A/N: *snoring*
Seto: Is she THAT tired?
Yami: *nods wisely* yup
Seto: *blinks* oh. -_-
Ne, gomen for the late chapter! But I've been getting home from school like at 9 pm every night this week! *murders teachers* ^^;;
WARNING: This story contains SHONEN-AI!! What's a good story without some boy/ boy action? *gets whacked by the perve police* itai. @_@
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Chapter Nineteen: Pray for me, and I'll pray for you.
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With his heart pounding wildly against his chest, Yami ran down the halls of Domino Memorial Hospital. The only thing he had in mind was Yuugi. How could he have let this happen? He should've realized that the minute he left, someone was going to use that time to hurt the poor boy. Yami continued to run, panting wildly for breath but not caring. He reached the reception desk and looked at the nurse who had a bewildered look on her face.
"I…need to know where Mutou Yuugi is," he asked breathlessly. Her expression softened as she gazed into his eyes.
"He's up in the Neuro ICU," she said. "But I don't think you'll be able to g-"
"Yami!"
The ruby-eyed boy turned around to see Trinity standing by the elevator, her hair in a terrible mess, her clothes wrinkled. The worn out teenager looked as if she hadn't slept in ages. She ran up to Yami and leapt into his arms. At once, she started to cry uncontrollably. Yami patted her back soothingly. She wiped her eyes away as she pulled back, taking his hand.
"Come on, I'm here to take you to Yuugi," she whispered.
"Is he okay?" Yami asked. Trinity's eyes filled again with fresh tears.
"He…He hasn't woken up since he was brought here," she informed Yami. "The doctors haven't told us anything, and it's just killing me not knowing what's wrong with him!"
The two quickly walked to elevator and headed up to the Neuro ICU, where Sugoroku was waiting for them. At once, Yami approached the old man, who looked absolutely devastated.
"Mr. Mutou, how…how is he?" Yami asked. Sugoroku looked back, staring into a corner.
"I…I don't know," he said, his voice breaking. He lead the pair to the corner of the darkened hallway. They passed several smaller rooms. Yami shuddered; the sense of death seemed to be hanging strongly in the atmosphere. He then realized that they had stopped. Sugoroku nodded his head towards a large room. Yami turned around as he eyes widened.
There was a room with glass windows. The door was shut, and inside, lay Yuugi. The severely injured boy lay on a large bed, IV tubes running into his small arms. He head was wrapped tightly in a wide bandage, his small face was caked with dried blood and his right eye was swollen. His left cheek was scrapped and his upper lip was cut in several places.
Yuugi's head was swathed in gauze, and a tube protruded from his mouth. Yami pressed his hands against the cold glass, to overwhelmed to speak. A lump formed in his throat as tears filled his eyes. He tore his eyes away from his damaged angel as he turned around to see Mr. Mutou speaking with the doctor.
The tall man had kind gray eyes. His hair was slightly faded to a grayish tone but he had strikingly bright green eyes. Wire-rimmed glasses rested on his face softly, and his expression was one of worry and deep sympathy.
He held his hand out to Sugoroku. "My name is Dr. Shiwazumi. I'll be your grandson's neurologist."
At once Yami's spoke up, "Neurologist? Why?" The man turned to face him.
"I won't lie to any of you; Yuugi-san has suffered massive head trauma. I'd like to take you in his room to speak of this," he said, approaching the door. The trio followed him in silence, each one to terrified to speak.
As hard as he tried, Yami held back the tears that were furiously burning at his eyes. How could this be Yuugi? Why did this happen to the poor boy? He walked ahead of the others, immediately taking Yuugi's tender hand in his own. Yami's breath caught in his throat as he felt how cold Yuugi's hand was. It was so lifeless, as if the small boy were already dead. He stared at the him. Yami now let his tears skid down his cheeks freely. The small droplets left trails down the ruby-eyed boy's cheeks, slowly splashing down to his hand.
