Visibility

By: Aviantei

Chapter 12: Apprehension

Tetsuya was a bit tense the next morning. Airi hadn't answered the door when he stopped by earlier to pick her up for school, and they door had been locked. He hadn't been able to call inside, either, since he had left his cellphone behind. There was the chance that she had slept in, but couldn't help but worry. If she was sick, how was he supposed to get in to help her?

He tried not to let his worry show, though. After all, he could just be worrying over nothing. That was what couples ended up doing after all.

Kagami gave him a concerned look upon entering the classroom, but came in almost seconds before the bell rang. Fortunately, the teacher bustled in a bit after that, saving the redhead from a scolding. There was still no sign of Airi, and Tetsuya wondered if he should move back to his usual desk instead of occupying Youta's.

"Good morning class," Hara-sensei said. He was frowning, and Tetsuya noticed that his eyes flitted about the room, not establishing any contact. Tetsuya frowned himself, knowing that there was bad news coming before anyone else even picked up on it. "I'm afraid that I have bad news. I just received a call that Watanabe-san was taken to the hospital yesterday after a car accident."

Tetsuya lost his breath in a soft gasp. He had been prepared, but not for this. How had it even happened? He had made sure that Airi had made it home safe last night, that was for sure. Had someone crashed into the house? Most importantly, how bad is it?

"…Are there any volunteers to go visit her after school today?"

Tetsuya caught onto the words, his hand shooting up into the air as soon as he remembered how to move it. "I'll go," he said, voice more breath than actual sound. There were a few murmurs behind him, but Hara didn't look surprised. The sensei nodded once, then looked to the back of the classroom.

"I'll go, too," Kagami said. If Tetsuya's action caused whispers, then Kagami's volume produced far more than that. One would have thought that after a few months, their classmates would understand the duo a little better, but it seemed that wasn't the case.

Tetsuya had to wonder why Kagami was volunteering, though. While it was true that he interacted with the twins, Tetsuya had been closer. Maybe something had happened during Airi's cooking lesson that Tetsuya had missed. Regardless, Kagami was probably providing support to a friend, and Tetsuya was glad that the redhead had chosen to come.

"Alright, then, Kagami-kun and Kuroko-kun will visit Watanabe-san," Hara said, nodding in approval. "You two just talk with me after class and I'll tell you what hospital she's at." It was probably a good thing he didn't say it now; this was the first time Tetsuya had ever considered skipping out on school. "That being said, we do need to focus. I'll take roll, and then we'll get started on today's lesson…"

Youta sat outside of Airi's hospital room, feeling like shit for the twentieth hour straight. He wasn't hurt too badly—just a bruise on the side of his head where he had slammed into some part of the car or the other, and some cuts from where the passenger's side windows had collapsed in, glass spraying everywhere. He had needed some bandages and to stay overnight to make sure he didn't have a concussion. Hayashi's men had both gotten off with minimal injuries, too, and they had already left.

Youta was probably in a worse situation than he had been in before, but none of that mattered.

Because Airi—

He had been discharged that morning, but he hadn't left the hospital. He just couldn't take the idea of leaving Airi alone, even if he had only gone inside once, while she was sleeping. The nurse had told him when his sister woke up, but Youta hadn't been able to muster the courage to go inside and see her.

Surely she must hate me by now.

Surely she doesn't want anything to do with me anymore.

He had called the school, let them know what was going on. He told his homeroom teacher where he had been for the past few weeks. Hara had hung up because he needed to teach his class, but at best, Youta was going to be suspended. He wouldn't be surprised if Seirin expelled him.

It was pathetic. He had come all this way to help Airi, to protect her. He couldn't even manage to do that properly. He had abandoned her for a while. He had gotten her hurt worse than he had been, and she would be in the hospital for who knew how long. Even when she got out, he wouldn't be there to help her at school. Youta had effectively rendered himself worthless.

It was worse than when Youta had come away from his eye infection unscathed, only to find out that Airi was going to go blind. This time, he could have actually done something to stop it.

