Gone And Back Again

II. Thousand Ton White Lies

 Daisuke woke up to a bright light blinding him,  adding to the pain he already suffered. Speaking of the pain, why was his body aching so much? He then remembered the crash. He couldn’t force himself to sit up, and speaking with his throbbing head didn’t seem like a good option either. He laid there, trying to figure things out and keep the light from worsening his headache. for what felt like hours, until someone opened the door. He waited for a voice, to tell him what was happening, what happened to his siblings, and when he would be better. Afterall, missing too much school would drive Daisuke up the wall, since there would be nothing else to do.

“Dai? Are you awake?” Came his mother’s trembling voice. Was she crying earlier? It sounded like she was trying to stop more tears, or as if she was recovering, and this tone in his mother’s voice hurt Daisuke.

Hearing Emiko like that, Daisuke decided that his headache wasn’t so bad that he couldn’t reassure his mother that he was fine, even though he didn’t really know if he was.

“Yeah, I’m awake.” Was Daisuke’s weaker than he intended response.

“Oh, thank goodness…” Suddenly Emiko was hugging her son, restraining from hurting him. “I was worried that I would lose you, or that something awful would happen…” She began carefully stroking his hair, which appealed to her red eyed son. It felt soothing, and helped his headache a little.

“It’s fine, Mom. Most of the pain is really just a headache, and being really sore.” This time Daisuke’s voice was stronger, closer to it’s natural tone. Not quite there, but closer. “What about the others?”

Emiko was silent, and Daisuke felt tears coming from her, and landing on him. “Well… Wiz seems okay so far… He’s still unconscious, but the doctors said he’ll be okay…” She managed.

“What about Dark and Krad?”

She took in a deep breath, as if she was trying to stop herself from trembling too hard, and Daisuke’s heart sped up in worry. Surely, his older brothers were alright. The two fought often, physically and verbally, and Krad often found weapons before Dark did. Once they fought too hard when they were left alone, and needed to be sent to the same hospital Daisuke was laying in. Since the two were hurting each other so often, and doing all kinds of stupid things, a car crash obviously couldn’t have killed them, or even crippled them. Right?

“Daisuke… While it hasn’t been confirmed…” The rest of her sentence was cut off as Emiko burst out sobbing, unable to finish. The door opened again, and Daisuke saw his dad hold onto the sobbing woman. Kosuke’s eyes were red and puffy, as if he too had been crying.

Kosuke, having heard what Emiko was trying to say, gulped, took a deep breath, and decided to try to tell his oldest biological son what happened, although it pained him. The twins were adopted, but they were loved as much as their biological children were.

“Daisuke… We’re not one hundred percent sure, but… It doesn’t seem like Dark and Krad are going to make it.” He said, his voice starting to shake at the end, afraid of Daisuke’s reaction. Daisuke was probably going to lose his older brother’s, and he was naturally sensitive, hurting Kosuke so much more.

“What?” Daisuke’s question was hardly audible. He looked at his parents in disbelief and despair. Dark was his teasing older brother, and as annoying as he could get, Daisuke loved him. He loved Krad too, even though he was scary, but if things got too rough for either of the younger two, Krad was known to get aggressive. They were brothers. Those were Daisuke’s oldest brothers, and they couldn’t just die. If they died then… Then… Daisuke didn’t know what he would do.

Kosuke simply managed to nod, slightly cringing as he tried to comfort Emiko.

“But… But… But they have a chance of living right? You said you didn’t know for sure. They… They can’t die.” Daisuke’s disbelief began to consume him, and he was mentally begging for Kosuke and Emiko to tell him that they got the percentage wrong, and that Kosuke meant to say that they didn’t think the older two weren’t going to make it. As in, they would live. That was the only logical conclusion to Daisuke. They didn’t mean that Dark and Krad would die. It was a mistake. Dark and Krad would live, and they would get out of the hospital, and things would be normal, except they would walk to the train and ride that to school like Daisuke had always insisted on. Dark would probably whine the entire way, saying that he didn’t like how crowded the train was, and that he felt confined, Krad would probably say that Dark just liked to whine, and they would argue all the way to the train, and once they boarded, the two would just whisper insults so they wouldn’t bother anyone.

“There is a chance… It’s just not likely…” Kosuke answered slowly. He could see the disbelief in Daisuke’s eyes. Had Daisuke not needed them at a time like this, Kosuke might’ve left so he wouldn’t have to see the pain in his son’s eyes and on his face.

 Tears welled up in Daisuke’s red eyes, and all he could do was stare at his parents incredulously. “But… They have to live…” Tears slowly made their way down. Since he was laying down, the fell to the outer sides of his eyes, dripping down his cheeks and going around his ears. It was uncomfortable, but Daisuke didn’t bother changing to a more comfortable position. His parents were basically telling him that he was going to be the oldest son in the household, unless some miracle saved his older brothers.