Chapter Text
Wemmbu is twelve years old and he knows that he won't live to see his thirteenth birthday.
He didn't know how he knew that, but he did know that he was sick. He could feel how his body was getting weaker, he was more tired and everything hurt. He should tell his older brothers and go to the doctor, but…
There was no cure.
Wemmbu knew that there wasn't, something in his heart and mind was telling him that he was going to die sometime in the next few months and there was nothing he could do to stop that. He didn't want to worry his brothers, he'd be taken to the hospital and they'd drug him up to try to prolong his life.
But, if he was stuck in hospital high as hell, what was the point of buying him some extra months? If he'd going to die, then he's at least going to spend whatever time he has left with his family and friends.
Well, even if he said that, it was still daunting. The knowledge that you're going to die soon and nothing will save you is horrible, especially for someone so young. And he couldn't talk to anyone about it, lest they tell Mane or Flame.
It shouldn't really be a surprise that the fever showed up, after stressing himself out so much over his impending doom.
Mane sighed as he placed a new cold rag on the boys head, "I just don't understand how you got a fever! The weather's been warm and the house is always clean!"
Wemmbu had always had a weak immune system, every winter was hell for him. He had to always be bundled up and the house had to be spotless or he'd be bedridden for days. Mane used to always take him to the doctors when it happened, but it ended up being easier to just do what they were doing now, keep the fever down at home.
Maybe if they still went to the doctors for every single little cold, Wemmbu's new secret would have been caught, he giggle deliriously at the thought.
Mane frowned and ran a hand through Wemmbu's purple hair, "And what is so funny, young man?"
Wemmbu giggled again and reached his arms out to be picked up. Mane sighed but heaved the boy into his arms, rocking slightly on the spot.
"You are much too old for this," Mane whispered into his hair, "and you're the one always complaining about being babied."
Wemmbu ignored the jab as he snuggled into his oldest brothers shoulder. One day, he won't be here to cuddle his brother, one day the house will be cleansed of his presence, one day his brothers will forget all about him.
The thoughts swirling in his head caused him to cry. It was quiet a first, silent tears falling steadily onto Mane's shoulder. Then he started to shake, causing Mane to become worried.
"Wemm?" Mane pulled the boy away from his shoulder, frowning at the tears, "Where does it hurt?"
Wemmbu's lip wobbled before he gave in and wailed into his older brothers arms. Mane gasped and hugged the feverish boy tighter, hushing and rocking gently. Mane was probably so confused right now, wondering what set Wemmbu off into such a state.
Wemmbu felt himself wanting to tell Mane, spill the secret so that he at least had someone there to comfort him. But he knew that the moment Mane knew, Wemmbu would spend the rest of his life in hospital. And that was something he wasn't willing to do.
Eventually, Wemmbu cried himself to sleep in his brothers arms, safe and sound.
~
Wemmbu had a bucket list. He had learned about them a while ago in school (he'd never graduate from high school), they were a list of things a person wanted to do before they died. Wemmbu made one in the middle of the night, using a flashlight under his blankets and writing in a random journal he had gotten a few birthdays ago.
It started with listing everyone he loved and had some different activities that they would enjoy doing next to their name. Next, he hand wrote a calendar of what he thought would be the time he had left. His plan was to schedule everyones activities throughout the next three months, just far enough away from each other that nobody would suspect a thing.
His main issues would be Wifies and Parrot - two of Flame's school friends that Wemmbu had gotten close to over the years. Both teens were extremely smart, they were not only the top students of their year, but they were the brightest students the school had ever seen.
This meant that they might start to figure things out if he acts too suspicious. He'd have to be careful around them, but not too careful that it catches their attention. Wemmbu would have to figure out how to balance everything out.
He'd set up a new folder in his phone, one meant for photos from these trips. When his time eventually comes to an end, he wanted everyone to remember him happy!
He cried most of the night, having to stop with his planning to periodically wipe his eyes. But he had made the plan as best he could, now he'd just have to see when people were available!
He could do this.
~
Wemmbu was supposed to be at school right now, but he was sitting in the graveyard alone.
