Adopted: Book 1 Refracted Sand [REWRITING]

Adopted Ch. 18 Tempestuous

They were waiting outside the operation room and the only way they could tell time was passing was the drying of Suzume's blood on their skin.

It's been hours.

Kankuro was hunched over, twiddling with his thumbs as he squeezed his eyes shut tight. Temari had her head thrown back resting on the wall behind her and her eyes were fixed on the ceiling.

Gaara was staring at his blood stained hands.

He did this.

All of the lives he's taken flashed dizzyingly, chaotically through his mind  and the screams, the screams that haunt him moaned into his ears. He could almost feel the heavy weight of Death curling his fingers onto his shoulder, promising his namesake.

He buried his face in his hands.

"She didn't want you to get into trouble," Temari's voice ripped through his grief. "She was dying on that slab and yet she didn't want to go to the hospital because she thought you'd get in trouble."

Gaara's shoulders began to twitch. Temari's eyes abandoned its examination of him and returned to the ceiling. "How we got into this situation is the real question. More than half a year ago we wouldn't've been caught dead in the same room together, forget waiting in this goddamn hallway worrying about a family member we never dreamed we'd have."

Temari closed her eyes. "Can you imagine it now? 'It would've been an honor to be killed by Gaara-sama! It would be rude to complain!'"

A chuckle escaped Kankuro's mouth and Temari saw Gaara's body relax.

"That kid is stronger than she looks, Gaara. She's as stubborn as everyone else in this family. The resemblance is uncanny."

The operation in progress sign turned off and all three of them were on their feet when the surgeon stepped out. He sighed and smiled reassuringly. "She's stable."

A wave of relief washed over them and just when Kankuro was about to ask if they could see her Temari rounded on them.

"I don't know what drama you two have going on right now but you need to find some sort of resolution before Suzume wakes up! Or else neither of you are allowed to see her!"

"But—" Kankuro didn't get to finish his complaint because Temari took the surgeon captive, dragging him back into the operating room and the door slammed shut on them.

Kankuro's immediate action was to run a hand through his hair, do a weird squat, stand up straight again, then spin around to face Gaara.

"Listen to me for a second, just for a second."

"That's enough! How about you listen to what your big brother has to say for once?!"

Kankuro jabbed a finger toward the doors that separated them from their sisters. "Suzume cares," his voice cracked but he plowed forward, "and you care about her too."

Gaara hung his head.

"I know you've gone through some god awful shit ever since you were born, but if your blindness is going to put our little sister in danger you either need to open your eyes right fucking now or I need to beat that idiotic logic out of you before you do something we'll all regret."

There was a long stretch of silence after Kankuro's words and the puppeteer didn't dare breathe as he waited for Gaara's answer. 

Gaara met his brother's eyes and he let out a whisper.

"I'm sorry."

Kankuro's expression sunk. Though, it froze first. Then it melted and sunk. Temari often told him when he was younger that he needed to control his emotions. She's always reminded him he was the most emotional of the three of them. She told him they were going to kill him.