Fanfic: Return of the Go Master
Title: Return of the Go Master, Part II
Rating: probably G
Disclaimer: I don’t own this series, and I intend no copyright infringement
Notes: Thanks to my cool and erudite friend, The Seeker, for making sure I dotted all the “i’s” and crossed all the “t’s.” And for suggesting the use of {{braces}} to indicate silent communication between Sai and Hikaru.
Durffy: Should I warn them that there aren’t any “sticky bits” in this chapter yet either?
The Seeker: Yes, I think you should.
Durffy: Do you think they’ll still read it?
The Seeker: …….
Return of the Go Master
Part II
Akira sat bolt upright on his bed, shocked out of sleep by the sound of someone screaming his name.
He found himself alone in his bedroom.
It was still dark outside. Akira wiped his sweating forehead with the back of his hand and glanced at the digital alarm clock on his bedside table. It was 1:39 in the morning. Sighing, he settled his head on the pillow again. “Just a dream,” he muttered. “Forget it.”
The scream had sounded like Shindou Hikaru, crying out in pain and fear. And it had seemed so real, as if Shindou called to him for help from within the room.
Akira’s pulse was still racing, but he told himself that the brain could play a lot of strange tricks in one’s sleep. He had probably heard something from outside, like a birdcall, or a dog barking. It was nothing.
He closed his eyes, then a new thought occurred to him, and he sat up again. Maybe it was Shindou. Maybe he was outside, perhaps drunk, and howling to be let in because he had locked himself out of his apartment.
Akira climbed out of bed and hurried through the dark house. He wanted to open the gate before Shindou felt obliged to disturb the neighbors again.
Torn between worry and vexation, Akira slipped out the front door barefoot and in his pajamas. He padded down the stone path to the gate and paused with his hand on the latch. “Shindou?”
There was no reply.
Akira slid the gate open and peered out onto the dark and deserted street.
No one was there.
With the nape of his neck prickling, Akira shut the gate. Then he locked it. He hurried back to the house, trying not to think about how strange and creepy the garden seemed at night. When he got inside, he turned on the lights in the front room.
This was like a muttered conversation he had once overheard on a train. One salary-man telling another that he had heard his father call his name at 11 o’clock, only to discover in the morning that his father had passed away at that time.
Akira shuddered, then felt disgusted with his own over-active imagination. “This is stupid,” he said aloud. “There’s nothing wrong with Shindou.”
But instead of returning to bed, he went to the phone and punched in Shindou’s number. Akira didn’t offer himself reasons for his actions, and he didn’t think about how inconsiderate it was to call anyone at such an hour.
When the answering machine picked up, Akira simply pressed the ‘end’ button. “There’s nothing wrong with Shindou,” he repeated fiercely. Then he dialed the number for the hospital Shindou’s family favored, and checked for recent admissions.
Less than three minutes later, Akira sprinted through the gate. Left it open. Unlocked.
He ran through the streets like a wounded animal. His only coherent thought was to get to the hospital, and all other practical considerations were swallowed by a tumult of anxiety and rage. He didn’t want to waste time waiting for a train or trying to catch a taxi. He wanted to get to Shindou Hikaru.
Dawn tinted the sky by the time he arrived at the hospital lobby. His lungs felt like they were on fire. His legs wobbled with fatigue. He barely had enough breath to rasp out the request for a room number to the receptionist. She tried to direct him to the emergency entrance, before he pulled himself together enough to explain that he was not in need of medical help; he was there to visit a friend.
Still looking doubtful, she told him that the room number was 211. And then she reminded him that it was four in the morning. Visiting hours began at ten.
Akira thanked her, and asked if the hospital had a cafeteria. She replied that it was one level down. He thanked her again, crossed to the elevator, and took it to the second floor.
The next few minutes passed in a blur. He supposed he behaved rather badly. Agitated hospital staff threatened to call for security. Akira ignored them, and flung open the door to 211.
***
The door burst open, and Touya Akira exploded into the hospital room.
