All to Save a Brother

Author Notes: Here you go. This chapter adds something a bit paranormal to it. I have never written anything remotely paranormal so give me a break. Nanowrimo is the type of place to try writing something never attempted before, and here’s my attempt. I’m also starting to get more into the actual story.

REVIEW REPLIES
Lisa: Thanks so much for your review. It always warms my heart. It is definitely going to be a tear jerker. I can assure you that. It is the type of stories that I write best. About the speaking issue, I am trying to write the brothers mature for their age. I wrote a couple of times about how James seemed too smart for his age. You will begin to see why in this chapter though. Also, to get to 50K, splitting the contractions up gives me an extra word. It just happens to work for the story as well. Intelligence is more believable if it sounds formal. I hope you continue to read and review. : -)
Takumi Fujiwara: Hope you enjoy the update.

Four years have passed. Do you know where the brothers ended up? Right now, they are sitting in the hospital; the youngest one in a chair, and the oldest one lying in a bed. Marcus is so damn stubborn. He had been sick those fours ago. The illness never got treated in its early stage because Marcus refused to go to the doctor. He was finally diagnosed a little less than a year ago; Marcus has kidney cancer and it is in stage three.

James was now a stunning fifteen year old. He had elbow length black hair and a slim lanky build with pale skin that made him look like a porcelain angel. James still had the same grey eyes with specks of green that gave him an exotic look. He wore thin framed glasses that did nothing to subtract from his beauty, but in fact, only enhanced it. He was currently sleeping in the chair next to the hospital bed. His dreams were now always filled with unsettling images of his brother’s death, but they seemed all too real. For example, right now his mind was going through scenarios, and he could not rest peacefully.

He woke with a start, and covered his mouth so he would not wake Marcus up, even though it was near impossible to, considering he was in a medicative sleep. James sluggishly got up, and made his way to the doctor.

He had an odd mark on his thigh. It looked like an eye with waves radiating from it. He had it since as long as he could remember, but he did not know how he got it. This odd mark though, had been itching like crazy, and he could not scratch it without being totally embarrassed by the display.

He needed a drink badly so he found the water fountain that he had become very familiar with; it just happened to be by the break room for the doctors. The door to the room was open, and he peered inside as he passed it. What he saw though made him halt in his tracks.

Marcus’ doctor, Doctor Rendell was in there. Doctor Rendell was in his late twenties and not too bad on the eyes. He had removed the standard white coat. He was wearing a sleeveless muscle type shirt and the mark on his back was half hidden by his shirt. It made his heart thump. It looked exactly the same as the strange mark he had on his thigh. It could not just be a coincidence, right?

Doctor Rendell noticed his eyes, and smiled grimly at the young fifteen year old. He felt terrible that a kid James’ age was slowly losing his brother and guardian to cancer. “May I help you James?”

James awkwardly scratched his neck. How did one ask about something like a mark? He guessed being blunt was probably the best approach. “Sir…I have a question.” Dr. Rendell made a gesture for James to continue. “The mark you have on your back, what did you get it from?”

Doctor Rendell frowned. “I was born with it. Why?”

James looked at his feet. “What are the chances that two people were born with the exact same mark, but in different places?”

Doctor Rendell was instantly by his side. “You have it too? Where?”

James blushed, but he answered in a soft voice, “On my right thigh sir.” He Continued, “I never knew where I got it from or what it meant though.”

Doctor Rendell looked thoughtful. “Tell me something James, have you ever once in your life, had a dream that came true or had already happened, but you did not know about it ahead of time?”

James nodded. “Once when my brother broke up with his first girlfriend, I asked him how he was feeling. He asked me how I knew, and I told him it was because I saw it happen in a dream. I think I really freaked him out.”

Doctor Rendell smiled wryly. “I am not surprised. Most people have no idea when they are in the presence of a seer.”

James eyebrows rose to his hairline. His voice was clearly disbelieving when he asked, “A seer? You mean like a psychic.”

Doctor Rendell chuckled. “I am not surprised you think I belong in the mental ward here. I know it sounds quite surreal. A seer is like a psychic, but more powerful. There are only a handful of seers. No one knows how one is born, or what is so special about one’s birth that they become a seer. There is not that much information on them because there are so few.”

James was breathing heavily. “I think I need to sit down. I feel like I am going to pass out.” Doctor Rendell moved James to a chair. “I always thought there was something wrong with me.” James finished.

Doctor Rendell shook his head. “Nothing is wrong with you. It is a gift to be a seer. You should be proud.”

