"It's okay, it's just me," he soothed, nuzzling his nose in that raven-silk in attempt to 'pet' him, like he always did. At least it seemed to do something, as Izaya began calming down a bit. "I want you to feel my warmth, to know that I'm real, and that this is real."
Izaya's eyes began to water, a soft smile crossing his face. "Shizu... Shizu-" he didn't get to finish as Celty and Shinra opened the back door. They seemed shocked with the way Shizuo was carrying Izaya, but said nothing. The blond just smiled at them, exiting Shooter with Izaya securely in his arms.
"Well, that went just as smooth as expected," Shinra winked, crossing his arms with a triumped smile. "How you feeling by the way? Anything hurt?"
Izaya looked away shyly. It was obvious he still wasn't used to having the doctor around, but that was understandable. It would just take time, and they were all willing to give it.
"W-well..." he trailed off, his voice getting even fainter. Shizuo couldn't help but frown in worry. If he was this silent about it, he was probably ashamed of something hurting. Ahhh.
"My head really hurts... and my arms burn... a-and..." Izaya's voice went so low that not even Shizuo's acute hearing could pick-up what he was saying, but got the picture. He looked urgently up at Shinra, who nodded in understanding.
"I have some pain killers and ointment upstairs," the doctor noticed to the elevator. "As for the headache, you need to stay hydrated." The young doctor blabbed on about other things, but Shizuo had tuned him out completely. He was more content on the small raven, who seemed to be having a slight hard-time breathing. It was probably due to all the stress leaving his body, as all that adrenaline from escaping the hospital was still seeping out of the blond. He was also probably really tired, as his eyes rested closed despite his small trembles.
'I won't let them take you, not again,' Shizuo swore, cautiously tightening his grip around the small raven. Shinra then led them up the elevator and into his house. It was the same as always, spaciest, clean, and large; the exact opposite of Shizuo's house. And even though Shizuo liked his home better, this was a lot safer for Izaya. People who wanted to pick fights would often wait for Shizuo at his house, and if they found Izaya there...
"We have a lot of extra rooms in the house since I'm an underground doctor, but from here on out, this place will only be reserved for Izaya," Shinra reassured the group, leading them deeper into his house. Shizuo didn't remember it being this big, then again, he didn't exactly go wondering around in the first place.
"So, with that said, this will be Izaya's room!" Shinra proudly smiled, opening the door in-front of them. Izaya turned his head, eyes widening instantly at what he saw. It was large, about the size of a master bedroom. Shizuo's mouth nearly dropped open, seeing a beautiful and tranquil water fountain on one side, that soothing sound of trickling water welcoming his ears. It didn't take up too much room, neighboring the closet door, but it was soothing nonetheless. On the left side of the room, there was his own personal bathroom that also seemed large, and a king-size bed.
"What do you think?" Shinra asked, seeming quite proud of himself. Izaya opened his mouth to say something, but all that came out were more sobs.
"I-I, this can't be for me, can it?" He cried, not believing this for a minute.
"Of course it is, ANDD, here's the best part!" Shinra winked, going over to the closet door next to the fountain and opened it, revealing a walk-in closet. Shizuo raised a questioning eyebrow, not seeming to see where he was going with this. Not that it wasn't impressive or anything, Shizuo wished he had a walk-in closet, but why did Shinra think Izaya would care?
"I know Shizuo's not gonna want to leave you alone, making every excuse he can to stay over, so Celty and I did some remodeling! Which I have to say, I fancy. We connected your closets together!" Shinra then opened the other door, revealing yet another walk-in closet that belonged to another bedroom. Both Shizuo and Izaya were stunned, not even knowing what to think about it. They were lost for words, and Shinra seemed quite proud.
"Though, we were thinking of getting rid of Izaya's door and plastering it with wall, so the only way into his room is through Shizuo's door. And even then, they'd have to come through the secrete door in the closet, which is of course camouflaged. The remodeling will, of course take place once Izaya's serious wounds are healed. I didn't want to risk anything."
