at you and his brother both. "My mother constantly apologized all our lives for being a burden. She never was, and that's why I'm where I am now. But I'm gonna do whatever I can to prevent being the burden this time." Squeezing your hand, he patted the one on his shoulder with the other. "How do I make an appointment to get this treatment, Doc?"