10
The ears
A soft rapping at the door made Ritsuka look up. He saw himself in the large mirror he was sitting across from, his reflection returning his gaze. His eyes were red from crying, his face wet from his tears and from his nose running. His hair was slightly wet too, from getting rained on a bit when he ran inside. He looked like an overall mess.
"Wh-who is it?" Ritsuka asked, his voice higher than normal.
"Soubi," The soft reply came. "Can I come in?"
Ritsuka sniffled loudly, almost getting up to unlock the door. He stopped, though. "Is…is my dad with you?"
"No, Ritsuka, it's just me. I promise."
Ritsuka got up, padding to the door and turning the lock, opening it cautiously. Soubi was telling the truth. It was just him. Kio was sitting on Soubi's bed, but Ritsuka's father was nowhere to be seen.
Fumbling, Ritsuka reached for the drawing, pulling the folded paper out of the pocket of his flannel pants. His hands shaking, he held it out to Soubi, "I…I drew something for you when you were gone. I'm sorry it's not very good…"
Ritsuka's ears pressed back against his head as Soubi took the drawing from him. He wanted to deny that his hopes soared once Soubi unfolded the drawing. The last time he let his hopes get up, he ended up crushed. That was when his daddy tore up his progress report. He wasn't going to let himself get hurt just because he wanted a 'good job' or a pat on the head. That was a stupid reason to get hurt. Though…it really had felt good to be praised by Soubi when he had gotten good grades…
"…You're smiling," Ritsuka pointed out, noticing that Soubi was smiling as he looked at the drawing. Ritsuka loved that smile. Whenever he saw him smile, he felt his heart beat a little faster and his face go red.
Soubi looked down at him, lowering the paper slightly. "I like this, Ritsuka," Soubi folded the paper back up. "I really like this. Were you practicing with Kio? Your drawing skills have improved by a lot. Can I keep this?"
Ritsuka nodded and stepped forward, wrapping his arms around Soubi's waist. He hugged him tightly, still terrified. His father was still in the hospital somewhere, probably somewhere nearby. He still didn't know if Soubi was hurt or if his dad wanted to hurt Soubi. Would Soubi still protect him from his father? He felt very safe right now, with his arms around the young man and Soubi hugging him back. He would protect him. Soubi loved him. There was nothing to worry about, not when he had Soubi.
"Are you scared, Ritsuka?"
Ritsuka nodded again, ashamed that he was still crying. He cried every day, it seemed like. He just couldn't help it. He still remembered that night in the hotel room and alleyway clearly. It didn't help to look in the mirror or see the mark on his neck. The mark on his neck was especially painful to look at, because Ritsuka knew that lovers left marks like that. They were called 'hickies' or 'love bites'. He wanted Soubi to leave that kind of mark on him, not his father.
Soubi picked Ritsuka up and took him over to the roll away bed, setting him down. "Why are you scared?" He asked, reaching over and scratching the base of the boy's ears. Ritsuka leaned on him, closing his eyes and wanting to sleep. "Is it because I hit your father? Are you angry at me? Are you scared of me?"
"No…None of those…" Ritsuka yawned, then blinked his eyes open. He leaned up, touching Soubi's face, looking for any marks that would signify Soubi being hurt. "Are you hurt, Soubi?"
"No, I'm not. He couldn't even land a punch on me…Oh, Ritsuka, is that what you were afraid of?" The proud smirk disappeared from Soubi's face as he realized why Ritsuka had asked if he was hurt.
"I thought he was going to hurt you," Ritsuka's face heated up and he looked away, attempting to hide his girly blush. "I don't care if you hurt him…but if he hurts you, then…" Ritsuka trailed off, not knowing what to say. It was hard to describe his fear. He couldn't really put it into words.
Soubi's hand moved down, rubbing Ritsuka's back gently. "He didn't hurt me," Soubi said again. "I'm sorry that I worried you. Look, Ritsuka, there's something very important I need to talk to you about. Your kidneys are failing. The doctors got the poison out of your system, but the damage is irreversible. I'm sorry, but…"
"That's why he's here?" Ritsuka interrupted, wide eyed. He hadn't really had the time to wonder why Kiyoshi had come to the hospital, but he would've eventually. It all made sense now. Ritsuka had some unexplainable back pain and other symptoms, but no one had told him those were because his kidneys were failing. It still hurt whenever he went to the bathroom, too, but he had assumed that was just because of the STDs.
"Yes, Kitten," Soubi put an arm around him, pulling him close. "I know you won't want it, but Katsuko-sensei is going to ask him to be a donor."
