Author's note: Trigger warning: Explicit description of pain, mild body horror
Welcome back, everyone! Please read the trigger warning above before reading this chapter!
Also, I've been working on the third chapter, but it may take longer than a week to finish, be patient for me :)
Kaa-san (okaa-san) = mother
Tou-san (otou-san) = father
Nee-chan (onee-chan) = older sister
-sensei = teacher/doctor
EDIT 11/17/2020: Edited a line. No real change.
End of Author's Note
One moment, Hiro was babbling happily to his sister, walking to his aikido lesson without a care in the world. In the next, there was a searing flash of light that whited out the world. On the heels of the flash was a boom that shook the earth beneath his feet and rattled his teeth in his skull. For the next several minutes Hiro was blind and deaf, blinking rapidly in an attempt to clear his vision and waiting for the ringing in his ears to quiet.
Slowly, his eyes began to focus and he gazed around anxious, scared, and wanting his sister. He looked up and his breath froze in his chest, his eyes grew wide, his body began to shake, his heart stopped in his chest, and he couldn't move. Before him was a sight he would never forget for the rest of his life, but would also never be able to describe.
He knew immediately that it wasn't human. It towered over the shops around him, six stories tall. It had no legs, rather it supported itself on two titanic, muscular arms, thicker than ten trees put together. They connected to its back and were braced on either side of Hiro and his sister, trapping them before it. Its skin was a pasty white, the color of freshly hatched maggots, but glowed poisonous green. It illuminated the area with sickly neon light. Two smaller, proportional arms were crossed in front of it. Obscuring the rest of its torso was a large cloth, draped cape-like around its body.
Its head, if it could be described as such, had no face. Instead, it was a mass of rough bone, with the only fleshy bit being its mouth. The mouth gaped open, lined with sharp, jagged teeth. Nestled inside the maw was one enormous eye. The eye was every color Hiro had ever seen but also infinite colors he hadn't known existed (colors that didn't exist, weren't supposed to exist, were never meant to be seen by human eyes, they made his head hurt to see them). It stared with a gaze so powerful he could physically feel it roam over his body.
From its skull sprouted white antlers that spanned the entire length of its body. The antlers were wide and flat, ragged around the edges, and cratered. Like someone or something had gouged out sections of it. Worst of all, scattered all over the expanses of bone were eyes. Eyes of every color blinked and moved and watched. (He would never lose that feeling of being watched. Years from now, in the dead of night, on the verge of falling asleep he would feel them, one hundred eyes, observing him for the rest of his life.)
All this Hiro registered distantly. What took up the majority of his attention was the aura it gave off. The air around it pulsed and writhed, alive with its power. It was so thick he struggled to breathe. It tasted like copper and felt like water in his lungs, drowning him in bloody fluid. Its power was the cold of space and the darkness of the abyss. It pressed on his skin and whispered in his ears, speaking of the birth of stars, dying planets, beings older than Earth and larger than his galaxy, dead things, alive things, beings that were neither, entities that were both. For every second in its presence Hiro felt madness creep into his mind, his brain breaking from the strain of trying to comprehend this unfathomable being.
Even if Hiro's legs were not shaking too much to run away, he wouldn't have been able to. The power held him rooted in place. From the corner of his eye he saw his sister shaking, also stood frozen and terrified in front of the deity.
Desperately Hiro wondered, where were the heroes?! Where was anybody?! They weren't far from the park, this should have been a busy street! And yet he couldn't see or hear anyone else. Were they all gone? Had this thing killed everyone? Were Hiro and Haruka the last ones alive?! (Instinctively, Hiro knew it wouldn't matter if the heroes arrived. Not even All Might could defeat this thing. Every hero in the world could fight and not even touch it. If it wanted them dead, there was nothing anyone could do to stop it.)
For the first time in his life, Hiroko experienced complete and utter helplessness.
Then, one of its smaller arms unfurled and reached towards them. In its palm were two spheres. They glowed and flickered with what looked like fire, if fire could be every color of the visual light spectrum at once. The air around the orbs was hazy and warped as if they were made of the being's condensed power. It held them out to the children as if in offer, but neither of the siblings moved.
