Jahrtausend Risse
Chapter One
It was raining. The dim city was slurred and empty and most of the colorful lights that normally lit up the streets could not penetrate the darkness and storm. In fact, everything seemed to be closed. A surge of wet leaves barraged the streets making the high tech city of Domino look like more of a ghetto. The only place that was intact and still bursting with activity was Domino Hospital. An ambulance sped through the gates and skidded to a skillful stop, sirens shrieking as a team of nurses unloaded the gasping patient. It was this sound that woke Ryou from his sleep.
The boy had been fast asleep, his head and arms resting on the white hospital bed where his Twin sister, Amane, lay in acoma. She wasn't waking up. Ryou knew it very well. Amane had been like this for the past four years. Still…after their parents had died, Ryou found himself spending as much time as he could with her at the hospital. He talked to her constantly. There had been a time when he would ask the doctors if she would wake up soon, but always received the same answer. "She isn't in stable condition so we can't tell now. Maybe someday…with the proper operation…" Ryou had stopped listening then. The operation in question cost a fortune, and unfortunately Ryou had dropped out of school and had absolutely no talents. Well….that was not entirely true. The job Ryou had now…his stomach churned. It was his only hope. He had to keep it in order to keep Amane in the hospital. If she were forced to leave then….Ryou couldn't bear to think of it. Even if Amane was like a doll now….at least she was there. She would always be there. He spoke to her of everything and in his heart he was sure she was listening.
The small alarm clock on Amane's stand dinged and Ryou stood up slowly. Carefully leaning over he kissed her gently. "I'll be back later okay? Don't wait up."
Grabbing his well worn jacket from the back of his chair and put it on in a single movement. Departing from the neat, whitewashed walls of the hospital, Ryou entered the storm and shivered. He was late. Would he be punished? Who knows.