~One~

It started raining. The light pitter-pattering on the window was almost therapeutic so I stood there for a minute, controlling my breathing and watching the window fog up. I blocked out all the noise around me- the soft sound of my father sobbing against my mother's shoulder, the footsteps of hushed nurses and doctors going across the halls, my brother fiddling with the flap on my backpack... wait, what?

"Hey!" I snarled, slapping his knuckles. "What are you doing in my stuff?!"

"Pffftt!" Carl spat his tongue at me, wetting my face. I lunged after him but he dodged my hand and threw his small 6 year old body into Mom's arms. I scoffed, mumbling to myself that little kids shouldn't be in a hospital if they're not sick, maimed, or dying. But I knew deep down that maybe he needed to be here, to understand what we were doing here in the first place.

"Jack." Mom grimaced at our little dispute as she cradled Dad's head in her small arms. She made eye contact with me for a second and I felt the pink in my cheeks fluster up. I know, I thought to myself, I have to be a better example to Carl. Especially now.

Dad was looking up at the ceiling, with a strange look in his eyes. I've never seen this man so emotionally unhinged before... his eyes were puffy from crying and the brown stubble of his growing beard made him look sullen. I winced a little at the sight, barely even processing the idea of what kind of pain my dad was going through.

I shook off this strange feeling of pity and straightened myself up against the window again.

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I didn't know how to process it myself honestly, one minute we were enjoying dinner out on the backyard patio and then...

What did happen next? I remember I was in the kitchen grabbing a fresh pitcher of lemonade when I heard a panicked yell in my mom's voice. I rushed to the doorframe of the sliding door to our backyard and caught a glimpse of the scene.

My dad rushed to what seemed to be a crumpled up bag, but when I looked closer my heart dropped. It was my grandmother, in her sky blue halter top midi- dress with a small matching laced bow tied in the middle of her small frame, and she seemed to be unconscious with her curly grey haired fringe covering her eyes. My gut did a small somersault when I saw a trickle of blood going down her bow and the next thing I remember was the sound of shattering glass and falling into darkness. When I came to I was being pulled by my mom into the hospital with my backpack around my shoulders and in my other hand was Carl's. He looked up at me in a panic with those moon-like eyes of dark green and my instincts at that moment was to make sure I held his hand tight, that we got to where we were going safely and together.

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I grew impatient with anticipation while waiting in that quiet waiting room. I also figured out why Carl was rifling around in my bag; apparently my mom grabbed some snacks and water for us to consume for the time being. I grabbed a snack bar, opened it for Carl, then sulked to the other corner of the windowed walls to stare intently into the rain as if it would help jumpstart some sort of epiphany. I stood there for what felt like hours but with a glance at the clock on the wall only forty-three minutes passed.

"Excuse me," a doctor broke the silence with his monotonous voice, "are you the family of Dianne Silvia?"

"Y- ahem- yes." My dad whispered, his eyes dried but still a bit swollen. I slowly approached my family gathered around the doctor.

He seemed tired, as if he wasn't busy enough tending to the needs and concerns of his patients. The white coat he wore made him look skinny and frail, so much I thought he would pass as one of the less fortunate who were here in this dreary hospital. I crossed my arms out of concern and looked down at the floor as he droned on about my grandma's status.

I must've dozed off during his speech that the only thing I caught on time was, "I truly am sorry for your loss."

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Note: Thank you readers so far! As you can tell, Jack Silvia's story is going to be a deep dark one.