Archive of Our Own ^beta

June 5th: Ricky’s 18th birthday. He never thought he’d make it to adulthood- actually, he’d made a great attempt to stop himself from aging past seventeen on the Cyclone. He’d accepted the accident the quickest, without a doubt, fully knowing his time was up. But… the world had other plans. When he woke up again, safe in his bed on Tuesday, September 15th, he grabbed Lady Marzipan and Dame Judi Dench with a new sense of purpose.

Which led him to where he was now. 

Constance had invited him over early to pick something from the fresh batches of baked goods before the diner opened… and Ricky was never one to say no to a nice treat. Especially with good company.   

The walk was nice too. It wasn’t often he woke up to see the sunrise- being a night owl did have its downsides . The sun’s rays barely breached the tops of the trees, casting shadows over the path he walked. It was just him out, not even the birds were in full song yet. The clacking of his crutches and the staggering clomps of his shoes against the concrete were all that existed.

Nothing will ruin his day , Ricky thought. He gave a small nod as he passed Ocean’s house. He was sure if he stayed long enough, he’d see a flash of red hair blitz by the only clean window. But he was on a mission. He’d see her later anyway . 

That prospect actually made him excited. The choir had been through a lot together- in the warehouse… the hospital. Even at Father Marcus’ funeral, they huddled together- a solid mass of wheelchairs, each taking turns speaking (or signing- Mischa was his translator) at the podium. That had been the turning point, where reality came crashing on them the hardest. 

The first place they met up post-hospital was the choir room . It was where Ricky met Penny as Penny; actually got to chat with Mischa and Noel… and Constance. It was where he cleared the air with Ocean . He wasn’t ready to forgive her for the way she treated him- he doubted he ever would, but he wouldn’t hold her actions against her either. On one condition, anyway: just as long as she continued to grow and improve as a person, he would grow past it.  

The pair had been on friendly terms now, with Ocean making small jokes with him during outings and even taking interest in his Zolar lore. Who knew the science geek would enjoy his notes on space and planetary gravitational pull?

A car door clicked behind him.

It all happened so fast. There were hands on him. There were hands on him, covering his mouth. There were hands on him, wrapped tightly around his middle. His crutches were ripped from his grasp. There were hands on him. He was being lifted over someone’s shoulder. Pain exploded in his back as he was slammed against a lamppost. 

The hands were gone.

Without his crutches, Ricky was a dead weight. And he fell. The concrete came up quickly to meet him, his shoulder crunching against the hard surface. Unlike the harsh, scalding pain in his back, this pain was numb. It was white hot for a second before the nerves began to power down completely. Vision starting to blur, he fought to focus on his surroundings- something, anything to keep him awake.

Nothing was going to ruin this day . 

The license plate. JK6-G85. JK6-G85. JK6-G85. It was a repeated mantra in his head- the lone straw he was frantically grasping. The car sped forward. Ricky hadn’t even registered anyone getting in. 

CRUNCH.

The car drove away, leaving his crumpled form hidden by the exhaust fumes. A girl's scream rattled in his brain, coming from somewhere behind him. Ocean? Ricky caught sight of Lady Marzipan and Dame Judi Dench bent and broken in the middle of the street before he blacked out. 

Nothing was going to ruin this day.

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Ricky was in the hospital. 

The first thing he noticed was he wasn’t alone. Penny was at his bedside in a chair, one hand holding his. Constance was sleeping in the recliner across the room, while Noel stood in a corner, his arms crossed as he stared at the floor. He was dressed in a clean Taco Bell uniform. 

Time? What time is it? Ricky’s eyes scanned the wall, coming to rest on a black, ancient-looking clock. Its screen glowed faintly with a sickly teal color: 8:49 am. He winced as he shuffled in the bed- his shoulder felt heavy and his back hurt… t hen again , he mused, his back usually hurt . At his movement, Penny jolted back like she’d been burned, but she never let go of his hand. Noel was looking his way now too, only stopping to wake Constance. She sat up at an instant, talking before Ricky could greet her.

“I brought one of each baked good I could grab.” She gestured to a large pair of boxes stacked neatly on the bedside table. “They should still be a little warm in the middle.” Constance folded her hands in her lap, twiddling her thumbs.

Ricky felt his heart swell at that, and he gave an easy grin. ‘Thank you,’ He signed. Penny squeezed his hand. Noel quirked his head. “How do you feel?” He asked.

‘Shoulder is stiff.’ Ricky grinned through the pain. ‘But I’m here, I guess.’ Noel nodded, returning to his position against the wall. His phone dinged, and Ricky watched curiously as Noel furiously typed back. Ricky wouldn’t ask about it though. Instead, he let himself scan the room again.

‘Where is Ocean? And Mischa?’ He frowned. 

Penny ran her thumb over the back of his hand. “Ocean saw the license plate number. She texted Mischa. They both were here when the rest of us showed up, and they left within the first five minutes after.” She murmured nonchalantly. 

Ricky made a sound at the back of his throat, sounding like a grunt as he yawned. But he nodded just the same. “Do you want anything from your boxes?” Constance asked. He shook his head. She nodded, leaning forward. “You should try to go back to sleep then…” Constance murmured softly.

Yeah… maybe he should. Ricky looked at the clock again. 8:53 am. Yeah, it was too early for this shit. 

