A/N: Yay, a new chapter! I would've posted this sooner but a jar of Nutella hit me on the head while I was walking down the street. I did hope that it would rain Nutella, not a meteor shower. But I suppose beggars can't be choosers, at least I've had my chocolate, ne? If my reviewers have found a bottle of Nutella on their doorstep, that's from me.

Oh, and for the purposes of this chapter, Morinaga refers to Tetsuhiro. Kunihiro would be addressed or referred to by his name.

Yokachin is a song about penises. It's silly and when it's sung at Japanese parties you can be sure that someone's already really drunk. Haha.

Disclaimer: If this were mine, Tyrant would be crazier than Alice in Wonderland.

Accidents happen. Like all accidents, Morinaga Tetsuhiro didn't see it coming.

The welcome party was getting rowdier. He and around a dozen of his co-workers had reserved a place in the nicer part of the city. They started the party at around seven, and by eleven thirty most of them were tipsy.

Oonodera-san and Naruse-san were singing Yokachin in drunken harmony, and the girls of the group-Suzuki-san, Takagi-san, Nakamura-san, and Yoshinaga-san- were laughing at their antics. Nagae-san and Uehara-san were talking quietly-those two didn't seem drunk. Ishida-san was sleeping right beside Akiyoshi-san and Fujikawa-san. Kirigaya-san was on his phone, sending an email.

He wasn't drunk, not exactly, but he was feeling-buzzed. Like all his senses were extra sharp. He was keeping his promise to Senpai, and besides-he didn't want to go home blind drunk. Senpai would be angry for sure. Wasn't that the cause of everything-Morinaga being drunk?

Morinaga chuckled. No, it was Senpai who was drunk at that time. Maybe Morinaga should bring him along to place like this sometime soon. He would've liked to see Senpai trying to sing yokachin.

Speaking of senpai…

"I think I should go home now," he said apologetically.

"Aw, come on, we don't have work tomorrow," droned Oonodera. "We were trying to get you drunk, Morinaga-kun!"

"Yeah, yeah, you were the one who was supposed to sing yokachin!" chimed in Naruse enthusiastically, waving a beer bottle around so that a bit of it splashed on Suzuki.

"No, really-I promised my…roommate I'd get home by midnight. He'll get angry if I come in drunk," he explained.

"I'll need to go, too," Suzuki said, wiping her beer-stained dress. "I might just end up having a beer bath." She stood up, and Morinaga followed suit.

Ishida seemed to wake up at the sudden movement. "Wha? Wha?"

"We're leaving, Ishida-san," Morinaga said, laughing.

"Oh…Lemme come, too." Ishida got to his feet, nearly tripping over.

"Hey that's not fair," Naruse complained. "Who's supposed to pay for all of this?"

Takagi, Nakamura, and Uehara pointed at Naruse.

"No way!"

Morinaga laughed again. He laid down some money, to settle his part in the expenses, and Suzuki-san and Ishida did the same.

Kirigaya looked up from his phone. "Wait, I can take you in my car. Nagae, you live near me-want to come along?"

"Oh, yeah."

Kirigaya and Nagae also settled their tab, so they said their goodbyes. From what they heard, the ones who were left planned to sober up by hanging out at a nearby coffee shop.

Morinaga sent a quick message to Senpai that he would be coming home soon, though he doubted that Senpai was awake. He realized that he was actually more tired than he realized-socializing was tiring, in its own way. He wanted nothing more than to collapse on his bed and sleep-preferably all through the next day.

Ishida seemed awake enough by the time they had climbed into the car, but Kirigaya said that he wasn't risking anyone throwing up in his precious vehicle. Morinaga rode in front, the rest chattering happily in the back.

It was past midnight, so less people were on the streets. The roads that Kirigaya was taking seemed deserted. They were dropping him off first since he was nearest.

He was nearly asleep when he heard Ishida yell.

Morinaga bolted upright, looking around wildly. "What is it?"

"Kirigaya, you just ran a red light!" exclaimed Ishida.

"No, no, I didn't," Kirigaya protested.

Morinaga caught Suzuki's eye in the rearview mirror. She looked scared. "Kirigaya-san…"

There was a T-intersection up ahead. Kirigaya ran the red light there too.

