Hurrying into the emergency room, Zac and Taylor stopped once they saw their dad sitting in one of the chairs, staring blankly up at the TV monitor.
Worriedly, they looked at each other before approaching him slowly.
"Dad?" Zac said softly, his hand touching his shoulder lightly.
Mr. Hanson jumped slightly, before turning and getting up. His arms went around him in a tight grip. "Zac." He said quietly.
"Dad?" Zac asked again, his hands patting his father's back, "How is he?"
His head shook. "I don't know. Your mom's in there now with him and the doctor… anything else I don't know."
He turned to Taylor, and Taylor's eyes darkened. "What happened, Tay." Zac questioned as he sat himself and his dad down in the grey padded chairs.
Taylor sat down next to them, his hands grasped together tightly, wringing nervously. "We were walking upstairs to go to bed." He started, "We were both so tired, and so… I wanna say unstable."
Refusing name the exact step he supplied, "Halfway up, Ike lost his balance, and grabbed the railing and the back of my shirt." He shook his head, "But then it was like, he just lost his grip on both and he fell. Just started sliding down the steps in this big pile…."
Zac closed his eyes, his imagination working over time and playing the scene out in his mind. Automatically using the thirteenth step as the downfall.
His head started to shake, "I just saw him this morning and he was fine." He murmured. "You both were… annoyed with my good mood since you guys hadn't been to bed yet. You joked about me getting hit by a truck."
Taylor bit his lip, "Zac, I really didn't mean that."
Zac gave a half smile, "I know." He gave an inaudible sigh, "I just can't understand how one thing could happen so fast and… remind me so much of something bad that already happened."
Mr. Hanson wrapped his arm around his son's shoulders. "It's not like what happened to you, Zac." He assured firmly. "There was no rollerblade on the step, there was no running, it's not like before."
But Zac shook his head some more, "No." He muttered fiercely. "It's exactly like before. It may no be the exact same scheme, but it's the same. Going up the steps, stumbling, falling, getting hurt."
His eyes looked wildly around the waiting room, "Look at it, Dad! Look at this." His arms gesturing wide to it all, "It's happening all over again."
Turning, Zac set his eyes on his brother and father. "A doctor's going to come out, lead us into Ike's room where he's going to talk with Ike some more about his head, eyes, and sight. The comment is going to be made that his eyes should be covered, ya know, just in case."
The bitterness was unmistakable in his voice. It was too thick to ignore, "Then when it comes time to remove it, Ike's not going to be able to see anything. His world will be dark, even without the bandages on!"
Taylor and Mr. Hanson stared at Zac with mixed emotions. Saddened that he thought that, feared that he was right.
