I hold her hand in mine as just a little bit of color appears on her body again.
———
Wednesday night Athena fell into a coma, it's Saturday now.
I haven't gone to school and have only gotten up from this chair to shower and change clothes.
Athena's injuries are all healing well according to the doctors and there have been a few signs of her waking up.
She has squeezed my hand a couple of times back when I squeezed hers. The first time it happened, I started screaming for a doctor to come here, telling him that she was going to wake up but he told that it was a false alarm, something about her muscle reflex or something. I don't really know? I was practically devastated when he told me that.
He said that it could take weeks, months maybe in some extreme cases even years for her to wake up.
But I don't know...
Those squeezes she gives back are when I'm telling her things, it's like she's actually listening or something, it probably sounds crazy and stupid but I like to think that.
Vincenzo came back after a couple of hours with bruised knuckles and blood covering his white shirt.
He didn't say anything to us, he just got into the shower and came out with fresh clothes on and his knuckles wrapped in bandages.
As I said before, I haven't been to school, neither have the twins.
My brothers who actually work are doing it on their laptops for now.
The only time someone leaves this hospital, is to get some food.
We're a fucked up family aren't we, just staying here waiting for her to wake up any time.
We take turns with sitting next to her.
We sit down and tell her about random stuff or sit there quiet. Just caressing her hand, hoping she'll wake up.
I know Vincenzo will want that me and the twins going back to school in less than a week, he doesn't want us failing our school year and stuff.
I get that, I wouldn't want my brothers falling their school either.
Vincenzo is more than a brother, he's more like a father figure to most of us.
Dad didn't take care of us so he did. He did everything for us until dad left and Vincenzo took everything over.
Eventually he stopped being around too, just like father though.
Athena's phone has been ringing for a few days now. Not wanting to disturb her privacy, I let it ring until it stopped.
Her phone rang a lot yesterday and it has been doing the same thing for the last 5 minutes.
I slowly flip her phone over to see who's calling her.
Ares.
Ares?...oh he's that boy that took care of Athena right.
"Ena, that guy Ares has been calling you for days so I'm just going to pick up real quick. Don't be mad at me" I mutter.
Ares almost went crazy when Athena didn't call him like she'd promised when we were eating at the dining table.
He's probably worried about her.
I decide to pick up the phone.
"Athena" he says relieved.
"No" I say.
"Who are you and what are you doing with Athena's phone?" He asks in a cold monotonous voice.
"I'm her brother- Atlas" I say.
There isn't a sound at the other end from the phone for a while.
"Can you put Athena on the phone, I'm worried sick over her. She promised me to call every day and she hasn't done that since Tuesday nor has she been answering any of my texts or phone calls." He says.
"I can't" I tell him.
"Why not" he asks worried and slightly hurt maybe even angry.
"Because...because Athena is in a coma" I tell him.
"What?!" Ares practically screams? "What the fuck happened!?"
"I don't know okay. Athena was hurt so I helped her with the injuries and not even a day later after we went shopping, I got a weird feeling like something was wrong. So I checked up on her and I found her in her room bleeding out, she was stabbed or something, I don't know- I just rushed to the hospital with the others and now she has been in a coma since Wednesday" I rush out in one breath.
I'm breathing heavily when he answers, "I'm booking a plane right now- where are you, I'm coming there" he says un-negotiably.
I tell him where the hospital is located before he hangs up.
I put the phone down again while turning to Athena.
"So-....I don't know if you heard but your friend Ares is coming here. He kept calling you and I didn't want him to worry so yeah, long story short he's on his way here" I inform her
Again that small squeeze of her hand.
I smile a little and give her a small kiss on her hand, "wake up, Ena. I can't do this without you" I say as my voice breaks.
I haven't cried since I stopped myself from doing it Wednesday in the hallway, I want to cry every time I look at her pale face. She still looks so lifeless.
I feel tears emerge in my eyes and don't stop them from falling now.
They roll down my cheeks as a small sob escapes my lips.
"You have to wake up Ena- you have to" I whisper even though the words of the doctor telling me that she'll probably be in a coma for more than a week chant in my ears.
Suddenly Athena's heart monitor starts going crazy as her body start compulsing and shaking in the bed.
I look up scared and worried as someone grabs me and drags me away from my twin.
"What's happening!?" I scream as doctors and nurses escort us out of the room.
I don't get any answers and we're all just left behind in the hallway.
Tears continue making their way down my cheeks as sobs escape my parted lips.
I fall to the floor and wraps my arms around my legs, forming a ball.
I lean against the wall as I continue crying as images of Ena's bloody almost dead body flash in front of my eyes before switching to that image of her twitching on that bed while her heart goes crazy.
Someone wraps their arms around me, Vincenzo.
"Shhh Atlas, she'll be okay" he says softly, emotion evident in his voice for the first time in years
"What if she won't" I say while wiping the tears off of my face.
"She will Atlas. She's strong, she survived so much in her life, she will survive this too"
"You can't know that for sure. She might be having a heart attack in there" I say.
"You're right, I can't know for sure but you have to believe that she'll be okay. You can't give up hope Atlas, she's only been in a coma for a few days. You giving up, is her giving up" he tells me.
It takes everything in me not to start crying my heart out.
"Come on, get up." Vincenzo says while helping me on my feet.
"Let's get some food, this can take a while" he says referring to Athena and the doctors.
I just nod my head, not trusting my voice then follow him out of the hospital.