Shinra started to bandage the practically motionless body up, starting with the burn on the right shoulder, the edges of which had turned yellow with dead skin and white blood cells.
"Can you hand me the desinfectant, please?" Shinra asked Shizuo, who had watched silently, unable to grasp that what was before his eyes was really happening.
"Sure." He grabbed for the bottle and watched the doctor soak a ball of cotton, dabbing it against the burn gently.
Izaya's body convulsed unconsciously because of the horrible burning sensation, but he kept completely quiet.
It was almost mesmerizing to Shizuo to watch more and more pale skin being covered by white bandages and large band aids, covering the damage with the intention of undoing it, although that was probably impossible now.
Many questions swam through the ex bartender's head, and he could barely focus on the way Izaya's abdominal muscles contracted visibly, when Shinra tended to a rather large cut on his thigh.
Who had done this to the flea? Would he go back to being the same jerk he was now, after he got better?
But most importantly, why did he feel sympathy towards the louse?
Why didn't he feel like breaking the pale man's bones and laughing at his pain anymore?
"Can you hold him up for me?" Shizuo was snapped out of his thoughts by Shinra's voice, and tentatively reached out.
With both hands, he grabbed the flea beneath his armpits, soft skin meeting his calloused fingers, and Shizuo took in a harsh breath, when he saw the wounds on the other man's back.
Shinra moved to the other side of the couch, leaning over the back rest, while desinfecting and wrapping the damaged skin, before motioning for Shizuo to lay Izaya back down.
The doctor pulled out a needle from his suit case and set it down, before he opened a few cabinets, searching for something, until he pulled out a bottle of intravenous antibiotics.
After successfully placing the IV drip, he exited the room, leaving Shizuo alone with Izaya, who had not moved an inch, while he forced himself to breathe calmly.
"Izaya." Shizuo whispered meditatively, never having spoken the other man's first name, without anger and/or hatred audible in his voice.
He received no reply, as expected, and forced himself to look away from the naked man. He had never actually noticed how thin Izaya was. His back had always seemed broader when Shizuo had chased him through the city, and the debt collector thought it was virtually impossible to muster up such speed with those thin, pale legs.
Shinra came back, carrying a shirt and pajama pants, which he put onto the sofa next to the informant.
"Izaya?" the unlicensed doctor spoke, approaching the man and gently pulling the information broker's stiff arms away from his face.
Izaya's eyebrows were drawn together and his eyes were closed, in an expression that showed that he was expecting pain.
"Hey, Izaya, you can get dressed now." Shinra tried again, yet to no avail, while he frowned down at the informant's strangely pretty face.
Shizuo was just about to suggest leaving Izaya alone, so he could pull himself together, when suddenly, Shinra raised his right hand, and slapped Izaya across the face. Hard.
"Oi, don't hit him—"
Red brown eyes flew open immediately, long, dark eyelashes lifting.
"What the hell—" Izaya choked out, observing his surroundings, before realizing that he was not wearing anything, and that his worst enemy was just a few feet away from him, looking at him, as if he'd never seen anything like him before.
"Good to have you back." Shinra said, almost humorously, gesturing towards the clothes. "Get dressed. I told Celty to get the guestroom ready. You can stay here tonight."
Izaya immediately made a grab for the clothing and pulled it on with some difficutly.