Before the Hazukis could make their way to the hospital for Nagisa's first treatment, they had one more appointment to attend: their meeting with the principal and his homeroom teacher.
As the adults discussed the situation, Nagisa's mind wandered back to the train station and the disbelief he saw written all over his friends' faces. The memory of it still burned in his chest, but he tried to will it away. There was nothing else he could do now to convince them he was telling the truth.
The last stragglers were rushing into their classrooms as Nagisa and his mother walked down the hallway. As he walked past Rei's classroom, Nagisa couldn't stop himself from peeking in and search for his friend. However, his eyes widened in surprise when Rei's violet irises were staring back at him, equally surprised. But, the moment didn't last long as Rei was the first to avert his gaze and stare at the textbook in front of him. Putting on a smile to try and mask the hurt he felt, Nagisa turned away and walked briskly to catch up with his mom who was waiting for him near the stairwell.
Deciding the night before that taking the train home from the hospital would be miserable for their son, Mrs. Hazuki chose to take the family car instead, dropping her husband off at work before going to the school. With a kiss for his wife and a pat on the shoulder for his son, Mr. Hazuki went to work, saying that he would check in on his lunch break.
When they arrived at the check-in desk for the pediatric radiology department, the young woman handed Mrs. Hazuki a clipboard and several forms and politely invited them to find a seat until the nurse called for them. As she got straight to work filling out last minute paperwork, Nagisa let his eyes wander around the waiting room. He was surprised and saddened by how young some of the other patients were, all of them showing various degrees of anxiety about being there. Trying to settle his own nerves, Nagisa took a deep breath and turned his attention to the clock as he watched the minutes slowly ticking by.
At last, a nurse walked into the waiting room and asked Nagisa and his mother to come back with him to the examination room before going to the radiology lab, where the radiologist would be administering the treatment. As the three walked, Mrs Hazuki handed over the forms she filled out in the waiting room and the nurse went over some protocol that they would need to know in order for the procedure to go smoothly. When they reached the exam room, Nagisa was asked to change into a hospital gown and remove any jewelry he may be wearing. His mother excused herself to the restroom, and the nurse promised to be back in a few minutes to help prep him for his treatment.
A few minutes later, as promised, the nurse and Mrs Hazuki returned with a wheelchair to escort Nagisa to the radiology lab for his first of several treatments. After a look of confusion, the nurse replied, "Some of our patients prefer to ride rather than walk after treatment." So, deciding not to question the gesture further, Nagisa and his mother followed as the nurse escorted them to the lab.
After the initial anxiety wore off and Nagisa relaxed, he decided his radiology visits were going to be rather boring. And although the treatment itself was painless, the most difficult part about it was the importance of staying absolutely still. But roughly fifteen minutes later he was done and dressed back into his casual clothes. As the fatigue hit him, he was actually thankful for the wheelchair as they headed down to the oncology wing for his chemotherapy treatment.
The scene at the check-in desk played out the same as before, and shortly a nurse walked in and escorted them to the exam room. Once inside the room, the nurse took the paperwork and reminded them both about the side effects that they could expect during treatment. As per the agreement that Nagisa would not be admitted into the hospital, she especially stressed the importance of Nagisa maintaining his weight as much as possible; otherwise, they would have no other choice than to admit him in order to monitor his nutritional habits more closely. Finally, the nurse discussed pain management, and options that were available to them. Then, after being visited by the medical oncologist, the nurse gave him a pill to swallow and a prescription to fill later at the pharmacy, then wished them both a good day and walked them back to the waiting area.
The car ride home was a miserable one for Nagisa, but he was thankful that he had a fairly empty stomach when the nausea came on strong. His mother comforted him as best as she could from the driver's seat, but she decided the best thing to do was getting her son home to rest. Once inside the house, Mrs. Hazuki helped her son up the stairs to his bedroom and gently covered him with a blanket. After leaving a trashcan next to the bed, she kissed his forehead and quietly closed the door behind her. When she was certain that Nagisa was asleep, she returned downstairs to drive to the pharmacy for his pain medication. After safely retreating to the car, the tears she held back since first hearing the diagnosis began to fall.