Bundle of Branches

Chapter 7

"Hey, Dante." Thalia grins, leaning down and giving Dante a kiss on the cheek.

A smile flickers onto his face, but he doesn't open his eyes. "Hey, babe." He takes a deep breath before speaking again. "I'm not doing so well today."

Thalia frowns. "What do you mean?"

"I've been exhausted... and... I've been getting flashbacks." Pain sparks in his chest, and he grimaces. "I still can't move my arm, but-"

"Wait, flashbacks?" Thalia reaches a trembling hand out and brushes Dante's hair back from his forehead. "Dante, I'm so sorry."

He's running as fast as he can. The gun weighs heavy in his hands. Gunshots echo around him. And then there's a sharp pain in his shoulder, tearing through his chest, and he can barely breathe. The door is so close, he's so close, but before he can get there he feels another pain in his back, and he falls down. Agony wraps around him, suffocating him.

Dante swallows. "I'm terrified, Tal. I- what if the flashbacks don't stop?" He looks at her with tear-filled eyes. "What if I'm, I'm- tortured by them for the rest of my life? A useless arm, a brain getting bombarded with flashbacks, and constant pain. I don't think I can do it."

"Shh... you went through a severely traumatic experience, babe. It's going to take some time for the flashbacks to stop happening."

The next thing he knows, the world is shaking. His body is on fire. He gasps, but his lungs are blocked, he can't breathe, he can't do anything except stare at the blurry face of Thalia. Whenever he tries to speak, blood trickles from his mouth. Everything hurts. Thalia and another person - Dante thinks it's Izzy - are yelling, crying, talking, but their voices are all blending together.

"Dante?" Thalia's face is filled with worry. "Are you okay?"

And Dante shakes his head, because he's not okay, he's really not okay. For the first time in his life, he's admitting that to someone else. He's reaching out, baring his soul to this beautiful girl, and asking her to help. "I'm not okay," he whispers. "Tal, I'm so- I'm so scared. I remember the feeling of the bullets hitting my skin, the force throwing me against the cold metal floor. I remember feeling hands pressing on my chest, cracking my ribs, and then taking my first breath after I died. I remember it all."

Thalia sits on the edge of his cot and traces the edge of his bandage with her hand. "I'm sorry, babe. Is there... can I help? Do you want anything? I can leave, or-"

"No!" Dante's eyes are wide, terrified. "No," he says, quieter. "Please don't leave. I don't want to be alone." A tidal wave of pain crashes upon his chest, and he gasps sharply, tears gathering in his eyes.

"Dante!" Thalia reaches out and puts her hands on his shoulders. "What's wrong?" Her eyes search his.

"Nnhh-" He arches his back and squeezes his eyes shut, trying to deal with the pain. It's a horrible, burning pain, attacking his chest. Somewhere in the haze, he feels Thalia grasp his hand, and that helps him pull through to the other side of it. He catches his breath. "It hurts," he says.

Thalia strokes his forehead. "I know. I know it does, babe. You have to hold on, though, alright? Someday, you're going to be out of this emergency med bay, with no bandages, and no medicine to take, and I'll take you to the river like you always wanted." She smiles.

"We'll picnic on the shore," manages Dante, the dull remnant of the pain spike still lingering in his chest. "I'll- bring the food, and you can bring the drinks."

A tear runs down Thalia's cheek. "Sounds like a plan. But you have to get better first, okay? You have to live. You have to pull through this." She gives him a playful shove. "I know you can."

Dante is being carried off of the bus, and the sun outside is blinding. People crowd around him. He just wants to be alone. He wants to let go, to drift off. But then he remembers Thalia, through the clouds in his head, and he doesn't want to drift off anymore. Instead, he wants to stay, and he's ready to fight. He can see her, walking alongside the stretcher, but it may be a hallucination - he can't tell. She holds his hand as he's carried into another place, and he tries to fight, but he can't breathe.

"Thanks," Dante says. "I'm remembering... I'm remembering that when I was being taken off of the bus and into the emergency med bay, you walked beside me. I think. It could very well have been my brain making things up."

And to his surprise, Thalia starts sobbing. She throws herself around him, and he melts into her arms. "I- I d-didn't k-know you r-remembered t-that," she stammers. "I w-was s-so scared that y-you were g-gonna die."

Dante smiles. "I didn't," he breathes. "And you being there... it helped me pull through. I wanted to die, I was ready to die, but then I remembered you, and I fought as hard as I can. I love you so much." He blinks, mildly shocked to feel tears in his eyes.

"That m-means a lot," Thalia chokes out, hugging him harder. "I love y-you, too."

He's lying on a cot and everyone's talking, sounding like they're underwater. His chest burns, and he tries to suck in breaths, but it's so hard. And then someone, he can't tell who it is, puts an oxygen tube around his face. Suddenly breathing gets a bit easier. He vaguely feels something cold on his chest, and he strains to look at it. Panic seizes him when he sees someone stick him with a large needle.

"Dante, you're shaking," murmurs Thalia. She strokes his hair.

He stiffens, his body wracked with pain. When it passes, he looks at her. "Another flashback." His heart is pounding, and static dances across his skin. "It's- it's getting easier to deal with them. Because you're here."

Thalia wipes tears from her eyes. "God, I- I'm so glad you're safe." She gazes at him, a sad smile playing on her lips. "You're so brave."

Someone keeps sticking things in his chest, and even though he can't feel it, he's terrified. Breathing is getting easier by the minute, but he's scared, he's so afraid that he's going to die and never see Thalia again. Fear runs through his veins, electrifying him and making his heart beat faster. And then he hears someone. Paula? "Hey, bud. You're going to get through this, okay?" Her voice is clear somehow, and he manages to nod, before darkness floods his mind and he passes out.

"No, I'm not," Dante whispers. "I'm not brave. I... I was terrified that day I got shot. And I've been terrified ever since. That doesn't make me brave, that makes me weak."

"Babe, being brave doesn't mean you're not scared." Thalia cups his chin in her hand. "It just means that... you face whatever's making you scared. You're not weak. You are a fighter. Even though you were in pain and terrified, you didn't give up."

Dante lets out a breath. "Do you really feel that way?" His eyes search her face.

Thalia nods. "Of course I do. I'm so glad that you've kept fighting, and I know you'll continue to fight. You're strong, Dante. You're strong, and brave - the bravest guy I know. That's why I love you."