Okay, now Shizuo's jaw was nearly hitting the ground. The doctor had really thought of everything! He would be so hysteric if Shinra made the entrance through his room, so he could be sure whoever tried to get Izaya had to go through him.
"I don't even know what to say," Shizuo honestly spoke, slowly making his way over to Izaya's bed. "It's like you thought of everything."
"Well, you know, I am a doctor and all, and my dear Celty came up with the whole closet door thing," he began bragging, which Shizuo just blew off. He carefully placed Izaya down on the bed, who immediately gasped. It made Shizuo and Shinra immediately turn, worried that Shizuo accidentally made some of his wounds hurt.
"I-Izaya?" Shizuo gulped as Shinra quickly stumbled over towards the door. However, he stopped himself, realizing Izaya's expression wasn't grave at all. It was contorted with a smile.
"... This blanket... is soooo soofftt," he hummed, grasping it with his small fingers. He looked so at peace, so happy, Shizuo and Shinra couldn't help but laugh. That was right, it had to of been ages since he last slept in a real, comfortable bed. Before it could bring any dark thoughts to Shizuo's mind, he began running his fingers through Izaya's hair again. "You deserve only the best."
"Yes indeed," Shinra nodded. "I'll go retrieve the medicine in the next room, don't move too much." And with that, Shinra proceeded out the door. Shizuo was still caught in fascination, at everything the doctor and Celty had done for the boy. He knew Shinra was a good person, but willing to completely remodel his home like this? There had to be some kind of catch, right? Then again, this was Shinra, he hardly asked for anything in return.
Wait... Shinra and Celty were acting weird back at the hospital, he remembered now. The text said something about it being her fault, but that wouldn't make any sense. All of them didn't listen to Izaya back then, because they were all tricked; it was all their faults. She could have been blaming herself for everything, wouldn't be the first time.
"Shizu-chan?" Izaya's voice suddenly ran to his ears, making the blond revert his attention to the exhausted looking raven below him. He seemed more out of it then earlier, sweat slowly pouring down the side of his face. Shizuo's protective instincts quickly sunk-in, collapsing at his bed-side to be eye-level with him. It made him jump slightly, but he seemed too out of it to really care.
"What's wrong?" He quickly asked, moving his hand to Izaya's forehead. The raven stiffened a little bit, obviously not used to being touched, but Shizuo didn't exactly care at the moment, especially when Shizuo's hand suddenly went hot.
"You're running a fever!" Shizuo cried. He didn't know why neither he or Shinra didn't see it before. Dammit! He felt so stupid! A fever was never good, but with Izaya's body in such a state, who knows what it could do to him. Somehow, Shizuo needed to get this fever down.
"Wait here, I'm gonna ge-" Shizuo stopped in mid-sentence, feeling a weak hand suddenly grab his wrist. He wasn't even completely off the floor yet, how did Izaya do that?
"N-no, please..." Izaya's soft voice whispered, making Shizuo look down at Izaya. His sweaty hair was glued to his face, hiding his eyes behind the black locks that hung off his pale face. The sight scared Shizuo, Izaya literally resembled a ghost.
"Please... just, stay with me." His heart was full of overwhelming fear to the point where he couldn't even swallow, but hearing him beg with him created this conflict within him. It wouldn't do any good if Izaya remained here with a fever, and it wouldn't do any good if Shizuo left Izaya either. He just convinced the raven to trust him once more, and he didn't want to mess this up.
"I-I won't," he struggled to say, giving him a small, reassuring smile. This seemed to calm the raven down a bit, as he sighed in relief.
"I... I don't want to be left alone..." Even though the words were so soft and whispered, Shizuo heard each and every syllable. He didn't know what to do, how could he help calm Izaya down when he wasn't used to the close-contact? He felt so useless, just like he had been so useless years ago, when he was taken from his life.
