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[i][u]Location:[/u] Okada Clinic
[u]Interacting With:[/u]  Jesse Callaghan[sup][@murdoc][/sup]
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King was floating. Awake but at the same time not, he hung suspended in an air of white, feeling much too warm and much too detached to enjoy the experience. His head didn’t hurt much anymore, save for the occasional pang of remembrance, and his body felt as though it were covered by a variety of invisible pillows, pillows that suffocated him in a comforting and heavy air. Painkillers were a magical thing. They managed to fill his mind with enough fluff to even make the room and bed around him vanish into nothing, leaving him stuck in a pink-white place with only the faintest feeling of dread keeping him weighed down into the real world. 

Floating, floating. White noises, warmth, distant colors, static, far-off shapes and faces. Static, static, rain. Thunder, lightning, rain, storm, pain. Lightning, a face, thunder, [i]his face[/i].
.
[color=E3DAC9][b]“Hey, you awake?”[/b][/color]

King’s eyes shot open at the sudden voice and instantly he groaned in agony, squinting up at a familiar expression. Drugs still weighed at his mind, dragged him down into a state of drowsiness that couldn't quite knock him out fully, and his half-lidded gaze slid lazily around his visitor's face. Questions were swallowed by feelings of highness, covered by various fake pillows that also seemed to coat his body, and his daze was expressed honestly through his confused, groggy face.


[b][color=9e0b0f]“Whosisit?”[/color][/b] King didn't seem to notice the slur in his voice, instead he assumed his question got across and he tried and failed to gain a more quizzical expression. Tilting his head slightly caused some minor discomfort, and he let out a soft ‘tsk’ as red pain momentarily claimed the hazy whiteness of his mind and vision. He tried again, however, turning as much as he could until he was able to see the entire figure standing over him. [b][color=9e0b0f]“Who’s there?”[/color][/b] He asked again, voice low and growling and mixed with pain and grogginess.

[color=E3DAC9][b]“It’s Jesse, you dumbass.”[/b][/color]

Now, Jesse didn’t usually take pleasure in the misfortune of others, but the dazed confusion so utterly apparent on King’s face was enough to elicit from him a snicker. The guy looked to be in about as bad a shape as he was - save the bruised jaw, of course - and from the way he spoke, it was plainly obvious that they had him under a veritable dose of painkillers and sedatives. He was almost tempted to pull out his phone, capture a video of this incredible sight, but he wasn’t [i]that[/i] much of an asshole. No matter how much of a dick King could be, there was still a part of Jesse that sympathised with him, and hey, he wasn’t [i]nearly[/i] as bad as Logan. At least the former didn’t feel the need to break his nose every time he even [i]looked[/i] at him wrong.

Sliding into the chair at King’s bedside, he shot him a scrutinizing gaze, eyes narrowing. [i]God[/i], what was he thinking, coming here? How could he expect him to know [i]anything[/i] about what happened? In his current state, King could barely even string a coherent sentence together, let alone recount the events that’d put him here. He would’ve been better off relying on the paper-thin rumours that circulated in school.

Of course, he [i]could[/i] just up and leave. King didn’t seem to have regained his bearings yet, and Jesse was willing to bet that if he left right now, the other would chalk this whole thing up to a drug-induced hallucination. If nothing else, it’d save the both of them some really, [i]really[/i] awkward conversation, but Jesse had never been one for doing things the easy way, had he?

[color=E3DAC9][b]“You look like shit, dude.”[/b][/color] Involuntarily, the words spilled past his lips, though there was no real malice in his voice. [color=E3DAC9][b]“What the hell happened?”[/b][/color]

[b][color=9e0b0f]“Jesse?”[/color][/b] King’s eyes fluttered and shook for a moment, but eventually his lips pulled into a cocky, familiar smirk. [b][color=9e0b0f]“Jesse~? Callaghan~? How's it hangin’, homo?”[/color][/b] His words were stunted and messily strewn together, making him sound more like a drunkard than a teen, and his expression read of dim satisfaction. Though he still couldn't focus entirely on Jesse’s own face his mind and eyes easily managed to pick up on the cloud of colors surrounding him, his emotions, but looking at the wavering feelings made his head burn and stomach flip. It was like at the party, everything had mixed together in his drunken mind, appearing psychedelic and formless and honestly it was rather sickening to remember such an experience.

Jesse just rolled his eyes at King. How [i]painfully[/i] middle-school. Perhaps a few years ago, he would’ve been offended by such a comment, but he likes to think he’s gotten past that.

