Butterfly Effect (Kyle's Lost Twin)

The Broflovski's

The sound of soft beeping hits my ears first, I don't remember when exactly I blacked out but I think it was when they were putting me on the stretcher. The pain just became too much to bear at that point.

The next thing to hit my ears is the sound of worried voices, I can't quite make out what they're saying but it's obvious they're whatever they're talking about is stressful.

I know I'm waking up but I'm struggling to actually complete the process. It's as if I'm back in my mind but I can't control my body yet. Sleep paralysis, but with my eyes closed.

Slowly I take deep and controlled breaths before focusing all my energy on waking up, which doesn't work so I try again. I take deep controlled breaths and pain. Fucking pain all in my left side.

"AGH! Fuck that hurts!" I exclaim, opening my eyes to see casts on legs starting at my feet, ending at just below my knee. Turning to my left I see my entire left shoulder and upper arm has been wrapped tightly with my left arm in a sling.

"Y/n!" Four voices I could never mistake exclaims my name and are immediately at my side to give me hugs. Mum hugs me last, but she hugs me the longest and keeps my right hand in hers when she stands back up straight. Dad is right behind her, Lily is on the other side with Jake next to her.

"I can't believe you took on that thing. The police got it out of the water and dude, it looks like a fucking Xenomorph! You're like a real-life Ripley!" Jake exclaims excitedly, Ripley was always one of his favourite sci-fi characters and to be honest she's one of mine too.

She was originally written to be a guy, having a strong female lead like her in the eighties was a massive step for film and media as a whole.

"We're so proud of you Y/n. Furious because you could have fucking died, but so damn proud all the same." Dad says softly, Mum sighs at his choice of words.

"Oh good he's awake! You got yourself quite battered up, doctors weren't sure if they'd be able to reattach your feet but with the help of your twin, they managed!" The nurse exclaims and I feel my throat go dry.

"What did Kyle do?! Is he okay?!" I ask in a panic, how the fuck did he help?! He didn't donate a foot or something stupid did he?!

"I'm fine Y/n, I just donated some tissue from my thigh so they could reconstruct the skin around your ankle." I turn to see Kyle walk into the room, Ike and his parents in tow.

"Damn it dude, that scared me! I was worried you donated a foot or something out of guilt. Before you deny it they would be something you'd do." I sigh in relief, seeing both Kyle and Ike safe and unharmed.

"Hey Ike! Good to see you're okay!" I exclaim and it looks like Ike's seconds away from bursting into tears at my words, "oh shit, did I say something wrong?"

The woman next to Ike, who I presume is Kyle and Ike's mother Shelia, laughs softly, "No no, he was just so worried you wouldn't be okay. Blames himself for not getting out of the way. Seeing you awake and happy is a big relief for him." Shelia explains, giving Ike's shoulder a reassuring squeeze.

"Aww, Ike it's not your fault bud. You were just in the wrong place at the wrong time. I was lucky enough to be there. I don't know what I would have done if-" my words trail off, the thought of watching the small child in front of me getting taken by that car is too horrible to even speak.

I don't think I'd be able to handle seeing something like that.

"The point is we're alive. That's all that matters." At my words Ike runs over to my right side and jumps up onto the bed, embracing me in a hug so tight I have to hide the pain he's causing my left shoulder.

"Thank you." He utters softly, I take my right arm and return his hug. "We really are grateful." I look up to see Kyle and Ike's Dad, Gerald, looking guiltily at Ike and me. I hope they don't blame themselves. There's nothing they could have done to get a better outcome.

"We... We wanted to thank you for saving Ike. No words will ever be able to express just how grateful we are." Shelia words are full of both gratitude and guilt, but guilt for what specifically is uncertain to me.

"We uh... We also wanted to... We wanted to address. Damn it, I practiced what I was going to say and I still have no idea how to say it." Gerald trails off, words escaping his mind.

"You want to talk about why you put me up for adoption?" Sheila and Gerald look at each other with solemn faces, guilt once again clouding their eyes. So that's why they've been looking so guilting.

"We... We couldn't afford twins. With Gerald in law school would could barely afford Kyle. You were the healthiest out of the two so we put you up for adoption, we thought putting the healthiest up for adoption would increase your chances of finding a good home...

...When Kyle was six we were earning enough to afford another kid. We did always want two. So we tried looking for you first, when we found out you had been adopted already, we adopted Ike...

...Looking at you now. I think we made the right decision." Shelia looks toward my parents as she finishes her explanation. That went way better than I thought it would and her reasoning is the reason I had guessed in the first place.

"I figured something like that would be the reason. I'm happy to have it confirmed though. Oh, if I could have one thing, a family medical history that I could give to my doctors would be great." My nonchalant attitude about this whole situation seems to catch the Broflovski's off guard.

"He's on a shit tonne of pain meds and has absolutely no filter." Lily explains, she's always so good at reading my mind. "Did I ever have a filter in the first place?" I ask, Lily smirks, "Nope. Stupid people typically don't have filters."

"I might be stupid but at least my IQ is higher than yours, you fucking potato." Lily and I look at each other for a moment before completely bursting out laughing, "Good to know your brain still works." Lily sighs, smiling.

"Kids, maybe it's best to reduce your insults and swearing while at the hospital. Especially while another family is in the room with us." Mum scolds, saying the last part quiet enough for only us to hear.

"Sorry Mum." We say in unison, the room goes quiet for a moment after that so I decide to just start talking again, "What day is it?" I ask, I'm genuinely curious. "It's Sunday the thirteenth of December. Why?" Jake responds, looking from his phone to me.

"When will I be able to leave?" I ask, Ike has gone from hugging me to drawing all over the casts on my legs. "The doctors said you can leave in a week, but you'll be in a wheelchair until your casts come off. You'll also need serious physical therapy." Mum explains, trying to sound reassuring.

"I'm... I'm not going to be able to box again, am I?" My parents look at each other sadly, unsure of how to answer that, "if you heal well you might be able to box again in a few years time but with the damage to your shoulder blade the doctors said you likely won't have the same range of motion as you used to."

"On the bright side though, your sponsors have offered you careers in modelling. So you still have a solid career path, if you want it." Mum smiles, trying to be uplifting and while I appreciate the effort, knowing my life is going to change so much all over again is a lot to handle.

"I think I'll just focus on getting better first and see where I go from there." I reply, trying to return Mums smile but it feels forced. "You can take as much time as you need."

"Done!" Ike exclaims, moving to the side so he can show off his work. I have no idea how he managed to draw me so realistically with a damn sharpie but holy heck it's awesome!

He's drawn me as Superman, flying through the air with "Super Y/n, saves the day!" Written underneath it.