A/n: I am so sorry for the super late update! I got side-tracked with a lot of stuff and completely forgot ;A;

Well here's a continuation of the previous chapter.

I've added a recap just so you don't have to re-read to get the flow of things.

Thank you all for reading!

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Recap:

"Makoto!" Haruka's voice sounded like a far away dream to Makoto. He continued to run. His lungs burned and his muscles screamed. He was physically and mentally spent. Last night's events had thoroughly drained him. He just wanted to crawl into a hole, curl up into a ball and escape from the world. Yet he kept running.

He heard Nagisa's and Kou's voices add to Haruka's. At one point he didn't even know why he was running anymore. He was the one who had caused Haruka to slap him. It was his own fault. So why was he the one that was running away? Kou was hurt, Nagisa was hurt and Haru sure as hell was hurt. Yet Makoto was running away from them like he was the victim. His mind shouted at him to stop and go back, but his body refused to listen. Why he was running was beyond him.

Was he afraid? Afraid to face Haruka? Afraid to face Kou and Nagisa? Afraid? Him? Of what? Makoto couldn't answer the question. He didn't even know what he was afraid of. He no longer understood his actions. They already were beyond senseless and stupid. Yet he continued to run. Every cell in his body was begging for respite. He was physically unable to carry on. Yet his legs moved mechanically under him. Like some unseen force was causing his limbs to move. His brain was obviously not the reason for his body moving. He knew his brain had completely switched off a while ago, if not literally. He could hear his heart beat in his ear. A steady thump-thump that pounded the inside of his head. His breaths were coming in pants and gasps. He could feel his lungs heaving from the lack of air.

Yet he continued to run. At one point he tripped, his leg caught on a stone and he nearly went tumbling across the sand. But once again, some unseen force kept him upright. He wondered for a moment if it was his will power. If he was running from sheer will power and nothing else. But what was his will power against Haruka? There was no will power in the equation when it was something related to Haru. Haruka could make Makoto run across the world if he wanted to. And Makoto would do it without a second thought. He shamelessly admitted the fact like a mischievous child accepting that he stole some candy. Then why was it that he was running away from Haruka and not towards him. Now that made absolutely no sense to Makoto.

Why in the world was he running away from Haruka? He didn't know. He had absolutely no clue. His brain refused to form more than two coherent thoughts at once. So he continued to run. Again he felt his leg catch against something and this time he felt his balance fail him. Whatever unseen forces had been keeping him upright seemed to have tired of helping him. Makoto saw the gravel underneath him. He knew that if he fell against it face first, it would hurt.

Then from far away he heard a loud honk. Something caused him to turn his head to the left and he saw a water tanker coming towards him. Everything was happening as though in slow motion. Makoto knew he would fall. He knew he didn't have the strength to stop himself from falling. He knew he didn't have the strength to push himself off the road. He heard Kou scream. He saw the truck coming. Yet his mind was crystal clear when it accepted the fact that he would be hit by the truck. He watched the red headlights and only one thought passed through his mind as he shut his eyes,

'Haru…'

Chapter 12

Haruka stared outside the window for god knows how long. But he didn't see a thing. The sprawling landscape that was visible from the third floor hospital window meant nothing to him. His eyes were blind. He couldn't see or hear or feel. Someone was constantly saying something to him. The sound was like an annoying buzz in his head. He couldn't hear what they were saying. Haruka continued to stare outside the window. At one point, a truck carrying several silver plates pased underneath and the metal reflected the sun directly into Haruka's eyes. He squinted and when the truck passed, he could see nothing but white. Haruka stood up suddenly. He leant out from the window as though something was beckoning to him. He would have fallen out if not for the several pairs of arms that pulled him back in. When Haruka's sight was no longer white, he was staring at several worried faces shouting incorrigible things to him. Haruka looked away. He was sick of having to listen to their incoherent babble. Nothing they said made sense to him so why did they keep talking? Haruka just wanted to jump into a pool of water and let himself sink into its depths. The idea appealed to him and he stood up. He was going to go find a water source and-

"Haruka san please just sit down!" Kou shrieked and with Nagisa and Rei's help, they successfully restrained Haruka in the hard plastic chair. Haruka frowned up at the three of them. Kou wanted to slap the teen. But she restrained herself and instead commanded Nagisa and Rei to keep a hold of him. Haruka writhed and struggled and a confused expression overcame his face. Like he was wondering what invisible forces were keeping him tied to the chair. Whatever. Kou had other things to worry about. She was just about to say something to Rei, when two children barreled into her, throwing her across the floor.