"Stop it, Kirigaya! What are you doing?" Nagae shouted. "Are you drunk?"

The car accelerated. Morinaga was glad of his seatbelt, but the motion threw him backward all the same.

"Kirigaya, just pull over and let one of us drive!" Ishida said.

"I'm not drunk," giggled Kirigaya as he ran his third red light. "I can still drive."

"Kirigaya-san, please stop this," Morinaga pleaded. "We're going to get into an accident!"

Suzuki-san began to cry. "Kirigaya-please…"

"No, no, really, I can," Kirigaya insisted. Morinaga turned cold when realized that Kirigaya wasn't wearing his seatbelt.

"Kirigaya-san-" he started.

"Watch out!" roared Nagae.

There was a roadblock up ahead-a small construction job of some kind, for it only covered half the two-way street. Kirigaya jerked the steering wheel hard to the right. The car jolted as they hit the curb. Kirigaya jerked the steering wheel again, back to the road-then-

Morinaga was tipping sideways. He didn't understand. What was happening?

Then Suzuki-san screamed, and Morinaga understood instantly that the abrupt shift in the car's direction was forcing the car to topple over. Morinaga's hand shot out, trying to save Kirigaya. The car was going to land on Morinaga's side, and Kirigaya was already falling.

A great jolt of pain shot up his right arm. He had time for one last thought- Senpai.

Then the darkness took him away to a place where he could not find anything, not even himself.

Isogai was looking forward to a day of relaxation. They had just finished a major project, and now that it had been finished, he was going to sleep in…after he'd had a bit of breakfast.

He wondered if he should pay Souichi and Morinaga a visit. It was a sure way to raise Souichi's blood pressure. It was so easy to bait him, especially when Morinaga was concerned.

He hid a grin into his morning cup of coffee. For a lack of anything better to do, he switched on his TV.

It sure was lonely without Kurokawa around, to tease him about Tatsumi Tomoe. He looked at the screen, not really seeing it, until:

"…S Pharmaceutical Company last Friday night. The car was being driven by Kirigaya Hisashi, who was reportedly drunk and died at the scene of the accident. His co-workers Ishida Ryou, Suzuki Rin, and Nagae Akira were brought to the Nagoya General Hospital for injuries. A fourth co-worker, Morinaga Tetsuhiro, remains in critical condition."

Isogai put his coffee cup down, hard. Hot liquid splashed onto his hand, but he barely felt it.

Morinaga? Morinaga Tetsuhiro? In critical condition?

Did he hear it right?

Isogai went back to his bedroom and dialled Morinaga Tetsuhiro's number. It rang and rang. Finally a recorded message came on, saying that the number was out of range.

Frowning now, Isogai dialled again-this time Tatsumi Souichi's number. It rang twice, then a dull voice answered: "Hello?"

"Tatsumi-san?"

"Yeah."

Isogai thought that Souichi lacked his usual irascible tone. Certainly, if it had been the normal Souichi, he would've already yelled at Isogai for wasting his time. "I've just watched the news. It said that Morinaga-kun's been in an accident. It's not true, is it?"

There was a long moment of silence, which told Isogai more about the truth before Souichi answered.

"Yeah."

"Is he…I mean-the news only said-"

"He's in the ICU," the voice droned on in a monotone. "In the ICU. In a coma."

"Will he be…"

"The doctor doesn't know."

Isogai sensed Souichi was about to-what? Break down? Yell at him? Whatever it was, Souichi's "go-to-hell" attitude was gone.

"I see. Will it be okay if I visited today?"

"Whatever. Do what you want."

Isogai nodded-not that Souichi could see, it was only out of habit-and then hung up. He stared at his phone for a long time, then dialled a third number.

"Kanako-chan?"

Masaki and Kunihiro were the first visitors for the day. They met Dr. Uzuki in the reception area, who in turn invited them to a small sitting room.

"You are Morinaga Tetsuhiro's older brother?" Dr. Uzuki inquired, peering at them behind his glasses.

"I am," confirmed Kunihiro. "I'm Morinaga Kunihiro.

"And your parents?"

"They…they're busy," Kunihiro said tightly, his fists clenching. Busy being prejudiced.