[b][color=9e0b0f]“I look like shit, really?”[/color][/b] King pursed his lips as the faintest hint of shock filled his voice. [b][color=9e0b0f]“I'm hot always, right? Y-You're just lying like a jackass, right? Right?”[/color][/b] He wanted to move, perhaps lift a hand to pat his or Jesse’s face, but his body remained stagnant and heavy thanks to the weight in his brain. Lips parted into a slight grimace as his brows furrowed together, and the color of purple frustration came and went through the waves of emotion above him. He was mad, was he? What did Jesse say again? Thoughts curled in his mind like fog, confusing and unreadable, and then all at once he was back to staring up in blank unawareness.

[color=E3DAC9][b]“No, I’m serious.”[/b][/color] Jesse quipped, leaning back in his chair, mouth pressed into a tight-lipped smirk. [color=E3DAC9][b]“You look terrible. Just the worst, really.”[/b][/color]

He wasn’t going to lie… this was pretty funny, and if he had to be honest, he liked King a lot better this way. Sure, if he squinted, he could still see the remnants of [i]‘insufferable shithead’[/i] that’d been left untouched by sedatives, but it was an indisputable fact that high-as-fuck-King was much more tolerable than regular-King.

[b][color=9e0b0f]“Mmm, I can't see you,”[/color][/b] King tried to turn his head again but a pang of agony twisted his expression and kept him still. [b][color=9e0b0f]“I can't see you but I'm sure you look bad. Were you at the party~?”[/color][/b] Hazy faces popped up in my brain, people who he remembered from last night, and Jesse wasn't among them. King wasn't exactly trusting himself currently, though, and without waiting for a definite answer he barreled forward,

[b][color=9e0b0f]“Dude, like, last night was crazy, huh? D-Drunk teens all in one place is never a good idea!”[/color][/b] He bit his lip slightly, sweat forming at his temple, [b][color=9e0b0f]“The storm was fucked– too loud– and… And– Dani Wells… Dani died? Did she?”[/color][/b] King groaned, eyes squeezing shut as waves of red clutched at his heart and head. [b][color=9e0b0f]“I saw the murderer’s emotions, see? They were bright yellow! And I got rocked. He hit my head I think, and–”[/color][/b] A memory pulled him from his words, a color, sickly pale and gleaming through the wooded darkness. King’s mouth involuntarily pulled into a dark smile, a smile that most definitely did not belong to him. A smile he had chased last night. He shook, trembled despite the warmth that held him down, and his twisting expression focused silently on the sitting figure beside him.

Jesse frowned, brow furrowing. Some of his amusement was gone, giving way to worry and confusion, especially when King bared his teeth in a disconcerting smile. What he said was barely coherent - a broken jumble of facts and questions - just what did he mean by [i]seeing[/i] the murderer’s emotions? Was he also affected by the eclipse? Was all of this connected somehow? King’s muddled recollections of last night seemed to elicit more questions than answers, and Jesse scooted closer to him in curious earnest.

[color=E3DAC9][b]“Murderer? What murderer? What happened to Dani?”[/b][/color] He probably sounded just as confused as he felt, though he regretted asking as soon as the string of questions tumbled past his lips. King was agitated enough as it was, and no matter how much he disliked the guy, sending him into the stress-induced coma he looked to be about two seconds away from [i]did not[/i] seem like a great idea. Still, Jesse couldn’t help squeezing in one last question before he had to make a quick getaway. Maybe King would actually be lucid enough to put together a coherent sentence after he’d had something to eat, but by then, he would’ve gotten answers out of someone a little more agreeable. [color=E3DAC9][b]“You could… [i]see[/i] his emotions? Like an aura, or something?”[/b][/color]

King’s smile faltered, shook, and then vanished all together as his brows knitted into a worried expression that almost exactly copied Jesse’s. The vivid oranges and purples surrounding the boy were already enough to make him forget his last hideous joy-inducing memory, but also they clouded his judgement. King’s eyes grew misty with a concern that did not belong to him, and his head rocked over to lean into the pillow beneath him.

[b][color=9e0b0f]“Emotions– Callaghan, what're you worried about? Me?”[/color][/b] A croaked, confused chuckle slipped out into the air, saturated with whatever other emotions were slipping into King’s subconscious. [b][color=9e0b0f]“Emotions, yeah… Presley said I was an Empath? At the meeting, nerd meeting. Astrono[i]ooo[/i]–”[/color][/b] His eyes shut after a moment, a look of regret crossing over his pale face. 

