A/N: Yes, oh yes, chapter 28 is here, people! I wasn't supposed to update until tomorrow, but 1) I noticed the site will be down for two hours tomorrow and – naturally – the exact hours during which I was supposed to update, and 2) I want to ease the torment I've caused you guys a teeny bit. (grins)
I know, you're probably ready to take drastic measures to make me get on with the story, but first… My GOSH! The last chapter truly hit you guys, huh? Thank you SO MUCH for those stunning reviews! I seriously can't believe you like my foolish lil' scrabble-up that much!
Okay, okay, put those knives and stones away! Now, everyone's got your tissue-packages ready, yeah? Good. Let's go. I hope this one doesn't suck too much…
CHAPTER 28: Wounds
Keep breathing, Tyson kept telling himself, eyes squeezed tightly shut.
" Mr. Granger?"
This is just a nightmare, a stupid dream. When you open your eyes, everything's gonna be alright. None of this ever happened.
" Tyson?"
Slowly, slowly, he inched his eyelids – and could barely suppress a whimper of disappointment. The weasel-faced policeman was still sitting on the opposite side of the table. " This is really happening, huh?" he whispered, voice filled with utter despair and defeat.
The policeman – officer Hanou – frowned. " Pardon?"
Giving a sigh, he shook his head and stared out the tiny window of the room, wrapping his arms around himself as his body was suddenly devoid of all heat. " Nothing."
Officer Hanou nodded with a suspicious look in his eyes, then went back to his notes. " So, just to clarify… When you and your friends took a look at the main-hall of the warehouse… What did you see?"
Horrible, sickening images flashed before Tyson's eyes, and he wrapped his arms even more tightly around himself. Tears trickled to his snow-white cheeks.
/ Cursing and hissing Voltaire being dragged away. /
" Voltaire… That bastard was arrested…"
/ Blood. /
" And Kai… He… he was laying there… Dara held him…" He took a choked, shuttering gasp. " He… he was bleeding so much…"
/ Kai's ashen face. /
He started to shiver violently, nausea creeping up his already sore throat. " He… he whispered something to her…"
/ The medics desperately trying to revive Kai. /
He started to shiver even harder, it was almost impossible to hold back a vomit. " He… His heart…" He couldn't fight back anymore.
Officer Hanou gave him a look of deep sympathy as he rapidly bounced up from his seat, dashing towards the door, praying that there'd be a toilet nearby. He never made it on time. A large hand rubbed his back gently as he heaved loudly. " I think you've put him through enough of strain already", Mr. Dickinson's strained, grief-filled voice stated sternly.
Officer Hanou nodded. " I believe this was all I needed to ask." He looked at Tyson, who was leaning against the wall with both hands, tears escaping through tightly closed eyelids. " You can go now."
Working his hardest not to cry himself, Mr. D gently placed his hand onto Tyson's quaking shoulder, blinking his red, puffy eyes. " Come on, Tyson. I'll take you to the toilet – you'll be feeling much better after that."
Giving a dull nod, Tyson let the elder escort him out of the room, not really caring where he was being taken.
After spending what seemed like a tireless age in the toilet, Tyson slowly emerged, and was almost grateful to notice that Mr. D had been forced to go somewhere. Not that he would've had something against the old man – he just needed a moment alone.
But it seemed that privacy was a luxury he wasn't going to get. He frowned as his ears suddenly detected a small, scarcely audible sound. Curiosity yet again taking the best of him, he followed the noise – and blinked in surprise as the sight greeted him. " Nadja?"
The girl, whom he'd always considered harder than stone, was leaning against a wall, sunken to the cold floor as her legs didn't support her weight anymore, arms wrapped around her legs in a protective manner. She seemed to be trembling uncontrollably as she'd leaned her forehead against her knees, locks of reddish-black hair shadowing her face. " Go away, Tyson." It was probably supposed to be a growl, but came out as a tiny sob, sounding more like a desperate plea than anything else.