No, he wasn't going to think about that, not again. Izaya was his baby boy, and he was the only one that could calm him. Gently reaching forward, he ran his fingers soothingly through his hair once more, but this time with softer strokes. It seemed like it wasn't working at first, as his breaths continued to be drawn-out, but slowly Izaya began easing against Shizuo's arm. The blond was a bit shocked, but decided not to question it. If only Izaya wasn't sick and in pain at the moment, he would wish this could last forever.
'What can I do Izaya?' His thoughts trailed off into more worry. The more he pet Izaya, the more he was aware of the heat slowly warming his own hand.
"Here we go," Shinra smiled as he trotted back into the room, hands full of a medicine bottles and packages. Shizuo wasn't expecting Shinra to be back so soon, and was more then glad for his sudden appearance. Then again, this was his home, of course it wasn't going to take a long time to retrieve medicine. Dammit, he was so worried about Izaya he was making himself blind.
"His fever's pretty bad," Shizuo reported, slowly scouting away from the raven to give the doctor some space. Izaya looked at him, as if to ask to stay, but didn't. His now downcast look tempted the blond though.
Shinra reached up, pressing his own hand to his forehead. "Wow, I'm surprised you're still awake!" The doctor tried to praise, searching through the pile of bottles and picking one up that rattled with pills. "Usually fevers make you really tired. - Ah, can you get a cup of water Shizuo?" Shizuo immediately hopped up and headed to the kitchen. He didn't even want to look back at Izaya, fearing what his expression would be. Right now, all that mattered was getting his fever down.
Reaching into the cabinet, he brought out a tall glass cup and filled it with iced-cold water. He remembered the raven always had to have ice in his water, unless he'd hardly drink any of it. He was always so picky.
Going back into the room, he noticed Izaya's face brightened a bit seeing him enter. "Here you go, nice cold water." Shinra smiled, taking it from him and extending some pills out to the raven first.
"Here." Izaya seemed to look at the pills a bit wearily, glancing up at Shizuo in worry. This was the second time he caught a glimpse of the raven looking to him for approval. He felt touched.
"Go ahead, it'll help," Shizuo smiled. Izaya nodded then, taking the pills from the doctor and forcing them into his mouth. Shinra then handed him the water, in which he gulped down quite gladly.
"Thanks Shinra," Izaya warmly smiled. Shizuo couldn't help but go over to him and caress his hair once more.
"Nah, it's the least I can do. The medicine should start working in a few minutes, so, who's hungry? We need to start putting meat on Izaya's bones." As if on-cue, Shizuo's stomach growled, like a wolf who had been starving to death.
"HAHA, that's a yes from me!" He laughed, rubbing his tummy before gazing down at Izaya. "What about you?" The raven smiled shyly, nodding. He kept his gaze to the bed, his hair in the way so the others couldn't see. Shizuo deduced it was because he felt bad. First they got him out of the hospital where other people risked their lives for him, Shinra and Celty built him this nice room with a safety measure, and now they were going to feed him, like real people did. It was probably too much for him to take-in all at once.
"So, what you guys hungry for? It's all on me! - And since Celty's busy checking on the van gang, we'll just order take-out." Shizuo instinctively ran his hand smoother through Izaya's hair, but frowned, seeing how he wasn't leaning into it anymore. God-dammit.
"I don't care what it is, as long as it's editable. What do you want Izaya?" Shizuo asked, leaning down to match Izaya's height. Izaya slowly looked over at Shizuo, his hair still lingering in his face. The blond could clearly see the sadness swollen in those eyes, that could've been guilt too. It was nearly impossible to tell with Izaya.
"Wh-what?" Izaya asked, as if hadn't heard the question.
"What do you want to eat?"
Izaya seemed shocked at the question, eyes widening. "M-me?" Shizuo nodded, being sure his smile didn't waver. The raven stared at Shizuo, as if the question didn't make sense to him, but that wouldn't make any sense.
"Of course, we want you to chose."
"Me? Ch-chose?" Izaya's voice trembled. "I-I, can chose?" The question took both Shizuo and Shinra back a moment, staring at Izaya with fear. Had they really destroyed that much of his reasoning? They assumed they did take away his reasoning to disobey, but not being able to chose something...