Hikaru, his mother, and Sai all jumped.
Akira planted himself defiantly near the foot of the bed, panting and glaring, hands clenched into fists. His long hair was a mess. He wore a lime green/electric orange striped pajama shirt half tucked into a pair of black jeans. His jacket was all twisted up in back, so that it was more or less just a pair of sleeves with a short cape.
Hikaru felt as if his heart began to expand and glow. Happened every time he unexpectedly spotted Akira. His grin widened.
{{Ah,}} Sai said, sounding pleased, {{isn’t this Touya-kun?}} He pressed his folded fan to his chin and added: {{My, hasn’t he grown up nicely?}}
His mother looked apprehensive. “Who--?”
Hikaru patted his mother’s hand reassuringly. “You remember Touya Akira, right? He’s my best friend.”
She blinked in confusion, but rose and bowed. “Nice to meet you again.”
Akira also blinked, as if awakening from sleep. He dropped the aggressive posture and returned her bow. “The pleasure is mine,” he said hoarsely. Then he staggered a bit and caught hold of the footboard to steady himself. “I apologize for intruding.”
Hikaru, fearing that Akira would leave, waved his hand dismissively. “It’s fine, it’s fine.” Thinking fast, he continued: “Besides, I was going to ask Mom to call you, anyway. I need you to contact the Institute for me and re-arrange my game schedule.”
His mother’s expression cleared, and she smiled at Akira and bowed again. “Oh, if it’s not too much trouble for you, that would be such a help to me. I’m terrible with that sort of thing.”
At that moment, a uniformed security guard and a grim nurse marched into the room. “Sir,” the guard said to Akira, “I must ask you to leave. Visiting hours don’t begin until ten. If you will come with me now, I’ll take you--”
Hikaru’s mother made a noise like an angry hen. “Excuse me!” She inserted herself between the guard and Akira. “This young man is here because we want him here! Take yourself away!” She pointed at the nurse. “And you! You said ten minutes ago that you’d bring a cup of ice chips for my son, and we’re still waiting!”
The nurse and the guard quailed. Hikaru didn’t blame them. His mother had gone into full-blown scary mode again.
“The staff at this hospital has a lot to answer for!” His mother advanced on the guard and nurse, backing them out the door. “You almost sent my only child away to die in pain! You almost murdered him on the operating table! You unnecessarily bruised his arm with a clumsily placed IV needle! You--" She stopped and turned a sweet smile on Akira. “Touya-san, may I impose upon you to stay with Hikaru while I make phone calls to my husband, my father, and our family attorney?”
Akira stared at her. “Happy to help.”
“Thank you so much.” She turned on her glare again and resumed stalking toward the guard and nurse. “--jostled him on the gurney! You forgot to bring the ice chips! You tried to arrest a family friend who selflessly came so early in the morning to help us with--" She herded them into the hallway and closed the door. Hikaru could still hear her outside.
Akira stared at the door, seeming stunned.
Hikaru giggled. “Mom’s had a bad morning. She’s not usually like that.”
Akira slowly turned his stare to Hikaru. His face was pale; his eyes rimmed with red.
Sai drew close to Akira and peered at him. {{Touya-kun seems ready to collapse. Perhaps you ought to invite him to sit down?}}
Hikaru cleared his throat. “Hey, you look like shit.” He waved to an empty chair. “Grab a seat before you fall, idiot.”
Akira didn’t rise to the insult. He merely stumbled to the chair and fell into it. Sprawled into it, actually, with his head flung back, his eyes closed, his legs out straight, and his flat belly jerking to every panting breath. The dorky pajama shirt almost looked cool, the way it sexily hung out of the waistband of his jeans, and it was conveniently loose enough at the neck to fall revealingly away from his superb throat and collarbone.