Despite the nausea still roaming in the pit of his stomach and pain squeezing his chest, Tyson couldn't help being struck stunned. Never had he expected to see Nadja break down like that.
Apparently, she was just a human-being after all.
After slight hesitation, he slowly walked up to her, taking a seat next to her. It took a moment before he found words to speak. " I suppose it's kinda pointless to ask if you're okay", he stated, then went through his pockets. After a long search, he finally found what he'd been looking for – a package of tissues – and silently offered it to the girl.
Half-surprised, half-grateful look in her eyes, Nadja hesitantly took the offering. The look upon her face showed deep discomfort – she wasn't used to showing emotions like this. " Thanks."
No more words were needed. Almost like working in some silent agreement, they both looked out the window to see the moon in the sky – soon, it would disappear, giving room for a new day. The long, hellish night would come to an end.
Tyson almost yelped in surprise when Nadja suddenly leaned her head against his shoulder, too exhausted to sit upright anymore. Tears meandered down her tense face.
Feeling like crying himself, Tyson wrapped an arm around her, signalling that he felt the same way, that he understood. Grateful, Nadja buried her face into his shoulder. And at that moment, Tyson felt something hot sneak to his own cheeks.
Neither knew for how long they'd been sitting there, when Tyson felt that if he wouldn't move and get something reasonable to do soon, he'd go crazy. Slowly, not wanting to startle the girl who'd finally begun to trust him, Tyson started to get up, at that point noticing just how weak his legs were. He almost fell back down, but managed to steady himself against a wall in a nick of time. " I'm going to the hospital to check up on the others", he reported, voice quivering a tiniest bit. " You wanna come?"
Nadja shook her head, not looking at him. " I… I think I'll stay here a little while", she murmured, voice unnaturally soft. " I don't want to see anyone just yet."
Tyson nodded, opening his mouth to say something, but then closed it again. Giving Nadja one more look, he slowly turned around and walked away.
As he got out the police-station, he paused just outside the building, realizing that he suddenly didn't have a slightest clue of what he'd been doing.
Pathetic, he declared to himself. Usually, he would've chuckled at how much like Kai the statement sounded. But at the moment, the very realization that it hadn't been Kai saying the word made it almost impossible to hold back tears.
All of a sudden, a familiar voice startled him. " Dude?" Turning his head, a lost, desolate look in his stormy eyes, he saw his grandpa standing some steps away. " I thought you could use a ride."
At first, he opened his mouth to tell the man off, still furious about the fact that he'd worked for Voltaire. But suddenly, all the rage died down, leaving nothing but breathtaking pain and sorrow. Breaking down completely, he walked up to his grandpa, and first time in years cried to the old man's chest.
" Bryan Kuznetsov, wasn't it?"
Not taking his eyes off the window he'd been staring at for the past hour, Bryan nodded apathetically. " Yeah."
" I'm Dr. Jessica Yagama", a young, ebony-hared woman introduced herself, approaching him as if he'd been a dangerous, wild beast. " I'm going to take a look at your wound, okay?"
I don't care if you remove the entire freaking arm, he mentally snarled, but pushed his lips tightly together, managing to hold back the words.
He unwillingly winced as the woman roughly poked on the nasty wound the bullet had left onto his shoulder. It took a while before she spoke. " This will need some stitches, but you should be alright in no time. I think you're good to go as soon as I'm done."
His eyes, still staring at the window, turned dark. " That makes me the lucky one, right?"
Dr. Yagama, preparing her equipment, gave him a quick look. " Did you say something?"
Bryan plainly shook his head, suddenly too exhausted to form words. He barely registered as the doctor gave him an injection of something that made his arm numb, then started working on the stitches.
He blinked in surprise when suddenly realizing that she was done. " That should do it. Remember to keep the wound clean and dry, alright? The stitches should be good to be removed in a week or two."
Bryan gave an indifferent nod. " 'K." Slowly, debuting whether his legs would be co-operative, he shakily got up, pleased to discover that he'd be able to walk away on his own.
