The Game Show
Chapter One
Kaname is dying, but Tsubasa can't do anything about it- until he joins an infamous game show with a reward that he thinks would outweigh his sacrifices. What he doesn't know is that he'll get much more than what he bargained for.
The only movement detected from Kaname was the blinking of his pale eyelids – his long eyelashes brushing delicately against the embedded shadows underneath his dull green eyes. His arms were limp by his sides on the thin, uncomfortable mattress of his hospital bed, and his head rested on the hard, metal bars of the bed frame. His lips were cracked and pale, to the extent that they curled in, and his head had been deprived of its smooth golden hair – thus enhancing his sickly, breathless appearance. Kaname's skin was also terribly discoloured, and there was absolutely no sign of nutrition or healthiness able to be seen just by looking at him.
Tsubasa felt cold.
The atmosphere was thickly laced with tension and dread. The only sounds within the hospital room was the lagged beeping of the heart monitor – a heart monitor, since the room which they were in was completely abandoned with the exception of Kaname, of whom was barely holding onto his life – and Tsubasa's breaths. He could only strongly sense his ragged breathing bouncing off the narrow, roughly-painted walls of the ICU. The room also lacked any sort of vibrant colours such as yellow, deep blue or purple – the walls and floors were merely consisted of the bland shades of off-white and mint green.
The dark-haired male could feel the goose bumps on his arms gradually rising.
Tsubasa gulped, tense, but for him he felt like he was breathing with the lungs of an elephant. He could only focus his attention to the specks of crimson and blue in the grey carpet – unable to regain the confidence to look at his ill best friend in the state he was in. However, even though his eyes were looking elsewhere, his thoughts were focused directly at Kaname's condition.
"He's suffering from chronic leukemia. With regular chemotherapy sessions, his chance of survival will increase. He will probably have to commit to about thirty sessions of chemotherapy, and the medical cost for each session is fifteen million yen."
He wanted to punch something in the room – and he felt like he was actually about to do so, as his hands were balled up in fists and his jaw clenched. He was sure that he didn't have the money to pay for Kaname's chemotherapy – the cost was about a third of a year's worth of his salary. Also, he was well aware that there wasn't another person of whom was concerned about Kaname's health, ever since his parents had passed away years ago, so he knew that it was his sole duty and responsibility to save his best friend.
He had in fact considered one person to request from, but according to the rumours he had heard, the person had left the country. Therefore, Tsubasa was the only one who came to visit Kaname's hospital room on a regular basis.
Tsubasa knew that he was about to snap from the frustration, but before he was about to reach for the empty glass vase he had been eyeing that moment in order to break the eerie silence in the room, he turned his head towards his ill friend – of whom he felt was watching him in his peripherals.
"Are you okay? Does it hurt, Kaname?" Tsubasa questioned him, scanning his body for any abnormal changes – although there was none, he almost looked away again due to seeing Kaname's terrible, lifeless state which he was still unable to face without cringing.
Kaname did not answer – he never answered.
It was only then when Tsubasa noticed that in contrast to his sick friend's stillness, his arms were trembling uncontrollably, and he took a deep breath in order to calm himself – with only a slight affect. His fists relaxed upon his knees, and his jaw slacked – allowing him to breathe in a steadier pace. He swallowed once, with great difficulty, before placing a broad hand on Kaname's thin one.
"It'll be okay, Kaname. We're gonna get you cured in no time. You're going to be feeling better before you know it." He attempted to reassure with a smile, although the tears starting to form in his eyes almost betrayed him and his lie, if it wasn't for Kaname's gaze permanently set directly in front. "The pain's going to end soon. I'm sure of it."
The nurses had forced him to leave the hospital room as it was way past visiting hours, and was left alone in front of the dimly lit main entrance. However, he didn't make a single move away from the hospital, and he had ended up releasing his pent-up distress as he sat on the low steps in front of the doors.
Tsubasa held his head in his hands, gripping his hair, as he groaned in disbelief.
Fifteen million yen per session?! I don't have that money! Why the hell did I lie when I obviously can't magically bring it out of my pocket?! Damn it, I'm a wimp.
Kaname's current state was one of the most unbearable sights he had been forced to see in his twenty six years. Watching his best friend as he deteriorated from the killer illness made him grow more horrified as time passed.
For Tsubasa, Kaname was the only one who was truly there for him for almost his whole life, and if he lost his one true best friend, the dark haired man had no idea who else he would be able to turn to.
How am I supposed to earn fifteen million yen that quickly?
He was on the verge of giving up, and if it wasn't for the repetitive flashbacks of Kaname's thin, pale frame lying on the hospital bed, he knew that he would immediately conclude that he had no chance.
However, Tsubasa was determined. Even though he had no idea how to do so, he was focused on earning the money as quickly as possible.
But the main problem for Tsubasa in regards of earning the money for Kaname's chemotherapy was how exactly he was going to earn it.
Tsubasa groaned in disdain as he ungracefully sat himself in a high bar seat.
After roaming the entire city for offers and deals which provided much more than his current job, he had ended the day on a disappointed note.
