I hope you will enjoy this chapter as much as I enjoyed writing it!
A high pitched beeping sound. Beeep beeep beeep. It was penetrating his brain. Beeep beeep beeep. Each intake of breath seemed to crush his lungs. Beeep beeep beeep. His eyelids felt heavy as they lay on his eyeballs. Beeep beeep beeep. Every limb in his body hurt his very core. Beeep beeep beeep.
Haruka slowly pried open his eyelids. The light from outside blinded him for seconds yet he still opened his eyes, pinching them nearly closed until he could see the silhouettes around him. The beeping sound still penetrated his brain and each intake of breath was harder than the other. But he managed.
He tried to turn his head to the side but noticed soon enough that he was wearing a mask. A green mask which trapped his mouth. Haruka's eyes widened, panic visible in those sea-blue eyes as he nearly ripped off his mask. At least he thought he would. But where his hand should be, there was nothingness.
The penetrating sound increased its speed, sending needles down his pulsing brain. His breaths quickened and were erratic as his ribs heaved up and down, showing him that there were tons of things wrong with his body. But he didn't know what was going on, he couldn't remember anything. There were shouts and cries around him, but the only thing Haruka could concentrate on was the way his body wouldn't obey him anymore. How more and more was visible to him, like the cables and tubes all over his body. Haruka tried to move, tried to get away from what held him there. He wanted to feel the mild breath of the sea on his skin, wanted to feel the waves licking at his shins. He wanted to get away from those white unforgiving walls. He just-
Haruka's eyes snapped open his breaths were erratic. But Rin. Where was Rin. Haruka was sure that he had seen him. Rin just had been there on the street, whilst the sun and the wind were playing their game, just before they would meet up. The day had been beautiful -so beautiful- had been so mild and perfect for a swim. That was, where Rin was taking him. But the remaining was cut off, just darkness where memories should have been. Now Haruka was just lying there, nothing was as it should be. There was no water, there was no mild breeze, there was nothing but those white walls, which just seemed to near him, seemed like they wanted to squeeze the air out of his lungs and let him die in agony.
He didn't even hear the sob that ripped through his body, he was trembling and breathing was more a burden than anything else. As Haruka swallowed he felt sweat slide down his forehead and throat. There was no way that he could move, why couldn't he just stand up and get away from there.
"Haru! Haru... Haruka!" A blur was standing over him, green eyes and all soft, yet Haruka couldn't recognise the person behind it.
"Haruka, you have to calm down!" That person was calling his name. He was, but being calm, how could Haruka calm down in this room, where nothing looked like the freedom Haruka seeked with all his might. His eyes shot from one wall to the other, trying to get some sense into the situation yet he wasn't able find any. In his years of life he hadn't ever felt this frightened, this caged.
"Haruka-san, you have to breathe. Shall we do it together?" There was a female voice, a petite female voice. Haruka blinked, tried to reduce the spinning. He should breathe, she was telling him to breathe, but how when he barely could heave his ribs.
"Please breathe. Evenly. Now, we can do it together." He heard the breaths and tried to match his to hers. Tried his best. He closed his eyes and breathed in with the counting and her breaths. In and out. Slowly.
"Good. You are doing so fine. Now go on, breathe slowly and evenly just like you did right now." Haruka tried to match his breathing to the numbers, they were giving him something to concentrate on, at least those made sense in that jumbling mess around him.
"Everything's fine. Now tell me. Is there something you need?" Haruka didn't open his eyes, he still focused on breathing. It felt like he would stop breathing as soon as he opened his eyes.
"Ok. You're doing so good." Slowly, really slowly, his breaths evened and the feeling that his ribs were crushed onto his lungs decreased. He opened his eyes, slowly looking up into a clearer world. It was still messy and somehow blurry but he tried his best to breathe. Just breathe. In and out. Slowly. Evenly.
"You are doing so fine." That female voice once again told him. "Do you need anything?" Haruka looked towards the person, familiar red eyes greeted him, a smiling face which had soft but sharp eyes.
"Water." He croaked and heard a silent snigger.
"Of course." She said smiling. "Makoto-san, could you ask the nurses for some water?" Then she turned once again to Haruka.
"Breathe. Don't stop." She said smiling and began to count again. Haruka closed his eyes and let the voice lull him. His mind still a mess but at least he could breathe again.
"I-I-I... the water. Here's the water Kou." Haruka opened his eyes once again and looked towards the two people.
"Thank you Makoto-san. Could you wait outside a little longer, please?" The other nodded shortly and left the room. Haruka's eyes lay on Gou as she approached him, his heart was still pounding.
"Here's some water. But first we should help you to straighten up a little." Gou went around the bed. "Haruka-san, can you help me a little? I need you to slowly lift your head." His breath quickened again, what if he couldn't move again, what if-
"Haruka. Breathe, I will help you. Everything's fine, so slowly, ok?" Haruka hesitated but began to lift his head. He tried, tried really hard. He held his breath for it to function. And there was a move, a slight bit. He tried it a little harder, he could do it, he-
but suddenly there was something behind his head and his eyes snapped open in panic, what was that?
