This chapter has a lot of scientific and medical terms. I had to switch back and forth from a sickness encyclopaedia to my computer to get all the info in
I do not own DGM n_n
Kanda gently pushed the door open, sticking his head in just far enough to see a small, sleeping figure on the bed. The raven-haired boy stepped in, dragging Lavi with him. The door closed with a soft click and Allen didn't so much as stir.
"Yuu, he's asleep. Maybe we should go find Panda and-" Kanda let go of Lavi's hand and walked over to the bed, crawling up onto a chair to stand on and get a better look at Allen's sleeping face. Lavi shifted uncomfortably, he didn't like hospitals. "Is…is he okay?" Lavi asked.
"Get over here and figure that out for yourself." Kanda mumbled. Lavi hesitantly walked over, joining Kanda on the chair.
"He looks really pale." The red head said, moving a few strands of silver hair from the sleeping boys face. Allen groaned, rolling to face the two boys and rubbing his eyes.
"Master Cross?" he asked. Allen yawned and slid his eyes half way open. The boy looked at Kanda, then flicked his eyes at Lavi. "Master, have you gotten shorter?" Lavi lightly smiled at the groggy Allen.
"Che, Baka Moyashi." Kanda said, crossing his arms. Allen blinked a few times before sitting up, his mind clearing.
"Am I dreaming?" He asked, a quizzical look on the silver hair boy's face. Lavi threw himself at the boy causing Allen to fall back down on the pillows.
"I MISSED YOU SO MUCH!" Lavi yelled, hugging Allen. The smaller boy looked taken off guard but soon returned Lavi's hug, closing his eyes tight as tears slipped down his cheeks. Lavi pulled back, putting his hands on Allen's shoulders. "What's wrong?" he asked. Kanda sat down on the side of the bed, putting his arm around Allen's waist and pulling him into an embrace. Allen rested his head on Kanda's shoulder, taking shaky breathes while Lavi moved to sit on Allen left side. Lavi gently rubbed Allen's back and although the boy didn't say anything, both Kanda and Lavi knew something was extremely wrong.
Allen's tears soon stopped, Kanda gently brushing the last of them away with his thumb. "I'm sorry, It's just…I haven't seen you guys for a long time and so mush has happened." Allen said, rubbing his nose with his shirt. He looked up at Kanda. "Your hair has gotten longer." He said with a smile. Kanda blushed and looked away. "And you both have gotten taller." Allen said, turning his head to look at Lavi.
"Wish we could say the same for you." Kanda said with a smirk.
"Hey! I have too grown…a little." Allen said, suddenly self-conscious.
"Allen…why are you here?" Lavi asked. Kanda looked at the red head before moving his attention back to Allen.
The boy was looking down at the sheet, a sad expression on his face. "Well…the doctors think that…I have cancer." Lavi gasped and Kanda's eyes widened. "See my dad he um-"
"Your dad!" Lavi asked. "You never put it in your letters that your dad, N. Walker was living with you!" Allen looked at Lavi and blinked in confusion.
"How did you know that his name began with an-" Lavi cut Allen off.
"I was filing your adoption papers and I may have read them. Anyway, why didn't you tell us about him!" Lavi asked.
"I didn't want you guys to worry." Allen said innocently.
"Why would we have to worry about your father?" Kanda asked. Allen visibly tensed.
"I…well- he is- its really-"
"Come to think of it, he was the one who gave you that scar…isn't he?" Lavi asked, moving Allen's hair out of the boys face. Allen sighed and nodded.
"He is really mean and punishes me when I didn't do anything wrong and he-" Allen stopped as tears gathered in his eyes again.
"What'd he do?" Kanda asked in a very dark tone.
"Well…he and Tyki were having an argument and I went to my room and pulled out the bond that we made." As Allen talked Lavi remembered that he had his own knot of hair buried in his pocket. "Well Neah, that's my father's name, he walked in and called it trash. He said trash needed to be burned and he… threw it in the fire." Allen's voice got lower as he went on.
"HE WHAT!" Lavi yelled.
"I'm sorry." Allen said sadly.
"It wasn't your fault." Kanda said, keeping his cool. "You still haven't told us how you got here." He added.
"Right, well I was really upset and well I started coughing up…blood." Allen said hesitantly.
"What?" Kanda asked, shocked. "Your in here because of that?"
"Well…it wasn't a little bit of blood…it was a lot. Like, a lot a lot." The silver haired boy said.
"So you cough up blood and they say you have cancer?" Lavi asked. Allen nodded.
Meanwhile...
"I don't believe the boy has cancer." The man said, making Cross and Tyki exchange glances.
"If he doesn't have cancer, then what does he have?" Tyki asked.
"I cant be positive until I run some test but-" The man was cut off.
"I'm sorry, who the hell are you?" Cross asked.
"My name is Komui, Komui Lee. And if you let me I would like to try and save the boys life." Komui explained.
"What did you call this disease?" Tyki asked.