A dozen different business cards had been shoved in his right pocket – all with phone numbers and e-mails he had repeatedly attempted to contact, but had given up either none the wiser, or luckier. His own freshly printed business cards were in his left pocket – he had printed out a total of thirty that morning, and as he hunched his back and leaned his elbows on the bar, he still had thirty.
He didn't even want to imagine how pathetic he looked to the other customers in the bar – he had worn his best suit that day in order to impress and request from his former acquaintances, to no avail. Tsubasa was a man suited up for success, who eventually ended up hunched over a tall glass of beer at the end of the day.
The bartender sent a questioning glance towards the man with the facial tattoo of whom had sat in the same bar seat for three days in a row and guiltlessly consumed three full glasses of alcohol before leaving with a remorseful expression on his face.
During the week, Tsubasa had unintentionally created a routine for himself. He would wake up at six thirty on the dot – which was odd considering the late sleeper he usually was when he wasn't so desperate – and after a quick breakfast of toast and milk, would visit Kaname. Every time he went to the hospital to see his best friend, Kaname was still unable to exchange words with him, which simply upped Tsubasa's determination for the task at hand.
However, after leaving the hospital at nine, he would scour as deep as he could into the city of Tokyo. He scanned posters, called phone numbers, attended interviews – all to which left to nothing but an impending distress. The number tags on the posters were all ripped off clean, the recipients of his phone calls claimed to be busy, and the interviewers hadn't seen him as employee material.
After the relentless searching, he – with messed up hair and a loosened tie – would enter the same bar at eight in the night, without an accepted offer nor a boost of positivity, and consume his second meal of the day.
"...Maybe I'm not trying hard enough."
He would say those words every night after a precented failure, before repeating the routine the next day.
On the sixth day, however, he was nearing the point of confirming that his thorough searching through the city was pointless, but because of his lack of options, he was still prepared to take the search over to the next day, and even the day after if unsuccessful once again.
However, he was exhausted to the point that he didn't have the willpower to repeat the words he had been convincing himself with for the last five nights.
He started to rub his temples in a circular motion as soon as his head started to ache from the alcohol he was consuming.
"Oh, Tsubasa!" A familiar voice called out to him in surprise.
Tsubasa dazedly looked to see his stunned uncle, donned in a simple polo shirt and trouser pants, making his way towards him.
"Oh… hi." He acknowledged with a forced grin, feeling a little dejected by the fact that he would have to talk to someone while his energy was completely depleted, before turning his attention to the small gold bubbles forming in his glass.
Tsubasa sensed his uncle sitting in the stool next to his and raising his hand in order to grab the attention of the bartender.
"So, Tsubasa…" His uncle started as he received his drink and turned towards him, "Have you been busy?"
"Not really…" Tsubasa replied, knowing that what he was saying was a big, fat lie – but because of his state of unrest, he didn't want to cause any sort of commotion, big or small.
Unfortunately, Lady Luck still hadn't graced him with her presence.
"Is that so? Because I didn't see you at your cousin's funeral. I assumed that you were out doing something important." His uncle sighed – a flicker of sadness evident in his eyes – before taking a sip of his drink.
The mention of a cousin's funeral was news to Tsubasa. "Funeral? Whose funeral?"
"Oh, no one told you?" Tsubasa wasn't the only one surprised at the fact that he had not been told of the news. "…Nonoko was… killed in a lab explosion last month."
Tsubasa recalled being close to Nonoko when he was in his teens. She was a few years younger than him, and like him, she was quite sociable and friendly. She also had a very close friend who attended family outings with her, and together they bonded with the rest of the family, including him and Kaname. However, ever since he started working after graduation, Tsubasa hadn't attended many family outings, and eventually drifted apart from his extended family.
"I'm sorry, uncle." Despite all, he still sincerely sympathised with the older man, as Tsubasa placed a reassuring hand on his shoulder.
"No, no…" His uncle shook off Tsubasa's comforting hand as he smiled, trying to show that he was feeling okay, but Tsubasa could see the glimmer in his eyes which betrayed him. "You don't have to say that. It wasn't your fault."
"But-" Tsubasa started to protest, but he immediately fell silent. He didn't even know what he was arguing about.
He exhaled deeply before looking forward and taking a swig of his drink.
"So…" His uncle started to speak again, in an attempt to make conversation with his eldest cousin. "What's been keeping you away recently? Love problems? Issues with money?"
Tsubasa finally decided that lying a second time was worth nothing – just like how telling the truth wasn't going to take him a step closer to his quota. "I've been taking care of my friend in hospital, and I'm trying to find the money for his chemotherapy."
"Chemotherapy… doesn't that cost around ten million yen per session?!" The older man exclaimed in shock.
"Fifteen million." Tsubasa immediately corrected, his bitterness becoming more evident.
His uncle whistled at the thought of earning such a hefty price. "Well, you've got a long way ahead of you-"
Confused by the sudden cut-off, Tsubasa glanced sideways at the grey haired man, who appeared as if he had reached some sort of epiphany. Before he could ask what the problem was, his uncle dug his hand into his trouser pocket and pulled out a piece of folded paper.