James looked uncertain. “If YOU are so proud, why do you hide the ability? When I asked about the mark, you said it was simply from birth.”

Doctor Rendell smiled. “You are true when you caught on to the fact that I do not tell people about it. It is not because I am ashamed though. Most people would just not understand and might try to experiment on me, so more seers could be born. All seers do what they can to hide the ability from everyone, except those they trust the most and other seers of course.”

James was intrigued, even if he was still a bit uncertain about how sane Doctor Rendell really was. “Have you met any other seers before?”

Doctor Rendell nodded. “I have met only one, and he was actually my mentor. He taught me what I needed to know.”

James had known there was something similar in the way Doctor Rendell talked. It sounded similar to him, as well as his brother. He had just hit the nail on the head about what the similarity was. “Doctor Rendell, the way you talk…you do not use contractions. I have talked like that since I can remember, even when I was 5. I never spoke baby talk, or incomplete sentences, or mispronounced words. My brother too speaks the same way. Is it my
seer status, or whatever you would call it?”

Doctor Rendell nodded. “Seers are known to grow up rather quickly. They need to have a reign on the emotions, and they learn how to control them early on in their life, even if it is unconscious. All seers speak very formally from a young age. There is some kind of connection between formal talk and emotions, but no one knows what.”

James frowned; something was still not making sense. “Then why does my brother talk like this? As far as I know, he does not have the mark of a seer.”

The doctor chuckled. “I can see you two are very close for siblings, which is understandable because he has been raising you by himself for four years. Seers sometimes pass on some of their abilities to people they are extremely close too. It is usually unintentional. Usually, the abilities are passed on to spouses or lovers. Your situation with your brother is different though; that is why he speaks like seers do.”

James nodded. Thinking about his brother though made him feel extremely depressed, even in the revelation of his status. “Could I have passed on anything else to him, like an illness?”

The doctor took James' hand. “Cancer is not passed on through seers’ abilities. Fate just weaved a bad one for the two of you. This is not your fault though.”

Tears were coming to James’ eyes. “I should have forced him to go to the doctor sooner. It is my entire fault.” Before James could totally lose it, he felt a sense of calm wash over him.

James looked at the doctor who smiled. “Not only can seers see past events, present events that are happening at the time, and future events, but they can also push feelings on other people and make them feel what the seer wants them to feel. In this case, I pushed calming feelings towards you so you would relax. Now listen to me, you brother loves you very much. I have watched how he looks at you. Cancer is a disease that is hard to prevent. I did research on your family’s medical history with Marcus’ permission. It seems that kidney cancer runs in your family. You grandmother on your mother’s side had it; this increases chances of getting it. Stop blaming yourself though, okay? I do not think Marcus would want you to blame yourself. I have a feeling that he would be disappointed even, if you did.”

James nodded. He knew Doctor Rendell was right. Marcus needed him to be strong, and he would be. He wanted to get his mind off his brother for now, and focus on this new, exciting ability of his. Well, it was not exactly new, but he was now aware of it. “Do you have any type of information about being a seer—besides what you have already told me—so I can learn to control it?”

The doctor nodded, knowing what James was attempting to do, but allowing it. “Yes, in fact I have a book from my mentor, who received it from his mentor, and so forth. There are not that many in existence and you cannot buy it in the store. It is said to have been written by the first seer as he discovered every ability he had, and the techniques he needed to use. He told me to keep it, and if I ever met a new seer, to give him the book to learn from. I guess you are the lucky one.” His eyes were sparkling as he continued, “I also have to tell you to keep it, and to pass it on to any seer you may meet in the future.”

James nodded. “You know I am here every day after school, so can you bring it tomorrow?”

The doctor let out a laugh. “I always keep it with me in my locker. I am at the hospital more than half of the time, so I wanted to have it on me in case I met a seer here. Maybe I saw the future without realizing it.” Doctor Rendell finished in a joke.

The duo stood up, and made their way to the locker room. Doctor Rendell’s locker was one of the top ones, which James would never be able to even see into. The doctor pulled at the book and handed it to him. “Read it carefully. There are techniques in there about meditation. Do not take it lightly. The mediation will help you control your emotions as well as help you grow stronger. Even if it sounds like mumbo jumbo to you, do it. Take my advice. It will save you a lot of frustration later on.” He took a piece of scrap paper and scribbled something on it. “Although I am usually at the hospital, this is my cell phone. I check my messages frequently. If you have any questions, and you just happen to be at your house—even though I know that you are rarely there now—don’t hesitate to call me. I will get back to you as soon as possible. If you are at the hospital, just track me down.” There was a moment of silence before Doctor Rendell continued. “What is the matter James? Your sadness is radiating off of you in waves.”

