want to see me do a trick?

Tiana almost rolled her eyes at Cam’s words. While she certainly was concerned for her friend, she didn’t think that necessarily made her motherly. She opened her mouth to protest, when she noticed him wincing from the effort of looking around. Quickly, Tia shut her mouth, her lips twisting into a look of concern, the brunette moving to rearrange his blanket slightly, as if that would help - so maybe Cameron did have a point after all.

“Or how about that time you knocked the mixer onto yourself, mid-batter?” The mixer had kept going - spinning around on Cameron’s foot, wedged between that and the metal base. She couldn’t help but laugh at the memory, though she hadn’t been laughing in the moment. It was one of many moments that she’d questioned why she kept Cameron on, but it was the moments when he was brightly greeting customers, handing over bags of pastries and steaming cups of coffee (without dropping them) that she knew he was a vital part of the team. “Twelve years? Might as well just let you go at that point - unless you think I’ll still be running the place in twelve years?” She raised an eyebrow. “I’m not looking forward to anything, other than you getting better. How you feeling?”

"Like I could get up and do cartwheels." That was the furthest from the truth about how he felt and he knew if she wanted, Tia of all people could call him out on his bluff but he hated to think of her worrying over him. Her fixing up his blanket had proven she would definitely cause a fuss over him just like he had teasingly predicted upon her arrival with the likening to how she would mom the hell out of him just like his own mother.

The smile that had graced his face at the memory of the mixer incident (one of plenty) was still on his face as he nodded a little. "That place would be nothing with out you, Titi." And that was the gospel truth. "But if not there, twelve years time you could definitely have your own place. Away from Neverland. I of course followed you and you felt bad for me and upped every form of insurance before taking me on but only under the condition that I never go to another party again."

After finding a body in the woods while on patrol, Robin found it imperative he go and visit each of the missing people in the hospital.

However…

When he stopped by Faline and Marie’s rooms, they were full of presents and flowers and a nurse turned him away as the two of them had had too many visitors. When he stopped by Zoe’s, there was more of the same, but she was in too much distress over her injuries to see anyone. He’d taken Lorelai to the hospital when he found her, but hadn’t heard from her since. He thought that by going to Cameron’s room, he would find a similar situation, but he couldn’t have been more wrong.

His room was empty, save for some small evidence that he’d had a visitor. Family, it seemed. When Robin ducked his head in, his suspicions were confirmed. A mother. Robin knew Cameron only by name because of where he worked. Robin knew everyone in Town Hall, but that was because he had a beef with all of them. Government drones. Sheeple. Working for “the man” or in this case “the woman.” But seeing Cameron beat to hell and with no one to bother visiting him, it gave Robin pause for thought. This was just a kid. Who knew what the town heads were forcing him to do and this was how he was repaid? Attacked? With none of the mayors even caring enough to visit him? Their employee? Something didn’t sit right with Robin. In fact, none of it, did.

“Yeah, moms,” he grunted in reply, giving him a small nod of the head. “How you holdin’ up? Not sure if you remember me or not. Ranger Hewitt from the Parks Department. I’m not here to butt heads. Just checkin’ in.”

"You could probably legitimately bump heads with me and I probably wouldn't even feel it." That was both equal parts a lie and the truth. Obviously, Cameron would feel a bump to the head but with how much pain he was already in, he highly doubted he would register the pain as more than a pinprick. "I've had better days but I could have worse so I guess I'm holding up fine, all things considered." Aside from a few broken bits and pieces in his mind's eye that Cam was struggling to decipher as well as figure out if it was factual or not, Cameron wasn't even sure exactly what 'all things considered' entailed but he supposed it was a blanket term enough. "I'm Cam Gorski." He introduced, figuring his name was all over the papers and the like with the other four but manners were important — even when laid up in a hospital bed. Lifting the hand of his good arm to extend out for a handshake, he gave a small chuckle. "I'm sure you've had to chase me out of the woods a time or two as a kid but it's better to meet you when I'm not running from trouble."

Izzy had stopped by to check on the patients at the hospital after given the okay to do so. She might not have been very close to all of those who had disappeared, but after they had been taken away like that she just wanted to make sure they were all safe and okay. The blonde had just finished seeing Marie and Zoe, and so Cameron was next up on that list. If she was being honest with herself, she was a little nervous at the thought of this one. She had never officially spoken to him before (unless you counted the times she would stop by at the Neverland Cafe to have a lunch break with Tia or just to pick up a pastry on her way to the garage) and all those times admiring the older boy from afar back in high school was still, embarrassingly, in the back of her mind. Hopefully he would at least recognize her, otherwise it would just add on to the awkwardness of the situation.

At the sight of the boy wincing, the fairy couldn’t help but offer an apologetic smile, not being able to imagine the pain he must be in, as she had a teddy bear in hand, hoping it would suffice as she set it down on the nearby table. She lightly giggled at his words, hoping her nervousness wasn’t as obvious as it felt as she took a seat on the chair next to the bed he was laying in. “Nope, most definitely not your mom…I uh, don’t think that we’ve actually, like, officially met, but…I’m Izzy. Izzy Tinker. Was just, you know, stopping by to make sure that you were okay. You guys didn’t deserve this and I’m really sorry that it happened, but uh, h-how are you feeling?”

