Chapter Eighteen: Fragmented Eulogy
Disclaimer: I still don't own Prince of Tennis… No kidding.
Author's Note: Here's chapter eighteen! Remember, the complete Author's Note for this fic is posted in chapter one. But here are the warnings, summarized for your convenience: May contain spoilers/ shonen-ai/ not-shonen-ai/ please review/ Taka shouts nonsensical English phrases at flamers. Lol.
Here's the promised chapter! I did it as soon as I could… Hopefully this will help ease any suspense-related anguish caused by the last chapter, lol. Thank you again for all the wonderful reviews. Once again, I was truly amazed that people are enjoying the fic this much, even with all the angst. Anyway, enjoy the chapter! Let me know what you all think of chapter eighteen!
What do you do, when something has broken into a million pieces?
When you cannot put it back together again, no matter how hard you try?
Do you leave what you loved behind? Do you forget it…?
Or do you cradle those pieces in your arms and cry through the night?
…
Ryoma stared, horrified, at Tezuka's disfigured arm. He was desperate for everything that Tezuka had just said to be a lie. It had to be a lie; it couldn't be real… But that arm was unavoidable proof, beyond any shadow of a doubt, that this was the absolute truth.
Tezuka Kunimitsu no longer played tennis.
It wasn't just that he didn't. He couldn't.
It was this realization, in and of itself, that was making Ryoma's heart slowly break.
"Buchou," he said suddenly, painfully. "I don't… I don't understand this! How could you do something like that? How could you…"
Ryoma wanted to finish his sentence. He wanted to say it, with all the hurt he was feeling, but the words caught in his throat…
How could you do this to me?
Tezuka just stared at Ryoma for a moment, gazing helplessly at the betrayed look in those golden eyes. It was everything that the former captain had feared it would be… But he couldn't take it back. It was the unavoidable truth.
He suppressed an anxious sigh and reached for his sleeve, pulling it back down over his arm in order to hide the offending scars from view.
"Echizen," he began, very slowly. "I… I never intended to disappoint you like this…"
"Well, you did!" was Ryoma's bitter interruption. To Tezuka's dismay, tears were forming in the tennis star's eyes, tears that the boy was obviously trying to hide as he averted his gaze from the taller man.
"Echizen…"
But Tezuka didn't know what to say. There was nothing he could say. He couldn't take it back… it was the horrible, awful truth…
Ryoma tried to will the tears away, tried to force them to disappear, but they wouldn't go away. Instead, they began to slowly drip down his face.
… Why was he crying? He didn't cry! This was just so ridiculous… that he should cry over this man, as though…
As though he had loved him.
… No, he couldn't have loved Tezuka. He couldn't have loved someone who threw away his ambition because of a rainy night. He couldn't have loved a man who had tried to kill himself to escape his own pain. No…
The man he loved… if he had ever loved him… That man was dead.
Ryoma shut his eyes, tightly, trying to stop his own tears. There was no point in crying them, after all. He wouldn't cry for this Tezuka. He refused to lower himself to cry for this disappointment…
…
"You're just a disappointment."
…
…
Where had Ryoma heard those words before?
The teenager shook his head, forgetting his own train of thought. He was desperately conscious of the fact that he should say something, should do something… Tezuka was standing there, waiting for something… But there was nothing. What could he say? What could he do?
There was just nothing there.
Nothing at all.
There had been something there before, something between the two of them... But now, it was gone.
There was nothing left.
Ryoma took a deep breath, opening his eyes again. The tears had stopped, but that throbbing pain in Ryoma's chest had not. And as he looked into the shattered amber eyes of his former captain, he knew there was only one thing left that he could do.
"Goodbye, Buchou," he said, sounding almost hollow.
Echizen Ryoma turned around and walked away, crossing the bridge over to the other side. He didn't look back.
And Tezuka Kunimitsu, former captain of Seigaku, just stood there, watching as Ryoma walked away.
Again.