Dr. Yagama tried to tell him something, but his mind refused to register the words. The door of the room sliding shut behind him, he walked towards the nearby elevator.
Perhaps it was because he had to put all his concentration into staying up and keeping in mind where he was going, that his usually sharp instincts didn't manage to warn him on time. Out of nowhere it seemed, a huge mob of reporters suddenly gathered around him, forcing him to back away until he was leaning against the elevator-doors. His widened eyes claimed a look of sheer panic as all the people approached him, squeezing so close that he felt like he couldn't breathe.
Gods, he'd always been terrified of mobs…
" What happened in the warehouse today?"
" What do you want to say to Voltaire?"
" Are all your friends alright?"
" Is Kai alive?"
At that point, hearing Kai's name, Bryan felt all terror transform into utter, wild rage that completely clouded his mind. He gave a feral screech, and without properly noticing it blindly swung his fist forward, managing to hit one of the reporters, sending the rather tall man stumbling backwards. " Go away, go away!" he screamed, hysterical. " Leave us alone, you bastards!"
Just then, the elevator-door finally opened and he wobbled back some steps, staring with panicked, dazed eyes as the door slowly slid closed before him.
As soon as the reporters couldn't see him anymore, he felt all strength leaving his body. Legs going limp, he ungracefully slipped to the floor, leaning his back against the wall, and buried his face into his hands, desperately sucking in futile, wheezing breaths. Bringing his legs protectively against his chest, he begun to tremble uncontrollably.
The elevator went up and down the floors, but he didn't notice, paid no attention the people who entered and gave him sad looks, silently muttering "poor kid" to each other.
When Bryan finally came out of his hysterical frenzy, he blinked in surprise when realizing that there was something warm and moist on his cheeks. Gently brushing with his fingers, he made a surprising discovery. " Tears…"
He was crying. First time in ages, Bryan Kuznetsov was actually crying.
In a small room, more minutes drained away. Then hours.
As soon as he'd heard of what'd happened to Bryan, Mr. Dickinson had arranged the gang a room with absolute privacy. Should any reporter try to catch a glimpse of them, there'd be a lawsuit.
Now, all the group inside could do was wait.
" What the hell is taking them for so long?" Tala, who'd been pacing around the room since he'd entered, growled, running a hand through his dishevelled red hair in frustration.
" Stop that pacing. It's not helping", Tyson, who was sitting on a bench, growled, playing with his fingers restlessly.
" Would you both SHUT UP!" Nadja, who was sitting on a bench as well with her face buried into her hands, snarled in a voice that would've silenced a whole army.
Ray didn't even hear his friends as he was stood before a window, his arms crossed over his chest, vacant stare locked to the raindrops falling heavily over the city that was slowly waking up to a new morning.
It had been for so long from when they'd first entered this small, sad room. He needed answers, they all did. They needed to know if…
" Why aren't they coming to tell us already?" he asked quietly from Alissa, who'd wrapped her arms gently around him, holding him close.
" I don't know", she whispered in a sad tone, kissing his shoulder. " Hang in there, okay? Just for a little while longer…"
A single tear that dried away soon fought its way out of his tear-reddened eye. What 'hanging in there' did he have? He wasn't the one who…
Leaning slightly more against Alissa's comforting warmth, he lifted the gaze of his grief-sticken eyes towards the sky, asking for only one thing…
Please…
Unable to sit still any longer, Bryan pushed himself up and headed towards the door, steps sharp from anxiousness and anger he desperately tried to keep bottled up inside. " I'm going to get some coffee from the cafeteria. Anyone want anything?"
He received a series of head-shakes as a reply, then exited, closing the door a lot more loudly than necessary.
Others barely noticed the small, shivering figure that was curled up against the wall on one seat, making herself as unnoticeable as possible, her gaze directed to her shoes.
