(A/N: yikes sorry I didn't update yesterday guys, my mind was on other things... Like how fucked my country is right now... But anyway, sorry again, here's this week's chapter)
Chris couldn't fall asleep. He couldn't tell if it was simply because he was running on an electric charge, or if he was just uncomfortable being in that house all alone. For all he knew, it could even just be the fact that the table he had to lay on was hard and cold, and it was just too unpleasant for him to fall asleep on. He didn't even have any blankets.
Either way, Chris tossed and turned all night. He managed to get a couple hours of sleep, but he was woken up by a nightmare about being killed. Again. It was like he had to relive the whole thing, even if he couldn't remember all the details of his real death.
He was still awake to watch the sunrise, and he was even still awake to see Ricky walk through the door of the room and greet him with a warm smile.
"Hey," Ricky grinned when he saw Chris smiling at him. "Did you sleep okay?"
"No-Not at a-all," Chris responded, shaking his head.
Ricky frowned, hoping, just as Chris had, that that loss of sleep was just something caused by running on battery power rather than blood.
"Well, I, uh, I have to go to school today, and I don't think I'll be able to bring you with me," Ricky sighed, watching Chris' smile fade away into a frown. "But I promise, I'll be here as soon as I drop my things off at home."
Chris nodded in response, the frown still stuck on his face.
"But, before I come back here, I'll tell my dad I'm sleeping over at Ryan's house," Ricky said with a small smile. "That way I can stay here with you all night. I'll even bring a bunch of stuff to make this place feel more like a home than an abandoned wreck."
"R-Really?" Chris asked, his frown beginning to turn into a smile.
"Really," Ricky nodded, smiling back at him. "And, uh, I brought you some food. Assuming you can still eat, anyway. I mean, I would think you can, since your organs didn't all-"
"I c-can tr-try," Chris shrugged, chuckling slightly.
Ricky was glad Chris' emotions still seemed to be intact. The books he read informed him that the emotions of those brought back to life could vary from none at all, to practically an emotional overload. Chris, however, was still expressing emotion in what would be considered a normal way.
"Alright, I'll be back in... Seven hours," Ricky exhaled. "I... I know that seems like a long time, but I'm sure it'll pass quickly."
Chris nodded, a sigh leaving his lips.
"Oh, wait, before I go, I have something else for you," Ricky spoke up after a minute of thinking.
Ricky pulled a small CD player from the bag he brought in, along with a handful of his favorite CDs. He set them down on the table next to Chris, allowing the taller boy to examine everything.
"It's music, so you won't be as bored as you would be with... Well, nothing," Ricky chuckled. "And it runs on batteries, so we done have to worry about the electricity outlets not working. I figured maybe it would give you something to do with your time while I'm gone."
"Um, c-can you he-help?" Chris asked sheepishly. "C-Can't r-remember..."
Chris hated the toll death took on his memory. Even though it was a recent death- He couldn't be completely sure how recent, but that Devin guy said the other day that it had to have been recent- He couldn't remember the simplest things about modern life.
"Of course I can help you," Ricky smiles warmly. "Whenever you need help, just let me know. It isn't your fault you have memory problems, there's no need to be sorry about it."
Chris smiled as he watched Ricky push a button, then inserted one of the discs.
"And then all you have to do is push the play button," Ricky said. "The one with only one triangle on it."
"Tha-Thank y-you," Chris responded.
"No problem at all," Ricky replied. "Now, I have to get going, but I'll come see you just after I get home, okay?"
Chris nodded in response, watching as Ricky left the room and closed the door. Soon after, he pressed the button that Ricky had told him to, and finally, he was able to get a touch of sleep.
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As expected, Chris didn't do much at all while Ricky was gone. He took a quick nap, and listened to some of the CDs Ricky left him with, and that was about it. It's not like there was very much to do in an abandoned house, anyway.
Ricky kept his promise, of course, and showed up at the house at the end of the street by around three thirty in the afternoon, with one duffel bag over his shoulder, and another two in his hands.
"Honey, I'm home!" Ricky joked as he stepped into the room, making Chris laugh lightly. "So, how boring was your day?"
"It wasn't t-too bad," Chris shrugged. "I f-finally got so-some s-sleep."
"That's good," Ricky said with a small smile. "How did you like the music I left for you?"
"It was g-good," Chris smiled.
"Good," Ricky replied. "But, I think I've got some things here that's you'll like even more."
Ricky leaned down to open up the first duffel bag, taking out a rolled up inflatable mattress, as well as the small pump to go with it, and a couple of thin blankets. The next bag contained a couple of pillows, two sets of clothes, and a couple of flashlights. The final bag was filled with junk food, a small laptop and a couple of movies, and Ricky even decided to throw a game of Monopoly in there for the hell of it.
"You ready to have a stereotypical teenage girl sleepover?" Ricky asked with a smirk.
Chris simply nodded in response, his eyes bright, and his smile growing wider.