"No!" Ritsuka immediately protested, grabbing Soubi's jacket with both hands. How could Soubi even suggest that? That…that… no! If Kiyoshi gave him a kidney, it would be inside of Ritsuka forever. A piece of his father…inside him forever…the thought alone made Ritsuka's stomach churn. That part of his father would become a part of him and it would stay inside of him until the day he died. The scar would never go away, either. All these scars—the ones from that night, as well as the bruises on his face—would gradually fade away. A surgery scar wouldn't, though. Every time he would undress, he would be reminded of the piece of his father inside of him.
"Ritsuka…"
"I won't do it!" Ritsuka nearly shouted, pawing at Soubi's suit jacket. "Please, you have to understand!" Ritsuka clenched his eyes shut, holding back the tears. He was tired of crying. He just wanted to lie down and sleep so that he wouldn't have to cry any more. He wanted to sleep and dream only of Soubi, not the haunting nightmares of his father or the vivid, life-like dreams of his brother hurting or killing Soubi.
"Ritsuka, please, just listen to me!" Soubi grabbed Ritsuka by the shoulders, forcing him to look into his eyes. Ritsuka sniffled and hiccuped, the sobs bubbling just below the surface. If he did this, he would feel as though he owed his father something. Why would he want to owe the man who raped him something? The thought alone angered Ritsuka.
"Ritsuka. Please, you need to listen to me," Soubi spoke slowly, but sternly. Ritsuka stopped struggling and looked at Soubi, listening, though still not wanting to do this. "I know that you don't want to do this, but right now Katsuko-sensei and I are the ones making the decisions for you. You deserve to know what's going on and to have a say in it. Right now, though, we have to do this. Once your kidneys fail, you won't live long without dialysis, and even with dialysis, things will still be hard. You'll be tired all the time and you'll be in even more pain than you are now. It'll take a lot of time away from you, and you'll have to do that for the rest of your life. It'll affect your heart, too, which is very dangerous, since you already have a weak heart. Please understand, Ritsuka. I just want you to have a normal life."
Ritsuka stayed quiet. Being tired all the time and being in pain for the rest of his life honestly sounded worse than getting the surgery. Soubi had never made a bad choice, so if he thought this was right, then he was most likely right. It still bothered Ritsuka. He still didn't want a piece of his father permanently inside of him, but the other choice seemed even less appealing. He still wanted to be able to take walks with Soubi and go to the park and go to school…he wouldn't be able to do all that if he was tired all the time. Plus, it really didn't sound like he had a choice, which strangely didn't upset him.
…
Soubi waited until Ritsuka was fast asleep on the roll-away bed to finally stand up and stretch. He glanced down at Ritsuka, the boy buried underneath mounds of blankets and holding his stuffed bear close to him, really looking like the young child he truly was. Soubi quietly left, closing the door behind him so that the noise outside would not wake Ritsuka.
The hallway was deserted except for Kiyoshi sitting in a chair behind the nurse's station, glaring at Soubi and being closely watched by a male nurse and Kio, who was waiting near the nurse's station. At a closer glance, Soubi saw that Kiyoshi was, in fact, handcuffed to the chair he was sitting in.
"Can I see Katsuko-sensei's office, please?" Soubi asked the male nurse, approaching the nurse's station. Kiyoshi just continued to give him a dirty look from behind the desk. Soubi nearly expected him to growl at him or do something equally primitive. The man was nothing more than a child who was pouting due to a lost fight. Couldn't he just accept that Soubi had won their fight a beat him up? He had bruises all over his face from Soubi hitting him multiple times after being tackled by him. His face was now more black and blue than Ritsuka's.
"I believe that she is down in examine room one in the clinic," The male nurse flipped through a few papers, jotting down a note and then handing him the paper, a note sprawled on it. "Take that down to the clinic, Agatsuma-san. They'll let you in to see her."
Wondering why Katsuko was in the clinic, Soubi headed down to the first floor. He whispered a quick request to Kio before going, asking him to sit with Ritsuka and watch him. Kio agreed, immediately going to Ritsuka's room as Soubi left the ward and took the elevator downstairs. He followed the signs in the hallway to the clinic, a large wing filled with sick people. Entire families were here, people of all ages crowding the waiting room. Little children played with colorful toys. Two black-haired twin girls fought over a doll, each of them tugging it from each other.
The children drew Soubi's interest, capturing his thoughts and attention. It wasn't because he liked to watch children. Contrary to Kio's teasing, Soubi absolutely hated children. They annoyed him and caused him to snap at them, which usually ended up with them crying. That was how be lost his job teaching kids to paint after only one day. Lately, though, he was able to tolerate kids more. 'Tolerate' for Soubi, meant being able to resist snapping at them. When he took Ritsuka to parks, sometimes he would sit back and watch instead of playing with him. He would occasionally let his eyes wander, and would watch the other children, not just Ritsuka and his friends.