"Ran! Ren! You're hurting her!" Mrs. Tachibana pulled the twins off of Kou and Mr. Tachibana helped her stand up, an apologetic smile on his face. The second Kou was sitting in one of the plastic chairs by the wall, the twins immediately started badgering her with questions - most of which made no sense to her - owing to the fact that they were crying and slobbering and screaming simultaneously. When Kou didn't answer their questions, they attacked Haruka. The latter, after a time, simply thwacked both siblings on the head and flicked them in the forehead. That effectively shut them both up as they ran to their mother and sat on either side of her.

Mr. and Mrs. Tachibana had arrived at the hospital just as the ambulance had pulled up in front of it. Kou hadn't known what to expect, but what she didn't expect was the kind smiles both of them gave her and the reassuring hug Mrs. Tachibana gave her when she introduced herself. Now she knew where Makoto's kind and calm personality came from. Whether they were simply putting up a front so as to not worry the rest of them or whether they were actually that calm, Kou couldn't tell. But Makoto's parents had visibly relaxed when they had heard that their son had escaped with minor injuries to his head and upper body. Their smiles had seemed kinder and warmer after they had come out of the ICU and they had promised that they would ask the doctors to let the rest of them see Makoto once they brought the twins there. Now they were talking to the doctor in charge and after several quiet words shared back and forth, the doctor nodded and walked towards Kou and the rest.

"We generally don't let non-relatives into the ICU, but since Mr. and Mrs. Tachibana pleaded, I have agreed to let you see the patient two at a time." Kou nodded and stood up. She walked to Haruka and pulled him up. Thankfully the latter didn't make a fuss. Nagisa whined and asked why he couldn't go first, but one look from Kou shut him up. The girl dragged the other into the ICU behind the doctor and they stopped inside the door. Neither moved until the doctor had shut the door behind him, leaving the three of them alone in the room. Kou brought her hands to her face and sobbed into them as she saw Makoto smile at them. She rushed to his side and carefully enveloped him in a hug.

"Oh Makoto san I'm so glad you're okaaaaay! I thought you dieeeed!" Kou wailed and Makoto laughed sheepishly and tried to pacify the girl. Then there was a noise behind them and the two turned to see Haruka walk up behind Kou. She moved aside to give him space. Haruka just stood there, staring down at Makoto.

"H-Haru?" Haruka raised his hand and slapped Makoto hard. The slap echoed within the room and a second later the doctor and two nurses rushed in. Kou groaned inwardly and ran to the door, ushering the panicking doctor and nurses outside and reassuring them that everything was alright.

"Ouch.. That hurt Haru-" Haruka cut Makoto off by crushing him in a tight hug. Makoto winced but put his arms around Haruka.

"You bloody fool!" Haruka screamed at him, tears pooling in his eyes. Makoto looked at his childhood friend with alarm and tried to console him before he began to cry. Haruka wiped away the tears angrily and raised his hand as if to slap Makoto again. Makoto flinched when Haruka brought his palm down and laid it softly against the other's cheek.

"You idiot." Haruka whispered and laid his forehead against Makoto's.

"Sorry.." Makoto mumbled and hugged Haruka. They stayed like that for several minutes and Haruka finally pulled away.

"I'm sorry. I didn't mean to slap you." Makoto wanted to ask which slap Haruka was referring to but - thankfully - chose not to. Instead, he shook his head and said,

"I deserved it."

"Yeah you did." They stared at each other in silence for a few more minutes and then Haruka raised his hand and caressed Makoto's cheek where he had slapped him.

"I love you Makoto." The smile that spread on Makoto's face was a genuinely happy one.

"I love you too Haru. Always."

"I know. So don't go jumping in front of trucks again or next time I'll beat you up." Makoto laughed sheepishly and Haruka glared at him. Kou cleared her throat and the duo turned to look at her curiously. She looked away and blushed.

"W-Well the doctor says time's up and Nagisa kun and Rei kun are impatient so.." Haruka glared at her and opened his mouth to scold her, but Makoto cut him off.

"Oh! Well send them in then!" Haruka looked at Makoto with betrayal painted all over his face. Makoto simply laughed and did something that shocked and embarrassed both Haruka and Kou. He leaned forward and kissed Haruka on the forehead.

"I'll see you soon so don't sulk ok?" Haruka pouted but nodded and followed Kou out the door. The second they stepped out, Nagisa bounded in screaming Makoto's name. The doctor and nurses scowled at the lot of them and Kou smiled back apologetically. The two went and sat on the plastic chairs by the window. Makoto's family had apparently gone to the ward Makoto was to be shifted to and that left Kou and Haruka alone in the corridor. They sat in silence and watched Nagisa talking animatedly to Makoto through the glass panel. Kou sighed and rubbed the tiredness from her eyes.

"Sorry." She looked at Haruka when the other spoke.

"Eh? For what?" Haruka gave her a look but simply said,

"For saying it was your fault." Kou made an 'o' with her mouth and then whacked him on the shoulder.

