Chapter Text
Chapter 1: Reunion
-Home is where my heart is still beating.
(Parmalee)
“Yaz, darlin’ can you pass the gravy? Nothin’ goes better on collard greens than gravy!” Sammy’s loud request easily cuts through the chatter of the camp fam’s Thanksgiving dinner, much to everyone’s dismay.
Darius subtly grimaces while Kenji doesn’t hide his look of disgust, pausing his convo with Brooklyn to comment “I’m sorry, did you just say-oof!”
“Mmm. How unique! Gravy and collard greens, I’ll have to try that sometime.” Brookyln says as if she didn’t just incapacitate Kenji with her good elbow.
Yaz smirks, gracefully passing the gravy to Sammy. Not without returning the sass to Kenji however. “I know you’re not talking. You used to eat an awful amount of junk food.”
Ben chuckles at the interaction. Sammy also shrugs, happily pouring the gravy over her greens. “Well, I know it’s a bit, unorthodox, per say but I just love my gravy! My pawp-pawp makes it just like this! And since we decided to spend this Thanksgiving with camp fam, I thought I’d carry on the tradition.” She shovels the food in her mouth, acting as if she’s just sampled a Michelin entrée.
She holds up the spoon toward the group who all shrink back, including Yaz.
“Um, I’m good Sammy…” Ben holds up his hands placatingly, but apparently Kenji hasn’t learned his lesson.
“Coming from someone who used to eat grubs! You should be the first to sample.” Kenji has a slight wheeze in his voice, rubbing his sore ribs.
“And ate out of a boot.” Darius adds unhelpfully.
Wow. Ben thinks dryly. His friends are leaving him like a lamb to the slaughter. Why does he have to be the first to try the experimental slop of green and brown? Technically Yaz should since she’s Sammy’s girlfriend. But first and foremost-
“That was one time!” He claims with exasperation.
The others laugh at his expense, and Ben narrows his eyes at the challenge.
“Fine. Hand me a plate.”
Sammy cheerfully squeals, prepping him a healthy serving of the mixture. “One serving, coming right up!”
The table goes eerily quiet as Ben raises the spoon to his mouth, pausing in hesitation. They unintentionally lean forward in anticipation.
Ben takes in a large spoonful to prove himself, eyes screwed shut in apprehension. He starts to chew and then swallows.
The texture isn’t his favorite texture in the whole world, and that’s saying something since he literally used to snack on grubs. It slides down his throat like slime.
But the taste… well at least the taste was decent.
Darius looks as sick as he looks worried. Brookyln has sneakily managed to pull out her phone and record the display while everyone was occupied. Yaz and Kenji just look surprised he actually ate the serving of the mix. Sammy is giving him her famous 100-watt smile, expectantly awaiting his feedback.
“Not bad.” Ben breaks the tense atmosphere, taking another bite, albeit less dramatic this time.
“YAY!!” Sammy exclaims looking eagerly around the table offering the rest of the camp fam more portions of her homecooked meal.
“Still not eating that.” Kenji mutters waving away the offer. The rest of the table politely decline, even Yaz.
“Aw, y’all are missing out. Maybe next time.” Sammy helps herself to more servings.
“Yeah, maybe.” Brookyln agrees skeptically.
“I have plenty of other unique recipes you guys should totally check out!” Sammy rants on about other delightful entrées she wants to cook in the future, each one sounding less appetizing than that last.
Yaz thankfully puts her arm on Sammy’s hand to slow her down. She looks around the table and smiles apologetically. “There’s plenty of time to plan for that in the future. I mean, camp fam for life, right? We’ve got like a hundred more Thanksgivings to go. We’re gunna do this ‘til we’re old and gray. Right guys?”
“Totally!” Darius and Brooklyn cheer in unison. Kenji stops short with a brow raised at the two. For some reason, the interaction catches Ben’s attention. He thought he was just imagining it earlier, but now he can clearly see there’s an invisible curtain hanging around the trio. Like there’s a tension between them he just can’t place and isn’t sure why. No one else seems to notice.
“You guys are gunna make me cry! Aww! Okay let’s get a picture together everyone!” Sammy all but jumps out of her seat. Her excitement radiates like a light, flooding the room with warmth that’s contagious. Ben forgets about his previous train of thought as everyone excitedly starts to gather around Brooklyn, who unsurprisingly has her phone already out.
Ben rises to his feet to join the group when suddenly a resonating pain arches up his abdomen, eliciting a surprised gasp from him. His hand instinctively goes toward his side, but the pain is already gone.