Mane was going to be furious when the school calls him and Wemmbu was going to be grounded for at least a week, but Wemmbu needed this.
He sat next to the familiar gave with a sad smile, "Hey, Rejoice."
It was silent, of course. The dead don't speak. But Wemmbu liked to think his friend could hear him anyway.
"I'm going to die soon," it was the first time Wemmbu had admitted it out loud, "I think I have three months left."
A soft breeze blew past his face, if Wemmbu closed his eyes, he could pretend that it was his friend giving him a slight smack at even thinking such a thing.
Wemmbu giggled softly, "I don't know how I know, I just do. And I'm going to make the most of it. I remember when you were diagnosed."
When Rejoice was diagnosed, he was immediately held in hospital. He was pumped full of drugs that were meant to keep him alive longer, but the boy had withered away from their use. In the end, Rejoice had spent the last few months of his life in a coma. That extended time just made him suffer longer.
"I'm not letting myself be put in hospital." Wemmbu's mind was made up, "I'm going to do everything I like with the people I love."
Birds chirped in the distance. Wemmbu watched them dance in the clear sky. The weather was still warm, but would start to get colder in the coming days as summer faded away.
Wemmbu's birthday was in winter, but he wouldn't make it to then.
"Selfishly, I want the last memories I have of everyone to be happy ones," he admitted to the air, "I don't want to see them sad about my death."
"WEMMBU!" he heard the familiar voice of his middle brother scream from the graveyard entrance, "THERE YOU ARE!"
Flame stormed over, snatching Wemmbu's hand with a furious expression and pulling him up from the grass, "Mane has been worried sick ever since the school called!"
Wemmbu rolled his eyes, "I told Egg where I was going!"
Flame pinched his nose in annoyance, "That doesn't make it okay! You shouldn't be skipping school!"
"I don't think you're the best person to tell me that." Wemmbu raised a judging eyebrow.
Flame had a reputation for skipping class, always running off to train his martial arts skills. To be fair, Flame was very good at his hobby, even managing to win tournaments and bringing home quite a bit of money.
(Wemmbu will not live to see his brothers next tournament this winter, just before his birthday that he'd also never see.)
Flame looked away in embarrassment, "That! That isn't important! What are you even doing out here?"
"I just wanted to visit Rejoice…" the younger boy grumbled.
Flame sighed, "You should have told me or Mane, we would have taken you after school."
Wemmbu hummed, "Maybe."
"You are a little menace," Flame pinched Wemmbu's chubby little cheek, causing the boy to squeal in rage, "a grounded little menace, actually."
"Flame!" Wemmbu whined, looking up with sweet eyes, "Won't you help me with Mane?"
Flame - immune to such tactics - deadpanned, "No."
"Bitch." Wemmbu hissed out before turning and waving at the gravestone, "Bye, Rejoice. See you later."
"With the permission of one of your brothers, right?" Flame raised an eyebrow.
Wemmbu rolled his eyes and walked away, not listening to his brothers rant. What Flame didn't know, was that Wemmbu was being literal. He would see Rejoice later.
In the afterlife.
~
"Grounded!" Mane hissed as he pulled on the boys cheeks, "Super grounded! How dare you worry me so much!"
Wemmbu whined as he cheeks ached, "I told Egg where I was going!"
"Your phone was turned off!" Mane barked out, "I thought you had been kidnapped!"
"Who would want to kidnap him?" they decided to ignore Flame's comment.
Wemmbu's eyes turned wide and innocent as he let his lips wobble, "I'm sorry, Mane! I just really wanted to see Rejoice today! It won't happen again!"
Mane froze at the sight as Flame scoffed from somewhere behind him, "There is no way Mane actually falls for that same old act-!"
Flame was interrupted by Mane's sigh, "Alright, I know you miss your friend. But you can't just skip school and not tell anyone where you're going! I was very worried about you!"
Wemmbu hugged Mane's waist, "Okay, Mane… I'll take my punishment now."
Mane hesitate as the sniffling sound and sighed, pulling his youngest brother closer, "Okay, fine. I think you know not to do this again, so you're not grounded."