"W-What is that?" Tsubasa questioned him, his focus shifting between his uncle's thoughtful expression and the piece of paper in his hands which, as he looked closer, was a letter.
His uncle exhaled deeply before talking. "Well… I made a pretty instinctive decision a month ago, before Nonoko's death. I haven't told anyone else about this. I was so sure that I was going to go through with it when I applied, but now… I'm not so sure, because I don't think it's right that I do this when the family is still grieving. So I was wondering if you could take my place, since the invitation doesn't need a specific name."
His words were starting to catch Tsubasa's full attention – the fact that he had started to talk about this after his confession of needing to earn money was to him a possible sign of good luck. "…what is it?"
"Tsubasa…" His uncle signalled him to come closer, away from prying ears, and murmured. "Have you heard of the Game Show?"
At first, Tsubasa was confused. "Game show? What are you tal-"
He paused in his talk as soon as he recalled where he had heard the emphasised phrase before.
Wait… isn't that the triennial competition?
To say that Tsubasa was alarmed by this discussion would be a mere understatement.
"Are you talking about that Game Show?!" Tsubasa hissed, now understanding why they were whispering in their conversation.
His uncle nodded before continuing. "You've heard of it, the ten contender competition with the biggest cash prize ever to exist in Japan, let alone the game itself."
The young male, after a brief pause, asked the question he had been itching to ask since the Game Show was mentioned. "…how much is it?"
His uncle looked around him, making sure that there was no one paying attention to him, before murmuring his answer. "…five hundred million yen."
Five hundred million yen, he repeated in his mind, if I do the math, then… damn it, I was never good at math.
Slightly embarrassed, Tsubasa pulled out his phone and located his in-built calculator. He immediately typed in the numbers, only to lose his breath for a moment.
Five hundred million yen, divided by fifteen million is…
Tsubasa was astounded. He gulped slowly, before turning to his uncle with a bewildered expression.
"…Uncle, can you please pinch me?" It was the only response he could muster.
Although the older man wasn't expecting such a strange response, he went along with it.
After the brief pain in his cheek, Tsubasa confirmed that this was not a lie, nor a dream, nor an illusion he had unconsciously formed in order to deal with the stress.
This was real.
"…You're kidding." He muttered as he focused his gaze on the numbers typed out in his calculator.
"I know that this may seem rather shocking, but I can't bring myself to do it. I've heard stories of previous contestants becoming scarred from the greed which everyone has in the game, and since it lasts longer than a day, there have been a few incidents between contestants." His uncle explained as he spun the empty glass in his hands distractedly. "I thought I was ready for that sort of environment, but after losing Nonoko… I can't bring myself to. Not to my family. Even if it's for five hundred million."
Tsubasa could somehow understand how he was feeling. He could only imagine how sad his family was feeling for losing Nonoko, and if another member of the family was involved in something possibly disastrous, the whole family would be plunged into anything but peace.
However, a certain part of his uncle's story was disturbing him.
If he only came to talk to me about it… then I'm probably no longer family to him, or anyone else. That's probably the reason why I hadn't heard about Nonoko's death until now, as well.
"So, Tsubasa… do you think you can handle it?"
Despite his insecurities, Tsubasa confirmed that this was the only way he could get the money for the chemotherapy. He stared intently at the still folded letter being handed to him, and decided that Kaname was his one true priority.
Even if I do become affected by the Game Show, at least Kaname will survive.
"Yes." He immediately replied, accepting the letter from his relieved uncle.
Because this is the only way.
After his chat with his uncle, Tsubasa immediately made his way to the hospital and spent the rest of the night sitting next to Kaname's bed.
"Kaname… I lucked out yesterday." He explained, despite knowing that Kaname wouldn't reply. "So you don't have to worry. Not anymore. You're going to survive. You'll beat this disease, and you'll be healthy in no time."
He still remained still and silent, but his presence was still there. The idea that the unmoving blonde would eventually talk and move if Tsubasa won the game made the dark haired man smile genuinely.
"I don't remember the last time I felt this happy about something." He admitted.
"Excuse me, sir. We're about to close." The nurse informed him, wary of a possible repeat of needing to force him out of the hospital once again.
Tsubasa sighed before standing up from his seat, and before he left, he patted Kaname's hand and smiled reassuringly.
"It'll be fine." He then turned to the nurse, and thanked her before leaving.
As he walked down the empty halls of the large building, his full attention was focused on the game show. He had considered the fact that he could lose, but his strict determination didn't allow him to be fazed by the high possibility.
"Yes!" He cheered to himself as he pumped his fist in the air. "You can do this, Tsubasa!"
I'm going to go into that studio next week, and win the game. Because it's the only way.
Lady Luck had finally opened her arms to Tsubasa – and he wasn't going to put this opportunity to waste.
A/N: Thanks for the reading the pilot chapter of The Game Show! :) This fic is a collab between buttercupbella and Autumn Win-Dow. This is a first for both of us,and after countless discussions about this story (and feels about pairings and what not) the first chapter is finally complete. Thank you, and reviews are very much appreciated. :)
-Autumn Win-Dow