Stand By Me Prologue, Hikaru/Akira
Last edited: 02/17/08
Akira clutched the glass of coffee in his hands tightly. What exactly did they mean by ‘accident’? He leaned over his knees, staring at the floor intently, hoping to quell the quivering that was slowly overtaking his body. His dark hair fell at the sides of his face, hanging helplessly. What do they mean? Akira asked himself over and over again.
"Akira..." He turned his head to make out his mother’s soft eyes and her lips pulled back into a grim line; her attempt to keep calm was much better than his. "Don’t worry. I’m sure everything is fine. Everything is fine..." Akira knew those words were just as much for her as they were for him. As his mother’s shaky hand tried to steady itself on his shoulder, the world around him suddenly magnified. Ashiwara’s voice felt violent and loud in his conversation with a nurse, and Ogata’s constant pacing back and forth, back and forth, was thundering.
Akira’s hands began to shake around the coffee mug in his grip and life slowly drained out of every pore of his skin. His head hung loose, pulling, straining against his neck. His head hung loose, as thoughts barrelled in and out and in his head. How could he just sit there waiting? What was going on? Why was it taking so long?
And why had there been so much blood?
The mug shattered once it hit the tile, spilling hot coffee all over the floor of the hospital waiting room.
"Akira-kun..." Ashiwara’s voice and the sound of his quick steps filled the waiting room as the sounds coming from other occupants ceased. "Try to calm down." Yet another hand was placed on his back, as the older go professional tried to soothe the boy. Akira ignored the help and jumped up, the coffee splashing at his feet.
"Calm down? How can I possibly calm down?" he cried. "My father is in the hospital!" He paid no attention as the entire waiting room continued to watch him, the boy causing an outburst.
"Akira." This time it came from Ogata. "Take a walk." It took a moment before Akira regained his senses and to realize the scene he was causing.
"I’m sorry for the disturbance," Akira apologized quietly and he gave a bow to the others around him. When he looked back towards Ogata, the murmurs had finally begun once again.
"I’ll be right back..."
Taking a deep breath, Akira slowly made his way towards the hospital’s entrance, hoping the fresh air would help calm his nerves. Akira wasn't sure how to gain control and he felt lost when he wasn't in from of a goban.
"Why," slipped past his lips when he reached the entrance. He couldn’t understand how, if there was a God, how He could let this happen. Akira didn’t know what he had ever done in order to deserve this. And suddenly, he needed to fight back tears that so desperately wanted to escape. Fists clenched at his sides. Nothing is certain yet, Akira said to himself, trying to hang onto what small figment of hope that still remained.
"Touya!" Akira spun around in the direction of the voice. Shindou? He thought, what’s he doing here? Through the evading evening darkness he saw a boy with the ridiculous bleached bangs run up to him.
"Shindou."
"Touya! Are you alright? I heard from Ichikawa at the go salon. I knew something was wrong when you didn’t show up." The movement of Akira’s lips felt heavy, too heavy to speak. "Are you alright?" Hikaru repeated.
"I-" he began but then stopped.
"Touya, it’s ok," Hikaru said slowly. "Come on, let’s go inside." Akira slowly nodded and allowed Hikaru to lead him inside the hospital. He was so numb with anxiety he didn’t even notice the hand on his arm.
"It’s ok," repeated Hikaru as he guided Akira back into the hospital waiting room. The dark irises searched the room---the nurses still there, coffee that lay spilt on the floor decorated with bits of broken mug was still there, bright, overwhelming lighting, still there…
…but his mother was not.
"Where are they?" said Akira a tinge of hope immediately fluttering inside his chest, "They went to see him. Shindou, they went to see him!" As Akira willed his legs to move, a sudden squeeze around his arm caused him to look towards his friend.
"Touya…" Hikaru’s voice soft, slightly raspy, tinged with worry.
"Let’s go."
"Touya…" Hikaru repeated again but Akira only ignored him, choosing to pull him down a corridor instead.
They were faced with nothing but countless halls, all with the same fluorescent lighting, and impeccable white walls, that occasionally revealed a pair of swinging doors. Together they walked the halls, not knowing, yet knowing all the same where to go---at least what they were looking for. And when the familiar figure of Ashiwara finally came into view, Akira found himself detaching from Hikaru and running to meet them.
"Ashiwara-san. Ogata-sensei. What’s going on?" Akira demanded. "Is he alright? How is he? My father, how is he?" Akira faced the two men eagerly, waiting to hear those words that would calm his fighting heart.
"Ashiwara-san! My father, please." Slight panic now had risen in Akira’s voice. "Ashiwara-san!"
But Ashiwara did say a word; his lips wouldn't move and tears streamed down his face.
"Touya…" Hikaru whispered from behind but Akira could barely hear his voice.
Akira clutched his head, why was the room spinning? His feet fumbling beneath him sent him backwards against the cold, stiff wall. It couldn’t be true…it just couldn’t. It just couldn’t be true.
The doors suddenly opened, and there, Akira’s mother stood between the swinging doors. The features of her face were pulled into an expression he couldn’t---didn’t want to---decipher.
"He-" The tears flowing down her face. "Kouyou. My Kouyou." As Akira’s body went numb, whole weight relying on the wall, he was still unprepared when the next words escaped past his mother’s lips.
"...Gone..."
He could hear nothing above the sounds of her sobs.
"It’s not true!" he cried, "You’re lying! H-how.. Could..." How could the man he looked up to his entire life be gone?
"Akira-kun…" said Ashiwara, his arm reached out.
"No!" Akira pushed off the wall to firmly swipe away the arm. "No!" He instead braced himself with one hand as he stared blankly at his mother.
As Ashiwara backed away, Ogata made no attempt to console. His back was already up against the other wall. Hikaru on the other hand, reached out and placed strong hands on Akira’s shoulders, who in return tried to push his rival away, but the other teenager had a fierce grip.
"It’s not true!"
"Touya!" Hands on Akira’s shoulders shook him.
"No!" Akira made out, but when he tried to repeat himself, his voice failed him. All he had left was an extreme burning sensation in his chest that was spreading across his body.
"Just let it out," Hikaru whispered. "Kick. Scream. Cry. Shout." But already Akira’s energy had drained him, leaving him limp and barely standing.
Akira’s shoulder's heaved and his face contorted as he watched his mother cry into her hands. His body, to weak to hold himself up, was suddenly supported by a strong embrace. As Akira felt the warm body behind him and a solid arm across his chest, his legs gave out and he leaned forward as his body began to cry.
Akira’s one hand covered his eyes, while the other squeezed tightly around Hikaru’s arm. The unyielding body holding him together was Akira’s only solace.
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