Flame gasped - scandalized - as Wemmbu smiled sweetly up at his oldest brother, "Thank you, Mane! I'll never do it again!"
"YOU'RE KIDDING ME?!" Flame shrieked as Mane walked off to start some lunch, "YOU'RE LETTING HIM GET AWAY WITH THIS?!"
Wemmbu grinned and stuck out his tongue, rushing after Mane as Flame swiped at him, "MANE! FLAME TRIED TO HIT ME!!!!"
"Leave your brother alone, Flame!"
~
Wemmbu first met Spoke at Egg's house. Spoke was the young and distant cousin of Egg's guardian, Minute. One day, Wemmbu was over to hang out with his friend and a little kid with bouncy black hair had attached himself to Wemmbu's leg.
Spoke was five years younger than Wemmbu and Egg and he seemed to attach himself to the to older boys, considering both of them big brothers. It was actually really fun having someone younger look up to you! He'd always been the youngest person in the room, so it was a little difficult to get used too.
Spoke was staying with Minute and Egg for a few weeks, so Wemmbu had asked the guardian if he could take the boy to the arcade.
Minute blinked in surprise, "Just the two of you?"
"Yup!" Wemmbu nodded with a grin, "Egg finds them overstimulating, but something tells me Spoke would love it!"
"Well…" Minute shrugged, "Yeah, that's fine. Just try to be back before dinner."
Wemmbu ran off to find the hyperactive seven year old, "No problem, Minnie!"
"Stop calling me that!" Minute called after him with a tired sigh.
Wemmbu cackled the entire way up the stairs.
~
"Oh my god!" Spoke squealed, "This is so cool!"
Wemmbu giggled as he walked in after him and held up his phone, "Say cheese, Spoke!"
Spoke gasped and grinned into the phone camera, hugging Wemmbu's waist. Wemmbu started to drag the boy around to try out all of the games. Spoke was easily entertained by all of the flashing light and pretty colors.
Spoke wasn't often in town, only whenever his parents needed a week away. Minute was always happy to have the boy over for a week or two. This was likely going to be Wemmbu's only chance t hang out with the kid before his time is up.
He made sure to take lots of photos of them together, as well as having a good time playing the games. By the time they had finished in the arcade, Spoke was asleep on Wemmbu's back as the older boy held a bag of prizes.
Wemmbu had dropped the boy off at Minute's, making sure to leave all the prizes for Spoke to take home. Wemmbu wouldn't needing them, plus he was just happy with his photos.
~
Wemmbu had started coughing more. It was like there was something always stuck in his throat and it wouldn't come out, no matter what he tried.
He had to be sneaky about his coughing fits, which was not very easy. He didn't want to worry Mane and Flame right now. And he especially didn't want them to take him to see a doctor.
This had the adverse affect of him unintentionally avoiding his brothers.
Which made them worry.
Fuck.
Wemmbu made sure to spend more time around his brothers to ease their suspicions, deciding to join them for a movie night.
The three brothers sat cuddled up on the couch, surrounded by blankets and bowls of popcorn. Wemmbu was sandwiched between his brothers, warm and sleepy. He wanted to stay awake because he knew that his cough got bad at night.
However, he lost the fight against sleep, sighing contently into Mane's side.
He was shaken awake by a concerned Mane and Flame, he chest ached and he found it hard to breathe. Before he could ask what was wrong, a terrible cough escaped him.
It probably sounded rough to his brothers, Wemmbu thought as he coughed into Mane's shoulder. His oldest brother gently patted his back as he gasped for air. Flame had run off at some point and returned with a glass of water.
Wemmbu took it when his coughing fit had finally calmed down, chugging the water before Flame took the glass and put it on the living room table.
Mane rubbed his younger brothers back, "It might be time to go to the doctors…"
"No!" Wemmbu's croaky voice cut in, "I don't need to go to the doctors!"
Just to go against him, Wemmbu's body forced out another wet cough, causing him to cover his mouth and scrunch his eyes closed, fighting back tears.