When he watched children, he didn't find himself liking them any more than when he would interact with them (excluding Ritsuka, of course). Instead, he felt a different strange emotion. Jealousy. He felt jealous. He didn't just feel it for himself; he felt it for Ritsuka, too. Whenever he looked back over at Ritsuka, he saw the child hesitating, as if he thought he might be doing something wrong. Actually, it seemed more like he didn't know how to play like the other children. The other kids would romp around, giggling and playing on the equipment, when Ritsuka didn't seem to know how to put one foot in front of the other on a playground.
The feeling of jealously was odd to Soubi, especially when he was feeling it for someone else. He had almost never felt jealous. He had been the best Fighter Seven Voices had ever seen. He had graduated first and a year early. He won almost every fight and battle. Of course, he'd always looked longingly at the others who had friends and would not get 'special attention' from Ritsu. Now, though he was feeling jealousy towards the kids in the waiting room. They were all so innocent and had nothing to worry about, nothing other than what was in front of them. They didn't have to deal with the heartache and hurt that Ritsuka and Soubi had to.
"Hello."
Soubi startled, caught off guard. He turned away, tearing his eyes away from the children. Behind him, in one of the waiting room chairs, was Kiyoshi's boyfriend. What interested Soubi the most right now, was the red mark on his face that looked suspiciously similar to a hand print.
Soubi cleared his throat, finding his voice again, "Hello."
"You're…Agatsuma Soubi, right? Katsuko-san was speaking to me about you before she went into the examining room. She was also talking about Ritsuka-san. Ah, I suppose I should introduce myself. I'm Doctor Shidoku Koichi. I'm a pediatrician here at the hospital and Kiyoshi's boyfriend."
Soubi wasn't sure how to react to this man. He'd watched Soubi beat up Kiyoshi, but he was still acting so friendly. Thankfully, he was saved from having to respond by Katsuko-sensei calling out to him, leaning out the door of the first examination room.
Soubi went over to her, slipping into the well-lit, small examination room. Katsuko sat back on the examination table, holding an icepack to her right cheek. Curious, Soubi shut the door, standing in front of Katsuko, studying her. The icepack was covering up the entire right side of her face, making it impossible to see whatever had happened.
"What…?" Soubi started to say.
"Ritsuka's father hit me," Katsuko answered, interrupting Soubi. "He slapped Koichi-san, too, when he asked if he raped Ritsuka-kun. That's why he's handcuffed upstairs."
Soubi stared at her for a few moments, shocked. Kiyoshi was violent, even when he was sober. He had hit Ritsuka's therapist, as well as his boyfriend. That was just inexcusable. Neither of them had done anything. Kiyoshi was just taking his anger out on innocent people.
"Sensei, there's something I wanted to ask you. I think it's starting to bother Ritsuka, too," Soubi sat on the rolling doctor's chair, moving it in front of Katsuko.
"His ears?" Katsuko-sensei guessed, lowering her icepack a bit, and giving Soubi a glimpse at the dark bruising of her face.
Soubi silently nodded.
"His ears…well, that's a rather complicated topic. In rare cases, when a child loses their innocence against their will, the psychological effect of the trauma prevents them from the physical dropping of ears."
"Will he ever lose them?" Soubi continued, having never heard of that.
Katsuko sighed and thought for a moment, "Maybe, if he can come to terms with what happened. Other than that, not until he has sex willingly."
…
Ritsuka had strange dreams after he fell asleep. Soubi had coaxed him into sleeping, telling him that if he was tired, then he should lay down. He whispered sweet words to Ritsuka, holding his hands and pressing kisses on sleepy Ritsuka's lips. Ritsuka kissed back drowsily, closing his eyes and listening to Soubi's voice as he was wrapped in the warmness of it. Ritsuka had wrapped his arms around Soubi in one final attempt to keep him there. Soubi then began to whisper a story to him, a memorized one called Romeo and Juliet. Ritsuka fell into a deep sleep, thinking of that story, and also of the one that Soubi had told him on his first day in the hospital.
In the first dream, Ritsuka found himself in an amusement park, one he went to with Soubi sometimes. It was a gloomy day, with clouds overhead, foreshadowing rain that was about to come. What made Ritsuka even more nervous was that the amusement park was completely deserted. Not a single person ran by or was riding the Ferris wheel. Nobody bought food from the venders or sat on the benches. Ritsuka stood in the middle of the park, near the fountain, looking around rapidly, trying to find someone, somewhere.
"Soubi!" He yelled out, his voice echoing throughout the entire park. No, no, no. This couldn't be happening. This was what Ritsuka feared the most—being left all alone. He couldn't live without having someone with him. He hated being alone and having others forget about him.
