Day 6: Recovery

Chapter Summary: When simple stomachaches turn to something more serious…

Chiaki and Hajime both hate surgeries, but it needed to be done, you know?


A/N: I'll spare you the details from the surgery itself and only tell you what happened before and after the operation. I'm not that squeamish when it comes to these things but this in particular is just…eugh!

*proceeds to vomit*

…I know what it feels like to have *something* nasty inside your stomach that's eating away at your life, slowly…until you collapse from poor health (Gee, thanks Nagito, you piece of s#*!). Eating healthy food managed to kill that thing inside me but I don't think I could have handled being operated on just to remove that demon spawn.

O-Oh no… I-I'm having flashbacks again…

I'll just stop it right here and give you the story…!


It was bound to happen, wasn't it?

With how she was taking care of herself, she was bound to land someday on a hospital bed. Despite his infinite warnings about her unhealthy lifestyle, she never listened, and now look where that got her. She's perpetually mad about not being able to play video games for being subjected to bed rest. Apparently, she doesn't understand that you can't play video games when there's a needle in your vein.

She said that the sickness will go away eventually since she thinks that it's a status effect that wouldn't last a long time. For goodness sake, she even treated the worm in her stomach as a virtual pet! What the heck?!

That's when Hajime and her old classmates decided to drag her to the clinic and keep her there until that worm is removed. Luckily, the group was quick enough to stop it from reproducing inside her, hence the needle in her arm. She was slightly scared of shots but what she truly feared was the surgery. Even with Mikan's many reassurances that she won't feel a thing, Chiaki played a lot of surgery games and she felt squeamish when she thought about those botched operations happening on her body.

"I trust you Tsumiki-san but..." she winced when the anesthetic was discreetly injected into her. Her fearful expression and soft tone then turned cold, blank and lethargic. "...I don't trust the others..."

"It'll be fine, Nanami." said Hajime even though he knew that the medicine was now numbing her senses to the point where she won't even know who's around her anymore. She can't even smile. She slowly closed her eyes and laid still like a corpse.

Hajime was then escorted outside the room so that the surgeons can get to work. He sat down on one of the chairs in the lobby and slowly rubbed his head exasperatedly. They were lucky that they made friends with the Ultimate Nurse. She was kind enough to admit Chiaki to the hospital she worked in and would make some "arrangements" to the designated surgeon to lessen the cost. Even though that was as far as she could get to avoid suspicions, he was thankful that he wouldn't need to withdraw from his savings to pay the fees.

Time ticked by and before he knew it, the others informed him that the operation was successful and Chiaki was now sleeping in one of the hospital rooms - very very far away from that dreaded operation room. Just before he could get there, Fuyuhiko tapped him in the shoulder and dragged him towards the corner near the end of the hallway. He crossed his arms and leaned by the door towards her room.

"…We already talked with the others about this. I'll take care of the fees so you can rest your ass easy tonight." he scoffed and looked to his side. "Take it as thanks for taking care of Nanami, Hinata."

He was surprised. He clearly underestimated Chiaki's influence over her old classmates during their years at Hope's Peak. He never thought that even the heir to one of the largest crime syndicates would volunteer to pay for the fees, let alone thank him for doing something so normal. "You're welcome, Kuzuryu." he sighed before continuing. "Though I take it you're expecting something in return, right?"

"Did you not just hear what I told you, dumbass?!" he turned his head and glared at Hajime. "I said it's for being a good boyfriend to her! Fucking hell… Just cause I'm a yakuza doesn't mean that I'm fucking selfish! If the price was bigger, that's when I would've drawn the line. I have standards, bastard!"

"Okay okay! Sorry!" Hajime raised his hands after receiving Fuyuhiko's memorable tirades. "…So, it's ok to come in now right?"

The yakuza bounced off the wall and mouthed off, "Be my damn guest."

Entering the room, he was greeted by a thick dark veil with the sound of soft gentle snoring in the background, somehow going in sync with the quiet droning of the air conditioner. Hajime reached out for the light switch, lighting up the room in an incredibly bright light. The snoring was then replaced with an annoyed moan.

"…Turn off the light…" she muttered in a tired voice, trying to cover her eyes with her unperforated arm. "…It's too bright…"

Before switching off the light he went over to Chiaki's bedside and turned on the lamp instead. It was significantly less brighter than that white solar flare of a bulb. After turning off the light switch for that, the room was now in a warm comfortable lighting.

"…It's still too bright…" she complained and ruffled around the covers of the bed with an uneasy energy guiding her sluggish twisting and turning.

He turned the knob under the lamp shade to its darkest settings. "There. Better?"

She hummed in satisfaction and went back to sleep.

He dragged a stool nearby and sat beside her bed. He took a deep breath and sternly said, "We need to talk, Nanami."

"I'm not in the mood right now, Hinata-kun…"

He sighed in frustration. "…Can't you listen to me just this once? We NEED to talk."

She grumbled something to herself before finally lending an ear to Hajime. "…Please make it quick… I'm really tired right now…"

"It's just one question anyways. So, have you finally learned your lesson?"

"…Really, Hinata-kun?" He could hear the saltiness in her tired tone. "Are you going to rub that in my face right now?"

"Just answer the question. It should be obvious since you hate hospitals."

"Ok…fine…" she shifted around on her bed once more, pouting at Hajime but too weak to glare and puff her cheeks out. "…you win this time…"

He held himself back from reprimanding her more about how this isn't a game. She's been through a lot and he wasn't that big of an asshole, especially to his girlfriend. Instead, he scooted closer towards her head, brushed off some of the hair covering her temple, and kissed it. "…Get well soon, Chiaki. Love you always."

Fortunately for him, the lighting in the room was sufficient for him to see the slight red coloring her deathly pale face and strained smile she gave when they met each other's gazes. "Thank you, Hajime… I love you too…"

He breathed in relief and switched off the lamp before leaving for the night. Just as he got to his car, he slumped at the driver's seat in realization that he was going to sleep alone tonight. That meant that every morning for the next several days, he won't be greeted by the lovely sight of his girlfriend beside him, which was just as good as a cup of coffee every morning. Letting out another sigh, he drove in the key to the ignition, tuned in to his favorite radio station, and started heading home.

Well, he can shave a few hours off his sleep just to visit her every night after work.


A/N: Heh, let me guess. When you guys saw this prompt, you were expecting to see Hajime recovering from the Kamukura Project, weren't you?

Upupupu… if it's despair you want, then I shall provide.