The other three watched the scene silently. Trinity covered her mouth with her hand, afraid she would break down and start to cry uncontrollably again. Dr. Shiwazumi cleared his throat softly.
Yami reached out and tenderly stroked Yuugi's left cheek. "What are all these tubes and wires for…?" he asked softly, tears dancing on his eyelashes.
"The oral tube is his ventilator. The wire is taped to his chest and leads to his heart monitor, and that tube in the back of his hand is an IV. He has a catheter too," he responded. He studied Yami with kind eyes behind his glasses. "Yuugi-san is stable now, but we've got him on a ventilator.
Sugoroku spoke up. "Why?"
The doctor turned to face him and Trinity, who was desperately trying to hold back her tears. "We've done a CAT scan, which a special x-ray of his brain," he explained. "Right now, there's a great deal of swelling, and we can't determine the extent of his head injury. But all we know is that he can't breathe on his own."
Yami's eyes widened as he stared at the tall doctor. "He…can't breathe on his own?" The doctor looked at Yuugi.
"He's stable, but comatose."
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The hospital room was silent that night. Sugoroku and Trinity had gone home, needing to rest. Yami sat beside Yuugi, watching the small boy struggle to survive through the night. The ventilator hissed bitterly in the quiet room, the sound offered no comfort to the tired boy who was sitting by Yuugi's side.
Yami looked down as tears began to form in his eyes. His face crumbled in grief as a bitter prayer played on his trembling lips.
"God, you sent me an angel when I needed one," he whispered. "The most beautiful, and purest of all the angels that dwell within Heaven. But…why…did this…happen? Why…," Yami's voice threatened to break. "…did I…fall in love with him? I don't deserve him. He doesn't deserve…this." Yami wiped his eyes. He reached out and tenderly stroked Yuugi's cheek. Amazing, the boy looked as if he was just sleeping, instead of being lost in the world of unconsciousness. If only Yuugi would come back, Yami wouldn't dare hesitate to tell him how much he loved him. All his hopes, all his dreams were now hanging the balance along with Yuugi's life.
Yuugi was all Yami wanted. Yuugi was all he needed. If he were to lose the boy, his life would be meaningless.
"I swear," Yami cried bitterly. "I never intended to fall in love. I didn't…"
He shoulders trembled as more tears began to slip down his cheeks. Was this his punishment for loving someone that didn't belong to him? Who was he to call Yuugi's heart as his own? Yami calmed himself down, wiping his tear-stained eyes with his sleeve.
"God…if there's anyway to save Yuugi," he paused. "Please. Even if it means that he can never be mine, just save him."
The hiss from the ventilator was his only response.
"Please?"
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Yami woke with a start, sleepily sitting up. He looked around and realized he was still in Yuugi's hospital room. Yawning tiredly, he rested his head back against Yuugi's frail hand. The boy on the bed remained silent, never moving. Was he really even alive? What was the point in making Yuugi suffer if he was never going to wake up? Yami's eyes fogged over as the depressing thoughts dawned over him. He shut his eyes, sleep slowly claiming his mind once more.
The door opened softly. Katie, the nurse who had taken care of Yuugi during his previous visit, stepped into the room with a soft cotton blanket in her gentle hands. She had spotted Yami earlier, but had decided not to bother him. He looked so tired, yet crushed at the same time. Sadness spread throughout her body as she approached Yami and gently covered his sleeping figure with the soft material. She stepped back and stared at the two boys.
'This is so much more than friendship.' she thought. 'I wonder, if they both know that they…'
Shaking her head and deciding that this was none of her business, Katie took a final glance at the two and quietly walked out of the room.
Once she was outside, she wiped her eyes with a handkerchief.
"I just hope they can save him," she whispered to the lonely corridor inside Domino Memorial Hospital.
