12/6

When Haru awoke, she was braced to a room of bright lights. She immediately shielded her eyes with her hands, jumping a bit as a voice suddenly startled her. " Please don't strain yourself, Okumura-san."

Haru's eyes widened as they focused, taking in the sight of Makoto Nijiima, sitting primly in a swiveling desk chair. Akira Kurusu's lanky form was right next to her, sat down on a rather small stool. Haru looked down at herself in confusion, quickly realizing she was laying in what looked to be an examination bed.

"What… happened?" Haru inquired. Memories were not coming to her so quickly. She had… gotten into an argument with Sugimura? She squinted her eyes as she tried to remember in her groggy state.

"We crossed paths at the flower shop, remember? You weren't in good shape." Kurusu explained. "You passed out… I carried you here."

Her cheeks blushed slightly… that must have been such an inconvenience for him . "I'm so sorry, Kurusu-san. If I caused any trouble with your job, then please, I'll repay you…" She would have started reaching for her purse if only she knew where it was.

"It's okay, really. Don't worry about that." Kurusu sounded genuine. His eyes were kind, hidden behind plain glasses. He glanced over at Makoto Niijima.

"We're at a doctor's office now, Okumura-san," Makoto supplied new information. "That all happened last night."

"Last night?" Haru's voice suddenly raised in pitch, in a panic. She then remembered fleeing from Sugimura's home, running around frantically and even taking the subway before stumbling upon that little shop in the underground mall. "I sincerely apologize to have inconvenienced you two, but I feel fine now. If that's all, then maybe I should go back home…" she realized her own voice sounded uncertain as she began weighing the gravity of her situation.

She remembered telling Sugimura she hated him. She remembered fighting against him. She remembered the red-hot fury boiling throughout her body, raging emotions that had now taken time to cool inside her. Anger no longer fueled her actions, but regret. Because Haru had done too much and been gone for too long at this point to be welcomed back with a slap on the wrist, or even just on the cheek...

"Okumura-san, please. You need time to rest, and we want to help you." Makoto's words had a pleading tone to them.

Haru bit her lip. "You've already done enough. Too much, in fact. I don't want to be a burden…"

"You're not a burden at all. It's my duty to help the student body of Shujin, after all." Makoto insisted.

Haru stopped for a minute to think. She didn't have her phone… it was still broken, and Sugimura hadn't had time to get her a new one before she ran off. She had assumed weeks ago that her fiance had been tracing her through the expensive device. Probably long before they moved in together as well. It was really the only way to explain how he seemed to keep showing up when she was off on her own, or even with Akechi back when they used to spend time together.

Without Haru's phone on her person, Sugimura was at a sizable disadvantage. But how many store or subway cameras had she appeared on? How many eyewitnesses saw Kurusu take her to where she was now? How long would it be before he found her, and she was in worse trouble than before?

She could never escape. It was her fate. They were destined to be together by the will of her father… and she was far too stupid to do anything on her own, anyway.

"I don't think I can stay." Haru said honestly, unwilling to look her saviors in the eye as she admitted defeat. "I'm so grateful to you for all your help, but I should really go back…"

If their expressions revealed anything, Haru couldn't bear looking at them to see it. Makoto's voice, however, was gentle when she spoke. "Okumura-san, you're injured. The doctor said you had a fractured wrist that never healed. She told us you even have a moderate concussion... and that you're under way too much stress. Do you really think you can rest up properly and heal all of that at home?"

Haru grimaced. It was embarrassing to hear all of this private information out loud... She had known something was up with her wrist ever since that night in the alley. It hurt so terribly for almost a week, and ever since was so incredibly stiff that she switched to writing with her left entirely.

The concussion was from the previous night. She'd had one before, but not nearly as bad. Maybe that was why her memory was still a little foggy.

"It's just that…" Haru internally and outwardly squirmed in her seat as she tried to conjure up a reasonable explanation. She hadn't ever been that great of a liar. "My fiance is very… overprotective. I'm afraid he might be, um, upset that I didn't tell him where I was all this time."

The pair looked skeptical. Kurusu broke the silence by inquiring, "Do you want us to contact him for you? Ryuji said your phone was broken, so - ''

Haru's face immediately took on an expression of surprise. "Ryuji?" she repeated. The name sounded familiar to her. Makoto and Kurusu then glanced at each other, the student council prez's expression in a scour as if she was upset with her friend. As if they had been caught in something… Haru racked through her brain for a Ryuji. Ryuji, Ryuji… that was the name of the boy she had run into, wasn't it?

"Oh, him… you two are friends, right?" Haru gestured towards Kurusu. She had seen them around school, heard the rumors back with all that Kamoshida mess. "So he told you about that, huh... Well, I guess it is to be expected." She wasn't angry at all, just a little bit more embarrassed than before. It was a little strange this whole group had all come into contact with her by this point.

"We really don't mean to invade your privacy, Okumura-san," said Makoto, her eyebrows furrowing as she seemingly read Haru's mind. "If you really do want to go back home, it's completely within your right to."

"But if you don't want to, we can find you somewhere to stay." Kurusu quickly added. "It's not an issue for us. At all."

It was all her fault this had happened. She shouldn't have yelled at Sugimura, she shouldn't have provoked him... But now things would be so much worse going back that she was almost unwilling to do so. Would it be wrong to leave Sugimura out looking for me? Haru didn't have much care for him, but he was her fiance. But then again, he was so awful towards her… And it would only be worse after everything that she had done.

Haru decided she wanted a short break from him, at least. She was already in a lot of trouble… she had to stop and wonder if these people could really offer her the protection her delicate situation required, though.

