Numb: Chapter 3

Disclaimer: I don't own any of the characters.

Author's notes: Thank you so much for all of the wonderful reviews! I'm glad that everyone seems to be enjoying it so far, and your kind comments keep me writing. I hope you enjoy this chapter too, it's a bit shorter than the others but there's a lot going on!

Enjoy!

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(Kakashi's point of view)

"Sasuke, it's going to be ok," I cry as I lift the limp, but trembling figure up into my arms. "Just hang on! I'm going to get you help!"

My heart races to the point where I can feel it slamming roughly and painfully against the inside of my ever tightening chest, but I force myself to keep the panic at bay, or to a manageable level at least. I have to keep calm for his sake; I've got to find him help! It's too dark to see his face clearly, but his shallow, weak breathing and uncontrollable trembling is terrifying me right to the core. I don't want this boy to die here in my arms. I still don't know why I care so much about him. Considering how he's acted towards me from the first moment we met, and the fact he stole from me, I should hate his guts, but I don't. All I feel right now is worry and fear that I'll loose him. I'll probably never really know why I feel like this about him, I just do. End of story.

My mind races wildly as I try to remember where the nearest hospital is, but the routes I know become muddled up in my head, to the point where they all seem to blend into one meaningless jumble. Fuck! As I continue to think, he tucks his head tightly into my chest as he continues to gasp for air, the shaking relentless as I run down the stairs with him towards my car. Thankfully there's nobody else here to get in my way like that pitiful drunk I encountered here earlier. With my body moving faster than it's ever done before, it doesn't take long to reach the battered front door of the building.

"Sasuke, what have you done to yourself?" I sigh under my breath as I finally get him outside. Hopefully the fresh air might help him breathe a little better, but his breaths continue to come in shallow gasps. A feeling of sickness rapidly engulfs the pit of my stomach as something tells me he's not going to make it. I want to throw up.

"K…K… Kakashi…" he manages to force out in between breaths. "I… I'm… s…sorry…"

"It's alright, you're forgiven, but just you hang in there, ok?" I reply as I place him into the passenger seat of my car, the light finally revealing his much paler than usual face. To be honest with myself, I don't think he even heard me. His pupils are like pin pricks, his skin is damp and clammy to the touch and it looks like his lips are starting to turn blue. Oh God this is scary, even scarier than encountering those guys in that alleyway last night. I've never experienced anything like this before in my life and I pray that I never will again, but the sight will be forever etched into my memory. I wouldn't even wish this on my worst enemy.

"It's ok Sasuke; everything's going to be ok…" I pant, but I'm not sure if those words were meant to reassure the boy, or reassure myself. I need all the hope in the world right now, however false it may be, I just need some sort of optimism to cling desperately too. Taking a deep breath to try and pull back my wandering senses, I pull my coat off and quickly wrap it around him before running around and jumping into the driver's side of the car.

Nervously I stick the key into the ignition, hoping that in my confused and panicked state, I can still remember how to start the damn thing up. The sick feeling in my stomach continues as I hear Sasuke's breathing become more and more laboured. How long has he been like this? The longer he's been lying there in this state, the lower chances he has of surviving. I'm worried that he'll suffocate, it's definitely a likely possibility. The sound of the engine revving up brings me a small sense of relief, at least we are on our way now. It won't be long until I can get him help. If I drive fast enough, I'm sure I can reach the nearest hospital in fifteen or twenty minutes.

Slamming my foot on the accelerator, it's not long before I get the car moving off in the direction of the hospital, my mind finally experiencing a brief moment of clarity when it hits me fully that I'm his only chance. If I don't get him help quickly enough it will be the end for him and I can't let that happen.

Now normally I'm the most careful of drivers, I'd never break the speed limit and I always hold back if the person in front needs to make a turn, and I'd certainly never overtake in a pedestrian area or skip a red light, but right now I'm not exactly myself. A red car sounds its horn loudly and flashes its lights as I serve around it, the driver trying to make a left turn into a housing estate. I get several more loud beeps as I speed through a red light, another car having to break suddenly to avoid a collision. Fuelled by adrenaline, I can just about concentrate on what's in front of me but I've only got the one thing on my mind, and that one thing is becoming more and more lethargic by the second. His head flops listlessly against the window beside him as he struggles to breathe. He's stopped making any sounds which is worrying me more, I can't let him fall into unconsciousness or else there's no way he'll wake up again. I need to keep him awake.

"Sasuke!" I cry, desperately trying to get his attention whilst attempting, just about successfully, to focus on the road ahead as well.

Silence.

"SASUKE!" I yell again, my heart almost giving up on me from worry.

"hnn…"

Thank God, he's still responsive… sort off…

"Sasuke, hang in there ok? We're nearly there, don't fall asleep! DO NOT FALL ASLEEP, do you hear me?"

Silence.

Oh fuck… my heart races into overdrive as I finally get a sight of the hospital in front of me, we're so nearly there. Please Sasuke, please don't give up, we're so close now!

"SASUKE!!!" I scream once again, desperately trying to get his attention for the second time.

Silence.