A voice suddenly emanated from the god (there was no way an entity with that much power was anything less than a god). It was distorted and jarring. It sounded like boulders grinding, glass shattering, and a thousand people screaming all at once. It echoed and reverberated through the space unnaturally. The words were unlike any human language, completely incomprehensible. The language hurt, each syllable scraping against his ears and driving spikes through his skull. But somehow Hiro knew exactly what it was saying.
Y̵̡̘̦͎̊̔̈́̕͠o̸̲͚̠̲̮͛͐̇̆̿͝ȗ̸̧͓͚͉͉ ̴̨͖̰̎̎͐͘̕ͅm̸̜̣̰̗͂̉̇̄̇ͅa̶̧̨̪̥̪̼̿̄͛́͝y̶̦͌͐̐̈́ ̵̢̖́c̴̨̢̠͕̰͛̇͋ĥ̸̻̦ọ̵̎o̶̭͇̲͂̓̾͠ͅṣ̶͕͔̝͗̈́͘͝e̷͎̖̺̟̓͋͆ͅ..̵̣̈́̍
Ẃ̴͉̖̖̰̄̍̈́̓͘h̷̪̰̹̠͉̘̎o̴̧̰̞̗̞͗ ̶͍̹̺̹̼̿͘͠ẃ̷̝̺̳̤̟͚̈́̎̈́̇̉ḯ̶̼̹͖̠̱l̸̞̰̎̉̃͐͐͝l̷̞̗̜͐̈́ ̶͓͊͐s̵̟̟̤̠̏͛̅͠é̷̪̻e̶̡̜͍̗̐̍̏̃ ̷̧̡̤̰̲̃̏t̵̢̳͑͝ḩ̴̱̄͌̓̓͛i̸͓̜̥͚̫͐̑͊̍̒s̷̞͈̜̙͒̈́ ̵̡̠̺̓̂̋̔t̶̨͓͉̳̩͗̊̂̓̏͠h̵̖͔̪̆ȓ̸̢̩͕̦̽̍ǒ̸̲̲̳̓̈͐͌u̸͖̱͈̇g̶̼͑̌̾͛h̸͙̞̠̠̠͖͌̓̚͝?̵̢̲̝͓̼̮̅͆͝ "
What did that mean?! What did that mean?! See what through?! Choose? Was it going to do something to one of them?!
Hiro didn't know. But whatever it meant, something told him it wouldn't be good for the two mortals.
Evidently, Haruka realized that as well. Whatever the god was offering, it would hurt. But unlike Hiro, she had the courage to do something about it. She turned to the creature, face pale, body shaking, but eyes blazing with stubborn will and protective might.
Her voice was firm and steady, her heart resolved even through her terror and helplessness, as she called out, "Leave him alone! If you're going to hurt someone, hurt me! If you must take, take from me!"
Ş̴̙̱̖͓̾́͋o̸̯͙̮͆͗ ̸͉̻̥̉̑͘í̵̡͈̪̙͂͆͜ṭ̶̉̂̾̔ ̴̖̏̈́̈́̐̚į̵̤̲̹͔̾̊͛̓s̴̩̈́̇ ̷̧͕̫̩́͆̌͘d̶̰̊̏͐̉̀o̴͓̬͘ǹ̶̙͇̞̫̹̈́ě̶̗̯̲̒̀.̴̺̭̟͎̄͒̿̚
The hand holding the orbs began moving towards Hiroko. The spheres, larger than his whole body, steadily shrunk as they advanced towards him. Then, as they continued coming closer, he felt the air grab his eyelids. They were pulled open as wide as they could go, then wider. Panic raced through his body. His heart beat so hard he thought his ribs would break and his breaths were short pants, on the verge of hyperventilation. He didn't like this! What was happening?! Nee-chan help him! Then suddenly, Hiro's eyes began to hurt. They stung and throbbed and filled with tears, but Hiro couldn't blink, he still couldn't move at all. His hands were limp at his sides even as he tried desperately to raise them and cover his face.
Hiro cried out as his vision faded to red, then grey, then black, and he whined in fear and pain because it hurt it was really starting to hurt but then it did more than hurt it burned it buRNED IT BURNED SO BAD HIS EYES WERE ON FIRE NEE-CHAN HELP IT'S AGONY IT HURT ITHURT KAA-SAN TOU-SAN HEWANTSTODIE MAKEITSTOP ITbURnS. Distantly Hiro felt his mouth open and his throat hurt and he thought he heard a horrendous, nonstop shrieking, but he couldn't focus past the world-ending PAIN.
