Initially didn't plan for this to line up with New Year's, but here we are!
Haruka stretched, his arms over his head, and yawned. Like always, he was exhausted and wanted nothing more than to sleep. However, it was one of the few times when he couldn't do that. Although it will always be difficult to determine how much of his brain Makoto is using to comprehend the real world, he might still able to understand the meaning and sentiment of certain special days. Haruka first realized that this may be true when his fiancé was acting all jittery around Halloween time, as well as his birthday. The same was happening the past few days for Christmas and New Year's.
It was New Year's Eve, half past ten. Haruka wondered exactly when Rin would show up. He didn't call, so it might be a surprise. As much as he didn't like the idea, he couldn't stop the redhead from doing such a thing. He stirred the little amount of sugar around in his coffee before drinking it. Might as well stay awake until midnight and indifferently welcome the new year.
"Aaaawaaa! Haaaaaaa!" Makoto cried out before coughing. He wasn't choking but Haruka acted as if he was.
"Makoto, are you alright? Did you swallow anything? Do you need some water?" Haruka asked frantically until he realized Makoto was no longer coughing and was giggling. His hands clenched and unclenched, his left wrist twisting around. Haruka's shoulders relaxed and he smiled. Makoto thought of something funny. "Yeah, I think that was hilarious, too. Makoto, squeeze my hand if you want something to drink." He placed his hand in Makoto's. The man squeezed tightly then let go. "Okay, I'll get you some water. Here, keep Therapy Cat company," Haruka said, picking up the feline and placing her on Makoto's lap. The wheelchair-bound man cooed and stroked the white fur.
While Haruka filled a glass with cool water, he heard a knock on the door. He sighed, knowing exactly who it was. He carried the glass with him and opened the door.
"Yo, Haru! How are ya- Geez, you don't look so good. Have you been getting enough sleep?" Rin started to greet before taking notice of the other man's appearance. Haruka looked him up and down. His attire reminded him of when Rin came to take him to Australia.
"Get in before you catch a cold. Idiot, why aren't you wearing a jacket?" he scolded the redhead. Rin took off his hat and smiled.
"I knew you would open the door right away, so I took it off. Now, why do you look like death is going to knock on your door next?" Rin placed his hands on his hips, back turned to the living room. Haruka sighed through his nose and returned to the kitchen for a straw. Makoto liked the bendy ones. He signaled for Rin to follow him. "What is it? Haru, you're being weirder than... Oh my god. Makoto? What happened to him?" The older man did not respond to the question. Instead, he was trying to coax the wheelchair-bound man to drink his water.
"Makoto, here. Drink," Haruka spoke calmly. While Makoto sipped the water through the straw slowly, Haruka stroked his cheek and said, "Look, it's Rin. He came to visit us. Remember Rin, our friend since elementary?" Finished swallowing, Makoto shouted over and over.
"Eeeen! Auuuuugh!" Makoto cackled loudly and clapped his right hand against the armrest.
"Haru? What... happened?" Rin stuttered. He had been gone for a long time, spending the majority of his stay in Australia training like the next Olympics were going to be the last so he'd be sure to win. He watched as Haruka whispered to his fiancé. Rin ran his fingers through his hair. What the hell had he missed during his time away? He sat down on the couch and gripped his knees, gently biting his bottom lip. "Haru?" Slowly, the man stood back up and joined the redhead on the couch. He didn't look at him directly, only staring at the brunet as he cradled the white feline. Rin touched the former swimmer's arm. "What happened?"
He was surprised and even more worried when he saw tears in the oceanic eyes. Haruka swiftly wiped them away and took a deep breath.
"Did you ever hear about the media coverage of "The Swim World's Power Couple's Departure From The Olympics" back in July?" Haruka began, his voice shaking. Rin shook his head. "Yeah, I figured. Well, I... It was my birthday. Makoto had wanted to celebrate my victory in winning a gold medal. He wouldn't stop spoiling me." Haruka chuckled despite himself. He looked up and out the window. It was starting to snow. Makoto gasped and flapped his hands excitedly.
"Nuaaaaaaaa! Wooooooooah!" he screamed. Rin jumped slightly but relaxed. He looked at Haruka again, waiting for him to continue. He nudged him to grab his attention again.
"Well, we went swimming, sightseeing, all that. When we returned to Tokyo, we got into Makoto's car. I offered to drive but he was adamant, insisting that it was 'the day of relaxation for the gold medal winner.' The streets were surprisingly almost deserted. It was at a stoplight, though, when it... when i-it..." Haruka covered his mouth and bit his tongue. His eyes were burning with restrained tears as his brain was flooded with memories of the scene. He could hear the sirens, see the flashing lights, feel the gloved hands, smell the smoke and gasoline, taste the metallic flavor of blood...
"Haru, it's okay! You're okay! You don't have to tell me if you're not ready," Rin called out to him, grabbing his shoulders. Haruka was roped back into reality and the sensations left him until all he could feel was Rin's arms wrapped around him in a hug.
"No, it's fine. I'm fine now. You deserve to know. Look it up though, there are plenty of articles of our departure. Trust me, I've checked." Hesitantly, Rin pulled out his phone and searched up "Nanase Haruka Tachibana Makoto Departure". The moment he pressed "Search", thousands of links popped up, taking Rin by surprise. He clicked on the first article and skimmed through it. The frown on his mouth and in his forehead deepened as he read on.
"They say nothing about what happened," Rin finally said, breaking the temporary silence. "Haru?"
