Big shout out to we've all got our junk for beta reading this chapter not once but twice!!

A/N I sincerely apologies to all that have been waiting since beyond forever for me to update this story, but when I sent this chapter to we've all got our junk originally via DocX I never received the chapter itself back (only the standard DocX recvied email)

While I was trying to sort that out life dished me up a healthy serving of crap, which left me either unable or in no mood to write. With any luck any future updates will not be this long but I can't predict the future can I?

Disclaimer: This is a fic so I own the plot and the author owns the characters I have used for this story.

After School Nightmare belongs to Setona Mizushiro.

Italics is when a character is used to represent when a character is thinking

In the last chapter the reason behind Sou's strange behavior was revealed. Now the question is how is it going to affect the relationship between Sou and Mashiro. Read on to find out.

It was the last period of the day and Mashiro was anxious to return to the dormitory.

He had been unable to get the image of Sou battered, bruised and bleeding out of his mind no matter how hard he tried and the worry (Mashiro was still unsure where that was coming from) to the point that he had gone to check on Sou before school.

Unlocking the door and putting his head round the door told him Sou was asleep in hisbed. He was about to shut the door when a groaning sound reached hie ears. Closing the door behind him Mashiro made his way to the bed. What is going on? thought Mashiro as he watched Sou sleep and dream. The dark haired boy appeared to be peacefully asleep on minute and in pure terror the next. His face would constrict into a mixture pain, torture and groans and then incomprehensible cries would escape from his lips.

Unsure what else to do, Mashiro felt Sou's forehead. 'He's burning up.' Going to the bathroom Mashiro ran a washcloth he had found near the sink under cold water. Placing the damp cloth on Sou's head appeared to be helping his fever go down.

Mashiro was about to leave when Sou spoke.

"Always alone"

"Huh?"

"I'm always alone. Even when you are with are with me"

"Sou?" Mashiro said quietly unsure if should wake him up or not since he was obviously having a nightmare but the shock of awoken from such an intense sleep may be too much.

"Sou?" said Mashiro leaning closer. Anothersmall droplet of water began to roll down Sou's cheek. Sou was crying?

Mashiro was really starting to worry and freak out. Sou rolled over and was now facing Mashiro, this caused Sou to wake up and open his eyes

"Ichijo?"

Mashiro gasped.

"Ichijo what are you doing here?"

"Um, well I…" Mashiro was unsure what to say and it appeared that Sou had no idea that he had talked and cried in his sleep and Mashiro wasn't about to tell him. Unable to continue to look at Sou, Mashiro's eyes went instead to the bedside table where he spotted the note the note he had written yesterday.

"I actually came to return your key to you" he said taking placing the key from his pocket on the table and making his way to the door. "Well get lots of rest and feel better soon Sou." Mashiro said as he opened the door into the hallway hoping Sou couldn't see thathe was blushing.

.∞.

Mashiro spent the rest of the day in a daze where he affected his surroundings but his surroundings had no impact on him.

What Sou had unwittingly showed him raised even more questionsand answered none. Mashiro who was still coming to terms with the fact that Sou had tear ducts and where did that "always alone" speech come from? Didn't Sou have a sister who he was enamoured with? Or had Sou been expressing how he really felt about his sister? Then there was the other mater of Sou being beaten severely by an 'old friend', which had lead to Mashiro seeing him naked and vulnerable. Mashiro had never seen Sou look that way before. No, he had. When Mashiro rejected him he had looked as bad if not worse then he did in the bathroom.

'I don't regret hurting him. It had to be done' Mashiro thought firmly. 'But I should at least try help him get through whatever he's dealing with'Mashiro paused to think before continuing along his chosen path . 'He reached out to me, even if itwas unconsciouslyso I should at least tell him that I will be there for him.' Well that was what Mashiro was telling himself as he found himself outside Sou's door ready to knock.

"Come in" said Sou from the other side of the door. Mashiro opened the door wide enough to poke his head round it, hoping to be able to see that Sou was okay, only to realize that Sou was lying down in bed and couldn't be seen. This meant Mashiro would have to go into the room to see Sou.

The bruise on Sou's face had already started to come out and Mashiro could only imagine what the ones on Sou's chest and stomach looked like. As soon as he saw Mashiro, Sou'sface hardened.

"What do you want?" he asked in the most aggressive tone he could muster

"Well I…"

"Cause if you want an apology for that time, you aren't going to get one"

"Who said I wanted one anyway?!" said Mashiro outraged. The thought that Sou had looked hurt after his out right rejection gone from his mind

"Come on Ichijo, who in their right mind would come to the aid of the personthat they hate the most?"

"I don't like seeing people hurt, even you Sou" answered Mashiro quietly but defiantly

"That's a load of bullshit!" yelled Sou trying to get up only to fall back on his pillow. It was then that Mashiro noticed the sweat across Sou's brow.