It went on for seconds, hours, days, Hiro didn't know. To him, it was an eternity. Infinite moments of what felt like lava being poured into his face. Finally, the pain cooled slightly. The shrieks calmed to animalistic whining and sobbing and he could vaguely hear his sister calling for him frantically, but it took all his energy just to breathe. His eyes still seared, every beat of his pulse sent fire sweeping across his entire face, but while he could somewhat think through the pain now, that's all he could do. He couldn't blink, his eyelids still held open, couldn't move. All he could do was sob.
Was it over? Was he okay now? His vision was still black, but as long as the agony was gone he didn't care. Those thoughts had barely crossed his mind when something was shoved into his eye sockets (what? how could something be shoved in where did his eyes go) and it hurt like knives were being stabbed directly into the raw nerves. The screaming started up again but then Hiro felt something at the back of his eyes (not his eyes) moving and it felt like living threads were reaching back into his face and they were squirming and wiggling and ithurt ithurt make it stop then they were climbing and stretching up to his skull, alien tendrils searching and then finding and suddenly it was in his brain! His head started to feel weird, like his brain was swelling and shifting and CHANGING pleaselethimdie HE DOESN'T WANT THIS ITBURNS. EVERYTHING BURNS.
Suddenly whatever was holding him released. He didn't feel the impact as he fell hard onto his knees, and especially didn't feel himself fall onto his face. The pain and the sensations (something's moving it's inside me getitout) didn't stop, but mercifully he felt himself start to pass out (was he dying? yes please anything to make it end). The last thing he experienced before he fainted was the taste of copper in his mouth, the feel of a pool of something warm spreading under his head, and the sound of his sister, first confused and quiet, then loud and panicked saying, "I can't see? I CAN'T SEE!"
Then nothing.
He could see the ceiling.
For a long time that was the only thing he registered. Then, the thought crossed his mind that it was not his ceiling. It was paneled and missing the glow-in-the-dark stars that his Tou-san put up years ago. But, if it wasn't his ceiling, whose was it? If he's not in his room, where was he?
Hiro could feel panic start to bloom in the depths of his mind, but before it could take root he felt something cold rush up through his right arm and spread through his veins. His panic ebbed and Hiro drifted, mind blank once more.
He could see the ceiling.
He laid there, dazed, but this time his thoughts returned to him quickly and he absently noted that his body was numb and cold, but his face felt oddly hot. It hurt, just a little. Also, he could also hear things. There was a steady beeping coming from the right. From the left, the faint rustling of clothes and soft breaths. Where was he? Whose breaths were those? Suddenly, he felt a faint pressure on his left hand. In response his fingers twitched. It was then that he noticed someone was holding his hand.
He heard a gasp, then his mother's voice. "Hiro-chan? Hiro-chan are you awake?" Her voice was soft, trying not to startle him, but also strained. She sounded worried, but like she was trying to hide it.
"Son? Son, can you hear us?" That was his dad. He also sounded worried. And his voice was rough like he'd been crying. What had happened?
With effort, Hiro turned his head to look at them. They looked terrible. Both of them had dark purple bags under their eyes, and mom's eyes were red and swollen like she'd recently been weeping. Their faces were lined and pale with exhaustion. Hiro was startled by the fact that they looked old, worry and fear making them appear ten years older.
"K-kaa-s-san?" Was that him?! His voice sounded destroyed and it felt that way too! He had barely spoken at a whisper but his throat hurt, worse than any cold or sore throat he'd ever had. It felt like someone had taken a cheese grater to his vocal cords! He didn't even sound like himself! His voice was scratchy and low. What had happened?
His mother cooed softly to him, "Oh darling, I'm here. Your father is too, we're right next to you. Don't talk, baby. Your throat probably hurts, right? Just relax, we'll call the doctor in and explain everything okay?" Her hand came up and brushed gently through his hair, so lightly he could barely feel it. He noticed she was extremely careful not to touch his temples or forehead.