"Behind you, Ritsuka."
Ritsuka turned around a little too quickly, jumping at the voice. Seimei stood behind him, no smile on his face. His expression was somber, at best, and looked like he was either depressed or in pain. Maybe both. Ritsuka stayed where he was, not moving, too shocked. He didn't want to run to Seimei, too scared of what he had done, of what he would do. What if he tried to kiss him…or do something more? Soubi wasn't around to protect Ritsuka.
"Relax, Ritsuka," Seimei instructed, opening his arms to Ritsuka and crouching down. "I know you love Soubi. I'm not going to do anything to you and I haven't done anything to him."
Ritsuka hesitated, but then padded over to his older brother. Seimei wrapped him in his arms, hugging him tightly in the way he would before his 'death'.
"This is a dream," Seimei told him, not loosening his hold. "I'm sorry that this is the only way we can communicate."
Ritsuka pulled away slightly, all the memories of the hospital coming back to him. "Seimei…are…are you here to take me away?"
Ritsuka still loved his older brother, but he loved Soubi more. He didn't want to go with Seimei. He didn't want to know of all the things Seimei had done. Seimei had killed and hurt people. Ritsuka just wanted to stay with Soubi and continue his life with him. Things were already hard enough for him. Things would just be better if Seimei just stayed AWOL.
"No, Ritsuka," Seimei smiled, but only for a moment. "I'm not here to hurt anyone. I'm not here to take you away from Soubi. I'm not here to take Soubi away from you. Trust me, brother. I'm just here to talk. That's all. This is just a dream."
"What are you here to talk about?" Ritsuka loosely wrapped his arms around Seimei's neck, wondering if he was wrong to trust him. There was a dream-like quality to this place. It seemed likely that Seimei was telling the truth.
"I want you to stay away from him, Ritsuka," Seimei spoke seriously, looking right into Ritsuka's eyes.
Ritsuka blinked in confusion, "Soubi?"
"No. Kiyoshi, Ritsuka. Our father. Don't go near him. He's sick."
"Sick?" Ritsuka repeated, not really following. Sick meant ill or diseased. Sick was when Soubi took Ritsuka to the clinic at two in the morning because of a fever. Sick was when Ritsuka had his heart surgery and was suffering from the effects of the poison. Sick was when both Natsuo and Youji got the flu and Ritsuka spent the day helping Soubi take care of them. Sick was when Ritsuka spent the entire day in a fevered state because his father wouldn't take him to the doctor. Sick wasn't his father. His father never got sick. He never coughed or even sneezed. It was as if he was immune to sickness.
"Yes. I know this is hard for you to understand right now. Kiyoshi is sick in the head. He hurt you again. He's a horrible man, Ritsuka."
"Again?" Ritsuka repeated. Sure, Kiyoshi had yelled at him and ignored him, but that wasn't what Seimei was talking about.
Seimei nodded, "Don't worry about it, Ritsuka. Just stay with Soubi, alright? Don't stray from his side."
…
"Agatsuma-san!"
Slightly angered about someone preventing him from leaving to see Ritsuka, Soubi stopped, turning to face Kiyoshi's boyfriend, Shidoku Koichi. He was still in the waiting room, the red mark on his face slowly fading. Katsuko was with Soubi, both of them going back up to the ward to check on Ritsuka and talk to Kiyoshi. The man was still fuming, Soubi predicted, even though he had no reason to be pissed off. Soubi, on the other hand, did. Kiyoshi had scared Ritsuka by fighting with Soubi, had denied raping him, and had taken his anger out on Katsuko-sensei and on his boyfriend, both of whom had done nothing to irk him.
"I'd like to meet Ritsuka-san," Koichi-san told Soubi, a determined look on his face. At a closer distance, Soubi could see differences between him and Ritsuka, though he could see more similarities, as well. He wasn't bad looking. If Soubi had been normal and not involved with Ritsuka, he may have seen this man as attractive.
Soubi narrowed his eyes, slightly suspicious, "Why?"
"Please," Koichi-san begged quietly. "I'm close to Kiyoshi. Really close. But…I know about his drinking problems and I know there are secrets he keeps from me and hides from everyone. I want to know…if he really hurt Ritsuka-san."
This man seemed to have good intentions, but Soubi remembered that Kiyoshi had let his friends have sex with Ritsuka, as well. What if this man had been one of the men who Ritsuka had been sold to? Seeing him would cause the poor boy to have a complete breakdown. Of course, this man appeared to be kind and have the simple goal of helping, but Soubi knew first-hand that facades could be very convincing. He wasn't an idiot. He was far from it, actually. He could see through most people's fronts, even the most practiced ones. However, this man came off as very sincere, and caused Soubi to, for once, not know the true intentions of this man.
