A Gift Just For You (Amos)

[Appoline Meian]

A package arrives at the dorm, taken in by the monitor as they sign for it. The package is addressed to Amos Freeman, and for a few days it is left at the front desk. After a while, someone going through the mail is reminded that Amos is sick with pneumonia and takes the package to his room, handing it to a roommate while the boy is asleep.


A couple hours later, Amos will see the following on his nightstand; a small rectangular object that looks suspiciously like a book wrapped in misty white wrapping paper. The note on the package has his name and room number, as well as a stamp since it has been sent by post. There is also an envelope attached by a ribbon to it, with his name written on it.

[Amos Freeman]

Amos stirred woozily; his attempt to fight consciousness was valiant, but ultimately futile. He sniffed heavily, coughed a bit, and fought his way into a passable sitting position.

His life had become a vicious cycle. The more he slept, the more he wanted to sleep. The more time he spent awake, the more he hated the fact that he was currently banned from using his powers... and the more he resorted to sleeping.

It took him a few moments to notice the neatly wrapped package on his nightstand. He blinked at it, rather perturbed at the fact that it must have been placed there while he was sleeping. He thought of the many people living in the dorms who were less than fond of him, and hoped that it wasn't some sort of explosive.

To be fair, explosives weren't usually trimmed with pretty ribbons. Also (he thought with a hint of dry amusement), nobody who would want to blow him up had the patience required to wrap anything that neatly.

He wiped his nose on the edge of his sleeve because being sick for weeks had made him lose all sense of decorum. Then, he reached out, gripped the package with both thin, pale hands, and lifted it into his lap.

He flipped it over, intrigued, and began systematically unfastening the tape that held the carefully folded edges in place. He really hated to rip wrapping paper of any sort; even though he didn't generally reuse it, it felt like a terrible waste.

When he had freed the contents of the package, he stared blankly for a few moments at the heathered cardboard back of what he recognized to be some sort of frame. He flipped it over again and blinked thrice.

It was a drawing of him. More precisely, it was a drawing of him that had been made by Appoline Meian, apparently framed by her, and then sent to him as a gift. The idea that she had gone to so much trouble gave Amos a pang of sentiment and happiness and guilt.

He hadn't called her in a while, now that he thought of that.

He set the framed picture gingerly to the side; he'd have to find some way to hang it up later. He plucked his cell phone from its place on the charger dock and flipped through his phone book in an attempt to find her number.

He stopped scrolling when he reached the entry titled 'Appoline - Home', and pressed the call button.

[Appoline Meian]

Appoline had been sitting at the dining room table, doing her homework. Her parents were still at the school, and though she tried to concentrate on her geometry algorithms the numbers kept jumbling up. She was worried; her sister had been sick, and just when she got better, her dad got badly injured by a student. They both would be fine, but it seemed more and more like coming to Pilot Ridge had caused more harm than good to the family.


The phone started ringing loudly, and the girl looked up, tucking her hair back behind one ear to hear more clearly. Yes; the house phone was ringing. Standing, the young lady moved towards the wall phone in the kitchen and picked it up, tuning her hearing aids to a more acceptable level for phone conversation before answering.


"Hello, Meian-Kenjutsushi residence," she greeted, a slight question in her voice. The wall phone didn't have caller-ID, but the phone rang so rarely nowadays unless it was for her mother.

[Amos Freeman]

"Hi... Appoline?" Amos hazarded a guess. "It's Amos."

He felt a familiar hitch in his chest and covered the microphone on his cell while he coughed.

"Sorry about that. Um, thank you for the package," he pressed on slightly awkwardly. "The frame is really, um, awesome. I'll have to find a way to put it up on the wall."

Another pause.

"Um, Juniper told me about your dad. Is he okay? We were both, um, pretty worried."

He hoped he wasn't overstepping his boundaries by asking something like that.

[Appoline Meian]

The girl's eyes widened slightly, and a pale flush lit over her cheeks. It was Amos! She hadn't heard from the boy since he'd gotten sick, and she missed him terribly. "Y-yes! That's right," she stammered. "H-hello again."


her brow creased in worry a little as he coughed, but she shook her head at his apology, regardless of the fact that he couldn't see it. Old habits. "Oh no, don't worry about it. I... I heard you got sick, so I wanted to make sure you go something to make you feel better. Do.. do you really like it?" While the girl was an exceptional artist, she never really had faith that others liked her work. She'd drawn that picture months ago and had spent the last few weeks adding a background that wasn't too busy and picking out the right frame. She'd hoped he would enjoy it.


Then, he asked about her dad. The joy left in an instant and was replaced by more worry. Her dad had been hurt, but didn't want their mom to heal him. Still, he didn't seem really bad off. "Um... yes, he'll be all right. It was a fight with a student, we think. Mother said they had a misunderstanding, and someone's powers backlashed. I... I think they're both going to be okay, though; Father has an appointment with a doctor in town later this week, and the other boy is recovering."