Dara knew where she was only absently. Some distant part of her had registered when the doctor who'd checked up on her had told her that she should spent a night in a hospital: she most certainly had a concussion, and she was in a state of shock. A tiny part of her tried to message her that she should get cleaned up, change her clothes. Her long, purple hair was a mess, and her strained, pale face filled with signs of all the tears she'd cried and lack of sleep. Her clothes weren't any better, the shirt she was wearing caked with Kai's long ago dried blood.
She felt a wave of queasiness go through her as she saw the blood and agonizing memories flooded into her mind. Flinching, she tried to rub it off, but gave a faint, wounded sound when it stubbornly remained. " Damnit…"
She almost frightened as someone dared to approach her. Gradually, unwillingly, lifting her gaze, she met a pair of teary blue eyes. " Hey. How are you doing?" Max asked quietly, taking a seat next to her.
She looked at him, sapphire-eyes filled with desperation and unshed tears. " He's not dead."
Max nodded slowly. " No, he's not." The voice was soft and sad, like he hadn't believed in his words.
She looked at her shoes again, just barely managing to hold back her sobs. " Then why are they all acting that way?"
Max gave her a small, sad smile she couldn't see as she wasn't looking at him. " They're just going through a lot, we all are. They mean no harm."
She gave a small nod, tears no longer in her control. There was a short silence before she whispered. " This shouldn't be happening. This… This isn't fair."
Max nodded, looking at his hands. " I know", the usually cheery boy admitted sadly.
A silence fell upon them.
Everyone in the room startled when the door suddenly burst open and Kenny stormed in, seeming like there'd been a fire on his tails, followed closely by equally anxious Bryan. " The doctor's coming!" Kenny announced shrilly.
Not even noticing it, everyone jumped up, staring at the door with hopeful eyes.
After a time that seemed endless in walked a woman in her late twenties with her long, mahogany hair on a neat ponytail. She was Kai's doctor, Tira Hendez.
" How is he?" Tyson demanded before anyone else (including the doctor) got a chance to talk.
Dr. Hendez sighed, looking at them all apologetically with her greyish-blue eyes. " I'm sorry, but I'm only allowed to tell his guardian…"
" That would be me", Mr. Dickinson, who just entered the room, announced, then looked at the anxious teenagers. " And you can tell them everything you'd tell me – we are all practically Kai's family, and they've been waiting for a really long time."
After hesitating for a while, Dr. Hendez nodded. " As you probably already noticed, his injuries are severe. First of all, there are many old injuries that haven't healed properly, if at all: for example, his arm has been broken from two places. Luckily, it will most likely work properly after a surgery. And according to our specialists, his right eye might be permanently blind. Along with those… There was also something… rather bizarre." She frowned, not sure of how to set her words. " We found some… implants from him. I afraid it'll require yet another operation to get them out, if it's even possible."
Everyone gasped. " Oh God… Cyber implants…", Tala whispered, face falling pale for horrifying memories.
Dr. Hendez frowned again, but didn't waste time on questions. " We just performed him a major surgery, during which we operated the damage caused by the stab-wound, and his lung that'd been scratched by one of his broken ribs. Altogether four of his ribs are broken, almost shattered. There was also inner bleeding, which we fortunately managed to stop. Along with that, Kai has a major head-trauma. We can't tell if there's brain-damage before he wakes up." If he ever wakes up, everyone sullenly added in their minds.
" I… I don't understand…" Dara's weak, small voice gained their attention. There was a lost, almost scared look in the girl's eyes. " He… He talked to me… How could he have if… if his head is that badly injured?"
