Chapter 4:
The next couple days came and went in the same way. Satoru slept most of the day, awoke for about an hour, then fell right back asleep. Even though he wanted to move around, the fatigue in his body would not relent. Takeji warned him it would take quite a while for the fatigue to go away. He was also kindly reminded of how sick he was by the nurse who told him to stop complaining. Thankfully the big high flow oxygen cannula was swapped out for the smaller low flow one making Satoru at least a little less uncomfortable.
And, his fever finally seemed to break. He wasn't sweating and shivering as much as he was before which felt like reprieve. He wanted a shower by himself so badly. He wanted to wash his hair of all the sweat and clean off the grime of the past few days. But, they wouldn't let him stand up to get to the bathroom. So, some poor soul had to give him a sponge bath and had to deal with Satoru's bad mood.
And, unfortunately for Satoru, he was still dealing with headaches that came and went. Probably the worst part of encephalitis were the debilitating headaches. The weakness would heal in time, the fatigue was easy enough to fix, but the headaches did nothing but bring pain and the meds only helped so much.
The end of the fourth day involved a test to check his swallow reflex which was uncomfortable to say the least. However, he was so happy to finally be allowed to eat and drink again. They started him slow with small amounts of water and broth. However, nearly four full days without food made his stomach uneasy after eating. He spent the rest of the night nauseous wishing he hadn't eaten at all.
Satoru ate the next bowl of broth slower and his stomach seemed to tolerate that a lot better. Though, he mused that it would probably be better if the broth was sugary since his body seemed to love that. Sugar stimulated his brain and made it easier to use his powers, which is probably exactly why they didn't give him any. And, even though he was told to not use any cursed energy, six eyes ran on its own. So, even in a fairly isolated room, it could be hard to relax with the onslaught on information flooding through his head. He thought that was probably also a big trigger of headaches in his weakened state.
By the end of the fifth day, he seemed to have passed the doctor's broth and water test. They said if he felt up to it, he could try some mushed food the next day. The nurse gave him two options, apple sauce or mashed potatoes. Neither sounded particularly appetizing, but both were better than broth. And, at least apple sauce was sweet. And, the sooner he ate, the sooner he could get out of here.
Realistically, Satoru knew he was going to be in the hospital for quite a while, but he was going to do everything he could to get out sooner. He thought healing might be easier in his dorm room, which was specially made to be quiet and isolated. Though, the nurse kindly reminded him that the hospital is the only reason he's not in a coma lying on the ground somewhere and that he should be grateful for all the help. "Fair." He's conceded.
The morning of the sixth day since his collapse, Satoru was finally feeling at least closer to the normal. And by the grace of god, Takeji finally allowed him to stand up. The process involved a lot more than Satoru would've thought. One nurse pulled his legs over the bed while the other held his shoulders up. Satoru had little control over any of his muscles, so his body flopped with little semblance of coordinated movement.
However, they managed to get him sitting on the edge of the bed. A wave of dizziness overcame him. The room looked like it was sliding sideways, or maybe he was. His body had slumped over to the left before a nurse sat him back up. "Feeling a bit dizzy?" She asked. Satoru wanted to lie, but he figured his slumping gave it away. "Just a bit." "Well, you've been lying down for quite a few days. It might be take a little while to get you back to a standing position."
Satoru sighed. He liked to stand sooner rather than later. But he guessed if he stood, then fell then he'd just set himself back. So, he resigned himself to sitting on the edge of his bed. It was progress. He hadn't realized how much work it was simply righting himself. Because about 15 minutes after sitting up, his eyes started to close again. "Ready to lie back down?" The nurse asked. Satoru didn't want to, but his body was fighting against him so he nodded. The nurses lied him back down and he quickly fell asleep.
The next morning the nurses attempted to stand him up again. This time his dizziness abated and he was able to use a walker to push himself to standing position. However, his legs quickly gave out on him and the nurses gently placed him back down onto a sitting position on the bed. They let him sit for another 10 minutes, then stood him up again. This time his legs shakes a bit, but he stayed standing. After a couple minutes standing, Satoru was nearly out of breath. It felt like the hardest workout he'd done. The nurses sat him back down, then got him settled in bed. "It'll get better." She said, "Encephalitis affects your coordination, weakening muscles. As you continue to heal it will get easier. You're making great progress already!"
He had also progressed from solely apple sauce to a mix of mush and real foods. It looked more like gruel in his mind, but it was something. One step closer to crepes, his personal favorite. They had also began weaning him off TPN and encouraging him to rely more on real foods. Satoru didn't mind, it was one less thing for the nurses to come in and fiddle with while he tried to sleep. Plus, his eyes were still sensitive to light and he hated them coming in and turning the bright overhead lights.
