Life flow fast around me. It imprisons me in the need of hurryingly resolve it. I might die.
The present chokes me while the future I can't reach fades away from my touch. Useless wit won't give me a way out.
I can't make it alone.
But then my support leaves me. You leave me.
That tornado left me on the ground bleeding. There I could see the path leading away from it.
Away from hurt, pain, desolation, eternal uncertainty.
Out to the future.
No threating life.
I raised my gaze to the bright path.
You were gone.
When that time is gone and in my mind all that's remaining is the memory of a distant confusion, there's no more place in my mind for you.
Nothing but indifference, that's my instinct towards you.
For the one who has abandoned me.
-._.-.-._._.-.-._.
That morning the sun illuminated the hospital room where Takumi still slept in. Gii was there too. Unlike his beloved he could hardly sleep, a bit anxious he watched the doctor coming in, not for the first time that morning, to check on Takumi.
After the doctor was done checking his values, Gii asked about his conditions.
"His body has recovered, we expect him to wake up any time"
"But he should have awaken long ago"
"There's nothing to worry about, there's no equal time for everyone, each person has his own healing pace, if he's taking longer it doesn't necessary mean something bad"
"I see" he relented a bit calmer but still worried.
-._.-.-._._.-.-._.
"I see"
I know that voice.
He's talking again. I know him.
"It's hard to say exactly how much it'll take, why don't you try to rest a bit?"
Why.. I need to hear him again.
"Thanks but I'm fine"
It's him. I know!
Gii.
Tired eyelids open up a notch after a long sleep.
It's too soon for eyes to make out the form of two people in the midst, standing near him, and surprised eyes directed to him.
Gii stood staring, he couldn't believe that what he was waiting for finally happened. The doctor was faster to move and immediately was next to Takumi and pressed the button to call a nurse.
"I'm doctor Asami, you're in hospital, can you remember your name?"
Takumi didn't make a start to talk, he just moved his eyes to lay, and focus, on the person talking to him, but other than that he didn't do anything else.
There was silence for a few seconds, before Gii had the time to worry or ask anything though, two nurses arrived and while one led Gii away from the room, they visited Takumi.
-._.-.-._._.-.-._.
Gii waited outside for an eternity, as it felt to him, before he could speak to the doctor.
"His memories of the latest hours are confused, at the moment he's not able to tell reality clearly, other than that he seems to be fine so it won't take long for him to recover completely"
'complete recover' that was the thing Gii wished to hear the most.
"Can I see him?"
"For no more than one minute, he needs to rest so please refrain from making questions or doing anything that could tire him"
Assuring that he would Gii could finally walk inside.
As soon as he walked through the door his eyes fixed on his beloved who was sitting on his bed looking ahead absent mindedly.
"Takumi" he called immediately
Takumi turned right away to the one calling his name and recognized Gii immediately, even so his expression didn't change much. Takumi looked at him only for a moment with a blank expression and a hint of sadness in his eyes before casting his eyes and turning back his head.
Gii wasn't expecting that, worried he took slow steps closer, carefully trying to read him. But as he was close, it was like Takumi curled trying to distance himself from him, and tightened his fist holding the sheet as Gii made it closer still.
Gii froze on the spot. It was clear that Takumi didn't want him near him. And it broke his heart.
An awkward silence fell between them until their friends entered the room. Akaike, Misu, Shingyouji and Toshihisa came together and greeted their friend, having gotten permission from school for that morning, relieved smiles covering their faces.
Takumi raised his head and looked at them with a bit of surprise in his eyes, it didn't look like he wasn't pleased to see them. As they were asking him how he was feeling, a broken whisper reached Takumi's hears "Takumi.."
But he didn't respond, instead he kept avoiding his eyes and his head turned away from Gii. "My head's spinning a bit." He only answered to his friends with a small voice.
In that moment Ishimura sensei came in too "Hayama-kun, I'm glad to see you awake"
"Thank you sensei" he responded a bit embarrassed.
Gii was reading him perfectly, he felt Takumi's feelings towards him piercing his heart. Quietly he backed away and walked outside the room. As he did, the doctor walked inside and told the visitors in the room to leave so that the patient could rest.
As the others nodded, Akaike looked around looking for his best friend only to find him gone.
Takumi was once again alone with his doctor, "Can I ask you something?" Takumi said as the doctor turned around to him "Of course, what is it?"
"How did I ended up here?"
The doctor then told him how he was found on the floor out of consciousness and was taken here with an ambulance.
Takumi stared into space for a while under the watchful eyes of his doctor "How are you feeling?" he asked then.
Takumi broke his stare "Uhm.. confused" he could only say, his doctor was glad that he wasn't feeling any physical pain, and now confident that he'll get well soon, told him "After a good sleep you'll be just fine"
and with that he left his patient to his needed rest.
-._.-._.-._.
Takumi passed a long time trying to think of the previous day and what happened. When he woke up he was still sure he was trapped somewhere risking his life, that somewhere took different faces the more he thought about it. Different scenarios came crushing one on another and he found it hard to reveal the truth hidden in his head.
Then there was Gii..
His heart jumped painfully and he felt more confused than ever.
It was time for him to eat and as the nurse brought him his breakfast, his friends came in to tell him they had to go back but would return in the evening, as the doctor recommended they didn't take long and let him rest.
Only after a long time Takumi finally gave up to sleep.
-._.-.-._._.-.-._.
While their friends saw and talked to Takumi a second time, Gii made sure to stay away, but since he couldn't possibly leave until his beloved was still hospitalized, he spent all his time in a waiting room nearby.
Oppressed by his thoughts he didn't notice time passing and almost missed noticing Ishimura sensei walking towards him.
