Chapter Two
He wasn't comfortable here, Yuki Souma did not belong at the main house. He wished to god that Hatori had brought Haru somewhere else. Or perhaps that he didn't feel so inclined to check on him. It wasn't that Yuki had to worry about Akito or anything. The older boy had been bedridden for the last two weeks, his condition was steadily worsening. Hatori said it would come soon. The problem was all the memories Souma Grounds threw at him everytime he walked into the gate. He swept silvery strands of hair away from his eyes standing in the entrance way for a good five minutes before he could convince himself to go inside. He had to keep reminding himself that Hatsuharu had sat with him when he'd been ill. This was no different. Haru deserved the same treatment. With a sigh he adjusted his collar and started up the path to Souma house.
The birdbath was unoccupied today, it was really quite the surprise to see it so empty. But then again Akito wasn't out to feed them. Why would they come? He shuffled slowly up to the door pulling it open hesitantly and stepping into the building. He tried to force his mind away from the cruel words Akito had said, the way he always had to remind him.
"Remember that room?" Yuki blinked away Akito's voice stepping into a hallway and wandering to the guest room. Haru lay in the bed curled on his side. His face towards the wall, Hatori sat in the corner of the room bent over a desk. He was writing anxiously on a pad of pale blue paper. When Yuki entered he looked up quickly before continuing his writing.
"Thought we might see you, how've you been Yuki?" Hari asked never looking away from his paper. Yuki thought for a moment pulling a chair up beside Haru's bed before replying.
"I've been good." He replied honestly, and it was true he really had been. Student president wasn' t so bad at all, everything was going pretty smoothly. Until this. He sat down leaning back against his chair and looked at Haru. His hair was always so white. Perfectly so, the purest of colors he'd ever seen. There was nobody with hair like Hatsuharu, there was nobody like Haru plain and simple actually. He was such a strange boy. Hatsuharu with his inutterably deep way of loving, the way his eyes always softened every time Yuki came into the room and who else could pull Haru from his blackness as well as Yuki could? Nobody. Nobody at all. But Yuki wasn't about to admit such a thing to himself.
"I've been good, but how is he?"
Yuki asked Hari nodding towards Haru. Hatori lifted his eyes from the paper again removing his glasses and rubbing his eyes wearily.
"The same. Steady, he hasn't improved...but he hasn't worsened either. It's only been a day, these things take time Yuki." Hatori explained calmly, but even Yuki could see the concern in his eyes.
"He'll be allright?" Yuki asked tensely, he felt like his stomach had jumped into his throat. Hatori rose from his chair and put a hand on Yuki's shoulder.
"Hatsuharu will be fine." He assured the young boy before turning around and opening the door, "I trust you can keep an eye on him for a few minutes? I have other people to attend to."
Yuki winced, other people. He nodded weakly refusing to look at Hari, Hatori paused in the doorway.
"Yuki, I'm sorry about this. It's hard for me to leave the house when Akito is ill. Haru had to stay here." He explained noticing how obviously uncomfortable Yuki was.
"I understand." Yuki breathed. Hatori nodded and left the room closing the door behind him. The room quickly became silent, the only sound was the ragged breathing of Haru. There were no birds singing or bugs crying, it was just quiet. Eerily so. Yuki leaned forward on the bed laying his head on the matress on top of his arms staring blankly at Haru's back. He was covered with a thick black blanket that matched incredulously with his hair. Yuki didn't want to admit to himself how beautiful he was, the elegant thin form of Hatsuharu. Yet he knew as well as everyone else that being thin did not make you weak. The Souma's were evidence of that statement. With the proper training they were almost all martial experts.
"Wake up Haru." Yuki pleaded placing a fragile hand on the other boys forehead. He was burning up and clammy, Yuki sighed trailing his hand lazily away from Haru's forehead. Over his cheek, brushing against the soft pieces of white and black hair, gently scraping the pale surface of his neck. Finally Yuki shook his head forcing himself back into his chair. He put his head in his hands fighting to keep himself under control. This was too much to handle. All these feelings at once, the memories, the fear, the confusion, and the love. How could he feel this all at once without breaking down?
"Yuki?" The voice was weak tired, unused and yet unmistakable.
"Haru? Your awake." Yuki realized sitting up straighter in his chair to look at Hatsuharu. Haru smiled weakly stretching out a slow hand to brush the hair away from Yuki's eyes. He retracted his hand tiredly rolling onto his back to stare at the ceiling.
"I should go get Hatori--" Yuki suggested beginning to stand from his chair. Haru gave a weary shake of his head.
"Don't. Just stay." He requested, Yuki nodded dropping back quickly into his chair.
