To no one's surprise, The King of the Hill recovered from his display of human emotion with ease.... standing up with a cheerful smile and a comment on how adorable Alex was.
Even as his miniaturised brother grumbled, Alan's attention had turned to me... much to my despair.
"Maddison." Alan sang my name, bending to peer at me through the bars of the cage. "Who's your favourite senpai?"
I glared back at his too close face... suspicious.
...Senpai?
I expected to be in trouble... You know, for screwing up everything and dooming us all... But Alan seemed as cheerful as ever.
Too cheerful.
"Is this a trick question?"
Alan just hummed, smiling as he waited for my answer.
".... What happens to me if I don't choose the psycho who orchestrated eight of the ten worst moments of my life and corrupted my innocent, pure neighbour with illegal firearms?"
"You don't get this," Alex revealed what he had hidden in his pocket this entire time.
I stared.
A cute, heart-shaped...
Chocolate.
I was pressed up against the bars in an instant, clawing at the air between me and my prey.
"Give it to me. "
"I'm afraid it won't be so easy to mooch from me Maddison," Alan said, eyes twinkling with mirth. "Unlike my brother, I like to be asked nicely before I share my things."
Bully.
My lip trembled, eyes threatening to water as I resisted...
For all of two seconds.
"Please Alan." My hands clutched together as I begged. "I need it."
... Even if it's pocket chocolate and probably half-melted... I'm just that hungry.
Still, at the sight of me, grovelling Alan dramatically clutched at his chest, expression starstruck.
That is until Vain kicks him in the shin.
The red-head yelped in pain, crouching down to clutch his wounded leg.
Wait! Don't hurt my chocolate...
Alan looked up with a pout. "How could you ack-!"
Vain's foot stomped directly onto Alan's face and stayed there.
"Die disgusting pervert." The Albino commanded, his glacial glare fixated on the scum being crushed beneath his heel.
"I was only kidding," Alan mumbled, wincing when Vain ground his foot harder.
"I'm. Not. Laughing." Vain hissed, only removing his foot from the poor red-heads face when he proved as durable as a cockroach.
"Um... Maybe we should... " Nigel waved a vague hand forward, indicating that we should move. Once again, meekly pointing out the intelligent thing that we should all be doing.
... It really is a wonder that no one ever listens to him.
"Floid." Vain turned his attention to Alex. "Think that's enough to open the cage?"
The small boy stood expressionless, his eyes eerily focused.
"I probably could have done it without the help," Alex spoke slowly, not quite able to achieve the dryness the words deserved.
Oh, yea... Hurting Alan makes Alex go nano-ninja... Of course, Vain has a legitimate reason to inflict bodily harm...
"Perhaps, but why risk failure?" Vain held my cage out to the smaller Floid sibling. "Go ahead."
... Yea right.
The small child turned his gaze to me...that intense gaze giving me the creeps despite my best efforts.
Alex didn't try to take the cage from Vain. Instead, sliding his fingers through the bars of my cage, moving with exaggerated control.
I backed away as he slowly gripped the metal... And pulled the bars apart.
The metal groaned as it was carefully bent out of shape... Alex taking his time to make sure he didn't exert more force than necessary.
The moment the gap was wide enough for me to get through Alex retreat, actually taking a step away from me to make sure we wouldn't touch.
I didn't blame him for not wanting to touch me... More than a little uncomfortable with the idea myself.
Vain turned my cage, angling it so that he could place his hand before the newly made exit.
Staring at the waiting palm... I was surprised by how nervous I felt.
While being trapped in the cage, I hadn't noticed how... safe it made me feel to have a barrier between me and people's hands...
Since the last time, someone had held me...
But there was chocolate out there.
"Can I have that Chocolate now?" I climbed out of the cage into Vain's hand, crushing my insecurities with hunger.
There was doubt in my mind that Vain had noticed my hesitance, but he said nothing as he bent to abandon the cage on the ground.
"Of course!" Alan answered my question, moving into my field of vision and delivering the small confectionery into my eager hands.
Wary of being toyed with again, I snatched it up as quickly as possible, staring in awe at my prize for sacrificing my dignity.
Where the chocolate had looked tiny between Alan's fingers, the red wrapped heart was almost as big as my head.
And it was mine. All mine.
I knelt down, hands shaking as I delicately pulled the red foil away, revealing the chocolate heart nestled inside...
It was beautiful.