"Systemic Lupus Erythematosus. It's a chronic autoimmune disorder that affects sin, joints, kidneys and other organs. This disease creates a problem with the bodies natural immune response. Normally, the immune system helps protect the body from harmful substances. But this disease makes it so that the immune system cannot tell the difference between harmful substances and healthy ones. The result is an overactive immune response that attacks otherwise healthy cells and tissue." Again Cross and Tyki exchanged glances.
"So the body attacks itself?" Cross clarified.
"Exactly."
"But I don't get how you're tying this disease with Allen's symptoms. The boy Is frail, coughing up blood for gods sake." Tyki sighed.
"Coughing up blood is a symptom." Komui said, trying to get the two men to listen.
"Well, I would like to know how Allen got sick with it then." Cross demanded.
"I still haven't been able to figure out how the disease is caught and I haven't successfully made a cure yet but what harm can come from trying? I do have to admit that it is unlikely that the boy has this disease. It is usually found in more women than men, ages 10 to 50 and is found in more African Americans and Asians than in-" Cross cut Komui off.
"If the chances are so low that he even has the disease then why try?" The man asked, his face red.
"If there is even the slightest chance of me saving him, wouldn't you want to take it?" Was Komui's answer.
Kanda and Lavi were surprised to say the least when Komui walked in, telling Allen he was going to give him a full body check up.
Allen slipped his shirt off, standing with his arm raised while Kanda and Lavi watched from the bed.
"Have you had any joint pain?" Komui asked. Allen gave him a questioning look.
"He means does it hurt when you move your body around." Lenalee clarified, standing by her brother's side as he inspected Allen.
"Oh, well yeah. Sometimes I wake up and my knees really hurt but Tyki just said it was because I ran around to much and didn't do it very often." Komui put a stethoscope up to Allen's chest. Lenalee put a check mark on a clip board she was holding.
"Take a deep breath." Komui instructed. Allen sucked in a breath and his face slightly contorted.
"Ouch." The boy said. Lenalee made another check mark.
"Do you often get fevers?"
"Yeah. I get sick a lot and have to stay in bed. Sometimes my temperature gets really high." Allen said. He heard the scratch of Lenalee's pen as it made another check mark.
"When you say you get sick you mean…?" Komui asked.
"I don't feel well." Another check mark. Komui stood and began separating Allen's hair, moving it one way, then the other. Then the man got down on his knees.
"Say Ah." Allen opened his mouth and Komui flattened the boys tongue with a small, flat wooden stick. "No hair loss, no mouth sores. He doesn't seem to be sensitive to sunlight. Tell me, Allen have you ever gotten a rash?"
"Um I had one when I was little," Allen said, "but it went away." Komui nodded.
"Tilt your head up please." Komui said, Allen did as he was told, lifting his head to look up at the ceiling. Komui put two fingers from both hands on either side of Allen's neck. They traveled down to under his jaw, behind the ears, to the back of the head, and finally to his armpits. "There's no doubt about it, his Lymph nodes are swollen." Lenalee nodded and made another check mark.
"What does that mean?" Kanda asked, making Lavi jump. The red head couldn't think of anything to say when Komui had entered the room with Lenalee. He had just sat there with Kanda.
"Oh, don't worry about it. Now Allen I'm going to read you a list of symptoms and I want you to tell me if you have them. This will help me to narrow down what part of your body is infected." Kanda and Lavi wanted to ask what exactly he was infected with but both kept their mouth shut. "Okay, headaches?" Allen shook his head. "What about numbness, or tingling in the arms or legs." Allen shook his head. "Personality changes?"
"Um…no?" Allen asked.
"Seizures?" Allen shook his head. "Alright so I don't think it's in the brain and nervous system. "Digestive track is a possibility, you did say that that you feel sick when you have a fever. Your heart beat was normal so that rules that out. Is there any blood in the urine?"
"Blood in my what?" Allen asked.
"Any blood in you pee?" Komui clarified.
"Oh, nuh uh." Allen answered.
"Coughing up blood and difficulty breathing?" Komui saw Allen shiver. "I'll take that as a yes." Komui grabbed Allen's hands, feeling his fingers.
"What are you doing?" the silver haired boy asked
"Checking for color dis-figuration and coldness." Komui said.
"How does that tell you if I'm sick?" Allen asked.
"Well, with this disease, if it's the skin that is infected, your fingers will change color when they're cold. Your fingers are pretty icy and they look normal so now we have two possibilities, Lung, or Digestive Track."
"Are those places where I might have cancer?" Allen asked, sliding his shirt back on.
"I don't think you have cancer." Komui said. "But I'm going to need to take some blood just to be sure. Allen visibly stiffened.
"And to get that blood your going to have to use a-"
"A needle, yes." Komui said.
"…oh." Lavi and Kanda looked at each other, smiling. Allen didn't like needles. He really hadn't changed much.
wow that was a lot of writing. .
So many big words.
Like Erythematosus.
Who comes up with that word!
PLEASE REVIEW!