"Hatori will come soon enough." Haru pointed out. He was right there, Hari had just gone to check on Akito. He wouldn't be gone too long assuming all was going well enough.
"How are you feeling?" Yuki asked concernedly. Haru shrugged lightly still staring up at the ceiling as though it were the most fascinating thing in the world.
"Like I've just been hit by a runaway train and then stomped on by the worlds fattest woman, but other then that good." Haru jested turning his head to look at Yuki. "You came to visit me? Why?" Haru asked curiously.
"Well-" Yuki started suddenly realizing he had no way to finish this statement. He staggered slightly before pushing out "you sat with me didn't you?" Some Prince he was. He couldn't even make a decent sentence. Haru blinked that set of dark grey eyes, currently bloodshot and surrounded by red. He looked horrible and yet...so beautiful all the same.
"So your just repaying me?" Haru realized with a sigh rolling back to face the wall once more. Yuki felt his mouth drop open, at the same time as he started to apologize the door opened and Hatori stepped back into the room. Haru rolled over to look at him, Hatori's face filled with relief.
"Ah, your awake Hatsuharu. Good. Because I've got some medicine I need you to take."
Haru groaned. Obediantly popping a pill into his mouth and swallowing it on a gulp of water. Mumbling something that Yuki seriously doubted Hatori wanted to hear Haru drifted back to sleep. Yuki glanced at Hatori curiously for a moment before bothering to ask.
"Sleeping pills?"
"A sedative." He explained simply, Yuki nodded slightly laying his head back down on the mattress again.
"Tohru didn't want to come?" Hari asked as he sat back down in front of his pad of paper.
"She's out with Kyo." He informed Hatori with a sigh. Hari nodded glancing sideways at the sleeping bull.
"I see. Well you've always got Hatsuharu." Tori-san reminded him. Yuki blinked through his set of violet eyes standing up from his chair.
"I don't know what your talking about, I've got to get back. I'll come again." Yuki stated walking out of the room, he closed the door silently behind him. Hatori stared at Haru for a moment, with a sigh he stood up taking the boys arm. He rolled up the sleeve and injected treatment into his pale flesh.
"All things in time Hatsuharu." He comforted the sleeping boy touching his cheek tenderly. After this he returned to his pad of paper, jotting observations on his condition.
He wasn't comfortable here, Yuki Souma did not belong at the main house. He wished to god that Hatori had brought Haru somewhere else. Or perhaps that he didn't feel so inclined to check on him. It wasn't that Yuki had to worry about Akito or anything. The older boy had been bedridden for the last two weeks, his condition was steadily worsening. Hatori said it would come soon. The problem was all the memories Souma Grounds threw at him everytime he walked into the gate. He swept silvery strands of hair away from his eyes standing in the entrance way for a good five minutes before he could convince himself to go inside. He had to keep reminding himself that Hatsuharu had sat with him when he'd been ill. This was no different. Haru deserved the same treatment. With a sigh he adjusted his collar and started up the path to Souma house.
The birdbath was unoccupied today, it was really quite the surprise to see it so empty. But then again Akito wasn't out to feed them. Why would they come? He shuffled slowly up to the door pulling it open hesitantly and stepping into the building. He tried to force his mind away from the cruel words Akito had said, the way he always had to remind him.
"Remember that room?" Yuki blinked away Akito's voice stepping into a hallway and wandering to the guest room. Haru lay in the bed curled on his side. His face towards the wall, Hatori sat in the corner of the room bent over a desk. He was writing anxiously on a pad of pale blue paper. When Yuki entered he looked up quickly before continuing his writing.
"Thought we might see you, how've you been Yuki?" Hari asked never looking away from his paper. Yuki thought for a moment pulling a chair up beside Haru's bed before replying.
"I've been good." He replied honestly, and it was true he really had been. Student president wasn' t so bad at all, everything was going pretty smoothly. Until this. He sat down leaning back against his chair and looked at Haru. His hair was always so white. Perfectly so, the purest of colors he'd ever seen. There was nobody with hair like Hatsuharu, there was nobody like Haru plain and simple actually. He was such a strange boy. Hatsuharu with his inutterably deep way of loving, the way his eyes always softened every time Yuki came into the room and who else could pull Haru from his blackness as well as Yuki could? Nobody. Nobody at all. But Yuki wasn't about to admit such a thing to himself.
"I've been good, but how is he?"
Yuki asked Hari nodding towards Haru. Hatori lifted his eyes from the paper again removing his glasses and rubbing his eyes wearily.
