Upside Down: Chapter Seven
By nine at night, Suga had spread the news of Tsukishima's improved condition to the rest of the team. Hinata and Kageyama had remained strangely silent in response to that news, presumably feeling awkward. Kenoshita wasn't in any condition to move, and neither was Asahi. Nishinoya was staying with Asahi, along with Ennoshita. So in the end, it was the same band that took Daichi's car to the hospital in the morning of the next day. Daichi and Suga wanted to be present as the team's captains, Yamaguchi wanted to see his best friend, and Narita had promised to deliver Kenoshita's best wishes and Asahi's tentative offering of apples.
They arrived at nine fifty-five, and were told to wait in the lobby. At nine fifty-nine, Mr. Tsukishima's car pulled up in the VIP parking lot, and he walked through the doors of the hospital at precisely ten. Yamaguchi shuddered a little as both captains rose to meet him, Daichi shaking hands firmly with the CEO and Suga moving with grace, bowing his neck and raising his eyes to meet the man before talking.
"May we see him now?" Suga asked. "Or is he indisposed?"
Mr. Tsukishima looked at the receptionist, who took a quick glance at the computer monitor. "He had his morphine injected two hours ago, so if you see him now he'll be more alert, but please leave before the next injection is due in another hour."
"Excellent. Let's go." Mr. Tsukishima strode towards the lift, another nurse hurrying behind him dutifully. Everyone crowded into the lift, and the nurse pressed the floor number for them.
Floor 9, Yamaguchi mentally noted.
The lift rose and no one made an attempt to make conversation. Yamaguchi reached over to help Narita adjust the bag of apples hanging from his crutch. Daichi noticed and took it into his hands instead.
The doors opened and the nurse turned left, leading their tiny company. Yamaguchi realized belatedly with mute sadness that Mr. Tsukishima probably hadn't been to visit his son before, if he required a nurse to lead the way.
They stopped before a room with Tsukishima's name written on it, with silvery cursive writing on a gold placard screwed to the white door. The nurse bowed to them, and the team members bowed back as a reflex, then she left them. Mr. Tsukishima reached out to push the door open, but his hand stopped just short. Suga recognized hesitation in his posture, and gently pushed the door open in his stead.
Tsukishima was seated upright on the bed, scowling and conversing with his brother, who had his head thrown back and was mid-laughter when he spotted the whole group trotting in on his father's heels. Mirth turned to surprise and joy, he bounced up, greeting his father first. "Father! You decided to come after all? And these…they're Kei's friends! Hello, Suga-san. Hi, others…oh, Yamaguchi! And are those apples?"
Daichi ceremonially handed the apples to Akiteru under Mr. Tsukishima's watchful gaze. "Here. A gift from Asahi, our ace. He's…unfit to visit right now."
"Just come out and say that he's too injured." Came Tsukishima's bored voice from the bed. "Father." He acknowledged with the barest nod.
"Kei." Mr. Tsukishima said.
One word from each of them, and already the room felt way below freezing point. Akiteru looked back and fro between the two of them a little helplessly. "So, uh, Kei. Tell father how you've been doing?"
"Good. Apart from the fact that I got tossed everywhere in a car that flew upside down and blew up, I'm fine." Kei replied deadpan. He threw a glance at his teammates. "Hello."
Yamaguchi took one long, hard look at his friend. He didn't look pretty. The burns trailed all over his face and body, and most of his long, lanky limbs were swathed in thick, white bandages. His face, under the burn scars, was wan and pale. If he still had eyebrows left, Yamaguchi was sure that they would be twitching in annoyance. Most of his hair had been cropped short, close to the skull. He looked tired and irritable, which spelled doom for anyone he didn't harbor good feelings for.
And at the moment, his father was annoying him very much.
"I am aware of that fact." Mr. Tsukishima replied, equally frosty.
"You act like I'm supposed to grovel on my knees right now." Kei shot back piercingly.
Something flashed in Mr. Tsukishima's eyes. "I am your father. I'm entitled to at least some respect from my son. Did your mother not teach you properly?"
Now Akiteru was a little offended too. "Don't drag mom into this!"
"Tsukki-" Yamaguchi tried desperately to defuse the tension, but the rest of his words were drowned by Kei's biting words.
"Blame it all on mom, then. Since the father isn't supposed to do any teaching at all, nor is he supposed to spend any time at home. I haven't seen you in what, two years? And you expect me to respect you just because you're the check which mom rarely needs to cash in, the bank account that keeps growing?"