James eyes were dull as he looked into the doctor’s eyes. “I do not want to be a bother to you. You are too busy to be worrying about insane questions from a fifteen year old.”

The doctor laid a hand gently on James shoulder. “I want you to ask me questions. I had a wonderful seer as a mentor who helped me tremendously. I know right now you are focused on your brother, and that is fine. I understand completely. I want to help you though, as my seer helped me. You are definitely not a bother. In fact, if I ever have kids one day, I would love them to turn out just like you. You are one of the politest fifteen year olds that I have ever met.

James blushed at the compliment. “Thank you sir, I am sure you will have kids one day.”

Doctor Rendell chuckled. “I need to get married first.”

James smiled a sad smile. “Do not lose faith sir. You are a definite catch.”

After that, James went to say goodbye to his brother. He had decided to not tell Marcus just yet about his newly discovered status, and hid the book. His brother was already in the hospital for kidney cancer; he did not want to give him a heart attack as well. They gave each other pecks on the cheeks, and James made his way out of the hospital.

He waited at the bus stop for only about five minutes. That night at the house—Marcus had agreed to let him stay by himself due to his maturity—James made himself a small dinner, and sat in his room. He ate his dinner, and then began to read the book for seers, and before he knew how much time had passed, he had completed it. He yawned, and saw it was just pass midnight. Thank god it was Saturday, and he could sleep in a little bit the next day. He got ready for bed, and decided that if he had time the next day, before he went to the hospital, he would practice some of the meditation techniques that the book described. He fell asleep with his thoughts swirling around in his head.

*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

The next morning, James took his routine shower and dressed in a pair of comfortable jeans and a short sleeved shirt. He had the book for seers in front of him as he sat on the carpet floor of his bedroom in a common yoga position. It was definitely uncomfortable for him, but the book explained that with practice, it would become second nature for him. He read what the book said about mediating for the first time once again. Afterwards, he closed his eyes and attempted to clear his thoughts, including thoughts of his brother lying in a hospital bed slowly dying. His breathing evened out as he tried to get into contact with self, the seer within him. He could sense his seer, and felt the warmth of his seer, but he could not quite touch it. He pushed harder, and in his urgency, lost his calmness and his breathing became erratic. He lost all feeling of his seer, and his eyes shot open. He was panting, and felt slightly drained. The book mentioned nothing about that happening. He decided that he would ask Doctor Rendell at the hospital.

James stood up on shaky legs and slipped his sneakers on. He grabbed his keys and wallet and stepped out of the door, locking it. As soon as he arrived at the hospital, he went to see his brother. He would find the doctor afterwards. Unknown to him, there was a pair of sinister eyes watching his movements in curiosity.

James knocked on the door before entering. Marcus was holding his side in pain. One of the symptoms of kidney cancer was pain in the side that will not go away with pain medication. He sat on the hospital bed. He reached out and brushed the black bangs from his eyes, revealing the polar opposite color of his eyes, which was green with specks of grey. James laid his hand on top of Marcus’ hand that was clutching his side. He wanted to ease his big brother’s pain so much; he could almost taste the desire. Unconsciously, he sent the feelings of wanting to ease pain to his brother. Almost instantly, Marcus relaxed, as if suddenly the pain was nonexistent.

James blinked in shock. He knew it was obviously his seer powers that had helped Marcus. What he did not know was how he did it when he could not even reach his inner sear during mediation this morning.

Marcus’ eyes were open, but he looked like he was ready to fall asleep. James leaned over and kissed his cheek. “I love you Markie. Please get some rest. I shudder to think how long you have been in that pain.”

Marcus smiled gently. He attempted to reach up to touch James’ face, but his whole body was too weak and he gave up in resignation. He knew he was dying and there was nothing he could do to avoid it. “I love you to my little Jamie.” His very was raspy from under use, and it hurt to talk.

James smiled sadly. “It is not proper to keep calling me “your little Jamie”. I am not exactly what you could call “little” anymore.” He was sill gently stroking Marcus’ cheek, trying to keep the severe pain from coming back.

