Disclaimer: I don't own OHSHC.

March 14, 2014

4:41 PM

The day wasn't going spectacularly for Yosuke Kunda, it was one of those days that made him ask himself why he became a psychologist in the first place. Between the traffic on the way to work that morning, the grumpy clients, and the fact that the light wouldn't stop flickering in his tiny office, he was about ready to hang up his coat by noon. But it was far past noon, which he definitely knew because on top of everything else, he was running about ten minutes late to the appointment he'd been dreading all day.

He had practically dashed onto the elevator after jamming the "up" button about six times, and after punching in the button for the third floor, leaned against the wall and sighed. It wasn't very professional of him to be late and even less to be actively not wanting to attend an appointment he insisted on making. Of course, Kaoru Hitachiin was not his most talkative of clients nor the easiest to work with, but he tried to tell himself that the boy's behavior would change with therapy and help. The dread in his stomach told him that change takes time. A lot of time.

His pace was brisk as he exited the elevator and willed himself the strength to get through the next thirty minutes. Room number 182 loomed closer with every step, and with it, a childish urge to bolt. But Kaoru was expecting him, and he'd feel very guilty if he ran now.

Before he knew it, his right hand was knocking on the worn wood, his left was clutching his briefcase more strongly than it was in the elevator. A second passed with no response. "Kaoru? It's Doctor Kunda. I'm coming in." He swallowed hard as he pushed the door open, preparing himself for anything.

Thankfully, there wasn't anything out of the ordinary. Kunda let out his breath slowly; maybe the appointment would go smoothly. "I'm sorry for being so late, one of my appointments ran over." He seated himself in the plastic visitor chair next to the bed, wondering where to start. Kaoru didn't even turn to face him as he sat, just seemed to stare at the wall, though Kunda knew he couldn't see it. The only thing to indicate that the boy was alive was the steady beat of his heart monitor and the tiny movements of his chest.

"Your nurse said you ate more this morning than yesterday, that's great." He didn't mention how her chart noted that breakfast came back up not fifteen minutes later. Something told him that celebration was very minor, yet the best thing that had happened in days. "How have you been since last time I saw you?"

The lack of reply was unsurprising. As he had figured, this appointment would be more of a one-sided conversation, just like all of the others.

"Okay, the last time we spoke was the twelfth, two days ago." He said, checking his previous notes. Notes that didn't say anything extraordinary, nothing especially eventful. It made sense, considering that the most noteworthy thing that ever happened in an appointment was Kaoru turning to face him when he sat down. That appointment didn't go very well, which is why, he figured, he was talking to his back today. "Is having an appointment every other day working for you? Or should I come in every day?"

A small shrug sufficed as a reply. Kunda jotted down a quick note: 'March 14, shrugging shows comprehension, reinforces unwillingness'. Then, an afterthought; 'not sure if he likes me very much?'

"I think we'll stick to every other day. It seems to be working well that way." That was a giant lie and he knew they both knew it. Yesterday had been an utter disaster, destroying the (albeit little) progress he had made, and he had taken the rest of the afternoon off after the Ootori boy blew up at him and Takabe to recover from the defeat. The episode had just further proven the fact that psychology is a fragile science that can be reversed and even cause more damage. That boy was right, Takabe shouldn't be stalling for time, at least not as obviously. Psychology was not the be-all-end-all and it couldn't magically solve the problems when the patient was unwilling to cooperate.

"Anyways, is there anything you want to talk to me about? It can be anything at all." He seemed to be asking casually, but the question was baited. What had happened the day before was something that needed to be addressed, whether both parties liked it or not. Kunda wondered if Kaoru knew what he was trying to do.

The silence that fell was uncomfortably tense. Feeling rather defeated, he was preparing to ask another loaded question when Kaoru took in a breath as if he was about to speak. Tense silence turned quickly to anticipation in less than a heartbeat. Then, the breath was let out in a short sigh as his head shook no.

