"What if Their Best Friend Died"

Skylar

Best Friend: Oculi

*I don't really know what specific TW to give for this one, just, uh, be careful, haha*

From the moment he woke up, Sky had sensed that something was off. He couldn't quite figure what exactly, however. Everything seemed normal. His and Kage's routine went about as usual, Agnar burst through the door as usual, still startling Ingall, and then, not even an hour later, Kage, Garvin, Quincy, Agnar, and Akira had all run off to cause some mischief that was sure to give Maya a heart attack. Ingall then excuses himself to go find Maya and hang out with her and Clio.

After that, Skylar found himself walking around the apartment mindlessly, his anxiety finally getting the best of him now that there were no more distractions. Sighing and silently scolding himself for being unable to handle his own emotions, Sky walked over to Oculi's door and knocked lightly. Maybe they could re-dye each other's hair, it was about time anyway.

His eyes narrowed when there was no reply, and he knocked again, a little louder. It wasn't unusual for Oculi to sleep in, maybe they were just sleeping a little deeper this morning.

"Uli?" Still no answer, not even to the given nickname. Furrowing his brow, Sky took a shaky breath. "Um, are you okay? I'm going to come in if you don't answer, okay?"

No answer.

Nervously, Sky reached down and twisted the door handle, and, upon finding it unlocked, gently pushed open the door. Oculi was easy to spot, light pink hair very visible against the pillow that they lay on. They looked mostly unscathed, if not a little paler than normal, not worryingly so, though.

Humming softly, Skylar entered further and walked over to kneel next to the bed. Oculi was fully covered by several layers of blankets, making them look almost like a child, peaceful and smothered, maybe a little unnecessarily. A small smile touched Sky's lips, they were kind of adorable.

"Hey, Uli, you should get up now, it's nearly noon and the others have left by now. What do you say we have a hair dye session and then read a bit, hm?" He reached out and gently brushed a strand of hair from Oculi's face, freezing when his fingers touched the skin of his friend's cheek accidentally. It was cold. Too cold.

The anxiety resurfaced and Sky carefully rested his palm against Oculi's skin, flinching at the utter lifelessness. "Uli? Hey, wake up please."

Skylar shook Oculi, gently at first, and then more urgently. They didn't react. No flutter of the eyelids, not gasped breath, no twitch of the fingertips.

Nothing.

Sky's breathing accelerated and a strangled cry escaped his lips. Desperate not to lose his closest friend, he crawled up onto the bed and pulled Oculi to him, shuddering how stiff their limbs were. Tears fell and, breathing rapidly, Skylar channeled all the healing energy he could manage into his friend, ignoring the logical voice in his head warning that they were already gone.

He couldn't accept that he couldn't do anything, so he drained himself completely, until he physically couldn't give anymore and collapsed onto Oculi's still chest, only strong enough to sob quietly and cling to his friend's shirt.

He wasn't sure how much time had passed before the main apartment door swung open and Kage's cheerful voice filled the apartment.

"Babe, I'm home!"

Skylar just stared weakly at the door, hot liquid still spilling down his face uncontrollably.

"Sky? Everything alright? Where are ya?" Footsteps came closer and Sky let out a soft whimper, watching with blurred vision as Kage entered the room and froze, green eyes widening. "Oh God. Okay… okay, hold on. Hold on, I'll… I'll get help. Maya or Chile or something. Just… just give me one second. Everything will be fine, love, I swear."

Then he was gone, rushing out of the room and down the hall. It was only a couple of minutes before the door opened again, though, and Kage became visible, followed closely by Chile, Maya, and Ingall. Maya covered her mouth, tears in her eyes, and Ingall looked away, clenching his jaw while Chile took in a shaky breath.

They seemed to be talking, or, at the very least, their mouths were moving, but Skylar was slowly losing orientation and was only half aware of what was going on. Only half aware that Kage was pulling him away from Oculi, only half aware that he clung so hard to his friend's shirt that it took both Chile and Kage to get him off. Only half aware that he was being carried out of the room and laid up on his own bed. Only half aware that Kage was next to him the whole time, whispering words into his ear, apologizing, brushing his fingers through his hair. Only half aware that he'd lost Oculi for good.

All he knew was his head was buzzing in a confusing way and he felt so weak that he couldn't move even if he tried. So he didn't try. He just lay there, helpless and confused, and, after God knows how long, Skylar's vision changed, slowly becoming darker and then completely black. His mind went quiet and blank, and his limbs relaxed completely.

He didn't fight, didn't attempt to move to a more comfortable position, he just let the darkness take over and, completely drained and exhausted, fell into the abyss of sleep.