Sad look appeared into Dr. Hendez's eyes. " Head-injuries sometimes work like that", she explained softly. She then gulped loudly. " His brain had to be without oxygen for a long time when his heart stopped. I… I afraid that might've also caused even more damage." She trailed off, unsure if she should tell them the rest. Eventually she decided that they deserved to know – after all, he was their friend, and they'd been waiting for hours. She continued after a steadying sigh. " We're still not sure if there are other internal injuries we haven't been able to grasp onto just yet. His condition is still critical." But that still wasn't the most difficult part. Dr. Hendez wished the teenagers wouldn't have been present to hear the last piece of information – she wasn't sure if they'd be able to handle it. Giving a loud gulp, she braced herself, then spoke quietly, almost weakly. " And… there were also clear signs of… long-term sexual abuse."
Heavy, shocked silence lingered over the group for a long time as they worked their hardest to adjust to the news. This just wasn't possible…
Everyone knew that there was one thing that had to be asked. " What are his chances?" Bryan was the brave one to whisper the question.
Dr. Hendez shook her head sombrely. " I'm sorry, but it's much too early to tell anything. We're keeping him in ICU at the moment, and try to keep him from falling into a coma." She sighed. " There was a major blood-loss, and with the head-injury… Right now, all we can do is keep him under close observation and try to stabilize his state." She gave them a sympathetic look. " If he makes it through today, I dare to be a bit more optimistic."
That was quite a slap against their faces. Of course it'd been a foolish hope, but somehow they'd thought that Kai would be just fine and dandy. Kai was strong, invincible. He wasn't supposed to fall like this, like… a mortal man. Kai was just too tough to go down like this.
" Mr. Dickinson, there's something I need to ask you", Dr. Hendez suddenly said, breaking the silence that had engulfed them without them even noticing it.
Mr. D blinked his moist eyes as he looked at the woman, seeming very lost and confused all of a sudden. " Mmm?" He didn't have the strength to form proper words.
Dr. Hendez sighed. " I'm sorry to bring this on you now, but…" She paused for a while. " As you probably noticed, Kai's leg was severely damaged – so badly in fact, that we barely managed to save it. Now…" She gulped. " You need to understand that the leg will never work properly again, and there's a risk of infection…"
" Wait a minute", Nadja cut in, eyes filled with disbelief. " What are you talking about?"
Dr. Hendez looked at Mr. Dickinson. " I'm sorry, but… As Kai's guardian, it's your decision if we should amputate the leg or not."
Everyone gasped in shock. Letting anger, fatigue and frustration take the best of him, infuriated Tyson darted towards the poor woman, only Max and Tala's irony holds keeping him from attacking her. He spoke, or rather bellowed, through gritted teeth. " How dare you come and ask questions like that now! Don't you see that…!"
" Tyson, that's enough", Mr. D, who seemed to have recovered from his daze a little, admonished gently, then looked at the doctor. " I… I need to ask you not to amputate. Kai has gone through a lot lately, and losing a leg might be…" He blinked his eyes, seeming an inch from breaking down completely. " Please, do whatever you can… Please…"
Dr. Hendez nodded and smiled sympathetically. " Alright."
" Can we see him?" Dara whispered after a considerably long silence.
Dr. Hendez smiled apologetically. " I'm sorry, but I afraid I can't let you in before his condition has stabilized." She had a somewhat motherly look in her eyes as she looked at them. " You should all go and get some rest. There's nothing you can do around here, and we'll call you if anything happens."
Reluctantly, the group had to admit that she was right. They were dead-tired. Besides, Kai wouldn't appreciate them hanging around half-unconscious.
" Okay", Ray murmured his accord to the doctor's words. " Thank you."
And again, all they could do was wait – and hope that Kai was strong enough to defeat this one more battle.
As the teenagers left, Mr. D looked at the doctor, feeling immense nervousness flooding in his veins. " Dr. Hendez… Can I ask you a favour?"
The woman looked at him, seeming a bit surprised. " Of course. What is it?"
He gulped uneasily. " I would like you to make a DNA-test", he almost whispered. " I want to know if Kai is my grandson."
With the rest of Japan preparing for a new day, the small gang did the best they could to rest after a long, sleepless night, though it was pretty much impossible. Not knowing what would happen – if they'd end up losing Kai – was eating everyone up inside. Even the fact that Voltaire was now behind bars wasn't offering them much comfort: what good would that bastard finally getting his punishment do, if the price of that was the life of their friend's?
