Eijun had never been on a helicopter before, and it was an unfortunate shame that it couldn't have been under better circumstances. He and Miyuki had been assisted into the back where they were strapped in with two other medical personnel. One looped an oxygen mask around Eijun's nose, pumping uncontaminated air directly into his airways. With each burst of oxygen, Eijun could feel it drying the inside of his nostrils, stripping all moisture, leaving them feeling chapped and a nosebleed waiting to happen.

Once he noticed the sensation, it only brought his attention to the previous abuse his nose had taken. And as if it was waiting for his acknowledgment, the bridge of his nose began to throb in time with his elevated heart. All at once, he felt heat rise to his face before steadily spreading throughout his entire body; and despite the overwhelming warmth, he found his body wracked with near-violent shivers that set his teeth chattering. One of the EMTs leaned forward to situate his blanket more firmly around his shoulders, and Eijun quickly grabbed the corners with a trembling hand to hold it closed across his torso. Unfortunately, it wasn't long enough to completely encase him, leaving his legs exposed to the chilled air. But still, Eijun tried to tuck himself into it as much as the straps holding him to the seat would allow, which wasn't much.

Movement out of the corner of his eye drew Eijun's attention to Miyuki. The other EMT had a hand on Miyuki's chin and tilted his head up, while his free hand slowly peeled the tape that held the bandage to the skin. Miyuki barely winced at the pull as the EMT removed the patch of bandage that covered the length of the wound under his eye. Eijun found his eyes focused on the laceration that was revealed. He felt nothing at the gory sight, already long used to looking at it; however, the skin around the cleft was extra red and raw compared to the last time Eijun saw it. Even the impromptu sutures Eijun painstakingly applied had been removed and replaced with multiple butterfly bandaids to temporarily hold the edges together. The wound itself was steadily leaking, having bled through the bandage already. The EMT dabbed at it lightly with gauze, soaking up the runoff blood, before that and the soiled bandage was tossed into a bin. With practiced ease, a clean one was applied to cover the wound once more.

Eijun turned to face the EMT seated directly across from him and tried to voice a question that had been on his mind since the hospital wheeled him out onto the roof. However, as soon as he spoke, the sound was completely drowned out by the noise of the helicopter blades. As it was, Eijun couldn't even be sure if sound left his mouth to begin with. Thankfully though, the EMT was watching him, and saw his attempt. The man held a finger up and leaned forward to dig around under his seat before emerging with bulky headphones. He reached out to carefully situate them over Eijun's ears and angled the mic mere inches in front of his mouth.

The EMT leaned back and tapped the side of his own headset and said, "There, now we can hear each other," His partner glanced over at Eijun in slight surprise, and Miyuki seemed to notice they were all looking at him and turned to face Eijun as well, brows furrowed until he saw the headset and frowned. The EMT in front of Miyuki must have seen, as not too long after, a similar set was placed atop Miyuki's head as well.

Eijun glanced back and forth between the EMTs, "Where are we going?" He scrunched his nose up as the sound of his voice reverberated back at him through the headset, only to immediately abort the action with a wince.

"You're being transferred to The University of Tokyo," the man in front of Eijun explained, "The hospital you were just at didn't have any doctors experienced in a case such as both of yours," he gestured between he and Miyuki, "Appropriate doctors have been notified at UTokyo and are preparing for your arrival."

Eijun glanced back at Miyuki, taking in the hints of pink already staining the new bandage before looking at the EMT's, "Oh," he said quietly enough that his voice didn't echo back at him, and he had to wonder if anyone even heard him, but either way, one of the EMT's offered him a small smile regardless.

"We're gonna get you the help you both need," The other EMT said, and Eijun had to quickly look down at his knees as an all too familiar burning sensation began to build behind his eyes. After going so long of having to fend and take care of themselves to the best their situation would allow, the thought of actually getting all the help they needed was almost foreign to Eijun.

But he was so relieved.

"Are you in pain?" Someone asked. Eijun doesn't trust himself to try and speak at the moment, without his voice sounding wet and shaking with the emotion he was desperately attempting to fight back. So instead, he kept silent, and that must have been enough. "We heard you had an allergic reaction to codeine earlier, so, unfortunately, we're a little hesitant to give you something for the pain right now." He continued, sounding genuinely apologetic.

Eijun could only shrug helplessly in response, all while his mind reeled. An allergic reaction? When had that happened? And as soon as he thought that, bits of memory came back from when he was first taken to a room to be assessed. He remembers a needle in his arm with a brief moment of being pain-free, before his airways closed off and people were shouting around him, then another needle in his thigh. Huh. As far as Eijun was aware, he wasn't allergic to anything, but then he's also never had a need for prescription-grade pain relievers before.