"You still have a fever?" he asked.

"So what…" answered Sou

"Sou, where's your wash cloth?"

Sou, taken aback,answeredsimply "the bedside table" Mashiro picked up the wash cloth and wet it in the sink before placing itback on Sou's head

"Ichijo just get out. I can't bear to be in the same room as you at the moment." said Sou tiredly

"Well if that's how you truly feel" said Mashiro as he the door behind him. Felling surprisingly hurt once he was on the other side.

.∞.

Mashiro was surprised to see Sou at School the next day his buries obviously apparent.

"Mizuhashi, care to explainwhy you have been absent these past few days?" asked the home room teacher

"I had a nasty fall." replied Sou flatly. "Which you can clearly see"

The teacher nodded, and Sou took his seat at the back of the class without giving anyone in the room, including Mashiro, a second glance.

By lunchtime Mashiro was anxious to leave the room but he had to wait for Kureha to return the textbooks they had used in class to the teachers table before they could go leave together

Sou was in the classroom, still packing up after the rest of their classmates had left. Try as he might, Mashiro found his attention constantly directed at Sou. Mashiro sighed and gave just stared at the dark haired boy under the pre text of seeing if he had fully recovered or if he hadn't

Sou was clearly having trouble moving. He was in obvious discomfort even in his current casually standing pose His movements were as stiff as cardboard andhis joints appeared to be unwilling to bend. It also looked like Sou was biting down hard on his lower lip.

Mashiro shook his head trying to remove all the current confusing thoughts running through his mind, that had suddenly risen from God knows where as Mashiro sawSou in his current state. He decided to focus on Kureha as she move through each row of the classroom, which didn't help since she was now in the same row as Sou, so the boy was currently in his line of sight.

Kureha approached Sou's desk quietly as Sou was battling to try and take his school bag of its hook. Kureha suddenly and unquestionably deliberately pushed all of Sou's books and stationary on to the floor

Kureha gave a quiet "So sorry." before moving on.

Mashiro couldn't believe what he just saw. Kureha was sweet and cute, not full of malice! Okay…maybe she was but she didn't act on that malice. Atleast Mashiro didn't think so.

It was then that Mashiro's feet decided to act on their own, moving towards Sou, while of their own accord his hand picked up everything that had fallen on the floor.

"Thanks" said Sou, never looking directly at Mashiro even when he placed everything that had fallen back on the dark haired boy's desk.

"It was nothing" replied Mashiro "But Sou…" Mashiro never got to finish his sentence since Sou had suddenly passed out and was now in free fall.

.∞.

Mashiro heard from one of the infirmary nurses that that while Sou's bruises were big and deep they carried no long term damage and the reason he had collapsed was because he had succumbedto his fever before it had finally broken a few minutes ago.

That idiot thought Mashiro as he made his way to the infirmary.

As he walked into the infirmary Mashiro saw Sou buttoning up his shirt, but the bright lights of the room allowed Mashiro to glimpse at the dark bruises underneath.

"Why are you here?" asked Sou, wincing noticeably as he put he put on his blazer

"I…um" Mashiro wasn't sure himself

"Well thanks for bringing me to the infirmary and all, but I can take it from here"

"Why did you come to school if you still had a fever?" asked Mashiro suddenly. He knew he had gone to far when Sou's dark eyes hardened.

"I had my reasons." he replied coldly.

"Fine whatever" said Mashiro throwing up his hands in defeat. Realizing that the direct approach was never going to work, Mashiro wondered how he was going to find out what the hell was going on when he spotted Sou's bag on the table and had brilliant idea.

Picking up Sou's bag he began to walk out of the room

"What the hell are you doing?" yelled Sou

"I'm taking your bag back to your dorm." replied Mashiro. "Now come on."

And that was how Mashiro found himself carrying Sou's bag with the dark haired boy behind him, walking in the schools garden in the midday sun. Mashiro had never particularlyliked or disliked flowers but he had always felt calm and peaceful walking through beautiful school gardens, and walking through thearea he only saw in the early morning or late afternoon was quite something. He bent down at a flowerbedcontaining red roses and began to drink in the gentle aroma coming from the plants.

"You know," said Sou coming up behind him. 'Red roses are meant to signify passion, white is purity and yellow is the end of a relationship"

"How do you know something like that?" asked Mashiro standing up

"When your mother is a floral designer you tend to pick these things up." answered Sou turning towards the dorm.

Mashiro smiled to himself, it seemed that he had found his new approach.

TBC……

A/N if anyone is wondering where I got that information on roses it's from the movie Green Fingers

Decided to my Grandfather-May you rest in peace 'Grumpy'