At least she has Kuroko now. The thought was more comforting than it should have been. A few months ago, Youta would have protested to anyone else taking care of his sister. As it was, the quiet boy was probably better for Airi anyway. Tetsuya didn't get into debt and cause car crashes. He didn't hurt Airi.

"Watanabe-kun."

Sure enough, Tetsuya was there, holding a vase of flowers. Kagami was standing behind him. Hara must have told the class, but how much? Tetsuya still looked like he trusted Youta, so it couldn't be to deep of details. He didn't know. Youta wished he did. Airi would never hate her brother. Other people needed to know so he could get what he deserved.

"Just go and see her," Youta muttered. At least she'll want to see you. That was enough for the blue haired boy to race into the room, nearly spilling the vase as he went. Kagami stayed in the hall, his eyes burning a hole in the wall above Youta's head.

The redhead didn't say anything, so Youta didn't either. He just stayed seated, back bent, head hanging down. Kagami had probably only come so that Tetsuya wouldn't have to travel alone, and he probably wouldn't actually visit Airi either. Youta wasn't sure if he should be annoyed by that, but he wouldn't have had the energy to express it if he was.

Just how close had Tetsuya gotten to Airi anyway? Close enough to be her eyes, but that was only a practical way to look at it…

Kagami made a sound between a word and a cough, dislodging Youta from his thoughts. The redhead seemed to make several attempts at forming a sentence, until he gave up, a sound of frustration emerging from his mouth. Youta finally looked up, only to find Kagami looking at him, making a face between a scowl and someone trying to hold their breath.

"I give up, this is too much of a pain to keep calm at," Kagami muttered before raising his voice to a normal speaking volume. "Come on, Watanabe, let's go for a walk."

Youta wouldn't have believed Kagami was talking to him if it weren't for the use of his name. "What for?" he asked. He was reluctant to get up from his seat; even if he hadn't visited Airi all day, he wasn't just going to not stay by her side. The bathroom down the hall was the farthest Youta was willing to go from his sister, and that was more for practical reasons than anything. Even if they hadn't spoken properly for weeks, Airi would surely know that Youta was always there for her.

Wouldn't she?

"Because," Kagami said, and there was an obvious strain in his voice, "I need to talk to you, but I'm not going to be able to do it without yelling at you. I'd rather not get thrown out of the hospital, plus Kuroko would panic if he heard. I'm sure your sister would worry, too." That seemed to be all he was willing to say, and the basketball player's lips stayed shut.

Normally, Youta would have put up more of a fight. He wouldn't have given up any ground, potential of a shouting match or no. Airi might need him, and there was no way they would be separated for what anyone else wanted. Besides, who would willingly walk into a situation where they would be yelled at anyway?

Except now, Airi had Tetsuya with her.

And now, Youta felt like he deserved it. He could only beat himself up so much after all. No matter what, Airi wouldn't blame him. Or maybe she would, but Youta didn't think it was likely. Just in case, he needed someone else to do it, to bring it home. Before he could change his mind, Youta stood up.

"Alright," he agreed. "You lead the way."

Kagami grunted, turning down the hall without another word. Youta followed in his footsteps, digging what he could of his nails into his palms. He had given up on caring about where he was going. Even his concern with Airi seemed misplaced, like it didn't deserve to be there after everything that had happened.

Kagami lead him to the roof, where the door was thankfully unlocked. The outside managed to be even brighter than the almost sterile white walls of the hospital, sunlight and clouds and blue sky assaulting Youta's eyes. There was a slight breeze, warm and carrying promises of an early summer. It was unfair, how the rest of the world was fine whenever Youta wasn't.

"Just what the hell were you thinking?" Kagami said, not turning around. He wasn't quite at a yelling volume, but his voice carried enough strength to make Youta recoil against the door he had just walked through. "You went on and on about protecting your sister, but you're the one that ended up hurting her. And for what? Some extra money?"

