The Color of Blood is Red

Chapter 4

1:20AM
We spoke for hours. About work, each other, life and small but meaningful things.
“Fuck, look at the time. Clear up, we need to get out of here.” I abruptly ended our conversation. I felt so calm, no pain, no pressure. Just peace. Serenity and pure feelings. Something I haven’t felt in a while.
Green, a color that represents hope.
His eyes, my hope.
I can see a color.
Then our days ended. He went his way, I went mine.
With my face all smiley and a radiating heat from my neck and cheeks, I sat in the car that was parked in my driveway for a while, just trying to catch my breath and slow my racing heart. And with a smile on my face, I made my way to the door. As I reached the closed door, I remembered. No key. It didn’t stress me out as much as I thought it would. Taking a pin from my hair, I picked the lock and waltz in with a dreamy aura. Still smiling, I took a shower and went to bed. Still no appetite.

10:00AM
The weekend. No alarm. It’s raining and I’m freezing my ass off. I snuggled closer to my pillow and heard my bedroom door handle shake.
Oh no.
“Aunty Kate!” Followed by a toddler jumping on top of me and covering me with wet sloppy kisses. I groaned in response and hid under the covers.
“Hey Kate,” my brother's voice echoed in my ear as a slight pressure was added to the side of the bed.
“Yes, Ethan?”
“Did you forget?”
“Maybe.” I fully remembered, just wanted to ignore it.
“Take care of Lilly for me? Just for the weekend?”
“Yeah yeah,” I came out from under the covers and grabbed Lilly from on top of me.
“Hey! I thought I told you my name was Kathy, not aunty. It makes me feel old,”
“Because you are!”
Brat.
Wait. Her eyes, squinting with mischievousness. And the slightest tint of blue.
Blue! Her eyes are blue! I can see her eye color!
“Lilly, look at me,” she widens her eyes and comes really close to me.
Beautiful. Blue eyes.
“Ethan,” it was calm but panicked, “look at me.”
He does the same, keeping his distance and staring at me.
Like father like daughter.
Bright. Blue. Eyes.
I wanted to cry. I can see my brother's eye color, for the first time in my life. I see his gorgeous eyes.
Blue.
“We need to talk,” I mouth to him as Lily plays with her doll in my lap.
“Lily, sweetheart, go say bye to your mother, we will be leaving in a few.” She looks at him and nods happily skipping off, her curly hair bouncing as she gallops out of my room.
“What did you do?” he asks with the most unamused face. He puts his feet on the bed and leans back on the head board with me.
“I can see,”
“No shit,”
“No, you ass, I can see color.”
He looks at me with a cocked eyebrow.
“You going to explain or…”
And then I go back to the run.
“Maybe you hit your head to hard?”
“I thought so to but…I only saw color when he smiled at me, his eye color at least. It’s the only thing I can see by the way. Only people's eye colors.”
His eyes widen, “What’s my eye color?”
“Blue.” He looks shocked and doesn’t know what to do with himself.
“Whoa.”
“Yeah.”
He smiles at me like he’s proud.
“I have to go, good luck. And please, go to the doctors. Make sure you don’t have anymore brain damage.” He pats my shoulder and exits my room.
Wait.
“WHAT DO YOU MEAN BY MORE BRAIN DAMAGE YOU-,”
Lily walks in like a censorship bar.
“I want ice cweam,” she whines.
Its going to be a long weekend.
"Of course you do."

Sunday 6:00AM
“Take her. Please.” I handed over the sleeping toddler in my arms as soon as I swung the door open.
“You look like walking hell,”
“Thanks.”
“Can you watch her again next-,” the door slammed in his face. “I’ll take that as no!” he shouts from the other end.
I got no work done, a maximum of 8 hours of sleep (total) and tomorrow is the deadline for 3 different projects. Grabbing a Monster from the fridge, I dragged my ass over to my office, sat down and sharpened my pencil.