The few clear memories he had from Monday were sewn together messily, but through it all he knew for a fact Jesse had not been at the meeting. What did Darling say? Or Moon? The skin on his forehead puckered with concentration, an action that in turn caused more sweat to form and drip from the base of his hair, and his lips pulled back into another pained grimace.

[b][color=9e0b0f]“Don't tell… Anyone without powers?”[/color][/b] King’s mouth reacted before his mind did, and his eyes opened wide to stare bewildered up at Jesse. [b][color=9e0b0f]“Oh. You–[i]You[/i] shouldn't know. But did I tell you? Oh...!”[/color][/b] His voice cracked suddenly, and his eyes narrowed as he literally [i]felt[/i] some of the highness in his brain fade away to reveal the agony he had managed to ignore. His breathing hitched slightly, caught in his throat and pumped his chest, and King gritted his teeth in annoyance at the new found awareness in his mind.

Jesse would’ve made a wisecrack about how he should’ve just kept his mouth shut, if he was so scared of people finding out, but he was far too concerned about what King said to do so. Was it really true? The eclipse had given them powers? It sounded like something straight out of a young adult novel, and he wouldn’t even give any of this a second thought if it weren’t for what happened with Logan. Random people off the streets, granted supernatural powers by some strange, cosmic phenomenon, it all added up to a recipe for disaster. If all of this happened to be true… he shuddered to think of the consequences.

[b][color=9e0b0f]“Shit– Callaghan, wha… Did I say much?”[/color][/b] King turned his head again, pressing the back of it into the pillow until he felt an uncomfortable amount of pressure on his wound. [b][color=9e0b0f]“Don't repeat… Calm down, you’re curious… Confused and concerned. Orange, blue, purple. [i]He[/i] was yellow, joy, Rachel Lewis–”[/color][/b] His voice crumbled into discoherent mumbles, eyes half-lidded and stormy. The painkillers were weaker, proven by the rawness he felt from his concussion, but for some reason his mind still felt full of cotton and clouds, and each thought was swept up into a storm that was brewing at the base of his forehead. [b][color=9e0b0f][sub]“Murderer… Still out there…”[/sub][/color][/b]

[color=E3DAC9][b]“...Yeah, you should probably stop talking.”[/b][/color] Jesse murmured, a little half-heartedly, thin lips pressing into an even thinner line. King’s explanation might’ve been jumbled - confused, even - but it did shed some light on the whole situation. From his description of last night’s events, it was clear that there were others like him out there, and they’d already congregated to try and make sense of things. It still wasn’t a concrete lead, of course, but for now, it seemed like it was all that he would be able to get out from King. Jesse was, however, able to pick out a name that stood out from the rest.

[i]Presley[/i].

King was talking about Scout - Jesse knew that much - and he nodded to himself, the motion barely noticeable in the dim lighting of the ward. He knew who he had to talk to next, though along with resolution, he felt a nauseating concern well up in the pit of his stomach. He hadn’t exactly done a headcount of the missing students, but if Scout had been injured as well…

[color=E3DAC9][b]“Alright, dude. You literally look like you’re about to pass out, so I’m just gonna get out of your hair.”[/b][/color] Jesse made to stand, wincing a little at the noise his chair made as its bare, aluminium feet scraped against the linoleum.

[b][color=9e0b0f]“Don't...”[/color][/b] King’s face contorted again at the noise, voice low and grumbling in annoyance. [b][color=9e0b0f]“Don't… Do anything stupid, Callaghan. It– it would probably suck if you died.”[/color][/b] He clicked his tongue again, breathing out loudly through labored lungs. And then, slowly but surely, his face relaxed and his breathing calmed to a gentle rhythm. He was floating again, but it wasn't pink and pearly any longer, instead strips of red stained his dreams, and distant pain kept him from truly fading away to nothingness.

At King’s comment, Jesse almost cracked a smile. [i]Almost[/i]. There was something strangely endearing about the way he said it, almost like he actually gave a shit, but before he could dwell on it any further, he pushed the offending thought to the back of his mind, and headed for the door. There were other things to worry about - things that were much more important than a simple, offhand comment from someone doped up on pain medication. Still, there was a part of him that hoped this slightly more tolerable side of King would last. Maybe they could become something close to friends, if they were all still alive at the end of this.

Without another look back, Jesse left the room. There were too many thoughts in his mind, too many things to do. The limits and capabilities of his power were unknown to him; [i]hell[/i], he still wasn’t sure whether it was even real or not. Doubtlessly, some experimentation was in order. If he wanted to finally convince himself that all this wasn’t just some communal fever dream, that was what he needed to do, and he made a quick note to drop by Scout’s for visit once he’d done so.