Wait, doctor? Hiro looked around a bit more and took note of the rails attached to his bed, the clip on his finger, the wires connected to his chest, the IV in his right hand, and a wire coming off something wrapped around his upper arm, all of it connecting to a pole by his head. The pole was where the beeping was coming from. The walls of his room were a soft mint, there was a small television hanging in the corner of the room, on but muted, some windows letting in afternoon sunlight to his right, and he could see a door behind his parents to the left that must have led to a bathroom. Ahead of him was a sliding door, closed at the moment, and next to it a whiteboard that had names and words he didn't recognize. Primary nurse? Medications? And...everything was weirdly a bit...blue. The walls, the floor, the ceiling, the furniture, even his parents were tinted almost unnoticeably blue. But, he was definitely in a hospital. He must have gotten hurt somehow… A villain attack? Or one of his bullies got the jump on him? Something about that didn't sound right… The more he tried to remember what happened the more dread he began to feel. Hiro didn't think he wanted to remember.
His heart rate had spiked in response to his thoughts and dad quickly moved to soothe him. Tou-san moved around to his left side and leaned over him. "It's okay son, just relax. I know you're confused and scared, but it's alright now. Do you want to sit up? I have some ice chips I can give you, they'll help with your throat if you want?"
Hiro nodded weakly and his dad quickly took the remote control to the bed and adjusted it to sit up. Once Hiro was sufficiently upright, Takeshi picked up an unnoticed cup off the headboard of the bed and used a spoon to slowly feed Hiro the ice. It helped instantly. His throat felt less like he had swallowed knives and more like it was just being rubbed with fine sandpaper. It still hurt, but not nearly as bad.
The doctor walked in as Hiro was finishing his ice. He looked to be about 40, tall, with blond hair and brown eyes. Sticking out of his hair were dark brown, pointed wolf ears. He had a fluffy brown tail wagging gently behind him and a black, flat, canine-esque nose. He wore the typical white coat of doctors everywhere. He also looked a little blue. Did they use blue light bulbs here or something? The doctor's ears perked up and faced forward when he saw Hiro was sat up and seemingly aware.
"Ah, Mikami-kun, you're awake! Wonderful! I'm the doctor that's been taking care of you, Akashi Rin. Tell me, how are you feeling Mikami-kun? You don't smell like you're in much pain, but we can increase your painkillers if we need to."
"S-smell? How-?" Hiro croaked. Smelling pain? How did that work? There were definitely more important things to be curious about, like why he was in the hospital, but if it allowed him to avoid the dread lurking at the back of his mind, he'd latch onto it as hard as he could.
The doctor grinned, baring sharp canines, and finished his sentence for him, "How do I smell pain? My quirk, Wolf, gives me an extremely sensitive sense of smell. From the pheromones and chemicals produced by the human body I can understand many things about my patients: how much pain you're in, your emotions, how well you're healing, whether you have an infection, exactly where you're injured… It's surprisingly helpful in this line of work."
Hiro's mouth gaped open. Wow, that sounded so cool! Most people would become a hero with a quirk like that, but instead he was using it to heal? Amazing! His parents chuckled at his visible awe and his mother gave his hair one last stroke before sitting back.
Akashi-sensei strode to the end of the bed and leaned forward on the rails. "Now, how about that pain kiddo? You don't have to say anything, just hold up your fingers according to how much pain you're in. One finger for no pain at all, ten for unbearable pain, okay?"
Hiro thought about it for a moment. He shifted his arms and legs, wiggled his torso a bit, and rolled his head around slightly. He still felt pretty numb. The only things hurting were his throat and his head. With the hand Kaa-san wasn't holding, he lifted four fingers.
"Four? Okay, can you point out where it hurts?"
Careful of the IV in his hand, he lifted his hand and pointed first at his neck, then his head.
"Throat and head?" The doctor asked to be sure.
Hiro nodded.
"Alright, to be expected. The ice chips will help with your throat, just be sure to talk as little as possible and that will be better in no time. There's no permanent damage, so your voice will be back to normal before you know it! As for your head…" The adults in the room shared a solemn glance before he continued, "What is the last thing you remember Mikami-kun?"
The last thing he remembered? It had been a school day, right? School had gone like normal, he'd saved Watanuki from Satoru in the park, became friends with Watanuki, met up with Nee-chan, then… Then? They'd gone to aikido, right? But. Something must have happened. That's why he's in the hospital. What was it?