Oh well, at least they're trying to help me at all… Haru thought to herself. That was more than almost anyone had ever done for her. Almost.

"I appreciate your help. I think that my home might be too… hectic to stay in, right now." Haru thanked them honestly, but a seed of fear still remained planted inside her belly. The pair nodded, as if they understood.

Makoto was pleased with her response. "That makes sense. Really, we're glad to help, Okumura-san." The student council president smiled at her, and Haru meekly offered one in return.

In the back of her mind, she gingerly wondered if they knew anything about Akechi.

…

Makoto and Kurusu had left when the doctor of this particular practice asked to check up on Haru. She had apparently met the doctor before, but only while she was unconscious.

Now this woman, Dr. Takemi, certainly didn't look much like a doctor. She donned a short skirt that revealed long, pale legs. Both her makeup and fashion sense were dark and gothic. Haru had never in her life experienced a checkup that wasn't performed by a neatly trimmed, plain looking older man, so this was certainly a first for her.

Dr. Takemi examined the girl's wrist, lightly dancing her pale fingers over the inflamed flesh. "This is an older injury, right?"

Haru simply nodded.

"You should have gotten it checked out earlier. The bone has already deformed into a weird position." Dr. Takemi explained to her matter-of-factly. She sighed as she began wrapping Haru's lower arm up in tight bandages. "You'll probably have joint problems here when you're older… it'll be a pain."

Haru of course apologized dutifully. "I'm sorry."

Dr. Takemi shook her head, gently dropping the girl's wrist back down to her side as she continued the examination. "There's no need to apologize. I don't blame you."

Haru didn't respond, as she wasn't quite sure who else there was to blame. The doctor had a feathery, chilled touch. It soothed her skin where contusions had endlessly blossomed and bloomed throughout the months. Icy ointment was applied over the painful areas, the doctor ignoring Haru's small winces.

"Let's check for your concussion." Dr. Takemi eventually said. Haru bowed her head as the woman shuffled her fingers through her scalp, eventually pausing on a rather sore spot near her forehead. "Here's your bump. Does it still hurt?"

"Uh-huh." Haru responded, her eyes shut tightly at the prodding.

"Have you noticed any sensitivity to light since your injury?" The doctor began applying a jelly ice pack to the area.

"Uh-huh."

"Any vomiting or nausea?"

Haru had to pause in order to think about that one. "I haven't eaten since… No, I don't believe so."

"You haven't eaten?" Dr. Takemi repeated, sounding fairly surprised. "I'll send your friends out to get you some food as soon as we're finished."

"That's okay. I don't have any money on me to pay them back, so…" Haru suddenly felt a little dizzy now that she had started thinking about food. She probably hadn't eaten since the previous evening, and not much at that. Some pork ramen that Sugimura's chef had prepared for her in his absence. It was too spicy for her, so she hadn't eaten very much.

"They're good friends. I'm sure they won't mind." Dr. Takemi had a tough exterior, but she seemed kind. Haru wondered how Kurusu and Makoto knew this woman. How were they even paying for this treatment, anyway…?

"You need to start taking better care of yourself." The doctor abruptly scolded her minutes later. She finished bandaging up the sensitive head injury soon afterwards. "You're going to need a lot of rest in these next few days. No sudden movements and no strenuous activity. Your mind and your body both need to rest. You may feel nauseous or lightheaded, but if anything worse comes up you'll be right back here. Understand me?"

Haru tried very hard to internally store all the information she was being given. "Yes, doctor. Thank you very much." she responded politely, looking up at the woman appreciatively.

"Don't bother paying for this visit. It's a favor for my little - Akira , I mean." Dr. Takemi didn't really seem the type to accept a thank-you. "I'm not going to pry on your situation. I'll keep all your exam information to myself. No police."

Haru guessed this really was what they referred to as a back-alley doctor. She nodded earnestly, as she truly was grateful. "Thank you. I appreciate it very much."

"You have friends willing to help you. So do your part, too, okay?" Dr. Takemi cracked a smile, trying her best to encourage the girl. She walked out the room without waiting for a response, however, her high heels clacking noisily on the floor as the door closed behind her.

Takemi then approached Akira, who was fast asleep on a chair in the waiting room. She grimaced at the sight; the chairs were very cheap and in her experience, uncomfortable. Only someone truly exhausted of all their energy could drift asleep on those gritty plastic molds.

The doctor dropped 2000 yen onto the boy's lap. She called to him, "Akira."

He awoke with a start. He had surely passed out enough times during their clinical trials for this to not be an unusual situation for the two of them to find themselves in.

"Where did your girlfriend go? The brunette one." Takemi raised an eyebrow, leaning onto one hip. She took great joy in watching color rise to Akira's cheeks at her statement.

"She's not my… nevermind. What's this for?" He gestured to the cash, still rubbing sleep out of his eyes.

Takemi motioned her head towards the examination room. "Your stray hasn't eaten all day. Buy her something, will you? None of that junk from the vending machine."

Akira nodded, arms stretching out as he stood from his resting position. "Thank you for your help. She'll be gone by tonight, I promise."

Takemi didn't respond. She didn't really care either way, but she wouldn't have much to defend herself with if anyone holding a warrant came knocking at the clinic's doors while the girl was still here. It was much safer for her to leave, for everyone.

Takemi hoped everything would work out in the best favor for these kids, she truly did. But her part in it was done.

This is me, virtually brushing the cobwebs off this one. ٩◔̯◔۶

Remember when I made a big deal out of what to do with the story when P5R was 6 months away? And now it's been out for months? (I hope not.)

Virtual hugs for your patience, 2nd to none!