CHAPTER 4

"Ne…" Pant. "Hayato." Pant. "Can we possibly reach the hospital…? The attackers could have overtaken us…and…" Tsuri mentioned over her shoulders as they continued on their great escape. She was still carrying Takeshi although she had somewhat slowed down.

"You told us both to focus on escaping…yet you're freakin' bothered with that!" Gokudera Hayato, who was following close behind Tsurishi, said in frustration. "Tch, don't you trust me?"

'Don't you trust me?' What bullshit.

"Of course!" answered the girl, "Demo Hayato, I think…" Her vision began to blur, "I…my limit…"

"Tsuri! Shikari shiro!"There seemed to be no one hunting them anymore, even so, having two injured persons in oblivion can't possibly be good.

"Yare yare, Hayato…you look like you need a hand." Those were the last words Akechi Tsurishi heard from an awfully familiar voice before blacking out.

Sitting on a stool near the door, he allowed himself to temporarily relax. At least she…they're safe, he thought. Even as his multiple scratches and burn marks (just then treated by Shamal, who unenthusiastically did so) made themselves observable and stinging, none of it mattered to him.

It was convenient, almost too convenient and Gokudera Hayato thought so too, "Oi, old man, why were you there?" he barked at the smug face of Trident Shamal.

The doctor smiled doing his worst on faking a sheepish face. "Why, is it too strange for me to enjoy the elusive beauty of nature at night?"

Hayato was not convinced by the half-assed response. "Yeah right! Show me the most effective proof that you are who I see you as you are!" But the man wasn't paying attention to Gokudera, instead he was peering intently at Tsuri who was resting on the bed (after treating Takeshi he left the swordsman on the couch to recover and paid him no more attention).

"Really, really," he scratched his chin, "even a wounded angel looks so pretty…and such nice curves you've got there señorita…"

Hayato instantly noticed this. "Teme! Lay your hands off Tsuri!"

"Is she your..?" He knew what the man meant, "I can't believe she'd ever like you…can I have a nice kiss, my darling?"

Tsurishi opened her eyes just in time to see incredibly disgusting lips trying to meet hers. Shamal's. "Get the hell a-" a fierce pain throbbed in her shoulder while trying to shove him away, "a- ouch. Ittai…nani-" The doctor leaned away and grabbed something from a table not far from the bed.

"Look, dear. Moments ago, this bullet had pierced that flawless wonderful body of yours." He tossed the bullet aside. "But fear not sweet Juliet, you are safe in my arms." Again, Shamal was dangerously close. "An embrace would be a perfect way to express you gra-"

His foot hurt. His head throbbed. Cuts and injuries mattered not to him at that moment. "Get away you dorky old man!" Before he could fully apprehend the pain, he was between the doctor and his patient.

"My, my, aren't you a little overprotective?"

Hayato's cheeks tinged pink but continued shooing away Shamal until he was successful in pushing him out. He then eased himself again on the stool beside the door.

"Ne, Hayato," the boy heard her mutter.

He said "Hn?" without meeting her eyes.

"Doko…koko ni?" It was obviously no hospital. "Ta-"

"Shamal's," he replied, "this isn't a hospital but it ain't that bad." Then his voice dropped lower into an almost whisper, "Daijobu ka?"

"Eh?" Did I hear that right?

"Betsuni. Get some rest."

"Iie, I'm pretty sure you said something else."

"I said 'ARE YOU OKAY?'!"

"Haa. I'm fine. No need to be a stingy old man." She then decided to continue her interrupted statement. "Takeshi wa?"

"Yakyuu-baka? In the living room, on the couch."

"I-" She wanted so badly to check his condition that she bore the pain quite well while doing her best on getting up.

"Don't stand up, aho!"

"Kochi! I'm a tough lass. One of the top class, dude." She chuckled a bit, halfway to a sitting position, "Ah, it rhymed…"

"He's not…the only one…me too…why won't…why is it always him? What about-?"

Thud.

He stopped short because he saw that the person he was talking to didn't seem to hear a word or ignored him completely. "WHY-" For a moment or two, Gokudera Hayato thought he heard (or felt, he wasn't sure) something snap, "The moment you opened your eyes you sought to find him." His heart was beating fast. Tsuri jerked awake albeit speechless. "I TOLD YOU HE'S FINE, YOU WOULDN'T BELIEVE A FUCKIN' WORD I SAY!"

"But-"

"LIKE HELL," he growled, "OH YEAH, IT'S BECAUSE I'M JUST NOBODY-"

"I never said-"

"SHUT UP! I'M SO UNIMPORTANT THAT IT WON'T MATTER IF I DETONATE MYSELF AS LONG YOU AND BASEBALL FREAK ARE SAFE AND-"

At this, no pain could stop her anymore. She eased herself off the bed and stomped towards the boy slumped near the door, "NO, YOU SHUT UP! When I came to you, you we're a snob," she retorted back defiantly, "But you are now and still my freaking friend no matter how mental you are! See? No hard-feelings! What's your problem?"

"You-"

"I AM YOU'RE PROBLEM?" She closed the distance more, letting her see him clearly. Not as bad as Takeshi…but still, he had a point, she was too preoccupied with her boyfriend to care about him, or herself. Black circles rounded his eyes like eyeliner marks, he had a cut on his lower lip, still bleeding and more other slashes and burns. He looks so…hot, she thought. Then she realized what she had just thought and mentally scolded herself.

"No-" There was no point arguing, he could no longer restrain himself. He needed her to know…so she would understand. If words would not suffice, then-

"So-" It could have been another pointless yelled reply if she hadn't been thwarted. Everything blurred. She tasted something rather salty, though everything else was sweet. It could have been blood, but she swore it wasn't hers.

There were only two people in that room and only one of them had a bleeding lower lip.

Shikari shiro = hang in there