He sat in the waiting room, resting his head on his hands and his elbows on his knees. The teen subconsciously tugged at his own hair as anxiety ate him alive. Oh shit. Should he tell the others? It wouldn't be fair to keep it a secret, but then Rin would have to explain everything—face the people he was trying to forget. Something about that terrified him. It wasn't like they wouldn't forgive him… and that really wasn't the problem. It was just the opposite. Both Nagisa and Makoto were just so positive that they'd probably try to comfort him. Befriend him again. Wouldn't that only bring back the pain? It wasn't their fault, but still. A frustrated sigh made its way past the shark teeth and he continued to wait, eventually drifting off into a world of slumber.
"Excuse me." A pair of tired eyes made an attempt at opening. The dry friction between the lid and the eye itself made it difficult to do so. Rin lifted his fists to rub at them and slumped back in his seat, which seemed to be getting more and more comfortable. He didn't remember where he was. All Matsuoka knew was that it was warm, dark, and he was feeling very, very sleepy. Whoever was there wasn't there for long; he could hear them walking away.
"Excuse me, sir." He jumped, feeling terror rise within him. Small, rapid breaths made his chest move up and down. Sweat ran down from his forehead and dripped from his nose. Was it just a dream? It had to be a dream, there was no way—Rin looked up. A nurse stood before him, her hand on his shoulder. "Are you awake now?"
"Oh… Yes?" He looked around, wiping the sweat from his brow. "Where am I?"
"Hospital. And I'm afraid you have to leave, visiting hours are over."
"Oh… What time is it?"
"Eleven. Are you alright?"
"Oh…" So it wasn't a dream…
"Uh, yeah…" Rin stood abruptly and turned his heel to leave. His eyes bore into the ground and he began walking. "I'm fine, thank you."
"Have a good night." She called after him.
"You too." The teen tried to keep his voice from breaking, and he might have failed.
Matsuoka wanted to hit himself. He could have sworn it was a dream just now. Did he really put Haru in the hospital? Thinking back on it, he felt tears welling up. Yes, he did. Not wanting to go home, Rin found a park bench and flopped onto it. He assumed the position he had taken in the waiting room and continued to think about what an idiot he was. Such an idiot. Why was he such an idiot?
Sleep overcame him once more, and the same dream came back to haunt him. Or at least, that's what he thought.
His face feels warm, unusually wet. There's something pressing into his neck, and his hands are hurting from holding something close to his chest—almost protectively. His legs are entangled with something, also having a firm hold. What is it? A… a body…? The smell of fresh blood and bath water fill his nose. In a panic, crimson eyes fly open. His breathing quickens at the sight before him. This is not his home. There's a vague view of the bathroom floor, obstructed by something close to his face—the color red clashing with white. Once Rin allows his vision to focus, a frightened cry almost leaps out of his throat. Almost. It stops halfway up and he moves back to see the face of the injured boy in silence.
Haru's lips are pale, almost blue, and his hair is a tangled mop atop his head. His eyes are shut, but not in a way that shows he's in pain. It's more like… a relaxed slumber. The thought of it almost makes Rin smile, but then he thinks to himself "Why does Haru look like this? What just happened?" And suddenly remembers. Guilt overcomes him and he holds the other teen tighter, letting out quiet whimpers. Those whimpers turn into full sobs and he presses his face back into his friend's messy hair. Rocking back and forth, Rin tries to comfort the unconscious body. "I'm so sorry. This is my entire fault, why am I so stupid? I shouldn't have done that, I'm so sorry. I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry." He continues to do so until sirens can be heard outside.
When the ambulance arrives, a nurse kneels beside the two of them and attempts to give comfort to the redhead as other workers pry Haru away from him. She is unaware of his action, and Rin's glad about that. One last time, he utters "I'm so sorry" and watches as the other is moved to the vehicle. What he didn't notice would have brought him comfort. In response to his final apology, Nanase's lips began to move. 'It's okay' they silently assured him.
A/N: Omfg I am so so so so so so sorry it took me this long to update. I got so caught up in watching the canon show that I kind of lost my inspiration for this. I'm wondering; do you guys want me to make it closer to the canon or steer away from it a bit? I don't remember what I had planned for the upcoming chapters so please bear with me. I hope this chapter makes up for my absence q_q