Sight

Nineteen.

                  

                  

DANIEL.

"You're wasting your time, stop toying with your food!" He yelled and I glared at him, "Shut up." I snapped and he scowled, "Don't tell me to shut up, Danny boy." He mocked, "You're delaying this project and he won't be proud." Mentioning him caused me to grit my teeth, "You're supposed to be my partner. Not my mother. Stop chastising me." I clenched my fist and my eyes went hard as I said the words and immediately, he guarded up, his deceivingly innocent, young, features neutralizing at their surface.

"It'll be done." My voice was hard, my tone final.

He inclined his head, a simple nod but held so much respect.

I turned back around and stared at the program that played endlessly on the television in front of me, I wasn't concentrating I was hazing and unfocused.

"But one thing, Daniel," He said again but this time, he walked into my view, covering the screen. I looked up and waited patiently, but unwillingly, for him to complete his sentence, "If you don't follow through. Then whatever you shall do, you cannot stop me." His tone was venomous and instantly I was on my feet, "You follow my orders!" I raged, my booming voice louder than the gunshot that played on the screen, "I do not!" his decibel was just as high as mine, just as commanding.

"I am my own man, and if you do not want the blood drawn on your hands, I will do everything in my power to get in on mine, for I do not care." His tyrannous tone was as sharp as the tip of a double edged sword, "We are partners, not superior to inferior." His voice was softer now, but still held authority, authority I was not used to, but did not faze me.

Very slowly, I nodded, and he walked away.

AVERY.

I stood outside Seth's ICU room, looking at the tracheotomy tube inserted into the incision in his neck to help him breathe; the car had hit him, hard. He had six broken ribs in two places, the doctor said he had, something known as, a flail chest. A flail chest, as I was informed, was common to blunt trauma like Seth had experienced, his rib cage had broken and disconnected from his chest wall and when those words were told to me, I felt my stomach churn, my feet suddenly numb from the unprecedented coldness I felt in my veins.

He told me he had to stay in intensive care as the mortality rate for these kinds of injuries went up by 36%.

He told me he was very lucky to even be alive.

I watched the various machines and tubes connected to Seth help him live, he was still unconscious and would be for a while. The tracheotomy done looked the scariest as it was the most visible.

I didn't know how long he would be here, how long it would take for him to be okay, how I was to tell Maria any of this.

"Ava?" I turned around at the sound of my name and saw my mother there, "Hi, mom." I said with tears in my eyes, "Oh, honey." She whimpered and walked towards me with open arms, immediately I crumbled against her and cried. I cried for Seth, for Maria. I cried for myself.

"What is it, baby?" My mother cooed and I sniffled, my throat feeling like it was closing up, "Seth-he got hit by a car." My voice was raspy and quivered with fright, I looked up at my mother and saw her eyebrows furrow in confusion, she hadn't a clue as to who Seth was, and neither did I till a few days ago. I broke down for a second time and I was, again, pulled into an embrace, "Okay baby, I'm here. I'm here." Mother soothingly rubbed the back of my hair, taming its mess, but I didn't need comfort, I needed a savior.