Fracto Animo:

The Broken Mind

*AN: He's OOC for a reason. If you have the patience to wait through the whole story, you'll see why.*

One

The room was too bright, the boy thought. The white walls made his head hurt. He blinked several times, clearing his vision. Slowly, he rolled his head, gazing around the room. A hospital, he decided. He looked down, noting the hospital gown he was wearing. A needle was stuck in his arm. His eyes followed the clear tubing to the IV drip, hanging on its hook with a sense of peace.

The boy winced. Thinking hurt his head, he realized. He sighed with pain, closing his eyes and waiting for the headache to pass. Where was the nurse? Wasn't there supposed to be someone watching him?

He forced his eyes open and glanced around. There was supposed to be a button to call the nurse with, right? His eyes slid over the glistening metal bar on the side of his bed, searching for anything that remotely resembled a button.

Movement caught his eye. The boy glanced up, seeing the open door leading out to the hallway. Someone had walked by. He was certain of it.

The boy tried to call, make any sort of noise, but his throat was so dry. The thirst hit him painfully, so bad that he could hardly croak. "Nuh…" he tried, but nothing intelligible would leave his lips. His tongue felt like sandpaper, incapable of forming words.

Then, a miracle occurred.

A nurse walked briskly into his room, clipboard in hand. She sighed openly, clicking her pen repeatedly. "Coma patients," she grumbled, tucking some of her brown hair behind her ear. "Never do anything except eat through a tube and take up space. This is intern work. Why am I—?" She broke off with a gasp, brown eyes stretched wide. The clipboard slipped from her hand and clattered on the ground. "You're awake," she stated.

The boy nodded in agreement. He opened his mouth, desperate to form just one word. "Wa—."

"Hang on," the nurse said, holding out her hand. "I'll go get the doctor." She hurried out of the room.

The boy watched her go. Couldn't she have gotten him some water first?

He waited impatiently for the nurse to return, wondering if it would be really bad if he left the room and went looking for a water fountain.

Finally, the nurse returned, dragging someone behind her. "Look, look," she said excitedly, pointing. "He's got pretty eyes, huh?"

The doctor ripped his arm from her grasp and adjusted his glasses. The boy's mind jumped at this action, as if it sparked some sort of memory. The doctor looked at the boy, and blinked a few times. "Wow," he said. "We thought you would never wake up."

The boy nodded. No sense disagreeing with a doctor. "Wa—."

Again, he was cut off. "I'm Dr. Sato. Can you tell us your name?"

"Water."

Both Sato and the nurse cocked their heads in confusion. "Your name is water?" asked the nurse.

The boy shook his head. "I need," he croaked, "water."

"Oh!" they exclaimed together. The nurse stepped over to the sink and found a plastic cup in one of the cupboards. She filled it with water from the tap and rushed to hand it to their patient.

The boy drank gratefully, feeling the cool liquid soothe his throat. He drained the glass and smiled at them. "Thank you."

Sato smiled back at him, taking the seat nearest the bed. "So, your name," he said again. "What is it?"

The question seemed silly. The boy opened his mouth, ready to answer, when he suddenly realized he did not know. He frowned in confusion, then looked to Sato. "Do you know it?" he asked.

"You don't know?" Sato said, looking nervous.

The boy just shook his head.

With a sigh, Sato turned around and handed the boy a bag which he had not seen during his previous survey of the room. "It was with you in the wreckage," he told him.

The boy stared at it, noting the scorch marks and tears in the fabric. He ran his hand across is, wondering what its oblong and irregular shape was meant to hold. "Ryoma," he read.

"Is that you?" the nurse wondered eagerly.

The boy stared at the name. It was certainly familiar. "I think so," he murmured. Suddenly curious, he yanked the zipper on the bag down. Inside, he saw three rackets. They were red, all of them. Ryoma reached in and pulled one out, gripping the neck firmly. It felt right in his hand. He glanced at the base. An R was printed on it. Out of habit, he grabbed the strings with his other hand and squeezed, testing the tension. "I play tennis."

"Do you know your last name?" Sato inquired, leaning forward. He pushed his glasses up his nose, his brown eyes shining.

Ryoma blinked. Dr. Sato's eyes were green. Why had he seen brown?

Disappointed with his lack of answer, Sato leaned back again. "I suppose not," he sighed. "Perhaps your memories will return later on."

"How did I get here?" Ryoma asked.

The doctor and the nurse exchanged a grimace. "You were on a train, three days ago," the nurse informed him. "It derailed on the way to Fussa. Forty-eight people died, and over one hundred and fifty were injured." She gave him a small smile. "You got lucky."

Ryoma could only nod. He seemed to be doing a lot of nodding. "Um," he began, and he realized he was scared to ask, "has anyone… anyone been looking for me?"

Again, the two exchanged a fearful glance. "W-well, no reports have reached us yet, but that doesn't mean no one is looking. We will do a search for any missing person reports for boys named Ryoma."

Ryoma's heart sank. Gone for three days, and no one was looking for him. "Alright," he said, and the optimism died in his voice.

Dr. Sato tried to smile. It faltered on his face, and to cover for it he bowed quickly. "I will check on you again later," he promised. "Get some rest, alright?" and he left the room.

The nurse stepped over to Ryoma and smoothed his hair comfortingly. "Don't worry," she assured him, her cold hands cupping his face. This close, he could see her ID. Tomoko Suzuki. The name rang a bell. "Someone is searching for you."

Ryoma reached up and touched her hand. "How can you be sure?" he whispered, his true fear showing.

Suzuki gave him a warm smile. "Because someone like you is much loved. I can see it in your pretty eyes." She removed her cold hands from his cheeks and left.

*AN: Thank you for clicking, and if you're confused, I swear it will all be explained soon.*