"It's all for your good!" Mr. Tsukishima was losing his cool fast. Daichi tried to use the captain glare on Kei, but Suga tugged him back. The captain glare never had much effect on the tall middle blocker anyway.
"Let it play out. It's a family matter, and they really need to talk it out right now." Suga whispered to Daichi. "Just step in if someone's about to cross the line."
"What line?" Tanaka whispered back furiously.
"Shut it!" Narita hushed them.
"-suddenly coming to see me only because my friends dragged you along?" Kei was clearly not in the condition to fight with his father, since he winced as he raised his voice. Yamaguchi wondered briefly how bad the damage to his vocal cords was.
"I am concerned for you, Kei! Do you not see it? How much must I give?" Mr. Tsukishima asked, clearly frustrated.
"Sure, how sad, your little porcelain doll is broken!" Kei shot back, frigid ice seeping into his tone.
Akiteru took in a deep breath.
"You are my son! I care for you!" Mr. Tsukishima yelled.
"Both of you stop this." Akiteru said in a level tone. Kei looked like he still wanted to yell, but a cold stare from Akiteru stopped him. Yamaguchi shuddered, having never seen this side of Akiteru before. Their bright light had suddenly went cold, yet still shone, like the sun in the North Pole. "Kei. Drink some water. Father. Calm down. This isn't like you."
Suga had filled a glass with water upon hearing Akiteru's words, and held it in front of Kei's sneering face, trying to coax him into drinking it. Kei relented due to his severely parched throat.
The red in Mr. Tsukishima's pale face started to abate, and he sighed deeply. "I am deeply sorry for allowing you to witness such a scene. I lost my calm for a moment there. Please excuse me, I have business to attend to."
He was running away, and everyone in the room knew it. Nevertheless, even Kei had decided to allow his father this chance of escape and said nothing. Mr. Tsukishima held his head up, dignified, as he made his exit. Once the door shut behind him, Akiteru had cupped his hands around his brother's pale face, looking him in the eye.
"Kei. Kei, look at me." His voice was firm, gentle, but admonishing as well. "Father's worried. He's scared. You're angry. You're hurt. I don't like him all that much either, but he's doing what he thinks best for you. For us. So…stop. Just stop for now, okay?"
Kei looked like he was about to defy his older brother, but then made the mistake of looking up into his brother's hazel eyes. Oval shaped and rounded, just like his own, down to the tiniest detail. A wonder that two pairs of eyes, same in every physical aspect, could look so different. One pair held gentleness and peace, associated with easy smiles and beautiful laughs. Whereas the other pair held nothing but a cool aloofness and a general disdain for the world, his father in particular. The hate swirled, battling for a moment, then it melted away upon contact with Akiteru's eyes. Kei sighed deeply. "Fine."
Akiteru laughed brightly, and everyone in the room remembered to breathe. Yamaguchi shuffled closer to Kei, and nervously started to talk to him, updating him about how everyone's doing. Suga grabbed an apple and produced a peeler, starting to skin the apple and cut it into pieces.
"So he's better." Daichi noted to Akiteru, who had left his position by Kei's bedside so that Yamaguchi could talk to him. The duo had regained their usual dynamics, Yamaguchi chattering away happily and Kei making the occasional snide remark, which would send Yamaguchi into peals of laughter. Kei, upon seeing that, would crack a small smile as well.
"Yes." Akiteru shook Daichi's hand firmly. "Sorry you had to see that-not exactly the warm, happy family picture that father wanted to paint of us."
Tanaka frowned, a little crease forming between his brows as he noted that even Akiteru referred to his own father in just that word-Father. Not something more affectionate like Dad or Pops. Just Father.
Yamaguchi dragged Narita over into their conversation with his good hand. " –so tell him about what he missed when he was out of it. You visited the others more often, so you should know."
"Well, Asahi woke up when En was visiting, and…" The awkwardness Narita had when talking to Kei drained away quickly with Yamaguchi chirping in a small comment here and there, and Kei's apparent effort to please his brother as he at least started making effort to make decent replies to Narita's words, even gaining enough attitude to snark at him occasionally.
Akiteru updated them on Kei's condition, the estimated rate of his recovery, then physical therapy, and how long it would be until he would be able to go home, then return to school, and finally normal life, and maybe, with a small shining grain of hope, volleyball.