Mane patted his back once again, a deep, worried frown on his face, "It really doesn't sound good, Wemmy."
Wemmbu shook his head, "No!"
Both older brothers started to panic as their youngest broke out into heartbreaking sobs, rushing to comfort him.
Wemmbu couldn't help it, he had a whole plan that would not be ruined by this! He would not spend his last few months in hospital! He wouldn't!
"Shhhh…" Flame hushed him gently, "It's okay, Wemm. Calm down."
"We won't go to the doctors, yet." Mane soothed, "We'll see if your normal cough medicine helps."
Wemmbu just continued to sob into his shoulder, letting out his hidden emotions while he still had an excuse. This was too much for him, keeping the secret of his approaching death. This wasn't something he could actually handle on his own. But every time he thought about telling someone - anyone - he thought back to Rejoice.
He'd have to be strong.
~
Wemmbu and Parrot didn't have much in common. The older boy enjoyed reading and studying and Wemmbu very much did not. However, Wemmbu enjoyed chatting about school gossip with the boy.
Wemmbu was too young to join his older brother in high school (he'd never get to), but he knew all of the drama there thanks to Parrot. The bookworm loved to talk about things that happened at school, a breakup, a cheating scandal or even a secret relationship between teachers.
Parrot - worryingly - knew a lot about that school.
Wemmbu also enjoyed knowing a lot about that school too.
Wemmbu's activity for Parrot was a day out. Between photos they shopped, ate at overpriced cafes and gossiped. Apparently, the math teacher was caught with the principle in a compromising position, hiding in a storage closet.
The married principle.
Wemmbu had gasped at the revelation, begging to know what the principles wife had to say about it all.
"She wasn't happy, that's for sure!" Parrot giggled, "Especially because the math teacher is her sister!"
"No!" Wemmbu gasped, covering his mouth dramatically.
"Yes! Oh my god!" Parrot wheezed, "She smacked him in front of the entire school and then jumped her sister."
"Please tell me she won," Wemmbu clutched his chest, "please!"
"Oh yeah," Parrot nodded, "she may have been short, but she threw both her sister and husband across the entire courtyard!"
"Holy shit!" he gasped in absolute joy.
Parrot pulled out his phone, "Here, I got a video!"
Wemmbu's own gasp was scandalized, "Parrot! How mean! Show me."
It was a great day, indeed.
~
Wemmbu had thrown up. It was gross, but he was actually used to doing it. However, if he started vomiting on top of his cough, Mane was going to have a meltdown and carry him to the hospital, whether he wanted to go or not.
Wemmbu wiped his mouth and flushed away the evidence before spraying the bathroom to get rid of the smell. He washed his hands and went to walk back to his room, muffling a cough on the way, when a voice came from another doorway.
"Are you sick?" Flame asked, his arms crossed as he leaned against Wemmbu's bedroom door.
Wemmbu froze before shaking his head, "No! I… just needed to use the bathroom."
"Sure you did," Flame hummed with a raised eyebrow, "come on, I'll make some tea for your stomach."
Wemmbu groaned but walked off with his brother, hoping he wouldn't let this slip to the more dramatic one in the family.
~
Wifies and Wemmbu - like with Parrot - don't have much in common. But there is one thing.
"That shirt does not match those pants…" Wifies sipped his smoothie as he stared judgmentally.
Wemmbu hummed, sipping his own drink, "Did you see the guy with her? It must be a group thing…"
They were both extremely judgmental.
They spent their day shopping for cloths while dissing everyone else and their outfits. They took photos in random outfits while in the fitting rooms while making small remarks judging people. After they had tired themselves (and their pockets) out, they had settled down for some refreshments.
"You've been acting strange lately." Wifies commented.
Wemmbu - who had already planned ahead for this - just raised an eyebrow, "I have no clue what you're talking about."
"Hmm…" Wifies hummed, "Sure you don't."
Thankfully, Wifies left it alone and they continued on with their day.
~
It was getting colder. Or, Wemmbu was getting colder.
The season had changed over a while ago, the weather chilling as summer faded into autumn. Winter was closing in, and so was Wemmbu's end date.