Sai crossed to the chair and surveyed Akira from head to foot. {{It would seem,}} he said in a musing tone, {{that Touya-kun has run from some distance.}}
Hikaru silently agreed, the guy had a bad habit of launching into a sprint marathon whenever he wanted to get somewhere fast. Too single-minded for his own good, he thought; then spoke aloud. “Hey, Touya, just how far did you run?”
“From my house.”
Hikaru mentally calculated the distance and decided it was do-able, if you didn’t want to wait for a taxi. “That was dumb.”
“I know.”
Sai looked reproachfully at Hikaru. {{Don’t say things like that! He came here just to see you!}}
{{True.}} Hikaru’s heart began to warm and expand in his chest again. “But thanks for coming,” he added. “Really.”
Akira opened his eyes and looked at him then. “What happened? Why did you need surgery?”
Hikaru felt a moment of confusion. “Huh? Oh.” He pointed at his midriff with his thumb. “Hot appendix.” The confusion flickered into being again. “Thought you knew that. Thought that’s why you were here.”
Akira slowly sat up straight, pulling his limbs into a decent posture. “Admissions only said it was emergency surgery.”
“Oh.” Hikaru found it hard to think. He wondered if the shock of the whole mess was beginning to catch up with him. Or maybe there was a sedative in the IV. “Who told you I was at the hospital?”
Akira seemed to realize his dishabille and pulled his pajama shirt straight and tucked it in. Then he tried to adjust his jacket and had to take it off to get it untwisted.
When he was sure Akira didn’t intend to answer his question, Hikaru injected a note of irritation into his voice. “Touya! Who told you--?”
Akira interrupted. “You told your mother that I’m your best friend.” He paused, then his voice took on an odd note. “ I am?” He didn’t look at Hikaru, but seemed to focus on brushing the wrinkles from his jacket. There was a hint of pink in his cheeks that didn’t seem to have anything to do with the exertion of running ten city blocks. “Really?”
“Yeah.” Hikaru liked the blush. He felt one starting on his own cheeks. “Hell, yeah!”
Akira put his jacket on with elaborate care, still avoiding Hikaru’s gaze, and said: “You’re my best friend, too.”
“Cool.” Hikaru couldn’t help the grin. “Now, Best Friend, stop trying to change the subject and tell me how you knew--"
Akira blurted: “I heard you call my name.”
“Hah?”
{{Ohhhh,}} Sai said wisely. {{That makes sense.}}
{{No, it doesn’t,}} Hikaru said silently. {{What’s he talking about?}}
{{When you died,}} Sai explained. {{That is, when you temporarily died, your soul must have called out to him.}}
Akira’s pink blush had turned crimson. “Sorry. That sounds weird.”
“No,” Hikaru assured him hastily. “Mom says they lost me on the table for about thirty seconds. So, it makes sense.”
Akira gazed at him searchingly. “Does it?”
Fearing he sounded like an idiot, Hikaru flapped his hand dismissively. “Sure, sure. I mean, you hear stories about that kind of thing all the time.”
“Yes, I suppose that’s true.” Akira seemed to relax a little. “I’ve also heard that some people see strange things in a near-death experience. Like a tunnel or…a white light.”
“Well, I sort of saw something. But not exactly a tunnel or whatever.” It was the perfect opening. Relying on his drugged-up state to lend him courage, Hikaru said: “Do you believe in ghosts?”
“Well,” Akira said slowly, “I don’t disbelieve in them. I know a few perfectly rational people who are convinced they’ve seen apparitions, or felt the presence of lost loved ones…or…or heard things they couldn’t explain.” His gaze sharpened. “Are you saying that you…?”
Hikaru nodded. “Remember Sai?”
“Of course I remember Sai, you idiot! Sai was--"
“--Sai was a ghost.”
Akira froze.