- - - - - - - - -
Oishi ran up the stairs and onto the train station platform, quickly scanning the crowd for any sign of Tezuka. He had been delayed at his student council meeting, but the former vice captain had still expected to find Tezuka waiting for him in the locker room. And so, upon finding that the tennis captain had already left, Oishi had hurried to make it to the train station. He figured that Tezuka must have decided to wait for him there.
Wiping the rainwater off of his face, Oishi looked around anxiously for any sign of his friend. Tezuka hadn't quite been himself lately, and Oishi was a little worried about him. It wasn't like Tezuka to be depressed, even if the stoic captain never said much either way…
And so Oishi couldn't help feeling a bit relieved when he saw Tezuka waiting for the train, standing by himself at the end of the platform.
The vice captain let the worry melt from his face and rushed to meet his friend, opening his mouth to call out his name…
Suddenly, his eyes opened wide with horror.
Oishi watched as Tezuka stepped forward, falling off the platform toward the track below. He was directly in the path of the oncoming train.
It seemed to Oishi as though all the world flashed white with the pain of the impact. He was too shocked to realize that had been the effect of a stray lightning bolt, a product of the raging storm. And… was the sky shrieking at this terrible sight? Or was the train frantically screeching to a stop, because the driver saw what had happened?
… Oishi didn't know. He could never remember afterward what had occurred in those terrifying seconds when his reality crumbled to pieces.
The next thing he did know, he had already jumped off the platform and was rushing toward the fallen form, that broken heap lying right next to the train.
People were screaming at him above his head, but they sounded like nothing more than a faint murmuring in his ears. He kneeled on the rain-soaked ground, looking at his friend's body, lying there like a statue in ruins.
Oh, God…
He's still breathing…!
Oishi's horror subsided into gratitude, at the sudden realization that the captain was still alive.
"Tezuka? Tezuka…!" He leaned forward and gently turned Tezuka toward him, trying to see the captain's face.
It was then that Oishi realized that the captain's body, and the side of the train, and now his own hands… Everything was lightly splattered with blood.
Oh God…
Oishi lifted Tezuka into his arms, as carefully as he could, making sure not to pull Tezuka away from the train.
Because if he had done that…
Tezuka's arm might very well have come right off.
…
Oishi was sitting on the couch, staring absently at the television. He couldn't help wondering with a slight smile if maybe today he would be allowed to get up off of the sofa.
That Eiji… it's not like him to worry over someone like this… I wonder why it is that he…
He was startled out of his train of thought by the sound of a knock on the door. Before he could even try to move, however, he was interrupted by a familiar command.
"Don't you dare get up, Oishi! I'll get it."
Oishi sighed to himself and submitted, watching Eiji come out of the side hallway and walk up to the front door of the apartment. Somewhat curious, he craned his neck to see who it was, only to discover that it was Ryoma standing in the hallway.
"Oh, Ochibi, it's you. Come on in!" Eiji was saying cheerfully, opening the door a little wider so Ryoma could walk inside.
Ryoma complied without a word, and it was then that Oishi could see that something was very wrong. There was an unmistakable look in those golden eyes, a pained expression that cut Oishi to the heart.
He knew, of course. He knew what must have happened.
Echizen… you didn't actually…
"Are you here for a visit, Ochibi-chan?" Eiji was saying, not yet noticing the look in Ryoma's eyes. "I think Momo went out somewhere, but I could call him, if you want me t---"
"That's okay, Kikumaru-senpai," Ryoma interrupted in a low voice, walking slowly down the front hallway. Eiji blinked in surprise.
"What's wrong, Ochibi?" he asked, more softly than before, following in the boy's hesitant footsteps.
"It's nothing, Kikumaru-senpai," Ryoma mumbled, coming into the living room and stopping suddenly, as though he didn't really know where he was going. "I just… I came to say goodbye. I'm leaving Japan tonight."
Eiji's eyes widened, and he looked at Oishi in shock, but Oishi didn't seem as surprised to hear this sudden declaration.