Depressed silence was stone-thick in the BBA-headquarters where the Russians were still staying under Mr. Dickinson's care.
Since the gang had gotten into the building, Nadja had been behind locked doors in downstairs, practicing blading, as that was the only way she could find to keep herself from falling apart. At some point, Ray had showed up in tears, and since then he and Alissa had been in the girl's room. Bryan had stormed out as soon as they'd gotten into the building, and Mr. D had been inside his own office. It wasn't a secret that Dara had sneaked out and went back to the hospital – despite the fact that she could barely stand up for her fatigue, and had almost collapsed more than once. No one had really tried to stop her: they knew she wanted to be there, close to Kai, just in case…
Alissa's ice-blue eyes were almost glazed over as she sat on her bed, gently stroking the raven locks of Ray's, who'd finally fallen into a light sleep in her arms a couple of minutes back. Every inch of her body begged for rest, her eyelids desperately wanted to slide closed, but her straying, tangled thoughts wouldn't allow her such pleasure.
Yet another memory flashed before her eyes.
/ She and Kai – both at the age of seven – were stood on the opposite sides of a small bey-dish build into the backyard of Kai and Nadja's house. Both kids' eyes were filled with intensity as they watched their blades spinning on the dish, taking rough contact. " Lumera, c'mon!" Alissa cheered her beast. " I know you can beat him!"
Kai snorted. " Yeah, right…" He looked at his blade. " Dranzer, end this!"
Eyes widening slowly, she watched helplessly as Kai's blade stormed towards hers, seeming like it'd be able to sweep away anything. " No…" She had… lost…
Kai's voice startled her out of her thoughts. The look upon his face was far from pleased as he watched her. It was almost like he'd read her mind. " Don't ever give me that look again", he ordered her.
She blinked in surprise. " Huh?"
His eyes flashed. " No matter how low the odds are, don't ever stop believing there's a chance."
Alissa blinked again. " Why not?"
" Because the moment you give up on hope…" His blade pushed hers of the dish. " … is the moment all is lost. Understood?"
Taking a perfect catch of her blade, she rolled her eyes. " Yes, sir." /
Alissa woke up from the memories as Ray moved and stirred in her lap. " Lissa?" He frowned sleepily, seeming worried. " You okay?"
Wiping away the tear that had slid to her cheek, she forced a small smile. " Yeah", she whispered, stroking Ray's cheek gently. " Go back to sleep, 'k? You need to get some rest."
Still anything but convinced, Ray reluctantly obeyed, much too tired to start out a fight. She watched as he slowly drifted back into fitful sleep, then looked away again, still stroking his silken locks.
Faith had been stolen from Alissa for years ago, the day her family had been ripped away from her. She had never even went to a church – Boris' little 'monastery' couldn't exactly be classified as one. But at that moment, watching the lazily rising sun, she prayed desperately, her small tears glimmering like diamonds.
Tala, on the other hand, didn't really know where he was or what he was doing as he sat on his bed. His wide, shocked eyes stared at his hands that rested in his lap.
Kai might die. After all the fighting, hoping, praying and waiting, Kai might slip away from them.
It almost amused Tala. After suffering so many losses of people he cared about, he should've been numb to it. It shouldn't have hurt so damn badly anymore. But still, the rage, grief and utter helplessness bubbling in his veins almost suffocated him.
A silent tear slid to his cheek. " There's no such thing as justice, is there?" he whispered bitterly.
" Tala?"
The voice – though so small and almost frail – startled him. Wiping away the tear, he turned his gaze to see Dimitrei stood by the doorway. Damnit, he should've closed the door…
" Tala, what's wrong?" It came as a surprise to Tala that Dimitrei spoke in English. Ray's lessons were obviously paying off.