"I didn't want it to happen!" Youta protested. "I only wanted to help her! I wanted to let her see again so she could do everything she should be allowed to do! I didn't… I didn't want… I didn't think…"

"Of course you didn't think!" Kagami turned around, and Youta could see the redhead's anger. His fists were balled, his teeth were bared, and there was something animalistic in his eyes. It made Youta's knees shake. "I don't know Watanabe as well as Kuroko does, but even I can tell that she didn't care about seeing again. Did you even ask her before you went and did this?!"

"I didn't," Youta admitted, looking down. He wondered if Kagami would punch him. "I didn't ask at all because I thought she would want it. I didn't see that she was happy without her eyes…" He looked back up, staring Kagami in the eyes. "I screwed up. I screwed up bad. I shouldn't have been such an idiot. So what I should really do is whatever it takes to keep Airi happy…in the way she wants it."

Youta took several deep breaths, waiting for Kagami's response. Part of him still wanted to be hit, even if it wouldn't change anything. It would make him feel better to get beat up, to be in worse shape than Airi was, even if that wasn't really possible. Selfish. He hadn't really changed at all.

Kagami's shoulders dropped down, the tension leaving them. He sighed, looking off into a different direction. "Man, I guess there's nothing else I can tell you that you don't know yourself," he said. "But really…

"…you shouldn't say strong words like that when you're crying like an idiot."

Airi sat back in her hospital bed, not able to do much else. Watching TV had always been out of the question, and none of the nurses that had stopped by seemed to know if there was any braille in the hospital aside from the number plates on doors. The only option that seemed to be left was to sleep, but she couldn't. She had slept enough already, and that had only been due to the shock driving her unconscious.

Even if she did get tired, Airi knew she would be too worried to even get a proper rest.

She had tried asking the nurses what had happened to Youta, and had only gotten mixed results. Some of the nurses mentioned that he was also being taken care of, and others didn't seem to have any clue who she was talking about. To make matters worse, no one was willing to give her information on his condition. They were probably just trying to reduce her stress by not saying anything, but that most likely meant that it was bad.

Part of her was ready to get up and start searching for him. She had been hurt, but she could still walk, and navigating a hospital wasn't that difficult. The only things stopping her were that she didn't know where Youta was and that someone would take her back to her room before she could make any progress at all.

The door opened, but it wasn't a member of the hospital staff. They always said something when they entered, but it was silent. Airi sat up a bit too fast, causing her head to pound in retaliation. She didn't care. "Nii-san?" she asked, hopeful.

"No," she said. The footsteps made it obvious. Even if he was hurt, Youta wouldn't walk like that. Laughing softly, Airi chided herself. She should have known. She had been the one to comment on his presence in the first place. "I'm sorry, Tetsuya-kun, I wasn't thinking straight."

"It's fine," Tetsuya answered, his voice quiet. The sound of his footsteps stopped by the bedside, and Airi reached out a hand. Tetsuya took it, and there was the sound of something being set down on her bedside table. "Our class pulled together money to get you some flowers. Some of them didn't see the point, but I knew you would want them anyway."

Airi smiled a bit, even if she was a bit disappointed. After all this time, her classmates still couldn't figure it out. Keeping her hand still connected to Tetsuya, she used her free one to find the vase, fingers brushing against the petals. "They smell lovely," she complimented. The scent of the hospital wasn't too oppressive, but it made for a nice change. "How much do you know about what happened, Tetsuya-kun?"

Tetsuya flinched; she felt it through his hand almost as much as she sensed it. Even so, he faced her when he spoke. "Not too much, just that there was a car accident. Is there more to it than that?"

Airi paused. She probably knew about as much about the current situation as Tetsuya, but she could still guess. If she was wrong, she could ask Youta for clarification later. "I can't say I understand everything perfectly, but, I have an idea of what all happened. Would you listen to me?"

Tetsuya nodded. "Of course."

Airi took a deep breath and settled back into the pillows. She kept her hands with Tetsuya's. "Whenever Nii-san brought that money home, I think he took a loan so I could have the surgery," she started. "After our date, you left your cell phone behind, so I went out to return it to you. Except I ended up being grabbed by some men and shoved into a car."