"The same. Steady, he hasn't improved...but he hasn't worsened either. It's only been a day, these things take time Yuki." Hatori explained calmly, but even Yuki could see the concern in his eyes.
"He'll be allright?" Yuki asked tensely, he felt like his stomach had jumped into his throat. Hatori rose from his chair and put a hand on Yuki's shoulder.
"Hatsuharu will be fine." He assured the young boy before turning around and opening the door, "I trust you can keep an eye on him for a few minutes? I have other people to attend to."
Yuki winced, other people. He nodded weakly refusing to look at Hari, Hatori paused in the doorway.
"Yuki, I'm sorry about this. It's hard for me to leave the house when Akito is ill. Haru had to stay here." He explained noticing how obviously uncomfortable Yuki was.
"I understand." Yuki breathed. Hatori nodded and left the room closing the door behind him. The room quickly became silent, the only sound was the ragged breathing of Haru. There were no birds singing or bugs crying, it was just quiet. Eerily so. Yuki leaned forward on the bed laying his head on the matress on top of his arms staring blankly at Haru's back. He was covered with a thick black blanket that matched incredulously with his hair. Yuki didn't want to admit to himself how beautiful he was, the elegant thin form of Hatsuharu. Yet he knew as well as everyone else that being thin did not make you weak. The Souma's were evidence of that statement. With the proper training they were almost all martial experts.
"Wake up Haru." Yuki pleaded placing a fragile hand on the other boys forehead. He was burning up and clammy, Yuki sighed trailing his hand lazily away from Haru's forehead. Over his cheek, brushing against the soft pieces of white and black hair, gently scraping the pale surface of his neck. Finally Yuki shook his head forcing himself back into his chair. He put his head in his hands fighting to keep himself under control. This was too much to handle. All these feelings at once, the memories, the fear, the confusion, and the love. How could he feel this all at once without breaking down?
"Yuki?" The voice was weak tired, unused and yet unmistakable.
"Haru? Your awake." Yuki realized sitting up straighter in his chair to look at Hatsuharu. Haru smiled weakly stretching out a slow hand to brush the hair away from Yuki's eyes. He retracted his hand tiredly rolling onto his back to stare at the ceiling.
"I should go get Hatori--" Yuki suggested beginning to stand from his chair. Haru gave a weary shake of his head.
"Don't. Just stay." He requested, Yuki nodded dropping back quickly into his chair.
"Hatori will come soon enough." Haru pointed out. He was right there, Hari had just gone to check on Akito. He wouldn't be gone too long assuming all was going well enough.
"How are you feeling?" Yuki asked concernedly. Haru shrugged lightly still staring up at the ceiling as though it were the most fascinating thing in the world.
"Like I've just been hit by a runaway train and then stomped on by the worlds fattest woman, but other then that good." Haru jested turning his head to look at Yuki. "You came to visit me? Why?" Haru asked curiously.
"Well-" Yuki started suddenly realizing he had no way to finish this statement. He staggered slightly before pushing out "you sat with me didn't you?" Some Prince he was. He couldn't even make a decent sentence. Haru blinked that set of dark grey eyes, currently bloodshot and surrounded by red. He looked horrible and yet...so beautiful all the same.
"So your just repaying me?" Haru realized with a sigh rolling back to face the wall once more. Yuki felt his mouth drop open, at the same time as he started to apologize the door opened and Hatori stepped back into the room. Haru rolled over to look at him, Hatori's face filled with relief.
"Ah, your awake Hatsuharu. Good. Because I've got some medicine I need you to take."
Haru groaned. Obediantly popping a pill into his mouth and swallowing it on a gulp of water. Mumbling something that Yuki seriously doubted Hatori wanted to hear Haru drifted back to sleep. Yuki glanced at Hatori curiously for a moment before bothering to ask.
"Sleeping pills?"
"A sedative." He explained simply, Yuki nodded slightly laying his head back down on the mattress again.
"Tohru didn't want to come?" Hari asked as he sat back down in front of his pad of paper.
"She's out with Kyo." He informed Hatori with a sigh. Hari nodded glancing sideways at the sleeping bull.
"I see. Well you've always got Hatsuharu." Tori-san reminded him. Yuki blinked through his set of violet eyes standing up from his chair.
"I don't know what your talking about, I've got to get back. I'll come again." Yuki stated walking out of the room, he closed the door silently behind him. Hatori stared at Haru for a moment, with a sigh he stood up taking the boys arm. He rolled up the sleeve and injected treatment into his pale flesh.
"All things in time Hatsuharu." He comforted the sleeping boy touching his cheek tenderly. After this he returned to his pad of paper, jotting observations on his condition.