"Here" sensei said handing him a box, Gii looked down to it perplexed "What is it?"
"Bento. It's way past lunch time, you need to eat"
Ishimura sensei didn't lose sight of him too and apart from being worried for his health he also wondered how come he was keeping his distance like that, after everything he did to spend all his time with the other student, now that he was fine it just made no sense to him.
When Gii took it gratefully and sat down starting to eat, sensei stayed too and finally asked "Why didn't you go to Hayama's room too, with your friends?"
Gii was moving his hand slowly to hold his chopsticks, it was clear he wasn't that keen on eating.
"I can't" he only said, never raising his sad eyes, and making it all look even more strange. He didn't say anymore so sensei noting with a sigh he wasn't going to eat either, decided to tell him what they thought it happened in that maintenance room.
That at least gained him his student's attention as part of his sadness was gone from his eyes replaced by his desire to know.
"He tried without success to break the door open. Then it seems that his intention was to escape from the window, he managed to break it but he had to jump from the cabinet to be able to reach it. Thing is that cabinet wasn't stable enough so as he leant forward to jump the support under his feet gave away. He still managed to reach the window though, he hung by his hands and from his wounds you can tell that he tried but then fell, it was high enough and he hit his head, it was good luck that there was no damage."
Gii closed his eyes. Thinking about what could have happened, and how close he went to lose the most important person in his life.. his heart clenched, thank God he was fine.
"What about Kamenashi and the others?" Gii asked after a while, with some anger in his voice.
"They've been expelled right away and will have to face the consequences of what they did"
Ishimura sensei then added "Eat now. And try to rest, you've been given special permission to stay here all the time needed for your friend to come back to school, but I won't allow you extra time to rest once you're both back"
It was said seriously but the playful undertone was clear and Gii appreciated the concern "Hai sensei" he said with a faint smile.
-._.-.-._._.-.-._.
It was late in the evening, the second and last visiting time of the day, and Takumi's friends could come again from school to see him.
When Takumi woke up in the evening after long hours of deep sleep, he realized how his earlier memories were only a strange dream, and how he confused them for reality when he gained consciousness.
This time, during the visit of his friends they talked about what happened, they told him about what they did and what they knew about what happened to him; Takumi told them his memories, as everything started to get more clear, like a veil disappeared slowly revealing the surface beneath it.
Suddenly the dream covering the truth disappeared, he remembered everything perfectly.
"Hayama-san how are you feeling? Do you want me to call a doctor?"
Takumi had spaced out for a moment but then raised his face with a smile "No, thank you Shingyouji-kun, I'm fine"
But then he felt more aware of Gii's absence and, looking at a void space next to the others, his heart tightened. Even if he looked downwards his friends didn't miss it and immediately guessed right about that change of his mood.
-._.-.-._._.-.-._.
When the visiting time was over, Akaike reached his best friend before having to return to school with the others.
Gii was in the same room Ishimura found him that afternoon.
"Gii" Akaike called and as he saw him he worried for his friend more than he already was; he already knew that there was something eating his friend but he didn't imagine to see him so sad.
"Shouzou" Gii finally managed a small smile. Seeing that expression Akaike immediately resolved he had to help him, it didn't matter if he had to break curfew.
-._.-.-._._.-.-._.
Takumi was restless now. He was pacing the room and couldn't calm down. He felt guilty for the way he had surely made Gii feel when he felt he couldn't stay near him; now that his mind was cleared up he had to see him. The need to got stronger and stronger. He knew it was late and that there was the chance that Gii was back to school now, but..
Takumi walked out his room, he had to look for him, if only there was the smallest chance he was still there, he had to find him.
There weren't many people around, and all was quiet. Takumi checked the rooms next to his before finding the waiting area for visitors. As he went closer he heard a voice.
"I can only stay here, make sure he's ok"
"You should go to him"
'That's Gii and Akaike!' Takumi realized with a start, carefully he walked closer, he was just behind the door now.
"How could I?!" Gii half shouted in distress "It's because of me that he had to endure all that and ended up in hospital!"
Gii slumped down in a chair "He's right to not wanting me near him" he then added in a small voice.
"It's all my fault" Gii blamed himself as he covered his face in his hands.
Takumi hearing all that felt Gii's pain going through him, wide eyed he whispered his name "Gii.." as the need to take away that pain away from the person he loves filled him.
"It's not your fault"
A voice which came from nowhere filled the room.
Akaike and Gii turned towards the door where it came from and their eyes went wide "T-Takumi" Gii could hardly say, his heart hammering in his throat. Gii's eyes couldn't move from Takumi's and he sit up on instinct. Still incredulous he couldn't utter another word.
Takumi walked inside, towards Gii, their eyes fixed on one another as it was their lifeline.
"It's not your fault Gii" Takumi repeated needing Gii to understand that.
Seeing only the deepest love in Takumi's eyes, Gii allowed himself to believe him and took the last step ahead which separated them. Gii's hand cupped his beloved's cheek on its own, needing to feel his warmth, needing to feel their newfound connection.
The couple smiled in each other's eyes conveying their love without words while a smiling Akaike slipped away unnoticed.
Takumi leaned towards Gii's caress and kissed his palm "Gii.. I'm sorry, my memories were so confused, I don't know how to expl-"
Gii's lips stopped him from saying more. He didn't have to explain, after all that, he really didn't have to. He couldn't waste any more time, he finally was in his arms again! He felt blessed. Gii pressed their mouths together in a firm kiss for a long time and the joy leaping out his heart swept away the fear that he could no longer do it.
Unnoticed to them, just outside the door, two eyes posed on them; Ishimura-sensei stood, watching the scene in front of him.