Tetsuya's fingers immediately tightened. Airi wasn't sure if he was angry or startled. "Nii-san was there, too. I think those men were from his loan agency, but it's just a guess… Nii-san tried to stop them and we got hit because they weren't paying attention. I'm not sure, but I think that Nii-san was trying to set things right and it just went wrong."

"I'm sure if you're worried you can talk to him soon," Tetsuya said. His voice was reassuring as always, but Airi could hear the small tint of worry in it.

"You don't need to hold back, Tetsuya-kun. What is it?"

He hesitated, the small sound escaping his throat before being cut off. Airi kept her focus on him, waiting. As long as he was being honest, she didn't care how long it took him to answer. "Airi-san, how bad is it? Your eye?"

Airi reached a hand up to her face. Even if she didn't actively use her eyes, it still felt unnatural to have bandages over one of them. They felt like a restriction, an even deeper reminder of her condition. "The doctor said that they would have to check once my skin's healed more, but my eye itself took quite the beating from the glass. On the off chance that we could afford the surgery now, it wouldn't do any good…"

It bothered her. Youta already felt guilty about her blindness in the first place, but this would only make it worse. He would blame himself even more. Airi was worried. Already, her brother had gone to extremes to try and fix the problem. What would he do now, when things couldn't be fixed anymore?

And even more than that—

"It's not fair, Tetsuya-kun… I… I always told myself that I was okay with being blind. But now… Now that I think about it, I realize… I wouldn't have minded so much. It's selfish, but I was still glad when I learned you were all playing for me in that tournament, because I thought… I thought that maybe I'd get a chance to use my own eyes to look at you, even for a moment…"

Airi's breath caught in her throat. She couldn't remember the last time she had cried. It felt wrong to lament now that the chance was gone. She couldn't help it. She cried, and Tetsuya didn't say anything, but that was okay, because Airi didn't think anything she heard could help at all.

"Tetsuya-kun, I don't want it to be this way… I'm going to be fully blind by the end of next year, and there's no going back. And this…" She closed her hand over the bandages, coming close to pulling some of them out. "This just made it worse, so… With the last of what sight I have, can I see you?"

Tetsuya was still silent, but his hands took a hold of hers, pulled the one away from her face. His chair made a noise as he stood up, and she could feel him moving closer.

"Airi-san, look at me," he said, voice soft.

She opened the eye she was able to. It had been a silly idea, and she knew it. Even with him just centimeters away, all she saw was a blur, stronger than she remembered, the tears probably making it even worse than it already was. Colors mixed together, and there was no distinction, but she stared at him until her eye began to hurt and imprinted the image of what she thought was light blue that made up Tetsuya onto her eyelids.

Alright, we got some emotional things going on here. Though I don't think it was what anyone was expecting.

Thanks to lostinthefringe, aniqa1234, FALLING-ANGEL24, gincitri, Loveina, MonoChrona, LizzieBCT, Tamani, CherryPop0120, NeverConformEver, Akashi Gealdith Diana, and sakura tsukoyomi lefey for your respective reviews, favorites, and follows. If you did any of these things but I didn't mention your name, I may of lost track of the alert email I got from you, so thanks to you, too!

A special thanks to my real life friend Josh for giving me support and drawing me wonderful fanart of this story to make me feel better. I really appreciate it.

I'm kinda impressed. I only had one person mention that they wanted to strangle me... I expected more than that.

Still, things have been kind of busy and stressful on the real life side of things, so I wanted to thank everyone for enjoying this story since it means a lot to me. Beyond that, i had a few job interviews on Monday and should hear back soon, so fingers crossed!

If you were expecting this chapter yesterday, I apologize. It's been my intention all year to post something once a week on Wednesdays (whichever story that may be). The past month or so, it's been easier for me to post on Tuesdays, so I did. Until further notice, updates will be every other Wednesday until further notice.

That being said, chapter thirteen will be up in two weeks!

Next time, days go on, familiar faces return, and unknown parties advance. Please look forward to it!

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