Chapter 1.
"And not only I'm diagnosed blind... I needed to be mentally ill as well."thoughts as such drifted through Sasuke's mind. Barely a few hours passed since his hospitalisation. And yet it felt unbearable.
"Your breakfast, Mr. Uchiha."a young girl's voice called. She was one of the nurses. "Should I help you eat?"
The young man let out a silent growl and sat up.
"No, thank you, I'll manage."he answered shortly.
Shades and shadows flashing before his very eyes, Sasuke couldn't see more. Of course, his eyes were covered, but even without the bandage he couldn't see. Scared and alienated. Helpless. Weak. Pathetic. Those words expressed how he felt - on the inside and outside.
"Better eat something, mister. You will have to drink your meds."
Sasuke wasn't hungry at all. He didn't have the health to protest so he reached out, touching the table. The young man tried putting some of the rice to his mouth, not even caring what kind of meds there will be. A few minutes later the nurse handed some pills that had to be swallowed. After that he felt sleepy and it took a few more to fall asleep.
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A strong scent of flowers tickled his nose receptors and he sneezed. "Where am I?" he asked rather loudly, without noticing. But there was no answer. Sasuke ripped the bandage off his eyes and opened them wide. He could see! He saw those damn flowers that made him sneeze and everything else. Beds, faces, blankets...
At least he thought so. It was just a dream. The meds served him well - Sasuke got some rest. And flowers that triggered his dream. Flowers. Laying right on the table. Pink, yellow and white flowers with a small note. It said: "Dear Sasuke, though you can't see, at least have these flowers as a gift from team 7. Get well. ~Sakura, Naruto and Kakashi".
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Depression feels a lot like blindness. You can't see the outer world. Some people can't see the positive while depressed - it's even worse if they can't see anything at all. Or don't care enough to even consider trying. It just doesn't matter, nothing does. And while you may have your food and a home - it's just this beast sitting on your shoulder and blocking your sight.
There were a few birds chirping on a lone branch, some stray cat napping under the tree and beautiful, seemingly weightless butterflies everywhere. Sasuke shifted and sat up as if he wanted to take a look through the window. But he couldn't see. He didn't see. Was it the blindfold, was it blindless, was it ignorance? The Uchiha would never pay attention to just a bunch of small avians anyway, one thing was for sure.
The hours have passed mercilessly, soon there was sundown. A beautiful sunset across the pale sky. "I've seen thousands of sunsets. They aren't as special as people claim..."the boy thought to himself and rolled onto the other side. Just as he took a breath, Sasuke heard someone opening the window. He shuddered, but not out of fear. It was pure annoyance. He didn't like being disturbed. "Who the hell is there?"the young man asked quite rudely.
"What, I can't visit my own student without causing suspicion?"his sensei chuckled softly.
"Yeah, crawling in through a window at night doesn't raise suspicion. Not at all."he blurted out.
Kakashi just smiled faintly. "Sorry, there was no time before. Naruto and Sakura nearly fell asleep on the way home. It was a tiring mission. I can't sleep and thought I could check on you."
"I don't need help, Kakashi. Go read or something."he answered, pouting.
"Come on, I know you need help."he still insisted on helping the teen."I've been depressed too and I know how you feel. Say what you want but a small company does make you feel better. I didn't talk to Minato-sensei back in the day, but now I realise it's just dumb. You have no idea what others had to go through and might misjudge them for complete losers. I do care about you and I would like to stay for a bit. Let's say...seeing you like that doesn't treat me well. I want to keep you company, at least. You don't have to talk."
"Then stay."Sasuke replied shortly, shifting a bit.
"Don't wear yourself out. Don't think much, focus on your recovery more. I know you will make it."the silver haired Hatake said, sitting on the ground because there weren't any chairs around at the time. He just stayed quiet for a while and hoped that his presence would comfort the young man. Sasuke streched his legs out more and sighed. He thought: "I guess it doesn't bother me that you're around... Still better than sulking by and dragging myself to insomnia. You must really care about me to actually come here... Come to think of it... I did need help those few years ago. Maybe I wouldn't have turned out to be such a cold-hearted person. Well, at least somewhat better than that... Still. Thank you for being here."
X
It's been a few minutes since Kakashi has laid his head on the bed. He was exhausted. Sasuke couldn't sleep, he touched the older man's arm and made him shudder. There was quite a wound, even though covered. "Does it hurt?"he asked, feeling guilty.
"Yes, a lot."Kakashi muttered tiredly.
"You should have been more careful."he commented bluntly.
"Sorry."
"Because... I don't want you to get hurt."he thought.
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