Eiji was about to protest when Oishi shook his head, giving his former doubles partner a very meaningful look. Eiji paused, and then he nodded in understanding, disappearing again into the side hallway.
Oishi watched Eiji leave, and then he turned back to the silent tennis star. His eyes filled with compassion, looking at the crestfallen expression on the boy's face.
"Echizen, can I talk to you for a minute?" Oishi finally inquired, as gently as he could.
Ryoma stared blankly at the former vice captain for a moment, and then he nodded, sitting down next to Oishi with a kind of resignation.
"Did you talk with Tezuka?" came the question. It was answered with a simple nod. Oishi gazed thoughtfully at the tennis star, trying to read the hurt in those downcast eyes.
"He told you about that night, didn't he?" Oishi added. He didn't need a nod for an answer, though. He could already see the answer to that question written all over Ryoma's face…
…
"It will break your heart."
…
"It certainly was the worst night I'd ever been through," Oishi remarked, slowly, with the pain of the memory in his voice.
Ryoma looked up then, somewhat surprised. "You were there, Oishi-senpai?"
Oishi met Ryoma's puzzled stare and nodded.
"I saw him fall off the platform… And I watched while it hit him."
Oishi's eyes darkened at the faint recollection of the screaming train, and the younger man shuddered at the thought.
"Why didn't it kill him?" Ryoma murmured, a blend of horror and curiosity in his voice.
"He didn't fall right in front of it," Oishi explained, still speaking very slowly. "The train grazed past him on one side, and he fell down in between the track and the platform… But he was dragged underneath the train, and then…"
…
Oishi stared, horrified, at the sight of Tezuka's arm underneath the train, caught in the machinery between the wheels. He couldn't even tell if the whole arm was still intact. It was broken and twisted within the unforgiving grip of steel. The damage was so bad on one side that Oishi could see the torn, bleeding muscles underneath the skin, punctured by a splintered piece of bone.
At the mere sight of it, Oishi felt absolutely sick.
Suddenly, he felt Tezuka stir in his arms, and his attention turned back to the captain. He watched as those eyelids slowly opened, revealed two shattered amber eyes.
"Oishi---?" he said slowly, brokenly. He was completely bewildered by the sight of his friend's face above his own. "Am I… alive?"
Oishi's throat tightened as he listened to the dull tone of Tezuka's voice. But he managed a nod in response.
Blankly, Tezuka looked over at his arm, mangled in the train's machinery. He didn't seem to think much of it, and he quickly turned his head back toward Oishi.
Tezuka was surprised to see tears in his best friend's eyes.
"Oishi, what---?"
But his question went unfinished, as Oishi just shook his head, tears dripping down his face.
"Don't talk anymore, Tezuka. Don't… You'll strain yourself, and…" Oishi had to stop. His voice was shaking too much to continue. Instead, he held Tezuka closer to his chest, trying to hold back his own sobs.
"You'll be okay, Tezuka," he insisted brokenly, trembling with the sudden shock. "You'll be okay. I swear… I swear I won't leave your side. Not until you're okay again. Everything will be alright…"
He buried his face in Tezuka's rain-soaked hair, clenching his teeth in desperation, trying to stop shaking.
"Just don't die!"
Oishi was never sure afterward if it had been the rain dripping off of their faces, or… Or if, on that dark and stormy night, he had cried over Tezuka, and Tezuka Kunimitsu had cried with him.
…
"It was a miracle, they said, that his arm wasn't ripped clean off his body," Oishi added quietly, eyes staring off into space. "He went through quite a few surgeries, but it wasn't as bad as it could have been…"
"Wait," Ryoma interrupted suddenly, looking confused. "You're saying that he was hospitalized during the spring of your senior year. Why doesn't everyone else know about this?"
He couldn't help remembering the time at Taka's sushi shop a few nights ago, when everyone had argued about what really had happened to Tezuka.
…
"Do you know why Tezuka-buchou ran away to Germany? Do you?"
