spes_phthisica: by tenken_designs (I walked into a hospital)
Okita Souji ([personal profile] spes_phthisica) wrote in [community profile] smdh2016-01-25 04:50 am

Someone holds me safe and warm

Who: One master and one sword
What: A reincarnated reunion
Warnings: Shit is going to hurt. Also injury and lung problems and fucked up people yo. tba.


***


It's one of those chance meetings, improbable and almost unreal, as if it belongs in a comedy with a varied and witty cast that can somehow make the Uncanny Valley implications not seem quite so bad. But though the cast really is in place and only waiting to speak their lines and lighten the mood, it's impossible to shake off the uncomfortable feeling of a disturbance in the fabric of the world. As if one of two parallel lines broke free of the shackles of mathematics, changing its course slightly, and now they will inevitably meet eventually, at the other side of the curvature of the universe if necessary.

Souji remembers it like this: He'd been training hard-

(Of course he'd been training hard. Just like everyone else at a prestigious dance academy is expected to do; harder, in fact, due to his disadvantages. The scarring on his lungs that would never go away, and no matter how much people told him that he'd been lucky, it feels like he's constantly branded as weak, frail, pitiable. When Sano refers easily to his 'busted lungs' and Heisuke hurriedly steps on his foot, it's the latter that Souji has to keep himself from glaring at.)

-He'd been training hard. He'd stayed behind in the studio after hours to repeat every single movement over and over again until he could feel his toes getting sticky from blood, and his breath had been running short for about half an hour already. He heard someone pushing the door open behind him, heard a testy, You're never going to be able to do that without breathing, and he'd opened his mouth to say that he was fine, just fine, when instead there was a harsh croak as the air ground to a halt in his throat. His legs turned unresponsive under him mid-jete, and he'd crashed to the floor, sliding until he hit the mirrored wall and saw his own face disappear behind a film of blood. He heard something between a gasp and a horrified groan, running footsteps, Souji? Souji! - then he heard nothing at all above the ringing, blood-scented darkness rising above his head.

He wakes up in the hospital. It's 3 am, and the only reason he isn't in pain is probably the pearly sheen of painkillers lingering over the world, which mutes the quality of every far-off sound, like someone sobbing in another room and the TV down the hall, which usually colors its walls faintly blue all night through. His head is bandaged, and so's one of his ankles as well as his left wrist. There's an oxygen meter taped to his toe. The call button is right by his hand, but he shoves it away from himself.

Then he looks up at the bed opposite of his, expecting to find an indistinct shape sleeping deeply, but he finds blue eyes staring intently back at him instead. He jerks away slightly, and somewhere behind the film of analgesics he can feel his head start up a low throbbing. Then he catches his breath, which comes shallow and tastes faintly of blood, and attempts a smile. "Hello."
okitactless: (soft smile)

[personal profile] okitactless 2016-01-25 09:22 am (UTC)(link)
The idea of "fate" is debatable. It's a concept that changes throughout the ages, shifting with the sands of time, allowing itself to be touted and dismissed in accordance with the ages. But it never disappears. Not entirely. There are those who scoff and shun and declare life to be theirs for the making, but there are always, always believers.

Yamato is one of them. Even in this day and age, with a new life, a new future, a new fate, he believes. He's always been what they call "superstitious"--his head a little too far in the clouds to anyone that doesn't really know him.

So maybe something is resonating within him, something awakening that deep part of his soul that believes, so fully and faithfully. Maybe that's why he's kneeling on his bed instead of trying to sleep, watching the newcomer the same way he's been since they brought him in. Or maybe it's just that childlike curiosity of his, given something new and interesting after almost a year alone in this place.

His robe is a little too big, even for hospital gown standards. It hangs off him like a hand-me-down passed from father to son, exposing spidery blue veins and too-pale skin. There's an IV in his hand, and other tubes winding around him, disappearing beneath the blankets or into his gown. But even so, in the dim light of the hospital room, his eyes are alert and bright enough to glow.

"Hello," he replies, matching Souji's smile, almost like he's trying to play mirror. "I wasn't sure you were going to wake up before they took you somewhere else again. I'm glad you did, you're my first roommate in a long time."
okitactless: (peeping yams)

[personal profile] okitactless 2016-01-25 01:00 pm (UTC)(link)
And through it all, Yamato watches. He doesn't yell for a nurse, he doesn't rush over to help, he doesn't ask if Souji's alright. He simply watches, long fingers curled over the edge of his bed, bangs unusually fluffy for a long-term hospital stay falling in his eyes. His hair is down, but it's a mess, making his face look even paler and thinner than it actually is. A bit like a ghost.

But he doesn't stare impassively. There's a curious fascination in his gaze, half-morbid and half-childlike. He stares with the intensity of someone looking through you, as if he can see past Souji's skin, his broken lungs, straight into his soul. It's only when Souji's able to speak again that he moves, carefully untangling himself from his latticework of tubes and cords. Grabbing some tissues from the little table beside his own bed, he scoots as close as his chains will let him, reaching out to try and dab at Souji's eyes. His arms aren't quite long enough, though, and he ends up dropping them on Souji's bed... but the thought was there nonetheless.

