What felt like forever was only a few days before Jūshirō was able to get his hands on a phone that wouldn't cost him anything to call overseas. In other words, his call would be placed on someone else's bill.

"Come on…" Jūshirō muttered to himself as he waited impatiently for the other end of the phone to be picked up. "Come on…"

"Hello?" A sleepy voice sounded from the other line. "Who is this…?"

"Rukia-kun?" Jūshirō asked as he closed his suitcase. "Rukia-kun, where's your brother?"

"Sleeping. Do you know how late it is…?" Rukia yawned as if to emphasise her point.

"I know, and I'm really sorry, Rukia-kun, but I need to talk to Byakuya." Jūshirō bit his lip.

"Can't you ring him tomorrow…?"

"No, it's urgent. Rukia-kun, please…" Jūshirō struggled to silence a cough that was clawing its way up through his body.

Rukia sighed. "Alright… But if Byakuya-nii-sama bites your head off, it's not my fault…"

"Thanks, Rukia-kun…" Jūshirō rubbed the nape of his neck, glancing up at the head of his university. He sent an apologetic glance towards the man, knowing that he had been granted use of the elder's personal phone solely because of Jūshirō's family circumstances.

There was a lot of grumbling on the other end of the line before Byakuya's voice sounded.

"What." It wasn't a question, and the Kuchiki sounded as if he were about to go on a murderous rampage.

"Byakuya-kun," Jūshirō started, "I know it's late, but I –"

"Of course it's late." Byakuya replied in that seemingly calm voice that Jūshirō knew well enough to know that underneath its calm tones was a hint of anger. "It's four in the morning, Jūshirō. What on earth could be so important?"

Jūshirō replied in a small, somewhat timid voice. "My brother."

Byakuya was silent for almost two minutes. Jūshirō was nearly sure that the younger had fallen asleep again. "…I see. Continue."

"…I-I was hoping that…" Jūshirō took a deep breath. "…That you would pay for a plane ticket back home… I know that I still haven't paid back the one you got for me to come here, but I –"

"-That is not a problem." There was the sound of sheets being ruffled and clothing pulled on from the other end of the line. "I'll get it done right away. As soon as possible."

"T-thank you, Byakuya-kun…" Jūshirō couldn't help but let out a sob as he clenched the phone harder in his hand. A light cough wracked his frail body. "I-I… I really appreciate it…"

Byakuya grunted in response. "I'm sorry about your brother."

And with that said, the other line went dead. Jūshirō hung the phone up and handed it to the older man. He wiped at his eyes with his sleeve.

"Are you okay, Jūshirō?" The balding man asked as he slipped the phone into his pocket.

Jūshirō nodded. "I… I just… I need to go home…"

"I understand." The man stood up and grabbed Jūshirō's arm. "Let me take you back to your dorm."

The long-haired male nodded and walked with his elder. His mind was focused solely on Tōshirō and what would happen when he came back home.

-XX-

Two days had passed since Byakuya had gotten the phone call from his friend. He was currently seated next to his sister in Tōshirō's hospital room, listening to the words that Matsumoto and Ichigo were saying to the unconscious boy.

Unohana Restu was kneeling by the bed, checking all of Tōshirō's vitals while Isshin was busy with other patients.

It had surprised quite a lot of people to see Byakuya walk into the room with Rukia and sit down by the bed, but what had surprised them even more was the fact that the Kuchiki had barely left his seat for nearly five hours.

"Kuchiki-sama…"

Byakuya lifted his head at his title. He saw that Isshin was standing in the doorway with a concerned look on his face.

"May I speak with you outside?"

Byakuya nodded and left his seat. He took one last glance at Tōshirō before he left the room. The two stood down the hall, trying to avoid any of the teens eavesdropping.

"Kuchiki-sama, may I ask why you are here so often?" Isshin asked in a soft tone. He knew that it was unlike Byakuya to care about an 'outsider' so much.

Byakuya shrugged. He looked away into the distance as his eyes clouded over. He became lost in his thoughts before Isshin gently grabbed his elbow and brought him back to reality.

"He's weighing heavily on your conscious, isn't he?" The Kurosaki continued on. "Do you feel like you have some kind of responsibility for him? You were the one who found him, after all."

Byakuya didn't speak. He didn't even move. He just let out a loud sigh as his gaze searched Isshin's eyes.

"I'm going to bring him out of the coma soon now that his brain has stopped swelling. It might be good for you to be there with him seeing as you were the person he had sought out for help. I also believe it would be good if you take him home with you once he recovers enough to leave the hospital. He's going to need a lot of help."

"His brother will be here today." Byakuya spoke quietly. "Jūshirō. He should be here any minute. He's the one you need to be discussing this with. Not me."

Isshin frowned as Byakuya started walking back to the hospital room. He didn't like how cold and anti-social the Kuchiki was. And what was this about Jūshirō? Wasn't he overseas?

Before Isshin could dwell too much on the subject, he turned to walk back down to reception when an odd-looking individual caught his attention. He glanced at them again, not sure what he was seeing. It was a tall man with brown hair tied back in a ponytail. He had wavy bangs that framed his face and seated upon his head was a sakkat. He wore a pink flowered kimono that was draped from his shoulders over what looked to be a white robe of sorts.

"Doctor Kurosaki?" the man called as he approached Isshin. His voice had a soft edge to it, giving Isshin the impression that he was rather laid-back.

