Vixivo

??? (Part 3)

"So, they're not coming?" A hint of sadness was placed in Hendrix's voice.

"I'm sorry Hendrix, but they're stuck in a meeting and can't get out of it," Emily said, "If they had the choice they would be here."

Turns out, Hendrix's parents are too busy to come visit. So instead, Hendrix's sister, Emily, is here to take their place. Bringing with her, some flowers and a basket of fruit. That's thoughtful.

"Yeah, I understand," If Hendrix could sink into his bed anymore, he would fall into an endless void.

Emily looks nearly identical to Hendrix when it comes to looks (Is that racist?). Both of them had chocolate brown hair, with Hendrix having curls while Emily having wavier features. Emily was taller than Hendrix by a good two or three inches, being around Aria's height. She doesn't seem to have any freckles or acne, but she wears glasses that seem to have lenses that are too thick for the average person.

"It's going to be okay," Aria assured Hendrix, "I'm sure they'll visit one of these days."

One of these days?

"They haven't come to visit yet?" I blurted out, I don't know why, "Not one single time?"

Emily looked at me with a soft expression, it felt like she was looking at my soul. Just analyzing my character and personality, not what I look like physically.

"Our parents are busy people," She spoke, "They run several businesses, so they're constantly caught up in work."

"Sounds like an excuse," My nose started to twitch in anger, "Being a busy parent doesn't excuse not visiting your kid when they're in the hospital."

"Ciro!" Aria said.

"No," I replied, "Hendrix has been here for two entire weeks now. And they couldn't find the time to take a few hours out of their day to visit him?"

The room felt uneasy, nobody wanted to say a word. Everyone stood with their head down and their bodies frozen.

"Hendrix could've died you know," I said, "He could've been killed in that locker room, or even here in the hospital. But instead of visiting their son, they rather run their business?"

...

...

...

Nobody said anything. That's sad. I never met these people before, but how can you choose work over your own kid? Even when that kid is in the hospital. All of this sounds like the plot to a bad Christmas movie, where the parents learn to pick their family over work.

"They're busy people," Emily finally spoke, "They barely have any free time, even before this whole mess."

Bullshit. That's dumb beyond any belief.

"Being busy isn't an excuse," I retort.

"How are you going to judge us?" Emily countered, "You don't know anything about our situation. They're our parents, our family. It's because of them working that we are able to have the life we have.

"They're working hard to put food on the table, to pay for my college tuition, and to pay for the medical bills here. You don't know a single thing."

I can't believe what I'm hearing. All of this, for the sake of justifying the acts of terrible family members. It's like my childhood all over again.

"Ciro," Hendrix uttered, "It's fine."

I'm making a scene, but I couldn't care. It felt like I'm talking to an empty room of brick walls. No one is listening to my points, instead they use the excuse of "They're family" to justify all of this.
Being family isn't an excuse to not criticize people. Work isn't an excuse to not being a parent.

"It's okay," Hendrix said, "I wasn't looking forward to them visiting anyways."

Knock Knock Knock.

"Excuse me?" A voice spoke on the other end of the door, "This is Nurse Judy, is it okay for me to come in?"

The bedroom had a thick layer in it. Almost like a muggy afternoon once a storm clears. I was so angry that I could feel my blood boil. I didn't want to say anything else, but I felt like I needed to drive a point across to these people. But alas, now isn't the best time anymore.

"Yes! Of course!" Miss Zavolo answered.

A older woman entered the room with a clipboard. Grayish blonde hair, a wart right under her nose, and the run-of-the-mill nurse outfit.

"Sorry to interrupt any conversations," The Nurse Judy said, "But the doctor wants to run a few more tests, to check for any unexpected brain damage."

"Yes, we'll leave you to it," Miss Zavolo gave a shining smile, "Come everyone."

We said our goodbyes to Hendrix and all left the room. With the door closing behind us, I could tell the others wanted to leave the previous conversation behind as well.

"It's a shame," Miss Zavolo said, "But I'm sure we'll be able to visit some other time."

"Yeah," Emily agreed, "I'll have to visit Hendrix a day where he doesn't have any testing."

Emily didn't sound too fond of the idea, especially since she was tapping away on her phone.

"Thank you all," She said, "It means a lot to my brother that you stopped by and visited."

"Of course," Aria replied, "We'll try to visit again as soon as possible."

"Yes we will," Miss Zavolo added.

"Thank you. I really must be going, drive home safely," Emily turned away from us and left us behind.

That left Miss Zavolo, Aria, and I. Tate was somewhere else in the hospital, still have to find that guy.

"No 'goodbye' is just rude," I said.

"Now, now," Miss Zavolo said softely, "We shouldn't be so hostile to Emily. I'm sure the poor girl is a nice person."

She gave a warming smile, the kind only a mother could give. No hostility, anger, or even annoyance was behind it. Miss Zavolo has a lot of patience.

"Ciro," Aria said, "What you did back there was uncalled for.

"You had no business saying all of that. Especially in front of Hendrix, in the hospital."

I guess she's right. I just couldn't keep my mouth shut about it all. Instead of saying all of that in front of Hendrix, I could've waited.

"I know," I admitted, "I just think it's scummy behavior. Hendrix was in critical condition, and his own parents didn't visit him."

"Ciro," Miss Zavolo said, "There is always a time and place for that conversation. In front of Hendrix wasn't the right time."

"Yeah," I agreed.

I know my anger can be seen by those two, I wasn't trying very hard to hide the fact that I was upset.

"If it makes you feel any better," Miss Zavolo said, "I agree with you, it's just wrong that they won't visit Hendrix. Ignoring your own son for the sake of work is down right terrible behavior. But there's only so much that I can say without judging them unfairly."

A few nurses passed us in the hallway.

"Hendrix has always been angry with his parents," Aria added, "He always believed that he was neglected in favor of his sister.

"But here, in the hospital, is not the place to start drama. The best thing we'll have to do is support Hendrix ourselves. Just like how we always been doing."

"You're right," I said, "I'm sorry."

Miss Zavolo gave a soft smile, "Now, we should be going. Can't stand here forever."

Tate came soaring through the hallway, drifting from the nearby hall. Only stopping when he saw we were already out of the room.

"Hey, guys," He mustered, "Did something happen?"

"Nope!" Miss Zavolo said, "We were just about ready to leave! Do you need a ride home?"