"There's a rumor circling around about Tezuka that you haven't heard yet…"
…
Oishi sighed. The answer to that particular question was especially unpleasant.
"The entire incident was kept a secret by Tezuka's family," he said at last, confusing Ryoma even further.
"What do you mean, 'kept a secret'? Why would they---?"
Somehow, Ryoma couldn't quite finish his question. He didn't like the dark expression that was coming into Oishi's face. For the first time, to Ryoma's eyes, the former vice captain looked truly angry, but he was obviously trying to keep calm.
"His family was very upset about it, I suppose you could say," Oishi began, in a very low tone. "They're… they're a very well-respected family, and… Well, I guess you could say that the mere idea that their son would do something like that… It was a shock to them."
"Oishi-senpai, what are you trying to say?" Ryoma asked, distinctly aware that the former vice captain wasn't being entirely upfront with him.
Oishi took a deep breath, trying to decide how to explain this particularly ugly result of Tezuka's worst mistake.
"His family was hurt, Echizen," Oishi finally said. "And I can understand that. I mean… I can't imagine what it would be like if your own son attempted suicide. Especially if your son was Tezuka. Tezuka was always responsible, and they had always been proud of him… And then… and then that happened…"
Oishi trailed off, staring blankly at the opposite wall. He could remember those horrible days, the weeks following the attempted suicide. In fact, he remembered them all too well.
…
"But, Tezuka-san, he really needs you here," Oishi pleaded to Tezuka's mother, who had her back turned to him as she walked down the hallway of the hospital.
"Please, Tezuka-san, don't leave!" he added, a hint of desperation in his voice as he tried to keep up with her rapid pace.
"I can't stay here any longer, Oishi-kun, so do not ask it of me," came the woman's pained voice, tinged with bitterness. "I simply cannot bear it. To think that my own son would shame his family like this…"
She stopped walking, putting one hand to her forehead in anguish.
"Shame his family?" Oishi repeated, suddenly angry. "Why is that the one thing you can't bear? What about Tezuka? He wanted to die, Tezuka-san! Don't you care about him at all?"
"Of course I care about him," she responded quickly, sighing in frustration. "And that's why I cannot bear this…"
She paused for a moment, clenching her teeth.
"If he cares about us, if he cares about his family, as we cared for him… How could he hurt us like this? That is what I cannot bear."
Oishi could find no reply to that, and so he only watched, helplessly, as Tezuka's mother walked out of the hospital and never looked back.
…
"I guess I can't blame them for it," Oishi sighed at last. "Suicide is a terrible thing, after all… I'm sure it would have been very damaging for the family, if it had gotten out that their son tried to kill himself."
He looked back at Ryoma, his eyes dull and cold.
"Because of that, the family made sure that Tezuka's name was never released in the press reports about the incident. They also made a deal with the school so that Tezuka could graduate, even though he was hospitalized for part of our last term. The official word was that he was taking an extended college visit to Kyoto."
Taking one last deep breath, Oishi concluded, "I was the only person outside of Tezuka's family who knew about the injury back then. And they swore me to secrecy."
"Does anyone else know about it now?" Ryoma asked suddenly, looking as though he had just realized something.
"Fuji does," Oishi replied, confirming Ryoma's suspicions. "He discovered it awhile later, though, after Tezuka decided to transfer to Germany."
Ryoma sat in silence for a moment, thinking about this. The pieces were all falling into place, but Ryoma was distinctly aware of the nagging feeling that all the mismatched parts hadn't become a whole truth just yet…
"Is that why Buchou left?" Ryoma murmured at last, almost to himself.
"Is what why he left?" Oishi repeated, perplexed. Ryoma looked up again, solemnly meeting the former vice captain's gaze.
"Did he leave because he didn't want anyone to know about his injury?" Ryoma slowly clarified, almost as though he was figuring it out just as soon as he said it…
…
"I heard a rumor that even his family doesn't know where he is."