Hikaru plowed on: “Sai was a ghost who started haunting me--well, lessee--I guess it was just a few days before I met you.” He tried to measure Akira’s reaction, wondering if he had made a terrible mistake in finally confessing the truth. “I know it sounds crazy, but I swear I’m not kidding around. I really--”
“I believe you.” Akira spoke calmly; his expression turned contemplative, and he relaxed a bit more. “In fact, that makes perfect sense of everything.” He curled his hand into a loose fist and pressed his bent forefinger to his chin, clearly reviewing his memories. “That’s why your abilities shifted so dramatically from nearly perfect to absolutely awful. Sai was in possession of your body and--"
“No!” Hikaru interrupted. “Not like that! Sai wasn’t that kind of ghost!”
Akira raised his brows. “Pardon?”
“Sai just told me where to place the stones. He never took over my body.” And since Sai was back, standing right beside Touya, and smiling that sweet smile of his, Hikaru added, “Sai was really kind and patient. Not scary. Gentle, you know?”
Sai’s eyes filled with tears. {{Hikaru,}} he said tremulously, then covered his face with his opened fan.
“He was my constant companion,” Hikaru continued, “until the day he disappeared.”
Akira leaned forward in his seat. “Disappeared?” he repeated. “Was that when--?”
“When I stopped playing. Yeah.”
Sai lowered his fan, his large eyes stretched wide with disbelief and disapproval. {{Ehhhh?!}}
At that moment, the room gave itself a slow, lazy spin. Something in the IV, definitely. “I was grieving,” Hikaru explained to both Sai and Akira. “I’d just lost my beloved big brother, and I couldn’t tell anyone.”
Akira sat motionless for a second, then averted his face. “You could have told me.”
“No, I couldn’t’ve, idiot! Not back then, when you still had a stick up your butt!”
Akira’s lips thinned. “Yes,” he said firmly, pointedly ignoring the jibe. “You could’ve.”
Hikaru giggled. “Oh, so, now you tell me!”
Sai looked distraught. {{Hikaru, I’m sorry! I didn’t want to leave you! I’m sorry, I’m sorry!}}
Hikaru silently urged Sai not to worry about it. {{You’re back now, right?}}
Akira still sat with his head bowed. “If…if you ever need…that is….” He jerked his head up, eyes blazing. “Next time you have something you need to say, promise you’ll tell me.”
Whatever was in the IV seemed to be gaining on him. Hikaru tried to raise his arm, but it felt too heavy. The room revolved again, which was kind of fun, like an amusement park ride. “Okay. Two things to start. First, I’m desperately in love with you, Touya. And second, when I--"
The door opened, and Hikaru’s mother bustled in, followed by a nurse. This was a different nurse than earlier; an older woman with a sympathetic expression, who nodded in an understanding fashion from time to time while his mom rattled on about the traumatic events of the night before.
Akira shot to his feet and bowed.
This struck Hikaru as hilarious for some reason, and he burst into laughter.
“Ah, Touya-san,” his mom said. “Thank you for staying with Hikaru. How is he doing?”
Akira glanced doubtfully toward the bed. “He seems to be a little…peculiar. Is he on a sedative?”
“Hey,” Hikaru protested, “’he’ can hear you.”
His mom crossed to the bed and tidied the blankets. “Then he needs to go to sleep like a good boy, so he can get well.”
The attention was embarrassing, but Hikaru lacked the resolve to protest out loud. Besides, the blankets felt much more comfortable now.
Akira went to the door. “I’ll make arrangements with the Institute. I’m sure there won’t be any problem rescheduling his games."
Hikaru abruptly recalled that he had something important to tell Akira. “Hey, Touya!”
Akira paused and glanced over his shoulder.
It was hard to think, hard to speak, and hard to keep his eyes open, but Hikaru managed to say: “Second thing: Sai’s back.”
Akira’s stunned expression was a delicious sight to fall asleep to. Hikaru succumbed to the sedative with a smile on his lips.
TO BE CONTINUED….
Durffy (bouncing like a puppy): “Was that a good cliffhanger? Was it? Huh? Huh? Huh?
The Seeker (chuckles indulgently)
Durffy: You’re laughing! I’ve never seen you laugh! I didn’t know you could!
