I Fell in Love with Hope(64)

“Sadly, no,” Sony says, waving at the air. “But I don’t know, I thought, maybe, I could maybe get a job or something.”

“Sony,” I call. She leans back on Neo’s bed. “You want to work with your kids?”

“Yeah,” she says. Thoughts of the children she plays with in the oncology wing fleet past her grin. “I’m happy here.”

“Thank God,” Hikari groans, falling on top of Sony. “I thought you were leaving me for some boring city job where they put bouquets out for decoration.”

Sony snorts out a laugh. “Oh please, no one would willingly hire me. I work hard to be this unbearable.” She wraps her arms around Hikari and pecks her face all over. “I’m gonna make Eric get me the job. We have grouchy boys and grouchy nurses to annoy together. I’d never let you do it all on your own.”

“You promise?” Hikari asks, pouting.

“Hell yeah– Oh, baby!” Both Hee and Neo startle at Sony’s volume, hair at the back of their necks standing on end.

“You’re almost done!” she cheers, hopping to his desk. “Is that my sweatshirt?”

“It’s mine,” Neo says, possessively clutching the hoodie on his back. “What do you want?”

Sony fishes into her backpack. She removes a handful of leaves from the front pocket, holding all the different colors out like playing cards.

“I brought you these from the park.”

Neo frowns. “Why?”

Sony doesn’t answer. She places them gently on his desk and violently swipes the entire top half of the manuscript into her arms.

“Hey!” Neo yells. Sony skips out of reach, jumping back first into his bed and holding the papers over her head. “What do you think you’re doing?”

“It’s Quid pro quo,” I say.

Neo shoots me a glare. “Shut up, Sam.”

“Hikari, you should draw the cover,” Sony says.

“No one’s drawing anything. It’s not finished yet.”

“I can’t wait to see it on a shelf, Neo,” Sony sighs, flipping through the pages as if the words are written in gold. “Then I get to tell everyone I was the first to read it.”

A blush runs across Neo’s cheeks.

“Whatever,” he mutters. “Just don’t lose it.”

Neo’s gained color since fall struck. His butterfly rashes and fits of pain subsided. He hasn’t spit out his pills since C got discharged or taken out his IVs. His anorexia remains an uphill battle. There are days he stares at his plate, picking it apart until it all seems like too much, and he has to push it away. The only time he comes close to finishing his meals is when we eat with him. And when C brings him apples.

C’s been on bed rest, perpetually ignoring the fact that he’s on bed rest. Given how close he lives to the hospital, he’s rarely bed resting. If he is, it’s next to Neo, sleeping with his mouth open and mumbling in his dreams. Otherwise, he acts as if all is right with the world. Like he isn’t nearing the top of the transplant list. He goes for walks with Hikari, apologizing to local bakers when she steals a pastry and paying for her misdeeds. He paces while reading his and Neo’s story, obsessing over every detail. He dances with the cat and plays board games with Sony, half here, half elsewhere.

His parents have tried everything. Locking his door. Taking his car keys. Lecturing. Ultimatums. Warnings. Nothing works. C always finds his way back to us.

“You alright, Sam?” Hikari asks.

I’m staring at her. I do that a lot.

Her skin has lost color. It’s a thin gray, like parchment turning to ash. That’s why I hold her this way. She’s sick, and I’m not so blind anymore that I choose to ignore it. I worry during her coughing fits. During tiresome bouts that lull her to sleep for days on end.

“Can we read tonight?” I ask, dragging my thumb over Hikari’s lower lip, admiring the fullness.

She smirks, mirroring my motions. “The lonely stretcher at six?”

Comfort works through me with her voice, for it’s always been satin and coquettish, but it has never been mine till now.

“Mhm,” I hum. I drag my touch over her arms, the slope of her bandages ending at her wrists. The animal in the pit hasn’t dared to bite since that bloody night. When any other shadows try creeping into her head, they catch sight of me standing guard, and with spite in their mouths, they slip back into the dark.

Neo’s door opens then. Sony throws herself upright. Hikari and Neo beam, expecting C to stride in, leaving a trail with his shoes, bag, and coat.

But it isn’t C.

“Dad?” Neo breathes.

With the posture of a soldier, a man walks in, adjusting his coat. His hair is cropped and neat, his face chiseled and wide. When he closes the door behind him, silence falls over the room.

I grasp Hikari’s hand, a reflex, pulling her closer to me.

“Hello,” Neo’s dad says, pleasantly surprised by the number of people in the room. “You must be Neo’s friends.”

He wasn’t supposed to be here today. His presence is a shake in the bush, a snapping stick, our ears perked like deer amongst a wolf.

Sony stands from the bed, holding the stack of papers at her hip as if it belongs to her. Hikari says nothing. Her jaw wounds tight, and attention is drawn to the box of books in the corner.