Finally, Kei shot his brother an annoyed look, and Akiteru diverted the topic, laughing. Suga distributed the apple slices, and Kei even managed to choke one down despite his lack of appetite. Overall, it was a really warm and happy atmosphere, and everyone managed to forget about the accident for a moment. Kei started getting tired, and finally Suga decided it was time to leave. They exchanged the normal pleasantries, while Kei just sent them looks that said, Please just leave so I can sleep.
And Mr. Tsukishima picked that moment to stroll in casually, like the earlier part of the visit had never happened.
"I trust that you had an enjoyable visit with my son." He said pleasantly. "I must thank you all for coming."
Kei had stiffened, and Akiteru seemed to have stopped breathing since their father entered the room.
"Father." Akiteru said stiffly. "I thought you went to accompany mum."
Mr. Tsukishima shrugged. "I make good use of my time."
In other words, he had been to the company again. Kei felt anger boil, and the pain in his body spiked sharply. Almost time for the pain medication. Kei wasn't in the mood, so chose to ignore his father's presence, sending a sharp nod in his friends' direction-wait. When did he start addressing all of them as friends? Even annoying Tanaka and wallflower Narita?
Suga slowed his movements though, sensing that if Mr. Tsukishima wanted to berate his son, or if Kei wanted to raise a fuss, it would be kept to a minimum with outsiders around. Damage control. Tanaka tapped his foot impatiently, not understanding Suga's sudden slowness.
"Mom was waiting for you." Not even Akiteru felt like making peace right now. He had been with his mother for the majority of the days waiting for Kei to wake up, and taking care of Kei, visiting Kei. He'd seen her breakdowns, her attempts to toughen up and stay strong only to fail miserably. He'd comforted her through a wailing bout of tears after she had a nightmare where Kei was dead.
And his father hadn't taken the heart to spend more than ten minutes with her.
Mr. Tsukishima didn't even look fazed at his elder son being riled up. "I believe in her capability to manage herself."
Color rose in Kei's pale cheeks, and Yamaguchi frantically dug around in his mind for anything he could do to divert attention away from the current situation. The topic was taking a dangerous turn. However, Kei spoke, in a defeated manner.
"I understand that your job is important to you. Go back to Britain then. Go back to your work. We've been managing ourselves for a long time now."
Mr. Tsukishima frowned. "Kei. You've been in a car accident-"
"And that's what it takes to get your attention? Should Mom throw herself in front of a car too?" Kei's voice had a deadly calm to it, and everyone realized just how much he resembled his father in that moment.
Mr. Tsukishima looked affronted. "Of course not! It is just…I am simply too busy…"
His voice trailed off, and Akiteru's eyes flared up with hope. Kei closed his eyes, sighing. A nurse tried to shoo the boys blocking the door away as she tried to enter to give Kei his scheduled pain medication, but caught sight of Mr. Tsukishima and instead opted to wait.
"I will check up on her later, if that is what you wish." He finally said in a long-suffering tone.
Suga's movements quickened, a small smile forming on his face. Perplexed, Tanaka looked at Daichi, only to find the same smile on his face. Narita noticed Tanaka looking confused and stifled a laugh. "Ask them later." He whispered in an amused tone.
Yamaguchi found the Tsukishima family-it had been his first time meeting Mr. Tsukishima! Now he knew the whole family-a bit endearing and sometimes, honestly, idiotic. Mr. Tsukishima was acting like a petulant child being forced to do something. They knew he loved his wife and children, and honestly just couldn't grasp the concept of building a family out of love. He wondered what Mr. Tsukishima had been like when he was younger.
They got out of the nurse's way and left, bidding a polite farewell to Mr. Tsukishima as well. Akiteru promised through a text to Suga on their way home that he would try to time their visits to avoid Mr. Tsukishima.
He can be…intense. And you witnessed way more family drama than you needed to today. Kei's cranky because of it, but don't mind him.
Suga read the text aloud to those in the car. Tanaka humphed a little, thinking that their middle blocker had always been cranky. But Akiteru did have a point. They certainly didn't want to bump into Mr. Tsukishima again and get involved in another awkward scene like today.
Speaking of…
"What were you guys so happy about just now?" He demanded of Narita.
Yamaguchi giggled softly. "Didn't you see? When Tsukki's father promised to go see his mom, he smiled! "
So…more Tsukishima family drama. I'm sorry for not updating this story in ages, and instead being kidnapped by the Maze Runner fandom. I haven't forgotten, I promise! Just like I haven't forgotten my Ao No Exorcist fics…
In the next chapter, there'll be more of Asahi and Ennoshita, so stay tuned! And don't lose hope for at least another two months!
