Blood Donor
Chapter 16
“Gee! I’m really sorry! I didn’t realize…”
“Shut the fuck up, Frank!” I yell at the top of my lungs. He’s been at this for an hour, and I’ve been pacing in silence for the duration, “This isn’t something small that you can fix with a few words! My brother is out there, probably dying, and it’s your fault!”
He opens his mouth to say something, but decides against it and closes his mouth. He lets his head drop and walks slowly into the bedroom. I hear the sharp click of the lock sliding into place. Fine by me. I don’t really care if I ever talk to him again…
That’s not true. I know I’ll care later, but…Mikey…What’s going to happen to him? I have to find him. I have to. Even if he dies, I need to be with him. It would be so wrong to just let him die with only his bitch of a girlfriend by his side. He needs me, his big brother. So he won’t be scared. That’s it. My mind is made up. I bolt out the door without even telling Frank goodbye.
I can still smell Mikey’s burning flesh. It’s faint, but there. And it’s heading…East. That’s the direction I run. A sharp left. A lazy right. Soon I have to jump onto the rooftops. But I follow his scent. He can’t be far…Can’t. Soon I hear a different sound than the rustle of city life. It’s a raspy breathing…And I just passed over it.
I double back and drop into the alleyway. I’m not expecting what I see. Alicia is there, lying on the ground, with a large hole in her chest. I run over and crouch beside her, examining the wound. It’s deep, fatal. There’s no way she’ll recover without blood. And getting some would take too long. I lift up her head, trying to see if there’s any other damage, and her eyes fly open.
“Ge…rard?” she chokes out.
I gasp, “Alicia…What happened?”
She winces, “It’s…Mikey. He…said I’m…useless. I should…help him heal. He…he….”
She stops talking, and I can see it. There’s a dullness in her gaze that says she’s gone. For good this time. I close her lids and leave her lying there. There’s nothing else I can do.
I jump onto the rooftop, intent on finding Mikey, but for a different reason. I know he’s alive now. I just don’t know what he’s up to. But when I get there the trail is cold. I can’t get the smell of Alicia’s dying flesh out of my nose. The sight of her still form out of my mind.
I turn around to go home. I should probably make up with Frank…Frank…Fuck! Mikey is alive and ruthless, and Frank is home alone! Now I’m sprinting through the streets. I have to get back. Frank is in danger. My Frankie is in danger. It’s all I can think. Every pounding step of my feet on the pavement screams his name. He’s been woven into my instincts, and my instincts say save him. I should have never left.
After what feels too long, I burst into the house yelling his name. I run through every room, but he’s not there. Except for the bedroom. It’s still locked. But that doesn’t mean anything. I slam into it and break through the doorjamb….and there is Frank, sleeping peacefully on the bed. I let out a heavy sigh of relief and go over to him. I sit and cradle him in my arms, listen to his heartbeat, appreciate the fact that he’s alive.
“Hm…Gerard?” he blinks up at me, “What’s wrong?”
But I can’t respond. All I can seem to do is utter his name, “Frankie...Frankie…Frankie…” over and over as I rock him back and forth in my arms.
He sits up and kisses me gently on the lips, effectively stopping my mumbling, “Baby, hush and tell me what it is.”
“He’s alive, Frank. He’s alive. And I left you here alone and he could have gotten you and I was so scared! Fuck I was scared. But you’re okay…You’re okay…You’re…”
“Gerard!” he snaps me out of my trance once again, “What happened? How is he alive?”
Flash. An image of Alicia’s body. Frank was friends with her, wasn’t he? He’ll hate finding out, “Mikey killed her, Frank. He killed Alicia and drained her through her heart.” God, it sounds so sick when I say it out loud. What has my brother become?
He’s silent for a very long time, obviously mourning her death. Then he speaks in a shaky voice, “Oh…god…Gee…”
I clutch him closer, “I’m so sorry. But…I think I saw the old her before she died. She seemed back to her old self. And that’s how we need to remember her.”
He nods, “Yeah. I will.”
“Frank…I was so scared he’d come after you. I don’t know him anymore. He’s not my brother, and I swear if he touches a hair on your head I will rip his throat out. You won’t even have to dirty your pretty little hands.” I’m not sure where the words came from, but they’re so truthful. That thing is not the little Mikey I grew up with. That Mikey was happy and playful and loving. This one only knows selfishness and destruction. He can’t die, because he’s already dead. All that’s left is to destroy what he left behind.
