Vanessa found Matthew sat on a bench at the dungeon’s food plaza. Covered in blood, arched over himself and with a distant stare.
"You look awful kid."
"I know. I feel awful too." He said in a half smile, but soon frowned from the pain.
"I’ll go grab your stuff, hold on for a minute."
Vanessa then went to the dungeon entrance, talked with the authorities and with the adventurer school teacher. They gave her his bag and his mask that he discarded while helping Faralynn, also a large Mana Crystal still with some blood spots on it. The crystal from the big goblin.
She put it all inside the bag, came back and helped Matthew to a car she parked nearby. There were a lot she wanted to ask, some more she wanted to scold, but she kept silent for now. He was visibly in a lot of pain.
She took him to a hospital she knew well. Vanessa’s family was made up of doctors, but she herself never had the nerve to be one herself. The one she brought him to, was the hospital in which her brother worked. Luckily for Matthew, her brother had his schedule open to attend him.
"How bad is it?" Vanessa asked, while her brother examined Matthew’s body covered with large bruises.
"Looks like he was ran over by a truck. I’ll need an x-ray." He said after checking his vitals.
"Thank you Cid." Vanessa said with a worried voice.
"Let’s see how bad it is on the inside before thanking me, sis."
While waiting for the x-ray machine, Matthew, on a wheelchair, only concentrated on breathing lightly so it wouldn’t hurt.
"You are fucking stupid aren’t you?" Vanessa said with anger.
Matthew wanted to defend himself, but couldn’t speak.
"Charging a hobgoblin, throwing yourself in the middle of a horde. I thought you were a smart kid, but..." Vanessa stopped talking realizing his pain made him silent.
So... It was a hobgoblin, not just a big goblin, Matthew laughed a bit of himself. Perhaps he wouldn’t do anything if he saw that monster as a hobgoblin instead of just a big goblin. He might’ve deceived himself on thinking it as just a big goblin to be able to act.
"But you also saved 3 students. That teacher said..." Vanessa sighted. "Good job kid."
The x-ray showed some fractures on various ribs, but nothing out of place nor that needed surgery. Cid prescribed some pain killers and healing potions. Also a lot of rest. He 3D printed a corset for Matthew to wear while the potions healed him.
Vanessa helped him back into the car after thanking her brother again.
"Let’s go to a pharmacy. Then I’ll take you home."
"I can’t go home like this. My mom and sister will kill me."
Vanessa looked at him dumbfounded.
"I promised that I would be safe, that I wouldn’t do anything reckless..." Matthew groaned in pain. "And now look at me."
Vanessa took pity on him: "Call your mother, tell her you’ll spend the night with a friend." Then she, herself, took out a phone and called: "Hey Eric. I’m going back, just need to take the kid to get some medicine. I’m bringing him with... Do I need to bring anything?" Vanessa then laughed and replied: "Ok, I’ll see what he can do."
Matthew used Anesthesia to talk with his mom without her realizing he was hurt. After he finished his call, Vanessa said:
"I’m taking you to Eric’s house. It’s his daughter’s birthday. He told you to bring a gift."
At the drug store, he bought the medicine and the healing potions. He also bought a small pink ted bear and took out the flag it was holding that said: "Get well soon."
Katia, Eric’s daughter, was seven. The burly man treated her like a princess, specially after her mother died a year ago. Eric himself was an adventurer and an old friend of Vanessa. Both went to the same high school and kept touch even after he became an adventurer and she went to law school.
Today Vanessa was living on his garage after giving up a high paying position on a law firm and having to move out her own place.
Eric’s home was a typical 2 bedroom suburb house with a white fence. Not like him at all. Vanessa parked the car and brought Matthew upstairs to her room. Took out a towel and some clothes that fit him and said:
"Take a shower and then come in from the front door. Don’t let Katia see you bloodied like that."
While showering, he could listen a child’s loud voice coming from the room: "Aunt Ness!" The healing potion already reduced a lot of the bruising, but the pain was still very strong and the pain medicine haven’t kicked in yet. It took longer to heal bones.
All the times Matthew saw Vanessa, she was dressed in men shirts and looking at her closet all he could see were t-shirts from bands. Her pants though, were very tight fitting on her. Looking at the pants he had in front of him, he had no idea if they would fit.
Even on top of the corset, the shirt she picked for him fitted well. As if it wasn’t hers. The pants, however, was very tight and took some effort for Matthew to put them on. He looked ridiculous.
He grabbed the teddy bear, went to the front door and rang the doorbell. Eric opened and almost hugged him, but stopped upon remembering he was hurt. He was really friendly. Vanessa just smiled sat on the couch with a can of beer on her hand. Katia was hiding herself behind one of her father’s legs.
"This is Matthew, darling. He’s a friend of aunt Ness." Eric gently told her.
Matthew used Anesthesia again to sound normal, knelt the best he could and presented the teddy bear: "Happy Birthday Katia!"
Katia was blond haired with bright green eyes and very cute. She was dressed in a pink frilly dress and white shoes. A gold tiara adorned her head. She melted Matthews heart when she picked the teddy bear like it was the best gift in the world and thanked him with a kiss on his cheek.
The birthday was celebrated just with the 4 of them. And although a very happy moment filled with the child’s laughter. Matthew could feel a sadness in the air. It was the first birthday Katia was spending without her mother and sometimes he could tell it affected the girl, the father and Vanessa.
After singing Katia happy birthday and eating some cake. They all went to bed. Matthew sleeping on Vanessa’s room while she was going to sleep in the couch inside the house. He thanked both again before saying good night.
Exhausted and in pain, Matthew laid down. From going to the bank with his father, adventuring in the dungeon with the girls and almost dying, the hospital and the birthday party, it was a long day. He fell asleep as soon as he closed his eyes.