"Yep, whatever you want," Shinra finally found his voice, giving him an encouraging smile. But Izaya seemed too puzzled by the new reality he was given; the reality where he could chose things for himself.
"Me... chose...?" He mumbled to himself, clenching Shizuo's hand rather unconsciously. The blond didn't mind, it made him gently push Izaya's small body against his, laying a small kiss on the top of his head.
"How about ootoro? I know how much you love that."
Izaya's breath hitched for a moment, those big eyes looking up at Shizuo. "Ootoro? I-I can really have, ootoro?"
Shizuo nodded, "Yep, anything, really."
Izaya's eyes starting watering again, the mere thought of the sushi putting him in a daze. "Oottoorooo..."
"I'll order some now," Shinra smiled, turning to leave, but stopped. "Oh, if you want to help him take a bath, you can. They're usually busy at these hours." Shizuo felt his heart skip a beat hearing that. Him, help give Izaya a bath? Would the raven be okay with that? "We need to get that dirt off, and he only really trusts you." Yeahh, Shizuo knew Shinra was doing that on purpose. The bubbling doctor had always done that when he was with Izaya, especially when they were little.
"W-would that be okay, Izaya?" Shizuo asked. He wanted to be sure Izaya was okay with it. The raven wouldn't be able to take a bath by himself, his wounds would sting if he moved too quickly or at a strange angle; he could hardly walk as it was.
Izaya just nodded, closing his eyes as if he was taking-in Shizuo's warmth. "I'll tell yeah when the food gets here!" And Shinra was off, leaving the two alone. Shizuo knew Shinra was just saying the food would be late; he was probably gonna call and order in about ten minutes. Stupid Shinra, he was so lucky he had done all this for Izaya.
"Soo, lets go," Shizuo warmly smiled, gently picking him and carrying him to the bathroom. The little raven didn't even protest this time, not seeming to be scared.
Seeing how he'd have to turn the water on, he set the raven on the sink so he could lean against the mirror. "Start taking your cloths off while I get the warm water working." Izaya seemed to be terrified for a moment, staring at the blond with trembling eyes. The look within them scared him; no doubt his kidnapper's doing.
"Hey, I'm not gonna hurt you," he gently soothed, running his fingers through his hair. "I'd rather kill myself then even think of that." It took Izaya a few minutes, but he finally nodded and began undoing his shirt buttons. Shizuo couldn't help but sigh in relief, turning to the tub and putting the water on warm. It took a while for the water to heat-up, which was better so Izaya could take his time. It was hard not turning around, as he heard the small teen whimpering as he tried struggling out of the shirt. It got to the point where Shizuo got up and helped him slip it off; then he understood why... through the mirror, the blond could see what looked like whip marks; over three deep slashes that were slowly healing on his back. And on his arms were long, deep cuts zigzagging in a lot of different directions, with a severe looking burn-mark on one of his shoulders. It was bruised over pretty badly, the skin there nearly all black. The doctors at the hospital thought he was healing quickly? Hell no. If he had been healing quickly, half of these would already be gone!
God, he wished he hadn't seen them. He turned away and began filling the tub up once it was warm enough. He then applied some soap into the water, making bubbles surface the water instantly. He knew how much Izaya loved bubbles when they were little.
"There we go," he smiled, turning back to Izaya. The small raven's eyes were focused on the bubbles, a small smile forming at the corners of his mouth. "I remembered the bubbles."
"Bub...bles..." Izaya repeated, still shocked at what he was seeing. Shizuo couldn't help but smirk, carefully picking him back up and placing him in the tub. It was hard listening to the small hissing as the water hit Izaya's wounds, but as he set him down, they seemed to fade. He was thankful for that, he didn't know how he'd be able to stomach giving him a bath when he was in obvious pain.
"Is the water warm enough?" Shizuo asked, only receiving a small nod. At least it was better then no response, he guessed.
