tw: blood, vomit
Hinawa sat down at his desk and straightened the files in front of him. He was back at work for the first time since his surgery, but instead of going and putting out Infernals with the others, he was put on light desk work while his incision healed.
"Has your incision healed any more, Lieutenant?" Maki asked him from her desk. She had been promoted to deputy lieutenant while he was recovering, so his workload was much lighter while hers was much heavier.
"It's itching so yes, it's healing," he told her.
He had been having spotty memories coming back to him since his surgery, and he knew that Maki hadn't caught on to his memory loss at all.
"Maki, can I speak with you please?" Obi called, leaning into the room.
"Yes, sir, I'll be right there." Maki stood up and headed toward his office.
Hinawa looked from Maki to Obi. "Is it something I should be concerned with?"
"No, don't worry about it," Maki said.
"Oh. Okay, then," Hinawa said. He watched as she followed Obi into his office and shut the door behind her. His chest tightened; he hated being left out.
"Lieutenant, are you feeling okay?" Maki asked him. He hadn't heard her come out of Obi's office.
"Yeah, I'm fine. I think I'll go lay down for a bit," Hinawa said. He stood up from his desk and walked down the hall to his room, where he shut the door behind him.
I shouldn't be jealous, he thought as he sat down on his bed. But I can't help it. I hate being sidelined.
He rubbed his chest absentmindedly. The itching was a small nuisance, a reminder that he had had surgery for a reason. But he couldn't remember why.
"Lieutenant Hinawa? Can I talk to you for a moment?" Maki called from outside his door. "It's really important."
Hinawa opened his door and beckoned Maki inside. She walked in and stood in the middle of his room, nervously fidgeting with her hands.
"What is it, Maki?" he asked.
"Remember last night, when you told me if I needed to talk, that you'd listen?"
"Yes," Hinawa said. That much he did remember.
Maki blushed. How could she tell him how she felt? And what would happen if he rejected her?
"Lieutenant, I-I love you. I mean, really love you," she told him. "I could never work up the courage to tell you before."
Hinawa stared at her. His chest itched. "Maki, I'm sorry, but I can't return your feelings."
Maki's eyes filled with tears. "Lieutenant, please."
Hinawa took a step back as Maki retched flowers and blood all over his floor. He could barely make out the blossoms for the blood; he saw yellow tulips, cherry blossoms, primroses in every color, and… pink camellias?
"You have Hanahaki Disease," he whispered. It wasn't a question.
Maki sobbed as she tried to cover her mouth with her hand. She had hoped he would return her feelings. Then her disease would have gone away. She coughed again and cried as blood filled her hand.
Hinawa couldn't catch his breath. He knew what was going on. He had suffered through it himself. Why didn't I catch the warning signs sooner?
"I have to go," Maki said, pushing Hinawa away. Her bloody hand left an imprint on his clothes.
"No, wait," he begged. He grabbed her wrist.
"I don't want to hear your excuses," she said, yanking her arm free.
"Maki…"
She coughed violently, interrupting him. She fell to her knees, gasping for breath. The flowers in her lungs had taken root and were causing her to cough up blood. She felt an arm under her own as Hinawa guided her to his bed.
"Maki, come on," he whispered. She laid on her side and faced him. He ran his fingers through her hair as she coughed up more blood.
Hinawa turned away so she couldn't see and unzipped his orange jumpsuit. His surgery incision had been burning for days now, and he had to check on it.
"I-It can't be," he muttered. He stared at his incision, from which forget-me-nots were falling into his hands. He scooped them into his trash can and hid it away out of Maki's line of view.
He placed his hand over his chest as he sat down beside Maki. He kissed her lightly on her forehead as she coughed up more blood.
"Maki," he whispered. His chest stung as he felt his love for Maki return. He looked inside his shirt and saw forget-me-nots falling from his scar.
"I'm sorry, I should have never told you how I felt," Maki said, coughing. "I've never been so embarrassed in my life."
"I should be the one apologizing," he told her. "I lost my memory of loving you after my surgery. I couldn't return your feelings at first. But…"
Maki leaned up. She was dizzy from having coughed up so much blood. She had to know though.
"But?"
"I love you, too."
He'd said it. He was relieved to have said it. But he was in pain; he thought that if he confessed he would recover from this wretched disease. His chest was aching; it felt like a large truck was sitting on it. But he tried to tough it out for Maki, who had recovered. He didn't want her to see him like that. But how could he just hide the flower petals that were blossoming from his chest, of all places?
Maki wrapped her arms around the lieutenant. He loved her. He loved her. It was the other way around for once. But she knew something was wrong. She could tell from the lieutenant's labored breathing.
"Lieutenant are you okay?"
"Yeah, I'm okay," he told her.
He was lying, to both her and himself. He knew he was ill; his chest was in agony from the pain of the flowers, and each breath he drew barely inflated his lungs.
"Lieutenant, you're not okay," Maki said.
"You're right. I'm not," he admitted. "I need help."
Hinawa tried to walk toward his door but collapsed. Maki shook him but he didn't move.
"Lieutenant, wake up," she begged. "Wake up!"
a/n: hey y'all. so if you want to yell at me or anything, i have left my tumblr, twitter, and even my discord handle in my profile. (i'll drop it here too.)
tumblr: sputterfly | twitter: sputterfly92 | discord: redacted#0001
