TW: Alcohol, depression, mention self destructive behaviour

———

Nickel stormed down the hallway. He was furious. He was only now starting to realize that this may have been a complete mistake... Treating Balloon like that... Balloon was a person. A person with his own problems. Reasons for doing what he did. He pondered the thought, pushing forwards despite his nerves.

Maybe they weren't so different.

He was acting like a complete hypocrite this entire time. Putting up walls to block people out, because he was afraid to be hurt... Again. But, in all honesty. Balloon and him were quite similar, if you looked underneath the surface.

Balloon clearly has been hurt by... Someone... It would explain his trust issues and, his fear of being 'different' or... Whatever that meant. He wanted so badly to be liked by the people he knew wouldn't hurt him. He would rather be around people he knows and watch his mental health decline rather than taking a chance with someone new. Nickel didn't fully understand how he got like that.

It was almost like Balloon doesn't understand that this is hurting him. Maybe because compared to whatever he experienced before, was so much worse that he doesn't even recognize it as mentally damaging.

It was... Sad...

Now that people were getting scared and aggressive towards him, maybe he's afraid something might hurt him again... That people will force him into situations that might do more harm than good. Or... Into a situation that he was in before? Whatever it was.

Nickel sighed. This could've been prevented if he didn't push Balloon... Push everyone. And all for what? To try to hide behind an unhealthy wall of lies?! He'd started to question if it's worth it to keep hiding... If anything is even worth it anymore...?

He's hurt people before.

And if he shows weakness, people will hurt him.

It's how the world works.

There wasn't a way to make everyone happy.

There just wasn't...

Nickel walked up the stairs and shivered. Why was it so cold all of the sudden?! Something was wrong. Very very wrong.

He finished climbing the few steps that were left and saw the hallway was basically a winter wasteland. It was covered in at least two feet of snow, and the winds that were blowing were incredible. Not to mention the walls looked like they had gone through an ice age. Which wouldn't be far off of this kept up.

A frosty sheen decorated the warm stripes of orange that stretched down the wall. The white boards beneath started to collect snow... and air felt as if was in the negatives. Nickel tried to make his way down the hall... but man was it difficult. The floors were slick, and he kept getting pushed back by the wind. The hallway got worse and worse as he continued too. He finally reached the source. His and Balloon's room. He struggles to get the door open and saw Balloon crying hysterically in the centre of the room.

Once again, this kind of cry is NOT the one you'd want to listen to. It almost physically hurt. He hadn't known Balloon—or really anyone was able to cry like that.

Balloon's wings were tightly pressed against his body. He winced every time the cold worsened and his wings grew out even more. Tears poured out of his eyes, snot dropped from his nose and barely fell down his face before they froze. His hands tightly gripped the arm opposite from its own and the nails dug in, they were leaving significant marks now. He shook violently and was nearly choking at this point.

Nickel watched at the doorway. Almost literally frozen from the amount of pain he could feel coming from the other boy. It reminded him of himself. But he knew he couldn't fully relate...

Nickel wanted desperately to comfort him in some way. He felt bad. But he didn't know how. Acting the way he did was all he knew...

Nickel sighed.

He walked towards Balloon, trying not to slip and fall into the snow. Balloon turned his head away. He knew Nickel was there.

"Balloo—?"

"GO AWAY!!!"  Balloon screamed through his waterfall of tears that came down his face. As if his heart was slipping through his fingertips like it was sand. "DAMN YOU!" He seethed, a near wheeze coming from his throat. Like a puppy enable to breathe.

Nickel frowned. And shuddered at the cold. If this kept up Balloon, and him could freeze to death. Both literally and emotionally. Though Balloon's words hurt... He understood why he was so upset. Nickel walked a bit closer. "You shouldn't listen to them... They're all idiots..." Nickel tried to reassure.

Balloon cried harder and screamed into his knees. "NO! IM THE IDIOT FOR THINKING EVEN FOR A SECOND I WOULD HAVE A CHANCE AT ANYTHING!!! IM FREAK! THEYRE SCARED OF ME! DID YOU SEE HOW MAD THEY WERE?! DID YOU SEE HER FACE?!?!" he felt the salty taste of his tears as a few fell into his mouth. "I HURT SOMEONE! GOD DAMN IT!" His voice cracked, his body compressed into his chest.