Marcus chuckled, but it looked like it was an effort to do so. “No matter how old you get, you will always be my little Jamie…until the day I die.” The last part was said in a whisper, but James heard it nonetheless. The tears leaked from James’ closed eyes. In his mind, he knew Marcus would die before his time, but it became reality when Marcus said it out loud.

James leaned over and buried his head in Marcus’ chest. “I love you so much.”

Now that James was closer to Marcus’ level, Marcus could massage James’ head in a soothing manner, just like when he was younger. “I know you will be fine. You are young. You will move on. You have your whole life ahead of you.”

James felt himself lose control of his emotions, and when this happened Marcus let out a heart wrenching scream. James sat up, looking startled, not sure what he did.

Doctor Rendell came running in, and after a quick assessment of the situation, he pulled James up away from the bed. He gently touched Marcus and sent waves of calmness until the young man was lying peaceful again. Doctor Rendell looked at James who still looked a bit alarmed about what he caused, even though he did not know what he did to cause the violent reaction. Doctor Rendell cleared his throat. “Marcus, if you do not mind, I would like to speak with your brother.” Marcus nodded, as he started to drift into a light sleep. Doctor Rendell carefully led James out of the room.

The two of them were standing by the ICU. No one seemed to be paying them any sort of special attention. James was clearly freaking out. “What did I do?”

Doctor Rendell sent a wave of calmness to James. “Your extreme grief caused him to be overwhelmed with pain. That is one of the hardships of a seer’s life if you do not control your emotions. You will need to learn to build up shields so you can filter out emotions, as well as you can block it so others do not receive your emotions by accident.”

James looked confused. “I thought you could only send emotions to a person by touching them. The book did not really specify anything else.”

Doctor Rendell nodded. “For awhile, until you become more experienced and stronger, you will need to be touching that person some way if you want to send them any sort of feelings. As you train, you will develop the ability to be able to send feelings to a large group of people, without touching any of them. It takes time and practice though.”

James nodded. He suddenly thought about his grief over his brother. “Doctor Rendell, is there not a way to save my big brother? There are treatments for cancer, is there not. People have been treated before.”

The doctor smiled sadly down at his part time pupil. “For the stage of cancer your brother is in, the treatment would be Radical Nephrectomy. What this treatment does is it removes the kidney, adrenal gland, and surrounding tissue. Depending on the situation, nearby lymph nodes may also have to be removed. In your brother’s case, they probably would have to be for the surgery to be a success.”

James mouth was open. “If there is a treatment, why are we letting him die.”

The doctor looked truly heartbroken. “I would love to save your brother, if only for your sake. Unfortunately, it is not that easy. Treatments for diseases cost money. One knows where cancer in concerned, there is no cheap way out. When your brother first came to be a “resident” here, I had asked him if he would by up to trying the surgery. His answer was that he could not do it; he did not have a choice. Considering your brother was taking care of you by himself, he does not have any health insurance for himself, and no money saved up for anything that expensive. I am sorry James. There is nothing I can do.”

Tears were steadily streaming now. “I feel so helpless. All I can do is sit idly by and watch him slowly die now?” Doctor Rendell bent down, and gave James a comforting hug. He refused to send the young boy any more artificial feelings of calmness for the day. James needed to come to terms about his brother’s illness in his own way. Most seers, being creatures that need emotions to function, come to terms through crying. “It is not fair. My own mom and dad did not even want me. I was just some horrible mistake to them. The only person who has ever loved me unconditionally and put me first was my big brother, my Markie. And now…I am going to be all by myself. No one…will…ever…love…me…again!!” He finished in a sob.

Doctor Rendell rubbed soothing circles in his back. It was a while before the younger boy calmed down. The doctor pulled away, comforting James through his eyes. “I know this is hard for you. You will be loved again though. I knew your brother was raising you, but I did not know the exact reason why. Your parents are horrible people. You deserve love, not to be shoved aside because they never learned how to use birth control.” James made a disgusted face at the mental image of his parents have sex. That is not something any kid wants to have stuck in their mind. “I am sure Marcus has already thought about you, and has you taken care of, when fate decides to finally take his life.”

“Fate has a twisted sense of humor.” James muttered, but Doctor Rendell heard it.

“That it does.” The doctor murmured. He continued though, “I understand you want to be with your brother, but if you still do not have control of your emotions, you will hurt him again. I need you to calm down before going back in there. You will do him more harm than good if you do not have your feelings on a tight leash. Even if you two are not touching and your feelings are extreme enough, he will still feel the pain. Understand?”

