All it takes is a wish... (ON HOLD)

Chapter 2

    "Ma'am, I am afraid that I must insist that you leave." 

"Sweetie, everything's going to be fine."

"There's nothing more you can do."

      Voices floated around her, some familiar, others unknown. Kaia closed her eyes and tried to shut out the voices. She felt something on her shoulder. A hand.

   "Kaia dear, we have to go." Her mother said, patting her shoulder. 

  We have to go. Have to--no we don't. WE DON'T. Kaia thought, curling up in a ball. She was going to cry again and this time she didn't care what anyone thought. Her father would make it through, right? She'd been there for the whole day, skipping school to stay by her father's side. Her phone was beeping with texts from her friends asking where she was or hoping that she'd be back tomorrow. She wasn't going back. She was going to stay by her father's side until h-

  Her mother was dragging her out of the hospital room, ignoring her cries and pleading. She gritted her teeth angrily. No one understood her, not even her mother. She flailed, making the scene bigger than it was. Everyone was staring at her, alarmed, but Kaia didn't care. She scowled and stomped out of the hospital. She would be back. For sure. She got in the car and contented herself on reading all the texts her friends sent. She smiled sadly. Would anything ever be the same thing again? 

   A little while later, her mother came out of the hospital. The ride back home was made in awkward silence. Both Kaia and her mother were stuck in their own world but unlike the world, which can always change, the sadness inside the two of them was something that could never change. Kaia looked out the window, watching the scenery change as the car drove from the city into the country. Her phone rang once. She sighed and went to pick it up. 

    "Kaia! Is it true?" Her older brother exclaimed through the phone. 

     "What?" Kaia mumbled, too wrapped up in her own affairs.

     "So, is it true that Dad is in the...?" He couldn't even finish the sentence. 

    "Yeah. Well it's nice that you called for once, Arken." Kaia said, a bit bitter.

     "Pfft. I was busy. Is it true that he also..." He was out of breath. 

    Suddenly, her phone beeped with a text from one of her acquaintances. Curious, Kaia checked to see who the sender was and slowly smiled. The girl had finally replied. All the self-doubt, and the sadness she had felt just a few seconds ago vanished.

    "Is it true? Do you mean whether Sadie Loppinton likes you, or--" she said, with a tiny smile. Through the front mirror of the car, she saw her mother smile. She jerked the phone from her ear as she knew what would happen next.

    "KAIA!" Her brother yelled, equally impatient and embarrassed. He had a crush on Sadie since forever and it was just recently that she'd admitted to Kaia that she liked him back. 

   "What?!? Just thought you might want to know what she told me..." she said, playing innocent. 

  "....What did she say?" 

 "Oh, so you do admit that you like her," Kaia said, peering at her mother who was listening intently. She'd turned the phone volume up a few seconds ago. Arken was going to kill her, but it was worth it. 

    "Yes, I d--I mean, no I don't..." Arken mumbled. 

   "I think what brother dearest means to say that he does."

    "No, I don't."

    "Yes, you do. By the way, mom can hear you," she said, handing the phone to her mother, who'd pulled over to the side while they were arguing. 

  "KAIA! You didn't, did you?" He sighed. 

  While her mother and Arken talked(or more accurately argued), Kaia listened mutely. She was watching the sunset, its beautiful colors glittering in contrast to the darkened forest floor. Like beauty in the darkness.

   "...So, are you sure nothing else happened?" Her mother asked. 

    "Yes, mom. I am sure." Arken mumbled. 

     "Okay, bye sweetie."

     "Bye."

    Her mother handed the phone back to her and began driving again. Kaia turned the volume down and put the phone back to her ear.

  "You're awful, you know," Arken said, sounding tired.

  "It was time for her to know anyway." She protested, rolling her eyes.

  "Whatever. Anyways, is it true? Is Dad in the hospital?"

  "Yeah, he's in a coma. The doctors think it's some form of cancer." She replied, telling herself not to cry. "How's school?"

  "Boring, as usual." He replied. 

  Their mother had insisted that Arken went to school that day, especially since he was in senior year. Kaia had only gotten to skip school after she'd told her mom about 'the chicken virus' circulating around the cafeteria which somehow involved blue marker dots all over her face and arms. It had taken 2 showers to get it off. Anyways, she'd suspected that her mother had known all along that she was bluffing, but just let her come anyway.

  "Well, then it was a good thing I caught 'the chicken virus' then?" She joked.

    He laughed. "That was the best idea ever!" he said, giggling. "Mom totally fell for it. "

    A tense silence filled both ends of the phone again, before Arken added, "Hey Kaia."

  Yeah?"

   "You know that I'll always be there for you right?"

   Not after you move to university, was Kaia's first thought. But she refrained from saying it out loud. So she lied.

  "Yeah, I know."

  "Well, I guess I'll see you tonight." 

  "See you," Kaia said, before hanging up. Then she sighed, setting down her phone in the seat beside her. She settled comfortably into her seat and took out her favorite book, a book filled with Shakespeare quotes. She began to read until finally her eyes drooped and she fell asleep on the line:

All the world's a stage,

And all the men and women merely players....

A/N: Thanks for reading! Hope you enjoyed it! What do you think will happen next? Comment below! See ya, Wiseheart12