Chapter 45: I Will See What I Can Do
MARIUS
"Sir, may I—"
Falken stopped my question with his eyes.
"He is just recovering at the moment, Marius. Don’t think too much of it," he said.
"Is he receiving any medication that could be causing this?" I asked him.
Falken’s face broke into an expression of deep sympathy.
"Your concern for your friend is admirable, but let’s let the doctors make the best decisions with their professional experience. How Leo is treated is not something I get to decide either," Falken said, adding, "and if this is of any consolation—although it could equally be a new worry, as it means we don’t know what’s causing this—no, Leo is not being administered any medication known to cause this particular side effect."
"I see, Sir."
Then he casually pointed at my bandaged hand and asked,
"How did that happen?"
I couldn’t tell the full story, but I didn’t have to lie entirely either.
"I was punching a tree with particularly hard bark."
Falken looked intrigued.
"That is some hard training. Or... was it out of frustration?"
"Hard training, Sir."
The lie came out too naturally for my comfort.
"I see. Don’t be so hard on yourself. It’s good to train, but we don’t want you to ruin yourself either."
"I will keep that in mind, Sir."
With that, I was dismissed.
On my way back to the dormitory, my encounter with Skylark in his recovery room flickered through my mind like sunlight behind a turning windmill. And every time I pictured him talking to Big Sis Sally, who wasn’t there, I felt sick to my stomach.
Then, about halfway to my destination, I stopped as I noticed an owl sitting on a branch ahead of me. The bird of the night was looking at me intently in broad daylight without moving at all.
I stopped and stared at it for a moment too, trying to read its thoughts.
But after a long stare-down, I gave up first, shaking my head at the silliness of it.
Skylark was in good hands, in the right place.
His room was well furnished, and Falken’s eyes showed deep and sincere interest in Skylark’s condition, and even a hint of joy that he was recovering well, but—
Well?
I wasn’t sure.
His body might have been well, but his mind wasn’t in the right place.
Back at the dormitory, I went straight to the dining hall as dinner was about to be served.
Thomas noticed me first and walked over.
"How is Leo?" he asked me.
"He is recovering," I answered.
"Did you get to see him?"
"Yes."
"And?"
"He seemed... happy."
"Happy?"
Thomas looked surprised.
"That is the word. Probably."
"Maybe I’ll go visit him too, then."
Thomas said nothing more on the matter.
We then picked up a tray each and joined the buffet line.
"Marius, how are you?" I heard a voice from behind.
It was Alexis.
"I’m fine. How about you?"
"I was so glad that the survival mission was cut short, although it was a bit sudden. Briant and I weren’t having the best of times, to say the least, hah."
"What happened?"
"Nothing out of the ordinary, but Janice had an argument with Courtney and, man, things got very awkward," Alexis explained.
"Janice? Beatrice’s friend?"
"Yup."
"She never seemed to be the argumentative type."
"I know, right?" Alexis said with a shrug.
"Are we gossiping about ladies now?" Briant turned up and joined the conversation. He smiled in greeting when our eyes met.
"We are NOT gossiping," Alexis clarified.
I found myself somewhat curious about what had caused the argument, and I wasn’t familiar with Courtney beyond knowing her name and face.
But Briant had a point.
Once we got our food and sat down at a table, Isabelle walked over with her tray.
"Can I sit with you guys?"
"No," Thomas said flatly, earning himself a glare.
"Of course. You’re more than welcome to," Alexis said as he got up and pulled out a chair for her.
"Thank you," Isabelle said with a grateful smile, while throwing yet another glare in Thomas’s direction.
Just as we were all seated and ready to begin dinner, Beatrice and Janice walked past with their trays.
Isabelle invited them to join us, so the empty places left by Skylark and Dimitri were more than filled.
"How is Leo?" Isabelle asked after I had taken my first few spoonfuls of soup.
She had probably been waiting to ask.
"He is recovering," I answered.
"Apparently he is ’happy,’" Thomas added.
Isabelle raised an eyebrow.
"I can’t believe that."
Thomas glanced at me without a word, but his face seemed to say,
Neither do I.
"What exactly happened to your group? I only heard from Beatrice that there was a storm. But we didn’t see any storm while we were on the same mountain."
Now all eyes were on me, expecting me to answer a question that was still a mystery to me too.
"I don’t think any of us can really understand it at this point," Beatrice answered instead.
A good, straight, honest answer.
"Did Leo actually get hurt during the storm?" Alexis asked this time.
Beatrice and I exchanged a glance, considering how to answer, but Isabelle spoke first.
"He was under tremendous stress. For one reason or another."
I flinched a little at the word reason.
Something was wrong.
Or at least, not quite right.
About what had happened.
About Skylark.
And about me.
I felt years of training beginning to unravel.
I was becoming unsettled by simple words that shouldn’t have mattered.
"I’d like to go see Leo," Thomas announced to the table.
"I’ll go with you," Isabelle said.
"Could that be... arranged?" Beatrice asked me.
I had no authority to arrange anything.
I had only been allowed to see Skylark because Falken brought me to him.
But all those eyes were on me, their expectations weighing heavier on my heart with every passing second.
"I will see what I can do."
I promised.
What is wrong with me?