#violetconfection

"I don't want to hear excuses Lucas, I want you to pick up your brother. " Yvonne ordered sternly. It was an important meeting with a client that she was running late for and her eldest son was being a nuisance. Yvonne was trying to pack her brief case with her files but Luke was searching through each and every piece of paper, and it felt like he was doing it on purpose.

"But Mum, can't Dad just pick him up?" Luke whined as he tossed a sheet onto her desk. He was casually leaning against side of the desk, in his Mum's personal boundaries.

"No darling, I want you to do it." she sighed heavily and snatched the remaining pieces from her son's hand. "You're not at your father's this weekend and I will need you to look after him for a few hours until I get back."

"But-" 

"No!" Yvonne yelled and waved her arms around to re-initiate her space bubble. "Go pick him up or you're grounded!"

"Jeees- fine" Luke gave up and jumped off the end of her desk. "I'll go" he said, as if it was the worst thing on the planet. "Bye Mum" he said and kissed her cheek then walked out of her office.

Yvonne nodded her head, leaning into the cheek-kiss. "Careful.." she mumbled as he placed everything neatly into her briefcase.

Ceirion suffered from a serious pronunciation problem and a stutter but he was getting better at it. The reason he had this was because when he was four years old he caught an awful case of pneumonia and it caused him to go deaf permanently in one ear and only half in the other. Ceirion was getting special teachings from different tutors that came to their house, learning; sign language, lip reading and how to talk.

He was ten years old and next year he would be moving into high school, which he was very excited about. Cei looked exactly like Luke did when he was his age. The only difference was Luke had braces and Ceirion has dark brown hair, which he got from his father.

Speaking in sign was basically second nature to him now. Although, like most children his age, having a full intellectual conversation wasn't his strong point. Despite this, he showed more promise academically than Luke did at his age.

Luke, who was still learning BSL himself, stared at a few of the boys and girls that walked past him (he was on the opposite side of school, leaning against the poll of a 'SLOW DOWN' sign), they came from the high school for deaf kids just down the road from Ceirion's primary school for the deaf. And basically; every single one them caught Luke's eye. Mmmhm. 

Each of the families were given special nilon wrist bands to wear and they matched the wrist bands on the student's. The bands were only for the younger students that weren't educated as well as the older students in the ways of sign language and lip reading. In case a child got lost, and an adult who couldn't speak sign found them, then they would just have to resort to the band which would explain who they are and what school they go to, an emergency number and home address. 

Luke waved and grinned when he saw Ceirion's face light up at the sight of his older brother. Luke was always busy with coursework so he was always staying late after school, he never got to pick Cei up from primary school and that's why Cei was excited now. 

"Luke!" Ceirion called out as he tried to shove on his coat and his bag and his homework into his bag and try to get out the school gates at the same time.

How did he manage it?

He didn't. 

As Luke pushed off to meet his little brother, Ceirion ran across the road to get there first.

It was that cliche story book moment when time slowed down. A mother with her own two children in the back of the car were arguing and she was trying to deal with them. 

When she realised that there was a boy in the road it was too late. Ceirion his the front of the car and his bags were thrown across the road while his body was thrown the other way; up and over the car and back onto the road. 

Luke watched the entire thing. It was so traumatising, he doesn't remember what happened next. 

The next thing he remembers is being yelled at in his kitchen by both his parents. He can see them but it's silent. They're so angry at him.