A/N: Here's the next chapter. I believe it may be the longest one so far. I'm hoping to break the 10,000 word mark by the next chapter. Wish me luck!

Shattered Reality
Chapter Six
by Wolfram003

Eiji was still awake during the seemingly everlasting trip—traffic was terrible during lunch hour—to Ryoma's house, although everyone else in the car probably thought he was sleeping again. He was leaning on Oishi's shoulder with his eyes closed, after all. However, he wasn't asleep; he was thinking.

He'd been thinking all night, letting himself be wrapped up in the icy embrace of the rain that wiped away his tears with its gentle transparent fingers, and he still didn't know what to do. What should he do? If his father, whom he loved dearly, kicked his oldest sister, whom he also loved dearly, out of the house before trying to hit her—which backfired, Eiji silently added in his mind as his bruised cheek complained a bit—because she loved another girl, what would his father do to him for loving another boy?

Eiji really didn't want to know. Just thinking of such a thing made him even more upset than he already was. Maybe everything would be alright. Maybe he was just overreacting.

He knew that everyone was worried about him, but he didn't know how to make them not worried. As it was, he was worried about himself. He really didn't know how to handle everything that had happened yesterday.

Maybe if he told Oishi everything—

No, that would just make his boyfriend worry more, and Oishi didn't need that.

Perhaps he could tell Fuji?

Eiji's felt his nose scrunch up in distaste. No, if he did that, someone would get hurt. Fuji was well-known for being overly protective, and the redhead didn't want anyone to start another fight.

Ochibi, then?

A small smile lifted his lips before vanishing almost as quickly as it came. Nah, Ochibi wouldn't know how to handle the situation if he cried. That had been proven earlier when the younger boy had found him. He really should thank the blasé child for letting him stay at his house; it was a very kind gesture.

His throat tickled, and he coughed harshly, pretending to keep sleeping even as he felt Oishi and Fuji's worried gazed land on him. Eiji fought back a frown. He didn't like feeling so disoriented and tired.

Oishi rubbed his back gently, and the redhead actually felt better until his boyfriend's hand came into contact with the bruise given to him by his sister. He couldn't stop himself from sucking in a sharp breath through his teeth and twitching slightly from the pain. He mentally reminded himself never to make his sister seriously angry like she had been yesterday; she hit hard.

Oishi stiffened, and his hand hovered above the bruise uncertainly. Eiji felt rather than saw his boyfriend and best friend exchange glances or worry, and he mentally cursed at himself for not being able to stand the pain. Seriously, he got bruises this bad whenever he landed strangely during tennis practice! They were everyday occurrences—albeit he had never had one directly on his spine before—, so why were these bruises bothering him so much? Was it just because he hadn't caused them himself?

Yes, that was it.

Eiji suddenly felt like crying again, and he must have whimpered because he felt Oishi's strong arms wrap around his shoulders. Soft lips brushed his forehead again, and the redhead let out a shaky breath. That was right. Oishi was there to make him feel safe and loved even if his family didn't accept him. Oishi was there to protect him; the dark-haired boy wouldn't let anyone hurt him. He wrapped his arms around his boyfriend and felt the other boy start slightly.

"I didn't know you were awake, Eiji."

The acrobat didn't answer, preferring to shift so that he could hug his boyfriend tighter. He was feeling worse with each moment that passed, and his mind was starting to become a little fuzzy. His shoulders started to slump and belatedly he wondered if this was that feeling everyone spoke of having before fainting...?

He awoke quite a while later, if the lack of the sun in the sky was any clue to the time of day. Slowly he became aware of the fact that he was laying on something extraordinarily soft. He was curled on his side, staring with bleary blue eyes at a blurry—why was it so hard to focus?—fluff-ball of a creature only inches from his face. Was that Ochibi's cat?

He thought about rolling over onto his other side to face away from the cat but found he didn't have the energy. A droplet of lukewarm water slid down his forehead from a damp washcloth and caught in the eyelashes of one of his half-open eyes. He found he was too tired to even brush it away, so he continued to lay like he had been since waking up. Distantly he heard bits and pieces of a hushed conversation, but in his present state, his mind couldn't make sense of them.

"...bad fever..."
"...someone hit him..."
"...rained last night when he..."
"...worried..."

Eiji was just drifting off when a feminine voice entered the fray.

"How is he?"

There were footsteps after three other male voices replied with similar explanations, and Eiji found himself looking up at a young woman with long dark hair and warm dark eyes. She removed the damp washcloth from his forehead, frowning at its warmth. The young woman gently placed her own hand on the redhead's forehead, and her frown grew. She dunked the warm washcloth into the basin of cold water on the nightstand next to the bed and wrung it out. Slim hands replaced the cool rag on his forehead, and Eiji couldn't help but shiver as icy tendrils of liquid trailed down his too-hot face. The young woman jumped as she met his fever-glazed azure gaze, "Oh! You're awake!"

Eiji made an unintelligible sound before forcing himself to roll over onto his other side, feeling the damp rag slip from his forehead onto the pillow his head was resting on. She was nice and everything, but he was really tired. He didn't want to talk to her.

