The Miracle of You

Michael watched in stunned silence as Joanna stormed out of the living room and up the stairs to her room. His mind was instantly thrown into confusion, and his stomach twisted with a strange feeling.

Was it… guilt?

But another strong emotion rose as well, and he recognized it in an instant.

It was anger.

“So I deserve all this, huh?” he voiced out to nobody in particular. He couldn’t hide the irritation in his tone. “Well, you’re welcome for saving you, by the way!”Published by Nôv'elD/rama.Org.

He yelled out that last part hoping that she would hear it.

But if she ever did, she didn’t give any indication of it. She was long gone.

Michael laid back against the bed, huffing. He couldn’t help but feel that this was all so unfair.

He used to be so energetic and eager to run around and exercise. He wanted to play soccer more and even play with his friends during recess.

But now he was forbidden to do all these things. After the accident, he underwent several surgeries to stabilize his leg. Because of the severity of the injury, he was bedridden for several weeks and could not put any weight on his injured leg.

His parents planned some recovery classes for him afterwards so that he wouldn’t fall behind his classmates, but frankly, it was hard for him to focus on academics at the moment. He felt like his life had been turned upside down, leaving him stuck in a whirlwind of pain and helplessness.

There were so many things that he wanted to do. He had so many dreams left to explore. With his brother Will and his sister Joanna expected to take over the reins of the family business, he had thought he would be free to explore other possible dreams.

He enjoyed sports. He loved to run. The feeling of running was so freeing and exhilarating that he often ran around his neighborhood and even to school.

But now he had to deal with a feeling of betrayal. Not only by fate, but also by his own body, which had completely failed him. As the days passed while he was bedridden, the bitterness of resentment simmered beneath the surface.

He couldn’t move much. He couldn’t do anything without his family’s help. Stuck in his own head, he could only recall the memory of that fateful accident.

And then came the explosive realization that life would never be the same.

His family was surprisingly supportive. He suspected it was due to the shock of nearly losing their youngest son.

But they had never paid so much attention to him before. Whenever he showed them his achievements – which, to be honest, weren’t many, since he wasn’t a diligent student – they just shook their heads in dismay.

They had wanted him to be like his older brother and sister. They had wanted him to be more ambitious, to get grades worthy of their esteemed family.

But now that he had finally caught their attention, he couldn’t help but feel that it was laughable.

So it only took an accident like this for them to finally look at him and give him some love and care?

How maddening.

“I’ll be taking care of you today, little guy,” Will said as he placed the glass of water on the nightstand. His soft, brotherly voice interrupted Michael’s seething thoughts.

Michael said nothing and just stared into empty space.

Will sighed heavily. “Maybe I should rephrase that. I mean, ‘from now on’.”

Michael’s lips curved into a wry smile. “She hates the sight of me, doesn’t she?” he remarked, and the bitterness in his voice didn’t go unnoticed by Will.

They both knew who he was talking about.

“Mike…” Will began. “I know that you and your sister don’t get along, but…”

“She told me that I deserve it!” Michael yelled, his face turning red. “That this is my karma!”

Will was stunned. “She – what? She really said that?”

“I don’t care what you say about her. Don’t even mention her name in front of me again! I hate her!” Michael screamed.

“Mike-” Will’s features were filled with panic. “Calm down, okay? It’s just me. I’m here. I’m here for you.”

It took Michael a moment to realize that he was hyperventilating.

It was getting hard to breathe. His chest felt heavy, and the air suddenly turned thick and suffocating.

“Breathe,” Will told him softly. “Just breathe. Listen to me, okay?”

Will’s soft tone was such a strong contrast to Joanna’s harsh voice that Michael couldn’t help but obey. He inhaled and exhaled slowly, forcing himself to be calm.

“How are you feeling?” Will asked after a while.

“…Fine,” Michael mumbled.

“Here. Drink some water. You need it.”

Will helped him to sit up from the bed. Michael winced at the dull pain that shot up from his leg, but he endured it and let Will gently tilt the glass over his lips so the water would seep through.

After drinking, Michael felt much better than before.

“Calmed down?” Will asked.

Michael nodded.

Will reached out and squeezed his little brother’s shoulder reassuringly. “About Joanna… Don’t worry about her. She’ll come around. But I’ll talk to her. She shouldn’t have said those things to you. It wasn’t right.”

Michael remained silent.

“For the record, I don’t think you deserve it. Far from it, definitely. You saved your sister, and I think that was very brave of you,” Will told him sincerely. “I just think you two have been under too much stress lately.”

“I saved her, but she treats me like this,” Michael muttered. “It’s so unfair.”

“She cares about you. She just… doesn’t know how to express it, I think,” Will told him softly. “Let off some steam for a while and talk to her again when things have calmed down. I’ll make sure she apologizes to you first.”

“I don’t think she’ll do it,” Michael said dully. “She doesn’t care about me. She hates me.”

“Your sister doesn’t hate you, Mike,” Will said helplessly.

“Yes, she does,” Michael said bitterly. “I bet she’d have preferred it if I’d died in that accident instead, given the chance.”