"You can come meet him," Katsuko-sensei answered before Soubi could make up his mind. Soubi hesitated before nodding, knowing that he would be the one to introduce little Ritsuka to this man. He was a pediatrician. Maybe he could help with Ritsuka a little.
…
In Ritsuka's next dream, Ritsuka was in the world that Soubi had told him about during the first day in the hospital, when Ritsuka had been afraid to sleep. In this world, Ritsuka dreamed that he was an English Earl in a big, lonely manor with only his teacher, Kio, to take care of him. The boy walked around in the dreary, soft-feeling dream, oblivious to it being a product of his subconscious, but having the feeling that something was off and not right.
Ritsuka went through all of his lessons with Kio, which included everything from shouting out algebra answers at Kio to lessons in etiquette (Ritsuka barely even knew those things when he was awake). Afterward, he had a rather lonely dinner with the teacher. Then, Kio took him to the top floor and got him ready for bed. An hour later, Ritsuka slipped into the large canopy bed, Kio tucking him in and surrounding him in blankets, as if that made the bed any less lonely, before retiring to the bedroom adjunct to Ritsuka's. Ritsuka had trouble sleeping. He felt empty, and had nothing to hold onto, no one warm to snuggle and cuddle with. There was no one to kiss him until he fell asleep or anyone to tell him stories or to remind him that he was loved. He considered going into Kio's room, but he knew that he wasn't the one he wanted…
Ritsuka didn't know how long he lied in bed. He had had three bouts of lighting candles, reading for about an hour, and then turning off the light and trying to sleep again. He kept getting startled by the slightest noises. Finally, when the Earl felt like he was on the verge of sleep, he felt the bed dip and someone violently grab his wrists and pinned them above his head.
Ritsuka tried to sit up, but the older man held him down. He smelled of booze and his hands were rough as one locked around his wrists and the other ventured under his shirt, pinching harshly at Ritsuka's nipples and making scratches on his small chest.
"Shhh," The man shushed as Ritsuka screamed, yelling for Kio. The other man laughed, his voice almost as rough and calloused as his hands. "No one's coming to save you, Earl." He spat the word, mocking Ritsuka's title. Ritsuka didn't obey, He recognized that voice. It was his father.
The elder's hand dropped down, sneaking into Ritsuka's pajama bottoms, grabbing him roughly. He ripped the boy's bottoms off then and…
With a scream, Ritsuka was torn out of the dream. He thrashed around, trying his hardest to come down and reenter the real world completely. That wasn't real, he told himself again and again. He's not here. He's not here. He's not here. Ritsuka swallowed hard, sitting up, staring down at his shaking hands. He started repeating real information in his head, something that he found helped him leave the dream.
My name is Aoyagi Ritsuka.
I'm thirteen years old.
My birthday is December twenty-first.
I have a mother, a father, a brother, and my best friend's name is Agatsuma Soubi.
My father raped me.
I'm in seventh grade.
My teachers want me to skip a grade.
I'm in the hospital.
I'm fine.
Ritsuka knew that last statement was a complete fabrication. He was not fine and he wouldn't be for a long, long time. Silently, Ritsuka watched the shaking of his hands slowly cease as he thought one last statement.
I wet the bed again.
…
"No!" Kiyoshi tried to stand, causing his hand to be violently yanked back and the chair to jump. He sat back down, rubbing his wrist with the handcuff on it.
Katsuko-sensei looked back at Soubi, silently asking for help. They'd been at this for nearly ten minutes, with Katsuko and Koichi-san trying to convince Kiyoshi to donate a kidney to Ritsuka. Soubi stood behind them, silent, too pissed off to say anything. Why Kiyoshi didn't want to help his son was beyond Soubi. After everything, he thought that Kiyoshi would at least try to make up for all that he had done. But no, he was still denying doing anything to Ritsuka. Even Koichi-san had tried to calmly talk Kiyoshi into it.
"Why not?" Soubi finally asked, deciding to help, though fully knowing it wouldn't go well.
"That kid is a liar!" Kiyoshi shouted. He yanked at the handcuff, as if suspecting it to break. "I did not rape him! I bet he isn't even sick! I raised him better than that!"
"You didn't raise him at all!" Soubi retaliated, forgetting to keep his voice down so he wouldn't wake the exhausted little boy in the room not far from the nurse's station. "You just ignored him! You didn't take care of him or spend any time with him! The only time you even acknowledged him was when you beat him and forced him to pleasure you!"
