Dinosaur Conservation & Rescue League

After

Will drove slowly with the window down, stopping at the gas station for some groceries. He hesitated next to a candy display, but finally caved and bought Reese's peanut butter cups. He knew it was so hot out that they would probably melt before he got home, and he'd have to refrigerate the package so the contents could be eaten without making a mess.

After paying the tired-looking cashier, Will walked out into the muggy evening. The yellow-white fluorescent light tubes on the gas station canopy buzzed. Moths fluttered, and he heard the occasional squeak of an insectivorous bat on the hunt.

Instead of getting into his car, Will leaned against it and tipped his head back, listening, smelling, breathing, feeling. He closed his eyes. This gas station didn't have a sound system, so there was no music playing. He heard a car approach and whoosh by on the road. The plastic bag hanging on his arm rustled with the movement of his breathing body.

"Ow!" Will slapped at the prick of pain on his arm, and examined his hand to find a crushed mosquito. Just as a reminder as any that he needed to get home.

At his house, Will got out and slammed the car door shut. The inner house door was open, and light was shining through the screen door. Mom was probably picking up laundry off the clothesline.

As the screen door wheezed shut, small footsteps came running. "Will!"

"Makenzie!" He met his little sister's grin with his own as she wrapped her arms around his legs.

"What's that?" Mackenzie snatched at the plastic bag in his hand.

He held it above her head, out of her reach. "It's a treat, maybe for tomorrow. Why aren't you in bed?"

"I was getting a drink of water."

The screen door wheezed again, and Will and Mackenzie's mother lugged a basket of laundry in.

Mackenzie let go of Will's legs and turned her grin on her mother. "Hi, Mommy!"

"You're supposed to be in bed," her mother said. "And you know you're not supposed to hug your brother when he's wearing dirty work clothes. Go on now."

Mackenzie scampered away.

"Your father's already in bed," Virginia told Will. "There's food for you in the oven, leftover lasagna. Make sure you shower before you go to bed."

"How's Danny?"

"Alright. He got up and walked a bit today."

"How'd he do?"

"He got frustrated and went back to bed. I think he's asleep now."

"Can I help you with that?" Will pointed at his mother's basket of laundry.

She smiled. "No. Eat your food and go to bed, Will."

"These are for tomorrow," he said, holding up the peanut butter cups for Virginia to see, "for Danny and Mackenzie. They're melty, so I'll put them in the fridge."

Virginia smiled again. "You're so sweet. Now, dinner, shower, and bed, and try not to wake up your brother." She dumped the basket out on the couch and started folding the towels and washcloths that tumbled out.

When Will shuffled into his dark bedroom with damp hair, his mother was still taking care of laundry.

His foot caught in something soft, and Will involuntarily grunted, hopping on one foot and shaking the other, trying to dislodge whatever was hampering him.

Will didn't realize he was not hopping up and down in one place, but across the floor, until he slammed one shoulder into the bunk bed. The wooden frame rattled and shuddered, and his brother groaned.

Will froze. "Danny?" he breathed.

No answer came from the darkness.

Will reached down and disentangled the soft thing from his foot. His eyes were adjusting to the darkness, and he was pretty sure that he'd gotten tangled up in a pair of sweatpants. Danny's or his? Could be either. Danny's breathing settled back into near silence. Will slowly climbed the ladder to the top bunk, trying not to shake the bed, He still wasn't really used to doing this. Top bunk had always belonged to Danny.

Light reflected faintly off of Danny's things taped to the wall. Will hadn't had the heart to ask Danny if he wanted his stuff moved down to the wall by the lower bunk. Leaving everything as it was Before was another way to pretend there was no Before or After in their lives.

Will turned away from the wall and closed his eyes.

<><><>

Will woke slowly, and vaguely registered some kind of disturbance.

He heard a clatter, and came fully awake as he felt the bed shake under him.

Will clenched his teeth.

His first impulse whenever he was near Danny was to offer help, to get things for him, to grab his hand and pull him up and half carry his little brother across the room. But Danny didn't want that. He would rather sit in one place and pretend he didn't need or want anything than have people constantly ask if they could help him. Then, as soon as he was alone, Daniel would try to get his crutches under himself and go to the kitchen, or the bathroom, or just up and down the hall. He absolutely refused to use a wheelchair.

Scrabbling of one foot and heaving of a sigh, almost a sob, reached Will's ears.

"Will?" The voice was barely audible. "You awake?"

"Yeah."

"Can you help me." Danny's tone was flat, no question mark audible at the end of the question.

"Sure." Will fought the desire to scramble down from the bed, or just pitch himself over the edge. Instead he moved slowly, cautiously, as if he were answering a casual, boring request of almost no account.

Danny looked up at him, mouth set, one hand reaching up.

Will took it and pulled him up, then ducked his head under Danny's arm. "Where to?"

"Bathroom. Can you get the crutches?"

"After you're sitting down I will."

Will couldn't fathom suddenly having to live like this, when you'd lived as a normal person your whole life. And yet here he was, living side by side with a person who had been normal and no longer was, and that person was his brother.

The stub of Danny's leg bumped against Will's leg, and he cringed inwardly. The doctors kept saying Danny wasn't ready for a prosthetic, he needed to wait just a little longer.

Will stood with his back against the bathroom door, waiting and hoping that Danny would ask for help again rather than try to get up on his own.

It shouldn't have been his brother. Daniel shouldn't have to live like this.

Danny had always been a little dare devil, and a wiggler, never sitting still. As soon as he could crawl, Danny had been trying to get up on top of things, and when he got bigger, Danny started jumping off of the things he got on top of.

And Will had always been there to catch him and hand him to their mom, who would call Danny a little monkey and kiss him, and thank Will for keeping his little brother safe.

Now Danny couldn't even get to his top bunk. Will squeezed his eyes shut and pressed his ear to the wood of the door, trying to hear what was going on inside. Danny falling on the floor in the bedroom wasn't good, but in the bathroom, there were so many more places for him to hit his head...

"Will, I'm ready."

Will breathed again, and opened the door.