"Don't worry about it! It was my fault anyway!"

"No I'm sure it was Rin's.." Kou stopped mid-whack and stared at Haruka. Then she sighed and briefly explained everything that had happened the previous day. By the end of it Haruka had a deep frown on his face.

"You and Makoto kissed?"

"That's what you're worried about?!"

Haruka continued to frown at her and Kou sighed.

"It was an accident!"

"Really?"

"Yes!"

"Okay." Haruka continued to sulk though and Kou wished she had a bucket of ice-cold water to dunk on his head. Finally Nagisa and Rei stepped out, both more cheerful than before and the Iwatobi Swim Team – minus Makoto – left the hospital.

Kou stared at the dark house. Something was wrong. It was late and not a single light was turned on in the house. With the whole accident with Makoto, Kou had completely forgotten about Rin. She felt guilty about it, even though she was still mad at her brother.

"Onii chan?" She called cautiously, not knowing what to expect. When she got no answer, she skipped out of her boots and hurriedly went around calling after Rin.

"Onii chan where are you?!" When she found that the house was truly empty, she started to panic. There was a bad taste in her mouth and she felt like something was very very wrong. And her instinct was always right. She pulled out her cellphone and fumbled with the keys. Finally she placed the device to her ear and listened to the ring-ring with growing apprehension. Nitori answered on the eighth ring.

"Matsuoka san? Is something wr-"

"Nitori kun is my brother there?"

"Eh? Matsuoka senpai? Why would he be here?"

"What?"

"He told me that he was spending the weekend at ho-" Kou snapped her phone shut and swore loudly.

'Shit shit shit shit shit shit shit shit! Where did he go?!' Then Kou decided to try her luck and dialed Rin's phone number. The call never connected. Kou screamed with frustration and crumpled to the floor. She was tired and she couldn't deal with this.

'Where the hell did you go you baka Onii chan?!' Kou took a deep breath and tried to calm down. She had to think.

Rin had obviously run away from home. The fact that last night's leftovers were gone was proof enough. He wasn't at the dorms obviously. He definitely wasn't at Makoto's or Haruka's and definitely not at Nagisa's or Rei's. Nitori had no idea where he was so she was sure as hell Mikoshiba wouldn't have a clue. So where could Rin go? Kou stared at the family portrait standing on the table in the living room and it clicked. She ran to the back of the house and clicked on the switch to open the garage door.

'Come on come on come on..' When it was half way up, she slipped in and turned on the lights, all the fears that were at the back of her mind slowly coming to the forefront. What Kou saw made her want to pull her hair out.

The speedboat that their father had used to go fishing in had vanished. The sheet that covered it lay discarded on the floor. Kou looked around and saw that their father's fishing and diving gear was missing too. She searched through the shelves and found that Rin had taken both the toolboxes and the spare engine with him. Kou swallowed back a sob and blinked rapidly to stop the tears from spilling down her cheeks. From the looks of it, it hadn't been over two or three hours since Rin left. Meaning he should be at one of the surrounding islands by now. Kou closed the garage and ran towards the pier where the boats were docked. She saw that except for two, all the boats were docked. So she assumed that two other groups of men had sailed to the islands. Whether they were with Rin or on the same island as him, she didn't know. She guessed not. Kou squinted into the distance and tried to gauge which of the islands Rin might be on. Of the several islands, three were about five kilometers from there and her brother could be on any one of them.

'Damnit Onii chan! Did you have to run away now?!'

Kou spun around and ran back home. Their mother was away for the weekend and even if she were to come home early, Kou could just tell her Rin went back to the dorms. She ran up the stairs and to her room. Sitting cross-legged on the bed, she stared at her phone. Who could she call to help her search for her brother? It was already late evening and the tide was high, so there was no hope for going after Rin that day. She could only hope to find someone to help her search for him the next morning. Her first thought was of Makoto. And instantly her heart sank. Makoto was in no state to go hunting for Rin. Maybe in a couple of days he'd be alright but Kou refused to go to him again for help. Both her and Rin had caused Makoto enough pain. She wasn't about to drag him into their problems again. That only left Haruka. She knew the blue-haired teen would help her look for Rin, but for some reason she didn't want to rely on just Haruka. She sighed. Looks like she'd have to get the whole lot involved if she hoped to find her brother before he got himself killed. Kou took a deep breath and dialed Mikoshiba's number. Might as well start with the most troublesome of the lot.

A/n: That's all for Chapter 12! Another cliff hanger x) What do you think happened to Rin? Will they find him? Will they manage to bring him back? Will they manage to right the wrongs? Stay tuned for 13!

P.s, I might change the rating of this fic depending on the chapters to come. Hopefully not..

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Love~