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The next few weeks slowly turned into a never-ending pattern. Sugoroku would stay with Yuugi until Trinity was able to look after him during the afternoon. The old man would return and manage the shop. Later on in the evening, Trinity would go home and Yami would take over, staying with Yuugi throughout the entire night. He had put school on a definite hold, not wanting to have to burden himself with exams and projects, knowing that his attention would clearly be focused on only Yuugi. Jou-tachi visited daily, each day the light of hope slowly slipping from their grasp. It didn't seem as if Yuugi would ever wake up. The wait was crushing them all slowly.
On a rare afternoon that Yami was watching over the small boy, Katie entered the room. Yami looked up from the magazine he was reading and his eyes widened in surprise.
"Katie?" he asked. "What are you doing here?" She smiled sadly at him.
"Just charting the results from Yuugi's latest Glasgow test." Upon seeing the confusion that was evident on Yami's face, Katie began to explain. "It's a standard for measuring a comatose patients progress. Even though Yuugi doesn't move, we take the temperature, pulse, and blood pressure. We check respiration - in Yuugi's case he's on a ventilator- and we do a few neurological tests and grade him on a scale.
"For instance, we measure whether his eyes open or not. 'Spontaneously' equals 4, while 'none' equals 1. On 'Verbal Response' - which means if he reacts when we speak to him - there's a scale of 1-5; 5 meaning fully conscious and 1 meaning 'no response'. For 'Motor Response' - which would be if he obeys when you give him a command- 5 meaning he 'obeys commands' and 1 meaning 'no response'," she finished.
Yami nodded in understanding. "So, where's Yuugi?"
She gave him a wan smile. "Right now, he's at 1:3:2."
"Is that bad?"
Katie looked at Yuugi for a moment before turning her gaze back to the ruby-eyed boy. "Well, so far, he hasn't opened his eyes at all. But he does respond to an extent when we speak to him. He's struggling with 'Motor Response' but we're hoping that these numbers will go up soon." Yami nodded. With all his heart, Yami hoped that Yuugi would allow those numbers to go up.
"If he wakes up, does that mean that all those numbers will be at their highest peak?" he asked. Katie smiled as she nodded.
"But even if he does wake up, he might not be the same," she said grimly. "Head traumas are an awful thing. For all we know, if he does wake up, he could have suffered permanent amnesia. There's no telling how much damage has been done right now, but all we can do is just pray that he'll be alright. If there are any permanent damages, we'll deal with them then."
She reached out and gently brushed the golden bangs away from Yuugi's forehead. Yami stared at her, and saw the immense grief that was shining in her eyes. Yuugi meant so much to everyone. To lose him so suddenly…Yami shook his head. No. He couldn't think that way. Yuugi would wake up. He had to wake up. Everything that mattered most to him was now hanging in the balance. A single breath could knock everything out of proportion.
"All Yuugi needs to do now is…" Katie trailed.
"To do what?" Yami asked.
Katie looked at him with tears shinning in her eyes. "…wake up," she whispered.
* * *
"So how's Yuugi doing?" Jou asked the next day when he visited the hospital. Yami had stepped out to get some fresh air, and Trinity had stayed to watch over the small boy. She sighed tiredly as she wiped her eyes. Glancing over to Yuugi, it seemed as if it had barely been the first day since he was admitted to the Neuro ICU. He'd been hospitalized for over 3 weeks, now and he still had yet to wake up. Hope was slowly slipping away, and the boy's chances for survival were slim to none.
Trinity rubbed her temples as if she were fighting off a headache. "Well, Katie-san told me that the numbers went up. He's at 1:3:3," she answered Jou's question.
"But the 1...he still hasn't opened his eyes?" he asked, fear evident in his voice. Trinity shook her head.
"No, and it seems as if he never will. He needs to open his eyes Jou. That'll at least be a sign of some sort that he's okay," she said sadly. The blonde looked at her with focused eyes. He felt sorry for her. Everything had changed so much during the time that Yami had left for America.
