Kae-chan: Ehhh, just did a couple revisions and stuff....yea...this is kind of an intro type thing to the story. I havn't updated it in a while cuz of skool and mid-terms and blah blah, but I am currently writing the next part...along with trying to finish a few other stories. , please?

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Cutting winter winds did little to phase the youth upon the bench whose eyes didn't even blink away the snowflakes landing in them. The slight figure hadn't moved in hours and now the sun was starting to set, bringing with it the beginnings of a blizzard. There would be more accidents tonight, with the ice and heavy snow, more people would have to fear death. Cold stiffened fingers sought cover in the pocket of his preventers jacket, flexing lightly before settling on the object within. Smooth and hard the container felt like some foreign currency to him, but his orders had been clear; take two capsules through out the day as needed. He stared up at the hospital, his prescription had been up since three days ago and the pain had been too much for him...he needed the refill.

Rising from his seat carefully the youth trudged slowly across the snowy median. Pushing the doors open he flinched at the abrupt temperature change, the first sensation he had truly felt since that day four months ago. People inside stared at the swaying youth maneuvering himself up the stairs. He looked not a day over eighteen but already moved like one on the edge of collapse. Ignoring the sympathy in their eyes he reminded himself that he had called in for the appointment. It was he who had agreed to another consultation, as they liked to say, so they could ask if the drugs were working out for him. High paid filthy bastards who wanted nothing more than to prescribe him twenty more drugs if it meant their pockets would get filled, but fourteen prescriptions later he had found something to adequately numb himself, in body as well as mind. It didn't make him completely brain dead, however, just dazed enough to block out any non-work related thoughts. It's what he needed to get done now anyways, his work. He needed to help right all those wrongs he had caused, that they had all caused...

His name had been called through the intercom, it was amazing how accurate this institution was at setting appointments, he had yet to wait even a few minutes to be seen. Stabbing pain raced through every muscle chord as he stood, causing him to stall with a sharp intake of breath. Pushing it aside he stood straight-backed and strode through the door and down the hall with as much pride as he could manage. Puffing lightly out of the corner of his mouth an immense wave of dizziness rolled over him, causing the lithe form to double over in the entrance. Strong arms held him up as perspiration began to form across his brow.

"Aa, Mr. Yukimura, you mustn't strain yourself so. Here, sit, we'll begin running the tests shortly."

"Hn..." Using the new name he had for himself the doctor lead him to a low metal table covered in a sheet of thin paper. He couldn't feel the surface beneath him and the crinkle of the paper seemed to come through thick foam walls around his head. Breathless, his chest exploded with pain, the muscle spasms spreading to the rest of his body in seconds while he doubled forward again, teeth clenched tightly and biting into part of his tongue. Panicked the doctor called for his nurse while filling a syringe with a strange blue liquid and coming toward him slow enough to leave a blurry after image...or maybe it was too fast... Unable to sharpen the focus of his vision and struggling to escape such heavy muddled thoughts the adolescent slid, only vaguely aware of this new sensation as he slammed into the tiled floor.

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The news had been a shock. For moments after hearing it he knew he had just sat there, staring in disbelief at the doctor. It would have been easier to take on a stormy day, the bright sunshine mocking him at every turn, making the pill harder to swallow. He remembered well the cozy office, too, no hard metal tables or cold white walls. Looking back now the image was hazy but the feelings clear and scathing.

Prussian eyes studied his surroundings while rubbing at the annoying ache in his chest. The minor cold had probably developed into another lung infection. Snorting softly he brushed gleaming russet bangs from his eyes and continued to rub at the knot. He had been prone to getting sick lately, he had never gotten sick before and Quatre was always nagging him to see a doctor. He had been reluctant, having relied on his self-sufficiency in the past. After nearly a year of constant illness, however, he had decided to push it to the side this once and go in for a full physical.

There were no metal instruments or tables in this office, though, and no physical sign that it was a medical office at all. The smell was even different, not at all the classic rubbing alcohol stench but of cinnamon and strawberry mentos. Rocking lightly on the comfortably worn bamboo table he awaited word of his test results. They would walk in and tell him it was some kind of chest cold or strained muscle or combination of both, prescribe him some expensive antibiotic that would work just as well as some over the counter syrup, schedule for a check up four weeks from now and today would wind up being a complete waste of his only day off in a couple months. Frowning in agitation his fingers stroked the cross pendant hanging loosely to the middle of his chest. Today may have been the day he had waited for to contact someone that had been important to him...still was, really, no matter how much denial he attached to that thought.

"Keisuke Yukimura?" The voice interrupted his thoughts as he turned to see a young man leaning against the doorframe, head tilted down to his clipboard. Sunlight reflected off of his stylishly shaped glasses and the rough stubble, across otherwise flawless skin that gleamed with the bounty of youth, gave him roguish good looks.. Studying this Doctor Hideto, Kei took in the long black hair pulled back into a sweeping braid, the face frame hanging loose and accentuating the curves in his jaw line. Such thick, gleaming hair, it reminded him of another's whose soft tresses were just a memory held tightly in sleep. He wondered half-heartedly if his doctor smelled of lilacs and ran hot bathwater for forty-five minutes so no one else could take a shower for at least an hour afterwards.

"Ahem...Mr. Yukimura...?" Peering over the rim of his glassesDr, Hideto stared at the bronzed youth questioningly. A moment later Kei realized he had been caught up in day dreaming once more. Straightening his back the former gundam pilot nodded to indicate he was listening. "I-I'm sorry to be the one to tell you this, sir..." The doctors' soft voice trailed off in a way that made Kei jump from the counter and stride to him, the apprehension causing a hitch in his breathing. Looking into the slightly shorter mans eyes the doctor smiled weakly "I'm sorry...there's nothing we can do about your illness...it's terminal..."

Terminal. the words echoed through his mind while everything within him turned deliciously numb. Drifting through a haze he remembered he remembered the world spinning for the longest time as other words were said to him. He must have been sitting then, or made to sit, as prescriptions were filled and pressed into his hands along with trial sized bottles of painkillers. Terminal. It had meant nothing then, nothing now, just another event that served to remind him of the consequences for having all the stubbornness and fears of a perfect soldier.

-tbc-

Kae-chan: Yeh...ehehe...review -.-'' tell me if totally suck, throw out suggestions, flame, etc.