“Shut the fuck up, Frank!” I yell at the top of my lungs. He’s been at this for an hour, and I’ve been pacing in silence for the duration, “This isn’t something small that you can fix with a few words! My brother is out there, probably dying, and it’s your fault!”
He opens his mouth to say something, but decides against it and closes his mouth. He lets his head drop and walks slowly into the bedroom. I hear the sharp click of the lock sliding into place. Fine by me. I don’t really care if I ever talk to him again…
That’s not true. I know I’ll care later, but…Mikey…What’s going to happen to him? I have to find him. I have to. Even if he dies, I need to be with him. It would be so wrong to just let him die with only his bitch of a girlfriend by his side. He needs me, his big brother. So he won’t be scared. That’s it. My mind is made up. I bolt out the door without even telling Frank goodbye.
I can still smell Mikey’s burning flesh. It’s faint, but there. And it’s heading…East. That’s the direction I run. A sharp left. A lazy right. Soon I have to jump onto the rooftops. But I follow his scent. He can’t be far…Can’t. Soon I hear a different sound than the rustle of city life. It’s a raspy breathing…And I just passed over it.
I double back and drop into the alleyway. I’m not expecting what I see. Alicia is there, lying on the ground, with a large hole in her chest. I run over and crouch beside her, examining the wound. It’s deep, fatal. There’s no way she’ll recover without blood. And getting some would take too long. I lift up her head, trying to see if there’s any other damage, and her eyes fly open.
“Ge…rard?” she chokes out.
I gasp, “Alicia…What happened?”
She winces, “It’s…Mikey. He…said I’m…useless. I should…help him heal. He…he….”
She stops talking, and I can see it. There’s a dullness in her gaze that says she’s gone. For good this time. I close her lids and leave her lying there. There’s nothing else I can do.
I jump onto the rooftop, intent on finding Mikey, but for a different reason. I know he’s alive now. I just don’t know what he’s up to. But when I get there the trail is cold. I can’t get the smell of Alicia’s dying flesh out of my nose. The sight of her still form out of my mind.
I turn around to go home. I should probably make up with Frank…Frank…Fuck! Mikey is alive and ruthless, and Frank is home alone! Now I’m sprinting through the streets. I have to get back. Frank is in danger. My Frankie is in danger. It’s all I can think. Every pounding step of my feet on the pavement screams his name. He’s been woven into my instincts, and my instincts say save him. I should have never left.
After what feels too long, I burst into the house yelling his name. I run through every room, but he’s not there. Except for the bedroom. It’s still locked. But that doesn’t mean anything. I slam into it and break through the doorjamb….and there is Frank, sleeping peacefully on the bed. I let out a heavy sigh of relief and go over to him. I sit and cradle him in my arms, listen to his heartbeat, appreciate the fact that he’s alive.
“Hm…Gerard?” he blinks up at me, “What’s wrong?”
But I can’t respond. All I can seem to do is utter his name, “Frankie...Frankie…Frankie…” over and over as I rock him back and forth in my arms.
He sits up and kisses me gently on the lips, effectively stopping my mumbling, “Baby, hush and tell me what it is.”
“He’s alive, Frank. He’s alive. And I left you here alone and he could have gotten you and I was so scared! Fuck I was scared. But you’re okay…You’re okay…You’re…”
“Gerard!” he snaps me out of my trance once again, “What happened? How is he alive?”
Flash. An image of Alicia’s body. Frank was friends with her, wasn’t he? He’ll hate finding out, “Mikey killed her, Frank. He killed Alicia and drained her through her heart.” God, it sounds so sick when I say it out loud. What has my brother become?
He’s silent for a very long time, obviously mourning her death. Then he speaks in a shaky voice, “Oh…god…Gee…”
I clutch him closer, “I’m so sorry. But…I think I saw the old her before she died. She seemed back to her old self. And that’s how we need to remember her.”
He nods, “Yeah. I will.”
“Frank…I was so scared he’d come after you. I don’t know him anymore. He’s not my brother, and I swear if he touches a hair on your head I will rip his throat out. You won’t even have to dirty your pretty little hands.” I’m not sure where the words came from, but they’re so truthful. That thing is not the little Mikey I grew up with. That Mikey was happy and playful and loving. This one only knows selfishness and destruction. He can’t die, because he’s already dead. All that’s left is to destroy what he left behind.
@MayMayChan
Oh its fine! Sorry it took 6 months for me to reply, this website is messing up for me so much.
4/1/17