They all fell into silence after that, with only the sound of the blades rotating above them to fill the hush.

When they arrived at their destination, they were met with a large team of people in varying colors of scrubs. Both Eijun and Miyuki were quickly transported from the helicopter to gurneys, to apparently, go straight to their respective surgeries. Eijun was just happy to be horizontal again, that worrying about his upcoming medical procedure didn't occur to him until they burst through swinging, double doors, and the nurses transferred him from the gurney to the operation table.

Eijun's heart rate began to spike as he stared at the bright LED light above him while his mind helpfully reminded him of the last time he was laid out on a table. The kidnapper had towered over his form, saw in hand as he cut through layers of flesh and muscle to reach the bone. Distantly Eijun could even recall the sensation of the blade nicking across his femur before it was pulled away, only to be replaced by a large needle. After the ordeal, he and Miyuki agreed it wasn't entirely necessary for him to cut through Eijun's legs, and that he could have just as easily punctured through the skin to get to the bone; that the kidnapper took the extra step could only be for sheer enjoyment. Eijun shudders at the thought.

Before the panic could fully set in, Eijun pushed himself up to his elbows, not keen on being overwhelmed with flashbacks. Though his new position appeared to be for the best as one of the nurses sidled up to him to help ease the hospital gown down his arms, leaving him stark naked in the center of the room. Not that Eijun was in a place of mind to care, and even so, at this point, he was used to the lack of clothing, especially in unfavorable situations. Another nurse suddenly appeared at his other side, startling him. She apologized quickly and began unwinding the bandage from around his torso; the previous hospital must have layered on the bandage as it seemed to never end. However, once she got to the last bit, Eijun felt a tug and pinch on his back each time a strip was pulled free until it was all removed, leaving Eijun with a distant burning sensation from the new agitation. Other than that, he hasn't been feeling much pain from his back for a while now. When he did, it was brief before it faded to a numb state. Not that he minds, it was a relief when the constant pain vanished, only to act up if he moved wrong or something makes direct contact.

Nurses continued to cycle in and out, each time one left, they were replaced with another in full attire; head covers, masks, gloves, and warm-up jackets over their scrubs, until Eijun suddenly found himself surrounded by them. One laid a stiff fabric over his lap while another softly coaxed him to lay back. Eijun did as instructed as his eyes darted back and forth between them all, even while a clip was placed on his middle finger and other wires were stuck onto him. Someone from behind his head placed a mask over his nose and mouth, telling him to count backward from one-hundred.

Eijun's nose was quickly overwhelmed with a funny scent, similar to that of a permanent marker. It quickly stuck to the back of his tongue as he slowly croaked out the numbers, pausing now and again as his brain failed to process what came after. His eyelids began to feel heavy somewhere around fifty, and the last thing he remembers is the doctors and nurses giving each other looks of concern before everything finally faded away.

Awareness returned to Eijun slowly. The only thing he really noticed was the soft, continuous buzzing noise that otherwise he would have ignored, but now gave him something to focus on. It was short-lived, however, as he was swiftly pulled under once more into oblivion. The second time he came to, he realized he was lying on his stomach, head turned to the side so his cheek was pressed against a firm mattress. That confused him; Eijun wasn't normally a stomach sleeper, he was more prone to sprawling on his back, and if anything, he would be on half his stomach, but not fully. At some point, while he pondered, he drifted out again without any answers. The third time, the buzzing was accompanied by other noise off in the distance. Like there were people moving about somewhere. He could hear footsteps, soft murmurs of voices, and the occasional squeak from what sounded like a rusty wheel. A voice in the back of his head was telling him he should be concerned, but he couldn't bring himself to feel anything other than tired and confused.

Abruptly, Eijun realizes why his position feels unnatural for him. For a while now, he has grown used to using Miyuki as his own personal body pillow. He was used to laying his head against Miyuki's chest, and even sharing their body heat to fight off the chill. Now he was alone, relatively warm, but he had no idea where Miyuki was, and that was enough to send him into a panic.

The hardest part, however, was getting his eyes to open. When he managed to crack them a bit, he would involuntarily squeeze them shut. So instead, he focused on pushing himself off the surface he lay on, hoping the movement would help wake him up as he went. Turning his neck hurt, protesting the action after being held in a single position for so long, though the stiffness and the pain made it easier for him to crack open one eye to peer around the room he found himself in.