"I never came out to say what had actually happened to us. Hold on." Haruka stood up and strode toward the kitchen. He returned with two bottles of water and handed one to Rin. He grabbed the empty glass from Makoto and took the straw from his mouth so the brunet wouldn't accidentally swallow it as he chewed on it. He put the straw down on the table to throw out later and sat back down on the couch. He took a quick sip of water, coughing when a little went down the wrong way. "Now, where was I?"
"Uh, a stoplight?"
"Right. Um, well... How should I say this? The streets were almost empty and the light had turned green. It was our turn to go. Then I heard a distant revving that got louder and closer. It was coming from Makoto's side of the car. There were two cars. One just barely passed us, but the other car..." Haruka paused and clutched his shirt, hoping Rin would understand. He didn't want to say it.
"The other car hit the two of you, didn't it?" Rin whispered. Slowly, Haruka nodded. His throat was starting to close up but he had to keep speaking. Rin deserved to know the truth. "What were those idiots doing?!" the redhead shouted. Makoto jumped and whined. Haruka shushed him. The younger man mouthed an apology.
"Apparently, they were streetracing. One of the drivers was an American and was visiting a friend here. They had done this before, but this was the first time anyone had gotten hurt in their races."
"Isn't streetracing from a decade ago?" Rin questioned. He had heard of it in his childhood when he was in Australia but had never witnessed the actual racing.
"Yeah, but the two of them still did it and are probably two of the few people left that still do streetracing. Stupid, isn't it?" the raven chuckled. It was a cruel joke, really, that life decided to pull on him and Makoto. Why should their lives be changed because of an idiotic mistake someone else made? He shuddered. Haruka tried not to think bitterly but it couldn't be helped at times.
"So, what happened to those two?" Rin asked quietly.
"I think the American returned home. I actually saw his friend yesterday. I didn't say anything but it still hurt. It... hurt," Haruka repeated. His nails dug into the skin of his palms, trying to hold back the tears welling up in his eyes. "What did Makoto ever do to deserve this?" he muttered softly. Glassy blue eyes gazed in the direction of the brunet. He was much more calm, humming softly and gasping as he watched the snow fall.
Rin didn't know what to do. His childhood friend was hurting for his soulmate. Makoto was, for lack of better words, gone. He wanted to know more but not at the cost of Haruka's wellbeing.
It didn't matter though. It was as if Haruka could sense his curiosity.
"After we got hit, it wasn't long before I woke up to the sound of sirens. I'm pretty sure crowds were starting to form. I was bleeding a lot and I had probably the worst case of whiplash ever, but the focus wasn't on me entirely. We were still in the car, so when the paramedics got us out, a couple checked me over while the rest... they were trying to get Makoto to breathe again," Haruka explained, his voice dropping to a whisper.
"He wasn't breathing?! How long?" Rin whispered loudly. Haruka only shrugged.
"Time felt different to me. Everything felt slow and foggy. All I remember is the paramedics performing CPR and trying to move Makoto's tongue, since it was blocking his airway. Yeah, he was that knocked out, not even having control over his tongue. Bleeding in the brain, too. That combined with asphyxiation lead to extensive brain damage in most areas. So yeah, our lives are pretty fucked," Haruka finished bluntly, a cold and dead smile on his face. He flinched at the hand gripping his shoulder. Rin was frowning at him.
"Haru, you don't have to fake it with me," the swimmer said firmly. Haruka raised an eyebrow.
"What do you mean?"
"Haru, take it from me. It's not healthy to bottle up your emotions, especially with something like this. You need to let it out and I'm here for you," the redhead reassured. Haruka stared at the carpet. All those times he felt his heart shattering, felt like breaking down, screaming, kicking, crying out all the pain, he couldn't do that, convincing himself it was for Makoto's sake. Maybe it was for his own?
He didn't notice the first tears fall. By the time he realized what was happening, Haruka was full-out bawling his eyes out. The floodgates didn't burst open, they were obliterated. Rin rubbed circles deep into his back. His voice shook like the rest of his body as he shouted out more confessions.
"I-I can't e-ven-n get ins-side a damn c-car! I walk t-to the coffee sh-shop everyday! I can't even get a new apartment!" Haruka screamed. He didn't notice how much time had passed, only capable of appreciating Rin's presence. The former swimmer mentioned something along the lines of not actually being able to take care of Therapy Cat like he should when they all heard fireworks go off.
"Ooooh, faaagh," Makoto marveled, his body twisting in the wheelchair to smile at the men behind him. His eyes squinted as he shouted, "Haaaaaaaaa! Aaaaphh neeee!" Makoto broke down in laughter, holding the white feline close to his face.
"Well, would you look at that?" Rin muttered. Haruka's mouth hung open as he wiped his eyes. "Happy New Year, Haru, Makoto. Maybe you two should go to sleep. It's late." Haruka drowsily shook his head at the suggestion.
"No... Makoto has to go to bed." God, no wonder he never cried, it used up too much energy. His eyelids were shutting as tiredness took over. "Mmmf..."
He was out like a light as fireworks continued to go off. Quietly, Rin did his best to complete the tasks Haruka normally did before returning to the couch. Makoto was safely tucked in bed and Haruka was covered by a thick, warm blanket. Therapy Cat was hiding from Rin, apparently not taking much of a liking to him, much to the redhead's dismay.
Rin glanced at Haruka's still form, his exhausted face still youthful but aged decades all the same. Pulling out his phone again, Rin tapped away.
See yáll next chapter!