"Cameron Gorski — Cam." Introducing himself in return, he realized a half fraction too late that it probably wasn't needed between coverage of the disappearances and the fact she would have needed his name in order to ask for his room's location. "Which, obviously you knew that." With a light laugh to try and not hurt himself with the action of laughing, he shook his head at his momentary slip of common sense. "I'm doing..." Glancing down, he knew he could definitely be in worse shape even if it didn't feel like he could be more worse off pain-level wise currently despite knowing that wasn't true. "I'm still alive, small victories." Cam answered, feeling as if highlighting the points of pain was useless in conversation. Who wanted a recap of everything wrong with someone?

While talking, he had been studying Izzy a bit, feeling a small sense of familiarity but nothing too strong. Surely she must have come into the cafe a time or two; who didn't in town? Maybe they had crossed paths at the town hall somehow? A brow was slightly furrowed as he looked at her before a light bulb seemed to go off as a scene seemed to play out surrounding her face. "You were a bit behind me in school, right?" Cameron was sure they had obviously never been friends but he was one to at least know the faces of those around him and always attempt at being friendly with anyone he encountered in the halls at school, the sidewalks of life.

From his position in the chair, Curtis hadn’t even noticed the guy next to him woke up until he said anything. Lifting his head, Curtis offered him an apologetic grin and nodded, thinking of his own mom. “Can’t blame ‘em, right? I remember when I came home from school with cuts and bruises, couldn’t shake her from my tail either. Just ended up going to the garage instead of going right in to see her. She meant well, though.” He had begun to trail off in his story as he realized this guy probably didn’t give two shits about Curtis’ life or anything even remotely close to it. He came in to give him a bear, and instead he’s hashing memories like the guy had nothing better to do than hear them. Flushing bright in embarrassment, Curtis stood and moved over to where the guy was laying, holding out the ‘Get Well Soon’ bear like an embarrassed schoolboy. “I know you probably don’t remember me, but your mom used to patch me up after the rougher days at school. I uhm… I just wanted to stop in and see how you were doing. I’d offer to grab you something but it sounds like your mom would beat me to the punch. I’m Curtis, by the way. Like I said, I doubt you ever heard of me.”

Cameron couldn’t recall the exact age difference between himself and Curtis but he knew the other male was slightly older than him and contrary to Curtis’ belief, remembered him a bit. There wasn’t any strong memory or find bond recollection but Cameron could bring to mind random snippets of times past that involved the face next to his bed but much younger looking or moments in time where his mother had referred to him by name. “No, I do. I remember you a little — it wasn’t often I got to get off scot-free but whenever she was worried about you a few bumps and bruises of mine somehow got to slid so I guess I owe you one.” Although, ‘owing someone one’ for having rougher days at school, aka being bullied Cameron was sure the translation was, seemed a little off in a manner of terms. “She’s real good at that though. Patching things up. She’s going a little,” Pausing, his eyes glanced towards the door before looking back at Curtis and wiggling his finger in a circle near his temple to indicate the well known indication for 'cuckoo’. “because this time she hasn’t been able to put Humpty Dumpty back together again, yet.” His slight laugh caused a wince to cross his features as well as make the bear he had sat on his stomach after accepting it with a thank you from Curtis, to almost topple over, Cameron catching it by it’s little bear feet to keep it in place.

The hospital felt almost like a maze, endless identical hallways making it harder and harder to navigate the further Sadie wandered into the building. Of course the town hall staff decided to send the one person who had never once had any reason to step foot inside a hospital, though that probably had more to do with the fact that she was the only intern on shift, considering Cam’s condition. Sadie hadn’t argued, after all— she was too overcome with relief that her coworker was alive and stable to complain about technicalities. 

Finally, she’d managed to make it to the hallway indicated by a nurse. Bright blue walls, pictures of seashells between the doors, can’t miss it. It hadn’t exactly been as impossible to miss as the nurse had suggested, but the relief she felt as she found it nearly balanced out her frustration. Adjusting the ‘ visitor ‘ sticker on her shirt, Sadie carefully counted down the rooms until she found the one she was looking for. Knocking lightly on the half-open door, she let out a soft “ hey ”, waiting until he turned toward her to step all the way into the room. Sadie gave half-hearted laugh at Cam’s words, setting the balloons she’d been carrying with her on the table beside him. “ From the lobby staff. Wishing you well or whatever. ” Her tone was probably far too nonchalant to be using in such a situation, but since when did Sadie ever have an appropriate reaction to things? “ How, uh— how are you feeling? ”

Sadie Pratt was definitely one of the last people he had expected to ever show up when he had tried passing time in the hospital bed by making a mental list of who may or may not be swinging by to check on him during his stay and even though he was sure it had something to do with who had drawn the shorter stick at work, he was glad to see her. Cameron figured they couldn’t quite call themselves friends but he thought they were at least a step above just being ‘work acquaintances’ — or at least Sadie didn’t give him what he liked to call ‘The Sadie Eyes™’ whenever he asked her a question or hung around by her desk in boredom. In fact, she seemed to tolerate him quite well just as long as he never took her stapler or used up all her tape.

Her statement that the balloons were from the lobby staff only confirmed his theory she had been the one tasked to visit him but Cameron still let himself hold a little belief that it could have been her idea to take up the task in the first place — unlikely but, a nice thought nonetheless. “Peachy; why, don’t I look it?” Joking probably wasn’t something someone in his condition would normally do but despite the fact that a fair majority of his breaths hurt if he exhaled or inhaled too hard and even talking was on occasion making him wince, Sadie’s nonchalant tone put him at ease enough to shoot her the smallest of grins. “I’m surprised you didn’t release the balloons to the sky and take a secret afternoon off.”