Despite the less than pleasing reply, Kunda's dreary mood improved instantly as he wrote quickly. 'March 14, baited question almost answered verbally, will have to guide more. Good development.' He cleared his throat lightly. 'Let's push a little bit more, but not enough to cause damage,'

"Are you sure? You seem like you have something to say. I'm more than happy to listen." The tone was one they taught back in university, the soothing voice of a kind psychologist who could get any patient to talk. He usually avoided the technique, as he thought that it was a bit unethical to quietly pry information out of distraught clients, but with this client, it was all he had left. He didn't breathe as Kaoru took another breath.

The voice was tiny, feeble, barely a whisper so quiet he wondered if he had actually heard it. "Yesterday was bad..."

"Yeah, I heard a little bit about that." More of a white lie, he was one of the doctors trying to calm him down so he knew basically all of it. An irrelevant lie; he really wanted to hear the story from Kaoru himself. His heart was nearly pounding out of his chest with something like a pleasant anxiety. "Can you tell me more about what happened yesterday? It might make you feel better to talk about it." A gentle prod, nothing more.

"Ye...Yesterday was bad... Really bad." The boy's pale hand squeezed his pillow harder, making his knuckles go white. Kunda felt a pang of sympathy; it must've been a very rough day for him. Brightly colored locks swished back and forth as he shook his head again, and with that, Kunda knew that he was done talking about it. And that was fine. He was honestly thrilled that he got a single word out of him.

"I won't make you talk much more. I'm really sorry that you had to go through that, it must've been very scary." A nod. "Do you want to talk about something else?" A more enthusiastic nod.

He chewed the end of his pen before speaking again. Casual, like small talk. "I met your friend Kyoya yesterday." And while he expected a reaction, he never expected Kaoru to turn his head so quickly towards him at the sound of the name. It was so strange, the way his eyes seemed to be reading him without seeing him. "He really cares about you."

At that, Kaoru turned his head back to the wall, going back to his state of seemingly ignoring. But as he was turning away, Kunda could've sworn he'd seen the faintest of smiles on his face. It was fantastic and a little sad to see a shadow of who the boy used to be, but at least the thought of his friends could bring him some happiness. "And," Kunda smiled, "I don't think he was very fond of myself or Doctor Takabe. He yelled at us a bit; my god, he was livid. I took the rest of the day off after that smack down."

The laugh was not much of a laugh, more of a quiet chuckle not much louder than the tone of his previous words, but it was a laugh none the less, and it make Kunda's spirits soar. Finally, he was getting on the right track again. Maybe he could continue this win into the next session, make some more jokes and get a few more words. That would be fantastic.

At his hip, his pager buzzed; a summons from Doctor Takabe, right on time, too. 5:00 sharp. "Hey, I'm sorry, but I have to go take care of business with Doctor Takabe. I'll see you again on the sixteenth?" The reply nod seemed more friendly than the previous ones, though the small smile seemed to be slipping fast. Soon, he imagined, Kaoru'll go back to the way he was just half an hour ago. Once I leave, he's all alone again.

The chair creaked when he stood, and he saw the boy flinch at the harsh sound. More sympathy stabbed at him. "I can ask the nurse for a different chair, if you want." The nod was vigorous this time, evidence that it was a real bother of his.

"Sure, I'll ask her. I'll see you in a few days. And, Kaoru?" He was out the door now, hand on the knob and his head poking in. "It's going to be okay. Everything's going to be okay, I promise."

And Kaoru, despite being battered and broken, run over and dragged through the dirt, nodded.

And Kunda smiled, and closed the door.

In the elevator, he wrapped up the last of his notes. 'March 14, light verbal communication, making progress. Planning to pursue.'

In his head, he wondered if silence is softer when someone else is with you to hear it.

Isn't it wild how time flies? A little over two years ago, I uploaded the first chapter of this story. It's hard to believe how long it's been.

Also, I'm ahead of the game for once and I already have like, the next two chapters written. Shocking, I know. I'm going to space it out by a week or two, though, to give you some time to process. And because I'm lazy.