Such innocence in the child's eyes… Tala opened his mouth, but then closed it. How could he explain this to Dimitrei? What could he possibly say? " Dimi…" His voice faded.
" Is Kai going to be okay?" Dimitrei asked, voice filled with sheer fear.
At that point, Tala couldn't hold back the tears anymore. Seeing him break down, Dimitrei started to cry as well and ran to him. As Tala wrapped his arms around the crying child's small frame, he felt this strangest sensation of ease. Again he opened his mouth to speak, but no words would escape through his tight throat.
Gosh, Dimi, I'm so sorry… I'm so sorry I couldn't keep him safe…He woke up from those thoughts when hearing Dimitrei almost whisper. " Kai… He can't … leave. He wouldn't, not… not without saying bye." The child sniffed. " I'm so scared, brat."
Tala's heart skipped a beat, and a tiny gasp escaped him. Brother… Did Dimitrei know?
For a while, he thought about explaining everything to the child, telling why he hadn't told Dimitrei they were brothers. But eventually he decided against it: that night, they both had enough of stuff on their minds already. They'd have time to talk about the entire 'family-issue' later.
And therefore he simply held Dimitrei closer, burying his face into the child's hair. Auburn locks immediately became wet with hot tears.
With Tyson's grandpa taking all the Russians back into the BBA headquarters (secretly intending to watch over them and make sure they'd be at least somewhat okay), the remaining Bladebreakers stayed in his dojo.
Kenny (who'd offered to sleep on a couch, as he wasn't really intending to get any sleep at all) was furiously working with Dizzi in living room. (For once the bit-beast was smart enough not to complain, as she realized how much Kenny needed her to be co-operative just then.)
He didn't know for how many times he'd made the same, completely stupid mistake, before he finally broke down and screamed as loudly as he possibly could, eyes glimmering with tears he was determined not to shed. " Fucking piece of junk!" Trembling furiously, he buried his face into his hands and sucked in deep, desperate breaths, with sheer willpower trying to regain his cool, to fight away the giant-sized lump from his throat.
He almost fell off the couch with surprise when there was suddenly a quiet, hesitant knock on the door. After some moments of consideration – wondering if it'd be one of those cursed reporters – he finally forced himself up and slowly sauntered to the door, opening it. He was so shocked over seeing who was behind it that he almost choked on his breath. " E – Emily…?" he wheezed.
The girl – who'd obviously been crying – offered a small, weak smile. " Hi", she whispered, slightly hesitantly. " I… I can only stay a couple of days, but…" She trailed off, deciding that actions spoke louder than words.
When Emily wrapped her arms around Kenny, holding him close, he was first too stunned to know how to react. But gradually, he returned the hug and – feeling all self-control leaving him – buried his face into her shoulder, entire body quaking.
Tears escaped Tyson's eyes without him even noticing it as he laid in his bed, staring at the ceiling above him, unable to see nothing but Kai's battered body. He could still hear Dr. Hendez's hopeless words in his ears.
/ " I'm sorry, but it's much too early to tell anything. If he makes it through today, I dare to be a bit more optimistic." /
Finally noticing his tears of pain and helplessness, Tyson furiously wiped them away, squinting his eyes a little. " Crap…"
He couldn't take it anymore: if he wouldn't be able to talk to someone, he'd lose the last bits of his sanity. And despite everything that'd happened, there was only one person who'd be able to offer him any consolation…
Making up his mind, he got up and walked up to the door, pulling it open – but froze to the spot when finding Max behind it. The boy – who seemed just as pained as he, eyes red and puffy, tears still rolling – had his other hand lifted for a knock.
Not saying a word, Tyson moved to side, allowing Max to enter, then soundlessly closed the door.
TBC.
A/N: Pheeeeeeeeew… Emotional little chapter, huh?
So, the dice has been thrown. Will Kai live – or will he die? You'll find out in next chapter!
(Gosh, I'm so cruel, aren't I?)
Until next time, folks, but 'till then… PLEAZE review!
