Day 26: Canon-divergent Joey.
Broken Ribs
Joey always went to Yugi's after a beating. It wasn't to ask for help. Help would make things worse in the end; help would send him to live with his mom. So he hid his bruises and never said what was wrong, but he went to Yugi's because it was familiar and even if it didn't ease the pain, it eased something inside.
He knew this time was bad because he couldn't breathe like regular, just shallow little swallows. But when he showed up at the game shop, he forced his widest grin and mussed Yugi's hair like nothing was wrong. Yugi set out a game board, and Joey tried to focus even while the space inside his chest shrank with every second.
"Joey?"
Joey blinked hard and found his best friend frowning at him.
"Joey, are you okay?"
Joey forced his grin again. But when he opened his mouth, he broke into a hacking cough, and some monster inside stabbed his lungs with every violent movement. There was blood on his hand. The room swam, and he was swimming, too. He tried to catch himself and heard the crash of fallen game pieces.
"Grandpa!"
Joey meant to say he didn't need help, but he couldn't manage the air for words. All he could do was watch the world fade.