Day 1
Jyou had, fortunately, been on his way home from class but, unfortunately, on his way to cram school when he got the phone call.
"Jyou, I need your help."
He was usually up for any excuse to miss cram school. He had concluded that he had a better chance of getting into university if he did not show up for the entrance exams, which made the point of cram school obsolete. Yet, his feet seemed to have a mind of their own and he always found himself heading there after regular classes.
"What's wrong?" he asked Taichi over the phone, "Maybe one of the others would be better…"
Taichi's answer was weak and labored. "Didn't call anyone else."
A chill went up Jyou's spine. If Taichi needed help fighting a digimon, he might call Yamato or Sora, if he needed help with figuring something out, he would call Koushiro, if it was dealing with a personal problem, he would call Hikari. Jyou never felt bad about it; each Chosen had their unique skills. If Taichi needed Jyou's help and no one else…
"Are you hurt?" he asked.
"Y-yeah," Taichi heaved, "Bad."
Jyou whipped his head around, finding an ATM on the corner. From Taichi's tone, he was not in pain, he was scared. No, more than scared, he was terrified, spine-chillingly terrified.
"Where are you?"
Fragments
Chapter 1 of 8
Jyou
Jyou walked from one side of the waiting room to the other. He turned to the entrance to the emergency wing and then back at his phone, his thumb hovering over the call button. He had to call her, but what was he going to say? "Hikari, your brother's more than likely never…"
He shook his head and started his walk to the other side of the room.
When he found Taichi lying on the ground in the middle of the forest in the Digital World, he knew it was bad, far worse than he had hoped. Agumon and Gommamon looked on anxiously as Jyou knelt beside him.
"Where does it hurt?"
Taichi looked in the eyes. "No pain."
Jyou studied him for a moment before that cold pit appeared in his stomach. He put a hand on Taichi's leg. "Can you feel that?"
His friend shook his head, panic in his eyes.
"Jyou?"
He turned from his pacing to see one of his father's interns walking out of the emergency wing. "Oh, yes?"
The young man hesitated. "Your father wanted me to let you know that your friend is stable but…" He swallowed, "He's still in surgery."
"How is he?" Jyou asked.
The young man sighed and shook his head. "Um, have you called his family?"
Jyou glanced at his phone. "Yeah, I was just about to."
The young man nodded. "I'll let your father know. Good luck."
Jyou stared at the number on his phone again. he took a deep breath and tapped call. He stared out the window at the setting as Hikari answer. "Hi, Jyou."
"H-hi. How are you?" he asked, mentally slapping himself, "Never mind that. Um, I have some bad news…"
Jyou returned his phone to his pocket as his father walked into the waiting room. He glanced around, but upon seeing that Jyou was alone, motioned him to one of the chairs. "Is he out of surgery?" Jyou asked.
His father nodded. "Um, have you called his family?"
"His parents were visiting realities outside of the city but Hikari's coming right away." He paused. "How is he? Can I see him?"
His father hesitated and then sighed. "I think you can guess his condition. What you told me when you called from the Digital World…well, your prognosis was pretty accurate."
He hesitated again, "I am proud of you because it shows how well you're studying your medical textbooks but…" He shook his head, "I wish it didn't have to be over something like this."
Jyou bit his lip and nodded slowly. His father cleared his throat. "Well, it's okay to see him but he's still a little out of it from the medication."
Jyou stared at the door to Taichi's room, the edge of his uniform coat wringing in his hands. He felt his heart thudded across his body. He grabbed the door handle with a shaky hand and forced himself to swallow before pushing open the door.
He gasped; Taichi lay in the hospital bed, thick white sheets layered on top of him, yet his eyes were open, alert. "Hey," Taichi chuckled, "It's that bad, huh?"
Jyou shook his head and muttered an apology. "No! No, I, um, my dad said you'd still be under. I didn't think you were awake."
Taichi tried to push himself into a seated position but the look of horror across his face almost made Jyou's heart stop. Taichi turned to him, meeting his eyes. "Jyou, please, j-just tell me the truth. Am I…?" He gestured to the rest of his body, buried beneath the white sheets.
His voice was steady, calm, but Jyou heard the rising panic, the fear, pushing at the fringes. He thought of Taichi running across the soccer field, racing up hills in the Digital World…walking down the sidewalk with his friends.
"I…um…I'll get my father."
He ran out of the room, letting the door shut behind him.
It took Jyou three tries before he was able to press the correct buttons on the vending machine, though, as he took the can from the slot, he wondered if coffee was best at the moment.
"So, how was he?"
Jyou turned to answer his father, who had changed out of his scrubs and into his white coat. "Um, he was awake."
"Really?" his father said, raising an eyebrow, "I thought it would be at least another hour."
"Taichi's always been strong," Jyou said, sipping his iced coffee. He would need to be strong now.
"Did you tell him anything?" his father asked.
Jyou shook his head. "No," he admitted, staring at his feet, "I…I told him I'd get you."
His father studied him, eyes seeming to peer into his soul. "Oh, I see."
Jyou winced; hearing the dismissive tone in his father's voice. "Dad, I…"
His father held up his palm. "I'll talk to his parents when they arrive, but I think you need to tell him."
Jyou stared at his feet, fingers crushing the can in his hand. "But…"
His father sighed. "Jyou, saving lives is the essence of what being a doctor is. We study medicine to save people, to help people, but sometimes…" He shrugged, "Sometimes we have to accept that we can't, and, so, part of being a doctor is giving bad news."
"So, you want me to tell Taichi as some kind of…lesson?"
"Partly, but the main reason, is because Taichi's your friend, and right now, he's going to need you."
Jyou continued to stare at his feet for another moment. He downed the rest of his coffee, took a breath, and marched back down the hall.
Taichi turned from staring out the window as Jyou walked inside. He opened his mouth but Jyou cut him off. "Taichi, I'm sorry. I shouldn't have run out like that."
Taichi nodded but Jyou could see the question still hanging in his eyes. "Y…yes," he forced himself to say, "I don't know all the specifics…"
He shrugged and muttered, "I guess I should have asked my dad that…" He filled his lungs and spoke as clearly as he could, "It's bad. I'm sorry. I kind of knew right away that…"
Taichi nodded again and Jyou could see the tears starting to form. "Hikari should be here soon," Jyou said, his voice cracking, "But…but I'm here now if…"
"Yeah," Taichi said, struggling to keep himself composed, "Please..."
Jyou nodded and closed the door.
End of Chapter One
Author's note: Happy New Year everyone. This fic will continue with each of the Chosen dealing with Taichi's condition in their own chapter. Updates will come out the first Saturday of each month.
I will be posting the first chapter of another fic "Legacy of Courage," in two weeks on the fifteenth. It will be a rewrite of my Legacy fic from a long time ago, though, rather than feature Tai as the teacher of the Tamers, it will have Hikari waking up in the Tamers world, which will be set years after the Adventures time. So please look out for that.
In other news, I have a personal website, where I will be posting original short stories and an ongoing fic there. If you enjoy my stuff here, please consider checking it out at "bccharles DOT com."
Once again, Happy New Year!