“Ben?!” His friends echo, gathering around him before he can blink. Both Darius and Kenji have a hand on each of his shoulders to ground him. Subtly, Kenji’s grip tightens a fraction, eyeing Daruis for a moment before focusing his attention back to Ben.
“I-I’m okay.” Ben says looking down at his abdomen, his brows tightly knitted.
Frustration washed over him. He hated this.
It had been six and a half months already. He had just graduated from the wheelchair. He’d been having less episodes of pain like that, but now it had come back out of nowhere for a split second, rendering him helpless again. His train of thought was now dangerously close to becoming derailed, his thoughts speeding past him faster than he had a chance to fully process them.
I thought I was getting better. Am I backtracking? Could it be the wound has somehow gotten infected? That’s impossible. Since he had been in town, Kenji had meticulously been helping take care of his wound. Would he have to go back to using the wheelchair again? He felt so trapped relying on it. He was too much of a burden to his friends. He knew he shouldn’t have flown out to join his friends for the Thanksgiving dinner. He should have just used his final exams an excuse to not come. He-
“Ben. It’s okay. Breathe.” Yaz’s steady voice breaks through his introspections. She softly places her hands on Ben’s face, and his dazed blue eyes widen and meet her own like he was just only seeing her for the first time that evening.
Ben blinks, snapping out of it. He suddenly realizes his breathing was become too quick to keep up with his ventilation. He would get lightheaded if he continued as he was now. Only then had he realized how worked up he was getting. He didn’t know what had come over him. He gripped his head that was suddenly pounding, and everything sharply comes into focus at once.
Yaz releases him and takes a step back to give him space. She nods at Darius and Kenji who reluctantly release Ben as well.
Kenji does, however, quietly hover over Ben as if he may fall over at any given moment. It’s no wonder Brooklyn refers to him as the mother hen of the group.
Ben feels a bit embarrassed, but on top of that, he also feels drained. Like his episode has leeched the strength from him. Everyone is looking at him, and he feels terrible for ruining the mood. “I’m Sorry. I- don’t what happened-“ the words come out a little breathy, like he’s still getting his bearings. Something beeps off to his side and he almost ignores it until he realizes it’s his smartwatch.
HR: 121
“Don’t push yourself, Benny. Here, sit down.” Kenji guides him back to his chair, to which he’s secretly grateful for. “You took your meds today, right?”
“I- yeah. I did. You were there, remember?” Ben huffs, trying not to become annoyed by the fact Kenji’s doting was a little overwhelming at the moment. They had all spent the past three days with one another after flying in from their respective hometowns (except for Darius, who’s cabin they were currently staying at) to spend Thanksgiving break with one another. And when Kenji wasn’t spending time with Brooklyn, he was smothering Ben with asking how he had been holding up since they last seen each other. He meant well, but everyone knew Kenji could unintentionally be a bit of a control freak at times.
“Easy there.” Brooklyn handed him a glass of water and Sammy threw a cool rag against his shoulders. It felt nice.
Ben groans, eyelids suddenly feeling heavy. Why did he feel like his little event has taken all his energy? He tries at a sip of water but even that makes him nauseous. He gently sets it down on the table instead.
“Do you… want to lay down?” Darius seemed to sense Ben wilting with every passing second. “I can take you upstairs-“
“Actually, I don’t mind doing it.” Kenji cuts in, his arm already slithering around Ben’s shoulder. He caught Darius’ eyes with a gaze that dared him to challenge him. Darius sighed and gave up. He didn’t know what Kenji’s problem was-
Actually, scratch that he did. Ever since they had come home from Biosyn Valley, Kenji was acting like Darius was going to steal Brooklyn from him. Which he totally wasn’t, by the way! He respected Kenji way too much to do anything of that sort. The two hadn’t yet had an extensive conversation about the whole yeah-he-used-to-have-a-crush-on-Brookyln-but-now-he-was-totally-over-that-phase (mostly) and now he was acting like he was going to steal Ben next.
Darius sighs and lets Kenji be. Now was not the time to fight an uphill battle with someone as stubborn as Kenji.
“I don’t care who takes me. I think lying down sounds like a really good idea right now.” Ben mutters. He gradually begins to feel less nauseous, but he’s still spent. Maybe his girlfriend had been right. Before the break he had been pushing himself a little trying to build his strength while also attending school full time. Not to mention he hadn’t been sleeping his best either.
“Get some rest, Ben. You deserve it!” Sammy coaxes. “It’s been a long day after all preparing food all day. The rest of us can clean up a little bit. And we can take the photo tomorrow. When we’re all freshened up.”
