Phoenix

Chapter 1 - Geno was at the hospital again

Geno was at the hospital again.

Grim had seen this child a few times before. Grim was always scheduled to guide this one's soul, yet it never ceased to win against death in a red flash of determination. He hoped it would happen again- this one had potential he had never seen before. Fifteen years was too soon to go, for Geno Queen.

But nothing happened.

Grim waited, hoping the battle would be well fought for years on as before.

Still nothing.

He waited.

Then, for a split second, the soul flickered red and disappeared.

It was lost.

Grim silently wished good luck on Geno's family, and moved on.

Perhaps the lost soul would find another place in the land of the living.

~~~~~

Geno was at the hospital again.

Fresh knew he'd get better- he did all the times before.

He had a new journal- the old one was filled up a year ago. Any and every event or observation that happened in the past five years of his life was pressed in between those pages. It revolved around Geno- Fresh noticed that his emotions were always triggered or influenced by him. Never Error, never Deccy, never Momma, just Geno. It was strange.

"Fresh?"

Fresh swallowed his Froot Loops, returning to his usual grin. "Yeah, bro?"

"...when do you think Geno's coming back?" Error fiddled with his hoodie string. He always asked that- guess he knows Fresh will always give an exact answer. It's become a habit- Fresh was usually right on.

Fresh thought. Every other time, the visits lasted around a day, but they've been getting longer- different times for better meds, the doc said. Recently, they've been around three days- it's the second day and Geno usually gets out at six PM, so...

"'Dere should be around thirty-five hours left. Hold on a little, brah," Fresh said, tossing over a chocolate bar he pulled from nowhere.

Error caught it, staring at it for a second before he unwrapped it and took a bite. "Thanks."

"No prob."

Fresh went back to eating his cereal.

~~~~~

Geno was at the hospital again.

He knew he was dying- different medicine meant a different diagnosis. Something else was wrong, and it was getting harder to breathe, harder to get up, to walk, to even talk.

Sugar knew- somehow, he did. Geno didn't know how Sugar found out, or got even half the knowledge, but he promised he'd be there until the day Geno died.

That day didn't seem so far away.

But Geno was determined to live.

He was determined to stay alive, to see his brothers again outside of a hospital, to maybe even run on his own, one day! The hope that he could see Error and Fresh get along even more- it warmed his heart to see them be brothers. They finally got along- he had to live for that!

So when his soul faded in the middle of the night, he woke. He saw Death, but thought of his brothers.

He was determined.

Geno lived.