"I see," Dr. Uzuki said. "Well, I've only glanced at Morinaga-kun's medical history, but it doesn't seem that he'd have any previous illnesses that will hinder his recovery. We'd be focused on the here and now. I'd like to thank you for setting aside the time to come here-I know that you don't live in the area."

"He's my family," Kunihiro said. "How did this happen?"

"From what Nagae-san and Suzuki-san told me, they were coming home from a welcome party for Morinaga-kun," Dr. Uzuki began. "Around midnight, Morinaga-kun decided to leave the party. He was accompanied by Kirigaya Hisashi-the driver. There was also Suzuki Rin-san, Nagae Akira-san and Ishida Ryou-san. None of the passengers realized that Kirigaya-san was drunk until he started running red lights. Kirigaya-san tipped the vehicle over when he swerved to avoid a road block. He died on impact. He was not wearing a seatbelt.

"The vehicle landed on Morinaga-kun's side. We think he tried to save himself from a worse fall, because he broke his right arm in three places," Dr. Uzuki said, showing them an x-ray.

Kunihiro felt sick just looking at it. He could hardly believe that this was Tetsuhiro's arm-the picture was of a bone broken once above the elbow and twice below it.

"He was bruised all over from the fragments of the glass," continued Dr. Uzuki. "Though none penetrated his eyes. His left side-the side the car landed on-was bleeding badly when he was brought in, but we managed to stave off excessive blood loss. Three of the ribs on his left side were also cracked, but he was wearing a seatbelt, so his internal organs did not suffer much. His left lung's in place still. His legs are pretty much intact, and it's a miracle in itself that his hip-bones weren't hurt. Yes, there's bruising, but the swelling's expected to go down in a few days. It's the head injury we're worried about."

"He's in a coma, right?" Masaki asked.

"Yes," said Dr. Uzuki sadly. "We don't really know what's happening for sure, not until he wakes up-"

"But he will, right?" interrupted Kunihiro.

"Uhm." For the first time Dr. Uzuki looked uncertain. "You see, he has a hairline fracture in his skull." He showed them a skull x-ray, pointing out a faint, star-shaped crack. "The good news is that it isn't too deep. But it did penetrate the brain a little. We're keeping the swelling down, and it's less every day."

"Can he breathe on his own?" Masaki inquired quietly.

Dr. Uzuki looked at him, slightly surprised. It was an educated question. "Ah, yes-but we've connected him to oxygen because he can't seem to get enough air. His breaths and pulse are steady, but weak. We'll know more when he wakes up."

"Not if he wakes up? When he wakes up?" noted Kunihiro.

At that, Dr. Uzuki smiled. "There is always hope," he told them.

Kunihiro and Masaki exchanged a glance. It was filled with worry and hope, all at once.

"Now, would you like to see him?"

"Yes," Kunihiro said at once.

"Of course. Follow me."

"I can't believe this," Masaki said, an hour later. "Even now I've seen him…"

Kunihiro nodded. They had just been in to see Tetsuhiro, and he was surprised at how it hurt-literally-to see his little brother strapped to three different machines, unresponsive.

Now they were sitting in the hospital cafeteria, not because they were hungry, but because they didn't think of anything else they could do. They each had a cup of coffee that tasted like liquefied cardboard.

"Kunihiro," Masaki began, in a different tone. Kunihiro looked at him, curiously. "Are your parents not here because…"

Kunihiro briefly considered lying. However, Masaki looked like he'd deck him if he tried.

"I…I guess so. If you mean that they're not here because Tetsuhiro…of what he is, yes."

Masaki looked pained. "I'm sorry, Kunihiro. It's still my fault, isn't it?"

"No," Kunihiro said fiercely, "never. It's their fault. And Tetsu doesn't need people like them."

"Big brother!"

Souichi jumped at the familiar voice. "K-Kanako?"

He had just arrived at the hospital after making sure that he had all the right articles of clothing-as a consequence, he was rather late. Knowing that Isogai was coming to visit didn't help, either- that was one person he didn't want to see right now.

But the Isogai who waited with Kanako at the waiting room to the ICU didn't look like the normal Isogai. His trademark smirk was gone. Isogai simply nodded to him.

Kanako was talking non-stop. "Nii-san! They wouldn't let me in because they said I was too young! Isogai-san called me…will Tet-chan be all right?"