…
"Buchou didn't want anyone to know that he had tried to kill himself, right? Because that would have hurt his family, and…"
Ryoma's words began to speed up, and his eyes widened with a realization.
"… And because Buchou would never show his own weakness in front of others. Except…"
The tennis star looked straight into Oishi's eyes, and Oishi couldn't help feeling strangely unnerved by that stare.
"Except in front of you, Oishi-senpai," Ryoma finished, his eyes glinting with comprehension. "That's why you know everything. And you're still hiding something… Aren't you?"
There was a pause, filled with tension, as Oishi realized what Ryoma meant.
"Tell me, Oishi-senpai," Ryoma urged, almost begging. "Tell me… Why did Buchou's eyes look so guilty when you collapsed two days ago?"
Oishi was silent for a moment longer, looking into those golden eyes. And then, almost against his will, he replied.
"Well, that wasn't really Tezuka's fault," he began hesitantly. "But on the night he tried to kill himself, I did ask the paramedics if I could help him somehow…"
…
"He's lost a great deal of blood," one of the doctors in the hospital was saying to a nearby nurse, who was busily scribbling down all the current information about Tezuka's condition. "He'll need some kind of transfusion after the initial procedures."
"It's a real problem," another assistant added, glancing at the nurse's records. "He's a type O, after all, and transfusions for type O patients can only come from a type O donor. It's a less common blood type, and our supply of it is already low."
Oishi was listening to all of this as he watched the other paramedics wheel Tezuka into the emergency room.
Suddenly, he remembered.
"Excuse me, Doctor," he said, approaching the two men and the nurse, who looked rather surprised to see the victim's friend talking to them. "If he needs a transfusion, you can take it from me."
"That's very kind of you, I'm sure," the doctor began. "But as I was telling my associate…"
"I'm type O," Oishi cut in quickly, surprising the three medical workers further.
"You are?" The doctor glanced at the nurse and then at his assistant. "Well, in that case, we could use your help…"
…
"Of course, it was a very small thing to do," Oishi quickly added while Ryoma listened attentively. "I was fine afterwards, maybe slightly anemic, but nothing to be worried about. But when Tezuka found out, he was very upset."
Oishi sighed, more to himself than anything else, and leaned back into the couch.
"He's like that, you know," the former vice captain observed. "He hates to trouble anyone. But I never regretted it, not once. And that's why I…"
Ryoma watched, as a sudden warmth came into Oishi's eyes.
"That's why, more than anything else, I want Tezuka to be happy," Oishi concluded, glancing at Ryoma. "You understand, don't you, Echizen?"
Ryoma barely managed a nod. He was too deep in thought to reply.
That makes sense.
Buchou is like that… he doesn't want anyone to get hurt for his sake…
… Which is why…
…
"He blames himself for everything," Ryoma muttered, almost under his breath. Oishi blinked in surprise, but he didn't say anything, waiting for the tennis star to continue.
"He thought that it was his fault that everything fell apart," added the teenager, in a slightly louder voice. "He thought it was his fault, that he was the one who failed to support you all. And that's when he started believing that he should die."
Ryoma looked up again, and in that moment, the two men understood together.
"He couldn't stand the thought of letting everyone down," Ryoma finished, eyes wide. "That's why he jumped."
Oishi nodded slowly, as though this was the first time he had thought about it like that.
"That's not the only reason, though," Oishi observed quietly. This time it was Ryoma who nodded.
He could see that much all too well. He didn't quite see the whole picture just yet, but he hadn't forgotten what Oishi had told him three nights ago.
…
"The person that changed Tezuka is Fuji. Tezuka himself is hardly even aware of it. But it's the truth…"
"How do we affect other people? Sometimes we don't even realize our own power over others... And that's what happened with Fuji and Tezuka."
…
Suddenly, Ryoma stood up in the middle of Eiji's living room, a strange look coming into his eyes. Oishi couldn't quite read that expression, and it was rather unnerving, especially when Ryoma had already said that he was leaving Japan that very night.
"Echizen…?" he asked softly. "What is it?"