"No!" Kiyoshi pulled violently at the handcuff, staring up at Soubi in what appeared to be fear. "Let me go! I'm being framed!" He looked at Koichi-san in panic, words flying out of his mouth a mile a minute. "He framed me! He took my kid to the hospital to try to frame me! You believe me…right, Koichi?"
…
Shaking. Ritsuka couldn't get the shaking to stop. He was trembling hard, having tremors that racked through his entire body. His back ached from sleeping in the springy roll-away bed. He didn't want to move to his hospital bed, though. Strangely, this one was more comfortable and less stiff, but the real reason Ritsuka liked it was because it smelled strongly of Soubi.
"Ritsuka? Ritsuka what's wrong?"
Kio was at Ritsuka's side instantly, kneeling down. Ritsuka breathed hard, his lungs feeling drowned. He felt like a fish out of water, unable to get enough air, which resulted in him taking deep, starved breaths that made a sound like some sort of wheeze. He looked around frantically, searching the room for Soubi. Above everything else, he only wanted him here with him, to tell him that it was alright that he wet the bed and to help him into the bathroom. He wanted his comfort and his warmth. He just wanted Soubi here.
…
Koichi-san shook his head, visibly and clearly tensing up, "I…I don't know what to believe, Kiyoshi."
"Aoyagi-san, please," Katsuko-sensei tried again, basically begging. Soubi's mood fell even more, knowing that if Kiyoshi didn't agree to donating, Ritsuka wouldn't be able to live a normal life. That was all Soubi really wanted for him. He didn't really have any other wants for Ritsuka other than that, as well as hoping that he wouldn't outgrow Soubi. Of course, he did want Ritsuka to graduate first and get into a good school, especially since his teachers wanted him to graduate middle school early, but all those things seemed a bit insignificant next to Soubi's want for Ritsuka to have a childhood.
"Ritsuka needs this," Katsuko continued. "Think about what it'll be like for Ritsuka-kun. What kind of child wants to be on dialysis for three hours nearly every day? "
"Let him," Kiyoshi growled, his voice still loud. At that moment, Soubi had the overbearing urge to lock his hands around his neck and squeeze the life out of him. He could only imagine how good that would feel. This man was his mortal enemy, the one Soubi strove to defeat. 'Defeat' in this case, meant 'kill' or 'severely injure'.
"How could you say that?"
Soubi looked at Koichi-san, surprised at the anger in his voice. Soubi was reminded, then, that Koichi-san was a pediatrician. He would know what was best for Ritsuka. He would realize that Ritsuka would have a harder than necessary life. Why would Kiyoshi want his child to suffer when he was a perfectly acceptable donor? Soubi was beginning to think that Kiyoshi was simply just sick and slowly going insane.
"Wha…what do you mean?" Kiyoshi stopped yelling, his voice something like a shocked whisper.
Soubi tuned both Kiyoshi and Koichi-san out, retreating into his own mind. There had to be something that he could use against him, something that could make Kiyoshi feel so guilty that he would have to agree to be Ritsuka's donor. But Soubi couldn't think of anything he could use against Kiyoshi. He really hadn't talked to him, they'd just yelled at each other, and Soubi didn't believe he was mentally able to actually talk to him calmly. He couldn't let him into the same room as Ritsuka, either, even if the child was asleep. Even Soubi could barely stand being in the same room as Kiyoshi. There was no telling what would happen if Ritsuka saw him.
I need to think. There has to be something. Something didn't feel right. There was something, something that Soubi knew could and would help. He just couldn't reach it. It was there, but out of his reach. He racked his brain, going over their conversation again and again, analyzing every word. After a few minutes, he was unconvinced there was anything he could use, but still not ready to give up. Finally, it dawned on him. Kiyoshi had let something slip when he had been yelling at Soubi just a few minutes before. This 'something' was so small that Soubi, Katsuko, and Koichi had overlooked it.
"Wait," Soubi interrupted Koichi calmly. The older man fell silently instantly, waiting for Soubi to talk. "You messed up," Soubi told Kiyoshi, smirking slightly. "Just a few minutes ago you said 'He took my kid to the hospital to try to frame me'. How did you know that I took Ritsuka to the hospital?"
…
"Ritsuka, what happened?"
Ritsuka barely registered Kio's voice. He was still trying to steady his hands and shake the dream from his head. His pajama bottoms were hot and sticky, as well as a couple of the blankets, though that was unnoticeable because he had only gotten the bottom few blankets wet, not the top ones. It was still embarrassing, and now Soubi would have to go home to wash the blankets and Ritsuka's clothes.
"I…I…" Ritsuka swallowed nervously, his face beat red with embarrassment. "I… um… wet… the bed."