"Balloon... It was on accident... You can't seriously blame yourself for that." Nickel sighed and tried to move the wing, But Balloon flinched it closer to himself. Nickel moved away slightly. He furrowed his brows.

"I CANT DO THIS ANYMORE NICKEL! I CANT DO IT! EVERYONE HATES ME! I HAVE NO HOPE OF EVER GETTING A JOB! LET ALONE BECOMING A WRITER..." He took a second , since he was hyperventilating. His thoughts were spiralling. "I KEEP MESSING EVERYTHING UP! NOTHING FEELS WORTH IT! IM JUST GONNA BE DISSECTED ANYWAY! OR KICKED OUT! OR— OR—!"

"B-Balloon—!" Nickel spoke up. He really didn't want Balloon to continue this... It was really upsetting him.

"NO! BECAUSE IM TELLING THE TRUTH! I MIGHT AS WELL JUST GIVE UP!!! I WILL NEVER HAVE ANYTHING BECAUSE IM DIFFERENT! I WILL NEVER DO ANYTHING WORTH WHILE! ILL NEVER FUFILL MY DREAMS! AND ILL NEVER FIND ANYONE WHO CARES ABOUT ME—!!!"

"BALLOON!!! WILL YOU SHUT UP?! DAMN IT!" Nickel bellowed through gritted teeth. He seemed angry, which wouldn't be surprising. But... This anger wasn't directed at Balloon.

Balloon tensed up and all of the snow froze in place as if time stopped. He could hear Nickel breathing heavily. A slight doubt in his mind. He wouldn't dare have looked to him, his trembling hands clutched his knees closer.

Nickel moved his wing to see Balloon's face, not allowing him to move away this time.

Balloon's puffy eyes stared into Nickel's now soft, yet stern gaze.

"I care..." Nickel sighed, a slight frown tugging his lips down. "You fucking idiot..." his face trying to betray a bitter chuckle.

Balloon almost stopped breathing for a moment... "you—  y..." he paused. His voice was very quiet. "D-Don't... Do that... don't get my h—hh... Hopes up..." He whispered.

Did a motion as if he was coming in for a hug, nuzzling against the side of his face, as he had no arms to really hug him with. "I'm not...I-I'm sorry this is all happening. I really wish I could change things. You clearly have reasons for acting the way you do. Your own life, your own experiences, and your own trauma. I shouldn't have put you down for the way you were grieving, and defending yourself I... I should've been more open to your experiences and emotions. I spent so much time and energy trying to build my own defences that... I forgot that other people have problems too. I'm really sorry... And you don't need to forgive anyone. Not me, not Suitcase, not any of those assholes... What you've been through is incredibly upsetting... and you have the right to be upset, sad, angry even! But please... Don't just give up. Because... I'm gonna be honest with you... I have no idea what's out there for you. Or for me, but I know that our lives aren't over yet. That you still have potential. I may not have been there before, but I'm here now okay? I promise that if you want, I'll help you every step of the way..." Nickel said softly, trying to sound stern. But it mostly came out as... Heartfelt.

Balloon felt his grip loosening on his body. as he slowly accepted the hug Nickel had been giving him. And buried his face into the other boy, as he cried softly. This felt better than he ever could have thought. "Y-you aren't just... S...saying that to make me stop crying... A-are you...?"

Nickel blinked, "H—No! G-... God, you really have no trust in me?" His voice teased, narrowing his eyes.

"W-well—! I—I just—...!" He panicked, trying to find words. Ones that weren't distrust or fear. But a Nickel cut in.

"Oh, shut it... I'm only joking." Nickel gently nuzzled into him again. And chuckled slightly. "Don't squeeze too hard, you might suffocate me faster than the hypothermia kicks in!"He then nudged Balloon with his knee.

Balloon made a small laugh through his cries. The snow slowly began to melt away and disappear. Which slightly startled him. His eyes turned to the snow rather than Nickel. He couldn't understand why this was happening... But it seemed to be tied to his emotions.

Nickel felt Balloon's wings slowly close around him too, as if it was a second pair of arms for a hug. It felt warm. It felt real. He could tell Balloon had needed this for a long long time. The poor boy was shaking and hyperventilating still, but at the same time seemed so relieved and content with the affection. It was almost as if he craved it, like he was holding on for dear life. Touch starved in a sense.