"Mmhmm." He doesn't scoot back right away. Instead he leans forward, resting his arms on his knees, like he wants to crawl over and sit on Souji's bed.

(And he does, quite frankly. He misses Kashuu.)

"Was it a pulmonary edema?" He asks, the term rolling off his tongue with a familiarity that shouldn't sound so lighthearted. "Sometimes they use it for that, since people like me are up here anyway." All the equipment for removing fluid from places it shouldn't be, pumping oxygen back where it should be--they're easy to get to in a hurry up here. Yamato is far from the only person on this floor; his lack of a roommate has nothing to do with the general health of the populace.

"I'm not contagious, so please don't worry about that," he adds, worry creeping into his expression. "I won't get you sick." Don't be afraid of me. Don't push me away. Don't leave me alone in here again.
okitactless: (okita-kun...)

[personal profile] okitactless 2016-01-26 09:39 am (UTC)(link)
Yamato doesn't hesitate to return the touch. He clasps Souji's hand in both of his own, his grip painfully gentle. He's reaching farther than he probably should, the IV cord stretched just about as far as it will go, but there's no sign of pain on his face. Quite the opposite--he seems to come alive at the contact, and even the barest brush of skin has his eyes lighting up like fireworks. His hands are warm, but that's not really saying much in a place like this.

"I hope so," he says, quite seriously. But he doesn't seem inclined to explain what he means by that. Instead, he runs his thumbs over Souji's knuckles, mapping out the ridges of bone and the slopes between them. "Can you eat? I have some jelly left from lunch... I saved it in case you wanted something solid when you woke up."

It's probably melted into a liquid by now, but... it's been a long time since he had someone to save his food for.

"You can use my pillow if you want," he continues, his voice an odd mix of shy and eager. It's not pity, or overbearing concern. It's that intrinsic need to be helpful (to serve) inside him, desperate to be set free after so much time alone. Maybe it's Souji's existence waking up this part of him, or maybe this is something wholly Yamato. But either way, he looks like he'd be ready to walk to the moon and back if Souji asked him to. "May I ask your name?"
okitactless: (smile)

[personal profile] okitactless 2016-01-26 12:35 pm (UTC)(link)
There's nothing momentous or dramatic to mark this declaration. No lightning cracks in the distance, no bell tolls loud and clear. But it strikes a chord within Yamato nonetheless. Three syllables, two characters, something as simple as a name--and yet they burrow through his skin straight into his heart, like they've always belonged there.

Yamato is pliant and relaxed beneath his touch. If it tickles at all, he doesn't show it. He simply lets Souji explore his hands the same way he's searching Souji's face, eyes as distant as they are piercing.

"You're a dancer," he says. "I heard them talking about it when they brought you in."

It had been a grim conversation, doubtful estimates of Souji's recovery time. Yamato hadn't paid it much attention, and doesn't repeat it. He has no taste for those things.

"I always wanted to try dancing," he says instead, and smiles, almost shyly. "But no one would teach me, so I learned piano instead."

Not a bad hobby, by any means. He likes the piano well enough, and he's fond of music. But it doesn't quite click, the way he'd always thought dancing would. He's always had the urge, the need to move his body in certain, graceful ways--so of course he's been confined to a small bed in a lifeless room. Bloody fate.
okitactless: (what if)

[personal profile] okitactless 2016-01-27 12:56 am (UTC)(link)
There's a reason for his username and this is it.

Yamato nods. "They told me that too." And with no mentor, no one's steps to follow, he'd had no reason to push. Instead, he plays like he would've danced--fast, passionate, almost frightening in his intensity. Broken nails and bloody, calloused fingers are not common in the piano world, but he'd worn his injuries like hard-won battle wounds.

His fingers are soft now, though. He hasn't been allowed to play in... well. Too long.

Still, his whole face lights up as Souji speaks. He looks like Souji's words are worth more than all the gold and jewels and healthy lungs in the world--and it's not just because of his tendency to latch on to others. It's true that he's been starved for proper companionship in any form. But this is something more. Something deeper. Something all too natural for strangers.

"I'm Yamato no Kami Yasusada," he says, and it's his turn to look embarrassed by his name. "They say I'm difficult to handle, but I hope we get along."
okitactless: (what if)

[personal profile] okitactless 2016-01-28 08:56 am (UTC)(link)
For a minute, it looks like Yamato is going to play along. He brightens up more, if that's even possible, Souji's laughter filling him up like a breath of much-needed air. The IV is probably a good thing, actually. He'd be halfway to curling up and resting his head in Souji's lap by now without it.

But just as quickly, the light dims, and his face falls. Yamato is superstitious, yes, but at the same time, he's strangely grounded. The fantastical things he believes, he believes as surely as gravity or the color of the noontime sky. Daydream fantasies aren't something he's used to dabbling in.

Still, his reply probably isn't what Souji is expecting.

"I would love that," he says sincerely. "But I'm not allowed to leave this room, except for tests." He doesn't stop there, though. He looks at Souji with imploring eyes, begging as earnestly as a hungry puppy. "When you get better, will you come back and dance for me? Please? I want to watch you dance."

Not if, when. No hesitation, no false hope and cheer. Yamato believes Souji will heal, body and soul, one hundred percent. He believes it just as surely as anything else--like it's a fact, simple and undeniable. Souji will heal, and dance, and maybe even come back to pay him a visit.

It's only the last that he isn't sure of. And that's because it's the one he wants most to be true.
okitactless: (enraged)

[personal profile] okitactless 2016-01-31 10:10 am (UTC)(link)
The tension that had crept into Yamato's shoulders slips out again, just as quickly and subtly as it had come. He's not being rejected, or abandoned. He isn't being pushed away. He'll be left behind sooner or later, but that's alright. That's his lot in life, he knows, and he's used to it.

"Thank you, Okita-kun," he says, and his tone is so reverent, it's like Souji's given him a precious gift. Maybe in some ways, he has.

The question doesn't get an immediate answer, but Yamato doesn't pull away, either. He doesn't stiffen up or shift uncomfortably. Souji is more than welcome to pick him apart and examine the pieces--and maybe Yamato shouldn't be so quick to trust, but he can't help himself. And there's no one here to stop him, not anymore.

"I hurt some people," he answers eventually. He speaks softly, distantly, caught up in memory. "They were cruel to someone I love, so I hurt them. The nurses are afraid I might do it again, so I have to stay in here."

He doesn't mention the toll it had taken on his own body. The way he'd collapsed, choking on fluid and blood, rasping and spitting like a rabid cat. Not because he wants to hide it, but simply because it doesn't matter. He'd been defending Kashuu, and the nurses are right to think he'd do it again. He's dying anyway, why not use what little strength he has to protect those precious to him?
okitactless: (驚いた)

[personal profile] okitactless 2016-02-01 09:15 am (UTC)(link)
Yamato is used to being "that strange kid"; indeed, the weird and lonely thing that each group is bound to have. Kanesada was always helpless without Horikawa, he remembers, and Kashuu had been a mess of half-buried insecurities all on his own. But Yamato has always, always been the odd one. In school, when he could switch so easily between the soft-spoken, polite boy in 2-A and the wild, merciless combatant on the playground. (He'd been banned from sports early on.) In that first patchwork collection of chronically sick things, when he'd asked them with total seriousness, "Will you love me?". (Maybe that's why they'd been so shocked when he turned on them, after they said those things about Kashuu.)

He's the strange one, and because of that, he's never expected anyone to understand. So when Souji begins to speak, he snaps his attention back, eyes going wide.

Could it be? Is he hearing this right? Could this stranger really, truly be putting into words what he's felt so strongly his entire life?

(Has fate finally decided to be kind, or is he simply being taunted once again?

--No, it doesn't matter. If this single, perfect moment is all he gets, he'll take it. He's spent too long alone not to.)

"Yes. Yes!" He's whispering, but his voice holds clear excitement, the corners of his mouth pulling up. "Just like that, it feels just like that. I didn't think-- no one's ever understood that before. But when it comes to protecting them, I... it's like my blood starts boiling. Sometimes I feel like someone else completely."
okitactless: (what if)

[personal profile] okitactless 2016-02-02 10:02 am (UTC)(link)
As Souji speaks, Yamato lifts their clasped hands to his face, to his dry, pale lips--but then he's turning his head, brushing his cheek against the tangle of their fingers. His skin is smooth, softer than it probably should be after months of dark, lonely stillness. The hospital lights, he remembers Kashuu complaining, are anything but flattering, and he knows what he must look like. Some half-dead wisp of a spirit, haunting hospital rooms and aching for companionship; is this to be a cliche fairy tale, or a horrific tragedy, only to be whispered in the dark?

Either one, Yamato thinks, would be preferable to being forgotten. To being alone.

He hums in content affirmation--"anything that's mine", what a perfect way of putting it. Because they are his, aren't they? His precious people, they belong to him. Is it his fault, then, that he's lost them? Should he have taken better care of them? What if, what if, and oh, he'd thought he'd run the gamut of guilty sorrows already. What a nice surprise.

"I always thought new friends would be nice," he comments, almost dreamily. "I thought maybe we could join together, and take care of each other, and get stronger together... but that didn't happen." For a lot of reasons, but he doesn't want to seem like he's complaining. Far from it. "That was okay, though. I didn't mind being different, as long as others were with me. They only ever wanted to take care of me, isn't that funny?"

Yamato certainly seems to think it is. His eyes are closed, but he's smiling, like he's watching a scene play out behind his eyelids. "Ne, Okita-kun, will you let me take care of you?"