The Seeker: Just because you haven't seen it, doesn't mean I can't.
Rating: probably G
Disclaimer: I don’t own this series, and I intend no copyright infringement
Notes: Thanks to my cool and erudite friend, The Seeker, for making sure I dotted all the “i’s” and crossed all the “t’s.” And for suggesting the use of {{braces}} to indicate silent communication between Sai and Hikaru.
Durffy: Should I warn them that there aren’t any “sticky bits” in this chapter yet either?
The Seeker: Yes, I think you should.
Durffy: Do you think they’ll still read it?
The Seeker: …….
Return of the Go Master
Part II
Akira sat bolt upright on his bed, shocked out of sleep by the sound of someone screaming his name.
He found himself alone in his bedroom.
It was still dark outside. Akira wiped his sweating forehead with the back of his hand and glanced at the digital alarm clock on his bedside table. It was 1:39 in the morning. Sighing, he settled his head on the pillow again. “Just a dream,” he muttered. “Forget it.”
The scream had sounded like Shindou Hikaru, crying out in pain and fear. And it had seemed so real, as if Shindou called to him for help from within the room.
Akira’s pulse was still racing, but he told himself that the brain could play a lot of strange tricks in one’s sleep. He had probably heard something from outside, like a birdcall, or a dog barking. It was nothing.
He closed his eyes, then a new thought occurred to him, and he sat up again. Maybe it was Shindou. Maybe he was outside, perhaps drunk, and howling to be let in because he had locked himself out of his apartment.
Akira climbed out of bed and hurried through the dark house. He wanted to open the gate before Shindou felt obliged to disturb the neighbors again.
Torn between worry and vexation, Akira slipped out the front door barefoot and in his pajamas. He padded down the stone path to the gate and paused with his hand on the latch. “Shindou?”
There was no reply.
Akira slid the gate open and peered out onto the dark and deserted street.
No one was there.
With the nape of his neck prickling, Akira shut the gate. Then he locked it. He hurried back to the house, trying not to think about how strange and creepy the garden seemed at night. When he got inside, he turned on the lights in the front room.
This was like a muttered conversation he had once overheard on a train. One salary-man telling another that he had heard his father call his name at 11 o’clock, only to discover in the morning that his father had passed away at that time.
Akira shuddered, then felt disgusted with his own over-active imagination. “This is stupid,” he said aloud. “There’s nothing wrong with Shindou.”
But instead of returning to bed, he went to the phone and punched in Shindou’s number. Akira didn’t offer himself reasons for his actions, and he didn’t think about how inconsiderate it was to call anyone at such an hour.
When the answering machine picked up, Akira simply pressed the ‘end’ button. “There’s nothing wrong with Shindou,” he repeated fiercely. Then he dialed the number for the hospital Shindou’s family favored, and checked for recent admissions.
Less than three minutes later, Akira sprinted through the gate. Left it open. Unlocked.
He ran through the streets like a wounded animal. His only coherent thought was to get to the hospital, and all other practical considerations were swallowed by a tumult of anxiety and rage. He didn’t want to waste time waiting for a train or trying to catch a taxi. He wanted to get to Shindou Hikaru.
Dawn tinted the sky by the time he arrived at the hospital lobby. His lungs felt like they were on fire. His legs wobbled with fatigue. He barely had enough breath to rasp out the request for a room number to the receptionist. She tried to direct him to the emergency entrance, before he pulled himself together enough to explain that he was not in need of medical help; he was there to visit a friend.
Still looking doubtful, she told him that the room number was 211. And then she reminded him that it was four in the morning. Visiting hours began at ten.
Akira thanked her, and asked if the hospital had a cafeteria. She replied that it was one level down. He thanked her again, crossed to the elevator, and took it to the second floor.
The next few minutes passed in a blur. He supposed he behaved rather badly. Agitated hospital staff threatened to call for security. Akira ignored them, and flung open the door to 211.
***
The door burst open, and Touya Akira exploded into the hospital room.