Unconsciously his breathing sped up and his heart started to race. Cold sweat started to bead on his forehead and his hands clenched into fists. What had happened? There was...a flash of light? And then a boom maybe? And then…
Y̵̡̘̦͎̊̔̈́̕͠o̸̲͚̠̲̮͛͐̇̆̿͝ȗ̸̧͓͚͉͉ ̴̨͖̰̎̎͐͘̕ͅm̸̜̣̰̗͂̉̇̄̇ͅa̶̧̨̪̥̪̼̿̄͛́͝y̶̦͌͐̐̈́ ̵̢̖́c̴̨̢̠͕̰͛̇͋ĥ̸̻̦ọ̵̎o̶̭͇̲͂̓̾͠ͅṣ̶͕͔̝͗̈́͘͝e̷͎̖̺̟̓͋͆ͅ..̵̣̈́̍
And then… paIN.
Hiro gripped his hair in his fists and pulled harshly and he hunched over as a huge spike of pain lanced through his head. His jaw clenched and his breath hissed through his teeth. Hiro didn't want to remember. Hiro didn't want to remember! Please, don't make him remember!
Words broke through the haze of pain and panic clouding his thoughts. "Mikami-kun! Mikami-kun! It's okay! You can stop, you don't have to think about it if it hurts! I shouldn't have asked so soon after you woke up. Just breathe Mikami-kun, you're alright! Breathe in time with the squeezes of my hand."
There was a hand firmly planted on his shoulder, squeezing rhythmically. It felt grounding and Hiro allowed it to comfort him as he relaxed his jaw and let his hands fall away from his head. He leaned back against the pillows and did his best to calm down. Gradually his breathing returned to normal and the flashes of memory receded. Abruptly, Hiro felt exhausted.
"There. That's better Mikami-kun. Don't worry about it okay? I can smell that the pain came back and you're tired now. We can talk about it later. For now I'll increase your pain medication slightly. Just rest Mikami-kun." The hand gave his shoulder a soft pat, then retreated. Quietly the doctor backed away to the door and beckoned Hiro's parents to follow him with a grim look.
The three adults exited into the hallway and slid the door mostly closed behind them. They talked quietly, but his room was completely silent other than the beeping of his heart rate monitor, so he could still make out their words. He allowed their conversation to wash over him, without processing what they were saying.
Akashi-sensei spoke first. "I apologize. As much as we need to know what happened, I should have known better than to ask about it right after he woke from his coma."
Tou-san cut in before the doctor could say more, "What the hell was that! It looked like he had some kind of-of panic attack!"
The doctor responded calmly. "It was not an unexpected reaction. We suspect the conditions of your son and daughter are due to the violent awakening of Mikami-kun's quirk. But, for quirks to manifest at your son's age, it is usually in response to something traumatic. As the police have likely informed you, we believe Mikami-kun either saw or experienced something that made him believe his life was in danger, and his quirk manifested as a result."
"But," Kaa-san interjects, "we had Hiro-chan tested! He has all the genetic markers of being quirkless! How could this happen?"
"And," his dad adds, "the police also told us that none of the eyewitnesses noticed anything! They were on a busy street and yet no one saw or heard anything happen. One second everything was normal, in the next they heard our children screaming! It must have been a villain attack, right?"
"I'm afraid I don't know. We won't know anything more until we can run some tests and talk to Mikami-kun. Now that he's awake we should be able…" The rest of the sentence faded out as Hiro fell into an exhausted sleep.
The next time Hiro awoke, he immediately remembered where he was and what had happened last time he was awake. Around him the room was quiet aside from the beeping of the monitor. Glancing around he didn't see his parents but there was a nurse in blue scrubs placing some flowers in a vase by the window. Judging by the light, it looked like it was early morning. How long had he slept?
The nurse startled when she turned and saw his head facing her. Hiro waved slightly. "Oh! Mikami-kun! Good morning!" She smiled softly and came to his side. As she adjusted his IV drip she said, "Your parents aren't here right now, it's still quite early. I was told your father had to work today, so he'll be stopping by in the evening, but your mom usually comes in around 8." Hiro looked over to the bedside table. On it was a clock that read 6:34am. An hour and a half until his mom gets here…
The nurse continued, "How about I turn on the TV for you? It'll give you something to listen to at least! Breakfast will be served soon, so we can get you some if you're hungry. How's your pain? Please raise your fingers, one for none, ten for a lot."
