Chapter 5

Hiro got off his motorbike at the hospital parking lot, carrying a medical box containing the precious blood that Shuichi needed. Hastily he made his way into the lobby of the hospital where two nurses awaited him to receive the box.

"Nakano-san! Over here, I'll take it!" one of the nurses said and Hiro handed the box to her. She ran away with it and the other nurse motioned to Hiro to follow her.

"This way. Good work, now we will handle the rest."

She led him into a corridor and to a waiting room at the end.

"Please wait here. We will begin the transfusion immediately and we will pass trough here with him first," she said and disappeared into another corridor.

Hiro, who hadn't been saying anything at all, sat down in a chair to wait.

"Yuki-san, we have the resources needed to commence the transfusion. Would you like to wait or do you want to be with him?" the doctor asked as he and a few nurses prepared Shuichi for moving his bed.

"I'd like to be with him…" Yuki said and clenched his lover's hand.

The doctor nodded and then they started to roll the bed out of the room, Yuki following.

They went trough the waiting room where Hiro was and he rose to his feet as he saw them coming.

"Is he going to make it?" he asked worriedly and looked at Shuichi's pale face.

"Yes, Nakano-san, he will most likely survive. Thanks to you being as quick as you were." The doctor smiled at Hiro who let out a relieved huff. Yuki turned to look at the guitarist.

"You want to come?" he asked and looked away again. Hiro shook his head.

"No, you are more suited for that, Yuki-san. I'll wait out here." He sat down and looked at them as they proceeded into another room with Shuichi.

'Please Shuichi, you have to make it,' the guitarist thought to himself.

Shuichi had seen when Yuki had entered the bathroom just before he passed out. He had seen the expression of surprise and horror at the writer's face, and then he had been floating in darkness for a long time. He wondered if this was death. Why was it so empty? So silent…?

He had heard stories of afterlife worlds and sights. Like a white light through a tunnel, but he had seen nothing of such a thing. At times, he had heard voices, among them Yuki's voice. And then it had been quiet. Suddenly, he had heard sobbing and crying. But he couldn't place whether it was real or something in his dreams, because it was Yuki's voice doing that. But he couldn't be crying for Shuichi, now, could he?

Then he had felt like something big and heavy teared at his heart and he had gotten trouble breathing. It eased off after a moment though, as he heard concerned talking and felt as something was placed over his mouth, covering it. That had given him fresh air to breathe. After that, the darkness had taken him over completely again as all the sounds where shut out.

Right now, he could hear the voices again. They were discussing something about his blood, and how he lacked too much of it.

After a while, he could suddenly feel as if new life were flowing through his body. His veins were on fire and he gasped softly.

"Shuichi?" Yuki felt his heart jump when the singer let out a small gasp as the transfusion began.

Shuichi's head moved and he sighed and settled back into his unknown dreams. Yuki looked up at the doctor who gave him a reassuring nod.

"It's working fine. We should be finished in about half an hour from now. I see no problems so far."

Yuki let out a sigh of long wanted relief and let his gaze fall back onto Shuichi's face. The youth wasn't that pale anymore and his face looked somehow healthier.

One hour later

Shuichi was now back in his hospital room, this time without the respirator. The doctor stood beside the bed, checking the singer's pulse and then he nodded.

"Everything is okay now. You can try to wake him if you like, but I suggest that you leave it to him to wake on his own accord," he said to Yuki and Hiro. "I'll leave you alone for a while now. Any complications and you should get me here. Tell me when he awakens." With that, the doctor was gone out in the corridor, closing the door behind him.

In a mutual agreement, Yuki and Hiro just sat and watched Shuichi, waiting.

Suddenly, a moan escaped Shuichi's mouth as he slowly came to. Without opening his eyes he struggled to move his arm, positioning it over his face.

"Oooow… my head…" It was a whisper, barely audible, and his voice was ragged by the drieness in his throat and mouth.

"Shuichi!" Hiro gave a relieved laugh and stood up. Shuichi slowly turned his head in Hiro's direction, hie eyes wide.

"Hiro…" He looked confused. "Where… where am I?" He croaked out the words.

"You are in the hospital, you little brat!" Yuki's voice was heard and Shuichi jerked his head in the other direction.

"Yu… Yuki…" Shuichi breathed in awe, wonder in his eyes when he saw the novelist looking down at him.

"I'll leave the rest to you Yuki-san," Hiro said with a smile. "I'll be going home now."

