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Beep.
Beep.
Beep.
That was everything Microphone could hear for every two seconds in that room. Everything was a blur. The crashes of wine bottles. The clatter of phones. The splatter of blood. The slashes of gears.
He wished nothing happened. He wished he could’ve live a normal life with his brother Megaphone, but no. NO! Fate had phucking different plans for it. Now he’s here, sitting on a chair with his head in hands, elbows on laps. On his left was his unconscious brother on the hospital bed.
They were so young to experience this. Sorry, wrong diction: too young. It all happened on a summer evening. Mic was 15, Meg was 14. Microphone could remember walking home from school with his younger brother by his side, stopping on the way to buy some ice cream in the summer heat with their own money they collected from street performances (with the state of their family, their parents would clearly not give them allowance). It would’ve been a perfect moment to end the day, to wake up for the next day filled with opportunities. Despite it all, they lost the bet in the game of fate. They were lucky they didn’t lost entirely, otherwise Megaphone would’ve been straight up dead at this point.
Microphone still wracked his thoughts, bargaining with himself thinking that if he did a single thing differently by a molecular change, the outcomes would have been for the better. Best case scenario, the two would come out unharmed and they would be able to stall the fight just enough for Firebrand to swoop in and help. Worst case scenario, Mic would sacrifice himself to die or get his eye and wing ripped off. He thought, it was for the better.
Knock. Knock. Knock.
Creak.
“Excuse me,” a nurse entered the room. The demon’s head turned to Microphone, who had unintentionally stared at the nurse with a blank face. “It’s getting late, and we are closing visiting time. I hope you understand; we promise your brother will stay safe here. You can visit the patient tomorrow.”
No response.
The nurse sighed, knowing that the stubborn little demon would never leave Megaphone. Not since what happened. When the two were a lot younger, they never got to be together often, mainly because they would be off playing with their own friends after school. They only really began to bond under pressure, when they began facing the reality of their parents, who both used to keep a perfect smile in front of the cameras, the veil never uncovered. The veil still remains as thick as a fog towards the public, but the two brothers slowly got through the fog and saw the truth behind a veil that masked tragic. Since then, they’ve… never really left each other.
Though the nurse wasn’t aware of their story, she was aware of the deep bond. The deity, Firebrand, none other than the two’s sole grandfather had visited earlier during the day.
(“But your majesty- or sir- uh, Mister Firebrand,” the receptionist fumbled on their words in front of the almighty god. “The hospital has rules, and the rules speak that visitors shouldn’t be staying for long. The beds are only provided for the patients; we are not a hotel.”
“Just let the demon stay,” he huffed under his breath. “They’re inseparable. If anything, the yellow horned boy will get a physical heart attack if they get separated. The two have been through tough times together. Just… let him do whatever he wants, whether he wants to stay or leave. Firebrand’s — my — orders.”
“…very well, sir Firebrand. The nurses will be informed.”)
“I suppose you can stay,” she hesitantly told him. “You can inform us if you need anything, or something happens.”
“Thank you,” Microphone tried to respond politely, but it only came off as a mumble as his gaze turned to the window. The nurse turned on her heel and closed the doors to the room, leaving them closed off from the open world, on their own once more.
Behind the window was a shining sunset that sparkled over the shimmering sea. Microphone wished that he could drag Megaphone out to see the sunset, or even jump into the water and take a swim. It reminded him of the days they would spend hours running in grassy fields, laying down in the soft grass and looking up to the gradient sky filled with warm colors that faded to dark with many stars, or the special days they get to go to the beach and would splash each other with sea water until they are all soaking wet with water and salt.
Unfortunately, fate had other plans. Said plans were to strand the two in a blank, white room that felt like a cold prison. At least to Microphone; he preferred to be out in the sun, out on the roads. But whatever he wanted, he would prefer to push it away just to keep his brother safe with company. As long as Megaphone is safe and sound, he’ll be happy.
He scooted his chair closer to the bed until the legs of the chair clanged onto the frame of the bed. It was a few hours until his usual bedtime, but he had pulled an all nighter the previous night when he couldn’t visit Mega, in a state of fear that the doctors wouldn’t be able to save his brother from the injuries he took. But now with the purple horned demon by his side, his mind felt more calm.
He bent over sideways until he felt the soft bed under his head, his arms comfortably cushioned on the bed; one of them gently held Megaphone’s arm. Although he was in a rather strange position, he’d rather stay like this until daylight is soon to break through the windows once more. He felt himself drifting off to sleep.