"You should really keep this on. You have a terrible fever," the cloth was placed on his forehead once again by that same slim hand, and Eiji was about to snap at the dark-haired girl for not leaving him alone when a familiar voice stopped him. "She's right, Eiji. We need to bring your fever down soon. It's too high."

It was Oishi. He sounded so tired. Eiji wondered what time it was and asked.

"It's 3:15 AM, Kikumaru-senpai," Ryoma answered, yawning softly.

The redhead nodded a bit, and the washcloth slid to cover his eyes. He made no move to change its location; the coolness felt good on his fever-burned eyes. He felt himself drifting off once again into the fuzzy haze of unconsciousness. It was quickly becoming a welcomed feeling in Eiji's mind.

The next time he awoke, it was bright outside—he could already tell that even though he hadn't bothered to open his eyes—, and he could hear everyone—well, someone was also in the room he was occupying and was snoring— moving around the house. The scent of food wafted through the air and met his nose. The redhead hugged himself and fought back a wave of nausea. He quickly made a note to himself not to eat anything, not because it smelled bad but because his stomach just couldn't handle it.

He brought a hand up to his forehead and brushed away his crimson bangs that were stuck to his forehead with sweat. Eiji decided he was uncomfortably hot after a moment of lying still and wriggled out of the cocoon of blankets he had been engulfed in sometime during the night. He lay on his back, coughing slightly as he opened his blue eyes, squinting at the sudden barrage of light on his sense of sight. Why was everything so bright? What time was it?

Suddenly the door opened, and Fuji came in carrying a tray of dishes. Eiji felt his stomach drop further; Fuji—the person known to enjoy Inui's concoctions—had been the one cooking? As if sensing his horrified stare, Fuji turned to him as he set the tray on the nightstand beside the bed and said, "Don't worry, Eiji. I didn't cook. Echizen's cousin, Nanako-san, did. It's just a simple broth."

Eiji shook his head as his stomach churned, hoping his protective friend would understand his predicament. He let his gaze drop from Fuji's face to the other occupants—yes, occupants; only one of them seemed to snore when they were asleep—of the room. Ochibi was resting on his stomach, face buried in his pillow—snoring, Eiji felt the need to add—with his arm sprawled across the his fluffy cat, Karupin. Oishi was laying on his back, eyes closed, seeming to worry even in his sleep which made Eiji feel slightly guilty for some reason. After all, in light of recent events, Oishi was probably worried about him.
He was shaken from his thoughts as Fuji placed cleared his throat, spoon in hand. Eiji made a face; was spoon-feeding him really necessary? The smell of the soup, bland as it was, made his stomach churn one last time, and a green tinge graced his features. Fuji started and all but threw the spoon back in the bowl before hurriedly handing his friend a trashcan. For this, Eiji was thankful because in the next moment, he was violently ill.

Eiji decided that day that he never wanted to be sick again.

Both Ryoma and Oishi were awakened by his horrid retching. Ryoma sat up slowly, blinking many times and appearing generally dazed. Oishi's eyes snapped open, and he was by Eiji's side in an instant, holding back his sweat-dampened hair from his face.

"I'm sorry," Eiji apologized weakly into the trashcan.

Fuji just shook his head and said, "It's not your fault. I just thought you might want to try to eat something. Apparently, you're not quite up to it yet even though your fever has gone down."

The honey-haired tensai crossed the room and knelt next to his own bag, unzipping it. He rummaged around in it for a while before retrieving a toothbrush and a small purple tube of toothpaste. He walked back over to the bed and held the items out to the redhead who glanced at him with questioning blue eyes, "Yours didn't make it into your bag before you left, so when I went to get my overnight stuff, I asked 'Neesan to take me to the store. You'll probably want to use these in a moment. I always forget, do you mind grape-flavored toothpaste?"

Eiji rolled his eyes at Fuji's tease. Of course he didn't mind grape toothpaste! The prodigy had seen his dental hygiene collection before! Grape was a standard flavor (so were strawberry, cinnamon, mint, orange, and cherry). He reached out and took the offered items with a shy genuine smile, "Thanks, Fujiko."

He was suddenly aware that Oishi was holding a glass of water for him. When he glanced up into sleepy green eyes with a puzzled expression, Oishi shrugged slightly and explained, "I thought it might help."

Eiji gave another shy smile and took the glass from him, "Thank you, nya."

"Mada mada dane," was all that Ryoma contributed to the conversation before face-planting into this pillow, asleep before his head met the soft object.

The redhead fought back a fond grin and began to brush his teeth.

To be continued...

Glossary of Terms:
Ochibi— roughly translates to "Kiddo" or "Baby."
-senpai— upperclassman.
-san— formality; term of respect.
tensai— roughly "genius" or "prodigy."
'Neesan— "Older sis."
nya— Nonsensical term used by Eiji, similar to a noise made by a cat.
Mada mada dane— Ryoma's favorite saying; roughly translates to "Not yet" or "You have a long way to go."

--Wolfram003--