"I can go grab some breakfast for us if you're hungry...?" Nickel asked in a soft voice, slowly tilting his head.

Balloon stayed silent for a little longer. Knowing if he answered the hug would cease. But alas, all good things come to an end, what a tragedy it was. "That... That would be nice..." He muttered, his last tears falling down his face.

"Alright, I'll go get some." Nickel properly stood up straight, then turned to the door. "I'll also get some painkillers for your wings." Nickel cracked a little more of a smile.

"O-okay... thank you..." Balloon nodded quickly wiped the speckles of tears and snow from his face.

Nickel turned to exit the room. Still clueless to if his apology had been accepted or not, but, he knew he didn't deserve it, even if Balloon did accept his apology. He continued down the now clear of snow hallway. The carpets were damp, and slightly chilled. And the slight sheen of remaining frost on the ground was enough to be noticeable... But the cold was calming in a sense.

———

Lightbulb burst through the hotel doors with a little spin. "Heyy guys! Check it out! I grew wings and Baxter turned into a Crab dragon— dra- c- crab— CRAGON! Yeah... Cragon!" She chuckled, walking in proudly.

Paintbrush walked in slightly behind Lightbulb wide eyed, and their bristles a mess due to the winds. They held their forehead with a slight panicked expression. Trying to keep their cool.

"I'm sorry, WHAT...?!" Test Tube dropped what she was doing. Her coffee mug clattered down against the table and she shot up from the decorative couch. Fan blinked, flinching back as Test Tube did so.

"T—Test Tube! Wait..." He stood up after her dodging the small puddle of coffee which had splashed down onto the wooden floor.

The Vial approached Lightbulb, stepping before her and looking at her wings. "Oh, Golly! They look quite different from Balloon's... More yellow-ish I'd say..." She crossed her arms and fixated her eyes on the small appendages.

Fan tensed up and put his hands in front of himself defensively. "Oh no... No no no! I am not getting flung again!" As he slowly stepped behind Test Tube.

Test Tube examined Lightbulb. Her eyes snapping up to Lightbulb as she blinked, and saw Lightbulb's glowing eyes. "Gosh... Your eyes...!" Test Tube looked astonished reaching a hand out, but stopping soon after, not wanting to poke her eyes out. "G-guh—h-hahah... Uh—I need to go grab my equipment—! I'll be back!" She quickly ran turned and made her way towards the door, but was knocked over by Baxter trying to cram itself through the door. She yelped, stumbling back and tripping over her own heels. Falling down upright with a clatter.

Baxter eventually managed to get inside the lobby without breaking anything. The door frame creaked as he stumbled his way through and sat down in the centre of the Lobby. Everyone stood out of the way. Some of the others started screaming, especially Salt, and Pepper. Who cowardly stepped away hunching their bodies towards the wall. Fan jumped to, his teeth gritting with fear and wide eyed panic. A slight staggering attempt for the door was made, but he'd slipped down onto his back from the coffee mark on the ground.

Lightbulb had a small goofy laugh and waved at Baxter. "I told ya to wait outside— But that works too." She swung her hand down, then promptly rested it on her hip.

Baxter laid down and looked at Lightbulb curiously. Slowly tilting his head and letting out a slight guttural chattering. Which seemed rather friendly.

Everyone, who wasn't scared, crowded around Baxter. They were all amazed by the dragon. Test Tube also stumbled up slowly dusting herself off and making her way over to the curiosities before her. This was quite the amazing discovery. Truly a miracle.

However, OJ was less than happy. Quite the opposite. He choked on nothing and slowly pushed off the kitchen doorframe to investigate. Anger in his drunken eyes. "Whyh—the fhuck is there a dragon in here?!" OJ slurred, the glass in his hand barely upright.

"OJ... you need t-to sit down!" Paper squealed, he stepped towards the other man, slightly angered at his carelessness. He grabbed OJ's arm with concern.

"Bhut—P-Paper he—he's gonna wreck the hotel...!" He whined trying to pull his arm away lazily. A slight tinge of a cry wanting to escape him.

"No! I'll deal with it alright...?" Paper sighed, pulling OJ over and patting his shoulder comfortingly. "Today has been a lot. I got this, yeah?" He smiled.

