Who are you… The question felt like it got no further than his lips, sitting there against his mouth like a warm cloud. This person kept staring at him so intently. He could see the flicker in his eyes, the briefest gleam of hope, and then it vanished the moment he asked that question. Unnerving, heavy. A shiver rippled down his spine. All he wanted to know was the answer to that question. A name, an explanation, something that might give him a handhold to grip onto and make sense of all of this. He was confused, hardly remembered how he got to this area in the first place. Everything was a blur between those waking moments and now.
Sousuke turned his head slightly, a gentle aversion as the stranger moved his hand to his neck. Stumbling, staggering, now this… Was he checking his pulse? Strange guy. And yet, he felt no urge to leave. If this guy really wasn’t well, he couldn’t just walk away and leave him to collapse here on the ground. Why are you looking at me like that? It was almost like he was choking, struggling with something. The silence between them stretched thick and he let a noiseless breath drift past his lips. Urging him to respond was pointless; he didn’t want to trigger some other kind of ailment or exacerbate what already was…
Or not. First his chest, then his neck, now his shoulder. Was he having a heart attack? He quickly looked to the side, scanning the surrounding areas for anyone else or some building that might be able to take someone in. He didn’t know the first thing about helping someone who was having a heart attack! Back to the stranger. “Oy.” His voice hovered between concern and irritation again, more the former now as he watched the other boy practically crumble inside. He could see it. See it in his eyes again. Sousuke took a step forward, hand opening and the single sakura petal floated away to the ground below. “Are you okay?” Distanced concern, but worried nonetheless—
The sudden shout sliced into the air and he went silent instantly, frozen in place, eyes widened in surprise. Everything seemed to fall silent as well. The breeze, the rustle of tree branches, the sound of birds, even the water’s rippling fading into a ghost of a sound. He remained as he was, time passing, or not passing, he couldn’t tell. He could only watch. Watch as this person clutched at his shoulder, watch the way his face creased and broke in pain, something so visceral through the way his fingers white knuckled in obvious agony. …what’s happened to you?
“Oy… Don’t cry.”
Sousuke listened to his own voice, quiet and soft among the stillness of the air. The words came without his realizing; he didn’t know why he said them, only felt them roll off his tongue and reach out for this strange, maybe-injured person. Unknown, unsure, and yet… He didn’t want to see him cry… It hurts. He felt it in his chest, a thick, wet grip that threatened to crawl up the back of his throat and choke him. Each tear burned itself into his mind, pushing aside the fog of his empty head. A memory, new and fresh, standing here amid the fallen cherry blossoms in front of this person. His voice, his face, all of him.
And like that, everything began to move again. The pain smoothed a little and he watched as the stranger’s shoulders relaxed, his hands loosen from their clenching grips. Breathing softened and the quivering of his lips settled into… a smile? Tiny, barely there, but very much present. As real as the teardrop curling at the end of his nose and dripping onto the pavement. The sound of the breeze started, the sigh of the trees, a rippling water… more pink falling from above.
Sousuke slowly drew his leg back, retracting the step forward and straightening again. An eternal moment. He frowned, not at all convinced at the other’s comment about him not being sick. The disagreement showed on his face and he said nothing. Half because he didn’t want to… half because he couldn’t. Something about his smile pierced through his nerves and such a strange calmness spilled into his chest it almost startled him.
“Rin?”
At least he got a name. But the next comment earned an arched brow. “… what?” His voice hiked a little in surprised disbelief. His god? Like something he should worship or pray to? Who went around saying something like that? That was crazy talk. And yet… there was nothing else. Nothing he knew that countered that statement. His shinki? Some part of him thought about taking a step back, maybe slowly—slowly—turn the other way and walk off. But the other part of him once again noted there was nothing else. Apart from wandering.
no subject
Sousuke turned his head slightly, a gentle aversion as the stranger moved his hand to his neck. Stumbling, staggering, now this… Was he checking his pulse? Strange guy. And yet, he felt no urge to leave. If this guy really wasn’t well, he couldn’t just walk away and leave him to collapse here on the ground. Why are you looking at me like that? It was almost like he was choking, struggling with something. The silence between them stretched thick and he let a noiseless breath drift past his lips. Urging him to respond was pointless; he didn’t want to trigger some other kind of ailment or exacerbate what already was…
Or not. First his chest, then his neck, now his shoulder. Was he having a heart attack? He quickly looked to the side, scanning the surrounding areas for anyone else or some building that might be able to take someone in. He didn’t know the first thing about helping someone who was having a heart attack! Back to the stranger. “Oy.” His voice hovered between concern and irritation again, more the former now as he watched the other boy practically crumble inside. He could see it. See it in his eyes again. Sousuke took a step forward, hand opening and the single sakura petal floated away to the ground below. “Are you okay?” Distanced concern, but worried nonetheless—
The sudden shout sliced into the air and he went silent instantly, frozen in place, eyes widened in surprise. Everything seemed to fall silent as well. The breeze, the rustle of tree branches, the sound of birds, even the water’s rippling fading into a ghost of a sound. He remained as he was, time passing, or not passing, he couldn’t tell. He could only watch. Watch as this person clutched at his shoulder, watch the way his face creased and broke in pain, something so visceral through the way his fingers white knuckled in obvious agony. …what’s happened to you?
“Oy… Don’t cry.”
Sousuke listened to his own voice, quiet and soft among the stillness of the air. The words came without his realizing; he didn’t know why he said them, only felt them roll off his tongue and reach out for this strange, maybe-injured person. Unknown, unsure, and yet… He didn’t want to see him cry… It hurts. He felt it in his chest, a thick, wet grip that threatened to crawl up the back of his throat and choke him. Each tear burned itself into his mind, pushing aside the fog of his empty head. A memory, new and fresh, standing here amid the fallen cherry blossoms in front of this person. His voice, his face, all of him.
And like that, everything began to move again. The pain smoothed a little and he watched as the stranger’s shoulders relaxed, his hands loosen from their clenching grips. Breathing softened and the quivering of his lips settled into… a smile? Tiny, barely there, but very much present. As real as the teardrop curling at the end of his nose and dripping onto the pavement. The sound of the breeze started, the sigh of the trees, a rippling water… more pink falling from above.
Sousuke slowly drew his leg back, retracting the step forward and straightening again. An eternal moment. He frowned, not at all convinced at the other’s comment about him not being sick. The disagreement showed on his face and he said nothing. Half because he didn’t want to… half because he couldn’t. Something about his smile pierced through his nerves and such a strange calmness spilled into his chest it almost startled him.
“Rin?”
At least he got a name. But the next comment earned an arched brow. “… what?” His voice hiked a little in surprised disbelief. His god? Like something he should worship or pray to? Who went around saying something like that? That was crazy talk. And yet… there was nothing else. Nothing he knew that countered that statement. His shinki? Some part of him thought about taking a step back, maybe slowly—slowly—turn the other way and walk off. But the other part of him once again noted there was nothing else. Apart from wandering.
“What are you talking about?”