But... Was now really an appropriate time to award myself? We were sort of in the middle of something here.
Eyes more than a little watery, I looked up at Vain to make sure that this was okay. That I had permission to let down my guard... for a small moment... and just enjoy this.
To have a break.
Vain observed me calmly... Before giving a small nod.
I smiled... the happiest smile in what felt like forever.
Vain averted his gaze at the sight, but I paid it little mind as my hungry gaze zeroed in on the sweet chocolate before me.
The thing was huge, and I would have to tear into its soft flesh with my bare hands to devour it.
This wasn't going to be pretty.
"Not in my hand Maddison," Vain warned before I could completely go wild animal. He was looking at me a little gingerly as if expecting me to start growling and tearing into the chocolate with my teeth alone.
He knows me too well.
"Fine," I muttered, breaking off a handful of chocolate and shoved it into my mouth.
Like a lady.
The first taste was addictive, and it took more self-control than I would easily admit not to fling my loving arms around the chocolate and absorb it through osmosis.
No, I sat there, trembling as I took measured bites and did my best not to get chocolate all over me.
It was enough that I was covered in blood... I would not stand for a single particle of this heavenly substance going to waste. Which meant I had to work quickly if I wanted to keep it melting in my mouth, not my hands.
I may have seemed obliviously lost in bliss to the untrained eye... But I wasn't so far gone that I didn't notice Alan pulling out his phone.
My chewing slowed as I watched the King tap at the screen, and a moment later, the dial tone rang out from the device....a single time before whoever was on the other side picked up.
"Better?" Alan asked.
"Better," Garmen confirmed.
What...?
Despite the spark of relief, I felt at finally hearing from the injured Supervisor myself... My idiot senses were tingling, telling me that I had been duped.
I stared down at the chocolate... The wheels slowly turning in my head.
"... Does this have something to do the nano-tech? " I questioned, surprisingly docile despite the implications.
Chocolate... Sort of has a pacifying effect on me.
"Nano-Tech runs on energy, just like anything else. You were running dangerously low in that department." Alan gave me an amused smile.
"This being the case, Peri had to make his tech go dormant, doing absolutely nothing until we could feed you... or if you absolutely needed it."
Alan wriggled his phone at me. "The good knows is, Peri is back online... So to say."
In other words... Peri can't be you when you're hungry.
I narrowed my eyes down at the chocolate in my hand.
".... So you were going to make me eat this all along... Even if I didn't beg... "
"A meal hard-earned goes down easier." Alan winked.
"... You're lucky I'm doped up on chocolate endorphins..." I popped another piece into my mouth. "Or I would be so mad at you right now..."
"You can always stop if you... "
"Don't try to tell jokes when I'm eating Alan, it's rude."
"Fair enough." He chuckled as I resumed demolishing what was left of my treat.
Deceptive or not, I wasn't about to let hunger happen to me again.
"Though it sort of annoys me that Peri gets to second hand eat my chocolate..." I grumbled, more than a little bit possessive. "... All the pleasure and none of the guilt."
.... Talk about a lighter way to enjoy chocolate...
" What happened to that guy anyway?" I wondered, so relaxed at this point that I hardly cared we weren't in any way progressing. "I haven't heard from that guy since Alex hung upon him."
"Sulking," Garmen answered from the phone.
Alex made a small noise as if amused but not quite able to express the emotion yet. He still kept his distance, watching the exchange with focused eyes.
"... It's called concentrating." Peri could be heard in the background, quiet but obviously ill. "It's taking considerable effort to deal with the... Sensations..."
Yea. After dying, starving, then eating something the size of my head, it wasn't hard to guess where his queasiness might be coming from.
"Don't complain, I've just consumed a near-lethal dose of chocolate for your sake." I scolded the man in my head. "If I wasn't such a badass, I would be having a seizure from the sugar rush right now."
The things I do to save the day.
"Trust me, I know." Peri groaned pathetically.
"He had to go lay down shortly after you called," Garmen explained.
Pfft. Weakling.
I hummed happily, licking the last of the chocolate from my fingers.
Peri whimpered, but before he could voice his complains, the deep sound of a distant explosion rocked the lab.
Sh-
Vain's hand jerked beneath me, pulling me in closer to his chest as the lights flickered dangerously. I clung to the material of his shirt, suddenly fearful of the cement walls falling on us.
"I'd say... " Alan commented softly, rocking back on his heels. "...There goes all the evidence."