"Bubbles," Izaya said again, cuffing some in his hands, staring at them with curious eyes. "I love bubbles... they're so soft, yet not. They're like big clouds." Shizuo couldn't help but smirk at his fascination, taking some in his own hands.
"Yeah, they are huh? Or like big bears, or mash-potatoes, or icecream." Yeah, he was obviously hungry, his mouth nearly watering a bit. It only made Izaya giggle a bit, looking at the bubbles more closely in his hands. Shizuo looked at the ones in his hands, and smirked.
"Do you remember the old game we'd play?" He asked, making Izaya look up at him with his head slightly tilted. "It got us cleaner faster." Izaya tiled his head a bit more, not seeming to remember. It made Shizuo smirk, bringing his hands closer to his face. The raven's eyes widened, seeming to remember, but was too late as Shizuo blew the bubbles in his face.
"Shi-Shizu-chaaannnn," he whimpered, wiping the bubbles off his face. The blond was afraid he made Izaya mad, but Izaya just giggled, a smile unwavering. "You cheeaatterrrrr." Shizuo watched, unable to stop laughing at how adorable Izaya sounded when he whined, as Izaya blew his own bubbles at Shizuo. The blond didn't even bother moving, getting some in his mouth, but really didn't care.
"Tastes like strawberry," Shizuo smiled, licking his lips. He loved sweet things, which included strawberries. He managed to get Izaya to like them too, before he went missing.
"It does?" He asked, tilting his head and trying some. Shizuo just laughed even harder, watching Izaya's expression change before spitting it out.
"Little more soapy then strawberry, right?" Izaya nodded, giving a sour look before carefully dunking his hand into the water to wipe the bubbles on his face away, but Shizuo beat him to it, gently brushing the bubbles away with the side of his hand. Izaya froze, eyes slowly looking up into Shizuo's. The blond felt a blush rush to his face, unable to even hold it back. He didn't even mean to- his hand just did it without him even thinking.
"Y-you had some bubbles... on your cheek," he shyly mumbled, pulling his hand away and grabbing the bucket from the side of the tub. He could see a small blush form on Izaya's face, and tried his best to dismiss it. "E-erm, we better hurry, before, food..." He couldn't even finish. Izaya just nodded, though not saying anything; he was probably too embarrassed or something.
Shizuo filled the small bucket up with water from the facet, seeing through the bubbles, crusted blood drifting on the surface. He'd have to try really hard not to start freaking out. He had to remember, Izaya wasn't in any immediate danger, not until he started freaking out; and he wasn't going to.
"Close your eyes," he ordered Izaya, lifting the small bucket over Izaya's head. The raven did what he was told, and flinched a bit when he dumped the water on his hair. It didn't seem to do much but run off the ends of his hair; he'd have to take a different approach; a motherly approach.
Filling the bucket back up, he slowly began pouring it on Izaya's head, running his fingers through that faded, silky hair to spread the water all around. It seemed to work that time, as his hair was completely soaked.
"I-I can do this myself-"
"No," Shizuo cut the small boy off, picking up the shampoo bottle and making sure to look at Izaya seriously, but still lovingly. "You'll hurt your back wounds, so I'll do it until they're healed." Izaya wanted to protest, but didn't get the chance as Shizuo squeezed the contents in his hands and running it through the raven's hair. Izaya let out a small squeak at first, as the blond made sure to really press hard to get anything in his hair out. He felt bad, but it had to be done.
"Sorryy, just want to be sure I get all the junk out of your hair," he made known, pressing down harder, but being sure there weren't any wounds on his head he'd disturb. When he was sure he had done a good enough job, he turned the facet back on and washed his hands off. It was a good thing he didn't fill the tub up that much, unless I'd be overflowing by now.
Picking up the bucket, he refilled it and brought it above Izaya's head. "Gonna do a rinse now, cover your eyes." Izaya did what he was told once again, and Shizuo slowly spilled the water over his head. He made sure to run his fingers through the raven hair, being sure to get every inch so no soap would dare drip into his eyes.