OJ groaned with annoyance, and then walked off grumpily, like a child. His dazed drunken demeanour evident as he slouched away to the living room. Not to be bothered with another disaster.

Paper then looked over to Lightbulb. "Lightbulb... I know by now not to expect the most... Logical things when it comes to your shenanigans... But a fucking DRAGON?!" Paper asked with a face of pure confusion. Scolding her slightly in the process.

"Well I found a weird lookin Pokémon card with my name on it. It was all glowing and Shiz...So I grabbed it and... BAM! Grew magic wings. Oh! And now Baxter is a dragon." Lightbulb answered with a shrug, slightly rambling after, "Kinda thought it was just gonna be a cool wacky training card game of somethin. Not exactly the dragon-y thing I'd had in mind..."

Paper's face turned to slight annoyance, that answered exactly nothing. "I—What—?! HOW?! I... My god..." He rubbed his temples. It wasn't Lightbulb's fault she was the way she was after all. "Why would you pick up a glowing card without telling us...?"

"Well obviously I wanted to eat the card! And uh... I don't really know how... It hurt a lot though..." She scratched her head thinking back on the situation. "I woulda came and gotten someone if I knew it was gonna go bad."

Paper looked over to Paintbrush with a look of; 'What the heck is she going on about...?' Only for Paintbrush to reply with less than an answer.

"I have no clue... I just walked over and—..." Paintbrush tried to recall the situation, running a hand through their bristles. "It was all happening so fast—One moment she was talking about the wings then the next? We were in the sky on Baxter's back..." They shrugged slightly with a lack of enthusiasm and knowledgeable input.

Paper sighed, and looked at Baxter. "Lightbulb... I think you should move uh... Baxter outside." He was concerned for the safety of everyone... And OJ's temper. God forbid he started screaming again.

"What?! That's not fair! Baxter is my pet! We cant just kick em out!" Lightbulb whined seeming disappointed by Paper's judgement. What if it rained? It was cold outside at night!

"No. Out. Now!" Paper huffed, once again putting his hands on his hips. A scowl on his face. "If you're that worried... we can build a pen for him or something."

Lightbulb frowned and looked down sadly at the ground. "Cmon Baxter..." She groaned waving Baxter to forrow. A slight slump as she shoved the door open dramatically. Baxter crammed itself out of the door again. Slight dust trickled down from the ceiling as he managed to pop out the door once more. Only slightly cracking the wooden frame.

"I hope this doesn't become a trend..." Paper muttered. He doesn't want more people to... Transform. And give OJ more reasons to start kicking people out. After all, he cared about all of the people here as if they were his own kids. Or were close friends with them. He didn't want to lose anyone... Paper frowned and looked to Test Tube. "P-please... Find out what's going on?" He begged, desperate undertones laced in his face.

Test Tube nodded, "I'll go get my things... F-Fan—? Please uh... Follow me. Okay?" She slowly motioned for him to come with. And of course he did.

"Coming..." He replied with a sense of urgency and nervousness. His footfall colliding with the wood as he got up from the ground and jogged up to catch up with Test Tube's pace. Watching her turn the golden handle and step out onto the grass.

———

Nickel heard yelling come from the lobby, but didn't bother to go check what it was, Balloon was waiting for him after all. He didn't want to let him down. Not again. He felt a bit guilty of everything that was going on. Like he caused it somehow. If only he'd not said what he had yesterday... Maybe things wouldn't be so... Horrible. Nickel grabbed a plate with his mouth, and balanced one on his head. It was quite tedious, but he was used to it. He turned towards the door and speed walked as fast as he could manage without spilling any of the plates contents. Nearly tripping on the stairs a few times he managed to make his way up them... And down the hall towards his room. He slid the plate on a decorative table and pushed the door open, then grabbing the plate once more. He'd wobbled slightly as he stepped onto the carpet... But managed.

Balloon, who had climbed in his bed, slid something under his pillow, it sort of looked like a book. Nickel paid no mind to this, Balloon often had a notebook he wrote in anyway. "O-oh! Hey Nickel! Hah..." his eyes were still puffy from the crying prior. Though he seemed to be a in a better mood, his eyes seemed nearly concerned.