When Satoru got word that Suguru wanted to visit him, he agreed. At least he'd have someone to talk to while he was awake. He was starting to get bored as his time awake slowly grew.
Finally, seven days after Satoru's initial collapse, Suguru came to visit bringing sweets hidden in his shirt. Satoru's mouth watered as Suguru handed him the little wrapped goodies. He turned his body to face Suguru so the nurses couldn't peer through the small window in the door.
This was the first time Suguru had seen Satoru since he carried him into the infirmary a week ago. While Satoru certainly looked better than when he dropped him off, he still didn't look back to himself. His eyes still had deep purple bags under his eyes and he looked paler than usual. He hated seeing Satoru hooked up to all sorts of IVs, oxygen, and a heart monitor. It felt unnatural for one of the strongest sorcerers to be in such a sorry state. The sheer number of medications needed for Satoru to get better was a real awakening to Suguru. He should have been more firm with Satoru about taking brakes. Maybe then, this wouldn't have happened.
While Suguru sat in his worry, Satoru had the biggest goofiest smile on his face, "This is the best food I've ever had. Ever." "Stay quiet. I don't want to get busted." Suguru whispered. "Always the goody two shoes." Satoru chided. "I could easily eat all of these by myself." Suguru said, "I don't have to share." "You wouldn't do that to your poor sick friend." "My idiot sick friend." "Hey! That's rude. It's not my fault Toji killed me."
Suguru nearly chocked on his sweet, "What?" Satoru realized his mistake. "He killed you?" "Well, I guess that isn't necessarily true because I'm still here. But, for the most part, yeah."
"How does that even work?"
"Well, when I realized I wasn't gonna win I put all my effort into protecting my body. And, when he stabbed me through the throat the reverse cursed technique suddenly just clicked. So, I let him attack while I focused on healing. But, he did more damage than I thought, so I had to use all that was left of my energy. Him driving a pick through my head didn't help either."
Suguru looked like he was going to pass out, "That is so graphic."
"Says the guy who eats cursed spirits."
"You are so lucky to be alive."
"He certainly almost got me. First time that's ever happened. But you should have seen the look on his face when I came back to kill him. Iconic."
Suguru wasn't laughing at Satoru's joke. "It's not a joke." He said sternly. "Not you too." Satoru said, "Yaga already promised a lecture." "It's just that you really could have died. I told you that you were being too arrogant." Suguru began lecturing, "You really are lucky you figured the reverse cursed technique when you did." "Yeah I guess I am." Satoru acknowledged.
The two continued talking about nothing in particular. Satoru joked about some weird dreams he'd been having and Suguru told him about what was going on outside his hospital room. It felt nice to have social interaction that wasn't a nurse or a doctor. "Does your family know you're here?" Suguru eventually asked. "Did you tell your family your chest got ripped open?" Satoru responded. "Fair point." Suguru stated.
"Plus, my family is a bit of mess right now." Satoru said, "the three big clans continue warring."
"Tough." Suguru responded flatly.
"Indeed. But I'm curious, what's it like having normal parents?"
"They worry constantly about what I'm doing. They have no idea about any of this. I get many texts from my mom."
"Sounds like you are a carbon copy of her." Satoru joked.
"Guess I am, huh?" The two laughed.
Eventually, Suguru noticed Satoru's eyes saturating to close. "I'll let you get some rest." Satoru wanted his friend to stay. It was the most pleasant interaction he'd had in seven days. However, his eyes were closing before he even hit the pillow. "Come back tomorrow." Satoru mumbled in his sleep. "Okay." Suguru whispered as he closed the door behind him.
"How is he?" Ieri asked once Suguru shut the door to the room. "He seems alright. Still pretty sick, but getting better." "That's good." Ieri said with an uncharacteristic sigh of relief.
"You could go in and see him you know." Suguru suggested.
"I might kill him if I see him."
"Still he'd probably like to see you."
"When I'm not so angry with him, I'll go in."
Suguru smiled. Ieri cared deeply for her comrades even if she didn't always show it. "I don't understand how you didn't yell at him." She continued. "I let him know my disappointment." "You're too soft." Ieri said.
When Suguru walked away, Ieri cracked the door open to Satoru's room. She watched the melodic rise and fall of his chest comforted by the fact he was making good progress. No one became a jujustu sorcerer out of choice. They were thrust into this life by unfortunate circumstance, even ones as powerful as Satoru. She felt for him, knowing he did everything to win that fight. She just wished he could rely on others to help.