"It's nothing, Oishi-senpai," Ryoma answered somewhat blankly. "It's just that… I finally understand. I can't help him, not anymore."
Oishi frowned, not liking the tone in the boy's voice, or the words he was speaking, for that matter.
"Echizen, what are you talking abou---"
"I can't help him. It's not up to me," Ryoma went on, hardly heeding the former vice captain. "And so… There really is no reason for me to stay here. Not anymore. So… Goodbye, Oishi-senpai."
Ryoma was on his way out the door before Oishi could even react.
"Echizen! Wait!" Oishi rose to his feet, calling out Ryoma's name at the exact same moment that the tennis star shut the door behind him.
It was too late.
- - - - - - - - - -
Tezuka stood there, leaning against the railing of the bridge, watching as the world went on so far below him. Heedless of the passage of time, he blankly observed the people marching purposefully below, headed to offices and to schools, to places they were needed, places they were expected to be…
It had been a long time since anyone had expected anything from him.
He didn't think much about this, though. Instead, his mind was filled with visions of golden eyes, eyes brimming with the bitterest tears he'd ever seen.
I never meant to disappoint you, Echizen…
Please believe me.
He leaned forward and rested his body against the railing, burying his head in his arms.
I know I let you down.
Could you ever forgive me, Ryoma?
Tezuka didn't cry, even though he was alone. He didn't feel the need to cry, either. He was simply empty inside… But even a hollow heart could ache with the pain of regret.
That had always been his promise to himself, after all.
He would leave no regrets behind, no matter what he did.
… When had he forsaken that promise?
Tezuka took a deep breath, trying to ignore his own train of thought. It was useless to look back on the past, when he could no longer do anything to fix it… and yet, that horrible, nagging feeling wouldn't leave him…
"Was Echizen here?" a voice suddenly said, taking Tezuka by surprise.
He looked up to see Inui standing next to him, staring out at the towering cityscape.
"Inui…" Tezuka trailed off for a moment. Even he couldn't hide the question in his eyes. "What are you doing here?"
Inui didn't respond to that. Instead, he repeated his question.
"Was Echizen here?"
Tezuka nodded, still staring at the data man with a marked perplexity in his face.
Inui brought his hand up alongside his nose in that familiar gesture, pushing his glasses upward.
"I thought so," came the calm reply. "The chances were high that he would confront you today."
"Confront me about what?" Tezuka asked, somewhat defensively. He knew exactly what Inui meant, of course, but still… It was strange that Inui should know that much. Even if he was Inui.
"About whatever it is you've been hiding from all of us," Inui responded frankly, turned his head slightly toward the former captain. "Don't think that Echizen didn't notice it all along, either. He wanted to know about it since the day he came back here."
Tezuka said nothing for a moment, turning away from Inui again and staring out over the crowded streets.
"I know he did. That's why I came back," Tezuka finally replied, just as blunt as Inui had been.
The data man couldn't resist a slight smile at that. "I figured as much. It would appear that even Tezuka Kunimitsu has his weak points."
Tezuka couldn't help shooting his former teammate a characteristic glare, but he relented after a moment and sighed.
"I have too many of them, really," he admitted in a low voice, frowning.
"That doesn't surprise me," Inui assured him amiably. "I'm sure we all do."
In the following pause, the two men listened to the faint rumbling noise of the traffic below, punctuated by the ring of a car horn.
"It merits the question," Tezuka said suddenly, the slightest hint of amusement glinting behind his lenses. "Does Inui, too, have a weak point?"
Inui coughed somewhat self-consciously, in an attempt to hide his own discomfort.
"Well, that particular piece of data is confidential," he noted.
"Naturally." Tezuka suppressed a faint smile.
There was another pause, as they both glanced upward at the sky. The sun was at its highest point, poised to begin its slow descent toward the distant western horizon.
"He's going to leave," Tezuka said suddenly, catching Inui's attention. The taller man noted the way Tezuka's hands were tightly grasping the railing as he spoke.