At least, that's what her dad had told her. She wasn't sure she believed him, but it was for the best, she supposed.


"Um... is there anything I can do for you? I heard you were really sick, so... If there's anything at all..."

[Amos Freeman]

"Hey," Amos replied with a grin that was present in his voice. "Sorry if it's, um, a bad time to call. I just woke up and saw your present here, so...."

He cleared his throat in an attempt to make talking easier. He'd done it so often that his throat was kind of sore.

"I love it, really," he assured the girl. "Um, you're a super great artist, seriously. Have you thought any more about doing some comics or artwork for the Bugle? I think it would be awesome to, like, run something like that alongside an article. Um, just saying."

He noticed the change in her tone as she discussed her father's condition, and he found himself nodding even though no one was around to see him do it.

"I'm really glad he's okay," he murmured, using one idle hand to fiddle with his top layer of blanket. "The way people were talking about it, it sounded kind of, um, intense, so... yeah, I guess they were just being sensational. It has been known to happen around Hammel."

He cough-laughed at his weak attempt at a joke, then quickly changed the subject.

"Yeah, the past two weeks have been pretty lame, uh, just because I haven't been able to do anything. I can't even use my powers right now. But I'm feeling a lot better, honestly. You've already done, um, way more than enough, seriously. But if you want to come to the dorm and bring a movie or something, I'm not gonna stop you."

He laughed again.

[Appoline Meian]

Appoline blushed, suddenly glad she was alone. "Oh.. well, yes, I've been working on something..." she murmured, biting her lip as she glanced to her sketchbook. "Mostly I've been drawing the koi, but if... if we can get permission... I have, um, a few drawings of classes and students as well... Would that be all right?"


She didn't know much about how the school newspaper ran, but after the holidays were over she was thinking of signing up for the quarter. Just as a freelance artist, of course - the transfer student was far too shy to do interviews or anything like that.


Once again, she nodded. It was a strange position to be in, a child worrying about their parent. It was supposed to be the other way around, wasn't it? "There was a little scare," she replied softly. "But I think people just panicked or something. Everyone should be okay in a few days, from what Mother says." Thinking about it for a moment, she hesitantly asked, "Umm... maybe... if... well, maybe you can do an article about it when you feel better? I mean... just to make sure people don't keep spreading rumors around. I bet that boy is worried about how it sounds, too..."


"Oh! Well, that's good!" Appoline always liked when people were feeling well instead of ill. "Um... if you like, I... well, my mother and I watch cartoons sometimes, and we have a few series on DVD... would you like me to come over with them sometime?"

[Amos Freeman]

"That sounds awesome," Amos said as enthusiastically as he could with snot trying to ooze out of his nose. He decided to spare Appoline those particular details. "I don't think permission will be, um, much of a problem, to be honest. I'll let you know after I talk to our advisor."

There was a beat of silence after her request, and Amos nodded decisively.

"Yeah, sure. I mean, um, with your dad's consent, obviously. But yeah, I think a lot of people would be relieved to read an update and have it settled. It's better to, uh, you know... get the story straight on that sort of thing before it blows way out of proportion."

He coughed a few times, which was painful; frustrated, he unwrapped another cough lozenge.

"That would be spectacular," he said thickly, clicking the cherry-flavored drop between his teeth. "I mean, I have nothing to do at all on any day, so um... you can just come by whenever it suits you, I guess. I might be asleep, but that's fine... it's not like I haven't gotten plenty of sleep lately or anything."

He realized that his enthusiasm could be misconstrued as rudeness, so he amended.

"I mean, if you want, obviously."

[Appoline Meian]

"Oh... well, yes, of course," the girl stammered, fiddling with her white lock nervously. She hadn't meant to sound like she was prying into something not her business, but... well, she just wanted things cleared up was all! "Yes... that was the idea. It's a little unnerving, you know?"


Well, maybe Amos didn't as his own parents weren't teachers here, but it was something that people could relate to in general.


The cough on the other end of the phone made her worry, though. If she could cook (or her dad weren't hurt), she'd try making him some soup. Tom Kah always made her feel a little better, and it could be made with tofu. As the sound of wax paper crinkling came over the phone, the teen idly wondered if there was a Thai place somewhere in town, but her attention came back when the sick boy spoke. "Oh! I wouldn't want to impose if you were asleep... But, um... what kinds of cartoons do you like? We've got a few, though they mostly belong to my mother..."


"I do want to!" The words slipped out before she realized it, and a hand jumped to her lips with a small gasp. Appoline was never that bold, and her cheeks tinged red at the sudden rudeness. "Oh... but um... but only if you feel like having visitors..."