Fox in the Hole (II)

Incase you missed Chapter One.

Elyana sat on the bed as she waited for her doctor’s arrival. But jumped as he appeared in the doorway and interrupted her train of thought

“Sorry to startle you, Elle,” Doctor Arsa apologized with a chuckle as he closed the door behind himself. “I have your test results and everything looks normal on my end.” He explained as he looked over the notes once more. “Last visit, you were having trouble shifting. Is that still the case?” He asked, with a furrowed brow in curiosity as he looked up and met her eyes with his gaze.

“No.” She replied.

“Any pain or tenderness when you shift?” He inquired with a skeptical expression.

“A little.” She admitted as her eyes fell to the floor.

“I see.” He commented and immediately jotted down a few notes on his board. “I suspect it’s just the muscles getting used to the strain of transformation again, but we can keep a close eye on it if you’re concerned.” He expressed, as he jotted down a few notes on his clipboard, then turned his gaze back to her.

“I’m not concerned.” She dismissed as she watched her legs while they dangled off the edge of the bed.

“Good.” He spoke half-heartedly and scribbled a few more notes. “I’d say I hope you learned your lesson this time, but you’ve been in and out of the basement twice since then. So I’d say not.” He added as he watched her for a reaction.

She rolled her eyes in response and hopped off the bed. “I’ll see you in a couple of weeks,” Elyana stated, then flung the door open as she exited the exam room.

“I hope not.” Doctor Arsa called after her with a slightly amused expression as she disappeared through the door.

Elyana laughed to herself as she sauntered down the hall like she owned the place.

“Hey Jerry,” she greeted the Facility Officer at the elevator with a smile.

“Name’s Gerry.” He corrected as he scanned his keycard and opened the elevator for her.

“Mhmm.” She dismissed, then jumped on and hummed to herself as she rode it down to the main floor. The doors opened to the recreation room, where she spotted her friends on the couch at the centre.

Alastor, her boyfriend, sat comfortably between her two best friends, Emily and Tempest, with his arms wrapped around the pair of them.

It wasn’t long before the three of them spotted Elyana as she stepped off the elevator and into the main floor rec room. They all rose to their feet and rushed to greet her with a cacophony of excited exclamations.

“You got out!” Emily shouted, her long blond hair bouncing behind her short frame as she rushed towards Elyana. Then wrapped her in an excited embrace which only drew more stares from the other residents who watched with interest.

Tempest was in close pursuit as she approached the two girls. She pushed her long raven black hair out of her face before she wrapped her arms around both her friends and rested her chin on top of Emily’s head. “We missed you!” She mumbled as she gave them a tight squeeze.

“I missed you guys, too.” A squished and uncomfortable Elyana replied with a strained smile.

She wished they would release her and stop causing a scene.

She was all too grateful when they had let go until she laid eyes on a not-so-patiently waiting Alastor.

“I really missed you.” He sighed with a sweet smile, then scooped her face up in his hands and pulled her into a soft kiss.

“It’s only been a few weeks,” Elyana murmured as they broke apart and he wrapped her in an overly tight hug.

“Awe.” Her friends sounded in unison.

Which only made Elyana more uncomfortable.

She had gone from the peaceful silence of her holding cell in the basement to the mild ruckus of the doctor’s office, now to the boisterous bombardment of her friend’s company on the surface level.

It was a lot to take at the moment.

“Let’s go sit. I have to catch you up on everything,” Emily requested, then grabbed Elyana by the wrist and pulled her over to their couch.

“What are you looking at?” Alastor growled at a nearby group of residents.

Which made them snap their gaze away from the scene and return to their previous affairs. Followed by everyone else in the rec room doing the same, out of fear of retribution.

The four teenagers all squished together onto the two-person couch. Elyana sat securely on Alastor’s lap with his arms wrapped around her, as though he feared she’d try to run. The other two girls sat cuddled up on the other cushion as though the concept of personal space had never occurred to them.

Immediately Emily began her account of the events and gossip that she felt Elyana ought to know of. Which mostly pertained to things like who was dating who or who was sleeping around and the like. Nothing of actual substance.

Elyana did her best to act attentive to Emily’s babble. She nodded and made minor comments when appropriate. Intending to keep her friend talking while she re-acclimatized herself to life above ground.

Chapter Three: