Lumi closed his eyes and relaxed a bit at Avrey's soothing. "I don't like it here… it feels like I'm not allowed to touch anything." They murmured softly. "Everything is so cold and clean…" He curled up into a tight ball on the cot at that, looking visibly anxious and pale.
Avrey nodded, pursing his lips while he looked around at the tidy, sterile environment. It was a little unnerving.
"Y-you can touch anything. It's okay. I-I-I wont let those doctors hold you down again." he assured, nodding with sincerity. He gently pulled the sheets around Lumi more, tilting his head while his brow furrowed. "Are you- Are you hungry at all?"
Lumi nodded weakly in response to the question, holding his small hands close to his chest as he stared blankly at the wall. Their stomach growled and they curled up a bit tighter, moving his hands to wrap his arms around his stomach instead. "Yeah… m'always hungry…"
Avrey nodded, stroking Lumi's hair before a nurse entered, setting down an array of food and bringing a few more things to Avrey. he muttered a small thank you, then helped Lumi sit up, showing him the plates of chicken, sandwiches, mac and cheese, jello, and other small meals. "G-good. Because this is all for you." He said with a smile, then handed the boy a small stuffed rabbit. "A-a-and this, too"
Lumi watched curiously as the nurse approached with food, tensing up with unease. He clearly didn't trust any of the medical personnel right now, but they were appeased somewhat by the tray. He picked up half of a sandwich with one hand and stuck it into his mouth, their ears twitching a bit. He froze when Avrey offered the stuffed rabbit to him, clearly taken aback and confused. They had never been given a gift before; had never been in one place long enough to receive one. He glanced up at Avrey before tentatively accepting the toy with his free hand. "Um… t-thanks…" They mumbled quietly.
Avrey smiled while he watched Lumi take the food, yawning while he rested his arms on the side of the bed, still kneeling at its side. He nodded gently, looking down. "O-of course." He said softly, waiting a bit before breaking the silence again. "Rabbits are one of my favorite animals." He blurted, twiddling his fingers while he tried earnestly to make Lumi feel comfortable and safe. "M-m-my mom used to live in scotland, a-and sometimes we'd visit my grandparents there. Th-there's a ton of bunnies, and I would try to catch them." He laughed, staring back at old memories.
Lumi busied himself with eating pretty much everything that he could with one hand, since he was still holding the toy rabbit with the other. They did listen to Avrey's story, but didn't process much of it. After all, they weren't exactly familiar with Scotland or the concept of visiting family members. Even after he started to feel full, he wanted to keep eating since he wasn't used to having access to safe food like this. They tucked some food away in the drawer of the table beside them as well, listening to his usual habit of saving bits of food for when he was unable to find any. "That's cool… I dunno what grandparents are. I probably don't have them." They shrugged. "Is Scotland close?"
Avrey grew concerned at Lumi's actions, but disguised it the best he could with a smile. "H-hey, it'll go bad in there! We can put it in the fridge i-if you don't want to finish it yet." He said gently, taking the food out of the drawers. Then, quieter, "N-no one is going to take it. I Promise. I-I-It's all for you, not even for me. All yours." He affirmed, kneeling back down beside the bed. He then gently wiped Lumi's face, shaking his head. "A-and you can slow down. Y-you'll get sick i-if you eat too fast."
He sighed, then smiled again, thinking before answering the boy's questions. "Grandparents… they're like parents. But usually older. A-a-and I bet you do. Or, y-you could even find some. A-and scotland, i-it's super far. it's on a little i-island in europe.
Lumi turned his ears back and seemed to grow a bit defensive when Avrey took their stash out of the drawer, but reluctantly allowed it at his explanation. He looked somewhat uneasy, and held the toy rabbit close now that they weren't distracted by eating. He closed his eyes and huffed a bit while Avrey was cleaning his face, and then listened to him speak. "Okay… if you say so. If I've got any, I've never met 'em. I barely even remember what my mom looks like, and I never met my dad. I don't think my mom looked much like me, so I guess I must take after my dad."
Avrey nodded, stroking a tuft of soft, unruly hair out of Lumi's face while he sighed understandingly. "Th-that's okay. I-I never really met my dad either. He left my family when I was really little." He said softly, clearing his throat. "B-but I bet you look a lot like him. I barely even look like my mom either." He smiled drawing back to give Lumi some space. "D-do you need anything else? They can get you anything here. Last time I was at a hospital I-… I…." He paused, seeming to shrink while his expression went cold and his eyes gazed off somewhere else. "…n-n-nevermind."