Hiro raised four fingers. He felt about the same as he had last time. His body mostly numb and his head and throat aching. Now that he thought of it, they never did tell him what exactly was wrong with him…
"Make sure you let us know if it gets any worse alright?" She walked to the other side of the bed and placed the bed remote in his hand. Gently she grasped his hand and moved his thumb to the bottom most button. "This one is the nurse call button okay? The one at the very bottom. If you need anything at all, press that and myself or another nurse will come check on you. Understand?"
Hiro nodded. Easy enough to remember. She then moved his thumb up to the arrow keys on the remote. "This topmost button raises the bed up to a sitting position, and the one just below it lowers it. Any questions?"
Hiro shook his head. The nurse grinned brightly and gave his hand a pat before letting go. "Now, do you need to go to the restroom young man? I can help you while I'm here."
Hiro flushed violently and shook his head rapidly, before stopping with a wince. Oh ouch. Note to self, don't do that again.
The nurse wagged her finger and scolded him gently. "None of that young man. That's what I'm here for. There's no way you can get there on your own and there's no shame in needing help. It's my job, so there's nothing to be embarrassed about!"
Cheeks still red, Hiro looked away and nodded reluctantly. Internally he thought, no way. What does she mean he couldn't do it on his own? It's not his legs that hurt! He didn't care what she said, there was no way he's asking for help to use the toilet! He was a big boy, almost seven! Only babies can't use the toilet on their own!
She huffed, likely guessing his thoughts, but left it alone. Instead she asked brightly, "When breakfast is ready would you like some? It's been a while since you've eaten anything." Hiro wasn't really feeling hungry, and he wasn't looking forward to trying to swallow anything, but Tou-san always told him to eat lots when he was hurt or sick. That food would make him better quicker, so he nodded at the lady.
She clapped her hands together quietly and chirped, "Perfect! Now I'll just turn the TV on for you and leave you to relax until your food is ready."
She quickly shuffled to the TV, turned it on, and changed the channel until he nodded when she found one he liked. It was a rerun of an anime he enjoyed. Before she left she once again placed the remote in his hand and moved his thumb to show him where the buttons to change the volume and channel were. Hiro thought it was kind of weird, he knew how a TV remote worked, but he'd never been in a hospital before so maybe it was normal for nurses to treat patients that way?
He passed the time watching anime until his breakfast arrived about an hour later. The same nurse from earlier brought it in and sat down beside the bed with the tray in her lap. He looked down at it. Rice porridge and miso soup. That was breakfast? No fish or eggs or sausage? Hiro hated rice porridge! Any enthusiasm he might have worked up in the last hour evaporated.
"Okay! This morning we have a delicious breakfast of okayu and miso!" She noticed his wrinkled nose and despondent expression and shook her head fondly. "I know it doesn't sound that appetizing, but Mikami-kun you've been asleep for nearly four full days! Your stomach can't handle anything that isn't soft and bland."
Hiro turned to her and gaped, incredulous. Four days?! No one had told him that yesterday! Was-was he actually pretty badly hurt? He didn't feel too bad! The back of his mind whispered to him of pain and madness, the sensation of something moving inside him- He cut the whispers off with a shudder. No. He's not remembering! He doesn't have to and they can't force him!
Hiro's focus returned to the present to see the nurse holding a spoon full of porridge aloft before his face. He stared at her blankly. What was she doing?
"I'm going to feed you now, okay Mikami-kun? Open up!"
She's going to what? Feed him? She really did think he was a baby, didn't she!
He frowned, starting to get truly angry with the nurse, and opened his mouth to protest. "I-I c-can-!"
Before he could say anything else, the door slid open and his mother walked in. "Ah! Hiro-chan, Aya-san good morning! I managed to leave home a little early today!"
The nurse lowered the spoon and turned to Kaa-san with an upbeat grin. "Mikami-san! Good morning! I was just about to help your son here with breakfast."
Kaa-san walked over to Hiro and gave him a quick kiss to his hair before turning to the nurse. "I told you to call me Megumi, Aya-san. It's too confusing with all my family here. Oh! And don't worry about breakfast, I'll take over for you. I'm sure you have other things to take care of."
