The Dead Among Us

70. It Hurts To Heal and Learn

Manny's POV

Crunch

When I finally feel the release of pressure melt away from not only Papi's hand but also my tooth, I open my eyes. What I see startles and confuses me—the pliers are empty.

    Where is my tooth?!

    I'm about to speak and ask what the fuck just happened and where my tooth is when I find it. Well, at least the fragments of it. It didn't pop out. It shattered. My mouth is now full of the grindy bits floating around in my mouth. My head whips to the side as I spit them out on the floor, along with the blood pooling on my tongue.

The room falls into a deep silence, broken only by the sound of my labored breathing and gagging. Papi's warm hands provide a reassuring weight on my shoulder as I hunch over, trying to recover from that whole ordeal. In that vulnerable moment, I feel a solitary tear escape and trail down my cheek. That bastard slipped away behind my back. I can't be crying in front of Fabia.

The silence is broken by Fabia frantically vaulting up and sprinting full force to the trash can, her hand wrapped around her mouth; once there, she violently pukes into the can. Sabin's eyes burrow in concern as he follows after her.

    "Grab some rags to clean this," Papi yells to Sabin before he says to me, "The root might still be in. Let me see."

I guess this can't get any worse, so I open my mouth, and he shines the flashlight.     "Yeah, there's still a few pieces. Let me get them."

    I don't know why he's asking me if he's not really giving me a choice either way.

    A second later, he's got the pliers in my mouth again, but to my relief, no one is holding me down.

    He picks inside for a few minutes, and it's uncomfortable but nothing too bad.

As he finally finishes, he begins to tidy up the mess. After a few minutes of cleaning, he heads into the kitchen. I can hear him, Sabin and Fabia talking as they check on her.

    Looking at Dad, my heart is still racing, but my breath is finally steadier.

    "I know she's in trouble, but if Ben is awake, can I please talk to her?" I ask. 

    He nods, but I don't miss the fact he follows me as I head up the stairs. I go to the bathroom first and thoroughly rinse my mouth out before I see her. 

    As I approach the door, I notice that it's slightly ajar, and I can hear her heartbreaking sobs coming from inside. I gently push the door open and step into the room, allowing the soft light from the hallway to filter in.

    "Benji?" I whisper as I make my way toward her bed. At the sound of my voice, her head instantly pops up off the pillow, and before she can even think about getting out of the covers, I close the distance and sit down beside her.

    She sits up and embraces me with a surprising strength that contradicts her small frame. She barely weighs seventy pounds, and that's after supper. I'm taken aback, my eyes widening in shock, and a chuckle threatens to escape me.

    "Are you okay?! Is it out?!" she asks through her tears, her voice a jumbled mess. I can hear the cracks of phlegm in her throat from her weeping.

    I assure her, "It's out, and you were right. I should have asked for help weeks ago."

    "Is the pain gone?!" she squeals.

    "There's still some pain, but the pressure is gone. It's going to hurt for a few days. It still needs to heal, but now it can heal properly, okay."

    Suddenly, she wraps her arms around my neck, squeezing me tightly and leaving me once again astonished by her toothpick of arms strength.

    She cries so hard that her body shakes against my chest, and I wrap my arms around her, holding her close.

    "I'll never headbutt anybody ever again!! I'm so sorry, Manny!!! Please don't hate me!!"

    "Now hang on," I say a little sternly and grasp her shoulder to pry her off of me.

    With her facing me again and able to see my eyes, I say, "I don't want you to promise that. One, I don't think you can keep that promise. " My words come out in a half-joking tone as I tap her on the nose with my pointer.    

    Instant regret by the way her nose is covered in tears and snot. Ew.

    Hoping she doesn't notice I'm not actually rubbing her arm but really wiping my fingers off on her shirt. I keep talking, "I don't want you to make promises you can't keep or to say sorry for things you're not actually gonna make an effort to change and improve. Someone used always to tell me, 'sorry means you won't do it again'. You're a firecracker, Ben, always have been. Your gonna lash out again it's bound to happen so is that a promise and apology you're actually gonna make an effort to keep?"

In the dim light, her eyes get serious as she listens. Her tears have decreased, and she's solely focused on my words.

    For once... I might add... She's the hardest-headed out of all of us.

    "Also," I add. "What if a bad man grabbed you or something? In that case, I would want you to whip your big ass head back so hard you smash all his teeth out. So don't say anybody... some people deserve it. Just not me again...preferably in the future. Deal?"

    She laughs and wipes her nose off before she shakes her head up and down, agreeing.

    "Deal," she declares, presenting me her hand to shake. I don't want to touch it; it's the same hand she just used to clean her nose.

    Fuck it, I'm taking a shower after this, and we're having a moment. A moment we never have.

    Why am I such a shitty big brother?...

    I take her little hand and squeeze it with a shake, and she beams.   

    "And I don't hate you, and I never will, even if you break all my freaking teeth. You hear me?" I remind her with more intense eyes.

    "Okay," she answers softly and then reaches out to hug me again. As I hug her back, I kiss her on the cheek, feeling her warm tears on my lips.

    "You guys are so sweet for once..." Fabia's gentle, sincere voice pierces the room. I didn't realize she and Dad were both standing at the door watching us.

    "Yeah, I'll give it until tomorrow, and then they'll be at each other's throats again," Dad says with a half-smile, crossing his arms over his chest.

    Letting Benji release me from the hug first, I get up, and she sinks back under her covers and lays her weary head on the pillow. I think Fabia was right earlier about her being tired because the second she's at peace of mind, her eyes droop to close.

"I love you, numbskull," I whisper.

"I love you too, toothless," she replies with a sly grin.

I ruffle her hair with a chuckle and turn to leave. As I step out and close the door behind me, Dad sighs heavily.

    "She's been going a hundred miles an hour for days and needs to hit the brakes before I do it for her."

    Fabia's face twists at his words. "You know," she says sternly. "I think her seeing firsthand the consequences of her actions was more teaching than any spanking."

    Jon's brows skyrocket, but his tone isn't harsh; he's more annoyed. "At what cost, Miss Fabia? At Manny's health?! What if that infection spread and, God forbid, Manny passed? Huh? No, thank you. I'll correct destructive behavior when it happens."

She snaps, annoyed. "I think you need to take your own advice sometimes and get an 'attitude adjustment' from Pedro. You're a little uptight and cranky."

    ........God-fucking-damn, Fabia!

I honestly don't even know what she's referring to, but that was aggressive as hell. Also, that was super brave, considering she's snapping at Dad, of all people.

But WORSE, does she not realize Sabin is right behind her?......