Wemmbu was colder than he should be, he knows it. He'd been bundling himself up almost as much as he would during winter, shivering like crazy.
His body was starting to shut down.
Wemmbu hid it well, but he knew that Mane and Flame were getting suspicious. So he made sure to act extra happy, running and jumping around like he normally would. It wasn't so bad (besides the coughing and vomiting), the movements kept him warm.
Mane had gone out and bought him some warmer cloths, helping him keep as warm as possible.
It was obvious that Mane had been calling the doctor behind Wemmbu's back, the man had been feeding him very specific things and urging him to take some medicine.
Wemmbu would just have to be smarter.
~
Minute was someone that Wemmbu could call a father figure. He'd never had a father before, it had always been big brother Mane taking care of him. But Minute had helped a lot. He was less pushy with things than Mane was.
Wemmbu's activity with Minute was one of his more simple ideas, a picnic.
It was in a lively little park, they were set up a little bit off to the side so they wouldn't be bothered by everyone else. There was a small flower garden nearby that Wemmbu made sure to take a picture of himself and Minute in front of it.
They had a large spread of sandwiches, crackers, cheese, biscuits and cakes. It was nearly a feast, in all honesty. Wemmbu knew that they wouldn't finish it all today, but it all looked so cool - and perfect for another photo.
"You've been doing that a lot." Minute commented.
Wemmbu looked up from his phone, "Doing what?"
"Taking photos with people," Minute tilted his head, "are you making a project?"
…
Close enough.
"Kind of," Wemmbu smiled, "it's a secret, though."
Minute chuckled and passed the boy another piece of cake, "Okay, keep your secrets."
~
When you're on a countdown, time seems to go by incredibly fast. One moment, he'd been planning his coming death and the next, it's barely a month away.
It's morbid, thinking that he'd die soon. It's terrible being the only one to know, but he still had plans to fulfill.
Mane held him as he coughed, shivering in the blanket. Mane frowned, a small look of stress falling across his face.
"Maybe it's time to go to the doctors." Mane suggested once again.
"No!" Wemmbu rushed out, clutching his brothers shirt, "It'll go away on it's own! I'm fine!"
Mane hesitated. Wemmbu knew how deeply Mane cared and he hated how he was hiding something like this from him, but Wemmbu would not spend the rest of his life in hospital.
"Okay…" Mane gave in, "But if it gets any worse, we're going to the hospital."
Wemmbu would make it work, just another week or two.
~
There were a lot of things Wemmbu could do with Egg, but none of them were extremely special. He and Egg had been best friends for forever, they had done almost everything together! So, Wemmbu's hang out idea was something they hadn't ever done before!
A baking class.
It was a terrible idea, really. They had brought Minute along so he could take photos on Wemmbu's phone, but he might just be too busy laughing.
Flour was everywhere, the cookies were burnt and they were filthy.
But they were also laughing and having fun, so that's all that really matters.
And they were also banned from the class.
~
Flame threw Wemmbu into the air, causing the boy to shriek and giggle as he was caught and thrown again.
They were hanging out at the training dojo. Flame was supposed to be training, but had gotten a little bit distracted with Wemmbu watching. Flame's teacher had decided to let them play, leaving the room with a soft chuckle.
Flame rolled around on the ground, taking Wemmbu with him. The younger boy was furiously trying to take pictures, but most of them would be too blurry to see anything.
Flame's fingers started to wiggle against Wemmbu's sides, causing the boy to scream in laughter. Flame let himself laugh at the wild giggles falling from his mouth.
This was fun.
(This wouldn't last much longer.)
~
Mane wheezed as he pulled Wemmbu away from the boiling pot, "No! No no no no no! Wemmy! No! Bad!"
Wemmbu cackled, pushing away from Mane's hold and rushing towards the stove. He had a handful of salt and he was going to dump it into the pasta.
"NO!" Mane shrieked, rushing after the menace he raised, "Don't you dare, brat!"
Wemmbu was snatched from the ground and his salt fell away from him, causing him to mourn its loss. He whined and went limp in Mane's hold, acting like a disobedient kitten that had just been scruffed.
