As the former Lost One begins to fade, the team of spirit hunters regroups at Andre's current location.
Cody: "Holy shit Dre, that was amazing. You awakened your abilities faster than expected."
Nia:*nods in agreement* "And your ability to know where the trauma stemmed from was quite amazing as well."
"Well, it was less guesswork and more like I could feel my Side Sprit; she spoke to me and told me I could relate," *Andre says, thinking about his loss of family*
"Well, we aren't ones to pry in personal matters; all that matters is that you did a great job here today, and if you want, we'd love to have ya on the team," *Leon says to comfort him*
"Yeah, We are not nosy around here," *Dzzy says with a bright, reassuring smile*
"Well, I appreciate it," *Andre says with a smile back*
"Let's call it a day. Trust me; you'll need it after fully awakening to your Side Spirit. Also, I got to file paperwork to the higher-ups on a job well done." *Leon says stretching
"Really? I feel fi-" *Andre holds his head and appears woozy as he falls over, nearly hitting the ground*
"Woah there!" *Nia calls out, catching him from falling over and letting him lean on her shoulder. She turns her head to Cody* "I'll carry him to your car, Cody." *she walks off with Andre to Cody's car*
"Thanks for the help, but I've got to say you've some excellent reflexes there," *he says groggily*
*Smiles* "I appreciate it, but save the praise for when you're fully conscious," *she says, getting the door for him and carefully laying him inside * "There you go, try to get some rest. I hope to see you tomorrow. You make a great teammate."
"Thanks all. Think about it...."*He says as his eyes fully close, and he falls into another deep sleep* "..."
*Runs up to the car* "Sorry about the wait, Nia. I was watching the football game. It was intense."
"There aren't any games airing this late, though," *she says, raising an eyebrow*
"Oh no, I was talking about the paper football game Mr.Davis and Dzzy were having. Shit was intense," *he says, recounting it vividly*
*Looks to Cody blankly* "Just take Andre home already." *She walks off back toward the office building*
"Geez, well, let's head back to Grandma's place,"*he says to the unconscious Andre while taking the front seat and starting the car with a cross of the fingers, indicating a return to the real world.
45 Minutes Later
*Parks his car into the gravel-filled parking lot* "Alright, we're back, so please wake up, Dre." *he waits for a response from him*
"ZZ" *his still body unresponsive to the plea*
*he lets out a heavy sigh of frustration* "Wake up, Wakes Up, Wakes Up," *he says while poking Andre in the side*
*Squirms in response before he suddenly grabs the finger poking his side and squeezing it tightly*
"OWWW OWWW Jeez Louise Dre." *he yelps and yanks his hand away and blows on it*
Andre:*Awakes to the sound of Cody's yelp*
"Oh, we're home," * he says groggily* "Damm, dude, what happened to your finger?"
Cody:*Gives a pouting face* "Nothing, let's just go inside already."
"Alright." *He exits the car and heads up to the doorstep and, grabbing a key from out of his pocket* "If you were in such a rush, why didn't you use your key?"
"...Don't worry about" *Cody says, looking away*
*Shakes his head while he unlocks and opens the door* "I'll ask and see if you can get a new one."
*Andre and Cody Enter the house*
"Did we leave the lights on?" *Andre says, looking past the living room furniture into the kitchen*
Cody: "Nah, I'm pretty sure we cut them off." *he says, a little freaked out* "You go first. I'm a little scared now."
"You just fought a monster lion, but an intruder scares you," *Andre says, looking back with disapproval*
"Bro, this is way scarier. This is the fear of the unknown," *Cody says, trying to push Andre forward, but he lacks such strength*
*Rolls his eyes in response* "Alright, man," *Andre says, turning the corridor* "Grandma?" *he says upon seeing his grandma cleaning in her morning robes*
*Turns around, closing the oven she was cleaning; she takes out her earbuds* "Oh hey boys, you're back already?"
"Yeah, I had assumed we'd be gone all night; that's why I left the note, but what are you doing up so late?"
Cody stops his head out from behind Andre* "Heya, Grandma."
"Hey, Cody baby, But to answer your question, sweetheart, I just can't sleep some nights, so I clean to pass the time a bit, is all," *she says with a small chuckle* "But I'm guessing you took Andre to meet your friends at that one job."
"Yeah, he might even work with us there," * he says, fully in view with a big grin on his face*
"Oh, that sounds lovely, baby. You can leave that tech job," *she says with a warm smile*
"I'm not 100% on it just yet. I don't think I'm suited for it exactly." *he says, feeling a bit anxious*
"Why is that sweetheart?" *she says, confused*
"Well, it's kinda hard to explain, to be honest."
"I'll hear you out when the suns up. I'm going to go lay down." *he says, not buying his excuse*
"Good night, baby," *she says, waving to Cody*
Take this opportunity to follow the lead* "Yeah, I was thinking about heading to bed too, actually."
Grandma Middleton: "Well, that's a shame. I was just about to make a nice pot of coffee."
:".....Well, I guess I can stay up for a bit." *Andre says the mention of a cup getting him to change his mind*
*10 minutes Later
"Here you are," *she says, placing his coffee next to him and taking a seat in front of him*
*Andre blows it off a bit and takes a nice long sip* "Ahhhh, you know you always make it perfect, Grandma."
Grandma Middleton: "I gotta know what my baby boy likes," *she says with a sweet smile and reaches over to pinch his cheek*
Andre: "Come on, Grandma, I'm too old for that. I'm a grown man," *he says, a little embarrassed*
"Nonsense, you'll always be my baby, but more importantly, what's up with you not wanting this job all this "I'm not suited" business?" *she says after taking a small sip of her coffee*
".....The job is helping people come to peace with things, I guess," *he says, giving a vague description of the job* "Someone like me isn't in a good enough place to give advice... I've got my fair share of issues."
*sigh* Oh sweetheart, that makes you great for the job; sometimes reassurance can only come from someone you know is struggling too." *she says compassionately*
*Andre Sits wide-eyed for a second* "...You always know just what to say, Grandma."
*Grandma Middleton smiles* "You don't live this long without having a wise word or two, so what do you say, give that job a chance?"
*He Smiles* "Yeah, that sounds good" *he says reflecting on her words*
"That's good to hear, sweetie; now I'm going to head to bed; love you." *she says, getting up and walking to her room*
"Love you too; I'm going to finish off this coffee before I lay down again," *Andre says, pouring another cup*
After about 10 minutes and the entirety of a coffee pot later
".....Reassurance, huh?" *Andre says, looking down the hall at his old room and thinking about the baseball bat in the room*
Chapter End