“Yeah. We can turn it into a competition. Whoever’s done with chores last has to set up the air mattresses.” Yazmina smirks, knowing she’s already except from the challenge. She always wins.
“Oh you’re on.” Brookyln returns her own challenging grin, eyes twinkling.
“Kenji, I can get up on my own.” Ben sighs, knowing Kenji only wants to help. The older male wears that deflated puppy expression whenever he doesn’t get his way.
“Yeah, Kenj. He’s a big boy. Let him spread his wings a little.” Yaz directs to Kenji’s dejected state. Kenji instantly huffs but gives Ben the space he needs to stand up.
To his credit, Ben does get up on his own without making so much as a single wince. It takes him a moment, but he makes it to his feet okay. Luckily, he’s not dizzy.
Ben determinedly makes his slow ascent upstairs, Kenji not far behind.
“Well, that’s enough excitement for one night.” Sammy lets out a breath once she hears the upstairs door close softly. She turns to Yaz. “You wanna tackle dishes together?”
“It’s a date.” Yaz closes in on her with a soft peck to the lips.
Brooklyn and Darius both exchange glances. Darius gives Brooklyn a sheepish grin, eyebrows softly rising to his hairline. “I get trash duties?”
“Sounds like a plan.” Brooklyn returns the small smile, pushing a strand of hair away and glancing to the side for a moment when his gaze lingers a fraction too long. She goes to put on her prosthetic arm to make the task easier. “I’m going to start on the floor before the ants get any ideas about the crumbs of Sammy’s delicious cooking.”
Darius chuckles and has to agree. “Yeah. We should probably hurry before the girls beat us. Setting up the air mattresses is as difficult as playing Tetris in my living room. Wish it was bigger.”
“Nah, It’s perfect.” Brooklyn looks around the cabin noting Darius had already began setting up for Christmas. The soft glow of fairy lights were reflecting off the tinsel-draped branches of a dino-themed Christmas tree, casting tiny shadows of felt T-rex ornaments along the walls. Once a dino-nerd, always a dino-nerd. She thought with a smile. An old radio was faintly heard, but she couldn’t quite place the song. The room gave off a timeless nostalgic vibe.
“It feels like home.” She adds sincerely, her gaze finally returning back to Darius, who’s eyes hadn’t left her the whole time.
Darius smile turned wistful. He finally turns his attention to the table to survey the amount of trash he’d have to clean. He looks at her like he wants to say something important, but instead he just says, “I’m glad you’re back, Brooklyn. We’ve missed you.”
“Aw. Same Dino-nerd.” She grabs him to pull him in for a hug, wrapping both arms around him; one real, one prosthetic.
Darius stiffens at first, but then he returns it with a tight squeeze, reminding himself that she was real and alive. She smelled like shampoo and vanilla.
Brookyln is the first to pull away, looking at Darius with a guilty look. “And I’m sorry about Kenji being weird lately. Me and him are trying to pick up where we left off, but I feel like a completely different person now. It’s complicated. He won’t take it out on me, but it tends to come out in different ways…with other people. I think it’s just easier for him to take the path of least resistance. Ever since…ya know. Us.” She outwardly cringes.
“Yeah. Us.” Darius echoes, also cringing outwardly. “I’m sorry I made it so weird. I didn’t know you guys were going to get back together. I shouldn’t have put that on you. Like I said, we’re probably just better friends.” He gives her a reassuring smile, but she doesn’t return it. She just looks solemn.
“Are we?”
Darius smile falls, confusion etching his features. What was that supposed to mean?
Brookyln shakes her head, exhaling. She finally gives a tight smile. “Sorry. I- you know what? I think I’m tired too. Forget I said that. I’m glad to be back too. And, no matter what happens, Darius, I’ll always love all of you guys. You guys are my home.”
Darius nods slowly, still apprehensive. The way Brooklyn says it seems a little too personal to be just talking about the general camp fam.
“Same here, Superstar. Now let’s finish up these chores. I’m serious about having to set up the air mattresses. It’s a pain.”
Brooklyn gives a punch to Darius’ shoulder with her prosthetic. “Okay but I’m not going easy on you. I don’t want to set up either.”
“Jeez, that arm feels like getting hit with a bat.” Darius rubs his shoulder with a small pout.
“It makes me feel like a superhero. Bionic-woman. Sometimes it’s easy to forget my own strength.” Brooklyn gives him an apologetic look.
“Even without the arm you’re superwoman!” Darius teases.
“Now that’s just cheesy!” Brooklyn laughs.