Nickel slid a plate to him, and sat beside the bed on the floor to eat. "You doing okay?" Nickel asked, taking notice of his strange expression.

"O-oh... Uh yeah. At least... as okay as I can be..." Balloon said with a nervous chuckle, and the fraction of a sniffle.

"If you're sure. You kinda had it real... uh rough back there... Couldn't of hurt to check, y'know?" He shrugged.

"No... Its f-... Its fine. I appreciate it, really. Sorry... Its all just so... Sudden I guess." Balloon mumbled, seeming slightly off.

Nickel shook his head dismissively laughing, "Oh please! It can't be that bad... I mean... Uh... Well no. It can be... I'm sorry this whole—u...Uhm... Truce? You could call it? It's... uh? New to me too."

Balloon hummed in acknowledgment, "I get it... I should probably try to be more considerate of how you feel too... Don't want this to be a one sided sense of...understanding. I guess."

Nickel blinked confusedly, cocking his head aside. "I'm sorry, what? You—... You don't have to. I'm pretty transparent." He smiled awkwardly.

"With how you feel about o-other people... Yeah. But... Not about your own feelings." He tried not to say more than he should. Snooping around where he shouldn't might undo what they had now. And all Balloon wanted to do was show some concern. Having reason to believe Nickel wasn't as okay as the other boy let on.

Nickel immediately felt anxiety, in the back of his throat almost. He cleared his voice and looked away. "Okay... That's deeper than I think we should go." He shoved the fork he'd taken in his mouth and avoided Balloon's eyes. Being transparent meant he wasn't the best liar. Especially in this sort of vulnerable environment.

They both ate their food silently. And as quietly as the could, because they both felt self conscious of chewing too loud. When they were both finished, Balloon removed his blanket with the dirty plate in his hand. He hissed in slight pain as the adrenaline from earlier had made itself known to be gone. His wings ached.

But Nickel stopped him. "Ah. No. Sit back down." Nickel instructed, nudging him back with his head.

"What? No I have to put my plate back... What about ripping the bandaid off?"Balloon tried to insist, feeling slightly more comfortable than he had previously.

"No, I forgot your pain killers anyway! Let me take em down." Nickel replied stubbornly. He wasn't going to budge. He always was unbearably stubborn.

Balloon sighed and handed him the plate by placing it on the other boy's head. And watched as Nickel turned to leave with both plates on his head, but froze at something. Startled, he yelped and furrowed his eyebrows.

"What is...?" He muttered, taken aback.

"What is what? I don't see anything..." Balloon asked with concern, and slid out of bed to investigate, wincing as he did so. Looking past Nickel, he couldn't see much of anything.

"There's a... Card...?" Nickel replied with a look of skepticism as he squints his eyes. He felt like he was being drawn to it. He slowly stepped towards it and moved to grab it with his mouth.

Balloon froze... The card... He grabbed a card moments before his transformation. His very gruesome and painful formation of his wings. He was concerned this was more of the same. "Wh—wait— WAIT NICKEL DON'T TOUCH—!"

Nickel grabbed it. he hadn't even comprehended what Balloon had told him. His body was already far too committed to the motion for him to have stopped. He saw the card shoot into his chest.and he stumbled back, dropping the plates as he did so. They clattered onto the carpet floor, not quite breaking. But a slight crack chipped into the porcelain. "Wh—what the..?!" He suddenly yelped and closed his eyes and fell backwards as his eyes began to burn. A horrible steering pain in his retinas. "AAAAGH! NO— OW FUCK... MY EYES!!!" He said in... Tears... Or what felt like such.

Balloon began to freak out. He rushed over and lifted Nickel up to face him. And he audibly gasped, Nickel's eyes were bleeding. Gushing! A crimson river was falling from his tear ducts. "OH MY GOD?!" Balloon tried his best to try and stop the bleeding, but it just kept coming... Good god! "WHAT DO I DO?!"

"I DON'T K-KNOW BUT GOD... IT HURTS! M—MAKE IT STOP!!!" Nickel cried out, a straining a cough which sputtered more blood.

"IM TRYING!!!" Balloon screamed with a dripping sense of panic and worry.

But I'm all honesty, Balloon had no Idea what to do.

But he needed to figure it out.

And quick...

———