One: I Am Here

A Chapter by Jiyuu

"Sis, c'mon! You promised me you'd sing!"

That voice belongs to my little brother, Nicholas. I always wondered why he would ask me to sing.

Better now than never.

"Hey, Bro. Why do you like to hear me sing? Most boys your age would shiver at the thought."

He looked at me as if I didn't have lips.

"That's 'cause most boys don't have sisters that sing as good as you!"

I couldn't help but blush a little.

"I see... Well, shall we head to the river?"

Nicholas nodded and grabbed my hand. We decided to walk, enjoying the appearance of the sunset. It had taken us ten minutes to get there. Once we found a good spot, we set up the blanket we took with us, along with the sandwiches I made. I gave Nicholas his favorite: PB&J, while I got my ham sandwich. We didn't talk much; watching the sunset expressed enough. When we finished our meals and took out our beverages, Nicholas grinned at me.

"Sing a song, Sis!"

I smiled, and after drinking some water, nodded and stood up.

"I'll sing one you haven't heard yet," I told him.

An even bigger grin.

"Yes!"

He laid himself in a comfortable position and patiently waited for me to start. I deeply inhaled, then softly exhaled. I then began to sing.

"In this desolate world that we must call Home,

You hear no hope.

Can this be?

As you walk through this barren land,

You ask yourself,

'Am I truly alone?'

This light that guides You,

It proves that One is always Beside, not Away.

I Am Here, please do not cry.

My embrace will always Hold you.

Don't let go, for we will separate.

Come with me, I will Protect you.

These waves, they do not scare us.

The darkness may never Rise again.

My dear Soul,

I Am Here."

~ ~ ~

I kept singing for another minute or so. When I finished, my brother's face was in awe. It wasn't until seconds later that he snapped out of his trance and began to applaud.

"Sis, that... That was amazing!!"

I blushed.

"Thank you, Nicholas. Now, let's head back home."

He pouted.

"Aw, already?"

I bent down towards him and patted his head.

"It's also dark out. Also, it's still a school night."

He crossed his arms. I crossed mine as well. He continued to pout. I pouted back. We both knew this game. We both also knew that I would win, but he always tried to beat me, even once. I noticed that his eye slightly flinched. In my mind, I grinned like the Grinch. Within seconds, the game was over. Like always...

I won.

After packing up everything, we walked back home, Nicholas bragging about how he was the best at Tetris, which he is. Seriously, I can never win against him at that. We got into our small, but sizeable two-bedroom apartment. After we bathed, we bid each other goodnight and went to bed.

-x-x-x-x-

"Sis, I'm going to school!"

I looked up to see Nicholas running towards the door, backpack in one hand, toast in the other.

"I can drive you today. Just let me get my keys."

As soon as I got up to get them, I felt a hand grab mine. I turned to see Nicholas right in front of me, backpack and toast abandoned on the floor. He silently shook his head. I bent down and gently messed with his already-ruffled hair.

"What's wrong, my dear soul?" I asked him, referring to the song I sung for him the other day.

"... Why are you so nice to me?" he asked.

I gave him a confused look, even though he couldn't see it.

"Hm? Why wouldn't I be nice to you?"

Nicholas was silent.

"Ah, well," I started. "You're very sweet and kind. You care for me a lot, like, more than anyone else, and also... um, well, you're my adorable little brother and I freakin' love you!"

His head shot right up, tears staining his perfect face.

"Isn't it my fault Mom and Dad are dead, though?!"

I froze. Then, I grabbed Nicholas and pulled him into my arms.

"Don't you ever say that again!" I yelled. "It was that idiot drunk driver, not you!"

He continued to cry.

"Yeah, but if I didn't tell them to hurry-"

"Enough!!"

He froze after that. It was deathly silent, aside from Nicholas' crying and sniffling. I held him closer to my chest. He blushed.

"Um... S-Sis?"

"Shush, you. Cry some more, then wipe your face when you're done. I'm taking you to school."

He could only nod and continue to cry. After five minutes of more tears, he finally stopped. My top was drenched, but I didn't care. He silently got up to go to the bathroom, and I put on my jacket and get my keys. Once he finished cleaning up his face, he saw me leaning by the door, patiently waiting. I smiled at him.

"Ready to go? I got your backpack in the car already."

He nodded.

Just as soon as I opened the door, Nicholas stopped me from going any further.

"Sis, wait."

I looked back at him.

"Hm?"

His eyes looked everywhere except at me.

"I..."

I blinked.

"You...?"

I noticed a faint blush appear on his face.

"I... lo..."

I patiently waited. He suddenly looked dead at me.

"I love you!"

I faintly blushed, surprised at his sudden "confession." He then walked out the door, avoiding my gaze. Once he reached the car, he turned to me, but kept his eyes diverted.

"W-Well, are you coming or not?"

I stared at him for a few more seconds, then, with a smile, ran to the car.

"Hey..." I started as we both got into the car.

"Hm?" He was putting on his seatbelt.

"I love you too!"

He froze. Grinning to myself, I asked him,

"Starbucks?"

He immediately turned to me, a shine in his eyes.

"Yes, please!!"

-x-x-x-x-

After getting Starbucks, we pulled up to his school's parking lot. Nicholas thanked me for the ride, and the Starbucks, and got out of the car, backpack in tow. I was about to put my car back in drive when he called out to me.

"Sis!"

I looked back at him.

"Yeah?"

He grinned his superstar grin at me and said only four words:

"Sing to the world."

I gave him a confused look. He simply waved and ran to where his friends were waiting for him. Having his words in my head, I drove out of the parking lot and headed to my job.

-x-x-x-x-

"Phew... work is exausting!"

I looked over at my friend.

"Complaining like always. You haven't changed, Sonya."

She pouted, moving her dirty blonde hair out of her face.

"I can't help it! Constantly moving files, pushing wheelchair-bound patients to and fro; how tiring!"

I smiled.

"I consider it an honor."

"Coming from an Angel sent by God himself, that doesn't surprise me."

I rolled my eyes.

"Overkill, sweetie."

"Yeah, yeah. Anyway, my shift is over. Catch you later, beautiful!"

I waved.

"You too, gorgeous!"

She blew me a kiss and disappeared around the corner. I stood up and got another cup of water. I began to look through my 'Patient Files.'

"Hm," I said to myself. "Mikey Simmons is dealing with heart issues. Age: 6. Ethnicity: Caucasion. Poor thing. They say he won't last much longer, but they're giving up on him way too easily. He's a trooper; he'll fight it, with our help."

I got up and started to head to his room. I was just about to knock on the door when a desk nurse nearby called me over. She seemed shocked.

"What is it?" I asked.

She didn't answer and only gave me the telephone.

"Hello?"

"Am I speaking to Ms. Lenne Patterson?"

"That you are. Who, may I ask, are you?"

"This is Mr. Smith from New Iron Middle School."

"Oh, the Principal! What is going on?"

"... It's about your brother, Nicholas."

I froze.

"It has only been three hours since I dropped him off at school. Sir, what happened to Nicholas?"

"... Nicholas fell down the stairs while heading to lunch."