"Trinity…I really want to thank you for all you've done for me," Jou said softly. Trinity looked up, confusion written on her face. "You-You gave up your own happiness for me." Trinity smiled sadly.
"Think nothing of it Jou-kun," she whispered. "I knew I had to; whether I wanted it or not." Jou looked back at Yuugi, his eyes sad and distant. The downfall of the poor boy had tainted everyone's hearts; their very souls. Had it really been so long ago that Yuugi was staring adoringly into Yami's ruby-colored eyes? All they could do now was pray and hope that God would give Yuugi another chance.
Or at least, give them the opportunity to say goodbye.
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"Trinity, you should go home. I know you're tired," Yami advised his friend. She stroked Yuugi's head gently and softly shook her head.
"No…," she said. "I'm better off here." Yami stared at her. Something was different.
"…Are you all right?"
Trinity looked up. "Huh?"
"You seem…different since I left. Did something happen?" he asked. She looked down at the ground with guilt hidden behind her eyes. Sighing softly, she stood up and put on her coat. Trinity grabbed her scarf from the chair Yami was sitting on and headed for the door. "Trinity," Yami repeated once again. "…It's late out. Shouldn't you have someone pick you up?" She shook her head. "Why don't you call Kaiba to pick you up? I'm sure he won't mind picking up his girlfriend at this time of the night."
Trinity's eyes glazed over with tears. "He won't come," she whispered. Yami sat there in a haze of confusion. "…I broke up with him when you left."
"Why?"
"Because I knew…that he loved Jou," Trinity confessed. "I wanted both of them to be happy, so I let him go."
Yami stood up, facing Trinity who was now trying to hold back her tears. "But I thought you loved him."
"That's why I did it. Because I love him. If I truly loved him, then I would understand that his happiness did not lay with me. It was with Jou," she said, her voice trembling and threatening to break. She wiped her eyes with a handkerchief from her purse and regained her composure. "Jou's loved Seto for a long time now, and I felt awful making Seto repress his feelings for Jou. He didn't want to break up with me for fear that he might hurt my feelings and cause me to hate him. So I did it. I let him go."
Yami nodded in understanding, too overwhelmed to speak. After a quiet embrace, Trinity kissed Yuugi's forehead and left the room. The eerie bleep of the heart monitor and the ghostly hiss of the ventilator were Yami's only companions. He stared up at the clock. It was 2 am. He sat back down and gently leaned over to Yuugi. Yami tenderly lay his head on Yuugi's abdomen, clutching the small boy's hand tightly, longing to hear Yuugi's cheerful voice to reassure him that everything was going to be all right.
Yami ignored the fact that someone else had just entered the room. He felt a soft hand rest on his shoulder. Yami looked up at Katie with tear-filled eyes.
Katie's heart hurt immensely, seeing the ruby-eyed teenager hurt so much. Her eyes widened as she saw tears cascade in long trails down Yami's cheeks. She couldn't hold in any longer.
"You love him." It was a statement, not a question. Yami nodded. "Does he know." Yami shook his head.
Yami opened his mouth to speak. "I…was too afraid to tell him."
The clock ticked endlessly, each second melting into a minute. Time didn't seem to have mercy for the souls that were suffering. It went on without anyone's consent, not caring if anyone was hurting, not caring if anyone had died.
Once Katie left, Yami stared at Yuugi, his tears blurring the image of his damaged angel. Yami tenderly brought Yuugi's left hand to his lips and kissed the fingertips softly. Tears ran down his cheeks as he pressed Yuugi's cold hand to his cheek.
'Please wake up Yuugi' Yami pleaded in his mind.
The dream was shattered; the illusion was too unrealistic. All they could do was hope for a prayer.
A prayer that might never be answered.
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A/N: gomen for the short chapter ^^;; anyway, plz dun kill me. Hope you enjoyed~! Please r/r!