If I can only keep him responsive for a just few minutes longer… come on Sasuke! The hospital is in sight! I thump his arm hard with my fist and to my relief he raises his hand slowly to rub the sore area, his head still flopped against the window and his eyes barely open. His breathing is becoming so difficult I'm sure he's already starting to suffocate. He's the colour of a corpse.

I swerve in through the front gates of the hospital, not bothering to slow down for the corner. It felt as if the car could've tipped over, but at least we've finally made it. The drive only took about fifteen minutes, but it felt like an hour. It didn't feel real at all, I'm still half expecting to wake up in my bed with Kurenai lying, still sound asleep beside me any second now.

"Look Sasuke! We're here!" I shout, shaking him slightly as I pull up into the parking area, and stopping my car abruptly in the middle of the road. I can park it properly later, right now I've got to get him inside.

Nearly tripping over myself, I just about manage to get out of the car in one piece, my heart continuing to race and my chest so tight, I myself can barely breathe. Everything is happening in slow motion, it still doesn't seem real. Am I dreaming? Please let this be a dream. No such luck.

As I open the car door on the passenger side, Sasuke pretty much tumbles out on top of me, his body motionless. I manage to scoop his limp frame up in my arms in one swift action as I kick the door shut with my leg.

"Sasuke? SASUKE! Come on Sasuke!" I shout as I sprint towards the front door of the building. "Answer me!!!" His pupils have now become so dilated, I can no longer tell pupil from iris. He's sweating buckets and to be honest, so am I.

Silence.

"ANSWER ME SASUKE!!!"

Silence.

Oh God, is he already dead? I force myself to swallow down the vomit rising up from my stomach as I see his eyes are now closed shut. Am I too late? Please don't let me be too late! The hospital is right here! We're here, we've made it! I'll never forgive myself if I'm a minute too late. Why didn't I leave the house five minutes earlier? Why did I stop to talk to that drunken idiot on the steps of the apartment block? Could I have driven here a little faster? I'm sure I could've, why didn't I??? An extra five miles per hour could've made all the difference? Maybe if I'd just overtaken a few more cars…

I can hear my own heart beat amplifying; the sound is enough to almost deafen me and drown out all other noise. I don't even remember coming through the front door of this building, nor do I remember screaming for help. But now, all of a sudden I'm surrounded by people dressed in white with very worried looking faces. The next thing I know Sasuke is being taken from my arms and rushed off down a nearby corridor, further and further from my reach. It's not long before I can't see him anymore. All I can do is stand there frozen from shock, my arms still reaching out from where he was taken.

"Sir… SIR?"

A voice coming from beside me breaks my shocked daze.

"Can you tell me what happened to him?"

"I… I… I…" I gasp, trying unsuccessfully to kick start myself into action again. I want to speak, but words won't come out of my mouth. I'm too distracted by morbid thoughts. Did that boy just die in my arms?

"Sir, I really need you to answer my question. If we know what exactly happened to him we can react more efficiently to treat him, and therefore he'll have a better chance of survival."

"He took something… a needle, there was a needle beside him," I manage to force out.

"Ok," the woman beside me states calmly. She's dressed in a nurse's uniform, so she must be hospital staff. "It would appear that he may be experiencing a heroin overdose. That's what we suspected when we first saw him. Did you bring the contents of the needle here with you?"

A heroin overdose? My eyes widen. I mean I should've known it, the evidence was right there in front of my eyes, but I didn't want to believe it. Sasuke is so young, how did he get caught up in something as extreme as that? He's not even out of his teens yet! What the fuck led him to do it? It must have been something drastic in itself.

"No.., I don't have the needle," I squeak, my voice unable to form words properly. "W…w…will he be ok?"

"I can't answer that right now because I don't know, but we'll do everything we can for him."

"Ok…" I gulp, my mind still not fully comprehending everything that just happened in the last few minutes.

"Could you answer a few more questions for me? It's just for his records," she asks.

"Um... yeah…"

"Ok, what's his name?"

"Sasuke." I reply as she writes down the information on her clipboard.

"Age?"

"Nineteen… I think."

"Any underlying health problems?" she continues to question me.

"I don't know."

"Is he allergic to any medications?"

"I don't know!" I cry. "I don't really know very much about him!"

"Ok, what is your name and are you any relation to him, or a friend perhaps?

"Kakashi… Hatake Kakashi… I don't know…" I gasp, my mind still not focusing as it should. "Friend I guess."

"Alright sir, thank you. I know it's hard, but try to keep calm and take a seat in the waiting area. We'll keep you updated on his condition, and as I said before, we'll do our best for him, but it might be best to prepare yourself for the worst… you know, just in case," she places a reassuring hand on my shoulder. "I wish I could give you a definite answer, but these cases in particular are very unpredictable."

"Can I see him?"

"Not yet I'm afraid."

"What are they going to do to him?" I start to tremble as the realisation of what just happened slowly begins to sink in, and my senses start returning somewhat.

"Firstly they will attempt to regulate and monitor his breathing, then he will be treated with medication to counter the effects of the heroin. It should work quickly, but it may put him into immediate withdrawal but we'll see how he reacts. I have to go now and hand these notes over, but you will be kept updated."