But just before he did, he muttered something under his breath as he hummed a soft tune to sleep, coaxing him and, likely his unconscious brother into a deep sleep.
“Sorry.”
***
2 a.m.
Beep. Beep. Beep.
Megaphone could finally feel his body. One by one, he slowly felt his head, his arms, his legs, his torso. He swore that there was something heavy and soft on him, like a blanket, and a different texture gently gripping his right arm.
His eye finally fluttered open, and as he pulled over his left arm to rub his eyes, he realized that his right eye was now gone, and what’s left of it is a simple stitch that signaled “X marks the spot of trauma”.
Right. He forgot his eye and wing is gone.
He slowly shifted his head, trying to find the source of the object gripping his right arm. It was gentle enough not to trap him, but firm enough to keep him anchored. Meg was almost positive that it was a hand of another demon.
He expected it to be a nurse maybe, or one of the doctors checking up on him, but the familiar yellow horns told him who it was. Next to him lay a head that belonged to a body that was fast asleep. Meg squinted at the demon’s position for a moment, seemingly worried that the other might break his spine. Slowly, he pried Microphone’s hand away from his arm as his now free-from-being-gripped arm shifted to Mic’s head.
He found the soft and fluffy hair of his brother, beginning to gently ruffle Mic’s hair. Despite all the tubes connected to his wrists and is all over the place, Meg thinks that his brother wouldn’t mind. He felt stirring under his hand for a moment, then a soft smile unconsciously draws itself on Mic’s face. Meg smiled too. It was more of a sappy one, if anything, but for once, he could finally smile.
He turned his head further to peek at the window from his lying down position. He would get up, yes, but he was afraid Mic might be startled by it. Besides, he didn’t have the energy for it. It was in the middle of the night.
The moon shined brightly above, its moonlight gently caressing the hospital curtains. Its companions — the stars — dotted the sky with a playful joy, creating shapes of constellations here and there.
“Scorpius,” he muttered out, acknowledging the constellation of his zodiac, the Scorpion, waving out to say hello and check on him. Megaphone loved the night sky, and had a little hobby of indulging into astrology and astronomy and cosmology… you know, space stuff.
There would be times when they were younger, Microphone would offer Megaphone to sneak out to their favorite spot at night, to which the latter excitedly agreed. Mic would pry open the window as Meg flew out of it to help his brother down slowly (Mic’s wings were unfortunately too miniature to fly with). Once they were out, they’d run to a spot in a nearby forest, a clearing that waited for their presence. In the morning, they play; in the deep night, they stargazed. At anytime, they’d sing songs and tell stories, whether of joy or of sorrow. Mic wasn’t much of a nerd about space, but he enjoyed listening to Meg’s rambles to a point where he began remembering the constellations, too.
But that was all in the past. Meg was sure Firebrand would allow them to do all these things they enjoyed, but no matter how he puts it, it felt strangely different. He wished he could go back in time and return to those memories, but that’s the point of nostalgia, isn’t it? Wanting to go back to times of the past?
Megaphone turned to look at the ceiling. The only thing he can do is hope everything turns out well and keeps moving forward. Until then, he’s stuck on this hospital bed until further notice. His only wing uncomfortably shifted under the sheets, seemingly wanting to fly free, too.
He turned to look at his brother as his eyelids were starting to get heavy again. Some senses in him told him that the other had tried apologizing for this. Megaphone knew it wasn’t any of the two’s fault. And yet, despite Mic’s pleads and apologies falling on deaf ears, something about the connection between the two made them… feel each other, if that makes any sense.
As sleep finally tucked his body back into bed, Megaphone found the opportunity to speak before he drifted off into a void of dreams once more.
“It’s okay. Everything’s okay.
I’m okay.”
***
“You ready for today’s broadcasting?” Valk said, adjusting the (fairly expensive) accessory on his head. Dom clipped on his own hood that obscured his face and reached for the script.
“Ready,” he said, calm and content. And one more thing his brain decided to add to his confirmation. “I’ve got your back.”
“And I’ve got yours!” Valk responded, swiftly walking over to pat the taller on his back. He then pumped his fist into the air, while exclaiming, “Let’s give the Inpherno one hell of a show once more!”
Their staged show displays sorrow and joy, both shining through the cracks of life. No matter what they go through, they’ve always been there for each other. But what is truly keeping them together is their high hopes for the future, as well as their burning passion to make the world a better place.
Dear viewer, never give up on your life, even if it seems hopeless; a potential is still waiting for you in the future, so give it your all and keep moving forward!
~ Vanilla