James nodded sadly. “Doctor, I actually had a question about something I read in the book.” Doctor Rendell made a gesture as if to say ‘continue’. “I actually read the book all the way through last night. I attempted to try mediation this morning before I came here. I could feel the presence of my inner seer, but when I tried to push myself to connect completely, I felt like I was losing control. The calmness I had achieved left me and my heart rate got erratic. Any inkling of my inner seer vanished instantly. I am not exactly sure what happened.

Doctor Rendell looked thoughtful. “You cannot expect to be able to do it without a problem your first try. You tried to force the seer within you to connect. You pushed yourself more than you should have on your first try. As for the last part, if you are not completely calm and mellow, you will not be able to even sense your inner seer. Take it easy. There is no need to rush. Do you get it?” James nodded, truly understanding. “Do you have any more questions?” James shook his head. “Okay, stay here and calm down. When you are sure you will not be any danger to Marcus, you may go back into his room. I have another patient I need to check on, so I will see you later.” James watched Doctor Rendell walk away.

Unknown the two who had been talking, a guy named Don with sinister eyes had been observing them from around the corner unseen. Don had short black hair, black eyes, a slight build, and an extremely thin frame. One should not be fooled by that though. The guy was a force to be reckoned with. He smirked at the information he had heard. He did not understand the talk about the seer crap, but he did not care about it. It was unimportant to his mission. He had found his next target. With his hands stuffed in his jeans’ pockets, he gave off the air of an easy going guy. “Hello there young man.”

James looked at him under from under his eyelashes. He had no idea how alluring that look really was. “May I help you sir?”

The guy chuckled. “Boy, you are sure a polite one. That is a hard fine in your age group. Anyways, the question is not if you can help me, but if I can help you. My name is Don Extavio. I am a photographer for “Be a Star” modeling agency. You have the looks that are selling these days.” James’ eyebrows rose. “How would you feel about me taking some pictures of you?”

James was getting an uncomfortable sensation around this guy. Something about him did not feel right. “I do not think so Mr. Extavio. I am not interested.”

James turned to leave, but Don’s hand on his shoulder stopped him. “You would be paid of course. You are here at a hospital. Is it because a love one is sick perhaps?”

James swallowed a lump in your throat as he turned back to face Don. “My big brother who is also my guardian has kidney cancer. There is no money for the surgery and he is dying from it.”

Don smiled. James was almost his. “I will make a little deal with you. Even if you would not normally be paid that much, I will give you the full money for the treatment, in exchange for one complete session of photographs of you to sell to the world.”

James knitted his brows. “What exactly are you doing at a hospital sir? Are you trying to pick up new clients where people might be grieving?”

Don chuckled. “You are definitely a smart one. Actually, I have a friend who had come here for appendicitis. I just happened to be walking by, and your looks stopped me dead in my tracks. So, what do you say? Your brother might be able to live if you agree.”

James thought about it. Don was right. It was a chance to save his big brother. It might be his only chance to save him. He still had the feeling of discomfort around Mr. Extavio though and it unnerved him. Mr. Extavio seemed like a nice enough guy, so why was he so frightened of him, and had the feeling that he could not be trusted. He thought about asking Marcus about him modeling for money. He knew his big brother though. Marcus would tell him to stop worrying, that he was obviously meant to die young. James would not have that though. He needed his brother in his life. He was not ready to be alone. He would do anything to save his brother, even if it meant going against the feelings of discomfort. “Okay, Mr. Extavio. I will do.”

Don smiled. It was as easy as pie. “We can do it now and get it over with, so you can get the money right away from your brother’s treatment.”

James looked at him from beneath the fringe of his bangs. “Should you not check with your boss, or whoever?”

Don smiled, showing his straight white teeth. “He always trusts my judgment. I do not need to check with him if I find someone I like. Are you ready go?”

James nodded. “Let me just go say goodbye to my brother.”

Don frowned. “Are you going to tell him about the modeling job?”

James shook his head. “He would just tell me not to worry about trying to save him. It was fate’s doing. I will not accept that answer. I will just tell him that I have homework, so I need to leave early.”

Don nodded. He felt relieved as he watched James walk away. He did not think this brother of James was smart enough to figure out the truth before it was too late, but he did not like taking unnecessary chances.

The ones who are in pain are so easy to manipulate. It was a brilliant idea to come to the hospital for new meet. He had a feeling they would make a lot of money with this one.


Author Notes: I hope you enjoyed this chapter. Was the paranormal stuff okay for a first time? Please Read and Review.