Sorry I've been silent for a while, guys. Things have been really rough with nursing school, and a bit of struggle with anxiety/depression. Anyways, here's the next chapter! :)
The phone rang at 1:17 in the morning. To any normal person, it would've been an unreasonably early hour. But for Bunta Fujiwara, it was only an hour or so before he started to make tofu.
He snatched the phone off the hook with all the speed he could muster, having just woken up, as he scrubbed at his eye with the other free hand.
"Hello?" he spoke, voice gravelly.
"Fujiwara-san. I apologize for calling so early in the morning..."
Bunta's eyes widened, as he recognized the voice of police lieutenant Tomo on the other end of the phone.
"Takumi?" he asked, heart jumping to his throat.
"Your son is in a hospital in Kananzawa..."
Bunta left the phone hanging off the hook.
"Fujiwara-san?" the lieutenant's voice crackled over the receiver, as outside, the sound of an engine springing to life shattered the silence of the night.
It took any normal person four hours to reach Kananzawa from Gunma. It took Bunta Fujiwara two, only stopping once off the expressway to contact the lieutenant as to the name of the hospital his son was in.
He was stopped by a nurse as he jogged down the hallway. "Sir? Can I help you?"
He must've looked like a mess- unshaven, in a wrinkled grey T-shirt he'd been sleeping in and some jeans he'd pulled on in a rush, as well as sneakers.
But he couldn't really bring himself to care- not when he didn't know what state his son was in.
"I'm looking for my son- Takumi Fujiwara."
The nurse's face went serious for a moment, lips pursing, before she nodded, turning and walking briskly. "Right this way please."
"Is he alright?" Bunta asked, brows creasing.
"He's stable, but he's had some injuries." the nurse said, tone clipped. She turned sharply, opening the door to a quiet room and nodding to Bunta.
"He's in there. Don't try to wake him- he's been sedated. Call a nurse if anything changes."
And with that, she turned on heel and was gone.
Bunta hesitated only for a moment before he was stepping into the dim room.
Takumi was sprawled on the bed, shirtless. White sheets covered up tot he boy's waist- a gauze pad that was stained red was wrapped on the boy's lower left side, bandages wrapping about him to hold it in place.
Another dressing was wrapped around the boy's shoulder, though his one sported less blood.
There were cigarette burns on his boy's side, and Bunta found his fists clenching involuntarily at the sight.
In addition to the major injuries, his son's lip was split and swollen, one eye slightly puffy. His arms were sporting healing scratches, and exposed skin was littered with yellowing bruises...
As soon as the rage had reached Bunta's mind, his fists relaxed, and he heaved a sigh, dragging a chair over to the boy's bedside and sitting down heavily. His anger wouldn't do a thing to help his boy now. There would be a time for retribution, but now wasn't it.
Now, he was just appreciating the fact he had his boy back.
He sighed, reaching up and brushing the boy's shaggy bangs from his face, cringing involuntarily as Takumi twitched in his sleep.
"Get some sleep, kid." he spoke quietly. "I'll be here when you get up."
The first thing he was aware of was the smell. It was no longer the stale smell of spilled beer or spent cigarettes- instead, it was rather sterile, with a hint of mint somewhere in all the confusion...
He blinked, blinded for a moment by the fluorescent lights about him.
He grunted involuntarily, recoiling slightly.
"So- you're finally up."
Takumi's head snapped to the side, eyes wide at his father's voice.
"D-Dad?" he asked hesitantly, shifting position slightly, as though he wasn't sure whether to move away or not.
"Yeah?" Bunta asked, arms crossed from where he sat beside his bed.
Bunta's word seemed to have broken the spell, and in a rare display of impulsiveness, Takumi jolted forward, throwing his arms around Bunta.
Bunta stiffened for a moment, surprised- Takumi hadn't hugged him since he was a child. Bunta wasn't exactly the touchy-feely type...
But he relaxed for a brief moment, before Takumi was hurriedly pulling back, eyeing the floor like it was something interesting with suspiciously glassy eyes, as though he realized what he'd just done.
"S-sorry... I..."
Before he could stutter onward, Bunta reached up and ruffled his hair, smiling slightly. "It's alright. In missed you too, kid."
Takumi blinked for a moment, shocked, before he nodded, smiling slightly, before he was laying back on the bed.
Bunta's eyes lingered on the bandages wrapped around the boy's shoulder and abdomen.
"They shot you."
"Yeah." Takumi picked at a thread on the sheets, not meeting his father's eyes.
"What else did they do to you?"
Takumi winced slightly. "Just... bruises, mostly..." he said. He didn't want to think about it.
"Honestly- I'm just glad I'm out of there. I still can't believe it, really. I keep expecting to wake up with a gun in my face..."
Bunta blinked, surprised.
Still, Takumi didn't seem at all alarmed by the statement, and he looked over at his Dad calmly. "Where are we? I mean, I know we're in a hospital, but... where?"
"Ishikawa, I think..." Hell, I really didn't read many of the road signs. I was just focused on trying to get to you.
"Ah." Takumi nodded, looking a bit disappointed.
"Something wrong?" Bunta asked, cocking an eyebrow.
"Ah, it's nothing..." Takumi said, looking slightly sheepish. "I was just... I'm looking forward to going home, is all." I missed the shop, and my friends. I missed the 86.
"Yeah." The shop was damn empty without you.
Takumi adjusted his position on the bed, gritting his teeth slightly but otherwise showing no indication of pain.
"You need anything?" Bunta asked, brows furrowing slightly.
"No-" Takumi stopped cold for a moment, looking over at his Dad quietly. "Did you drive the 86 here?" he asked, a familiar spark showing in his eyes.
"-Che-" Bunta scoffed slightly, though he smiled. Of course that would be what the kid asked about. "Yeah, I drove the 86 here."
Takumi grinned slightly, closing his eyes for a long moment as he laid back against the pillows.
Still, Takumi blinked owlishly, craning his neck towards the window. "Where did you park...?"
"Don't worry about it." Bunta scolded, though his tone held no bite. "Get some sleep."
Within ten minutes, Takumi was asleep, and Bunta felt a familiar warmth in his chest and grinned slightly at the floor tiles. He'd thought he'd lost that feeling forever- it was so sweet to find it again.