"Why are you calling him Tet-chan?" Souichi asked, distracted.

"He told me to the night before I left for school. Nii-san, can't we talk to someone? I really want to see him."

Souichi was still shocked at finding his little sister here. Isogai must have driven her here, too. "I don't think you should, Kanako. He…looks pretty…bad."

"Then it's all the more reason I need to see him, right? Dr. Uzuki said that people in comas respond better to treatment if they're surrounded by friends and family members…but he doesn't have any family, does he?"

"Actually," a voice cut in from their right, "He does."

They turned to see Kunihiro and Masaki walking to them. They both looked tired-as if they, like Souichi, had not slept.

Souichi's eyes narrowed. "Why are you here?"

"Because I'm his brother," Kunihiro replied, his eyebrows raised.

"Oh, so now you're concerned about him?" said Souichi acidly.

"Nii-san…" Kanako whispered.

"Look, arguing isn't going to get us anywhere," Kunihiro said flatly, "Nor will it help Tetsuhiro."

He had a point, but just looking at Kunihiro and Masaki made his blood boil. How dare they come in here as if they had a right? The right? After all they'd done to Morinaga…

And to top things off, there was Isogai. Why was that man here? Souichi didn't get it.

"Please, Morinaga-san, I want to see Tet-chan," Kanako pleaded. "Isogai-san's already seen him, but Dr. Uzuki said I'm not allowed because of my age. He'll make an exception if a family member says it's okay, though. Can you?"

Kunihiro focused on her. "And you are?"

"Tatsumi Kanako. I'm Souichi-nii's younger sister."

"Ah. But Kanako-chan, Tetsuhiro's not…"

"I don't care, I still want to see him."

Souichi had entirely forgotten how stubborn Kanako could be when she wanted something. He realized she might have gotten her stubbornness from him. Was that a compliment or an insult?

"All right. Let's just find Dr. Uzuki."

Souichi sat with Isogai while Kanako and Kunihiro talked. "How are you?" Isogai asked him frankly.

"Just fucking peachy." Their presence was doing one thing for him at least- he was gaining focus. If it were him and Morinaga alone, he would have been a wreck. "What do you think?"

Instead of coming up with a snappy retort, Isogai nodded thoughtfully. "Yes. I thought that you would be."

"Why did you call Kanako, you bastard?"

"You're not telling me that you would've told her? She's worried-about both of you. Have you looked at yourself in the mirror since the accident?"

"Oh shut up."

Isogai wasn't letting it go. "I'm serious. Morinaga-kun's already in the hospital, we don't need you to be here too. And how do you think he'll react when he wakes up and sees you like that? The least you can do is take care of yourself so you don't worry him more."

He was starting to hate how sensible Isogai was sounding. "And how do you know for sure that he'll recover?" he retorted.

Isogai stared at him in astonishment. "Souichi," he said softly, "Don't you have any faith in him?"

Together, Dr. Uzuki and Kunihiro managed to pull enough strings to allow Kanako into Morinaga's room. Kunihiro, who seemed completely taken by Kanako, volunteered to come with her, but Souichi shot him down. Only two visitors were allowed at the ICU at the same time.

Morinaga looked the same as yesterday, although Souichi observed that his bandages looked newer. He could feel Kanako flinch next to him.

"If you want-" he began.

"No," Kanako mumbled. He could see the tears in her eyes. "I'm fine."

They approached the bed slowly. Kanako broke free of Souichi and gazed down at Morinaga. She looked shaken, not at all like she had when she was badgering Souichi a while ago.

Had he looked like this yesterday? He didn't know what she was thinking, but he knew that it was hard on her. She and Morinaga had formed a bond over the time that they had spent together, and in a lot of ways Morinaga acted more like a big brother than Souichi did.

"Morinaga-kun? It's Kanako. Nii-san is here, too, and your brother, Masaki-san and Isogai-san. I… we're all waiting for you to come back, Morinaga-kun. Didn't you say that you were going to visit me at my new school soon? There are a lot of things I'd like to show you there. I'm starting to play soccer, you know." Kanako wiped her tears away. "The coach said I'm good at it. If things go well I can try out for the team next year. So…so you have to be there to see me play okay?"