"From what I remember, my mom said that my dad died. I don't remember how, though, and it must've been before I was born." Lumi turned on his side and curled up, holding the rabbit plush closer to their chest as they reminisced. "My mom… has eyes like mine, I think. But… brown hair." He squinted a bit as though to focus the vague mental picture he had of his mother. "She always looked tired. I think she's probably doing better without me." Lumi quivered a bit at that thought and held tighter to the toy Avrey had given them. They hid their face, his ears flattened back against his head. "I don't need anything… t-thanks…"
Avery watched the boy speak, nodding while he listened. He smiled as Lumi described their mother, then saddened once he continued.
"No. I-I bet she misses you a lot. Some moms… s-some moms sometimes can't take care of their kids, so they let them be taken care of by other families. Y-you mom loves you. She w-wants the best for you." He said, eyes tearing slightly while he sighed and sat back in the couch. "W-well, let me know if you do." He added, smiling at how attached Lumi was to their rabbit already. I want him to have more than this, though.
"B-But my other families didn't want me either. I'm… I-I'm too much. I'm a bad influence on their kids. I c-can't… do things right." Lumi sniffled a bit, keeping his face buried. "They tried to put me in school, b-but I caused trouble… I couldn't keep still like they wanted me to and I'm not very good at learning, apparently. I'm a bad kid… that's why I ran away to be on my own. Then those…" They considered, but then decided that they shouldn't say what they were thinking. "They don't have to put up with me anymore."
Avrey shook his hand, standing to be at Lumi's side once more. Why the hell did they make him think like this??
"Lumi, L-lumi stop. Listen to me." He said, cupping the boy's face gently in his hands. "L-look at me. You. Are not. A bad kid. You've done nothing wrong, o-okay?" He leaned back, knowing they didn't like to be touched as they pulled his hands back to his sides. "L-listen, I… I could never sit still in class either. I-I had no friends, and I-I-I…." He chuckled distantly, shaking his head. "I can't even t-talk right. B-but it's okay." He knelt down to be at Lumi's level, smiling softly. "I-I care about you, Lumi. And I don't think you're a bad kid at all. Y-you're one of the best kids i've met."
From behind him, a small crowd of ghosts cheered, and he momentarily glared at them to shut them up.
Lumi looked up at Avrey weakly, trembling lightly in his hands. They leaned into the gentle touch, and whined softly when Avrey pulled away. "Mmnh… b-but you barely even know me…" He whispered softly, closing his eyes and clinging tighter to his plushie. "I-I could be an awful kid and you wouldn't know it. What if… w-what if you get tired of me too…?" Lumi's breathing hitched and they seemed more upset at this thought. Tears stung their eyes, and he started to shake a bit more. "You won't… you won't leave me…?"
Avrey felt his fear, the comfort he seemed to bring to the boy, and he slowly returned his touch, holding Lumi's tiny hands in his.
"I-I-I know, I know. B-but I can tell who you are." He smiled, tapping his head. "A-and you're really special."
He smoothed a hand through their hair, holding him still while he positioned himself to sit on the bed.
"P-p-people…. th-they thought I was an awful kid too. I-I-I don't want anyone else to feel that way. I-I'll never get tired of you, okay? I just-just want to take care of you. I-I want you to be happy."
He brought his hands back down to Lumi's nodding while he sincerely looked into their eyes.
"I won't leave, ever."
Lumi gripped Avrey's hands, biting his lip as his tears threatened to spill over. They shuddered at first when Avrey ran his hand through their hair, but he soon relaxed into the touch with his eyes closed. They tended to act out and cause trouble when they wanted attention, and his sets of foster parents couldn't handle all of his issues. They curled up tighter and sniffled, keeping close to Avrey. "Why… do you want to take care of me…?"
Avrey smiled, continuing his gentle touch on the boy while his own tears were on the brink of trickling down his face. He gently rubbed Lumi's hands, sighing gently while he thought of a response. Why?
"Because… B-because you deserve it. You deserve to be taken care of, a-and I want to do it."
"What do I deserve it for? I haven't done anything to earn it." Lumi replied weakly, avoiding eye contact with Avrey. "I'm just a random kid that ran away to… to live alone on the streets. I'm… I don't deserve to be taken care of… and I can take care of myself okay, can't I? I've survived this long."
Avrey smiled, putting a hand to the side of Lumi's face to look at him better.
"B-because you shouldn't take care of yourself. Y-you're still a kid, a-and you need a good place to live. Y-you deserve a good home to grow up in, a-a-and I want to help you. I want to, really."
Lumi seemed uncomfortable to meet Avrey's eyes and looked away again, tilting his chin down and out of the man's hold. "But… it's good to be independent, isn't it? So people don't have to take care of me…?" They looked down at the IV in their arm, clearly disturbed by it.