"That's me," Isshin said as he stopped in order to speak with the man. "Is everything okay with you?"

"I'm fine," the man replied back. "I'm here to see Hitsugaya Tōshirō. Is that at all possible?"

That was when realisation struck Isshin. This man must have been the Jūshirō that Byakuya was talking about. "You're his brother, right?"

"No. I'm Kyōraku Shunsui." Shunsui pointed across his shoulder with his thumb towards a man with long white hair coming towards them. "He is."

Isshin took in the newcomer's appearance. While rather tall himself, Tōshirō's brother was smaller than Shunsui and was very skinny from what could be seen. In his mouth was a lollypop and the male's eyes were unfocused. He looked to be very lost.

"Jū-chan," Shunsui called in a soft voice. "Jū-chan, over here. I'm talking to the doctor now."

The man – Jūshirō – blinked a few times before he looked over at Shunsui. He shuffled over and rested his head against the taller's shoulder while he looked up at Isshin with curious eyes. Tired, yet still curious.

"You're Jūshirō?" Isshin asked the newcomer.

Jūshirō nodded. "Can I… Can I see my brother…?"

Isshin felt his heart sink at the male's exhausted voice. A flash of pain passed through green eyes before they were replaced with that same tired curiosity he had seen before.

"…Yes, but… Please be aware that I will be bringing him out of an induced coma shortly."

Jūshirō flinched silently but nodded. "…I understand."

The two followed Isshin through the corridors of the hospital before they stopped at a room towards the end.

Isshin put his hand on the doorhandle before he sent a serious look to the two males. "The boy you are about to see is covered in bandages for a reason. I don't know how much you know about his condition, but he's lucky to be alive. His head must not be touched under any condition unless it is by myself or a nurse, and if you are going to touch to his body, make sure it is on a clear piece of skin where you can see markings. I don't want to risk him being hurt and his healing process being set back."

Jūshirō nodded as he reached out and gripped his friend's kimono. Isshin wondered if that was even a conscious action.

"Please try not to be too overwhelmed…" Isshin pushed the door open, waiting for the child's visitors to walk in. He wasn't surprised when he heard the duo gasp, nor was he when Jūshirō ran forward and seemingly fell to his knees by the bed.

"S-shiro-chan…" Jūshirō whispered as his eyes filled with tears. He desperately wanted to reach out and hold his brother, but he knew what the doctor had told him was serious. He looked to the smaller hands, only to find them both bandaged. "Tōshirō…"

Tōshirō was bandaged from head to foot. The bandage around his head looked as if it had been wrapped many times in order to stop blood from soaking through. Both arms were in casts with bandages disappearing underneath, as was one of the child's legs. The hospital gown that he was wearing had hitched up, revealing bandages covering his entire torso. Drips and cords disappeared underneath the bandages, making the scene look worse than it already was.

"T-tōshirō…" Jūshirō whispered as he dropped his head onto the mattress. A lone tear dripped down his cheek.

Shunsui knelt next to Jūshirō, gently pulling the other into a warm embrace. He didn't know what he could say to soothe the younger, so he hoped that physical affection would be enough to remind the white-haired male that he wasn't alone in this.

"If I had known that this would happen, I would never have taken him back home…"

Jūshirō's breath hitched at Byakuya's voice. He hadn't even noticed the Kuchiki sitting against the wall.

"I didn't think this would happen…" Byakuya's eyes became hazy as his hand clenched against his lap. "…I would never have let him leave the house if I knew…"

"Byakuya-nii-sama…" Rukia reached over and gripped her brother's sleeve in her small hand.

Jūshirō rubbed at his eyes as he shook his head. "Don't blame yourself… I shouldn't have left…"

"Don't stress," Shunsui whispered as he ran his hand through Jūshirō's hair. "It's not good for your health."

Matsumoto and Ichigo shared a look with each other as they watched the emotional scene before them. They understood how stressful it was, but Byakuya… They had never seen the Kuchiki like this. They wondered what could have possibly happened between he and Tōshirō for the raven-haired man to be here.

"This is really depressing…" Ichigo muttered to Matsumoto. "Come with me to the cafeteria."

Matsumoto did as asked and followed her friend out of the room. They walked in silence until they had got what they wanted and found a table at the back of the room where they could eat in peace.

"What's the deal with Byakuya?" Ichigo asked as he nibbled away at his sandwich. "Something's really wrong with him. Have you noticed how quiet he's been? I mean – quiet for him. And that look in his eyes…"

"Rukia's mentioned something to me before about him," Matsumoto replied as she sipped at her coke. "I don't know all the details, but I think he's been through something similar before."

Ichigo's eyes widened. "W-what?!"

"It's true. Rukia said that something happened to him when he was young and that's why he's the way he is. Perhaps he cares about Tōshirō because he feels that they have common ground or something?"

"I never would have pegged Byakuya to have been through stuff…" Ichigo muttered.

"Whatever happened – to both of them – is not our business, Ichigo," Matsumoto reminded her friend. "We're allowed to care and offer to listen to them, but it's their decision if they want to tell us. We don't have the right to force it out of them."

"I guess you're right… Hey, I wonder why the others didn't skip school today and come see Tōshirō?"

"They've got their reasons."

With that said, the two fell into a comfortable silence again, each in their own respective thoughts.