Que Sera Sera (Whatever Will Be Will Be)

Stitches

There was a bright light shinging in Dave's eyes. And Dave has very sensitive eyes.

Dave stumbled backwards and couldn't catch his balence as he fell. He hit the back of the door and covered his eyes. He's always had this problem with bright lights and whenever he would even clatch glimpse of something bright it would always send a shockwave of pain through them causing instant headaches and temporary blindness. This is why Dave had his shades on at all times. Its also due to the fact of why he wore shades throughout the day.

Dave tried looking up but he could only see a cloud of white ambushing his vision. He could barely make out figures and shapes. He knew his brother was in front of him, and he was relieved.

"B-bro?" Dave mumbled, trying to get up. He failed as he stumbled right back down. He was clutching his head in pain. The sun would hurt his eyes enough to where he had to wear shades and give him minor migraines, so think for a moment and try to figure out how bad it would hurt for a LED light to be shinging in his eyes.

"God Dammit Dave," the older Strider of the two mumbled as he dropped down and held Dave close to his chest, "you're okay. Oh thank God you're okay." Bro was so relieved to see Dave's eyes react to the light. He was hearing on the news that this had been a way to test for any infection. If the eyes had no reaction to the light or the color of the iris had been changing from its original color to a milky white then it would seem to be that you had been infected. This "virus" had apparently been going around a month or so and the news didn't start covering the story until it was to late. Everyone in the "upper ranks", as the Strider family called them (consisted of the government and politicians - including the president) wanted to keep it under wraps. They didn't want anyone getting scared for what they assumed to be a new infection with minor symptoms like the flu. Minor symptoms their ass.

Dave had stopped grunting in pain and was letting out the tiniest and frailest whimpers. Neither of them would admit to thselves or each other the few tears that comes from both of their eyes. The irony of the situation is that Bro was happy that when the light shined in Dave's eyes there were no sign of infection and Dave was in pain from said light.

Bro had slowly picked Dave up off of the ground and had begun guiding him to the bathroom. But Dave couldn't stand how bright everything looked. When someone shines a light in your eyes or when your taking a picture with the flash on there's always an annoying bulb of light still in your vision from afterwards. But with Dave the blinding white lasted longer, covered his whole vision, and was stronger.

Dave struggled against his brother in search for something to dim his vision. It wouldn't fix the after effects of the flashlight but it would help by darkening his scenery. He was mumbling about finding a spare pair of shades when his brother held his small figure tight with cold, leather coated hands. Bro had seen the cut on Dave and how bad he looked. To Bro, Dave could pass out any second, and there was a deep since of pride when he looks at Dave and knows he hasn't. Striders are tough.

"Listen here, you're cut pretty badly and are losing a shit ton of blood. I'm gonna go set you on the toilet and get some supplies to take care of that nasty gash you have there. I know the light is fucking with your vision but you have to pull it together. So stop struggling and being a dumbass and let's go to the bathroom." Bro said with a sharp tone in his voice. One would ask, how is this the same man who got down on the floor and didn't, but totally did, shed a few tears over the sight of his little brother safe? He wasn't mad at Dave. He just couldn't stand too see his little brother in pain, especially due to one of the half brains outside.

They walked down the hallway to there apartment, and Dave may have stumbled over a smuppet along the way. Dave always had a hatred for those things. He never liked how many there were around the house, nor did he like the reason behind why his brother made them.

Bro carefully set Dave on the toilet and told the young one to sit still while he looks for supplies to stitch and patch up the deep gash. But Dave was stubborn. So while Bro left to look for the first aid kit Dave struggled to get up to find something to help his sight. He walked on weak legs, now being able to feel how bad off he is from not having as much adrenaline being pumped through his veins. He walked with a shakiness all the way to his room, hearing his brother curse at the sky for setting off one of his smuppet traps. That's what he gets for trying to bury Dave under a mountain full of plushy sex toys.

Dave's sight wasn't getting any better, but the white fogginess was dissipating slowly. His hands were all over his desk in search for another pair of shades. He didn't have 20 pairs laying around but he knew he did have one back up pair laying around in a box. It was a present sent from one of his new pen pals named John. He just needed something to cover his eyes. He was just so used to having his shades and he felt naked without them. Just as long as he had some sort of coverage he could calm down. He just needed to at least feel them in his hands. And his brother knew this.

Bro came in with his face red and his teeth clenched. He strained out words of anger towards his brother: telling him to get back in the bathroom, but with much harsher wording choices. But Dave was almost in hysterics. Bro realized that the younger boy wouldn't be giving up anytime soon so he joined the search for the sun glasses and quickly found them. He grabbed Dave's arm after telling him he found them and took off back to the bathroom.

He once again Dave was set down on the toilet seat. While Bro was fooling with getting the tread tied to the needle to stitch Dave's gash Dave was trying his hardest to see the shades his brother got him through his foggy gaze. They weren't pointy like his original ones but he was grateful for having them. Its just a comfort tool with him. Some people have stuffed animals and some have old blankies from their childhood and it still brings them warm memories and gives a he like feeling. Dave's shades were his anchor.

They've always caused him problems though. Almost everyday he would get in trouble at school because of them. Dave defied every time to take them off when the teachers would tell him to and the more and more he denied the more and more the staff would become angry.

So almost everyday Dave would have to come an hour before school started for detention. His father, Dirk, wasn't so eager to wake up an hour before he normally would have to just because the school wouldn't let his son wear his glasses due to a problem their family has with their eyes. They had strange colored eyes due to the severe albinism that ran in their families. Dirk even had his own pair of pointy shades that were almost an exact carbon copy of the ones Dave had, yet they were the original and much bigger. Sure, the glasses looked like they had just come out of a cartoon but for some reason they couldn't part with them. But one day the problem was solved due to Dirk coming into school one day with Dave for his detention, storming into the principles office and having a few words with him. The glasses were never talked of again and the detentions ceased.

Beautiful piercing red eyes met with a softer orange hue. Bro had already taken his glasses off and set them on the back of the toilet, alcohol wipe in one hand while the other was waiting for Dave to place his birthday present from John into his hands. Dave gave one more look to his reflection in the blacked glass and slowly gave them up to his brother. Round shades laid next to slightly bigger pointed ones.

The next hour was full of of pained groans and muffles screams as alcohol wipes met raw skin and needles pushing in and out of flesh bringing two sore sides to meet as one again. Its was silent besides that. Halfway through a stitch Dave looked up at his brother with the most pained and desperate look on his face, and a tremble in his voice that Bro would never ever expect from him.

"Bro, where... where's Dad?"