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Ocean and Mischa were back when Ricky woke up again. He snuck a glance at the clock again. 3:37 pm. A good nap, then. His shoulder was stiffer than before, much to his dismay. A quick glance offered him an answer- it had been wrapped tightly with bandages; The gauze was scratchy against his skin. 

Ricky waved at his friends, garnering their attention. Ocean jerked, practically falling at his bedside. “Oh my gosh, Ricky! I was so worried…” She immediately jumped into a ramble, her hands moving wildly in the air. “I called Mischa as soon as those assholes left…” Ocean cursed? Ricky balked at her as she continued. “-and we got you here. Then I called everyone else, and then-” 

The more Ricky stared at Ocean, the less he paid attention to her words. Yet, the more he stared, the more his concern grew . Her left eye was black. ‘Ocean.’ Ricky’s fingers spelled out her name slowly- but she wasn’t paying attention. He placed a hand on her arm to stop her before signing. ‘What happened to you?’

“What?” She squeaked. 

‘Your eye, Ocean. What happened?’ He repeated himself.

“Nothing,” Ocean whispered.

“Sit down. Put ice on eye.” Mischa muttered, gently guiding her back to her chair. “I tell the tale.” He came to stand at Ricky’s bedside. “JK6-G85. Green, ugly car?” Ricky nodded. “We found them.” The boy grinned, all teeth. Even wrapped hastily, Ricky could see Mischa’s knuckles were bruised and bloodied.

‘Oh?’ Ricky leaned in. 

Mischa nodded. “Little orphan got slap and speech in. Much respect.” Ocean grumbled behind him, “I got two slaps in, thank you.” She said.

“Ice on eye.” Mischa reminded her, not even looking over his shoulder. Ricky chuckled at that- Ocean hastily pressed the ice pack against her eye again, crossing an arm in front of her in annoyance. “But it is not good to beat on women. It shows fragile masculinity- they are not real men. They earned even less respect from me knowing what they did to you.” Mischa crossed his arms. “They will not bother anyone anymore.” 

Ricky blinked. ‘Ocean got hit because she slapped someone?’ He signed. A small grin was growing on his face. This was too good. He never knew Ocean had it in her. Mischa laughed. “She did. It was awesome!” He turned away to nudge Ocean’s shoulder. She grinned up at him, even if it was the smallest curl of her lips.

“I wish I grabbed your crutches.” She said, “I could have beaten one with those.” 

At the mention of Ricky’s crutches, his smile fell. Ocean immediately cringed. “Sorry.” She said, “But on the bright side, the doctor said you could go home tonight!” 

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When Ocean said ‘tonight,’ it actually meant at three the next morning. Hospitals were always slow, and that would never change.

Ricky had made it to the cafe, at least- the Blackwoods had opened it specifically for him. It was a sweet gesture. The place was even decorated with little glowing stars and galaxy-themed balloons. What caught his eye though, was a new pair of crutches resting against the table. 

Constance wheeled him over, while Penny presented him with a huge book of stickers. Ricky took them from her slowly, scanning the cover. Cats in space… Nice . “I was going to give you these for your other pair, but maybe we could help you decorate this one?” She asked. Tears pricked at the corners of Ricky’s eyes.

‘Yes. Yeah. That would be nice.’ He signed.

“You won't be able to use them for a while.” Ocean approached, “With your shoulder and all. It’ll be a few weeks before you’re back on your feet…” She trailed off, glancing at everyone else in the room. The hem on her sweater had become her new favorite toy, Ricky noticed. “There are a few more gifts we’d like to give too…” She added.

Ricky felt something against his head. It was thin and plastic, with little teeth that gripped the hair by his ears. A headband? Noel held up a mirror in front of him. It wasn’t just any headband ; It was a pair of fluffy purple cat ears. Mischa pressed a button on the back of one. To Ricky’s glee, they burst into small dots of light, dancing vibrantly within the fabric. 

When he looked away from his reflection, the choir all had on matching ears. A simpler design… and different colors, but the same nonetheless. Ocean’s were blue. He grinned. It suited her.

“There’s one more thing.” She fiddled more with the hem of her sweater. “We wanted to show you something special. But it’s outside.” 

Consider Ricky intrigued . Constance must’ve seen his expression because she wheeled him back outside, the rest of the choir following close behind. The wheelchair had barely crossed the doorway before Ocean shoved a paper in his hands, bounding on her feet excitedly. “Ta-da!” She squealed.

It took Ricky a moment to figure out what it was, exactly, but when he did… His eyes widened. It was a map of the constellations that would be present in the sky on his birthday.  His eyes trailed a line down the paper, taking in each drawn star: Boötes the Herdsman, Gemini- Ursa Major and Minor…

“Happy Birthday, Ricky.” Mrs. Blackwood called. With a simple flick of her wrist, she flipped a switch. Every light on the cafe went out with a click. The night sky exploded in front of his very eyes. The map was right; Ricky could point out Gemini almost instantly… and it was breathtaking. Life is a little odd sometimes though, and- don’t get him wrong. The present given to him was one he would take gladly, but he wasn’t focused on the stars .

Instead, he was focused on his friends… Every smile and excited voice- the way Penny rested her chin lightly on his shoulder. The volume of Noel and Ocean’s heated banter, or how the redhead pointed up at the sky. Out of the corner of his eye, he could see Mischa lying across the picnic table Constance was seated at. Yeah… this would do for now. Ricky leaned back in the wheelchair, a contented grin stretching across his face. 

Absolutely nothing could ruin this day. Not anymore.