The nurse, Aya-san, paused thoughtfully but when his mother didn't change her mind, she stood and placed the tray on the bed next to Hiro's legs. "Well then I'll leave it in your capable hands, Megumi-san." She turned to Hiro, "Try to eat as much as you can and remember to use the call button if you need anything." With one last smile and a nod to Kaa-san, she left.
Kaa-san placed her bag at the foot of the bed, sat down primly, and arranged the tray in her lap. Settled in, she turned to her son with a sweet smile and knowing eyes.
He pouted grumpily at her. "K-kaa-san-!"
She cut him off. "I don't want to hear it, Hiro-chan. I know you don't like okayu, but you're just going to have to suck it up and eat it, dear. You need food and this is what the nice doctor said you can have. So no complaining!" She scooped some porridge up and held it out for him. "Open up!"
He grumbled silently and pouted some more, he wasn't a baby! He could feed himself! And okayu is gross okay? But ultimately opened his mouth. Kaa-san had that stubborn look in her eye. No matter what he said she wouldn't budge an inch. Might as well get it over with.
Bite by painfully bland bite, breakfast was consumed. There wasn't much on the tray, but by the time he'd finished it he was stuffed full. Hiro would never admit it out loud, but they were probably right. If he'd had sausage and eggs as he wanted, he would definitely have been sick. Even with super bland breakfast, his stomach hurt a little.
Kaa-san got up and set the tray down by the door, once she sat back down she turned to Hiro and told him, "Hiro-chan, Akashi-sensei will be here soon. He normally makes his rounds shortly after breakfast is picked up. When he gets here, he's going to talk to you about what happened, and explain to you some of the tests you're going to have done today. I plan to be here all day, so I'll be here for all your tests. I've brought my laptop so I can work here and Otou-san will head over as soon as his job is done, okay?"
Hiro nodded. Kaa-san was an author that wrote books for young teenagers; maybe he could get her to read some of her newest story out loud to him while he was stuck in the hospital? That would be nice, but first… He hesitated and looked away, unsure as the question he'd been wanting to ask for a while now hovered on the tip of his tongue. It had been nagging at him since he woke up.
Finally, he couldn't hold back his question any longer. He painfully cleared his throat and spoke, "K-kaa-san? Where's n-nee-chan?" He hadn't wondered last night because honestly, he hadn't been aware enough to even notice she wasn't in the room with his parents. It was different today. He was worried. He'd been up for a while and had a chance to think about both the night before and the day of the accident? Attack? (The day of choice?) Whatever, the day he got injured. He must have been with Haru-nee when it happened! And she wasn't in his room with their parents last night, so had she gotten hurt as well? He had a bad feeling she had. (He knew. But if he pretended he didn't, if he lied to even himself, maybe it wouldn't be true?)
The lines around Kaa-san's eyes tightened and she looked sad and tired as she replied, "Oh honey, Haru-chan is in the hospital as well."
Hiro felt his heart skip and his breathing stop. His feeling was right, she had gotten hurt! Tears welled in his eyes and he reached out for his mother, distraught and alarmed.
She leaned over him and enfolded him in a firm hug. She rubbed his back and soothed him quickly. "Shh shh. She's just sleeping Hiroko like you did." She pulled back and very lightly cupped his face. She gave him as big a smile as she could muster worried, but hopeful. "Now that you're awake I'm sure she'll wake up soon! She'll have to do the same tests you are, so be brave for her alright? You can support her when it's her turn so she doesn't feel scared! How does that sound? Can you do that baby?"
Hiro sniffled but took a deep breath and nodded firmly. "Un! O-okay!"
Kaa-san's whole face softened and she pulled him back into her arms. She kissed the side of his head and whispered. "That's my brave Hiro-chan. I love you so SO much. I know you're worried about Haruka but focus on yourself for now. She's in good hands and we need to make sure you're healthy, alright?"
He grabbed her shirt in his hands and clung on tightly. He was still worried, he didn't know what was exactly wrong with him or his sister, didn't want to think about what happened, and he had a horrible feeling that things were only going to get worse from here (madness and pain and being watched and something moving inside him and a cry of I CAN'T SEE).
But now? Now, his mom was holding him. He could forget all those other things and just bask in the feeling of love and safety he got in her arms.