"You hear that, Morinaga? I'm not going to haul your ass to Kanako's school if you're still here," Souichi joined in. "You said you…won't worry me any more. You can't break your promise. You are breaking it right now," he said testily. "Isogai and Masaki and your brother are out there right now, I'm left to deal with them. If-when you wake up, they can all go away again."

Kanako giggled. She reached out for Morinaga's uninjured hand. "Morinaga-kun, you should wake up and recover quickly. We'll be here, all right?"

She tapped his hand lightly-and then, before their very eyes, something unbelievable happened.

Morinaga's fingers twitched, closing around Kanako's.

"Nii-san!"

A/N: Yay, another cliffhanger! *grins * behold my evil plans for world domination by letting my readers wait. I'll see you in the asylum!

I'm feeling really happy about the reviews this is getting! Every time I read your reviews I feel like I can skydive without the parachute. (well, technically speaking, I can, but I'd probably splatter on impact.) So here's a great big thanks to:

Tsukiyomi Moto: You are absolutely fatal...the dust bunnies cower in terror and awe of you! I also wish that there's a separate side story continuing the Masaki-Kunihiro relationship...that ending just leaves me hanging...thanks for your (2nd?) review!

Lady Tsuru27: Ahhh...*hides under table while blushing* thanks. i can say that you ought to wait for the rest of the story before saying it's one of the best though! I might end up disappointing everyone, haha. And I usually can't control the little details of the story-though I know where I want it to go, sometimes it just takes a life of its own. I'm not really one for huge dramatic scenes-this will become more apparent later on- so from the start I knew that a tearful reconciliation with their parents would not happen. I think I pity them a little too, though if I were Kunihiro I'd have thrown a shoe at their heads. Oh well. And it's my first time writing Kunihiro (okay, first time writing everyone in Tyrant) so I'm glad I got him right! I also know you didn't like Masaki (i think you said it in one of your previous stories, can't remember which one though). Psychologically he's a good character-I don't like the things he did, either, or the logic behind them, but his flaws make him more interesting. I hope you got the Nutella jar! thanks for your review!

fullmoon: Gracias! Yo no comprendo Espanol, Lo siento. Como se dice 'continue to support the story' en espanol?

Yakuchouu: Thanks for giving me a great piece of music, and the translation, too! It's a bit sad, though-but it fits the story. I wish I could speak another language, but i end up getting my tongue tied. Haha. Thanks for the review!

LoveStories: no, the best part's not yet here! XD wait for it. thanks for the review!

Guest: I was finishing my Nutella. I expect I'll have a cavity tomorrow. XD thanks for the review!

B.A.D- Class: this kind of comment makes me want to leave people even more frustrated. * laughs * (I am a proud sadist.) Here's your next chapter! I think it will leave you wanting more again. Thanks for the review!

Izarra-sub: Somehow I got the feeling this was cut off? I was browsing fan fiction after I've read the manga, and I noticed a lack of stories for this manga. that's how it all started. Oh, and the other fan fics were great too! I was inspired. Thanks for your review!

Tyasia T: Ah, is English not your first language? it isn't my first language, either. I love to keep my readers hanging-so unfortunately all of you have to get used to it. but it's more interesting that way, ne? But I don't know, I think I'm not doing enough-in portraying emotions,I mean, but let's see if I can't remedy that in the next few chapters. It's still beginning, after all. thanks for your review(s)!

Amity33: *throws confetti on Amity* YES! finally! I was planning to ask my readers if they recognized Dr. Uzuki, but I kept on forgetting. You're the first one to do so. For those who don't know him, read Usagi Otoko Tora Otoko! It's really nice- a comedy manga, too. I know the doctor's working in another hospital, but I couldn't resist. Isn't he cute?! Thanks for your review!

noboyha: here's the next chapter! Unfortunately, you're going to have to wait a bit for the hurt/ comfort part. I always try to lay down a solid foundation for my stories so the character's emotions won't seem confusing or overdone. Thanks for your review!

Guest2: I actually wanted to throttle the Morinaga couple while writing that chapter-and I was the one writing it. Damn I'm always weird. Anyways, thanks for your review! Here's the next chapter.

The people who will not review will be cursed with the Baby Hex, in which they will start hearing Justin Beiber's song Baby everywhere they go. The only way to cure it is to leave a review.

See you in the next chapter, my lovelies!