Chapter 28

“Hand me that wrench. And make sure to keep the light still.”

I grabbed the wrench out of the toolbox and held the flashlight steady in my hands, aiming at an interior part of my dad's motorcycle. It was a sleek bike that mixed industrial with cyberpunk aesthetics and had black shielding over most of the normally exposed parts on motorcycles. I was never one for bikes or cars, but I always liked his bike. He spent countless hours working on it and customizing it to fit a certain design.

“Say, dad, what’s this bike based off? Is it from some anime or something?” I asked as I watched him tweak the internals.

“Not an anime, no, but you could say it’s in the same vein as that.” He said as he wiped sweat from his brow and closed a metal shielding on where he was working. “No, it’s from an old action show I watched as a kid. From the first time I saw it, I knew I needed to have it.” He placed his hand on the bike, softly rubbing his hand across the metal.

“I’m not one for this stuff, but I think it’s really cool.”

“Thanks, son. Maybe someday it’ll be yours.” He said, patting my shoulder.

“I think the only way you’d let me have it is when you’re on your deathbed.” I said with a morbid smile. “But, either way, I’ll be sure to take great care of it.”

“I know you will.” He got up and wiped his hands on a cloth before tossing it on the counter. “Hey, Ryuki, your mother mentioned something to me today.”

I let out a groan as I knew exactly where this conversation was now going. My mom recently asked me where I was thinking of going to school and what I wanted to study. I was nearing the end of high school, and I hadn’t turned in any of my career plan forms, always finding excuses with my school to put it off or not have to submit one. She must have been contacted by my teachers, and she sat down to talk with me. In truth, I had no idea where to go or what to do. My grades were slacking, and I felt lost and ready to give up.

“Now, now, don’t make that noise. I just want to talk to you about it.” He reached over and tossed me a water bottle. “I’m not going to grill you on needing to make a choice or that you must make us proud or anything like that.”

I opened the bottle and took a swig of it, averting my eyes as I leaned against the counter next to him. He ruffled my hair with his hand before placing his hand on my shoulder.

“Do you know why your name is Ryuki?” My dad suddenly asked.

“Because you thought dragons were cool?”

“Well, that’s part of it. Your name has the character for ‘dragon’ and for ‘shine.’ Did your mother ever tell you how your birth went?”

I stared at him in confusion and slowly shook my head. “You mean I didn’t just pop out of mom?”

He chuckled before answering. “You popped out of her, yeah. But after that was the issue. It was quite scary for us. We thought we were going to lose you right as you were born.” He said as his grip on my shoulder tightened. “The doctor told us that you stopped breathing, and that you were stillborn.” I heard him swallow hard as his voice shook. “We thought you left this world before even being brought into it. The doctors took you to another room even as your mom protested. She damn near jumped off that bed to chase after you even though she just gave birth.”

“I obviously survived though.” I said, trying to lighten the intense mood.

“You certainly did. It was only a couple moments, but they felt like an eternity. The doctor came back with you in his arms, and you were screaming and crying and, well, just doing what healthy newborns do.” He wiped a tear from his face.

“I’m not messed up because of that, am I?”

“No, no, thankfully not. Well, maybe a little.” He teased with a bitter smile. “I only tell you all of this because we named you after you were brought back to us. And that’s when we came up with your name. Ryuki.”

“I don’t really understand.”

“It’s kind of cliche when we look back on it, but we love that name. We call you our dragon because of how lucky we are that you survived, how you persisted through even death. You never gave up. And the ‘shine’ part is because your crying lit up our life. Your life shined on ours.” My dad forced a smile through his tears. I had never seen him so genuine in his emotions, especially not in front of me.

“That’s... a great story, dad. I like that there’s meaning to my name, but why tell me that now? What does that have to do with school?” I said, not trying to dismiss his emotional story.

“Because Ryuki, that even if you are lost now on what you want to do, doesn’t mean you need to give up. There are a ton of options out there, and you’re in a good position in life. We’re well off and your mother and I are more than happy to help you explore whatever options you want to try, even if you end up dropping it.”

“I guess, yeah...” I muttered out, not sure how to fully respond.

“Look son, you’re our dragon. You’re strong, smart, and persistent. Don’t give up. You can overcome this hurdle in your life. You’ve already overcome the hardest one in anyone’s life. We just want you to be happy and hopeful.”

“Thanks, dad...” I said, fidgeting with my hands.

My dad then got off the counter and walked over to a cabinet, opening it. He reached inside and pulled something out. “And, if all of that fails and you somehow don’t find what you want to do, you can always just join me at the shop.” He said that and threw a jacket over at me.

I caught it and held it up. It was a jacket that someone in a biker gang would wear. It had a tall collar, metal studs on the cuffs, and all the usual edgy aesthetics a biker jacket had. I spun it around and on the back of it was the skull of a western dragon on it.

“Is this for me? Why does it have a western dragon skull on it?” I asked through a quivering voice.

“Once you’re older, it’s yours. I’ll hold onto it until then. And I chose western because I just thought they looked cool. I can get it done as an eastern one if you want.” He chuckled.

“No, no, it’s... it’s...” a tear rolled down my cheek. “Thanks, dad. I mean it.”

He walked over to me and wiped the tears off my cheek. He then knelt in front of me and placed his hand on my shoulder. “Of course, Ryuki. I’m always here for you. We all are.”

Then I felt a hand on my other shoulder. It was small and lithe, but gentle and comforting. It was my mom’s hand. I looked over at her, and she gave me her usual warm smile. I then felt someone grab my hand, clasping it in both of theirs. They were small and soft hands holding on to mine. It was my sister grasping them as she stared at me with hopeful eyes. I started to cry heavily, tears pouring from my face. A light started to shine in the room, and I looked around, wondering what was causing it. But I realized too late what was happening.

“You’re our dragon, son.”

“You light up everyone’s life, my little boy.”

“You’re the best, big bro.”

All three of them were slowly disappearing into the air, vanishing into particles of light. I shook my head, pleading for them to stay. I had my family back and I saw them vanish before my eyes again.

“No, no please! Don’t leave me! Not again! I never got... I never got to say how much you all meant to me!” I cried out.

I felt my mother's hand on my face before it vanished with her. My sister’s arms wrapped around my waist before they, too, vanished. I stared at my dad as he slowly vanished. I reached my hand out to him, but he just smiled at me.

“Mom! Sis! Dad, no- I...”

“It’s okay, Ryuki. We know you loved us, just as we loved you. But now, you need to fight. You need to stand up. Show the world you are our dragon.” My dad said as he completely vanished into the air.

A collection of all their voices rang out.

“You need to wake up, Ryuki.”