"Mane~!" Wemmbu pouted, "I'm trying to help!"
"You're a menace!" Mane sighed.
The flash of a camera got their attention as Flame stood of to the side of the kitchen, grinning down at Wemmbu's phone screen.
"Why do you want so many photos of everyone, anyway?" Mane questioned, setting his brother down and ruffling his hair.
Wemmbu violently shook his head, letting his purple strands settle back to their natural state before rushing off to take his phone from Flame. He scrolled through the pictures with a satisfied grin.
"Just a little something I'm working on!" Wemmbu mumbled, sorting the photos into their file.
Flame and Mane shrugged before the oldest brother ran off to finish dinner.
Wemmbu had finished his bucket list.
~
It was a dark and rainy day when Wemmbu's body finally gave out.
He'd been pushing it, really. Holding in coughs until his chest ached and swallowing down his vomit until he was alone. He'd stopped eating as much, growing thinner as the days passed. Mane had made an appointment with Wemmbu's doctor, no longer taking 'no' for an answer.
Wemmbu didn't bother arguing, he knew his time was up. He preferred to cuddle up with his family in one of their beds. The cooling weather was not helping with his chills.
"I love you guys, you know?" Wemmbu had whispered earlier that day, cuddled against Flame's side as Mane's hand rubbed his back through the mountain of blankets.
Flame nuzzled their heads together, "We love you too, Wemm."
"Don't worry," Mane whispered, "we'll go see your doctor tomorrow. It'll go away soon"
Wemmbu didn't have until tomorrow.
He coughed. And coughed. And coughed.
Both brothers surrounded him, sitting him up and patting his back. They were growing worried with how long the fit was going on when Mane almost screamed.
Blood.
Wemmbu was coughing up blood.
They lived about fifteen minutes away from the hospital.
Mane made it in three.
They rushed in, Wemmbu's body shivering but also burning. His coughing was only getting worse as he struggled to breath around the blood choking him.
Before Mane passed him over to the nurse, Wemmbu slipped his phone into his brothers hand, already opened to what he wanted him to watch.
Wemmbu wanted Mane and Flame to know that it wasn't their fault. He wanted them to know that he was happy, that he chose this path and that he still had things left behind for them. He had recorded a video explaining everything.
He hoped that with this video, they could see this situation from his side of things and that they won't resent him and his choices.
He needed them to know that he loved them very much and he knew he didn't have time. This was it for him.
He flashed his brothers a sweet smile as he was dragged away and he hoped that they could see it through the blood.
Then it all went dark.
~
He could hear things, bits and pieces of conversations happening around him. He remembered that he was in hospital, dying. He thinks he heard a doctor say something about a coma.
And that he wouldn't last long.
No cure.
He had already known that.
He heard cries surrounding him, begging and pleading for him to wake up.
He felt the warmth of the people he loved surrounding him.
He heard Spoke ask him to wake up, confused as to what was going on.
He heard Parrot describing the dramatic divorce hearing for the principle and his now ex wife.
He heard Wifies dissing one of the nurses he saw in the hall, saying that she was a total bitch.
He heard Minute talk about a little garden that he had set up in his backyard.
He heard Egg read one of his books to him, one that Wemmbu had always thought was boring but never told him because Egg enjoyed it.
He heard Flame talking about his training and the upcoming tournament that Wemmbu would not get to see.
He heard Mane humming a lullaby he used to always sing to him before bed.
He heard them all saying goodbye.
He felt warmth on each side of him and knew that his brothers were laying with him, clutching his cold hands in their warm ones.
"It's okay, Wemmy." he felt Mane's tears drip onto the pillow beside his head, "We understand, now. You can rest, you were so strong."
"We're not mad," Flame whispered on his other side, "we love you so much. Rest well, okay?"
"You don't have to hold on anymore," Mane soothed through his held back sobs, "we'll be alright. You can go now."
They'd be alright?
They weren't mad?
That's good…
He can rest easy now.
Wemmbu took his final breath and everything faded away.
Beep
Beep
…
Beeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee-