Chapter Seventeen

He was seeing the same nightmare again. He had come home in the heat of summer, and no one was home. He went to the living room and opened the door. But this time, he suddenly encountered the foreign boy's blood-soaked body on the ground and shouted with all his might, "Nooooo!"

His eyes opened, and he sat up with a yell and looked around. A nurse came to him and said, “Please calm down, sir; nothing to worry; you are in the hospital.” Akira tried to get off the bed, ignoring the nurse, but the nurse immediately stopped him and said, “Please calm down, sir; you have a serum attached to your hand.”

He wanted to shout at the nurse when suddenly a voice said, “Oh my God! Shinka, have you come to your senses?!” He turned his head and saw Mikitani approaching the bed. Akira anxiously told him, “Mikitani-san, how long have I been unconscious? Where is he?!”

The man sighed and said, “First, please lie down, then I'll answer your questions, and please don't make trouble for the nurse.” Akira paused a bit, then, like an obedient child, he laid down sadly. The nurse thanked Mikitani with a smile and a half bow, then left the room.

The man placed a chair next to the bed, sat on it, and said, “I'm glad you're safe, though it's like a miracle.” Akira asked impatiently, “Please Mikitani-san! Tell me where he is?! Where's David?!”

- Calm down, Shinka; Higuma is now in the intensive care unit.

As he tried not to cry, he smiled and said, “S-so he's alive? He's a tough bastard,” but his smile faded when he saw the man's sad look, and he asked worriedly, “Are his injuries serious?” Mikitani paused and said, “He sacrificed so much; because of him, you only got a few more scratches and bruises.” Akira said impatiently, “That's not my answer! Please, Mikitani-san, tell me the truth.”

- He is currently in a coma. His back was slightly burned due to the explosion, but the most damage was caused by the fall. So far, doctors have diagnosed traumatic injuries, as well as fractures in the femur, ribs and damage to the spine.

The man paused a bit, trying to find the most appropriate words, then continued, “So far, he has had two cardiac arrests and has been resuscitated. He may never regain consciousness, and if he does, there is a high possibility of brain damage and lower back paralysis.”

Akira was shocked by the news. His eyes were burning, but he couldn't even shed tears. He said with a shaky voice, “H-how long have I been unconscious?” Mikitani sighed and answered, “About 24 hours,” the Japanese boy said as he tried to stop his voice from shaking, “I-I want to see him.”

The man shook his head and said, “You better rest for now; there's nothing you can do now.” Akira said stubbornly, “But...” Mikitani cut him off and said with a frown, “No, Shinka! Do you want to waste that boy's efforts? You're not seriously hurt, but you need to rest. You can see him tomorrow morning.”

Akira knew that arguing with Mikitani was useless, so he decided to leave the room after he left. The man, who seemed to have read his thoughts, said, “I will stay with you tonight,” then rang the bell next to the bed. A few moments later, a nurse entered the room. Mikitani said something to her without the boy hearing it, and the nurse nodded, then left the room.

Moments later, the nurse returned with a tray of food and placed it on the bedside table. Mikitani said to the boy, “Sit down, Shinka; you can't stay hungry.” The boy reluctantly sat down and said, “I can't eat anything now.” The man nodded and said, “It's just a little soup; it will help you regain your strength.” As Mikitani forced the patient to eat soup, the nurse slowly, without Akira noticing, injected the sedative into his serum.

The Japanese boy stopped eating after a few spoons and laid down again; he wanted to pretend to sleep and leave the room at the right moment. But he felt his eyelids getting heavy, and without realizing it, he fell into a dreamless sleep.

***

When he opened his eyes, sunlight was shining through the window into the room. He slowly turned his head, but there was no sign of Mikitani in the room. He tried to sit down. He still felt tired and weak in his body. Suddenly, reality hit him like a sledgehammer, and he remembered the foreign boy. The serum was no longer attached to his hand, as he was trying to get off the bed, the door to the room opened, and Ichiro entered the room with Arata.

Seeing their boss coming down from the bed, the two youths happily said, “Aniki!” And then they came to the side of the bed to help him get up. Akira smiled weakly as he stood with their help, then said, “It's good; you're safe. What about the others? Anyone hurt?”

Ichiro said as he held his boss's hand, “No, Aniki, all the men are fine; only you and Higuma-san are hurt, and your office is completely burned.” Akira felt heavy in his heart when he heard that name again and said, “Take me to the intensive care unit; I want to see him.”

Arata said confusedly, “Isn't it better to eat breakfast first, Aniki?” Akira frowned and said, “Either help or I'll go alone!” Ichiro sighed and said, “Okay, Aniki, please calm down; we'll take you there.”

Akira was physically healthy and did not need help or companionship, but he felt that he did not have the energy and strength to walk alone. Slowly, and after a few minutes, they reached behind the glass of the ICU ward. As he was standing with the help of the two, he looked at the beds from behind the glass, and suddenly his eyes were fixed on a bed in amazement.

The foreign boy was lying on his side with a tube in his mouth. One of his legs was in plaster from thigh to ankle, and a special splint was placed around his neck. If it wasn't for the support of his men, Akira would have fallen to the ground upon seeing this scene. He turned to Ichiro with difficulty and asked, “Wh-Why did they put him to sleep like this?” The boy shrugged and said, “I don't know, Aniki, but I think Mikitani-san said it was because of the wounds and burns on his back, so he wouldn't get an infection.”

Meanwhile, someone came rushing to the ICU's glass, and then, with a loud sigh of discomfort, she put her hands over her mouth. Akira turned his head and saw a girl with golden hair who was slowly shedding tears, and next to her, a tall, black-skinned young man was looking at David from behind the glass with a sad look.

Arata asked quietly, “Who else are they? Are they Higuma-san's friends?” And Ichiro said in a quiet and astonished voice, "That black guy is even bigger than Higuma-san!" Akira was about to say something when an old man with glasses approached them and asked, “Excuse me, gentlemen, are you friends of Powell-san?”

Ichiro and Arata, who did not know the foreign boy's last name, looked at each other in surprise and said nothing. Finally, Akira cleared his throat and said, “Who are you?” The old man gave a friendly smile and said, “Oh, I'm sorry, I didn't introduce myself. I'm Okada Taro, Powell-san's professor at the university.” Then, pointing to his companions, he added, “These two youth, Mr. Aguda, And Mrs. Avilov are also his friends.”

Akira, who had seen the girl once before and also heard the old man's name from David, nodded and said, “I'm Shinka Akira,” and with a pause added, “I'm his friend.” The old man smiled and said, “I see that you are also wearing a hospital gown; were you with David in that incident?” Hearing this, Yonas and Tina turned their attention from David to the yellow-haired boy and waited for his answer.

The Japanese boy took a long pause, then sheepishly said, “Yes,” adding guiltily, “Actually, this happened to him because he tried helping me.” Before the professor could say anything, Yonas came forward angrily and asked, “Did you do this to him?!” Ichiro and Arata, ignoring their fear of the black guy's awe, placed themselves between Akira and him, saying, “Hey boy, be careful how you talk to Aniki!”

The old man pulled Yonas back and said, “Please calm down, gentlemen; this is the hospital.” Then, looking at Akira, he added, “Of course, you are as worried about David as we are, so it can be said that you didn't do this to him.” He then sighed and continued, “So please tell us, what happened?”

Akira, who couldn't stand anymore, slowly sat down on one of the waiting chairs by the wall and said with a sigh, “It was my fault; I haven't heard from him for almost a month. He suddenly came to my office that day. He told me that I should leave the office, but I didn't listen to him. He tried to protect me, then there was an explosion, and...” He lowered his head, choking back tears.

The professor sighed, looked at David's body from behind the glass, and said, “He is a kind boy. He is a bit dry and cold, but he always cares about others.” Yonas clenched his fists and said as he looked at David's body, “He really didn't deserve this.”

The professor took out a card from his pocket, gave it to Akira, and said, “This is my contact number; if you have any problems or need help for David, call me.” Then he turned to the foreign boy and girl and added, “We better get out of here, friends.” Tina said while wiping her tears, “But... but Professor...”

The old man shook his head and said with a sigh, “There's nothing to do here, Tina; we'll come back to help him whenever he comes back to his senses.” Yonas took a step forward and said, “Professor is right, Tina, let's go; we'll come back to meet him again tomorrow.” The girl nodded with a pause and then walked with the black guy and the old man.

Ichiro said as he watched them leave, “Higuma-san has some weird friends.” Arata nodded and said, “But that blonde girl was pretty, wasn't she?” As Ichiro nodded in agreement, Arata continued, “I'm very hungry,” then turned to Akira and said, “Aniki, let's take you back to your room and have breakfast.”

Akira, weak and upset, shook his head as a sign of negation and said, “You two go; I want to sit here.” The fat boy wanted to say something, but his friend stopped him by moving his head. Ichiro cleared his throat and said, “As you wish, Aniki, so Arata and I are going to get something to eat; do you want something too?” Akira shook his head and remained in his place, ignoring the sound of their feet walking away.

Now that it was quiet around him, he looked back at the ICU glass and David's body. He said under his breath, “Why did you do this, you fool? I caused you so much trouble; I beat you and humiliated you, but you still came. Even though I believed I would never see you again, you came just when I was in danger.”

As tears were falling uncontrollably, he continued, “Who the hell did you think you were?! A superhero?! Did you think this damn city is like manga and anime where you can jump and save someone?!” He lowered his head and said angrily, “Damn you, David... Damn you... If you don't get better, I'll never forgive you...” and added in a whisper, “Please don't leave me alone...”

In the evening of that day, the doctor came to his room and, after examining the test results, announced that he could be discharged tomorrow. Akira sighed and said, “Thank you, doctor. May I know if my friend will get better?” He guessed the answer himself, but he didn't know why he was asking such a stupid question.

The doctor, an elderly man, paused and said, “Shinka-san, your friend has been seriously injured. Less than two months ago, he was in the ICU of this hospital with a broken arm and a head injury. I appreciate his brave action to save you, but this time is not as easy as last time.”

He sighed and continued, “The vertebrae of his neck and back are damaged; we treated his fractures as much as possible and the burns and wounds on his back as well, but the severity of the injuries caused to his head due to the fall and the blast wave are serious. There is.” He paused a bit and added, “I'm sorry, but the percentage of Powell-san regaining consciousness is very low.”

And then he left Akira alone with great sadness. Although he had heard the same words from Mikitani yesterday, the doctor's words still nailed him like a strong slap. Meanwhile, the door to the room opened, and a voice said, “Oh, hello, Shinka, I see you are fine.” The Japanese boy turned his head and saw the boss enter the room with a smile, along with Mikitani.

Akira composed himself and was about to get up from the bed to pay his respects when the old man came to him and said, “Relax, son, you don't need to get up.” He then sat down on the chair that Mikitani had prepared for him and added, “How are you?”

Akira forced a smile and said, “I'm fine, boss; thank you for coming to see me.” The old man kindly replied, “Don't be so formal, Shinka; you're like my son,” then added in a sad tone, “I should have come; I wanted to see Higuma too.” The Japanese boy suddenly said, “I'm sorry, boss,” with a grudge squeezing his throat.

- Why, son? It was not your fault.

- But...

- Shinka, don't act like children.

Then, with an angry look, he added, “I'm looking for the bastard who did this, and if I find him, be sure he'll regret ever being born!” Then he took a deep breath and continued, “Let's see if you have any clue as to who might have done it? What was Higuma doing there? I thought he left Shinjuku.”

Akira lowered his head and said, “I really don't know, boss, but one thing is for sure, he knew about the bombing; he tried to take me out of the room, but I...” He couldn't continue and fell silent. The old man kindly said, “Calm down, Shinka; it wasn't your fault. Surely if Higoma wakes up, he can help us; didn't you notice anything suspicious yourself? Where did that bomb come from?”

Akira took a deep breath and said, “The bomb was in a bag; Arata brought it to my room and said a courier delivered it, and it should be delivered to the boss. I wanted to call Mikitani-san, but I remembered that he is outside Tokyo with you. That's why I wanted to bring the bag to you the next day. But a few minutes later, David, I mean Higuma, came to my office, and then the explosion happened.”

The old man nodded, thoughtfully stroked his beard, and said, “We need to talk to Arata; maybe he'll tell us something from the courier that will be useful.” Then he turned to Mikitani and said, “Seiji, find this Arata and tell him tomorrow...” Then he paused and continued, “No, it's late; tell him to come to my house in two hours so I can talk to him.” The man with the scarred face bowed half and said, “Yes, boss.”

The old man looked at Akira again and said with a smile, “Don't worry about Higuma; it's true that I've only seen him once, but I know he's strong and he'll come back to his senses. I'll pay for all the hospital expenses myself, rest easy, and come back to us soon so that we can find the person who is behind this accident.” Akira gave a forced smile, bowed his head, and said, “Thank you, boss.”

As the old man got up with a smile, he said, “There is nothing to thank for; if you need anything, tell Seiji; I will provide it for you myself.” Then, as he walked towards the door, he said, “Come visit me when you are discharged from the hospital,” and then he left the room. Mikitani turned to Akira before going after the man and said, “Don't worry, Shinka, the boss is serious. I hope Higuma wakes up soon, so please stay well and avoid doing anything dumb.” And then he left the room too.

***

His men came to him early in the morning to help him with his discharge. It was 9 a.m. when the doctor signed the discharge papers. As he was busy putting on the clothes that Arata had brought him, suddenly the door to the room opened violently.

Arata looked at the door frame and then asked in surprise, “Azuma-san?! What are you doing here?!” Akira, who was putting on his t-shirt with his back to the door, hearing the name his subordinate said, turned his head in surprise and saw Riki entering the room.

The Kyoto boy angrily approached him and said, “You brought this damn disaster on him, didn't you?!” Without answering, Akira just looked away from him. Noticing the dangerous atmosphere between the two of them, Ichiro and Arata quickly stepped forward, and the fat boy said, “Please calm down, Azuma-san. Aniki is not to blame.”

Riki looked at Arata with scary and menacing eyes and said, “Don't interfere in my business, you dirty pig! Go away!” He pushed him aside, grabbed Akira's collar, and said, “Now you've been oppressed?! Where are your yells?! Now you're satisfied that he got hurt like that because of you?!”

Ichiro quickly ran forward to separate them and said, “Please, Azuma-san, Aniki has just been discharged.” Riki released his right hand from Akira's collar, and just as he was about to slap the bearded youth hard with the back of his hand, Akira took his hand and said, “Don't do anything to them; you have a problem with me.”

Arata and Ichiro looked fearfully into the Kyoto boy's cold eyes; each moment, the fight was getting closer. But contrary to their expectations, Riki took a deep breath, pulled his wrist from Akira's hand, and let go of his collar. Then he went to the window of the room and gazed at the courtyard of the hospital.

Akira stood still for a moment, then nodded to his men to leave the two of them alone. They nodded, and as they headed for the door, Ichiro said, “We'll go do the rest of your discharge work, Aniki. We'll wait for you in the car,” and then left the room.

Akira sat down on the bed with his back to the boy by the window, then said, “It's all my fault, I know. But I never meant to hurt him.” Riki sighed and said, “I know, I know it's not your fault. But when I saw him like that, I couldn't control myself.” He put a chair next to the bed, sat down, and said to Akira, “Are you okay? Is it okay to leave the hospital so early?”

Akira looked at him with a bitter smile and asked, “Since when are you worried about me?” Then he added with a sigh, “Thanks to him, I wasn't hurt.” He continued as he tried not to shake his voice, “That idiot shielded himself for me. Both during the explosion and when we fell out of the window. If it wasn't for him, I'd surely be dead now.”

Riki looked away from his defeated face and said, “He's such a fool, though I'm jealous that he came to you like that.” Then he continued with a sigh, “The boy I know is strong; one of these days he'll come to his senses and stop the fight between you and me again with that cold look and tone.” However, tears gathered in his eyes, and his nose voiced loudly.

Akira asked with a sigh, “How did you find out? It was announced in the news that the explosion was due to a gas leak, so I didn't think it would be shown in other cities.”

- I didn't see it in the news; I called Mikitani-san yesterday to consult with him about the contracts we want to sign with Hinoya Company. At the end of our conversation, I asked him if he had any news from Higuma because I have not been able to contact him since I returned to Kyoto. Mikitani-san also explained everything to me, so I took the first train to get here.

Akira just nodded in agreement and silently stared at the mosaics on the floor. The silence was prolonged, so Riki got up and said, “Go ahead, your men are waiting in the car,” and walked towards the door of the room when Akira asked, “Are you going to see him?” The Kyoto boy nodded and said, “If you want too, come with me.” Akira sighed, got up, and followed him to the ICU without another word.