"Okay, wipe your face with this." The blond handed Izaya a rag, who immediately began drying his face and soap away so they wouldn't make his eyes sore. Shizuo then grabbed the conditioner, and repeated the whole process. The two of them didn't talk during this time, mostly because Shizuo knew this hurt Izaya, re-awakening all the wounds that had been slumbering, hissing at the water and soap that wanted to clean them from bacteria. At least it was almost over, but now he was at the worst part; washing his body.
Shizuo let the water drain and putting the shower-head on. It was easier to wash his body with the shower, and Izaya wouldn't have to be dyed a red color due to the blood that was in the water. "You're gonna smell like strawberries and lemons, I think," the blond half-heartily giggled, squeezing some in Izaya's hand as well as his own. He was going to do the spots that hurt Izaya, as the teen was probably uncomfortable, which Shizuo completely understood. He couldn't do everything for the raven.
Izaya was able to get his legs, arms and chest, with only small hisses, but wouldn't let Shizuo touch him; he wanted to be able to do this himself. But when it came to his back, that's where he was defeated. And Shizuo feared doing it. God-dammit; but he had to.
"This'll sting... sorry," he apologized, gently ghosting his hand down his back. He was trying his best to steer-clear of the whip-wounds, but every-time Izaya whimpered and whined, he knew he was utterly failing. The soap was burning, but also cleaning the slashes. Shizuo's hand was painted red and black by the time he was half-finished, and Izaya was crying.
"Shhh shhhh," Shizuo gently soothed, "I'm almost done, I'm almost done..." Those minutes took Shizuo into a living hell, as he watched him jump, twist, listening to those cries and whimpers. He wanted to just take up that old gun and shoot himself at the moment, but he continued. He didn't let himself stop until all the crusted blood was gone.
And now, finally, after probably around fifteen minutes of endurement, Izaya's pale-skin was finally shining through. Izaya then stepped into the water, and allowed it to sweep all the soap off his body. Shizuo was so relieved when Izaya stepped out of the tub and let out a breath he didn't even know he was holding in. The blond quickly gave Izaya a towel and wrapped it around his small body.
Now that Izaya was able to actually stand, Shizuo realized Izaya came up mid-way to his chest. He knew he was tall, but for a eight-teen year-old, that was pretty short. But he didn't care about that. Snapping out of his thoughts, he noticed Izaya's breathing had become irregular again, and his body was swaying back and forth. Izaya was trying his best to steady himself, but at this rate, he'd fall-over.
"A-ahh, I've got you," Shizuo blushed as he gently pulled Izaya towards him, allowing his body to lean against his for support. Izaya seemed shocked by this, as his breathing stopped. Yet, just as quickly, his breathing steadied, as he was trying to calm himself a bit.
"S-sorry, Shizu-chan," Izaya's shaky voice cried, surprising the blond. Sorry? What was he sorry for? "I-I'm sorry I'm so needy, I'm sorry I can't do anything by myself."
Oh, now he understood. Izaya felt useless, worthless; a burden. God, just knowing Izaya was feeling that way hurt him. Why was the raven's sad-feelings effecting him so much?
Slowly, he held Izaya's shoulders and sat on his knees, looking straight into Izaya's eyes. "Listen, you're never a burden on me, EVER." He made sure to say that nice and slow, and with a stern voice. Though, that was really hard when the shivering Izaya was cutely holding the ends of the towel up to his lips.
"B-but you could be doing so many others things-"
"No, no I wouldn't," Shizuo honestly said, pressing his forehead to Izaya's. The close contact seemed to make Izaya a bit uneasy, but Shizuo made sure he held firm. "I'd just be missing you more." Shizuo stared at Izaya's mouth drooping open slightly at the response. He didn't seem to know what to say, and when he seemed to say something, Shinra walked in, smiling upon the scene.
"Food's here! Hurry and get dressed, I left some cloths on the bed for you Izaya," he smiled before leaving. Shizuo shook his head in annoyance; that doctor, always ruining the moment.
"Well, we better get you ready."