A little earlier:

"Call the police! Over there! Alley! He's gonna kill her this time!"

A girl burst into the store, shouting nonsense, then bolted. A man with bleached hair and flip flops stared blankly at where she stood, before jumping into action. Whatever was happening, that girl was definitely frightened. He ran outside in the direction she pointed, stopping dead in his tracks when he heard a sickeningly wet impact and a pained squeak to his left.

"Hey, what're you doin'!," the blonde man shouted out, seeing a terrifying sight in the alley. Just out of street view. A girl, in middle or high school by the uniform and size. She was pinned down under a ragged old man who was still swinging and spitting insults in her face. Blood pooled around the girl, coming from various injuries.

"Piss off, you pathetic bastard," the girl cursed quietly at the man, with the last of her strength.

"You bitch!," the man shouted back, and swung the broken bottle in his hand across her face. Blood spattered out onto the sidewalk where it sliced clean through. The blonde man, a witness, lurched into action. He kicked the drunkard off, and the man landed unconscious on the ground.

"The hell's wrong with you!," he shouted. He knelt in front of the girl, who glared weakly at him before her eyes lost focus. Her breathing was ragged, and her wrist was obviously broken. He scooped her up in his arms and moved toward his old truck. Before he did anything else, she needed medical attention. He saw two other students standing there, out of breath and wide-eyed.

"Kitsuna!," Daichi shouted. "What'd you do!"

"Daichi! He didn't…do it! Let him go, she needs to get to a hospital!," Yui stopped him. The blonde looked at them astonished. Sirens wailed as the police finally arrived, and they started to accuse him like the boy did. The two kids rushed to his defense as he loaded the girl into his truck.

"I'm takin' her to the hospital. The bastard's in the alley, might've knocked him out," he called back. The boy looked back and nodded before turning back to the officers checking the scene. He drove carefully at first, then sped to the hospital and burst through the emergency room doors.

"Hey, someone help! She's really messed up!"

"What the-Nurse! Get her to a room ASAP!," the receptionist was stunned at first, but flew into action after giving the girl a once-over. In a matter of minutes a gurney was rushed out, the girl loaded onto it, and rushed back. The man was left to do paperwork while she was stabilized, and found himself at a loss for most of the information. He was about to give up when a familiar face walked back in. Two of them, in fact, from earlier.

"Ah! There!," the girl pointed at the man struggling to answer basic questionnaires.

"Ah. Yui, thanks. Have a seat, and let your parents know where you are," the boy spoke more calmly, though not by much. The girl took an empty chair and pulled out her phone. The boy sat beside the other man and took the paperwork from him.

"Friends of hers?," the man asked.

"Yeah. Not very good ones, though," Daichi answered flatly. He filled out the paperwork as best he could, and an officer came into the waiting room to ask some more questions.

"Huh? No, I dunno the kid. She was outside my store like that. No, sir."

"Hm. Thanks then. Shame what happened. Hey, kids," the officer turned toward the two who had followed her to the hospital. They flinched and looked up at him, ready to answer what they could.

"Did you call her parents? They've gotta be worried sick."

"Ah, about that," Yui started, but burst into another crying fit.

"Huh?"

"The man you arrested. That was her only family," Daichi spoke sternly. His eyes darkened in an almost threatening way. The officer and the other man exchanged looks, shocked by that bit of information. The boy handed the paperwork over to the receptionist with an apology and headed back over.

"I'll give you two a ride home. It's late, you can check back on your friend tomorrow," the officer ushered them out, leaving only the store clerk in the waiting room. He stared at the floor, head reeling from the evening's events.

"Her own dad, huh?"

He was pulled from his thoughts by a small, older nurse. She held a jacket in her arms, and a few other belongings. She seemed unsure of herself, but held them out to him.

"Sorry. Are you a relative? These were with her, we can't let her keep all of it in her room."

"Oh, sorry. I'll hold onto it for now," the clerk took the items, and a pack of cigarettes fell out of the jacket's pocket onto the floor. Both of them looked at it with alarmed faces.

"Ah. I don't know the situation, but a middle schooler shouldn't have those," the woman gave him a dirty look when she picked them up and placed them on the jacket.

"Sorry. Uh, she borrowed my jacket and must've not checked the pockets," the man lied under pressure.

"Hm. Well, anyway. She's stable now, but will be going in for surgery tomorrow morning. If that goes well, there's another for the afternoon. Her friends can visit after that," the woman gave a general update then left. The man took the items and headed for his truck. He was stopped outside by another officer, who meant to get his contact information. The man plopped onto a bench while undergoing more questions, lighting up one of the cigarettes from the girl's pocket while going over the details.

"You really don't know her?," the officer asked once more before releasing his query for the night.

"Nope. Seen her around, I think. But that's it," the man, apparently going by the name Ukai, answered with a sigh.

"Shame. The other two, their families are shaken up by this. Seems they were aware of problems at home. Girl's unlucky, but got decent friends. We'll be in touch," the officer released him finally. Ukai sighed again and climbed into his truck, too tired to process any more information.