Yuki nodded, still looking down at Shuichi with a stern face. Hiro gave Shuichi a smile before gathering his stuff together and going out the door.

When they were alone, Shuichi frowned and turned his head away from Yuki.

"Shuichi, I know you will hate this, but why? Why did you do it?" Yuki asked, making a frustrated gesture with his arm and then drawing his hand through his hair. "You know that this was fucking stupid to do! Why?"

Shuichi just knew that he was going to ask that. he turned to look at Yuki again.

Yuki winced at what he saw. Shuichi's violet eyes held a self-abhorrence that frightened the novelist to no end. Why did Shuichi hate himself so much?

"Shuichi…" Yuki grabbed the singer's hand gently. "I… don't understand it that easy. I know… I know I might be harsh and cold sometimes… but… Oh, why Shuichi? Why!"

Shuichi felt his body shiver slightly.

"I don't deserve to live…" he said quietly. "I'm just being a nuisance to everybody and to you, Yuki…" Again, he was to turn his head away again when Yuki stopped him by bending down and catching his mouth in a feverish kiss. Shuichi's eyes widened as tears were forming in them and he tensed.

"Yuki…" he mumbled against the writer's lips, and he began to sob, unable to control the shivers that ran through his body.

Without a word, Yuki broke the kiss and lifted Shuichi off the bed, cradling him into his lap.
"Ssh… It's okay, I'm here," he said, soothing the boy, nuzzled his hair, running a hand over the quaking back of the trembling singer. "Don't cry, I'm here. Everything is going to be alright…"

Shuichi bawled like a baby and rested his head at Yuki's chest, gripping his shirt in his hands tightly.

Yuki looked down at the crying teenager and felt how a protectiveness that he earlier had repressed now rose in his heart towards the boy.

"My Shuichi…" he said gently. "I was so afraid of loosing you."

Shuichi looked up at Yuki, tears streaming down his face.

"Why do you care!" he asked desperately, his eyes filled with despair. "You never care!" He looked down and let more sobs come out of his mouth, his body still shivering.

Yuki stared.

"Baka. I do care. Don't think otherwise," he said as he drew his hand through Shuichi's hair and then bent down to kiss him again. Then he broke it and smiled at the singer.

"Now, the doctor is going to do a check-up on you," he said as he lay Shuichi back on the bed. "So I'm going to get him. You just stay put." He leaned down and planted a kiss on Shuichi's forehead. "I'll be right back," he said as he headed out the door.

Shuichi let his head slump back against the soft pillow. He was confused. How come wasn't dead? How come he was safe and sound in a hospital? He wanted to be dead. That was at least until a few moments ago and now…? Well, he wasn't that sure anymore.

After a short while, Yuki returned with a man in a white coat. 'The doctor', Shuichi thought.

"Well, this is a good sight. How are you feeling, Shindou-kun?" the doctor asked while he was looking at the monitors.

"I'm… fine…" the singer said silently. He looked at Yuki and saw how the novelist twisted at Shuichi's answer. Yuki knew that Shuichi was lying. Emotionally, Shuichi was a wreck. Literally speaking.

"Do you want to go home?" the doctor asked, taking a timing on Shuichi's pulse. "You shouldn't have anything to worry about. Your pulse is back to normal and you look much better."

Shuichi just nodded at that. He didn't feel like speaking at all. He knew he had to be grateful to the doctor for taking care of him, but he couldn't say anything.

"Okay. I'd like to run a more throughout check-up on you and then you are free to go. Is that alright with you?" his last words were addressed to Yuki who stood beside him. Yuki nodded and put his hands in his pockets.

"Yes, I'll be the one driving him home, so don't worry."

After the check-up, Yuki presented Shuichi with some clean clothes that were Yuki's own.

"Get dressed. I'll make you dinner when we get home. Anything special you'd like?" He looked at his lover and forced out a smile despite the worry he felt for the teenager.

Shuichi slowly pulled the white sweatshirt over his head and looked down at the floor.

"I'm not hungry…" he mumbled as he put on Yuki's a little too long pants. "Don't waste your cooking on me."

Yuki frowned. This wasn't a good mood. He would need to get Shuichi out of his misery before he did anything more dangerous.

"Not hungry? You've been out for about 24 hours and you say that you aren't hungry? You're lying." He gave Shuichi a lovingly ruffle around his hair. "Then, since you don't say anything about food, I'll guess I'll make it a surprise for you…" He turned and offered Shuichi his hand. "Shall we go?"

Shuichi silently slid his small hand into Yuki's and was lead out the door.

TCB…