***

Two weeks had passed since the explosion, and as the condition of the foreign boy stabilized, he was transferred to a private room with the necessary equipment. During this time, Akira visited him every day and sometimes even stayed there at night. Of course, David's college friends sometimes came to visit him, and Riki also spent weekends with him.

On an autumn evening, Akira left the store as he zipped up his jacket. Today he finished his work earlier than usual and bought some food to spend the night with the foreign boy. As he walked to the hospital, he thought of him again. Now he was lying on the bed normally, but his injured leg was still plastered; he was breathing with the help of an oxygen machine; there was a special splint around his neck; and he was fed by serum.

He stopped at an intersection and waited for the pedestrian light to turn green. He suddenly remembered that this was the place where he first held the foreign boy's hand and asked him to eat together. He sighed and said sadly in his heart, “I wish I would have kept my word and not come close to you after that day.”

With the beginning of the pedestrian light song, he crossed the street and reached the hospital after 15 minutes of walking. As soon as he opened the door of room 304, he noticed the presence of an old man and a young black man next to David. He entered the room and greeted them with a nod.

Yonas, who still blamed the Japanese boy for what had happened to his friend, left the room with bitterness. But the old man remained in the room and said with a smile, “I see you care about David a lot. Shinka-san, do you stay here at nights too?” Akira put the plastic bag of his purchases on the table in the room and said, “Not always, but if I can, I'll stay.”

The professor nodded and said, “He's really lucky to have a friend like you.” Though Akira didn't think so, he walked over to David's bed, looked at his sleeping, scarred face, and the stubble on his face, and said, “I don't think so, Okada-san. If he hadn't met me, he wouldn't have been so hurt.”

The old man laughed softly and said, “Nothing happens by chance in this world, my son. There must have been a reason why your fates crossed paths. Perhaps the wisdom of the heavens was that you should be saved by this boy. So don't be sad.” Then he sighed and, looking at his injured student, added, “I hope he recovers as soon as possible and can return to the university; everyone misses him.”

At the same time, the door of the room opened, and another old man said while entering the room with a smile, “Oh Taro, are you here too?” The professor raised his eyebrows and said, “Yoshi, I didn't know you were coming to visit him too.” Then, noticing Akira's confused look, he walked up to the man and said, “He is Ando Yoshi, my friend and the owner of the cafe where David used to work.” And then turning to his friend and pointing to the young boy, he added, “He is also David's friend, Shinka Akira.”

Akira gave a half bow and said, “Nice to meet you.” The newcomer replied with a smile, “Me too, young man.” Then he went to the side of the bed and turned to the injured boy as he placed a bouquet of flowers by the bed, saying, “This is from the guys at the cafe, David. You better get better soon because everyone is waiting for you.” Then he asked the professor, “Do you want to go home?”

The old man nodded and said, “Yes, I wanted to go.” Ando smiled and said, “So I will take you; I came by car.” The professor laughed and said, “Thank you, but one of the students is with me.”

- It's no problem; I'll take him to the train station. How about we go for a drink after that? We haven't been together for a long time.

The professor laughed and said, “You're right, Yoshi, ok, let's go,” then turned to Akira and said, “Don't you have anything to do with us, son?” The Japanese boy gave a half bow and said, “Ando-san, Okada-san, thank you for coming to see David.” The old men smiled, nodded as goodbye, and left the room.

Now that he was alone, he placed the chair next to the bed, sat on it, took David's hand in his, and said, “Remember when you said you were boring and didn't have many friends?” He pointed to the bouquets of flowers in the room and continued, “All these people have come to visit you, idiot.” Then he added with a grudge, “If you don't want to wake up for me, at least wake up for them.”

He lowered his head and squeezed his hand in his. In these two weeks, he had become more nervous and rude than ever. All his men avoided him so as not to provoke his anger. Most of the time, he sat in his room, stared at the sky through the repaired window, and reviewed the events of that day.

He didn't even like to dye his hair anymore; during this time, the black roots of his hair grew, and now he had yellow hair with black roots. He raised his head and looked at the foreign boy again. He usually did not believe in the power of the gods and the heavens; however, he smiled and said, “You know, David, if this is really the work of the heavens, I must say it is very cruel.” He put his hand on the bed, sighed, and said, “I don't want this survival without you. This is not a destiny for me; this is a curse.”