Hikaru, his mother, and Sai all jumped.
Akira planted himself defiantly near the foot of the bed, panting and glaring, hands clenched into fists. His long hair was a mess. He wore a lime green/electric orange striped pajama shirt half tucked into a pair of black jeans. His jacket was all twisted up in back, so that it was more or less just a pair of sleeves with a short cape.
Hikaru felt as if his heart began to expand and glow. Happened every time he unexpectedly spotted Akira. His grin widened.
{{Ah,}} Sai said, sounding pleased, {{isn’t this Touya-kun?}} He pressed his folded fan to his chin and added: {{My, hasn’t he grown up nicely?}}
His mother looked apprehensive. “Who--?”
Hikaru patted his mother’s hand reassuringly. “You remember Touya Akira, right? He’s my best friend.”
She blinked in confusion, but rose and bowed. “Nice to meet you again.”
Akira also blinked, as if awakening from sleep. He dropped the aggressive posture and returned her bow. “The pleasure is mine,” he said hoarsely. Then he staggered a bit and caught hold of the footboard to steady himself. “I apologize for intruding.”
Hikaru, fearing that Akira would leave, waved his hand dismissively. “It’s fine, it’s fine.” Thinking fast, he continued: “Besides, I was going to ask Mom to call you, anyway. I need you to contact the Institute for me and re-arrange my game schedule.”
His mother’s expression cleared, and she smiled at Akira and bowed again. “Oh, if it’s not too much trouble for you, that would be such a help to me. I’m terrible with that sort of thing.”
At that moment, a uniformed security guard and a grim nurse marched into the room. “Sir,” the guard said to Akira, “I must ask you to leave. Visiting hours don’t begin until ten. If you will come with me now, I’ll take you--”
Hikaru’s mother made a noise like an angry hen. “Excuse me!” She inserted herself between the guard and Akira. “This young man is here because we want him here! Take yourself away!” She pointed at the nurse. “And you! You said ten minutes ago that you’d bring a cup of ice chips for my son, and we’re still waiting!”
The nurse and the guard quailed. Hikaru didn’t blame them. His mother had gone into full-blown scary mode again.
“The staff at this hospital has a lot to answer for!” His mother advanced on the guard and nurse, backing them out the door. “You almost sent my only child away to die in pain! You almost murdered him on the operating table! You unnecessarily bruised his arm with a clumsily placed IV needle! You--" She stopped and turned a sweet smile on Akira. “Touya-san, may I impose upon you to stay with Hikaru while I make phone calls to my husband, my father, and our family attorney?”
Akira stared at her. “Happy to help.”
“Thank you so much.” She turned on her glare again and resumed stalking toward the guard and nurse. “--jostled him on the gurney! You forgot to bring the ice chips! You tried to arrest a family friend who selflessly came so early in the morning to help us with--" She herded them into the hallway and closed the door. Hikaru could still hear her outside.
Akira stared at the door, seeming stunned.
Hikaru giggled. “Mom’s had a bad morning. She’s not usually like that.”
Akira slowly turned his stare to Hikaru. His face was pale; his eyes rimmed with red.
Sai drew close to Akira and peered at him. {{Touya-kun seems ready to collapse. Perhaps you ought to invite him to sit down?}}
Hikaru cleared his throat. “Hey, you look like shit.” He waved to an empty chair. “Grab a seat before you fall, idiot.”
Akira didn’t rise to the insult. He merely stumbled to the chair and fell into it. Sprawled into it, actually, with his head flung back, his eyes closed, his legs out straight, and his flat belly jerking to every panting breath. The dorky pajama shirt almost looked cool, the way it sexily hung out of the waistband of his jeans, and it was conveniently loose enough at the neck to fall revealingly away from his superb throat and collarbone.
Sai crossed to the chair and surveyed Akira from head to foot. {{It would seem,}} he said in a musing tone, {{that Touya-kun has run from some distance.}}
Hikaru silently agreed, the guy had a bad habit of launching into a sprint marathon whenever he wanted to get somewhere fast. Too single-minded for his own good, he thought; then spoke aloud. “Hey, Touya, just how far did you run?”