Ritsuka wouldn't look at Kio, too fearful that he would be mad. Finally, the shaking was stopping. He was started to calm down. His wheezing had ceased completely and he was no longer stuck in the vivid, terrible dream. His back ache, was going away, too. The pain in his heart wasn't, though. He remembered how lonely that dream had felt, even though he had had Kio taking care of him. He'd had a strange longing, an emptiness in his heart that could only be filled by Soubi.
"Do you want me to get Soubi?" Kio asked him softly, putting a gentle hand on his arm.
Ritsuka could only nod.
…
Kiyoshi froze for a moment and then looked from Soubi to Koichi-san in clear worry. It was obvious he knew he'd been caught. Soubi wouldn't fall for any of his tricks. That one simple sentence had given him away, letting Soubi know that Kiyoshi remembered everything about the night he raped Ritsuka. He remembered taking the small child's innocence away and beating him and making him perform oral sex on men he didn't even know. He not only make him do that, but he actually let other men have sex with his son. He had sold Ritsuka as a prostitute against his wishes and hadn't made the men fucking him wear protection. It was lucky that the two STDs Ritsuka had gotten were fairly common and very easily treatable.
"I just assumed," Kiyoshi said quickly, frowning, probably trying to think of a way to get out of this.
"No you didn't," Soubi argued. Kiyoshi was clearly lying. Everyone could tell, not just Soubi.
Soubi couldn't say anything more, though, since the next thing he knew, Kio was tapping him on the shoulder and pulling at his arm to get his attention. Soubi turned his attention to him, immediately suspecting something wrong with Ritsuka.
"Ritsuka wet the bed again," Kio told him softly, though loud enough for Kiyoshi to hear. This earned a small 'he did what?' from him, but Kio and Soubi both ignored it. "He needs you."
…
When Kio brought Soubi back, Ritsuka couldn't help but throw himself at him and wrap his arms around him tightly. Soubi just smiled, picking him up and carrying him to the bathroom. Ritsuka apologized again and again, clinging onto Soubi, embarrassed and ashamed of wetting the bed. God, he was thirteen. That was way too old to be doing this, even if he did have frequent dreams about his father. Soubi said it was alright, though, and that he wasn't angry or disappointed. That helped, but Ritsuka kept on beating himself about it. He was worried that Soubi would eventually get tired of it and not let Ritsuka sleep with him or in his bed.
The fear returned to Ritsuka once Soubi set him down on his feet in the bathroom and then turned to leave. Ritsuka knew that Soubi was just respecting his privacy, but he didn't want that. He didn't want to be alone, even though a shower would only be fifteen or so minutes. So, Ritsuka pulled at Soubi's sleeve, telling him to stay, pleading. Soubi just hugged him again and kissed his nose, telling him that he'd sit in the bathroom and talk with him. Ritsuka had just nodded, giving Soubi another small hug before blushing and peeling his wet clothes off, hurrying into the shower.
"What'd you do with Kio while I was talking to the lawyer?" Soubi asked as Ritsuka turned on the water, sitting on the little stool that was provided. The warm water felt good on his sticky and aching skin. The stool was a relief, too, so Ritsuka wouldn't have to stand on his bad leg.
"We…we played games and he took me to the cafeteria to get lunch and then I asked him to teach me to draw a cat, so I could draw something for you…" Ritsuka washed himself quickly as he spoke. He wished that there was a bath in the private bathroom, rather than a shower. He remembered when Soubi would give him a bath. He had started doing that right after he found Ritsuka on the floor after his father beat him and sexually abused him for the first time. He wondered if it was wrong that he had liked it when Soubi would gently wash him and thoroughly wash his hair.
"That's good, Ritsuka. I don't have any classes tomorrow, so I can stay with you all day," Soubi sounded like he was smiling. Ritsuka could always tell when he was smiling, even if he couldn't see him. "If you want, after you're done with your shower, I'll get you something to eat from the cafeteria. Oh, but I think I have to go to school for a little bit tonight. Is that okay, Ritsuka?"
Ritsuka paused in washing his hair, thinking for a moment. Soubi had been going to some of his classes the past few days, but Kio usually watched Ritsuka while he went, not because he needed a babysitter, but because he didn't like to be alone. "Yeah, that's alright," Ritsuka told Soubi finally. "Can Kio stay with me?"
"I'm sure he'll be fine with that. He doesn't mind staying with you, Ritsuka. Whenever I come back and he's watching you, he always tells me how good you were and how you never misbehave."
Ritsuka blushed, even though Soubi couldn't see it. By now, the fear of the dream had completely left him. He felt tremendously better, from both the warm water and from talking to Soubi.