"You think Echizen's leaving Japan."
It was a statement, not a question. Nevertheless, Tezuka responded with a slight nod.
Inui glanced upward one last time, watching the way the clouds slowly slipped across the sapphire blue sky. When he did speak again, he continued with an authority in his tone that he normally reserved only for his most crucial tennis matches.
"There's no way to know that for sure, however. As best as I can tell, the odds of him leaving before the day is out are holding at exactly 50 percent."
Inui turned his head back toward the former captain.
"I suppose you could say that our last chance has become a coin toss."
He then reached in his pocket and took out a small notebook, a different one than the familiar green kind that he used for tennis statistics. He flipped to a page that contained only a few quick scrawls, and he then ripped it right out of the notebook.
Inui held up the piece of paper, letting go of the edge and watching as it alighted on the breeze, flying through the air in a haphazard pattern.
Tezuka looked on, as that piece of paper turned over and over in the sky, rising up on the wind and then falling quickly to the street far below.
"As for me," Inui added, somewhat hesitantly. "My bet is that he'll stay. What do you think, Tezuka?"
Tezuka said nothing, watching the stray piece of data plummet toward the ground, until the paper flew under the bridge and vanished from view.
Slowly, he looked back up at his former teammate, and he replied, very seriously.
"I'll take you up on that bet, Inui."
He paused, thinking for a moment.
"It's one that I'd be happy to lose."
- - - - - - - - -
Ryoma was making his way across the familiar city sidewalk, gradually heading back to the hotel. He had every intention of going straight to his room and packing up his things, to prepare for the night's departure.
Suddenly, a thought occurred to him.
There was one last thing he wanted to do before he left.
This one last thing… He needed to do it. For closure's sake.
He quickly turned around and headed for the nearest train station. He had one last call to make before he left for America and returned to his life of fame and fortune, before he forgot that this whole thing had ever happened…
In fact, it was the reason that he had returned to Japan in the first place.
- end of chapter eighteen -
Useless Footnote: Yes, Tezuka does in fact have the O blood type, as does Oishi. And it is true that people with type O can only receive type O transfusions, even though type O blood can be given to any other blood type. I don't think type O blood is really much rarer than other types, but since it can be used for anything, it makes sense that it might be in short supply at any given time in a hospital.
A/N: Sorry this chapter didn't quite make it up by the end of the weekend! XP I tried really hard, but several things were working against me… One being that I had to deal with my finances this weekend. Bleah. Well, in any case, here's the chapter at long last! This one had to pick up a lot of loose ends, so hopefully I didn't confuse anyone with all the necessary exposition. O.o Actually, most of this was supposed to be in chapter seventeen, but obviously it was too long to fit into one chapter. Hopefully the whole Tezuka situation is getting a bit clearer. As for what Ryoma will do, well, you'll see! XD Oh, and I've been asked how many chapters are left… I'm not 100 percent sure, but I can say at this point that it's probably around 25 or so, since it's going a little bit slower than I expected. Also, many people are looking forward to some Golden Pair resolution and some answers about Momo and Kaidoh… I'm happy to say, I'm finally getting to that part! So as they say, stay tuned, lol.
By the way, I'd like to dedicate this chapter to TypicallyAznGurl, with many apologies that I did not finish it in time for her birthday. I really wanted to, honest! So I hope you'll accept the late birthday present!
Oh, and I'll be updating asap, but as a forewarning, I have a paper due this week, along with a fairly important exam. So the next chapter will probably be posted this coming weekend, unless I manage to squeeze it in sooner…
Well, thanks for your continued support, everyone! I really appreciate it! -bows- I'll do my best on the next chapter. In the meantime, let me know what you thought of chapter eighteen!
The FAQ for this fic is posted in my profile, and you can e-mail me any questions you might have.
Coming Up Next: On the verge of leaving Japan for the last time, Ryoma remembers one thing that he still wants to do. But will this final visit change his mind about his decision to leave? Or will it change his whole life forever?