It was dimly lit and sparsely decorated, but clearly not the hell-hole he had expected to wake up in. Eijun's arms wobbled from where they held his weight off the mattress and slowly shuffled his legs –kicking off the thin blanket in the process– to lower them off the side of the bed. He scooted himself closer to the edge until his feet touched the floor, hands still poised on the mattress for the added support. His vision swam and his stomach twisted dangerously with his new vertical position, but he couldn't physically or mentally relax until he at least knew where Miyuki was. He needed to know Miyuki was okay before anything else.

Eijun pushed himself off the bed, vision going white for several long seconds as he teetered on his feet, but when sight returned, he took his first step towards one of the two doors in his room. A few more small steps, and he was thwarted by a sharp pain on the back of his hand. He peered down at it, offended and confused when he saw a tiny tube taped to the back of his hand and a white clip clamped on his finger. Eijun pulled the clip off and let it fall to the floor before he yanked the tube to let it dangle and leak a clear liquid onto the floor.

He moved on.

Eijun shuffled and stumbled towards the door, hands flying out to catch his balance as soon as he reached it. He allowed himself a moment to catch his breath and let his world reorient itself, however slightly that may be. He fumbled the doorknob until he was able to pull it open enough to slide his body out of the gap and into the much brighter hallway beyond. Eijun looked up and down the hall, not seeing another person, though he noticed that there were doors evenly distanced along each wall, some closed, and others wide open. He shambled his way down the hall, peering into each room in search of Miyuki, even going so far as to open doors and take several steps in to get a good look. Some of the rooms were empty, but a majority of them seemed to be occupied, and each time he saw someone in a bed, he got his hopes up a little until he realized none of them were who he wanted them to be.

He was determined, in his muddled mind, to find Miyuki, and if that meant searching every room, then so be it.

After a few more rooms, Eijun finally stumbles across Miyuki's. He shuffles as fast as his feet would safely carry him to where Miyuki lays asleep in his own bed, blanket up to his waist and arms flat at his sides. Eijun stood over him, taking in the fresh bandage striped across his face before raising a knee up, followed quickly by the other, and next thing he knew, he was curling delicately up against Miyuki's side. Eijun released a sigh of relief and allowed his eyes to close so he could drift off back to sleep, reassured that Miyuki was alive.

Eijun wakes again, to hushed, panicked voices and a hand on his shoulder. He grumbles in annoyance and tries to shake the grasp off, but it doesn't budge. Peeling an eye open, Eijun turns his head to glare at whoever was bothering him and finds three nurses hovering over him, "You can't just wander around, Sawamura!" One scolds, but the intent is lost in her attempt to keep her voice down. Eijun only glares a little bit longer before summarily resting his head back on Miyuki's shoulder and shutting his eye, resolute to ignore them.

However, the hand on his shoulder applies pressure, forcing his torso to twist slightly away from Miyuki's heat, "Nooo," he slurs, flapping his hand in their general direction, hoping they get the memo and leave.

"Shhhh!" another one hissed out, "Miyuki needs to rest, and you need to rest."

"'M resting," Eijun snapped, or, tried to, but it came out more along the lines of a petulant mumble.

"You need to rest in your own bed so you can be hooked up to your IV," the same nurse reasoned, sounding rather exasperated.

"No," he reiterated.

"This isn't up for debate," she continued. Another hand reached out and grasped his bicep and pulled.

Eijun felt his body slide away from Miyuki's until he was at the very edge of the bed. Panic quickly welled up inside him and he yanked his arm away to scootch himself back towards Miyuki, "No!" He blurted in alarm and buried his face against Miyuki's arm. He reached his hand up Miyuki's chest and clung to the thin fabric that was draped there. Curling his legs up closer, he squeezed his eyes closed tighter, wistfully hoping that the harder shut he held them, then the nurse would simply leave, "No," he repeated, quieter, more desperate.

There was silence after that. Long enough that he began to wonder if they really did up and leave, but he wasn't willing enough to turn and look. Eventually, he heard a gusty sigh, so abrupt it made him flinch, "Alright, how about this," a new voice started, "we move you into this room, but! You have to stay in your bed, and this way you two will still be near each other, deal?" Eijun didn't respond, only gripping the fabric in his hand tighter. They didn't seem to expect one though, as they whispered quietly amongst themselves before Eijun finally heard them make their exit. Eijun sighed again, and forced himself to relax, and not too long after, he was asleep once more.