It was windy again— was I somehow on another branch? No. . . it was me moving this time, not the air. But why was I moving?
Ugh. . . my head. . . A tiny moan escaped my lips.
My brain was practically bouncing around in my skull, beating reckless patterns against the tender bones; my legs felt terrible as well— I didn't need my fingertips to know how swollen they'd become.
I couldn't have been on the ground anymore; whatever I was resting on now was much too fleshy for that. Wait a minute. . . fleshy?
Sure enough, the long bands holding my torso and legs were actually arms, and the warm wall enveloping my left side turned out to be a chest.
Buh-dummm, buh-dummm, buh-dummm. . .
The sound of this man's heart was achingly familiar, though I was sure I'd never heard it before. The strong thrum against my shoulder called to me in a way that had me reaching stupidly for it, momentarily forgetting to keep my guard up. My fingers touched the brick that could only be his sternum, clasping at something soft and thick. A shirt.
"I'm taking you to the hospital."
The syllables were clipped, proper. He sounded rather uncomfortable, as if consoling a stranger wasn't his top priority— and I couldn't blame him. But there was something else. . . my befuddled mind did the work for me, fishing two words that I never realized I knew from the deepest pits of my consciousness:
"Neji. . . Hyuga. . ."
It had to be him. That heartbeat couldn't possibly belong to anyone else, I was certain of it.
His breathing stuttered, and a jolt of fire sprinted up and down my legs when the wind ceased to whistle into my ears. The man's grip on me had gotten tighter for only a moment, holding me closer to him as he seemingly attempted to regain his composure. At this point, the pain was too much to bear.
"What— what did you say?" came a whisper.
I became limp again.