Chapter Text
“Merumeru? C’mon, we gotta get on stage, y’know.” A familiar, energetic, yet somewhat concerned voice resounded from behind.
HiMERU looked up, noticing he was staring at the floor for longer than necessary. Something felt off, yet he couldn't pinpoint what it was.
Fatigue? Perhaps, but they were just before their live, not after. Maybe lack of sleep? He couldn't let it show in his performance, though.
“... Apologies, Amagi. HiMERU is coming.” He followed behind the others, seeing their concerned stares made him feel… odd.
This was probably the first time he wasn't in top shape before a live performance. But once again, he couldn't let it show. He's HiMERU, after all. The perfect idol.
As he stepped onto the stage, everything felt fuzzy. The warm lights were dizzying, obscuring his view, giving him a headache. The loud shouts of the crowd were overwhelming him, which has never happened before. He's supposed to cheer up the audience even more, not want them to quiet down.
Rinne’s loud shouts and running across the stage made him feel tired just from staring and listening. He felt disconnected from his body, as if it went on autopilot, but his mind was somewhere else, unable to come back.
He felt himself dancing, following the choreography, and singing. But it all felt odd. A few songs in, he couldn't see much past the sudden blur obscuring his vision, as HiMERU felt himself bump into someone, before his mind and body completely shut down.
…
The only noise in the room was the sound of the IV dripping down, and the heartbeat monitor going off at a steady pace.
Rinne sat down, holding HiMERU’s hand, rubbing his thumb on the unconscious man’s knuckles in a soothing way. He didn't look relaxed in his sleep, something was probably still hurting him, even if he was supposed to get rest.
Kohaku was sitting next to him, scrolling through his phone instead. Apparently Aira was watching their live, and got really concerned after seeing the accident, asking if the two affected were okay. More and more people were hearing the news, so more and more of them were texting him.
Niki was sitting on a different seat, holding his left leg on yet another chair for support, holding an ice pack on his ankle.
“Niki-han, ‘s your ankle better now?” Kohaku questioned, his voice quiet, to prevent waking HiMERU up.
“Mm, it's alright, Kohaku-chan. It hurts a little, but the doctor said it'll get better soon!” Niki smiled, trying to cheer the pink haired boy up. “I didn't think HiMERU-kun would collapse onto me like that…” He laughed nervously.
The room atmosphere was somewhat tense. They felt bad for their fans, who paid for the concert tickets, waiting to see the show. But they were more concerned about HiMERU instead.
…
HiMERU stirred in his bed, noticing how uncomfortable and unfamiliar it felt. It wasn't his bed, but he didn't remember Crazy:B traveling recently either…? Did he fall asleep in a random dorm?
His senses started coming back, though. He felt the uncomfortable IV in his arm, and someone else's hand on his own.
He stirred uneasily, trying to open his eyes, but it was too bright to do so. He covered them with his other hand, accidentally feeling the cold sweat on his forehead. Has it been there before?
He recognized the smell in the room. It was the same scent as he'd always feel walking into Kaname’s hospital room, the same scent that he'd feel when hearing horrible news, the same scent that he'd feel when sitting next to the real HiMERU’s unconscious body.
It made him want to throw up.
His heart rate sped up, which resounded in his ears as well. God, the monitor was so loud now, piercing his eardrums, hurting his head. He felt the warmth of someone's hand squeeze his, as another hand brushed his hair off his face.
He could almost hear someone's voice, yet it was deafened in his mind by his louder thoughts. Kaname, Kaname. It was all that he could think about. Were they in the same hospital now? Would anyone find out? Maybe they know now? Wouldn't his patient card show his real name? He'd get in trouble, wouldn't he?
“Hey, Merumeru!” A rough hand shook his shoulder, pulling his hand away from his face.
The room wasn't so bright anymore, someone must've turned off the lights.
“Merumeru, you alright?” HiMERU dared to open his eyes, just enough to see the person in front of him. It was Amagi, staring with his cerulean eyes into his bright yellow ones.
He could see Shiina and Oukawa next to Amagi as well. They all seemed really concerned, Oukawa checking the heartbeat monitor, Amagi squeezing his hand, and Shiina… limping, next to the bed?
“Hey, are you with us Merumeru? What's wrong?” It felt strange seeing Amagi in such distress. HiMERU felt bad, even.
“I’m sorry…– No, HiMERU is sorry…” He let it slip. He really couldn't keep his composure up right now.
“You can drop the act for now, HiMERU-kun…” Niki added reassuringly. “Are you alright? The doctors said you could get out of the hospital soon, if you feel better.”
The smell of the room was dizzying him. Everything was making him uncomfortable. He had to get out of here.
“Please. Please, let's get out.” HiMERU didn't like sounding desperate, but drastic times called for drastic measures. He finished his sentence with a cough, running out of breath pretty easily. Was he really that weak now?
Shiina and Amagi nodded towards Oukawa, who headed out of the room, possibly to find a nurse.
“Why didn't ya tell us yer sick?” Amagi spoke up. “It could've ended with a bigger injury than Niki-kyun’s ankle, ya know. What if his wrist got injured as well? He wouldn't be able to cook fer us!” Amagi laughed, more quietly than usual. Shiina gave him an annoyed glare, but the redhead didn't care much.
“... Shiina’s ankle?” HiMERU seemed pretty confused. He didn't remember what happened at all, even though he could see the gray haired boy limping.
“Oh, do you not remember? You passed out on stage, and you fell over on me… At least I caught you, but it cost me my ankle, nahaha…” Shiina laughed nervously.
Before HiMERU could form an answer, or an apology, Kohaku walked back into the room, together with a nurse.
…
Rinne drove back HiMERU, Kohaku and Niki back to their apartment. It was pretty late in the evening at this point, and everyone fell asleep in the car, except for HiMERU.
“HiMERU’s sorry.” He spoke up, careful not to disturb the others.
“Nn? For what?” Amagi looked over at HiMERU, while trying to consistently keep his eyes on the road as well.
“For today's mistake. He didn't mean to ruin the live this way.” He leaned over on the window, covering himself with a hoodie that Amagi draped over him. His fever was still high, and he was getting cold shivers.
Amagi simply sighed, staying quiet for a while.
“At least yer alright now. Well, not really, but yer getting better. Niki-kyun’s not deadly injured either, and we’re getting ya home safely.” Amagi answered. “We'll nurse ya back to health, alright?”
HiMERU nodded, still unsure, yet looking forward to his recovery.