“From my house.”
Hikaru mentally calculated the distance and decided it was do-able, if you didn’t want to wait for a taxi. “That was dumb.”
“I know.”
Sai looked reproachfully at Hikaru. {{Don’t say things like that! He came here just to see you!}}
{{True.}} Hikaru’s heart began to warm and expand in his chest again. “But thanks for coming,” he added. “Really.”
Akira opened his eyes and looked at him then. “What happened? Why did you need surgery?”
Hikaru felt a moment of confusion. “Huh? Oh.” He pointed at his midriff with his thumb. “Hot appendix.” The confusion flickered into being again. “Thought you knew that. Thought that’s why you were here.”
Akira slowly sat up straight, pulling his limbs into a decent posture. “Admissions only said it was emergency surgery.”
“Oh.” Hikaru found it hard to think. He wondered if the shock of the whole mess was beginning to catch up with him. Or maybe there was a sedative in the IV. “Who told you I was at the hospital?”
Akira seemed to realize his dishabille and pulled his pajama shirt straight and tucked it in. Then he tried to adjust his jacket and had to take it off to get it untwisted.
When he was sure Akira didn’t intend to answer his question, Hikaru injected a note of irritation into his voice. “Touya! Who told you--?”
Akira interrupted. “You told your mother that I’m your best friend.” He paused, then his voice took on an odd note. “ I am?” He didn’t look at Hikaru, but seemed to focus on brushing the wrinkles from his jacket. There was a hint of pink in his cheeks that didn’t seem to have anything to do with the exertion of running ten city blocks. “Really?”
“Yeah.” Hikaru liked the blush. He felt one starting on his own cheeks. “Hell, yeah!”
Akira put his jacket on with elaborate care, still avoiding Hikaru’s gaze, and said: “You’re my best friend, too.”
“Cool.” Hikaru couldn’t help the grin. “Now, Best Friend, stop trying to change the subject and tell me how you knew--"
Akira blurted: “I heard you call my name.”
“Hah?”
{{Ohhhh,}} Sai said wisely. {{That makes sense.}}
{{No, it doesn’t,}} Hikaru said silently. {{What’s he talking about?}}
{{When you died,}} Sai explained. {{That is, when you temporarily died, your soul must have called out to him.}}
Akira’s pink blush had turned crimson. “Sorry. That sounds weird.”
“No,” Hikaru assured him hastily. “Mom says they lost me on the table for about thirty seconds. So, it makes sense.”
Akira gazed at him searchingly. “Does it?”
Fearing he sounded like an idiot, Hikaru flapped his hand dismissively. “Sure, sure. I mean, you hear stories about that kind of thing all the time.”
“Yes, I suppose that’s true.” Akira seemed to relax a little. “I’ve also heard that some people see strange things in a near-death experience. Like a tunnel or…a white light.”
“Well, I sort of saw something. But not exactly a tunnel or whatever.” It was the perfect opening. Relying on his drugged-up state to lend him courage, Hikaru said: “Do you believe in ghosts?”
“Well,” Akira said slowly, “I don’t disbelieve in them. I know a few perfectly rational people who are convinced they’ve seen apparitions, or felt the presence of lost loved ones…or…or heard things they couldn’t explain.” His gaze sharpened. “Are you saying that you…?”
Hikaru nodded. “Remember Sai?”
“Of course I remember Sai, you idiot! Sai was--"
“--Sai was a ghost.”
Akira froze.