I nod slowly and take a seat in a nearby private waiting room. Resting my head in my hands, I take several deep breaths and try to calm myself down. Why am I falling to bits like this? I barely know this kid; I mean I couldn't even answer for definite any of that nurse's questions about him other than his name. I don't understand how he can have such a powerful effect on me. It's not like he's family or anything or even a close friend, he's just some kid I stumbled across during an awkward situation yesterday night.

Suddenly another worrying thought crashes into my head like a bolt of lightening.

"Oh fuck!" I cry out loud, my heart starting to race again. Kurenai!!! I completely disappeared on her earlier and with the stress of what just happened, I forgot about her entirely! Panicking, I reach into my pocket and pull out my phone, only to remember that the battery died a long time ago. I start to panic more. She'll have been trying to call me and getting the answering machine every time, she'll be so worried, borderline hysteric I'd imagine. Quickly I jump to my feet and run out of the room in the direction to the closest staff member, who directs me towards the nearest payphone.

Fumbling around in my pockets for change, I stop suddenly just as I put the receiver up to my face, my fingers hovering over the coin slot… oh shit! Just how exactly am I going to explain this to her? I'm in a hospital, waiting for news on a boy I only met yesterday, who just overdosed himself with heroin he bought with money he stole from me, when he was in our house earlier. Yup, she's going to take that really well. I gulp as I put the coins into the money slot and cautiously dial the number. This is not going to be pretty.

"IT'S ABOUT BLOODY TIME!" A familiar voice screams down the phone. "You call yourself The Chief of Police? I don't care if he hasn't been missing for 24 hours yet, I want police cars out searching for him! Hatake Kakashi does not just disappear like that!"

"Kurenai…" I whisper, my voice starting to give up on me.

"HATAKE KAKASHI!!! Where the hell have you been? I was worried sick! I called the police and everything!"

"I… I… I'm in the hospital… and…"

"THE HOSPITAL! What happened, are you alright? Are you hurt?" her panicked sounding voice cries in shock, working only to make me feel worse about the whole situation.

"I'm fine! You didn't let me explain…"

"What happened?" She cries again, her voice sounding choked up as she tries to hold back tears. "Where did you go? Why did you disappear like that? Why was your phone off?"

"Kurenai, love, it's alright. I'm so sorry, my phone battery died but let me explain," I gulp, still not sure how I'm going to tell her about this. I can't predict how she'll react. I think it might be best to just give her the basics right now, the rest can be explained to her in detail later when she's calm. "Ok.., when I was out last night I came across a boy in need of some help. I helped him out and gave him a lift home, but it turned out that he stole some money from me. I was angry earlier because I'd just made the discovery. So, I was going to take back the money from him, but when I found him… he… well, he… he'd overdosed on heroin Kurenai and I had to bring him to the hospital. I don't know if he's ok, I think he's going to die…"

Silence.

"Kurenai?"

"Why didn't you tell me Kakashi?" she sobs. "Why did you come home yesterday night and act like nothing had happened?"

"I'm sorry… I… I… I didn't know how to explain it to you and I didn't want you to worry. Besides, I never thought for one second it would end up like this. I thought I was just helping out some kid and I'd never see him again after that."

"What did he need help with? What was so important that you couldn't tell me?" she yells and I cringe. I'm not sure what the best way would be to explain the incident to her, she'd freak out a hundred times more if she knew about the dangerous situation I found him in, I mean we both could've died! And then there's the money end of it too, I'm sure she's not going to be happy that I gave away so much to a stranger. Kurenai is not a heartless person, far from it, but it's the circumstances in which I found this boy that would send her over the edge. I guess you could say that I risked my life for a complete stranger, and I don't think she could handle the thought of loosing me so suddenly like that if something had went wrong, like if one of those guys pulled a knife on me. She just worries a lot and sometimes it can cause her to over react.

"Well… I… he…" Oh God do I need a distraction right now. I'd much rather tell her this in person and once she's calmed down, not right here over the phone whilst she's freaking out, and when there's no way she'd be able to think about it rationally. Distraction… please! I need a distraction!

"Excuse me, Mr Hatake?" a quiet voice sounds from behind me. "The doctors want to speak with you… it's about Sasuke."

End of Chapter 3

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Thank you for reading! I'm sorry this chapter is so short, but I've been pretty busy lately and I just haven't had the time to add to it. So rather than leaving you waiting, I decided to post it as it is, evil cliff hanger and all! :P

Please review and let me know what you think and if you still like where the story is going. I'm not a doctor, nor do I know much about heroin being as I've never used it (and never will)! I did some research though to try and make this chapter seem at least semi-realistic at best, but I'm sure it's nowhere near as accurate as it could be… but seeing as this is a fan fiction, let's all use our imaginations and pretend it's all correct and the like! ;)

So… will Sasuke be alright? And how will Kurenai react when she finds out the truth about Kakashi's first encounter with him? I'm not quite sure yet myself…

See you next chapter!

Laura xx