"Shhh, shhh, it's me. I am holding your head." Haruka's eyes softened again as he let his head be guided up. "Haruka-san. I will give you the water. Just open your mouth and take small gulps." There was nothing to fear, soon he would get some of the water he so achingly wanted. He parted his lips and welcomed the cup of water, maybe a tad too eager. He tried to comply, take small gulps. His throat felt tight as the water slid down and settled in his far too empty stomach.
"Ok. Now I will lay your head down." Gou said softly and Haruka felt the way his head slowly was sunk into the pillow. He let out a sigh and looked up into her face, waiting for some explanations. Someone to tell him what exactly was going on.
"A nurse should check you before we speak about what happened."
~xoxoxoxooxoxoxox~
It was afternoon when the nurses and doctors were finally finished with their check. Haruka had been silent all the time, hadn't moved unless he was told and hadn't spoken unless asked. The time ticked as all of them left the room and his friends filled it. He saw each of them now that the blur wasn't hindering him to see and the pain wasn't there anymore. Whatever the nurses had given him against it was pretty good. He was not allowed to move around too much, just sitting up and that just if he had someone helping him.
"Haruka-senpai!" Haruka winced shortly. Rei surely had a loud organ when he wanted. The other's followed him, also calling out Haruka's name and looking more than relieved. The only missing person was Rin. Where was Rin? Worry once again washed through his system, the colour in his face drained, what if-
"Rin?" He croaked, his voice was far too stiff, far too hoarse to say anything else. His throat felt like it tightened with each passing second.
"Haru, he is alright." Makoto said but in his eyes lay worry and somehow hurt. For the first time Haruka didn't know what to think about Makoto's expression, why the teen would look hurt, worse even, like he pitied Haruka.
"Haruka-san." He turned his head towards Gou, whose hair and eyes resembled the ones of Rin, who looked so painful alike to her brother. "We have to explain many things to you."
Haruka nodded slightly, shortly showing his agreement.
"You had a car accident. The driver is still not awake, the doctors even told us that it's a miracle that you are alive let alone awake already. I- We are so relieved that you got away with all this, that you are still alive. I-"
"Where's Rin?" Haruka cut her midsentence. The doctors and nurses had told as much about the accident. That it would take months until he could walk around freely again. That it would even take longer for him to be able to swim. That he had to cope with his current condition first.
"You see, you can still become a national swimmer. Even though your ar-"
"I don't care. Where's Rin?" Haruka responded. His voice was maybe sharper than he had ever used. Each of them looked at him surprised, hurt but the worst was the pity that lay in each of those eyes.
"Haru... you see. He left after he woke up." Makoto said hesitating.
"He is alright?" Haruka asked looking up in those emerald eyes.
Makoto nodded but looked to the side. Haruka couldn't quite decipher why they looked like this. Why they wore the look that told nothing in particular but made clear that there was something wrong -something major. Haruka searched in Makoto's eyes for the answer, wanted to communicate with him the way he always did. But the teen looked away, his eyes turned towards the ground and his shoulders sagged down.
"Haruka-san. I will explain everything in detail." Gou said. She had spoken the most since Haruka had woken up, had explained everything until now and looked composed in contrast to the other three in the room. "You have to listen carefully." She said. And began to explain.
Haruka's eyes widened with every new detail that was bared to him. Rin had been unconscious for a long time, even after Haruka was conscious again. Rei had been with Rin all the time, until the lilac haired teen woke up. But then after waking up Rin had left, yet it was not without leaving a great impact.
Gou's voice was faint as she told Haruka that Rin had forgotten about him. First those blue-eyes searched for any sign for it to be wrong, but there was none, so Gou spoke on. It was a shock for each of them that Rin left laughing as always, without even the littlest trace of the horror the nurses had told all of them.
Rin had left. Rin had forgotten Haruka. Those were the words that stuck in Haruka's head. The only phrases he could concentrate on as he looked between all of them. Rin had forgotten him, had left without saying good-bye, or wishing him to get well soon again. Without crying. Rin had just left.
"Haruka-san. The Doctorsaid that it could be a defensive mechanism of his brain because of the trauma he lived through. Rin saw the accident, he got you to the hospital. The nurses told that he had been dissolved all the time as he paced through the corridors. Until he told them the number of your parents and collapsed. After waking up he had forgotten about everything. Rei told me at least." Gou stopped speaking. "I'm sorry." She added as if she could do anything about it.
Haruka looked at her then on his lap. To hear it again and again didn't make it any less believable. Rin had forgotten about him, had left without the slightest trace of worry. Haruka gulped and felt his throat tighten. He didn't want Rin to forget him. Their friendship had always been so special to Haruka. He could never forget about Rin...
He could never in his life -even if he wanted to- forget about Rin. About the bright boy, who had forced his way into Haruka's life. Rin just couldn't leave like that, wasn't allowed to forget everything. Not after they were friends again, not after he finally knew Rin's true feelings about swimming and the races between them.
Not after Rin finally swam with Haruka again.
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