It's been a while....

[simplepuzzle]

 It's been five years since Chuck left. Left his home, left his dad, left his dog, left Raleigh. 

And he hasn't looked back.

Because if he looked back he'd have to think about what he's left behind and if he thinks about it he'd have to do something about it. But it didn't work and they tried, they tried so hard. And it didn't make a damn bit of difference, so Chuck...throws himself into school. And he tries. 

Occasionally, he tries to date. A girl here, a guy there. Every time he tries to make an effort at a relationship it ends with a lot of anger. Chuck's not really good at this. Nothing's compared to Raleigh, and Chuck's not sure he'll ever have something like it again. And he refuses to settle. 
Love isn't everything. Chuck focuses on school. It's okay. 

And he's good. He's really good. That and the occasional one night stand satisfies him. 

And then he gets a call from Herc. Yancy's been in an accident. He's broken a few limbs, and he hasn't woken up. Herc isn't saying he should come back, and Chuck's been staring at Raleigh's number when Mako calls him. 
He needs you. 
Come home. 

Comments

[unbreachable]

He needs you.
Come home.
He's hurt.
Yancy hasn't woken up.

Raleigh is completely unaware that Herc calls to let Chuck know. He has no idea Mako makes a second call, though it crosses his mind to call Chuck himself and beg him to please come back, he can't take this, his brother is laying in a hospital bed and he's dying and Raleigh can't--

Do this alone.

He needs Chuck so goddamn bad right now it hurts and even with Mako there as much as she's able, he's still withdrawn, hollow, desperate.

They can't get him to leave Yancy's room long enough to take a shower or eat, so they bring clothing, let him shower in Yancy's bathroom. Mako brings him breakfast, lunch and dinner, and Raleigh picks at it, barely eats and instead sits and talks to Yancy, tells him what's going on, reads the paper, reads a book that Yancy used to read when he was home.

Sometimes, he sleeps curled in the chair and sometimes he sleeps on the pull out couch. Sometimes he doesn't sleep at all.

Right now, he's dozing in the chair, newspaper slowly beginning to slide from his lap. If someone comes in he might jerk awake (or he might not, Raleigh's exhausted and in some physical pain of his own, that left shoulder is pretty fucked up), but until then,