Hikaru plowed on: “Sai was a ghost who started haunting me--well, lessee--I guess it was just a few days before I met you.” He tried to measure Akira’s reaction, wondering if he had made a terrible mistake in finally confessing the truth. “I know it sounds crazy, but I swear I’m not kidding around. I really--”
“I believe you.” Akira spoke calmly; his expression turned contemplative, and he relaxed a bit more. “In fact, that makes perfect sense of everything.” He curled his hand into a loose fist and pressed his bent forefinger to his chin, clearly reviewing his memories. “That’s why your abilities shifted so dramatically from nearly perfect to absolutely awful. Sai was in possession of your body and--"
“No!” Hikaru interrupted. “Not like that! Sai wasn’t that kind of ghost!”
Akira raised his brows. “Pardon?”
“Sai just told me where to place the stones. He never took over my body.” And since Sai was back, standing right beside Touya, and smiling that sweet smile of his, Hikaru added, “Sai was really kind and patient. Not scary. Gentle, you know?”
Sai’s eyes filled with tears. {{Hikaru,}} he said tremulously, then covered his face with his opened fan.
“He was my constant companion,” Hikaru continued, “until the day he disappeared.”
Akira leaned forward in his seat. “Disappeared?” he repeated. “Was that when--?”
“When I stopped playing. Yeah.”
Sai lowered his fan, his large eyes stretched wide with disbelief and disapproval. {{Ehhhh?!}}
At that moment, the room gave itself a slow, lazy spin. Something in the IV, definitely. “I was grieving,” Hikaru explained to both Sai and Akira. “I’d just lost my beloved big brother, and I couldn’t tell anyone.”
Akira sat motionless for a second, then averted his face. “You could have told me.”
“No, I couldn’t’ve, idiot! Not back then, when you still had a stick up your butt!”
Akira’s lips thinned. “Yes,” he said firmly, pointedly ignoring the jibe. “You could’ve.”
Hikaru giggled. “Oh, so, now you tell me!”
Sai looked distraught. {{Hikaru, I’m sorry! I didn’t want to leave you! I’m sorry, I’m sorry!}}
Hikaru silently urged Sai not to worry about it. {{You’re back now, right?}}
Akira still sat with his head bowed. “If…if you ever need…that is….” He jerked his head up, eyes blazing. “Next time you have something you need to say, promise you’ll tell me.”
Whatever was in the IV seemed to be gaining on him. Hikaru tried to raise his arm, but it felt too heavy. The room revolved again, which was kind of fun, like an amusement park ride. “Okay. Two things to start. First, I’m desperately in love with you, Touya. And second, when I--"
The door opened, and Hikaru’s mother bustled in, followed by a nurse. This was a different nurse than earlier; an older woman with a sympathetic expression, who nodded in an understanding fashion from time to time while his mom rattled on about the traumatic events of the night before.
Akira shot to his feet and bowed.
This struck Hikaru as hilarious for some reason, and he burst into laughter.
“Ah, Touya-san,” his mom said. “Thank you for staying with Hikaru. How is he doing?”
Akira glanced doubtfully toward the bed. “He seems to be a little…peculiar. Is he on a sedative?”
“Hey,” Hikaru protested, “’he’ can hear you.”
His mom crossed to the bed and tidied the blankets. “Then he needs to go to sleep like a good boy, so he can get well.”
The attention was embarrassing, but Hikaru lacked the resolve to protest out loud. Besides, the blankets felt much more comfortable now.
Akira went to the door. “I’ll make arrangements with the Institute. I’m sure there won’t be any problem rescheduling his games."
Hikaru abruptly recalled that he had something important to tell Akira. “Hey, Touya!”
Akira paused and glanced over his shoulder.
It was hard to think, hard to speak, and hard to keep his eyes open, but Hikaru managed to say: “Second thing: Sai’s back.”
Akira’s stunned expression was a delicious sight to fall asleep to. Hikaru succumbed to the sedative with a smile on his lips.
TO BE CONTINUED….
Durffy (bouncing like a puppy): “Was that a good cliffhanger? Was it? Huh? Huh? Huh?
The Seeker (chuckles indulgently)
Durffy: You’re laughing! I’ve never seen you laugh! I didn’t know you could!
The Seeker: Just because you haven't seen it, doesn't mean I can't.