askingtheanswers's secret santa gift!!
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So I heard you like sad Tavy ;)
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Davy’s POV: The Ask And The Answer
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Then I hear Pa’s gun go off. “Todd!” I hear Viola shout from across the room; at the same time I try to yell the same thing. But I can’t.
I can’t do anything. I feel like my whole body and the whole world has numbed and slowed down till there ain’t nothin’ happenin’ at all. But I can see Todd still standin’. An’ that’s good.
Then the whole world zooms back into normal speed an’ I wish it hadn’t cos all I can see an’ all I can feel is pain. Like a white hot knife stabbing into everythin’ an’ it all looks too bright an’ too blurry an’ I fall to the ground cos my legs ain’t workin’ no more. I think Pa just shot me.
Todd’s noise blurs loudly around me an’ I hear him say “Davy?” but it’s like I’m underwater. I can feel it. A hole. A tiny hole in me an’ its stoppin’ me from breathin’. I desperately try to rake in a breath but it jus’ sends bolts of pain shootin’ thru me
My ears are screamin’ like somethin’ terrible an’ I only just manage to keep my focus as Todd comes down to his knees in front of me. He’s shoutin “Davy?” but all I can think of is “Pa?” Did Pa jus’ shoot me? But Pa loves me… Me an’ Todd are his sons… Pa?
I’m starin’ at Pa an’ Todd’s starin’ at Pa an’ I’m askin’ ‘why?’ in my noise cos I can’t say it with my voice an’ Todd’s yellin’ “What did you do?!” an’ his noise is like mine, akin’ why and full of worryin’ over me.
I can hear Pa talkin’ to Todd. I’m strugglin’ but I can hear every word he’s sayin’ an’ it hurts hundreds of times worse than the bullet in my throat.
“I removed him from the equation.”
My noise is all asking marks an’ this can’t be Pa? Pa loves me. Pa loves me? Doesn’t he? My hand moves from the hole an’ out towards Pa, I just need to remind him it’s me. Yeah. He doesn’t mean any of this. He jus’ forgot that he loves me. I can’t reach him tho an’ he’s not even looking at me. He’s not even tryin’ to help me.
But he’s ignorin’ me… He’s sayin’ Todd’s the truer son…
“The one with the potential, the one with the power, the one I’d be proud to have serve at me side.”
Pa wasn’t proud of me? But everything I did… all of those horrible things I did… To the spackle, to strangers, even to Todd, my own brother. Those were all for him…
Todd’s yellin’ at Pa sayin’ he’s gonna kill him- but he couldn’t do that! He wouldn’t- because then he wouldn’t be Todd anymore… an’ now Pa don’t wanna be my Pa no more, Todd’s the only family I got.
“David was weak, an embarrassment-”
But I can barely hear them arguin’ any more. I can barely see them… Todd? What’s happening? Am I dying? Todd?
I need speak thru my noise cos I need to tell Todd somethin’. It’s my last chance. I need to apologise.
“Davy don’t-” but I gotta. I need to sat sorry cos then Todd’ll know, he’ll see he’s made me better. Cos before Todd I did horrible thing and I liked it. But know I know I’m a better man. Cos of Todd. (So why ain’t pa proud?)
I tell him the truth about Ben.
How I didn’t mean to do it-
Cos he was my only friend-
An everythin’s spillin’ outta me-
Sorry about Prentisstown-
Not until you know I’m sorry-
- Later, After Monsters of Men-
That was a long time ago now. Almost a year or two (I forget). It’s like yer in two different places now Todd, cos part of you is down there, next to Viola, inside yer body. But the rest of you is bein’ dragged up here. But yer graspin’ onto life by yer fingernails an’ you better well keep holdin’ on Todd Hewitt or I’ll kick you back down there myself!
It’s not that I don’t want see you, I do, I want that more than anythin’ in the world… But it’s not my turn yet. You got people down there that waitin’ on you to wake up an’ I can’t be selfish. That’s not who I am anymore. Not since you.
Y’know I was watchin’. Even tho I was up here an’ I couldn’t do anythin’ to help you down there I wanted to make sure you were safe. An’ Jesus, Todd, when you got shot… if I had had a heart it woulda stopped.
It was worse than anythin’-
But yer not dead an’ yer not allowed to die for a good long time. You gotta get back to everyone. Cuz the way I see it is yer either gonna come up here or down there, like yer at a crossroads. An’ Viola’s waitin’ for you down there so I’ll wait for you up here, cuz whichever way you choose I don’t want you to be alone. You should never be alone. Loneliness does terrible things…
So I’ll wait here Todd. I got Manchee for company, he don’t like me very much but he likes it when I tell him stories about you. Or scratch him behind the ears. I’ll wait here for you even if it takes you 100 years. So get down there an’ do enough livin’ for the both of us. You got so many people who care about you-
Just don’t forget me ok?-
Cuz I won’t forget about you-
Cuz I’m waitin’ here for you Todd Hewitt-