Soon, he was done in the shower and asked Soubi if he'd help him put his clothes on, using the excuse that he was sleepy again. Soubi wrapped him in a warm towel and dried his hair with another, smiling and kissing Ritsuka gently on the lips before leaving. He came back with another pair of pajamas for Ritsuka and began to gently pull them on, not touching Ritsuka in any way that the young teen didn't want.
Ritsuka yawned loudly as Soubi did the buttons on Ritsuka's pajama shirt, the two of them still in the bathroom. "Soubi," He started, half closing his eyes and yawning again. "Why am I always so tired?"
"You're just still recovering from your surgery and from getting sick, Kitten," Soubi replied, buttoning the last buttons on Ritsuka's shirt. "It's alright."
Soubi carried Ritsuka to the roll-away bed, then laying him down and covering him up with the remaining blankets. Ritsuka noticed that someone had taken away the wet blankets and sheets and put new sheets on the bed. Soubi sat on the bed with him, taking his hand in his own. Katsuko-sensei was in the room, too, leaning on the hospital bed and looking at Soubi and Ritsuka. There was another man in the doorway, a man Ritsuka didn't recognize, but he just assumed he was a doctor or a nurse.
"Are you okay, Ritsuka-kun?" Katsuko-sensei questioned softly. "Soubi-san's friend told me you had a bad dream."
Ritsuka nodded, squeezing Soubi's hand, happy that he and Katsuko were becoming friends. It was nice that Soubi was finally making another friend other than Kio. He had so few people skills. The people at his college barely approached him, though it did seem to be better now than it had when Ritsuka had first met him.
"Go to sleep, Ritsuka," Soubi leaned down and Ritsuka closed his eyes as he kissed Ritsuka's forehead. "I love you. I'll stay here until you fall asleep."
…
"Hey, you!"
Soubi was on his way out of the hospital, heading to the university to go to one of his night classes. He had left a detailed note with Ritsuka, telling him that he'd be taking Kio's laptop in case he woke up and wanted to get in touch with him. He'd left Ritsuka with Kio and Koichi, after introducing the boy to the pediatrician. Ritsuka had been completely fine with him and had fallen asleep soon after.
"Hey!" Kiyoshi called again. Soubi groaned, really not wanting to deal with Kiyoshi at the moment. Nevertheless, he turned around, finding Kiyoshi still chained to the chair, looking exhausted.
"What do you want?" Soubi sneered, suspecting that Kiyoshi had nothing useful to say.
"I'll…I'll do the transplant. For Ritsuka. There's one thing, though. I want him to come to our family reunion. It's in about a week. If he doesn't want to, that's fine. I'll still do the transplant, but I'd still like him to. I know you won't let me, but I'd like to apologize. Just… just ask him to come to the reunion, will you?"
…
Here's chapter 10.
Chapter 11 and 12 will both be extra chapters. Thirteen will resume with the normal story. 11 and 12 will be called 'looks' and will all be written in first person, present tense. Chapter eleven is Koichi and Kiyoshi's points of view. Chapter 12 is Seimei, Katsuko, Natsuo and Youji, Nisei, and MAYBE Kio. I have 11 done at the moment, and in my opinion, it turned out phenomenal. I've deemed it the creepiest thing I've ever written.
I included a little more information about Seimei in this chapter. I'm pleased to hear all of your theories, but I'm not going to say anything, since if I do, that'll give it away. It should become pretty clear in chapter 11. Oh, and I wanted to say a couple things about Koichi. First of all, Koichi is his first/given name, and Shidoku is his last/family/surname. Koichi is written like this: 光一and means shining first child. Usually, I'm not too fond of fan characters in fanfictions, but I don't see him as a fan character. He will be in the story more but will end up as a side character like Katsuko and Kio. I'll also remove him if he receives bad response, though I do think I'm going to need him for the ending.
Anyways, enough of my rambling! Thanks to Mewmew Kitty 3, big machine, lolita, Heavensentskysky, the reviewer who didn't leave a name, Zuzruna, Cereal-Killa, Nie2294, Hadesgate51, A-kun, Jazzie29, xLovelessBeloved, ASTROZOMBIE8, xxpsychocupcake, Ritsuka-chan1092, CrapXhead, Gurgicalcipher, Dark Neko 4000, InnocentUke97, Tlcatlady, Promocat, Riaries, Tamer Lorika, Serenity Lhane, and DarkAngel048 for reviewing! I love that you guys like this fic so much! I honestly never expected it to get so much attention!
So, how'd I do with the explanation of the ears? And did I surprise you guys with Kiyoshi getting violent with Katsuko and Koichi?
Please review for a quick update!
~Wolfie
Ps: I'm thinking of doing something with the song Exile Vilify because I really feel that it fits the mood of this story and the lyrics fit, too.